Agriculture

The MICCA field projects on climate-smart agriculture

The pilot field projects of the MICCA Programme in Kenya and the United Republic of Tanzania have promoted Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) and have been integrated into ongoing development programmes. The objective of the pilot projects was to show that smallholder farmers can contribute to climate change mitigation and at the same time improve their livelihoods and increase their productivity. 

The field project approach was to develop packages of CSA practices based on participatory assessments and expert consultations, implement the selected practices using a variety of extension methods and evaluate their effects on yield, food security and their potential to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions on farms and throughout the landscape.

Farmers who participated in the MICCA pilot projects reported that the main benefits of CSA were higher yields, greater farm income and increased food availability. These results indicate  that CSA can be a pathway for improving food security, alleviating poverty and building more resilient livelihoods. 

In addition, the overall results of the field projects show that smallholder farmers can be an effective part of the response to climate change and make a meaningful contribution to reducing GHG emissions. Scenarios, modelling and measurements play an important role in evaluating and prioritizing CSA practices so that farmers can implement and scale them up. 

By building research into ongoing development activities, the projects demonstrated that assessment of CSA practices can be undertaken quickly. The findings of the pilot projects can be used to prioritize efforts in other projects and programmes. 

The findings from the MICCA pilot activities were presented in national workshops, which allowed decision makers to familiarize themselves with the benefits of CSA approach and to develop and adjust policies, plans and programmes to better foster CSA. Bringing sound, up-to-date evidence into decision-making processes can help shape policies that support climate-smart transformation of the agriculture sectors.

For more information: