Aboard on “A Common Journey”
The Central American dry corridor, especially the countries comprising the CA-4 agreement – Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, and Nicaragua – have been the most affected by disasters caused by climate change over the last 10 years, mainly by the El Niño and La Niña events. This remains a major challenge for the agrifood sector in these countries and worldwide, particularly for smallholders, who are the most vulnerable actors in the sector, as it limits not only their incomes, but also their food and nutritional security and the productivity of their crops.
In light of such considerations, in July 2017, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT, and the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) decided to set sail together on “A Common Journey”.
The project aimed to build capacities in Central America on Climate-smart Agriculture (CSA) to strengthen policies and decision-making for climate change adaptation and mitigation actions. And thus, the journey began, coming and going through the different locations pinpointed on the map. The team from “A Common Journey” drew a line on that map, connecting partners from the different local institutions: public officials from the Ministries of Agriculture and Livestock, Ministries of Environment, technicians from the institutions, academia, and farmers as the key drivers. The initiative sought to link stakeholders at a multi-scale level, combining scientific knowledge with local knowledge in a participatory and active manner, through different spaces for interaction.
Knowledge exchange and capacity building
This journey facilitated four experience-exchange events to become acquainted with the plans and strategies containing the climate change adaptation measures being developed under the context of each territory, and also to learn about field experiences by means of farm planning processes from the CSA methodology. Two such spaces were coordinated through the agreement between the Alliance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Colombia (MADR, in Spanish), focusing on: Sustainable Livestock and Agroclimates. And another two spaces with the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of El Salvador (MAG, in Spanish) and the Secretariat of Agriculture and Livestock of Honduras (SAG, in Spanish). Agroclimatic Services and Information Tools for Climate Data.
During the process, the stakeholders involved contributed to the development of the first Action Plan for the Climate-smart Agriculture Strategy (CSAS) for the region of the Central American Integration System (2018-2030) and a plan for the establishment of Local Technical Agroclimatic Committees (LTACs), drawing from the Regional Forums on the application of forecasts.
Subsequently, in order to continue strengthening the links among the different stakeholders, while improving information supply and communication channels, three LTACs were established in the municipalities of San Miguel, El Salvador; Choluteca, Honduras; and Somotillo, Nicaragua, and the work was carried out in coordination with the LTAC from Chiquimula, Guatemala, established by CATIE and CCAFS.
In addition, other training spaces were created, which focus on: the interpretation of climate information, handling the CropWat tool (to determine suitable dates for sowing) and tools to Monitor Agroclimatic Information (MIA, in Spanish) with the purpose of strengthening the capacities of local officials regarding timely information management, analysis and generation for producers, which could help them make better informed decisions over their crops.
Listen to the interview to Martín Leal, from MAGA’s Climate Change Unit, where he talks about his experience with the project and what is being replicated in the territory, based on the experience exchange: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1464661/6775600
Support to national and regional policies and strategies
One of the goals of “A Common Journey” was contributing to the design of knowledge instruments focused on a participatory analysis of the socio-economic level, based on the research outcomes on climate change adaptation and mitigation, and the assessment of the existing national policies and strategies. This resulted in a report with 12 scenarios per country, both positive and negative, which are being used as a tool to adopt measures and prepare for future uncertainties.
The socio-economic scenarios target policy- and decision-makers, and is intended to be used for the development of future plans, strategies, policies and programs on climate change to improve livelihoods and ecosystems in a sustainable manner.
Listen to the interview to Manuel Sosa, from the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock – MAG, where he shared what was the project collaboration process like when designing the new national agricultural policy: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1464661/6775807
For now, project researchers are in the process of developing the Climate-smart Agriculture investment portfolios for each country. The document will provide a number of practices and tools prioritized by territory, focusing on their main production sectors, based on: CSA indicators, cost-benefit analysis results, and considering their strategic location for the highest environmental return. The final output will be delivered to the national agricultural and environmental authorities in each country.
Gender perspective, a crosscutting axis
In the process of project design and implementation, it was considered that rural development would be equitable and sustainable according to how much access would youth and women have to the same spaces for information exchange, capacity building, and decision making within the community.
To achieve this, work was coordinated with technicians from the Municipal Women’s Office.
Listen to the interview to Claudia Gómez, Mayoress and producer in the municipality of Namasigüe, on the importance of creating these inclusive participatory spaces to be able to promote the role of women in agriculture: https://www.buzzsprout.com/1464661/6775852
The different activities organized were attended by women farmers and leaders of communities, who, in addition to being actively involved in these dialog and discussion spaces on climate change adaptation options, replicated their knowledge through “rural organizations”, where they provided information for decision-making and also offered savings and credit services for the implementation of microprojects that benefit the communities.
The rural credit organizations provide evidence on how to make a contribution towards ‘’Facing climate change with gender equity’’.
Final destination
And after three years of operation, “A Common Journey” reaches the end. The initiative makes available to all the stakeholders involved, the information and knowledge outputs obtained jointly, where their voices and views were a key part to be able to reach every result initially expected from the project:
- Officials and experts from the agricultural and environmental sector enhanced their capacities to implement Climate-smart Agriculture.
- Generation and use of agroclimatic forecasts to guide actions in the agricultural sector.
- Development of socio-economic scenarios to make a contribution to policy frameworks and strategies at the national level.
- Governmental institutions and IFAD identified key investments in CSA practices and technologies through an investment portfolio for smallholders in the four beneficiary countries.
There is no doubt that ensuring the sustainability of the agrifood sector is not around the corner; it is thus necessary to keep sharing experiences, innovating, and creating solutions that could also be transformed and adapted to the needs of a changing environment.