Uptake of Climate-Smart Agricultural Technologies and Practices: Actual and Potential Adoption Rates in the Climate-Smart Village Site of Mali

Understanding the level of adoption of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) technologies and practices and its drivers is needed to spur large-scale uptake of CSA in West Africa. This paper used the Average Treatment Effect framework to derive consistent parametric estimators of the potential adoption rates of eight CSA technologies and practices in the Climate-Smart Village (CSV) site of Mali. A total of 300 household heads were randomly selected within the CSV site for data collection. Results showed significant differences in the observed and potential adoption rates of the CSA technologies and practices (drought tolerant crop varieties, micro-dosing, organic manure, intercropping, contour farming, farmer managed natural regeneration, agroforestry and climate information service). The most adopted technology was the organic manure (89%) while the least adopted was the intercropping (21%). The observed adoption rate varied from 39% to 77% according to the CSA options while the potential adoption rates of the technologies and practices ranged from 55% to 81%. This implies an adoption gap of 2% to 16% due to the incomplete diffusion (lack of awareness) of CSA technologies and practices which must be addressed by carrying out more actions to disseminate these technologies in the CSV. Results showed that education, number of workers in the household, access to subsidies, and training have a positive effect on the adoption of most of the CSA technologies and practices. The adoption of drought tolerant varieties and micro-dosing are positively correlated with access to subsidies and training. The study suggests that efforts should be focused concomitantly on the diffusion of CSA options as well as the lifting of their adoption barriers

Scaling up climate services for agriculture in Mali Initial findings from piloted implementation of PICSA approach in Africa RISING project intervention zone, southern Mali

The Participatory Integrated Climate Services for Agriculture (PICSA) approach, designed by the University of Reading (UoR), focuses on improving farmers' livelihood and resilience against the effect of climate change. It provides farmers with accurate, locally specific climate and weather information; coupled with diverse, locally pertinent options for crops, livestock and other livelihood activities; and the use of participatory planning tools to improve and enlighten their decision making based on their individual situations. PICSA is a step by step approach, primarily designed for field extensionists to help them integrate new tools in their activities with farmers and improve the efficiency and impact of those activities on farmer's enterprises

An integrated research framework combining genomics, systems biology, physiology, modelling and breeding for legume improvement in response to elevated CO2 under climate change scenario

How unprecedented changes in climatic conditions will impact yield and productivity of some crops and their response to existing stresses, abiotic and biotic interactions is a key global concern. Climate change can also alter natural species’ abundance and distribution or favor invasive species, which in turn can modify ecosystem dynamics and the provisioning of ecosystem services. Basic anatomical differences in C3 and C4 plants lead to their varied responses to climate variations. In plants having a C3 pathway of photosynthesis, increased atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) positively regulates photosynthetic carbon (C) assimilation and depresses photorespiration. Legumes being C3 plants, they may be in a favorable position to increase biomass and yield through various strategies. This paper comprehensively presents recent progress made in the physiological and molecular attributes in plants with special emphasis on legumes under elevated CO2 conditions in a climate change scenario. A strategic research framework for future action integrating genomics, systems biology, physiology and crop modelling approaches to cope with changing climate is also discussed. Advances in sequencing and phenotyping methodologies make it possible to use vast genetic and genomic resources by deploying high resolution phenotyping coupled with high throughput multi-omics approaches for trait improvement. Integrated crop modelling studies focusing on farming systems design and management, prediction of climate impacts and disease forecasting may also help in planning adaptation. Hence, an integrated research framework combining genomics, plant molecular physiology, crop breeding, systems biology and integrated crop-soil-climate modelling will be very effective to cope with climate change

Transforming Food Systems in Africa under Climate Change Pressure: Role of Climate-Smart Agriculture

