Climate-Smart Agriculture Partnership Showcase: Exploring technologies and lessons learnt

The Climate-Smart Agriculture Partnership UK-Brazil-Africa (running from July 2024 to March 2026) brought together innovative people and organisations to promote climate-smart agriculture in Africa. The Climate-Smart Agriculture Partnership: UK-Brazil-Africa is funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) and delivered by Innovate UK.

The Partnership has funded:

• 17 Innovation Award projects, bringing together trilateral partners to explore innovative technologies and practices
• 13 Travel Grants building relationships between project partners
• 12 Scoping Projects, exploring key topics for future collaboration

17 Innovation Award projects

1. Climate proofing food production through aquaponics
2. Large scale biochar production in Ghana
3. Building collaboration to address heat stress in tropical livestock
4. Building collaborative research partnerships in fish breeding, health and welfare management in Nigeria
5. Dynamic realtime monitoring reporting and verification system for enabling climate-smart agricultural practices across Africa (CarbonXtras)
6. Banalytic, early warning system to combat black sigatoka in banana plantations
7. CottonCycle: Transforming Brazilian cotton by-products into climate-smart aquafeeds for tilapia farming in Nigeria
8. Harnessing data integration for precision health in climate-smart cattle systems
9. Developing microbial inoculants: Information sharing between Brazil and Nigeria
10. UK-Brazil-Ghana Partnership for cassava disease prevention
11. EcoSmart monitoring: Optimising biodegradable polymer dispensers for climate-smart insect pest management and sustainable agriculture in West Africa
12. HunT SOIL: Harvest Sun Twice by Solar pOwered Irrigated Land
13. Improving biocontrol efficacy with natural products for western flower thrips control
14. Improving cassava yields and soil health with microbial stimulants
15. Microbiome monitoring to enhance Ghanaian tilapia farming
16. Co-creating a climate-resilient african grasslands: The multispecies swards approach
17. MyUbuntu - Leadway - Brazil: Travel grant application
18. Development of innovative metal oxide nanoparticles to enhance waterlogging tolerance in crops
19. Optimising biochar for soil fertility improvement and climate-smart agriculture among smallholder farmers in Nigeria
20. Climate-Smart maize initiative: Boosting productivity and sustainability in Ghana with high-impact R-Leaf® technology
21. SeedSure: Enhancing seed storage reliability and germination assurance through smart technologies

Bambara groundnut: a “complete food,” containing all essential amino acids

Posted 20 April 2026. The reel highlights Bambara groundnut as a powerful yet underutilized African crop with exceptional nutritional value. It emphasizes that Bambara groundnut is a “complete food,” containing all essential amino acids, making it comparable to animal protein sources. The video frames it as a traditional crop that has long supported rural communities but remains largely overlooked in modern food systems. It also focuses on the crop’s remarkable resilience, particularly its ability to grow in poor soils and withstand drought conditions where other staples fail. This positions Bambara groundnut as a key candidate for climate-smart agriculture, especially in regions facing increasing climate variability. 

The reel presents it as a practical, locally adapted solution for strengthening food security across sub-Saharan Africa. A key part of the reel’s narrative is historical: during the colonial period, agricultural systems were reshaped to favor export-oriented crops like peanut, which displaced indigenous crops such as Bambara groundnut. This shift prioritized economic value for colonial markets over local nutrition and resilience. 

All 9 essential amino acids. Survives droughts that kill every other crop. Feeds millions across sub-Saharan Africa.

The video suggests that a similar pattern persists today, with global value chains promoting crops like soybean, often sidelining traditional, locally adapted species. Finally, the message ties into a broader call to rediscover and invest in “forgotten foods.” By showcasing Bambara groundnut’s benefits and its historical marginalization, the reel encourages renewed attention from researchers, policymakers, and entrepreneurs.

 

Related:

• Funding Underutilized Legumes Research: Industry Collaboration 
• The contribution of Neglected and Underutilized Species (NUS) for sustainable agrifood systems transformation

Info session RUFORUM Integrated Aqua-Agriculture (IAA) online course

17 April 2026. Info session RUFORUM Integrated Aqua-Agriculture (IAA) online course.

The Agroecology and IAA course was developed by partners of the Potentials of Agroecological Practices in East Africa with a focus on Circular Water-Energy-Nutrient Systems (PRAECTICE) project https://praectice.eu/. The course is hosted at the RUFORUM E-learning platform.

Target public:

• Aspiring to be or already an entrepreneur investing in agroecology and integrated agriculture-aquaculture?
• Studying agroecology and integrated agriculture-aquaculture
• An extension worker
• An agroecology or aquaculture university/college faculty
• A smallholder farmer engaged in agroecology and aquaculture?

Objective:

• Applying agroecological indicator frameworks to guide agroecological practice?
• Implementing integrated aqua-agriculture (IAA) and agroecological practice and principles in real-world interventions?
• Training others on how to deploy integrated aqua-agriculture (IAA) and agroecological principles and practices?
• Networking and building your professional and practice experience in agroecology and IAA?

