An Overview and Lessons Learned from the Implementation of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) Initiatives in West and Central Africa

From adaptation to building effective resilience to climate change is critical for transforming West and Central Africa (WCA) agricultural system. Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) is an approach initiated by leading international organizations to ensure food security, increased adaptation to climate change and mitigation. Its application spans from innovative policies, practices, technologies, innovations and financing. However, CSA initiatives lack scientific-based assessment prior to implementation to ensure their effectiveness. To fill this gap, future interventions should not only be assessed using rigorous methodology but should also be built on lessons learned from previous initiatives. Although there are a lot of climate related agricultural initiatives in WCA, most of them have not been analyzed through a CSA lens and criteria to capitalize on their experiences to improve future interventions. In this study we mapped previous climate-related initiatives in WCA, highlighted their gaps and lessons learned to accelerate the implementation of CSA in the region. The study covered 20 countries in WCA: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo. CSA initiatives were reviewed using a three-steps methodology: (i) national data collection, (ii) regional validation of the national database, (iii) data analysis including spatial mapping. Data was collected from the websites of international, regional and national organizations working in the field of agricultural development in the region. Each initiative was analyzed using a multicriteria analysis based on CSA principles. A total of 1629 CSA related initiatives were identified in WCA. Over 75% of them were in the form of projects/programs with more of a focus on the first CSA pillar (productivity and food security), followed by adaptation. The mitigation pillar is less covered by the initiatives. Animal production, fisheries, access to markets, and energy are poorly included. More than half of these initiatives have already been completed, calling for more new initiatives in the region. Women benefit very little from the implementation of the identified CSA initiatives, despite the substantial role they play in agriculture. CSA initiatives mainly received funding from technical and financial partners and development partners (45%), banks (22%), and international climate financing mechanisms (20%). Most of them were implemented by government institutions (48%) and development partners (23%). In total, more than 600 billion EUR have been disbursed to implement 83 of the 1629 initiatives identified. These initiatives contributed to reclaiming and/or rehabilitating almost 2 million ha of agricultural land in all countries between 2015 and 2025. Future initiatives should ensure the consideration of the three CSA pillars right from their formulation to the implementation. These initiatives should consider investing in mixed production systems like crop-animal-fisheries. Activities should be built around CSA innovation platforms to encourage networking among actors for more sustainability.