The Brussels Briefing on the subject of “Emerging donors and rising powers in agriculture in ACP countries” took place on Tuesday 27 October 2015 from 9:00h to 13:00h at the ACP Secretariat (451 Avenue Georges Henri, 1200 Brussels, Room C ). The Briefing discussed the key challenges and new opportunities to enhance South-South and Triangular cooperation. The Briefing : i) reviewed successes and the lessons learned from research and practice; ii) promoted the exchange of information on best practices and drivers of success; iii) fed into the debate various perspectives on policy options. It reviewed the key challenges and opportunities in South-South cooperation in agriculture and the lessons learned from research and practice. It looked at examples of successes in South-South and triangular partnerships across the ACP.

1. by
Saidi Mkomwa, CEO
African Conservation Tillage Network (ACT)
Email: saidi.mkomwa@act-africa.org
Triangular Cooperation in
Support of Conservation
Agriculture for Africa:
Successes, Challenges and
Opportunities
Presented via skype to
Tearfund
Friday, October 15, 2015
Presented to
Brussels Development Policy Briefing no. 43
27th October 2015
ACP Secretariat, 451 Avenue Georges Henri, 1200 Brussels

2. Food security more urgent in
Africa in coming years
 Global population to increase by 33% to 9
billion by 2050
 Africa’s to increase by 115%; by 21% in Asia
 60% more food worldwide; 100% in Africa
 Worldwide hunger decreased by 132 million in
last 20 years; it increased by 64 million in
Africa.
 Threatening climate change challenges
 Farming related land resource degradation
THE GOOD NEWS:
 Easier to double yields in Africa (say from 1.2 to 2.4 tonnes/ha)
 A 1% increase in cereal yield can lift 2 million people out of
poverty
 Africa has 60% of the global total uncultivated crop land
 Four of the world’s top 10 fastest growing economies are in
Atransformationis
Imperative

3. It must be Sustainable Intensification
for adaptation and mitigation to Climate Change
 Farming Not based on
Tillage. USA dust storms
of1930s. To reduce the 14% of
GHG emissions from agriculture
 Watershed & water
towers conservation.
Recharge aquifers, green
power.
 Agroforestry. Biodiversity,
rainforests, carbon sinks.
 Intensified crop–
livestock-tree systems.
Curb overgrazing degradation.
40 million hectares destroyed,
2.5 million people migrated
Africa is deforesting at twice
the world rate

4. The future is bright; but a transformation
anchored on soil health is imperative!
 Healthy soils/brown revolution: higher efficiency of
use of all inputs; resilience to climate change;
sustainability.
 Need to increase productivity (reduce escalating
inputs costs, labour shortages, reduce climatic
shocks).
 Special focus on smallholder rainfed agriculture in
semiarid lands - home of the poor
 Competitive value chain and market access
 Innovative pro-poor business models to bring
affordable farm inputs and services to the farmers’
doorstep
Adapt and adopt Conservation Agriculture
Africa missed the dramatic gains of the Green
Revolution

5. CA is an approach to managing agro-
ecosystems for improved and
sustained productivity, increased
resilience to rainfall variability,
increased profits and food security
while preserving and enhancing the
resource base and the environment.
1. Continuous minimum mechanical soil
disturbance.
2. Permanent organic soil cover.
3. Diversification of crop species grown in
sequences or associations.
CA is one of the best options for
transformation

6. HOW CA WORKS
 Soil cover and zero till reduce
evaporation & runoff; increase
infiltration
 Larger un-compacted root
zone retain soil moisture for
dry spells; and drain excess to
check flooding
 Leguminous cover crops fix
much needed nitrogen
 Crop rotations break pest
cycles. Deliberate allelopathy
rotations (e.g. with push-pull)
can be induced.
 Increased soil moisture
enables increased land
productivity: e.g. 2.5 crops
/year; mixed/relay cropping
 CA sequesters carbon;
reduction in fuel use and GHG
emissions
How does CA work? Benefits?
CA BENEFITS
Adaptation:
• Increases crop yields
• Higher cropping intensity (1.5 – 2)
• Increases resource use efficiency
• Enhances system resilience
(coping with erratic rainfall)
• Reduces soil erosion, improves
soil health
Mitigation:
• Intensification reduces clearing of
forests for agriculture
• Improved soil – sequester of
carbon
• Minimum till reduces the use of
diesel by up to 65% - less CO2
emissions
• Crop rotations/associations –
nitrogen fixing, reduced fertilizer
use
Achievement of national goals
• Increases farm incomes and
profits

