ACSAA Malawi Inception Workshop

1. A Practical Guide to
CSA technologies
Christian Thierfelder

2. „It is not possible to do the same things in
the same way and expect different
results.....“
„We are running the danger of being too
vague – we therefore need concrete
examples....!“

3. The Rationale of a Practical Guide to
Climate Smart Agriculture
● Organizations need practical hands-
on extension guidelines – no mixed
messages – no confusion
● Information is needed for
practitioners on
 what technologies we have
 where we should put them
 how climate smart the technologies are
and
 how do we get them out to the farmers

4. Different visual ways of quantifying
and describing a climate smart
technology
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5. Agroforestry
Nutrition security
Poverty alleviation
Natural resource
management
Improved
cook-stove
Conservation
agriculture
Increased yields
Soil quality & carbon
Reduced
degradation &
erosion
Dietary
diversity
Intercropping
Market access
Increase income
Participatory
approach
Landscapes with
multiple CSA options

6. Evolution from Toolbox Version 1.0
● First toolbox information was considered useful
but not inclusive enough (too narrow)
● Too much confusion - what do we mean by a
toolbox?
● Change of name from a toolbox to a “Practical
Guide”

7. What will our Practical Guide consist of?
● A set of tools to help users to determine farming
practices that are climate smart (targeting)
● Farmers’ own agro-ecosystems and circumstances are
taken into account
● Selected farming practices lead to improved
productivity, adaptation and resilience to the effects of
climate change.
● The Guide will help to choose techniques and practices
and assess the “climate-smartness” of the technology
● The Guide includes extension approaches

8. Community profiling
of climatic risks to
agriculture
Tools to analyse and
articulate an evidence-
based understanding of
the local agro-ecosystem
and farming systems
Provides understanding
of the risks and
vulnerabilities towards
climate change
Segment 1
Climate smart
farming technologies
and practices
A description of farming
techniques and practices
from which practitioners
and decision makers can
select most suitable
practices.
The description will
provide information on
the climate “smartness”
of the technologies and
practices
Segment 2
Participatory
selection of climate
smart farming
technologies and
practices
Selection tools to choose
a combination of
techniques/ practices
from Segment 2, taking
the agro-ecosystems and
climate vulnerability
risks from Segment 1
into account
Segment 4
An Africa-specific CSA Guide for Practitioners and Decision Makers
Methodologies and
approaches for CSA
extension
Provides a list of
methodologies/approach
es for working with
farmers and
communities to facilitate
adoption of CSA practice.
Aide to extension of CSA
technologies
Segment 3

9. Which CSA technologies and practices
we will be include at this stage?
CA (including CAWT)
Stress-tolerant germplasm
Zai pits and other water harvesting
systems
Improved and targeted fertilizer use
Crop diversification
Fodder shrubs for improved cattle
feeding
Alternate wetting and drying in rice
Farmer management natural
regeneration (FMNR)

10. ● Task teams have been identified
● A series of eight CSA systems have been prioritized and are
currently summarized following a template
● Decision support systems are being developed
● A writeshop is scheduled for May 04-08, 2015 in
Johannesburg
● Outcome expected: almost final CSA Practical Guide
needing design
● Final product ready by June 2015
The CSA Practical Guide – where are we?

11. Work stream March April May June July Aug Sept Oct
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
Nominate and commission task teams to work
on each Segment
General Stakeholder consultation on what is
expected in a tool box - (done by task teams)
Joint task team working session to review and
technically validate the Practical Guide –
COMESA Region
Expert team refine and finalise the Practical
Guide; publication and printing
Use the West Africa CSA Regional Workshop
to interrogate the Practical Guide and
align/domesticate to regional circumstances
and needs
Launch of the Practical Guide at the Africa CSA
pan-African forum
Dissemination and training programmes for
users
The 3rd international Conference on Financing
for Development will be held in Addis Ababa,
Ethiopia,
The 25th AU Summit
Timelines –
the Guide will be ready by June

12. An Example: Conservation Agriculture

13. CA – decision tree
Manual systems Animal traction systems
Manual direct seeding Rip-line seeding Direct seeding
Maize,
sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea,
Vulnerable
farmers
Manual farmers without
access to draft power
Cash constraint farmers with
access to draft power
Emerging commercial
farmers
Maize, sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea, beans
sunflower
Maize, groundnuts,
cowpea, beans,
soybean, cotton,
sunflower
Maize, groundnuts,
cowpea, beans,
soybean, cotton,
sunflower
Farm
typology
Recommended
crops
Rainfall
regime
Seeding
system
Traction
source
Rainfall: 500-700
mm; Plant
population:
36,000 plants/ha
Rainfall: 700-1200
mm; Plant
population: 44,000-
53,000 plants/ha
Rainfall: 800-1400
mm, Plant
population: 44,000 -
53,000 plants/ha
Rainfall: 800-1400
mm, Plant
population 44,000 -
53,000 plants/ha
Maize,
sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea,
Maize, sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea, beans
sunflower
Basin planting
Manual systems Animal traction systems
Manual direct seeding Rip-line seeding Direct seeding
Maize,
sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea,
Vulnerable
farmers
Manual farmers without
access to draft power
Cash constraint farmers with
access to draft power
Emerging commercial
farmers
Maize, sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea, beans
sunflower
Maize, groundnuts,
cowpea, beans,
soybean, cotton,
sunflower
Maize, groundnuts,
cowpea, beans,
soybean, cotton,
sunflower
Farm
typology
Recommended
crops
Rainfall
regime
Seeding
system
Traction
source
Rainfall: 500-700
mm; Plant
population:
36,000 plants/ha
Rainfall: 700-1200
mm; Plant
population: 44,000-
53,000 plants/ha
Rainfall: 800-1400
mm, Plant
population: 44,000 -
53,000 plants/ha
Rainfall: 800-1400
mm, Plant
population 44,000 -
53,000 plants/ha
Maize,
sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea,
Maize, sorghum,
groundnuts,
cowpea, beans
sunflower
Basin planting

14. How will the system be described?
● Manual seeding systems
● Animal traction seeding
systems
● Climate smartness of CA
● Different crops to be grown
under the system at different
intensities
● Challenges in the
implementation
Figure 2: CSA potential of CA systems in
sub-Saharan Africa
CSA potential of CA systems
in southern Africa

15. •Basin planting
•Jab-planter
•AT Direct seeder
•Dibble stick
•Hoe-planter
•Magoye ripper

16. TLC, 2014
ICRAF

17. There is still work to be done….!
● Targeting tool – how can we best
describe and understand the agro-
ecosystem, the farmer
circumstances and the risk
mitigation potential?
● Extension tool – what extension
methods and practises are likely to
lead to best response and uptake
of technologies?

18. How can this be achieved?
●Who will be the users of the practical
guide?
●What will be the measurements for
specific CSA technologies implemented in
Malawi?
●How will we report these and what will be
the overall effects and outcomes?
●What key indicators need to be collected?
● What additional technical support would be
needed for an implementation plan?
E.g. tools, methods, analyses…etc.

19. Thank you very much!