Report

This study examines the vulnerability to climate variability and change of the conventional maize value chain in the mid and low altitude agro-ecological zones of Malawi, agro-ecological zone II of Zambia and agro-ecological zone III of Zimbabwe. The aim is to develop feasible priorities and strategies for climate variability and change adaptation based on farmer preference. A literature re-view for the countries Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe was conducted to assess the current and future impact of climate change and variability on the smallholder farming system. A mix of methods, which included participatory vulnerability assessment tools, focus group discussions and key in-formant interviews among 108 farmers from five communities, complemented the literature review. Data were collected on the current and likely future impacts and sensitivity of the systems and ad-aptation capacities.

Under the project "Out-scaling climate-smart technologies to smallholder farmers in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe" stakeholders aim to evaluate the impact of a changing climate on current farming systems and identify appropriate adaptation measures. This reports summarizes the process and outcomes of a two-staged process to identify and prioritize adaptation strategies designed to reduce the impact of climate change on smallholder farmers.

Meetings were held in-country (Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe) and in a regional workshop in Lusaka, Zambia to prioritize these technologies. With the exception of Zimbabwe, the meetings were well attended and went through a defined process to identify the technologies.

In both in-country meetings and the regional workshop the participants prioritized a range of options that were common. These were:

 Diversification (rotation and intercropping strategies)

 the use of drought-tolerant varieties

 Different forms of conservation agriculture seeding (ripping, direct seeding and basin planting)

 the use of organic manure

 Staggered planting

 Soil and water conservation

Irrigation and improved climate information services were often mentioned but the capital investments needed as well as the lack of infrastructure make this currently very challenging. This would require Governmental will to advance in the future.

The information gathered will inform the formulation of a feasibility study to be used as a base for developing a larger investment proposal for funding climate-smart agriculture in the region

This volume shares new data relating to Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA), with emphasis on experiences in Eastern and Southern Africa. The book is a collection of research by authors from over 30 institutions, spanning the public and private sectors, with specific knowledge on agricultural development in the region discussed. The material is assembled to answer key questions on the following five topic areas: (1) Climate impacts: What are the most significant current and near future climate risks undermining smallholder livelihoods? (2) Varieties: How can climate-smart varieties be delivered quickly and cost-effectively to smallholders? (3) Farm management: What are key lessons on the contributions from soil and water management to climate risk reduction and how should interventions be prioritized?  (4) Value chains: How can climate risks to supply and value chains be reduced? and (5) Scaling up: How can most promising climate risks reduction strategies be quickly scaled up and what are critical success factors? Readers who will be interested in this book include students, policy makers, and researchers studying climate change impacts on agriculture and agricultural sustainability. 

The Agricultural Productivity Programme for Southern African (APPSA) is a six-year project (2013 – 2019) financed by the World Bank using a Specific Investment Loan (SIL) to the tune of US$ 90 Million. APPSA supports the objectives of the World Bank’s Africa Action Plan, which identifies regional integration as an important element to achieving higher economic growth and poverty reduction. The project’s objective is to increase the availability of improved agricultural technologies in participating countries in the SADC region through: (i) establishing Regional Centres of Leadership (RCoLs) on commodities of regional importance; (ii) supporting regional collaboration in agricultural research, technology dissemination, and training; and (iii) facilitating increased sharing of agricultural information, knowledge, and technology among participating countries. Implementation of APPSA is based on partnerships and collaborations among three participating countries (Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia). Malawi is focusing on maize- based farming systems, Mozambique on rice-based farming systems, and Zambia on food legumes-based farming systems (involving beans, cowpeas, groundnuts, pigeon peas, and soybeans). Additional countries within the SADC region are expected to join as APPSA evolves and expands

In fulfillment of the Charter, CCARDESA held its first General Assembly in March 2014 in Boipuso hall, Gaborone, Botswana. The General Assembly was attended by several stakeholders which included, development partners, the Forum for Agricultural Research (FARA), other sub regional organisations namely ASARECA and CORAF and more impotently stakeholders who constitute the CCARDESA.

The General Assembly appointed Dr Mick Mwala as its first Chairman and deliberated on several issues which shape the operations of CCARDESA as a sub-regional organisation. This included the objectives of CCARDESA, its historical background, current initiatives of the organisation as well as suggestions of changes to the charter.
Main outcomes included:

1. The election of the first chairman
2. Approval of external auditors
3. Approval of the CCARDESA Medium Term Operational Plan (MTOP)
4. Nomination of new board members and
5. The amendment of the Governance manual and the Charter estab-lishing CCARDESA

Based on CSA practices, prioritized in national and regional workshops, a study was conducted using historical data collected by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and its national partners to better understand the benefits and challenges of CSA technologies and to assess their feasibility for a large outscaling initiative in southern Africa. The specific objective of the study was to assess their economic, biophysical, environmental and social benefits using existing available long-term data. For completeness a summary of challenges in their implementation was also provided.

This Pilot Study is a summry to address increasing threats of climate change and declining soil fertility, a cross regional agronomic study was conducted in southern Africa, covering 19 on-farm communities in contrasting agro-ecologies ranging from around 500 mm to more than 1800mm of rainfall. The 19 on-farm communities have been under long-term research by CIMMYT and national partners in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The aim of this study was to assess how different climate-smart agriculture technologies perform under a variable climate and to pilot new doubled-up legume systems of groundnuts with pigeonpea in 6 selected target communities.

This study examines the vulnerability to climate variability and change of the conventional maize value chain in the mid and low altitude agro-ecological zones of Malawi, agro-ecological zone II of Zambia and agro-ecological zone III of Zimbabwe. The aim is to develop feasible priorities and strategies for climate variability and change adaptation based on farmer preference. A literature review for the countries Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe was conducted to assess the current and future impact of climate change and variability on the smallholder farming system. A mix of methods, which included participatory vulnerability assessment tools, focus group discussions and key informant interviews among 108 farmers from five communities, complemented the literature review. Data were collected on the current and likely future impacts and sensitivity of the systems and adaptation capacities.

This  report  analyses  the  status  of  incorporation  of  climate  change  adaptation  and  climate-smart agriculture (CSA) measures in the SADC Member States’ agriculture and food security frameworks and policies. It  details the current situation in the SADC member states  with respect to  the existence of policies, strategies and programmes that were primarily designed to build resilience to climate change among famers.

This progress report describes key achievements during the project implementation period from 1 January to 31 December 2017. The project was in its 4th year of implementation.