7. Does CA Work?
 150 million ha globally,
expanding at the rate of 10
million ha per year (Kassam
2014). 1.22 million ha in Africa.
 Increased productivity (for
small, medium and large scale
farmers).
 Savings in labour (up to
60%). Zero tillage. Labour
peaks spread. Attracts youths,
creates opportunities for
enterprise diversification,
expansion of cultivated area
(from saved time).
 CA helps fight climate
change (the 14% GHG
emissions from agriculture
problem changes to a solution):
 The entry point to food
security for smallholders &
commercialise by selling surplus
and diversify
 In restoring landscapes and
improving livelihoods. See
Thomas Loronyo, Arusha
Tanzania.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l
0orM79a6oo
 In increasing productivity -
for the large scale farmers in Africa.
See Laurie Session. Laikipia
Kenya. Link:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
A94xFIxOGs4
 The scientific evidence in
plenty: CIMMYT; FAO -website:
http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/index.html;
EU &ACT ABACO project in 6
countries
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=
hAQbfXvE8Ec

8. Worldwide adoption of
Conservation Agriculture
6thSSource World Congress on Conservation Agriculture, Winnipeg, 22-25 June 2014 slide 2/x
USA 36
Canada
18
Australia 17.9
Europe 2
Kazakhstan 2
Africa 1.2
Brazil
32
Conservation Agriculture globally 155 Million ha (~11% of arable cropland)
Argentina 27
Paraguay 3
China 6.7
tropical savannah
continental, dry
temperate, moist
temperate, moist
continental, dry
irrigated
smallholder
smallholder
smallholder
arid
arid
large scale
large
scale
large scale
large scale
large
scale
large
scale
subtropical, dry
tropical savannah
other LA 2.4
>50% W
(40%)
20%
99%
100% West
(36%)
Russia,
Ukraine 5.2
India 1.5
other Asia 0.1
• CA adoption expanding at the rate of 9 million ha annually
• 1.22 million ha in Africa. 65% are smallholders.
Source: Adapted from
Kassam, 2015

9. Worldwide adoption of
Conservation Agriculture
6th World Congress on Conservation Agriculture, Winnipeg, 22-25 June 2014 slide 2/x
100
Dustbowl
1930 20001950
USSoilConservationService
conservationtillage
dustbowl
Siberia/USSR
Faulkner(US)–Fukuoka(Japan)
commercialno-till/US
firstno-tilldemonstrationinBrazil
Oldrieve/Zimbabwe
adoptionBrazil
plantiodiretonapalha
experimentsinChina,IndogangeticPlains
Newboost:Canada,
Australia,Kazakhstan,
Russia,China,Finland...;
Africa
Argentina,Paraguay;
1980 1990
Firstno-tillintheUS
IITAno-tillresearch
50
Mill.ha
History and Adoption of CA
1970 2010
155 mill ha
firstno-tillfarmersinUSA
FirstWCCAinMadrid
Source: Kassam, 2015

10. African Conservation Agriculture (CA)
Innovations Perfected in Brazil for Africa
Africa Innovation
o Dibble stick
(Early Egyptians)
o Zai pits
(West Africa)

