Climate Smart Agriculture in East Africa (Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania) East Africa has been experiencing rising temperatures, shifting precipitation patterns, and increasing extreme events. Smallholder farmers, crop traders and consumers across Eastern Africa are currently confronted with the impact of two consecutive seasons of drought that have affected agricultural value chains severely. Climate variability and change have thus adversely affected the agricultural sector and the situation is expected to worsen in the future. Climate change is having far-reaching consequences for not only the agriculture sector, but also the management of natural resources as well as the food security situation of the population. It is projected to have an overall negative effect on crop yields in Africa. The risks and negative impacts of climate change will be large but unevenly distributed. It is estimated that the cost of inaction may be up to 20 times higher than the cost of investing in measures to adapt to climate change. If no adaptive measures are taken, the impact of climate change on crop yields in the East African region is largely negative. As such, this challenge calls for a response that integrates enhanced food security for vulnerable groups with climate adaptation and mitigation of food crop production and supply systems, and puts investments towards those interventions that lead to a market driven adoption and scaling of inclusive climate smart business developments.
SMART Agriculture
The adoption of climate smart and ecologically sustainable production methods is key to improving productivity of the existing food crop production and supply systems. However, with climate change having a different effect on different geographic regions, as well as different crop, it requires concerted efforts and joint investments by the supply chain partners, as well as public partners and support agencies, in the different food crop sectors to support effective adaptation and mitigation strategies. There is an opportunity for smallholder farmers (women and men) in East Africa to adapt their farming businesses and minimise the negative effects of climate change. Economic gains for farmers, agri-SME’s and other supply chain partners will provide the incentives for the required change processes. Such a program will need a menu of options from which farmers, SMEs and other service providers can choose appropriate strategies for their locations and systems, facilitated and assisted by private sector players, extension agents and knowledge partners. The governments of the three targeted countries under this programme, as well as the Dutch government, have policies and actions plans which emphasize the need for increased investments in climate smart and ecologically sustainable agricultural production to reduce the socio-economic impact of climate change in the East Africa region. This is in line with the latest international agreements on Climate Change under the Paris Agreement, to increase investments for adaptation and resilience in least developed countries and mobilize private sector investments. The consortium, led by SNV, provides a strong platform to not only manage and coordinate a robust CSA program, but provides targeted technical assistance to local partners and companies, research and knowledge management support, hereby contributing to a more conducive environment and joint investments in CSA food production and supply improvements

For the execution of the project specific tasks, deliverables and resources for each partner will be identified further in the project proposal and implementation plans. In principle Agriterra will be responsible for:
Scoping, assessment and selection of entrepreneurial cooperatives;
Professionalizing farmer groups, cooperatives that are part of the business cases;
Lobby support to Farmer Organisations: Policy Influencing;
Provide cooperative training packages and coaching influencing agripoolers where required on: governance, business development, internal capitalisation, farmer services, youth and gender.

 

SNV, in close collaboration with the other consortium partners (CCAFS and Agriterra), as well as supply chain partners in several targeted food production and supply sectors – will promote climate smart agriculture as a way to transform and reorient agricultural systems to the new realities of climate change. 
The programme will deliver impact in the following areas: Productive capacity and income increased for 300,000 smallholder farmers; Business performance improved for 50 agribusiness SMEs and 30 cooperatives (of which at least 25% is managed by women and/or youth) for climate-proof value chains; Climate resilient sustainable food production practiced on 600,000 hectares with more carbon,- energy,- and water efficient production systems.