The 2014 Annual Report | CCAFS: CGIAR research program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security

Regional Highlights

East Africa
In East Africa, CCAFS inputs into Shamba Shape Up, a regional television show, helped introduce climate-smart-agriculture to millions of East African farmers. Bioversity International worked with partners to tap into the potential of Africa’s neglected superfoods. CIFOR, ILRI, and the regional program collaborated to develop a new laboratory to quantify greenhouse gas emissions from different eco- and agricultural systems in the region. ICRISAT has been conducting participatory trials of sorghum–legume planting in eastern Kenya, while CIMMYT conducted vital climate research which informed Ethiopia’s National Climate Change Adaptation Strategy. CCAFS worked towards making carbon finance more accessible to smallholder farmers by developing training resources for diverse stakeholders and piloting the refined SHAMBA tool in the region.
West Africa
In West Africa, the regional program developed five national science-policy dialogue platforms on climate change, agriculture and food security. AfricaRice has made major improvements to models showing where Africa’s present rice-growing areas can be expanded and where farmers can continue to grow rice in areas that are becoming hotter or colder. In Ghana, IITA developed innovative ways of working in the coffee and cocoa sectors. The regional program also built on South–South cooperation efforts pursued in 2013, and a delegation from Ghana and Senegal visited Colombia to learn from Colombian experiences.
Latin America
In Latin America, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) country profiles for seven countries were developed to support decision-making processes and increase knowledge on what CSA means in each country’s context. In Colombia, the agricultural sector is strengthening its capacity to face climate challenges through an integrated action plan, informed by CIAT research. A hackathon helped spark innovative solutions for addressing the information needs of farmers in the region. CIAT reviewed the production choices of Peru’s male and female rice farmers, and Bioversity scientists learned about men and women’s adaptation needs by using a toolkit for participatory vulnerability analysis.
Southeast Asia
In Southeast Asia, the regional program established six climate-smart villages (three in Vietnam, two in Laos and one in Cambodia), where baseline studies are underway. The Talking Toolkit, developed by the ICRAF, has been integrated as a learning tool in academies in Vietnam. In Indonesia, CIFOR’s work supported the Government’s submission on baseline figures for greenhouse gas emissions from peatland. IRRI made progress on measuring greenhouse gas emissions from burning rice straw, and also developed a ‘low emissions manager’ add-on to the Rice Crop Manager app. In Cambodia, an action research project found that involving female farmers in the search for low emission agricultural innovations can help to protect women’s well-being, ensure food security and mitigate climate change.
South Asia
In South Asia, farmers evaluated and prioritised various climate-smart agricultural practices and technologies. CIMMYT’s pioneering work in India, on laser land levelling led to half a million hectares of land being made climate friendly, while IRRI focused on measuring greenhouse gas emissions from burning rice straw. In Nepal, IWMI created awareness of climate change and its effects on the poor, particularly women. In Bangladesh, WorldFish is enabling adaptation to climate change and variability through vertical horticulture.