West Africa is facing three major challenges: (i) structural food and nutritional insecurity, (ii) the effects of climate change (droughts, aridity, floods, etc.), (iii) salinization and physico-chemical degradation of agricultural land.
To address these challenges, all West African stakeholders adopted the Intervention Framework for the Development of Climate-Smart Agriculture and a West African Alliance at the High-Level Forum held in Bamako (Mali) from 15 to 18 June 2015, to support the implementation of this intervention framework in line with the implementation of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) Agricultural Policy, ECOWAP. Through its Regional Agency for Agriculture and Food (RAAF) based in Lomé, Togo, and with financial support from the French Development Agency (AFD) and the European Union (EU), ECOWAS intends to support national, regional and international organisations in promoting agro-ecological practices to improve food and nutrition security in West Africa through the Agroecology Programme (PAE), which consists of two projects: the Support Project to the Agroecological Transition" (PATAE), and the Project to Support the Dissemination and Implementation of Good Practices for Sustainable Agricultural Intensification (PAIAD). The PAE aims to promote the development of innovative practices that optimise the mobilisation of ecological processes in the field of agro-sylvo-pastoral and fisheries production in the ECOWAS zone, by supporting family farms in an agro-ecological transition that enables them to combine economic performance, food security, preservation of the environment and public health.
The PAE is structured around five components.
The first component focuses on promoting research-action initiatives for sustainable agricultural intensification and agro-ecological transition. To implement this component, local initiatives are supported by ECOWAS to help farmers' groups and rural communities move towards agro-ecological intensification.
The second component aims to contribute to agricultural training and capacity building for sustainable agricultural intensification and the promotion of agro-ecology. Through this component, knowledge of techniques and good practices for sustainable agricultural intensification and ecologically intensive agriculture is promoted in training schemes for stakeholders in agricultural sectors.
The third component is designed to contribute to advisory support and the dissemination of technological innovations for sustainable agricultural intensification. Through this component, technological innovations for sustainable agricultural intensification that are adapted to the production methods of small-scale producers are disseminated to stakeholders in the agricultural sectors.
The fourth component aims to facilitate exchanges, communicate and capitalise on the achievements of field projects and partnerships between farmers' organisations, research centres and training centres, and to contribute to the development of public policies that promote agro-ecology. Through this component, experiences of sustainable agricultural intensification and ecologically intensive agriculture are discussed, capitalised on, integrated and promoted in agricultural policies. The results of successful initiatives, the lessons learned and their evaluation with a view to creating favourable conditions for private investment in agro-ecological transition are disseminated and communicated.
The fifth component focuses on the coordination, management, audit and evaluation of the Programme.
The PAE is structured around five components.
The first component focuses on promoting research-action initiatives for sustainable agricultural intensification and agro-ecological transition. To implement this component, local initiatives are supported by ECOWAS to help farmers' groups and rural communities move towards agro-ecological intensification.
The second component aims to contribute to agricultural training and capacity building for sustainable agricultural intensification and the promotion of agro-ecology. Through this component, knowledge of techniques and good practices for sustainable agricultural intensification and ecologically intensive agriculture is promoted in training schemes for stakeholders in agricultural sectors.
The third component is designed to contribute to advisory support and the dissemination of technological innovations for sustainable agricultural intensification. Through this component, technological innovations for sustainable agricultural intensification that are adapted to the production methods of small-scale producers are disseminated to stakeholders in the agricultural sectors.
The fourth component aims to facilitate exchanges, communicate and capitalise on the achievements of field projects and partnerships between farmers' organisations, research centres and training centres, and to contribute to the development of public policies that promote agro-ecology. Through this component, experiences of sustainable agricultural intensification and ecologically intensive agriculture are discussed, capitalised on, integrated and promoted in agricultural policies. The results of successful initiatives, the lessons learned and their evaluation with a view to creating favourable conditions for private investment in agro-ecological transition are disseminated and communicated.
The fifth component focuses on the coordination, management, audit and evaluation of the Programme.
