Interestingly , although common principles can be found from one agroecological practice to another , there is no technical kit that can be replicated identically throughout the world . The relevance , but also the complexity of implementing agroecology lies in the fact that the solutions it can inspire are always local ; they are always “ home grown solutions ” that strive to make the most of the natural , human , social and cultural resources of the environment .
I saw this crucial point very clearly when the “ Inter-Cultural ” consultancy firm that I helped evaluate the impact of a project conducted with some eight thousand vulnerable and land-poor peasant households in the Southern Province of Rwanda . The project ’ s dynamics were inspired by the ancient Rwandan tradition of giving and receiving cows to manifest and seal alliances and friendships . The project , led by two Rwandan organizations ( Adenya and Duhamic-Adri ) and supported by an international NGO ( Frères des Hommes ), relied on the donation of pigs or goats to a few people who committed to donate part of the offspring of their animals in turn . The donation of animals was accompanied by training in good animal husbandry practices , in the use of manure and in the techniques of bio-intensive market gardening on a small area , in the utilization of diversified seeds , and in the cultivation of fodder trees to feed the animals .
As expected , the multiplication of animal donations has allowed an ever-increasing number of households to have access to new financial resources and organic inputs to improve the fertility of their plots ; but it has also and above all been the support of new solidarities , of the organization of peasant collectives that have been able to organize themselves and obtain the support of local authorities to manage fruit and fodder tree nurseries , to obtain new collectively managed land , and to cultivate model plots to disseminate their good practices . The families involved in this project have not only been able to increase the productivity of their plots , to stop suffering hunger and malnutrition and to earn an income from their food surpluses , but they have also regained their dignity and confidence in themselves , in their community and in the future . The acquisition of agroecological , social and pedagogical skills has also allowed some of the people involved in the project to become trainers of other farmers . In others words , the benefits associated with these projects imbibed with local realities , practices , and ways of life are unquantifiable .
A credible way to achieve the objectives of the African Union ’ s Agenda 2063
The most systematic study of ecological practices published to date evaluated 286 recent projects covering 37 million hectares in 57 developing countries . It found increased productivity on 12.6 million farms , with an average increase in yields of 79 %. Analysis of the study data by the United
Nations Conference on Trade and Development ( UNCTAD ) and the United Nations Environment Programme ( UNEP ) found that the average increase in crop yields in Africa was even higher than the global average . It was 116 % for projects across the continent and 128 % for projects in East Africa . This shows that redesigning our food production is not only necessary but beneficial .
The evaluation of the experiences grouped under the name of agroecology by various international organizations and the long-term investigation of these practices conducted by Olivier de Schutter , former UN Special Rapporteur on the right to food from 2008 to 2014 , has allowed a consensus to emerge within international institutions such as the UNDP and the FAO to consider that the extension of agroecological practices is one of the keys to achieving the sustainable development objectives of the UN Agenda 2030 and the aspirations of the African Union ’ s Agenda 2063 in terms of poverty and malnutrition reduction and of environmental preservation .
Moreover , since agroecology is based on maximizing the biomass produced and reintroducing trees into the agroecosystems , it can contribute to CO2 sequestration . Its extension would therefore make it possible to strongly limit the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere , whereas agro-industry is currently responsible for about 30 % of their emissions . The extension of agro-
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