Regional Media

Given the reduced involvement of the youth in the SADC region in agriculture, CCARDESA saw it imperative to organise a Youth in Agriculture Summit to discuss the challenges that hinder the involvement of youth in agriculture. The Summit, running under the theme “Unlocking Agri-business Opportunities for Youth in Southern Africa,” was organized from the 3rd to the 6th of August 2015 in Durban, South Africa The summit was attended by representatives from different institutions in the SADC region including various intergovernmental institutions (SADC, COMESA, FARA, CCARDESA, AS-ARECA, CORAF/WECARD, FAO), the South African government, the City of Durban, youth organisations from the region and beyond in-volved in agriculture. In total about 350 people attended the Summit, a first in the SADC region for Youth in Agriculture.

The summit was supported by a number of institutions including the European Union (EU), USAID, World Bank and Ethekwini Municipality. A number of institutions across the region also partnered with CCARDESA in the organization of the summit including ARC/LNR, AGRA, FiBL, WorldFish, ASARECA, LandBank, African Network for Agri-culture, Agroforestry & Natural Resources Edu-cation, University of Kwazulu Natal, Agribusi-ness Forum Botswana, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA), IITA, TechServe Alliance, ICRISAT, West and Central African Council for Agricultural Research and Development, Africa University, Forum for Agri-cultural Research in Africa (FARA), Economic Development Commission for Southern Africa (EDCSA), and Kilimo Trust. In addition the Ministries of Agriculture from Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland also played key roles in supporting the summit.

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

This brochure was developed by CCARDESA to highlight constraints of adopting mechanization in Conservation Agriculture and possible suggestions to improve mechanization in CA.

Regionally as well as internationally, Conservation Agriculture research has proven to show numerous benefits, as it is evident that multiple donors continue to invest in the promotion and the adoption of CA technologies. These benefits range from:

• Improved soil fertility and moisture retention, resulting from long-term yield increase, decreasing yield variation and greater food security.
• Stabilizes soil and reduce erosion.
• It contributes in the reduction of surface water and groundwater contamination.
• Reduces on-farm costs: saving in time, labour and mechanized machinery.

This brochure explains the concept of Conservation Agriculture, its benefits and how to deal with pests and diseases when adopting conservation agriculture.

This is a presentation made during the tackling climate change in agriculture training in Zimbabwe. It talks about different concepts and technologies for sustainable use of water and soil.

This resource is a presentation of the activities for knowledge sharing at CCARDESA. The main emphasis is on the Southern African Agricultural Information System (SAAIKS). SAAIKS is a system which is developed by CCARDESA to facilitate regional sharing of information in Southern Africa. The system exists to complement other initiatives which include the CCARDESA website and social media platforms.

This is a presentation by TechFeed Botswana during a dry season management workshop. The presentation presents methods of managing livestock and pastures during dry season with emphasis on supplementary feeding.

This is a presentation of use of ICTs in Agriculture by Mr Makoko during the dry season management workshop. The presentation focuses on the Agricultural Early Warning and Market Information System (AMEWI) which was developed by Agribusiness Forum Botswana and other partners.

This is presentation by Moagi Letso during the dry season workshop. The presentation focuses on fodder production for use during the dry season.