11. The South-South Triangular
Brazil-Africa-Europe CA Partnership
On-going initiatives
 CA for improved Food Security, Economic Growth and Climate Change
Resilience of smallholders Farmers in Africa (CAFEC) Project in Kenya,
Tanzania & Zimbabwe
 ACT and Partners – EMBRAPA/IDE – NORAD
 Objectives: CA continental coordination framework (AU/NEPAD, RECS, FOs); CA
Centres of Excellence; CA service providers; Quality Assurance; Africa CA congress;
Africa CA Knowledge e-Platform; Advisory Panel for Africa.
 EMBRAPA: Share R&D experiences on CA technology packages
 ABIMAQ: Linking Brazilian equipment manufacturers to fulfil demands in Africa
Past initiatives
 Agro-ecology based aggradation-conservation agriculture (ABACO)
project in Burkina Faso, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Mozambique and
Madagascar
 ACT and partners – EMBRAPA – European Union;
 Objectives: adapt CA to farming systems; co-innovation platforms; tradeoffs of
implementing CA; dissemination of targeted CA alternatives; and reinforce existing
knowledge networks
 ACT & Partners: SOFECSA, FOFIFA, CIRDES, CIRAD, NRI, Yellow Window,
Wageningen, EMBRAPA
 CA SARD project (GCP/RAF/413/GER) in Kenya and Tanzania
 ACT and Partners – EMBRAPA/FAPEAGRO – FAO&BMZ
 Technical project – validation of proof of the CA concept

12. Successes
o First Africa Congress on Conservation Agriculture
http://www.africacacongress.org/. This led to the 25x25 declaration
and contributed to the AU Heads of State Malabo 2014
Declaration. Specific to ACT were:
o ACT is to establish a CA quality-assurance system
o ACT, FAO & RECs to support knowledge management by stakeholders
o Partnerships with Brazilian private sector (Fitarelli, Vence Tudo, Guarany)
organised by ABIMAQ to train CoE staff and service providers.
o East African artisans/manufacturers taken to and trained in Brazil
are now developing some CA equipment at local level.
o Capacity built for CA CoE, Farmer Organisations and CoPs for
learning and sharing of CA information
o ACT participated and were recognised for special contribution to
the UN Global South-South Development Expo 2013.
o ACT editing a book (to be published 2016) and a special journal
issue (in press) on CA for Smallholders in Africa
o Restoring landscapes and improving livelihoods. T Loronyo,
Arusha Tanzania. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0orM79a6oo

13. Challenges to Upscale CA
1. Continued promotion and development support of tillage-based
agricultural systems by national, international &private institutions;
2. Weak policies and regulatory frameworks and institutional
arrangements to support the promotion and mainstreaming of CA;
3. Inadequate awareness, knowledge and expertise of CA systems and
the process of their adoption and spread among key stakeholders;
4. Inadequate CA-based technology packaging, enterprise
diversification and integration in farming systems;
5. Inadequate skills and competencies among farmers, & practitioners;
6. Farmers’ inability to maintain year-round soil cover through the use
of specially introduced cover crops, intercrops and crop residue;
7. Poor availability &access to CA equipment, machinery and inputs;
8. Absence of a strong continental body & strategic policy framework
to guide the promotion and mainstreaming of CA across Africa.
Paradigm shift (systemic capacity building); Incubate Entrepreneurship

14. Opportunities to Upscale CA in Africa
 CA offers the unique win-win-win option to the pressure to transform
farming in Africa for Food Security-Economic Growth-Climate
Change resilience. Gateway for smallholders to commercialise.
 CA can greatly contribute to the SDG’s specifically SDGs 2,13,17
 Good will of Development partners (EU, NORAD, FAO, EMBRAPA)
to streamline CA at CAADP- NEPAD/AU level under a CA
framework
 Support from research (e.g. CIMMYT, ICRISAT), education (e.g.
Bunda, Sokoine, Fort Hare) sectors as well as governments (e.g.
Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania)
increasing.
 Support from the 20 experts strong CA Think-Tank: the International
CA Advisory Panel (ICAAP-Africa) Chaired by Prof Amir Kassam.
 CA Centres of Excellence to work for smallholder farmers.
 Entrepreneurial CA services provision model developed with IDE,
links by EMBRAPA & Brazilian private sector through ABIMAQ.
 Support to ACT and Continental CA coordination: quality assurance,

15. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
ACT acknowledges the support provided
by
 CTA for the invitation to the Briefing
 EMBRAPA – for the South-South Cooperation
 The host National Governments
 FAO & BMZ (CA SARD)
 European Union (ABACO)
 NORAD (CA4CC & CAFEC)
THANK YOU FOR LISTENING
www.act-africa.org