US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner and Microsoft Corp co-founder Bill Gates announced on Wednesday their plans to launch a global agricultural fund aimed at increasing food production in developing countries. The Global Agriculture and Food Security Program will be unveiled in Washington on Thursday to assist farmers in growing more food and improving their income. In an article in the Wall Street Journal, Gates and Geithner highlighted the importance of helping small farmers and impoverished individuals who are likely to face food insecurity due to population growth and climate change-induced water shortages. The fund was initially proposed by the US at a Group of Eight meeting in Italy in 2008, with the goal of encouraging countries to collaborate and invest in agriculture in the world's most impoverished nations. Gates and Geithner announced that commitments for the fund will reach nearly $900 million by 2012, with contributions from Canada, Spain, and South Korea. The fund, overseen by the World Bank, aims to provide financing to impoverished nations with high levels of food insecurity and effective agricultural plans to improve crop production. Investments will focus on infrastructure to connect farmers to markets, promote sustainable water management, and enhance access to superior seeds and technologies. The surge in global food prices in 2008 underscored the ongoing lack of investment in agriculture in developing countries, where the majority of the impoverished reside in rural areas. The Gates Foundation has a history of funding projects aimed at boosting agricultural production for small-scale farmers in Africa and other regions. They have a strong focus on improving access to food, collaborating closely with the United Nations' World Food Programme. Despite the world producing enough food to eradicate hunger, over 1 billion people suffer from food insecurity due to financial constraints or lack of access to supplies.