Assessment of the use of Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA) approach by farmers to manage climate risk in Mali and Senegal

Recently, a new approach to extension and climate information services, namely Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA) has been developed. PICSA makes use of historical climate records,participatory decision-making tools and forecasts to help farmers identify and better plan livelihood options that are suited to local climate features and farmers’ own circumstances. This approach was implemented in 2016 in two sites in Senegal and Mali, with 57 and 47 farmers, respectively. At the end of the growing season, these farmers were surveyed to explore their perceptions on the use of the approach. In Senegal and Mali, respectively 97% and 76% of the respondents found the approach ‘very useful’. The approach enabled farmers to make strategic plans long before the season, based on their improved knowledge of local climate features. Moreover,evidence demonstrates that PICSA stimulated farmers to consider and then implement a range of innovations which included: (i) changes in timing of activities such as sowing dates, (ii) implementing soil and water management practices, (iii) selection of crop varieties, (iv) fertiliser management and (v) adaptation of plans for the season (farm size, etc.) to the actual resources available to them. The study also demonstrated the potential of farmer-to-farmer extension in scaling up the approach, which is of great interest especially in the current context of limited extension services in the West African region

The SmartAG partner: CCAFS East Africa Bi-Annual Newsletter, July - December 2020

We are pleased to share with you our SmartAg Partner bi-annual newsletter, highlighting policy engagement, ongoing research, field updates and activities with partners from the second half of 2020

Recopilación de Boletines de Centroamérica: "Clima y Agricultura", 2020-2021

El Comité Regional de Recursos Hidráulicos del sistema de la Integración Centroamericana (CRRH-SICA), es una organización creada en 1966, especializada en los campos de la meteorología, la climatología y la hidrología. Desde el año 2000 coordina la realización de los Foros del Clima de la Región Centroamericana, en los que participan expertos en meteorología y climatología provenientes de los Servicios Meteorológicos e Hidrológicos Nacionales (SMHNs). El Consejo Agropecuario Centroamericano (CAC) es una organización del Sistema de la Integración, tiene como miembros a los Ministerios de Agricultura de los países miembros del SICA. El CRRH y el CAC se complacen en compartir con los usuarios del sector agropecuario los Boletines Centroamericanos, Clima y Agricultura, a través del cual se comparte información sobre el comportamiento esperado del Clima a través de la perspectiva estacional, y los impactos esperados, así como las recomendaciones para el sector agrícola. Agradecemos al equipo de CIAT por el apoyo prestado para la realización del mismo

Understanding Context in Learning?centred Approaches to Climate Change Communication

Communication on climate change research has long been dominated by top?down delivery of information aimed at informing on future climate scenarios and climate?related events. However, emphasis in this field is slowly shifting to more process?oriented approaches to communication, and the need to integrate learning is receiving increasing attention. This article argues that despite the challenges in shifting research communication on climate change into a more dialogical and learning?oriented model of practice, the realities faced by communities impacted on the ground make this shift imperative. Drawing on recent research, we consider how the context in which initiatives seek to engage in research communication will and should influence what is possible and what is desirable through these new approaches. We reflect on how efforts to understand context in one particular case served to shape a communication strategy from its outset, and note the opportunities and challenges revealed through this process. We then conclude by highlighting how climate change has reinforced arguments in favour of a focus of inclusive learning processes in communication for development

Gender Integration for Inclusive Adaptation to Climate Risks

Encouraging women farmer participation across all stages of the project via community-based groups, and capacity building efforts have created a platform for women to improve agency, confidence and decision making at the community level while pursuing income generating opportunities. With time, women are being entrusted with more roles and responsibilities in the agricultural sector, though the status of their authority and decision-making ability still offers immense scope for improvement. Women farmers are still not socially accepted as major contributors to the sector, while they struggle to fulfill the entrusted roles and responsibilities, in a patriarchal system. The project integrated gender concerns across all the stages of the project, starting from the planning stage itself

Greenhouse gas emissions from agricultural food production to supply Indian diets: Implications for climate change mitigation

Agriculture is a major source of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions globally. The growing global population is putting pressure on agricultural production systems that aim to secure food production while minimising GHG emissions. In this study, the GHG emissions associated with the production of major food commodities in India are calculated using the Cool Farm Tool. GHG emissions, based on farm management for major crops (including cereals like wheat and rice, pulses, potatoes, fruits and vegetables) and livestock-based products (milk, eggs, chicken and mutton meat), are quantified and compared. Livestock and rice production were found to be the main sources of GHG emissions in Indian agriculture with a country average of 5.65 kg CO2eq kg-1 rice, 45.54 kg CO2eq kg-1 mutton meat and 2.4 kg CO2eq kg-1 milk. Production of cereals (except rice), fruits and vegetables in India emits comparatively less GHGs with <1 kg CO2eq kg-1 product. These findings suggest that a shift towards dietary patterns with greater consumption of animal source foods could greatly increase GHG emissions from Indian agriculture. A range of mitigation options are available that could reduce emissions from current levels and may be compatible with increased future food production and consumption demands in India

CCAFS Household Baseline Survey 2010-2012

This dataset contains files produced for and generated from the CCAFS Household Baseline Survey which was run in 15 core sites across East & West Africa and South Asia. The survey was also carried out in several other sites in South Asia, Mozambique and Central America. Before downloading any of the files, particularly the data files, please download and read the CCAFS ReadMe file and the Data Quality summary which are both tagged as "CCAFS ReadMe". To gain access to the GPS coordinates from the restricted files please download and complete the Non-disclosure agreement from the file: 0002 Non-Disclosure Agreement 2013-01-20.pdf and send this to Laura Cramer at [email protected]

Western Kenya Climatic Information

This study was undertaken with the purpose of consolidating climatic data from stations in Western Kenya. Over 60 data sets were collected and computerized using Climsoft, a database package for climatic data. Standard reference reports were then produced for each station. Most of the stations have agreed to share their data for research purposes. For this reason, the data and reports are stored here as part of this study

Gender Household Survey

The purpose of this survey is to gather gender-disaggregated data on agricultural activities, decision-making, weather information, risk-perception and values from rural households in Kenya, Bangladesh, Uganda and Senegal. The survey ultimately will cover 200 households in each site - the same households that were sampled for the IMPACT Lite Surveys. This survey builds on the information collected in that round, supplementing the detailed productivity related information with data on decision-making and other topics. This information will be used for researchers, policy-makers and development practitioners to better understand the vulnerabilities of men and women to climate change, how they differ, and what actions can be taken to reduce that vulnerability