Low-income producers and consumers of food in Africa are more vulnerable to climate change, owing to their comparatively limited ability to invest in more adapted institutions and technologies under increasing climatic risks. Therefore, the way we manage our food systems needs to be urgently changed if the goal is to achieve food security and sustainable development more quickly. This review paper analyzes the nexus “climate-smart agriculture-food systems-sustainable development” in order to draw sound ways that could allow rapid transformation of food systems in the context of climate change pressure. We followed an integrative review approach based on selected concrete example-experiences from ground-implemented projects across Africa (Ghana, Senegal, Mali, Burkina Faso, in West Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania in East Africa). Mostly composed of examples from the Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security (CCAFS) Research Program of the CGIAR (former Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research) and its partners, these also included ground initiatives from non-CGIAR that could provide demonstrable conditions for a transformative agriculture and food systems. The lessons learnt from the ground implementation of climate-smart agriculture (CSA), in the African context, were instrumental to informing the actions areas of the food-system transformation framework suggested in this paper (reroute, de-risk, reduce, and realign). Selected CSA example-cases to inform these action areas included 24 initiatives across Africa, but with a focus on the following studies for an in-depth analysis: (1) the climate-smart village approach to generate knowledge on climate-smart agriculture (CSA) technologies and practices for their scaling, (2) the use of climate information services (CIS) to better manage climate variability and extremes, and (3) the science–policy interfacing to mainstream CSA into agricultural development policies and plans. The analysis of these examples showed that CSA can contribute driving a rapid change of food systems in Africa through: (1) the implementation of relevant climate-smart technologies and practices to reroute farming and rural livelihoods to new climate-resilient and low-emission trajectories; (2) the development and application of weather and climate information services (WCIS) that support de-risking of livelihoods, farms, and value chains in the face of increasing vagaries of weather and extreme events; (3) the use of climate-smart options that minimize waste of all the natural resources used for growing, processing, packaging, transporting, and marketing food, and therefore mitigating the carbon footprint attached to this food loss and waste; and (4) the realignment of policies and finance that facilitate action in the four proposed action areas through the identification of news ways to mobilize sustainable finance and create innovative financial mechanisms and delivery channels

Perspectives: Legislating change

About 80% of West Africans live in rural populations that mainly depend on rain-fed, cereal-based subsistence agriculture. These areas are highly vulnerable to climate variability. The increasing frequency and severity of climate extremes — primarily drought — have led to food crises in the sub-Saharan Sahel region. Although existing technologies and practices can mitigate agricultural risk, farmers need access to accurate long- and short-term weather forecasts so they can utilize these measures more effectively. One solution is localized seasonal climate forecasts for farmers. Partners from CCAFS in West Africa have recently tried such an approach in the Kaffrine district in central Senegal. To help ease the transition from traditional forecast practices, we presented the new information to farmers alongside discussions about established methods. Farmers in Kaffrine were able to develop adaptive techniques from climate information and choose a good strategy for improving yield during dry and wet seasons

Climate information use implications for climate risk mitigation in West Africa

With projections of a 70 percent increase in demand for staple cereals by 2050 in order to feed the growing human population (FAO, 2010), combined with the current declining per capita food production and a dwindling natural resource base, ‘feeding West Africa’ and increasing the resilience of livelihood systems may be well beyond reach. This has been attributed to multiple factors such as land tenure challenges, declining soil fertility, poor markets, climate hazards and variability, inadequate funding and poor infrastructural development (Ouedraogo et al, 2016; Partey et al, 2016). The current state of food insecurity and poor rural livelihoods are expected to be further exacerbated by climate change and variability which has emerged as one of the major threats to development in West Africa (Zougmoré et al, 2016)..

Performance of Three Sorghum Cultivars under Excessive Rainfall and Waterlogged Conditions in the Sudano-Sahelian Zone of West Africa: A Case Study at the Climate-Smart Village of Cinzana in Mali

Recent climate analyses show trends for increasing precipitation variability with increasing precipitation sums in Mali. The increasing occurrence of temporary intra-seasonal droughts and waterlogging longer than a week demands climate-smart solutions. Research has focused on water deficits since the 1980s. However, besides droughts, waterlogging can restrict productivity of sensitive cash and staple crops as cotton and corn. The year 2019 offered the historically unique opportunity to monitor waterlogging effects with 1088 mm precipitation in the rural commune Cinzanawith an isohyet of 681 mm. Impacts of two extreme downpours on three sorghum cultivars were monitored in a farmers-field experiment with three replications. All sorghum cultivars performed well in 2019 with significantly higher grain and above ground biomass yields than in the reference year 2007, with well distributed rainfall in Cinzana. “Jakumbè” (CSM63E) produced significantly higher grain yields than the hybrid cultivar “PR3009B” bred for high harvest index. The local cultivar “Gnofing” selected by local farmers produced significantly higher above ground biomass. All cultivars tolerated without severe stress symptoms 20 days waterlogging and 72 h inundation. Further waterlogging resilience research of other crops and other sorghum cultivars is needed to strengthen food security in Mali with expected increasing precipitation variation in the future