Course content

Enroll into the course through this link https://elearning.ruforum.org/course/view.php?id=116 

1. Module 1: Introduction to Agroecology
• Lessons 1 - 5: Introduction to Agroecology
2. Module 2: Fundamentals of Integrated Aqua-Agriculture (IAA)
3. Module 3: Monitoring and Evaluation indicator frameworks in agroecology and IAA systems in East Africa
• Lessons 1- 8 : Monitoring and Evaluation indicator frameworks in agroecology and IAA systems in East Africa

Agroforestry and integrated pest management: the cacao sector in Côte d'Ivoire

16 April. Online. Agroforestry and integrated pest management: focus on CSSV in the cacao sector in Côte d'Ivoire

This session organised by EC/INTPA introduced agroforestry as a key agroecological practice that integrated trees with crops and livestock to deliver environmental, economic, and social benefits. It highlighted how agroforestry improved soil conservation, biodiversity, water quality, and carbon sequestration while diversifying farmer incomes and strengthening food security and resilience. The discussion then focused on cocoa systems in Côte d’Ivoire, where production had declined due to pests, diseases, and climate pressures, particularly the cocoa swollen shoot virus (CSSV). Researchers showed that plant diversification, shade trees, and barrier crops had reduced disease spread and improved resilience, while emphasizing the complexity of the disease system and the importance of ecological interactions in pest regulation.

Private sector experience demonstrated how agroforestry and assisted natural regeneration (ANR) had been implemented to address sustainability challenges in cocoa production. Barry Callebaut had shifted from distributing seedlings to promoting natural tree regeneration, finding that naturally regenerated trees performed better in growth, carbon storage, and survival rates. Their programs had combined farmer training, ecosystem service incentives, and landscape-level interventions such as barrier crops to manage CSSV. Early results had shown strong farmer adoption and cost efficiencies, while reinforcing the need for continuous engagement, appropriate species selection, and integration of research into practice.

At the policy level, the Coffee Cocoa Council had outlined a national strategy to scale agroforestry, structured around climate resilience, reforestation, income diversification, and coordination. Efforts had included large-scale seedling distribution, carbon finance initiatives, and programs to support rural entrepreneurship, particularly for youth and women. However, challenges had remained in harmonizing approaches, aligning with standards, ensuring effective monitoring, and scaling initiatives across millions of producers. The discussions concluded that collective action—especially through cooperatives—had been essential for landscape-level disease management and successful adoption of agroforestry practices, alongside stronger integration of research, policy, and field implementation.

• Contribution of Agroforestry to Integrated Pest Management (focus on CSSV) and the Cocoa4Future experience, by Régis Babin (CIRAD).

 

• Private sector-research collaboration: the example of assisted natural regeneration (ANR) in eastern Côte d’Ivoire: lessons learned and scaling-up prospects, by Barry Callebaut, the world’s leading manufacturer of chocolate and cocoa products.

 

• National stakeholders' vision of their collaboration with the private sector and the potential of agroforestry, by the Coffee Cocoa Council (CCC) or the Côte d'Ivoire-Ghana Cocoa Initiative 
  
  
• Implementation of the DeSIRA EU-funded “Strengthening Agroecological Transition & Agroforestry for Africa” (SATAF) Project: first lessons learned and insights following scoping missions in Tanzania, Mozambique, Uganda and Côte d’Ivoire, by the European Forest Institute. 
  
  The specific objectives of the SATAF) Project is to contribute to the agroecological and agroforestry transition in the cashew, cocoa and coffee sectors in West and East Africa by promoting the adoption of shared principles and sustainable practices.

Forum for the Future of Agriculture

14 April 2026. Brussels. Forum for the Future of Agriculture (ForumforAg) Annual Conference

The 2026 Forum for the Future of Agriculture (ForumforAg) Annual Conference consisted of live broadcasts, moderated panel discussions and dialogues, interactive interventions, networking opportunities and exhibitions, live in Brussels and online.

Extracts of the programme

Session 2: How can we finance and accelerate the transition on the ground?

• Kurt Vandenberghe, Director-General, DG CLIMA, European Commission
• Panel session
• Michael Brückner, Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors, Munich Re Investment Partners GmbH
• Harvey Locke, President, Harvey Locke Conservation Inc; Vice Chair for Nature Positive, IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas
• Lauren M. Phillips, Director of Partnerships and UN Collaboration, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
• Martin Stuchtey, Founder, The Landbanking Group
• Kurt Vandenberghe, Director-General, DG CLIMA, European Commission
• Moderator: Rose O’Donovan, Chief Editor AGRAFACTS

Session 4: How will AI redefine what’s possible for a profitable, climate-smart, nature-positive agri-food system?

• Jessica Agnew, Director of the GAP Initiative and Managing Editor of the Global Agricultural Productivity (GAP) Report, Virginia Tech
• Martin Clough, Head Digital, Collaboration & Sustainability, Crop Protection Research, Syngenta
• Justin Rose, President, Worldwide Agriculture & Turf, Small Agriculture and Turf Care, Europe, Africa, and Asia, Deere & Company
• Ethan Soloviev, Chief Innovation Officer at HowGood
• Moderator: Stephen Sackur, International Broadcast Journalist

15 April. ATIO at the 2026 Forum for the Future of Agriculture

The Agrifood Systems Technologies and Innovations Outlook (ATIO) initiative of FAO provides a global perspective on the technologies and innovations shaping agrifood systems. ATIO is a partnership-driven, evidence-based initiative that connects the end-to-end science, technology and innovation (STI) lifecycle. Backed by science, driven by evidence and powered by partnerships, the initiative brings together knowledge across research, policy and practice to support more coherent innovation pathways.

Through its flagship report series and the development of the ATIO Knowledge Base, the initiative synthesizes global evidence on emerging technological and innovation trends, maps evolving agrifood innovation ecosystems and examines the enabling environments required to support their adoption and scaling. By informing strategic decisions on investment and policy, ATIO strengthen the science–policy and society interface through its federated Knowledge Base on global innovations.

Bresciani F., Chuluunbaatar, D., Aji, A., Pesce V. 2025. Agrifood Systems Technologies and Innovations Outlook (ATIO). Use cases analysis for the ATIO Knowledge Base: personas, content needs and search journeys Rome, FAO. 28 p.

A multi-stakeholder dialogue explored how the ATIO Knowledge Base can be leveraged to improve access to technologies and innovations can be made more accessible, relevant and applicable to small-scale producers, agrifood actors and grassroots innovators. The discussion will examine how ATIO contributes to the translation of global knowledge into local impact, with a focus on levelling the playing field between formal and grassroots innovation actors and strengthening pathways for collaboration.

• Barron Joseph Orr – Chief Scientist, United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD)
• Katie McRobert – President, Australian Farm Institute
• Leonard Mizzi – Directorate-General for International Partnerships (DG INTPA)
• Megha Desai – Sr. Coordinator, Self Employed Women’s Association (SEWA)
• Saskia Visser – Strategic Partnerships & Opportunity Development Lead, CLIMATE-KIC
• Tiina Huvio – Executive Director, Food and Forest Development Finland
• Estefania Puricelli – Secretary, International Agri-food Network Secretary
• Taru Haapaniemi – Member of Cabinet of the Commissioner for Agriculture and Food, European Commission

Nigeria Steps Up Preparations for AASW9 and 10th FARA General Assembly as Abuja Mission Secures High-Level Backing

 

By Benjamin Abugri, Dr. Yusuf Nuhu (ARCN) & Shaquille Pennaneach

With the Presidency endorsing Nigeria’s hosting of the 9th Africa Agriculture Science Week (AASW9) and the 10th FARA General Assembly, a first joint mission to Abuja has reaffirmed government commitment, kick-started local preparations, opened new partnership pathways, and set the stage for a high-profile continental gathering on agrifood systems transformation from 27–30 July 2026.

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Preparations for the 9th Africa Agriculture Science Week (AASW9) and the 10th Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) General Assembly gathered significant momentum following a first host-country mission to Abuja by a FARA delegation, which engaged senior government officials, strategic institutions, diplomatic missions and prospective partners ahead of the continental event, scheduled for 27–30 July 2026 at the Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Conference Centre in Abuja, Nigeria.

The event is being co-organised by the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), CORAF, and the Federal Government of Nigeria, working through the Presidency, the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, the Federal Ministry of Livestock Development, and the Agricultural Research Council of Nigeria (ARCN). The Abuja mission confirmed that Nigeria is not only ready to host the event but that key ministers, acting on the President’s approval, are already mobilising political, institutional and technical support for its successful delivery.

Held under the theme “Innovations and Partnerships for Resilient and Sustainable Agrifood Systems in Africa,” AASW9 will convene policymakers, researchers, farmers, agribusinesses, investors, development partners, youth, innovators and private-sector leaders to shape Africa’s agrifood transformation agenda. Its four sub-themes will focus on emerging agricultural technologies and innovations; climate-resilient agrifood systems; nutrition, health and urban food systems; and enabling impact at scale through policies, financing, capacity, institutions and inclusion.

“The mission confirmed that political support for AASW9 is firmly in place, while strategic institutions in Nigeria are already stepping forward with ideas, partnerships and practical commitments.”

Click HERE...  to read full article.

NUS Africa's regional stakeholders conference 9 - 11 June 2026

#FARA & @FAO launch a regional project to advance Neglected & Underutilized Crops #NUS across Africa’s food systems, boosting nutrition, resilience & livelihoods.

Save the Date for the Stakeholders’ Conference: June 9–11, 2026#FARA #FAO #ForgottenFoods pic.twitter.com/T9bR4boK2N

— FARA Africa (@FARAinfo) April 1, 2026