Bill Gates calls for more funds to help world's poorest farmers

Billionaire philanthropist puts focus on protecting small farmers saying they are likely to suffer the most from climate change

Bill Gates called for more funds to help the world's poorest farmers deal with climate change on Tuesday, in an appeal that could help pry open the coffers of industrialised countries.

The call from the tech billionaire and world's biggest philanthropist to focus on the poor could spur more finance from industrialised countries to small-scale farmers during negotiations for a global deal to fight climate change in Paris at the end of the year.