Consultative Workshop on the Co-development of National Framework for Weather, Water and Climate Services (NFWWCS) for the Southern Africa sub-region

A three-day experience-sharing workshop was held in Cape Town, South Africa, from 28 to 30 September 2022 to support the co-development of National Framework for Weather, Water and Climate Services (NFWWCS) for the Southern Africa countries. This workshop is a follow-up on the successful co-development and endorsement of AICCRA-supported National Framework for Climate Services (NFCS) in Ethiopia and the subsequent two regional workshops for IGAD and SADC member States held in Zanzibar and Kampala to explore regional landscape in the development and implementation of NFWWCS. The representatives presented their progresses on the planning and development of the NFWWCS, types of weather and climate services offered by their NMHSs and the experiences, lessons learnt, and best practices in the development of the NFWWCS. The progresses were reported in accordance with the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS) step-by-step guidelines for NFCS. Strategic and operational challenges faced by the countries including gaps and barriers that inhibits the successful development and implementation of the NFWWCS were discussed. Further to the presentations made by the Southern Africa countries, round table discussions groups were organized in the form of breakaway sessions to surface and deep dive into common challenges, experiences, gaps and barriers to the successful planning and development and implementation of the NFWWCS. The outcome of each working group was presented to the broader participating audience. The audience pondered on solutions that could bridge the gaps that exists in Southern Africa countries that lead to NFWWCS development paralysis. The workshop was concluded by a methodical summarization of the challenges, interventions and way forward proposed for each of the country. The interventions and way forward included country specific solutions that could empower each country, in particular those that are at step zero, to get going while those that have started to progress to the next stages of the NFWWCS development. Common challenges across all Southern Africa countries are associated with lack or limited financial resources to fund the development of the NFWWCS, lack of support and buy-in from national government and political leaders in the respective countries and participation on staff members who are not decision makers. Broader requests included the need to develop a regional framework for weather, water, and climate services, that will drive regional programmes (funding, research, etc.) and assist in accelerating the implementation of NFWWCSs across all the SADC countries. Participants from the Southern Africa countries commended the relevance of this platform and recommended that the support should continue ad infinitum to ramp the development of NFWWCS across all countries. Accordingly, countries at stage zero or stage one requested to have such platform where they can learn more from the Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa in Eastern and Southern Africa (AICCRA ESA) program’s experience in Ethiopia and elsewhere. The AICCRA and its regional collaborating partners’ – the African Climate Policy Centre (ACPC), World Meteorological Organization – Regional office Africa (WMO-RoA) and the IGAD Pridiction and Application Centre (ICPAC) – efforts helped NMHSs to successfully plan, develop and implement NFWWCS and its action plan to strengthen their national adaptive capacities. This workshop was attended by representatives from SADC member countries and their partnering organizations

Cross-calibrating Spatial Positions of Light-viewing Diagnostics using Plasma Edge Sweeps in DIII-D

An experimental technique is presented that permits diagnostics viewing light from the plasma edge to be spatially calibrated relative to one another. By sweeping the plasma edge, each chord of each diagnostic sweeps out a portion of the light emission profile. A nonlinear least-squares fit to such data provides superior cross-calibration of diagnostics located at different toroidal locations compared with simple surveying. Another advantage of the technique is that it can be used to monitor the position of viewing chords during an experimental campaign to ensure that alignment does not change over time. Moreover, should such a change occur, the data can still be cross-calibrated and its usefulness retained

Uptake and impact of climate-smart agriculture on food security, incomes and assets in East Africa: Findings from Nyando Climate-Smart Villages in Western Kenya

Farmers in East Africa are experiencing increasing livelihood challenges attributed to increasing scarcity of agricultural land, steep rises in food prices, deteriorating soil fertility and associated declining crop yields, poor market access and, in some cases unclear land tenure systems (Yamano et al. 2011). Climate change compounds these challenges, with the region witnessing changing climatic conditions characterized by warmer temperatures, changing rainfall patterns and increased frequency and severity of extreme weather conditions (Wheeler and Von Braun 2013). Expected consequences and impacts of these changes include shortened and disrupted growing seasons, reduction in area suitable for agriculture and declining yields in agriculture (Connolly-Boutin and Smit 2016)

CCAFS East Africa 2019–2021: Strategy for Supporting Agricultural Transformation, Food and Nutrition Security under Climate Change

East Africa has enormous potential, not only to feed itself and eliminate hunger, but also to be a major player in global food systems. This potential lies in its natural resources, its people and knowledge, and its huge markets. Agriculture represents a significant portion of this potential and constitutes a large part of East African economies. In Ethiopia, for example, agriculture contributed about 44% to the gross domestic product (GDP) over the past five years, while other East African countries generally attain about a third of their GDP from agriculture. The agriculture sector plays a key role for food and nutrition security, sustainable natural resources management and economic diversification. If leveraged, the sector could boost investment, increase intra-regional trade, provide employment opportunities, contribute to poverty eradication and foster human security, stability and prosperity

CCAFS East Africa 2019–2021 Summary. Strategy for Supporting Agricultural Transformation, Food and Nutrition Security under Climate Change

