During AGRF 2021 Summit, CIMMYT and the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) will host a side event to provide evidence on how rehabilitating acid soils is important for improved productivity and resilient food security.

Register for the summit here: https://agrf.org

Outline

In many agro-ecological zones, African soils present limitations for agriculture, even though the sector provides around 80% of the livelihood of the population and 70% of the income of the poorest.

Soil acidity is one of the challenges in some countries. It is estimated that around 15% to 29% of agricultural land area is acidic, reducing the crop production by up to 45% in countries like Rwanda. The rehabilitation of acid soils in smallholder farming systems is critical for food security.

In order to maximize the return on rehabilitation investments, there is a need for further data-driven evaluation and targeting from farmers, the private sector and government perspectives. These are the main objectives of the Guiding Acid Soil Management Investments in Africa (GAIA) project implemented in Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Tanzania. Early findings on agronomy research and policy review will be shared and discussed during the event.

In line with this year’s AGRF theme, “Pathways to recovery and resilient food systems”, the event will address early findings on agronomy research and policy review, underscoring the importance of healthy soils for increased smallholders’ resilience and healthy food systems.

Useful links

• Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA)