6 November 2014
CIAT, CATIE Produce LAC Climate-smart Agriculture Profiles
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The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) have developed nine climate-smart agriculture (CSA) profiles for countries of Latin America and the Caribbean to support the mainstreaming of CSA through raising awareness of its importance.

ciat-catie30 October 2014: The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center (CATIE) have developed nine climate-smart agriculture (CSA) profiles for countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) to support the mainstreaming of CSA through raising awareness of its importance.

The profiles, which received support from the World Bank, are aimed at government and financing institutions. Their objective is to identify ongoing and promising future CSA activities, as well as relevant institutional and financial enablers for their adoption. The information provided is intended to create discussion within the countries and globally about “entry points for investing in CSA at scale.”

CSA profiles have been developed for Argentina, Colombia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Grenada, Mexico, Peru, and two Mexican states. They provide concise information on the country’s or state’s climate smart considerations relating to adaptation, mitigation, productivity, institutions and finance. The profiles further present: the national context, including key facts on agriculture and climate change; CSA technologies and practices used; institutions and policies for CSA; financing CSA; and a future outlook. The profiles are supplemented by case studies and a figure illustrating a ‘smartness assessment’ for the country or state in question. Other supplementary material is provided on the CIAT website.

The project has highlighted a number of issues relating to climate action in the region, including that: climate impacts are not uniform; CSA does not offer one-size-fits-all solutions; “bright spots of effective adaptation and mitigation” in each country provide a foundation for national strategy building; planning and capacities to confront climate change must be strengthened; and countries need to learn from one another.

According to Bastiaan Louman, Researcher at CATIE, the work provides many examples of how CSA is being practiced in the region, and demonstrates a will by national organizations to expand these practices. “Climate change demands immediate action, and the profiles indicate what can be done now to improve the enabling conditions for CSA,” he said.

Explaining the World Bank’s motive to support the project, Juergen Voegele, Senior Director for Agriculture Global Practice, World Bank, said the Bank needs a systematic approach for mainstreaming the principles of CSA into its operations, and expertise and analysis to inform the Bank’s activities.

CIAT is a member of the CGIAR consortium. [CGIAR CCAFS Press Release] [Publication: Climate-smart Agriculture Profiles for Latin America and the Caribbean] [CIAT Blog Post]

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