Climate-smart students are the future of resilient agriculture

“By equipping our students – our future experts – with the right knowledge, we are committed to addressing the most pressing climate challenges and working towards a resilient agricultural future in Africa,” said Robert Zougmore at the second RUFORUM Triennial Conference held in Namibia recently. 

Our contributions to the conference focused on partnerships that are integrating – and scaling – climate-smart agriculture and climate information services into university curricula across Africa. 

Other highlights: 

• AGNES publishes new step-by-step guide on developing long-term emission strategies 

• A scaling workshop with CORAF focuses on rice-value chains in West Africa 

• Research highlights paths for gender-sensitive adaptation in Mali 

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AICCRA at the second RUFORUM Triennial Conference 

“Integrating climate-smart curricula into our universities goes beyond educational reform. It's a strategic move,” said Robert Zougmoré, AICCRA West Africa Lead, at the 2nd RUFORUM Triennial Conference held in Namibia this month where he participated in several events. 

The conference brought together leaders, academics, researchers, and policymakers from across the continent to explore the future of agricultural education and sustainable food security in Africa. In his engagements, Robert highlighted the ongoing collaboration between RUFORUM Network, WASCAL Climate and AICCRA that is mainstreaming climate-smart agriculture (CSA) and climate information services (CIS) through education. 

NEW | A step-by-step guide for African climate policymakers and planners 

Long term climate policy planning comes with many benefits and opportunities but to date, only 10 African countries have developed Long-Term Low Emission and Climate Resilient Development Strategies (LT-LEDS).  

Responding to demand for supplementary information to aid long-term policy processes, a new technical guide from the African Group of Negotiators Expert Support ( AGNES Africa ) outlines the steps and processes involved in developing LT-LEDS. Guidance includes setting national priorities and establishing institutional frameworks to engaging stakeholders and implementing policies. 

AICCRA team members - Romy Chevallier, Alcade C. Segnon, Laura Cramer and Lucy Njuguna - contributed technical support, case study development and research to this document. 

From the field: climate-smart technology parks grow in Ghana 

Recent photos from Ghana show agricultural extension officers and farmers working together to set up climate-smart technology parks in our partner communities.

2,341 farmers visited 31 technology parks in 2023, established by AICCRA and national partners to share climate-smart agriculture (CSA) technologies and practices to improve farm productivity and farmers’ climate resilience. 45 new technology parks have launched in 2024 to reach even more farmers.

Technology parks promote community participation and ownership as local farmers are at the forefront of land selection, plot demarcation, management, and knowledge exchange. The parks are also designed to demonstrate CSA technologies and practices alongside traditional ones, allowing farmers to observe and compare the performances of the CSA technologies with their own technologies and practices. 

WATCH: In Ghana, a simple farm practice is helping maize farmers increase their yields

For example, many farmers plant maize by broadcasting, a traditional method that prevents smallholder farmers from maximizing the use of their small lands. In Ghana, AICCRA has promoted a beneficial row-planting method alongside drought and pest tolerant maize varieties.

Research: Pathways for gender-sensitive adaptation in Cinzana, Mali 

A new paper explores gender vulnerability in the semi-arid areas of Mali, combining local understandings of vulnerability with a systematic literature review to uncover the key factors driving gender vulnerability. 

The researchers suggest practical pathways for reducing women’s vulnerabilities to climate change through gender-sensitive adaptation. 

“This paper provides a roadmap for creating targeted solutions that can empower women and reduce their vulnerability to climate change in Mali,’’ said co-author Alcade Segnon. 

Sowing seeds of change to build soil health in Africa 

A recent blog from the World Bank highlights the newly launched Regional Hub for Fertilizer and Soil Health - a groundbreaking initiative aiming to implement and coordinate subregional programs for monitoring soil health and fertility in Africa. 

By addressing the challenges of poor soil health and fertility, Africa can make significant progress in eliminating poverty and ensuring a sustainable future for generations to come. 

Community radio clubs are reaching more farmers in Senegal

25,905 people were reached with agro-climate information via community radio stations in Senegal in 2023.

In partnership with the Community Radio Association, eight new listening clubs have launched to share agriculture, climate and livestock information with more farmers. Developed through an inclusive community of practice, including consulations with local stakeholders, the tailored content is designed to help farmers in decision making and climate-risk management at the farm level. 

FROM OUR PARTNERS:

CORAF hosts scaling workshop in Benin 

Strategic crops, such as rice, must adapt to climate change to ensure the resilience of production systems. To coordinate on the scaling of climate-smart innovations and technologies in West and Central Africa, CORAF (WCA Council for Agricultural R and D) hosted a workshop in partnership with AICCRA, the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, Africa Rice Center and The World Bank's Food System Resilience Program (FSRP).

Elliot Dossou-Yovo, AICCRA Mali lead, emphasized the need to create effective mechanisms for the large-scale adoption of best-bet innovations currently being implemented in Mali including RiceAdvice, Smart-Valleys, alternative wetting and drying (AWD), the integrated rice-fish system, Pay as You Go financial optoins, climate-resilient rice varieties.

ICPAC brings climate information training to Machakos and Kajiado counties 

IGAD Climate Prediction & Applications Centre (ICPAC), with support from ClimSA and AICCRA, held sessions for Training of Trainers (TOT) on Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA) in Machakos and Kajiado Counties, Kenya. 

Community engagement through participatory trainings is helping to close the gap between climate information and the farmers who can benefit from that information. When farmers have access to reliable climate information and the knowledge and skills to use that information, they can make informed decisions for their crops and farms. 

Watch a video to learn more.

Lewa Conservancy tests soil health for 500 farmers 

As part of its sustainable agriculture programme, Lewa Conservancy partnered with AICCRA to carry out soil health testing for 500 farmers – providing valuable insights into the nutrient composition and pH of the soil.    

When farmers understand what their soil needs, they can make informed decisions that will increase crop yields and quality and reduce environmental impacts.

Read these stories and more on our news page or follow us on social media (@CGIARAfrica) for ongoing updates.

Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) is a project that helps deliver a climate-smart African future driven by science and innovation in agriculture. It is led by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT and supported by a grant from the International Development Association (IDA) of the World Bank.