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Climate Action for Agriculture: Strengthening the role of scientific foresight and climate-smart agriculture in addressing NDC priorities

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    Meeting
    Climate Action for Agriculture: Strengthening the Engagement of Agriculture Sectors to Implement the Climate Change Elements of the 2030 Agenda in Asia and the Pacific 2018
    Climate change poses a systemic risk to the achievement of food security in Asia and the Pacific. In acknowledgement of this risk, member countries in the region have highlighted the agriculture and land sectors as key priorities for action under the Paris Agreement (SDG 13) and the Sendai Framework on Disaster Risk Reduction. Strategic engagement by Agriculture, Livestock, Forestry and Fishery Ministries in these international frameworks will enhance the capacity to finance and scale up measures to strengthen the climate resilience of food and agriculture systems. This paper provides a review of current knowledge on climate change risks to food security in the region and the opportunities and challenges for the agriculture and land sectors to play a more ambitious role in implementing the Paris Agreement and Sendai Framework. It discusses the potential benefits of strong, sector-based action in support of achievement of the SDG targets related to food security, as well as the potential contributions from strategic partnerships involving the private sector, civil society, South-South and triangular cooperation and development partners. The paper cites novel adaptation strategies, such as geographic indications - GI and Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems - GIAHS, that can help farmers increase resilience and provide a buffer against extreme climate events. Member countries are invited to provide guidance on how FAO can best support their efforts to address the needs and priorities of the agriculture sectors under the climate change-related elements of the 2030 Agenda and how FAO, through its Global Strategy and Regional Initiative on Climate Change, can best support member countries to plan and implement sector-specific action to address climate change risks to food security.
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    Booklet
    Climate-Smart Agriculture in Guinea-Bissau 2019
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    The climate smart agriculture (CSA) concept reflects an ambition to improve the integration of agriculture development and climate responsiveness. It aims to achieve food security and broader development goals under a changing climate and increasing food demand. CSA initiatives sustainably increase productivity, enhance resilience, and reduce/remove greenhouse gases (GHGs), and require planning to address trade-offs and synergies between three pillars: productivity, adaptation and mitigation. The priorities of different countries and stakeholders are reflected to achieve more efficient, effective, and equitable food systems that address challenges in environment, social, and economic dimensions across productive landscapes. The country profile provides a snapshot of a developing baseline created to initiate discussion, both within countries and globally, about entry points for investing in CSA at scale. The agricultural sector is the main stay of the economy of Guinea-Bissau. In the absence of other resources, the sector despite being underdeveloped plays a leading role in supporting food security and job creation. Presently it contributes about 46% of national gross domestic product (GDP) with 84% of the population actively employed in primary production agriculture largely dominated by women. The majority of these farmer are small scale farmers farming on less than two hectare (2 ha). More than half (58%) of the total land in Guinea-Bissau is used for agriculture with area under forest heavily degraded by rapid exploitation. However, there are huge potentials for agricultural and forestry land including arable land estimated at about 1.5 million hectares. Farmers engage in the production of diverse crops and livestock such as cashew, rice (country’s staple food), sorghum, maize, etc largely cultivated by subsistence farmers. Women usually take up horticulture in the urban areas. Livestock production concentrated mainly in the north and east of the country is one of the main economic activities supporting food security and thousands of livelihoods. The country is divided into three agroecological zones based on ecological, climatic and demographic characteristics. Agriculture is mainly rainfed with very limited irrigated farming practised. About 82% of water withdrawn is used for agricultural purposes impelling a necessity for huge investments in irrigation to support agriculture production. The projected population growth and food demand is expected to have serious implications on food security with a potential to affect the agricultural sector. Despite the agro-forestry-pastoral potential and fisheries resources of Guinea-Bissau, many studies have shown that, the current food situation in the country is very precarious with poverty identified as the underlining cause. Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission from the agricultural sector has been identified as very high with the country indicating reforestation as the major action for mitigating GHG emissions in its nationally determined contribution (NDC). Some challenges for the agricultural sector identified include (i) growth in population and food demand, (ii) land use change and natural resource depletion, (iii) limited marketing opportunities of agricultural commodities, and (iv) climate change and variability. Guinea-Bissau has a typical hot, humid monsoon-like tropical climate with two well-defined seasons. Agriculture is exposed to the effects of climate change with the country vulnerable to droughts, floods and sea level rise. The projected changes in temperature and rainfall are expected to have substantial impact on water resources which are already limited in their capacity to provide sufficient water for the agriculture sector. CSA technologies and practises present opportunities for addressing climate change challenges as well as for economic growth and development of the agriculture sector. Identified CSA practises in use in the country include (i) use of organic manure, (ii) use of weather information, (iii) water supply through drip irrigation, (iv) anti-erosion arrangement, (v) forage/fodder production, (vi) crop rotation, and (vii) rainwater harvesting through the Zai technique. There are a number of institutions and policies aimed at supporting and increasing agriculture productivity and advancing CSA practises in Guinea-Bissau. These include government, private sector, the national institute for agrarian research and general directorate of rural engineering with each most of the institutions profiles having CSA-related activities that deliver on all three pillars of CSA. The Ministry of environment which serves as the country’s UNFCCC focal point and Nationally Designated Authority to the Green Climate Fund (GCF), Adaptation fund, Climate Investment Fund and Global Environment Facility is responsible for the country’s climate change plans and policies. The food and agriculture organisation of the United Nations, the United Nations development programme and the international union for conservation of nature play instrumental roles in the promotion of sustainable agriculture and environmental sustainability. Most of the climate change and CSA-related funding have come from international sources with the UNDP being of great support through its signature programmes.
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    Brochure, flyer, fact-sheet
    Strategic foresight planning: Formulating crop story maps and building climate resilient pathways
    Part of the Land Resources Information Management System (LRIMS)
    2022
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    Strategic Foresight is the ability to predict or the action of predicting what will happen or be needed in the future. Foresight uses a range of methodologies, such as scanning the horizon for emerging changes, analysing megatrends and developing multiple scenarios, to reveal and discuss useful ideas about the future. It is an approach that aims at making sense of the future, understanding drivers of change that are outside of one’s control, and preparing for what may lead to success or failure. The target of this process consisted in the development of policy narratives. The preparation of policy narrative was realised officials of the Department of Agricultural Land Management (DALAM) and of the National Agricultural and Forestry Research Institute (NAFRI) to present key concepts and methods around science communication by producing story maps, presenting spatial analysis in a user-friendly manner, and future-proof resilient policy recommendations. The narratives are detailed in-depth analysis of the current state of maize, cassava, coffee and banana production, as well as projections of future developments of the agricultural system. The policy recommendations and advised actions in the document can help policy makers to establish a resilient future-proof production system.

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