The World Bank has prepared a background paper, titled 'Transforming Agriculture in the Sahel: What Would It Take?' as input into summits on pastoralism and irrigation in the Sahel that the Bank and its development partners are organizing in Nouakchott and Dakar, respectively, on 29 and 31 October.
October 2013: The World Bank has prepared a background paper, titled ‘Transforming Agriculture in the Sahel: What Would It Take?’ as input into summits on pastoralism and irrigation in the Sahel that the Bank and its development partners are organizing in Nouakchott and Dakar, respectively, on 29 and 31 October.
The events will bring together President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz of Mauritania and President Idriss Déby of Chad as well as Ministers of Agriculture, Rural and Community Development and representatives from the private sector and civil society.
According to the background paper, the Sahal sub-region “has experienced multiple shocks, largely induced by agricultural risks over the past 30 years, which impose high welfare cost in terms of food availability, food affordability, and malnutrition.” The paper indicates that a sustainable landscape approach in the Sahel involves six core intervention areas: massively scaling-up irrigation investments; facilitating wide-spread adoption of sustainable land and water management (SLWM) practices in rain-fed agriculture; enhancing pastoralists development and livestock management; accelerating adoption of resilient agricultural technologies and drought tolerant crop varieties; improving post-harvest management practices and market access and integration; and improving emergency preparedness. [World Bank Press Release] [Conference Paper]