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Conservation agriculture (CA), coordination and advocacy in southern Africa
Tags: REGIONAL PROGRAMMES, SOUTHERN AFRICA, LESOTHO, MALAWI, MOZAMBIQUE, SWAZILAND, ZAMBIA, ZIMBABWE, CONSERVATION AGRICULTURE,
Full title of the project:
Conservation agriculture (CA), coordination and advocacy in southern Africa
Contribution:
USD 1 400 000
01/09/2011-31/03/2012
Project code:
OSRO/RAF/108/USA
Objective:
To enhance households and national food security while combating the potential impact of climate change by promoting sound and sustainable farming practices in southern Africa.
Key partners:
National Conservation Agriculture Task Forces (NCATFs), Regional Conservation Agriculture Working Group (CARWG), NGOs, national governments, civil society.
Beneficiaries reached:
NCATFs in Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia and Swaziland; research and extension staff in project countries; CARWG; policy- and decision-makers in project countries; farming communities surrounding demonstration sites.
Activities implemented:
- NCATFs supported to hold regular coordination meetings.
- NCATFs in Lesotho, Malawi and Mozambique developed guidelines, which will help improve their performance and communication with other actors.
- CARWG supported to hold its annual meeting, where new Terms of Reference for the Group were presented and discussed.
- Teacher education and agricultural college curricula were revised to integrate CA, which will have long-term benefits as these target future teachers and extension workers.
- 341 extension agents from across the region were trained in CA principles and the links between CA, disaster risk reduction and climate change.
- 160 lead farmers were trained in CA in Lesotho.
- NCATFs in all project countries began developing national CA manuals.
- 12 M&E officers from Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe were trained in using GIS in CA M&E.
- Over 40 field days were held, with more than 2 000 people attending, during which CA information materials in local languages were distributed.
- Evaluation of extension approaches and methodologies in SADC, particularly Zambia and Zimbabwe, was conducted.
Impact:
- Regular coordination meetings among NCATFs contributed to better information sharing among members and to reducing overlap or duplication in their programmes.
- Parliamentarians, senior government staff and other decision- and policy-makers were engaged through field days, training and NCATFs, contributing to improving the policy environment for CA upscaling.
- The trained M&E officers have begun developing an information management strategy for CA M&E, which will contribute to improving lessons learning and sharing of best practices.