National Agricultural Extension Representatives

This brochure gives a short overview of the Maize lethal necrosis disease and provides the most important information on it.

North-central Namibia is more vulnerable to effects of climate change and variability. Combined effects of environmental degradation, social vulnerability to poverty and a changing climate will compromise subsistence farming in north-central Namibia (NCN). This will make subsistence and small-scale farmers in the region more vulnerable to projected changes in the climate system. Thus, the aim of this article was to examine factors contributing to subsistence farmers’ vulnerability to impacts of climate change. The article further discusses different aspects of human vulnerability and existing adaptation strategies in response to impacts of climate related disasters experienced over the past three to four decades in NCN. Qualitative and quantitative research approaches and methodology were employed to obtain information from subsistence farmers in north-central Namibia. The socio-demographic characteristics of Ohangwena, Oshana and Omusati Region reveals high levels of unemployment, high adult and elderly population and high dependency on agricultural livelihood system. These indicators help understand levels of household vulnerability. The study concludes that households interviewed revealed low levels of adaptive capacity due to exposure to climate risks and combined effects of social, political and cultural factors. This article provided an understanding that is required to inform the adaptation pathways relevant for NCN.

The purpose of this study was to undertake an empirical investigation of adaptation “good practices” and define six categories of actions that can be practically considered by governments for scaling-up in order to reduce the risks of climate change.

The focus is on what needs to be in place, in terms of the enabling environment, in order for the good practices to be effectively transferred to other contexts. The report thus intends to provide governments with practical options to consider in order to undertake agricultural adaptation to climate change, based on tangible and proven practices.

Six case study countries were chosen for empirical investigation of adaptation. Within Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, South Africa, Togo and Zambia, agricultural subsectors were chosen to represent various crops and livestock grown under different production systems. The purpose was to ensure that subsectors were investigated in more than one country so that there would be scope to compare different contexts. Categories considered for each adaptation practice were: proof of concept; robustness under projected climate change; environmental and social externalities; acceptability to farmers; accessibility to farmers; productivity; access to markets; support of appropriate institutions; level of government support; effects on women; and then a criteria to capture co-benefits, such as mitigation, biodiversity conservation, or multiple production objectives.

As a result the following six good practice categories are: use of improved seeds; soil fertility management; changing timing of farming practice; changing crop/livestock distribution and density; tillage and associated practices; and diversification.

These advanced training materials have been produced to foster the capacity of practitioners from private, nongovernmental and public sectors on one hand, and academics and scientists on the other, to practically implement cost-efficient RWHI technologies and practices in arid and semi-arid areas.

Therefore, these training materials intend to provide the required information to support proper planning, design and construction of cost-efficient RWHI technologies and practices, with special emphasis on the specific problems encountered in Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Further, this manual also suggests relevant technical manuals which specifically focus on each of the RWHI technologies and practices. It is strongly recommended that reference is also made on this additional materials with help from experienced professionals in this field of knowledge.

This study has been produced with the overall goal to document and analyse exisiting best practices in the field of RWHI management in sub-Saharan Africa, with a special focus on Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. This is meant to determine the suitability of RWHI management under multivariate biophysical and socioeconomic conditions. The best practices include specific information and know-how on the performance, cost-efficiency and impacts of RWHI technologies. This information and know-how intends to contribute on the capitalisation of successful and unsuccessful experiences in the field of RWHI management in order to identify best practices which can then be replicated, adapted, improved and scaled-up, leading to greater impacts and benefits on one hand, and effective policies and investments on the other.

This report is part of the AFRHINET project under the ACP-EU Cooperation Programme in Science and Technology (S&T II). The overall aims of the project are to enhance options for sustainable integration of rainwater harvesting for irrigation through understanding adoption constraints and developing networks for capacity building and technology transfer.

The main goal of the baseline study was to conduct a capacity and technology transfer assessment in the field of rainwater harvesting for irrigation management. The national baseline studies were conducted through an extensive literature review, in-depth key informant interviews with representatives of stakeholder institutions and experts in the field of rainwater harvesting management and small-scale irrigation. Relevant information was also collected in the field and during national multi-stakeholder workshops, where information and experiences of relevant stakeholders was shared.

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 publication was launched yesterday at the COP24 in Poland at the Global Alliance for Climate Smart Agriculture side event. Hard copies of this CSA publication can be found at the Rome-Based Agencies booth.

The aim of this publication is to provide the best FAO-led examples of how the CSA is not a “one-size-fits-all” approach that can be universally applied but, rather, involves different elements embedded in local contexts. The case studies show how the management of farms, crops, livestock and aquaculture can balance short- and long-term food security needs with priorities for the farmer/ producer, as well as build adaption to climate change and contribute to mitigating GHG.

The case studies were selected and adapted from the Climate-Smart Agriculture Sourcebook Second Edition 2017, and other FAO projects.