Since the Maputo Declaration on Agriculture and Food Security in 2003, governments in East Africa have made sustainable transformation of agriculture a priority, as reflected in their development agendas and by increased investments in agriculture. Despite these positive developments, the region has seen very little improvement in food and nutrition security. Growth in the agricultural sector has primarily been achieved through unsustainable practices, such as increasing the total area of land under cultivation with very little improvement in productivity. The sector is still dominated by smallholder subsistence farmers, who are struggling with deep-rooted poverty and have few productive assets.1 Agricultural systems in the region also face environmental constraints to sustainable growth, such as degradation of soil, land, water and ecosystems. Additional challenges include economic barriers, low human and institutional capacities, poor agroadvisory services, political instability, conflicts and migration.1,2 Climate change and inter-annual climate variability compound these significant challenges to sustainable agricultural growth. Agriculture is not only impacted by climate change, but also contributes to climate change, necessitating both adaptation and mitigation strategies and actions. Agriculture is currently the main source of national greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions in East Africa, accounting for about 46% in Uganda and about 86% in Tanzania, for example. In the face of a changing climate, effective adaptation and mitigation strategies focusing on revitalization, intensification, diversification and innovation are thus needed to sustainably transform the region’s agriculture and decouple agricultural growth from GHG emissions

Soil organic carbon sequestration for climate change mitigation in East African Climate-Smart Villages: Results from climate-smart agriculture interventions within Climate-Smart Villages in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda

Agricultural systems in Eastern Africa are mainly rainfed and highly vulnerable to climate change and variability. Climate-related risks include variable rainfall patterns, prolonged dry spells, and extreme events such as droughts and floods, and have become more frequent and severe, negatively affecting the regions’ food security. These challenges are compounded by high population growth and poverty rates, declining land sizes, and nutrient mining of soils. To address these challenges and stimulate actions that enable communities and households to respond to climate extremes and change, the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) developed the Climate-Smart Villages (CSVs) research for development approach (Aggarwal et al. 2018). Using participatory methods, communities in CSVs participate in agricultural research for development by robustly evaluating and adopting an integrated portfolio of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices that respond to their climate related risks, including exploring potential mitigation cobenefits. In Eastern Africa, CCAFS has been implementing the CSVs approach since 2011

SUM_M(2)×\timesUC_C(1) Gauge Symmetry in High TcT_c Superconductivity

The square lattice structure of $CuO_2$ layers and the strongly correlated property of electrons indicate that the high $T_c$ superconductivity in cuprates can be described by a SO$_M$(5) coherent pairing state in which a SU$_M$(2)$\times$U$_C$(1) gauge symmetry is embedded. The spin and charge fluctuations that characterize the low energy magnetic excitations in cuprates are controlled by this intrinsic SU$_M$(2)$\times$U$_C$(1) gauge symmetry.Comment: 4 pages Revtex fil

Uptake and impact of climate-smart agriculture on food security, incomes and assets in East Africa

Increasing agricultural productivity and meeting food security needs in the face of climate variability and change in East Africa requires a range of technological, institutional and policy interventions. Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is increasingly being used as an approach to integrated development. CSA refers to agriculture that sustainably increases agricultural productivity and livelihoods, resilience and adaptive capacity, reduces greenhouse gas emissions where possible, and enhances achievement of national food security and development goals. Since 2011, the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change and Food Security (CCAFS) has been testing, evaluating and increasing access to and promoting a portfolio of CSA technologies and innovations across Climate-Smart Villages (CSVs) in East Africa. Using quasi-experimental approaches, this paper analyses the uptake and impact of CSA technologies (improved multiple stress-tolerant crop varieties, improved and better adapted livestock breeds and integrated soil and water conservation measures) on livelihood outcomes—food and nutrition security, incomes and asset accumulation, all of which are among the indicators of resilience

Gender-differentiated perception of climate-smart agricultural practices in contrasting landscapes of the Ethiopian highlands

Climate-smart agricultural (CSA) practices have been promoted as a prominent strategy to offset the adverse effect of climate change on food production and mitigate greenhouse gas emissions. Even though several studies have shown farmers` perception on CSA practices, gender-differentiated perception has hardly been studied. The objective of this study was therefore to investigate gender-disaggregated differences in terms of: (i) experience in climate change and its negative impacts, (ii) perception towards CSA practices, and (iii) motivation and constraining factors to uptake CSA. A total of 800 farmers were interviewed from two climate-smart landscapes – which vary in terms of practices, years of implementation and degree of gender-inclusion in decision making. CSA interventions increased yield and income by two-to-threefold. Food availability and diversity also increased owing to CSA practices. Farmers who adopted CSA practices were almost twice less likely to borrow or spend money for food and other goods. A higher number of CSA non-adopters sold their assets and/or changed food consumption pattern following climate-related shocks. The gender-disaggregated data showed variation in the perception of CSA practices between female and male headed households. This difference is mainly attributed to variation in access to resources, education, information on weather forecasts and participation in decisionmaking. Male farmers tended to have better knowledge on the benefits of CSA practices, and the difference was more pronounced at the landscape level where women participation in decision-making is limited. Female farmers showed low preference for CSA practices which requires labour (i.e., soil bunds and green manuring) and knowledge (i.e., crop diversification). The findings demonstrate the significance of gender equality in decision-making, access to climate information and agricultural extension services for rapid uptake of CSA practices, thereby curbing the negative effects of climate change on agricultural production in Ethiopia