COMPREHENSIVE INNOVATION
There are several innovations geared particularly toward smallholder farmers. Kenya’s Index-Based Livestock Insurance (IBLI) 3 combines digital remote-sensing through satellite imagery with financial products to address climate vulnerability during dry spells. However, without supportive policy programs and institutions – like Ethiopia’s Agricultural Transformation Institute 4 which specifically aims at “improving the livelihoods of smallholder farmers” or Kenya’s Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization 5 , which supports smallholder farmers with agronomic recommendations via SMS – technological innovations may be confined to commercial farms or pilot projects.
Digital and climate-smart agricultural innovations
yields, such as for citrus products in South Africa, but also raise quality and shorten maturity time, thereby reducing production costs. They create a more stable microclimate under the shade by reducing both heat stress and frost risk, providing protection from extreme sunlight and rain. Controlled environments also allow farmers to comply with stringent plant health and quality standards demanded by export markets. Combining some of the elements above, digital technologies are often paired with climate control technologies. Controlled growing environments can be used alongside digital temperature monitoring systems for either fresh produce or animals, for instance where poultry houses are equipped with temperature monitoring systems. However, the benefits of innovation depend on whether technologies reach the farmers who need them most. Innovation in agriculture is often geared toward high-tech solutions, but smallholders often face barriers such as high costs, limited technical knowledge and weak infrastructure. For example, the capital costs of installing shade nets at scale are often prohibitively high for smallholder farmers. Similarly, the cost of internet access and unreliable rural connectivity hinder the uptake of digital technologies. This is particularly stark for smallholder women farmers, who bear a disproportionate burden of climate impacts in Africa, while facing greater barriers to accessing technologies, finance and extension services. 2
Innovation has always been important in various types of agricultural technology. Even relatively small changes, such as moving from handheld ploughing to more mechanized agriculture, can increase agricultural productivity and income over time. However, innovation is becoming even more essential for addressing the challenges of climate change. Climate-smart agricultural technologies are emerging as important tools that can help farmers adapt to changing environmental conditions while maintaining productivity. These innovations include drought-resistant seed varieties, controlled growing environments or protected cultivation, improved irrigation systems, as well as digital tools such as sensors that monitor soil conditions, temperature and moisture levels in real time. Digital technologies are particularly promising. By providing farmers with timely information on weather conditions, crop health and input use, digital tools can help improve decision making and reduce risk. Soil probes that continuously monitor moisture, chemical levels and other soil characteristics have been used by farmers to keep track of their plants and make rapid decisions in challenging conditions. Meanwhile, platforms such as DigiFarm, ViaziSoko and M-Shamba in Kenya have enabled access to inputs, credit and markets via mobile payment systems. Controlled environments like growing tunnels and shade nets not only improve
Final thoughts
Agricultural resilience is not an end in itself; it is a means to achieving greater goals such as food security and sustainable livelihoods. Building resilience in African agriculture requires more than simply introducing new technologies. It also requires significant investments in digital infrastructure, access to finance, training, extension services and rural infrastructure. Public and private actors must work together to ensure that innovations are accessible and adapted to local conditions. Innovations such as Index-Based Livestock Insurance (IBLI), an insurance platform, and DigiFarm are directly geared toward the needs of the smallholder farmers that they serve. If supported by appropriate policies and institutions, climate-smart technologies and digital tools can help farmers adapt to environmental uncertainty while improving productivity and livelihoods across the continent.
2 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fes3.567 3 https://ibli.ilri.org/2019/08/21/novel-kenyan-insurance-programs-recognized-for-helping-women-as-well-as-men-pastoral-herders/ 4 https://ati.gov.et/ 5 https://cepr.org/voxeu/columns/harnessing-benefits-digital-agriculture-smallholder-farmers-east-africa
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