GACSA's Full COP22 Report

Summary of Activities 

Represented at COP22 by the two Co-Chairs and the Coordinator of the Facilitation Unit (FU), GACSA actively engaged various stakeholders at COP22 to continue to position climate-smart agriculture as a critical approach in providing climate solutions and addressing the triple win (enhanced productivity, adaptation and mitigation). Building on its convening power of facilitating interest-neutral and apolitical dialogues focused on innovative solutions and putting farmers at the centre, GACSA organized two side events on topical issues: 

• The first side event on “Innovative Investment Opportunities for scaling up CSA” was held on 12 November 2016 at the Italy pavilion in the Blue zone, in partnership with the Italian Ministry of the Environment, Land, Water and Sea. The interactive multi-stakeholder panel discussion sought to identify opportunities to attract investment in CSA that can more effectively benefit farmers. It emerged from the discussions that climate finance can be used to strengthen the links between financial institutions and smallholders in order to increase the capital flows to smallholders. Farmers were encouraged, through their national associations, to pro-actively negotiate with governments affordable credit conditions, especially in terms of what can be accepted as collateral security for loans. They were also encouraged to aggregate small projects to tap into lower level funding mechanisms, and to partner with the private sector and other stakeholders in off-farm activities along the food systems value chain.

• The second side event entitled “Climate smart farmers: scaling up rural women’s innovative practices for impact” was held on 16 November 2016 in the Green Zone in partnership with the Climate Change Sustainable Development and Public Leadership (NCCSD) initiative in India. The interactive panel discussion aimed at highlighting successful approaches to rural women engaging in climate smart adaptation and mitigation practices. Women were recognized as the agents of change but they need to be supported through massive campaigns with governments on inheritance and land tenure issues; training programmes on the food systems approach, including finances, ownership, access; using social science to ensure gender-transformative CSA innovations, alongside impact assessments; and advocating for gender issues to be appropriately addressed in the INDCs and NAMAs. As a success story, NCCSD is transforming the agricultural landscape in India by increasing the level of women engagement in farming and farm decision making while men are increasingly engaging in off-farm income activities.  The outcomes of this event will build on the GACSA Knowledge Action Group practice brief on “A Gender-Responsibe Approach to Climate-Smart Agriculture Evidence and guidance for practitioners”, and inform future activities of the Alliance on the gender focus area, facilitated by the Global Forum on Agricultural Research for Development (GFAR), through the Gender in Agriculture Partnership (GAP) as the focal point.

GACSA was also actively engaged in other side events to highlight its key role and achievements in upscaling CSA and mainstreaming the approach in climate discussions at global and regional levels:

• At the G7 follow up side event on “International Agricultural Research Cooperation for climate change” on 10 November, the GACSA FU Coordinator presented the work of the Alliance with emphasis on the research-related activities of the KAG, and discussed the opportunities for collaboration with the other initiatives supported by the G7.

• At the ASEAN side event on “Common Challenges, common solutions: Collective actions to enhance resilience of South East Asian Agriculture” on 11 November, the FU Coordinator emphasized how GACSA can collaborate with the ASEAN Climate Resilience Network in scaling up CSA in the region, as well as facilitate ASEAN CRN to join GACSA or evolve into a regional CSA alliance/platform.

• At the side event on “Youth engagement in CSA” organised by CCAFS and other partners in the Africa pavilion on 15 November, GACSA Co-Chair Martin Bwalya stressed the importance of engaging youth as key agents to accelerate the necessary paradigm shift to make agriculture climate-smart, and the need to transform the agricultural sector into a viable economic activity through CSA with attractive opportunities for youth. He highlighted the importance of innovation, technologies, financing, capacity-building and enabling political frameworks in this regard. This event paved the way for a new GACSA focus area on youth, to be facilitated by GFAR, through its Young Professional’s Platform for Agricultural Research for Development (YPARD).

• At the high-level side event in the Italy pavilion on “Climate Smart Agriculture and Food Losses and Waste” on 16 November, GACSA Co-Chair Martin Bwalya stressed the importance of taking a holistic and food systems approach to climate-smart agriculture, recognizing that according to FAO’s data, one third of the food produced worldwide is either lost or wasted every year, generating about 8% of the total GHG emissions per year. GACSA is looking at how food systems along the value chain, not just on-farm practices, can be climate-smarter, including by reducing food loss and waste.

• At a breakfast meeting convened with the Sahara forest project on “Climate-smart solutions to Food, Water and Energy Security”, GACSA highlighted the importance of building synergies with water use and energy and fostering a cross-sectoral approach to CSA, as well as the engagement of the private sector in bringing solutions such as innovative technologies. 

The GACSA also held a number informal meetings, including one with farmers’ representatives, to discuss how to strengthen farmers’ participation in activities of the Alliance.    

High visibility of GACSA was achieved through the exhibition booth and speakers’ corner in the Holland pavilion in the Green zone, where the FU Coordinator answered questions about GACSA given the level of interest from visitors, including students and young farmers. Speaking at the corner Clyde Graham (Fertilizer Canada) presented the 4R Nutrient Stewardship approach to efficient fertilizer management in CSA, while Divine Ntiokam (CSA Youth Network) demonstrated the promotion of youth engagement in CSA in Africa.