Pronaf offers a variety of credit lines designed for family farmers, with the goal of diversifying support and addressing the needs of specific groups within the sector. Each credit line comes with its own financing limits and interest rates.

Key credit lines under Pronaf include those for agrarian reform settlers, participants in the National Land Credit Program and the Land Registration and Regularization Program, as well as Indigenous peoples, Quilombola communities, women, and rural youth.

Pronaf aims to promote the sustainable development of rural areas through actions designed to increase productive capacity, generate employment, and raise income, with the goal of improving the quality of life and fostering citizenship among family farmers. The program supports both agricultural and non-agricultural activities carried out by family farmers on their rural properties or in nearby rural-urban clusters, offering credit lines tailored to their needs.
A valid National Registry of Family Farming (CAF-Pronaf) is required to obtain financing under Pronaf. This registration must be issued for the family production unit, covering all family members involved in managing the same rural property and cultivating the same land areas. The registration may be adapted to meet specific characteristics of Pronaf beneficiaries.

Pronaf is implemented by public and private banks, BNDES (Brazilian Development Bank), and rural credit cooperatives. Rural credit operations under Pronaf enable family farmers to finance the purchase of inputs and seeds, and to cover the costs of their activities, such as corn cultivation, rice and bean production, horticulture, medicinal herbs, sociobiodiversity products, agroecological production systems, organic systems, dairy cattle farming, egg-laying poultry, aquaculture and fishing, environmentally sustainable extractivism, investments in rural housing, seedling nurseries, rural tourism, and handicrafts. The credit lines aimed at the poorest family farmers offer the most favorable conditions, including interest rates starting at 0.5% and compliance bonuses ranging from 25% to 40%. By cross-referencing Pronaf implementation data with the Unified Registry for Federal Social Programs (Cadastro Único)—which includes families in poverty and vulnerable situations—between 2013 and 2025, it is observed that a significant portion of the credits were granted to farmers listed in this registry. Approximately 58% of the individuals who accessed Pronaf credit are or have been included in the Cadastro Único. When analyzing the data by gender, the presence of women farmers stands out even more: over 75% of the women who accessed Pronaf credit are or have been included in the Cadastro Único.

- Number of Family Farmers Accessing Credit through Pronaf

- Percentage Participation of Women, Youth, Indigenous Peoples, Quilombola Communities, and Other Traditional Peoples and Communities (PCTs) in Pronaf

- Number of Rural Credit Contracts Issued through Pronaf


In 2024, there were 983,094 total Pronaf B operations: 54% women, 18.27% young people, 0.02% quilombolas, and 0.45% Indigenous people.


The number of operations, the volume of credit lent, as well as the average ticket is available at the program's monitoring dashboard: https://app.powerbi.com/view?r=eyJrIjoiNWRhN2JkOTUtYzcxMC00MWZkLWEwMzctYTVkNGQ2NWEzNGJiIiwidCI6IjYwYjYzMTk0LTAwNTgtNDE4YS04MzM1LWIyNDk2MDkxMzJjMSJ9

Volume of Resources Applied in Pronaf B from the Federal Budget (OGU) and the Constitutional Funds of the North, Northeast, and Central-West Regions (FNO, FNE, and FCO, respectively).

In 2024, the funding sources were as follows: OGU – R$ 33,975,796.95; FNE – R$ 7,030,941,449.33; FNO – R$ 27,471,846.74; and FCO – R$ 25,000.00.

Multisector Governance, involving the Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Farming, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Planning and Budget and the Central Bank; Public hearing of Civil Society Organizations through the Rural Credit Committee of the MDA's CONDRAF (National Council on Sustainable Rural Development).

The Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Farming monitors the availability and application of resources and submits proposals for adjustments to credit regulations to the National Monetary Council, while the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Planning manage the budgetary aspects of rural credit implementation.

The National Program for Strengthening Family Farming (Pronaf) has undergone significant reforms since its inception and has been the focus of numerous academic studies (VALADARES, 2021). The program is widely regarded as effective in better integrating family farmers into the market and enhancing the agricultural income of its beneficiaries.

It has also been recognized for promoting positive changes in female livelihoods, especially in women headed households (SANTOS and RODRIGUES, 2023).

More broadly, SILVA and CIRÍACO (2022) suggest that Pronaf increases the income of the beneficiary family by 29.3 percent on average.

References:
SANTOS, C. E. dos ., & RODRIGUES, R. N. . O Pronaf na perspectiva das relações de gênero no Semiárido norte mineiro: a percepção de mulheres no município de Porteirinha, Minas Gerais. evista Espinhaço, 12(1), 2023.
SILVA, Sandro; CIRÍACO, Juliane. Análise do efeito do Pronaf sobre a renda de agricultores familiares no meio rural nordestino. Texto para discussão. IPEA. 2022.

VALADARES, Alexandre. O Programa Nacional de Fortalecimento da Agricultura Familiar (PRONAF): Uma Revisão Bibliográfica (2009-2019). Texto para discussão. IPEA. 2021.

Promote the decentralization of rural credit, which is currently concentrated in the Northeast, to foster greater regional balance, particularly in the North and Central-West regions.
Expand access to rural credit for women and youth.

Ministry of Agrarian Development and Family Agriculture: Proposes guidelines for assisting family farmers; identifies Pronaf beneficiaries through DAP/CAF-Pronaf.

Central Bank of Brazil: The regulatory body of the National Rural Credit System (SNCR), which oversees and monitors credit.

Ministry of Development and Social Assistance, Family, and Hunger Combat (MDS).
Banco do Nordeste: Implements the PRONAF using innovative management solutions, such as Agroamigo Program. Ipea: The Institute of Applied Economic Research, a think-tank within the Brazilian Government that is dedicated to policy planning and evaluation, has conducted several studies and suggested important improvements on Pronaf.


SDG 1 — No Poverty

  • Target 1.1 - By 2030, eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere, currently measured as people living on less than $1.25 a day.
    • Indicator 1.1.1 - Proportion of the population living below the international poverty line by sex, age, employment status and geographical location (urban/rural)
  • Target 1.3 - Implement nationally appropriate social protection systems and measures for all, including floors, and by 2030 achieve substantial coverage of the poor and the vulnerable.
    • Indicator 1.3.1 - Proportion of population covered by social protection floors/systems, by sex, distinguishing children, unemployed persons, older persons, persons with disabilities, pregnant women, newborns, work-injury victims and the poor and the vulnerable.
SDG 10 — Reduced Inequalities
  • Target 10.1 - By 2030, progressively achieve and sustain income growth of the bottom 40 per cent of the population at a rate higher than the national average.
    • Indicator 10.1.1 - Growth rates of household expenditure or income per capita among the bottom 40 per cent of the population and the total population
  • Target 10.2 - By 2030, empower and promote the social, economic and political inclusion of all, irrespective of age, sex, disability, race, ethnicity, origin, religion or economic or other status.
    • Indicator 10.2.1 - Proportion of people living below 50 per cent of median income, by sex, age and persons with disabilities.

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