Situational analysis study for the agriculture sector in Kenya

Agriculture is central to adaptation and mitigation of climate change. This is well recognized in the Paris Agreement, where many developing countries including Kenya prioritized agriculture as one of the critical sectors for the realization of their transformation to climate resilient development pathway. As part of commitment to achieve this, Kenya has embarked in developing its agriculture long-term strategy (LTS) to help define their longer-term agenda to guide near and long-term climate action and planning, while helping to guide updating of successive Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs). To achieve this, a situational analysis of the agriculture sector was undertaken to provide a baseline. Both qualitative and quantitative approaches were employed in the study .These approaches includes document review and key stakeholder consultations which were used to establish the status, comprehensive trends, impacts of climate change, policies and strategies, adequacy of response measures and their coherence to existing policies, climate financing, measurement, reporting and verification, monitoring and evaluation frameworks in the sector in order to evaluate the progress made and identify the existing gaps to be addressed in order to transition Kenya’s agriculture sector to low emission, climate resilient development pathway. This analysis has established that Kenya has made significant the progress it modernizing and transforming it’s agriculture sector to an innovative, commercially oriented and competitive sector. This has been achieved through continuous review and operationalization of policies and strategies, enactment of laws and creation of institutions in the different agriculture sub-sectors. Other areas include implementation of policies, legislation, programmes and projects that aim to improve agricultural productivity, increase market access and household income, build social resilience and capacity building

Evidence of Impact: Climate-Smart Agriculture in Africa

The vulnerability of Africa’s agriculture to climate change is complex. It is shaped by biophysical, economic, socio-cultural, geographical, ecological, institutional, technological and governance processes that interact in intricate ways, and can together reduce farmers’ adaptive capacity. Women farmers with few resources are particularly vulnerable. This working paper highlights the array of adaptation strategies that exist across Africa’s diverse farming systems and climatic conditions. These strategies can provide the impetus for transforming Africa’s agriculture. The case studies show how farmers are already adapting to climate change, what kinds of investment and how much is needed, and what local and national leadership is necessary to increase adoption and scale up. Successful case studies are broadly defined as those that identify, test and implement climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices and institutions, counter the impacts of climate change and offer the highest returns on investments. These CSA practices offer the best chance of food security and many other benefits for the people of Africa in the long term

L’agriculture intelligente face au climat: Quel impact pour l’Afrique ?

En Afrique, l’agriculture doit connaître une profonde transformation pour relever les nombreux défis que représentent le changement climatique, l’insécurité alimentaire, la malnutrition, la pauvreté et les dégradations environnementales. Les études de cas décrites ne sont que quelques-unes des pratiques agricoles climato-intelligentes déjà mises en œuvre en Afrique. La présente publication vise à inspirer les agriculteurs, les chercheurs, les chefs d’entreprise, les décideurs politiques et les ONG à prendre le parti de l’agriculture intelligente face aux changements climatiques et à accélérer la transformation de l’agriculture africaine pour qu’elle devienne un secteur plus durable et plus rentable. English version http://hdl.handle.net/10568/5172

Review of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security in Kenya

In Kenya, agriculture is a key driver of economic growth and social development. The agriculture sector directly contributes about 28% of Kenya’s gross domestic product (GDP), and accounts for 65% of the total export earnings. The crop and livestock sub-sectors contribute approximately 78% and 20% to the agricultural GDP, respectively (CIAT 2015). Agriculture employs over 70% of the rural population and supports the livelihoods of more than 80% of the Kenyan population through employment, income, and food security needs (GoK 2010). The sector is large and complex, with diverse stakeholders made up of public, non-governmental and private actors

Climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security policies and frameworks in Kenya

This paper reviews the current state of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food, and nutrition security in Kenya. Integrating climate change in policies and frameworks on agriculture, food and nutrition security is important for providing and strengthening the enabling environment for building farmers resilience and adaptive capacity. Similarly, climate change policies and frameworks need to integrate agriculture, food and nutrition security. In addition, the paper reviews some of the regional, continental, and global frameworks on climate change, agriculture and food security of relevance to Kenya. The paper combines a review of relevant literature, policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security with expert interviews. The review shows that most climate change policies and frameworks integrate agriculture, food and nutrition security, with the majority prioritizing agricultural productivity and food availability. Similarly, most of the agriculture, food and nutrition security policies and frameworks integrate climate change adaptation, with very limited focus on mitigation. Mitigation is often considered as an adaptation co-benefit, thus adaptation actions that have mitigation benefits are highly prioritized. In particular, the recent policies and frameworks are aligned with the regional, continental and global frameworks such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), the Comprehensive African Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP), and the Paris Agreement. The review also shows that a number of institutions in Kenya are working on climate change and agriculture, with institutional overlaps in some cases in focus areas of interventions. Strengthening institutional arrangements and coordination may help consolidate and promote partnerships among independent institutional efforts

Review of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security in Tanzania

The Republic of Tanzania is an agriculture-based economy. Agriculture contributes 28% of the gross domestic product (GDP), employs 88% of the working population and accounts for between 50% and 66% of exports (TNCCS 2012). Climate change is rapidly emerging as a significant risk affecting agriculture, food and nutrition security in Tanzania. The country is highly vulnerable to recurrent drought, further aggravated by widespread poverty, inequitable land distribution, and low technological capabilities. Climate change is expected to challenge the resilience and adaptive capacities of communities and overwhelm some, by exacerbating existing problems of food and nutrition insecurity

Review of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security in Ethiopia

Agriculture is the mainstay of Ethiopia’s economy, contributing over 50% of the gross domestic product (GDP), accounting for more than 85% of the labor force and over 90% of the foreign exchange earnings (Alemu et al. 2010). Consequently, the sector receives considerable attention from the government, investing 15% of its total budget over the decade and meeting the commitments by Africa’s heads of states to the African Union Maputo 2003 Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security (CAADP 2003). On average, crop production makes up 60% of the sector’s outputs, livestock accounts for 27%, with other sub-sectors contributing 13% of the total value of agricultural production. The sector is dominated by small-scale farmers, practicing rain-fed mixed farming using traditional technologies, characterized with low levels of input use and low productivity

Review of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security in Tanzania

The Republic of Tanzania is an agriculture-based economy. Agriculture contributes 28% of the gross domestic product (GDP), employs 88% of the working population and accounts for between 50% and 66% of exports (TNCCS 2012). Climate change is rapidly emerging as a significant risk affecting agriculture, food and nutrition security in Tanzania. The country is highly vulnerable to recurrent drought, further aggravated by widespread poverty, inequitable land distribution, and low technological capabilities. Climate change is expected to challenge the resilience and adaptive capacities of communities and overwhelm some, by exacerbating existing problems of food and nutrition insecurity

Review of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security in Uganda

Uganda is facing climate variability and change more frequently than ever. This is observed through changing temperature patterns—often linked to more frequent and longer periods of drought spells that lead to significant loss of livestock and food and nutrition insecurity. Floods, landslides, droughts and other extreme weather events are also increasing in frequency and intensity, posing additional risks to agriculture, food and nutrition security, livelihoods and resilience of rural farming communities

Review of policies and frameworks on climate change, agriculture, food and nutrition security in Uganda

Uganda is facing climate variability and change more frequently than ever. This is observed through changing temperature patterns—often linked to more frequent and longer periods of drought spells that lead to significant loss of livestock and food and nutrition insecurity. Floods, landslides, droughts and other extreme weather events are also increasing in frequency and intensity, posing additional risks to agriculture, food and nutrition security, livelihoods and resilience of rural farming communities