AUDA-NEPAD hosts the 3rdAfrica CSA Alliance Forum

Following the success of the first two Africa Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) Alliance Forums in 2015 and 2016, AUDA-NEPAD and the African Union Commission, with support from GIZ and Norad, are convening the 3rdAfrica CSA Alliance Forum from 27-28 March 2019 in Dakar, Senegal. 

Under the theme “Towards Vision 25x25 – Taking stock of CSA in Africa” the Forum aims to review progress made towards Vision 25x25[1], and share lessons and insights on how to drive sustained adoption of CSA in the African context. 

The Forum will also discuss how CSA can offer meaningful economic opportunities to millions of Africa’s youths despite a changing climate, effective financing models for large scale CSA investments on the continent, and how to facilitate mutually beneficial and commercially sustainable partnerships between the private sector and smallholders in CSA interventions.

“We are looking forward to hosting around 300 delegates that include senior government officials, leaders of development organisations, farmers and farmer representatives, and leaders of private sector firms” said Mr Kwame Ababio, Senior Programme Officer at AUDA-NEPAD.

For more on the upcoming forum including registration, please visit http://www.nepad.org/event/3rd-africa-climate-smart-agriculture-alliance-forum

Evolution of Africa Climate Smart Agriculture Alliance Forum

At the 31stAfrican Union (AU) Summit (Malabo, 2014), Heads of State and Government emphasised the importance of the agriculture and climate change by endorsing the NEPAD programme on Agriculture and climate change with the Vision to have at least 25 million small-holder households practicing Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) by 2025. 

The NEPAD Agriculture and Climate change Programme elaborates three interrelated core action segments:  

(a) The Africa CSA Alliance Forum which is essentially a member states driven platform and movement fostering sharing, learning and strengthening public voice in support of CSA; 

(b) Programme interventions and support services through which technical, financing and knowledge services are organised in supporting country actions; and lastly,

 (c) Country Action, which reflects country national policy support, investment financing as well as institutional and human capacity development at all levels including focusing on practitioners especially, youth, women and rural populations (http://www.nepad.org/publication/africa-climate-smart-agriculture-alliance-acsaa-strategic-framework).

The 1stAfrica CSA Alliance Forum

Within the context of the first segment, the NEPAD Agency organised the 1stAfrica CSA Alliance Forum in May 2015 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia under the theme: fostering alignment and harmonisation in the CSA efforts in Africa. The Forum sort to build a shared understanding of CSA and broaden access to information on CSA initiatives across the continent including private sector and civil society led initiatives. The forum also enabled linkages and partnership in programmes and initiatives to scale up CSA (http://www.nepad.org/publication/launch-africa-climate-smart-agriculture-alliance-forum-13-15-may-2015-addis-ababa).

The 2ndAfrican CSA Alliance Forum

The 2ndAfrican CSA Alliance forum was held in Nairobi, Kenya in 2016 under the theme: From Agreement to Action: Implementing INDCs for Growth and Resilience in Agriculture. This theme reflected the emphasis placed by African countries on the agricultural sector in their INDCs[2]. This was an important opportunity for Africa where agriculture remains fundamental to the livelihoods and food security in the region and is increasingly vulnerable to changes in climate. The Forum sort to provide an opportunity for AU member countries, private sector, civil society groups and representatives from AU member states, to share experiences and evolving practices and identify common interests and opportunities for action related to, rolling out implementation at national-community level and on the other hand continued engagement in UNFCCC processes and updating of INDCs to NDCs where desired (http://www.nepad.org/publication/concept-note-2nd-africa-climate-smart-agriculture-alliance-annual-forum).

[1]Vision 25x25 is the African Union’s vision of having at least 25 million smallholder farming households practicing Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) by 2025 that was endorsed at the 31stAfrican Union Summit in Malabo, 2014.

[2]INDCs (now NDCs) - Intended Nationally Determined Contributions – refer to commitments made by members states as part of measures to combat the impacts of climate change and contribute to emissions reduction within the framework of the Paris Agreement signed in 2015