Contacts
L'objectif général du programme est d’accompagner les exploitations familiales vers une transition agroécologique leur permettant de concilier performances économiques, sécurité alimentaire, préservation de l'environnement et santé des populations en favorisant l’émergence, l’adoption et la diffusion de pratiques écologiquement intensives mais aussi des modes de gestion et d’organisation favorisant cette adoption.
Objectifs spécifiques
01.02.03.04.05.06.07.The strategy for implementing the Programme is based on the following points :
- Creation of a regional Programme Coordination Unit (PCU) supported by a consortium of operators selected through an international call for tenders, which will also provide technical support to the RAAF in the supervision of actions
- Appointment of National Correspondents (NCs) within the ministries of agriculture, responsible for monitoring and evaluation, coordinating national activities and facilitating the incorporation of agro-ecology into national agricultural policies
- Putting in place a tender process to select innovative projects involving consortia of local, national, regional and even international players, research institutions and economic operators (agro-ecology product merchants and/or producers of organic products)
- Creation of platforms for exchanges between projects and between implementing partners and RAAF/PCU: WhatsApp platforms: PCU-project leaders - PCU-Training centres - PCU-NC - PCU-3AO (Alliance for Agroecology in West Africa), 3AO digital platform for capitalising on and sharing information
- Setting up internal project monitoring-evaluation and capitalisation systems and procedures
- Ensure synergy with other projects, programmes and initiatives underway in the region in the fields of agro-ecology, climate-smart agriculture and organic farming
- Direct regional monitoring and evaluation by the RAAF/PCU and via the ECOWAS/RAAF MESECOPS platform
- Implementation of administrative and financial management rules in line with AFD procedures
This strategy is based on the following seven (7) principles, which guarantee the effectiveness of the actions :
- Participation and empowerment of local stakeholders
- Diversified and complementary support approaches at all levels (village, commune or sector)
- Collective action to co-design innovations, and systems/approaches to encourage their adoption
- Advisory support and the dissemination of innovations as a tool for the adoption of agro-ecological practices and sustainable agricultural intensification
- Training and capacity-building with the support of training centres, research centres, farmers' universities, field schools, national and private advisory and extension services, and MOOC (Massive Open Online Courses) for joint knowledge-building
- Exchange of experiences to provide new knowledge and lead to more generic lessons
- Capitalising on what has been learnt and the lessons learned from successes and failures to provide decision-makers with useful information for developing public policies
Outcome 1
- Farmers' groups and rural communities are supported in their efforts to achieve agro-ecological intensification
Outcome 2
- Knowledge of sustainable agricultural intensification and ecologically intensive agriculture techniques and best practices is promoted through training programmes for stakeholders in agricultural sectors
Outcome 3
- Technological innovations for sustainable agricultural intensification, adapted to the production methods of small-scale farmers, are made available to stakeholders in strategic priority sectors (rice, maize, cassava, millet/sorghum)
Outcome 4
- Experience of sustainable agricultural intensification and ecologically intensive agriculture in West Africa is capitalised on, integrated and promoted in agricultural policies
The Programme's beneficiaries are male and female farmers' groups, rural communities and local authorities, NGOs, economic operators, researchers, teachers and trainees in academic schools and training institutes, non-academic training centres, national and regional technical agents, rural populations affected by climate change and the physical and chemical degradation of soils, and agricultural professionals.
Programme support for :
- 15 innovative field projects promoting agroecological practices.
- 15 agroecology training centres.
- 15 Partnerships between farmers' organisations, research centres and training centres/extension structures.
Collaborations with other regional projects, programmes and initiatives :
- Alliance for Agroecology in West Africa (3AO) for regional consultations and advocacy for the inclusion of agroecology in public policies.
- Fair Sahel project to set up a digital agroecology platform.
- SupAgro Montpellier pour le développement d’un MOOC Agroécologie Afrique de l’Ouest.
- Montpellier SupAgro for the development of an Agroecology MOOC for West Africa, FAO to support the adoption of TAPE (Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation) by countries.
- AIC, GCCA-Plus, EOA, Equité, IOM, etc. projects to promote agroecology and organic farming practices, adaptation to and mitigation of the effects of climate change, and to capitalise on the results of innovative activities.
- Setting up and facilitating national stakeholder consultation frameworks on agroecology.
Newsletters