The value and benefits of using seasonal climate forecasts in agriculture: evidence from cowpea and sesame sectors in climate-smart villages of Burkina Faso

This infonote summarizes initial findings of a project entitled “Impact of communicating seasonal climate forecasts to cowpea and sesame farmers in Yatenga region, North Burkina Faso’” undertaken during the 2014 main agricultural season by scientists from the CCAFS West Africa programme and the Institut de l’Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles (INERA), Burkina Faso. Sesame is a cash crop promoted in recent years to respond to a growing global demand. Quite versatile and produced across the country, yields remain low with an average of 300-350kg/ha. National production was estimated at around 60,000 tons in 2012, mostly for export. Cowpea is a key legume crop, mostly cultivated by smallholder farmers in intercropping with cereals (95%). Yields are low (around 300kg/ha) while it could reach 1,500kg/ha in monoculture. Just a minority (5%) of farmers use modern inputs (improved seeds, fertilizer) and market their grain for the regional market. This project aims at assessing: The effect of climate information services on farm productivity and incomes for cowpea and sesame farmers in the Yatenga region; Farmers’ willingness to pay for such climate information services Lessons learned for potential scaling up of communicating climate forecasts services in the cowpea and sesame sector as a way to improve farmer climate resilience and productivity. Such studies are also being carried out in climate-smart villages in Senegal (Kaffrine region)

Why Promote Improved Fallows as a Climate-Smart Agroforestry Technology in Sub-Saharan Africa?

In the literature, a lot is discussed about how agroforestry can achieve the mitigation, adaptation and productivity goals of climate-smart agriculture (CSA). However, this may be relatively too broad to assess the trade-offs and synergies of how specific agroforestry technologies or practices achieve the three pillars of CSA. Here, we provide an overview of how improved fallows (an agroforestry technology consisting of planting mainly legume tree/shrub species in rotation with cultivated crops) may achieve the goals of climate-smart agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Our review showed that improved fallow systems have real potential to contribute to food security and climate change mitigation and adaptation in SSA. Under proper management, improved fallows can increase maize yields to about 6 t ha−1, which is comparable to conventional maize yields under fertilization. This is attributed to improved soil fertility and nutrient use efficiency. Although data was generally limited, the growing literature showed that improved fallows increased soil carbon sequestration and reduced greenhouse emissions. Further, as a multiple output land use system, improved fallows may increase fodder availability during dry periods and provide substantial biomass for charcoal production. These livelihood options may become important financial safety nets during off seasons or in the event of crop failures. This notwithstanding, the adoption of improved fallows is mainly in Southern and Eastern Africa, where over 20,000 farmers are now using Sesbania sesban, Tephrosia vogelii, and Cajanus cajan in two-year fallows followed by maize rotations. Land tenure issues, lack of social capital, and improved germplasm and accessions of fallow species have been cited as constraints to scaling up. However, development of seed orchards, nursery development, and the willingness of policy makers to create a policy environment that addresses market failures and alleviates disincentives should improve adoption and future scaling up

Candidate fodder trees and shrubs for sustainable ruminant production in northern Ghana

A survey was done to document preferred browse plants and farmers’ knowledge about them for sustainable ruminant production in northern Ghana. The study was done in Jirapa and Lawra Districts of Upper West Region of Ghana. A questionnaire was used to interview 50 farmers per district. Tables and graphs were drawn to summarize results. Ruminant production was a predominantly male occupation (p=0.032). It was also in the domain of the lowly educated (p=0.003). Ninety-seven percent (97%) of the respondents had goats with about half of them having sheep and 17% owning cattle. The overriding (99%) reason for rearing ruminants was to serve as a source of income. In the dry season, ruminants were kept on free range. In the wet season, small ruminants were tethered with or without feed supplementation. A total of 34 browse plants were identified and the most frequently browsed were Fadherbia albida, Ficus sycomorus gnaphalocarpa, Afzelia africana, Pterocarpus erinaceus, Combretum molle and Annona senegalensis. Paramount among the challenges faced by the owners were limited grazing land, feed scarcity and theft. Apart from being fodder sources, the identified browse species were soil improvers, medicinal and human food sources. All respondents grew crops and the most frequently cultivated crops were groundnut, maize, cowpea, bambara groundnuts, sorghum, millet, rice and yam in this decreasing order. Ninety percent (90%) of the respondents fed crop residue to their animals, with the commonest, groundnut haulm, fed by about 80% of the respondents. Twenty-eight different types of trees/shrubs were identified on respondents’ farms