Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a concept that combines profitable agricultural production with environmental concerns and sustainability. It is an approach to managing agro-ecosystems for improved and sustained productivity, increased profits and food security while preserving and enhancing the resource base and the environment. It is characterized by linked principles of continuous minimum mechanical soil disturbance, permanent organic soil cover and diversification of crop species grown in sequences or associations. These principles are universally applicable to all agricultural landscapes and land uses with locally adapted practices. CA is used in most of the world’s high-performing food production systems to strengthen soil structure and fertility, improve water retention and bring farmers savings in cost and labor for comparable yields. Unique to CA is that it holds tremendous potential for all sizes of farms and agroecological systems, including those of smallholder farmers who are food insecure. However, In Africa, conservation agriculture adoption is still facing a number of challenges, despite tremendous potentials depicted in many regions and countries that have adopted it.

Today, food systems in Kenya are under pressure from land degradation, low productivity, climate change and rapidly increasing human population. Over 46% of the land area is degraded. Land degradation and climate change mutually reinforce each other, creating serious implications for food security, biodiversity and livelihoods in Africa. Low productivity due to damaged poor soils, poor farming practices and low use of appropriate inputs, including mechanization and inadequate harnessing of digitization services are causing difficulties for rural communities to meet their food and nutrition needs as well as income. The rising human population accompanied by changing diets is increasing food demand. Food production must double by 2050 to meet the demand of the world’s growing population. This can only happen if the world adopts more productive farming practices, conserve and regenerate the limited production base and that are resilient to climate change. One such sustainable farming practice is Conservation Agriculture.

Conservation Agriculture has made a significant contribution to increasing food production in areas where smallholder farmers struggle to produce food because of frequent droughts, infertile soils and labour shortages. Ultimately CA aligns and contributes to Sustainable Development Goals: Food security, Environmental Conservation, and Biodiversity Read more