Crops

An agricultural extension worker (left) in discussion with rice farmers in northern Tanzania. Photo: Farm Africa / Jon Spaull

Climate-smart crops and sustainable farming have the power to lift rural communities in Africa out of poverty.

Agriculture is Africa’s biggest employer. In sub-Saharan Africa, more than 60% of the population are smallholder farmers, yet yields are a third to a half of their potential¹, trapping many rural communities in poverty.

Farm Africa brings in simple but effective technologies, such as:

small-scale irrigation schemes
seeds for drought-tolerant crops
disease-resistant native crops.

Female farmer

Since being introduced to the new seed variety I get 30 bags of sunflower seeds from my harvest when before I used to get just three! Last season there was a prolonged drought – thankfully, we were able to feed ourselves because of the income from the sunflowers. My children are now getting enough food, they’re healthy and going to school happy. These seeds have changed everything.

Amina

READ AMINA'S STORY

Farming the future

We prove that good farming, backed by strong marketing and sustainably managed ecosystems, is a lasting way out of poverty.

In programmes around eastern Africa, we help smallholder farmers:

adapt to the changing climate
practise sustainable agriculture
manage natural resources effectively.

With training from our staff in eastern Africa, farmers are doubling and tripling their harvests as they adopt better seeds, methods and soil improvers.

We focus on climate-smart agriculture and regenerative agriculture approaches. Practices such as mulching, organic composting and diverse cover crops build soil fertility and organic carbon stocks.

And with improved productivity and soil health, there is less need to cut down trees or use more land for agriculture. This reduces the pressure on forests, rangelands and drylands and makes farming viable for people with small plots of land.

Moses Mbogo, a farmer and village-based advisor taking part in the Regenerative Agriculture Project in Embu County at his maize and climbing beans farm.

After I was enrolled by Farm Africa as a village-based advisor, we underwent training on regenerative agriculture practices that would improve the fertility of our soils and increase our yields. We were then required to train other farmers in our village on the same.

Moses, Embu County, Kenya