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The Workshop Moderator, Mr. Louis Chikopela from the Ministry of Agriculture asked for a volunteer to open the day’s proceedings with a word of prayer. Following the opening prayer, the Moderator then took the participants through the workshop programme and then requested participants to introduce themselves. Annex 3 provides the full list of workshop participants. Also present at this workshop was Dr. Frank Kayula, a representative of the National Association of Smallholder Farmers and a Board Member of the CCARDESA Board of Directors. The Moderator welcomed everyone to the workshop and called upon Mr. Mwanza for the welcoming remarks

16 – 18 April 2024

Happy Valley Hotel & Conference Centre

Ezulwini, Eswatini

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) is a SADC sub-regional organization created by member states to coordinate regional cooperation in agricultural research and development. It is implementing the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme EX Pillar 4 (CAADP XP 4) Programme. The CAADP-XP4 Programme is financed through the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) for a period of five (5) years, 2019 – 2024. The CAADP-XP4 seeks to deliver five key outputs, one of which is to raise awareness of Foresight for food systems, including sensitisation on the use of relevant tools in foresighting. Foresight methods can be used to investigate the future, incorporating climate change implications, thereby allowing for the creation of resilient agricultural development policies and strategies

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA), a SADC subsidiary, is mandated by Member States to coordinate regional cooperation in agricultural research and development. It is currently implementing the Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme EX Pillar 4 (CAADP-XP4) under the EU’s "Development Smart Innovation through Research in Agriculture" (DeSIRA) initiative. The CAADP-XP4 Programme is funded by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) for five years (2019–2024).

The Southern African Development Community (SADC) region faces significant challenges in the agricultural sector, primarily due to lack of reliable, accurate, and real-time farm data. This data gap hampers effective decision-making at the farm, country, and regional levels

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) was founded by SADC member states to harmonise the implementation of agricultural research and development (R&D) in the SADC region. CCARDESA intends to address agricultural research and design issues in the SADC region. CCADERSA is executing its mandate through the four main interventions i.e. coordinate, facilitate, promote and improve agricultural technology generation, dissemination and adoption in the region through collective efforts, training and capacity building.

Agriculture plays a vital role in producing food and ecosystem services in the East and Southern African (ESA) region and is central to fostering regional economic growth, reducing poverty, and improving food security. Agriculture contributes between 4% and 27% of GDP and approximately 13% of overall export earnings, with about 70% of the region's population depending on agriculture for food, income, and employment. However, the region is facing numerous challenges from slow agricultural transformation, growing populations and increasing demand for food, urbanization, and climate change.

The 2024 CAADP-XP4 Joint Portfolio Review and Planning Meeting, organized by CORAF and held in Saly, Senegal, brought together key stakeholders to assess the progress of the CAADP-XP4 program and to strategically plan for the final year of implementation. Representatives from AFAAS, FARA, CORAF, ASARECA, and CCARDESA gathered to review milestones, identify pending tasks, and discuss new emerging priorities. The focus was on sustainability, agroecology, digitalization, and ensuring that the CAADP-XP4 program’s legacy continues post-closure. This report provides a detailed review of the discussions, key decisions, and agreements made during the meeting, with a strong emphasis on the strategic rationale for requesting a one-year no-cost extension

Food Systems provide a direct pathway to Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) achievement in particular in regard to food insecurity and poverty. Therefore, transforming Food Systems – making them more productive, competitive and resilient is key. At the same time, Food Systems resilience is threatened by conflicts, climate change, inflation (rising food, fertilizer, fuel prices) and also pandemics e.g. Covid 19.

The Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA) is implementing a regional component of the European Union-funded ‘CAADP ex-Pillar 4 (X-P4) Programme in Southern Africa’ to support national agricultural knowledge and innovation systems (NAKIS) in African countries, benefiting smallholder farmers, youth, women, pastoralists, and marginalized communities.