Southern Africa - Empowering marginalized groups through knowledge

Creating a bridge between academic expertise and practical solutions for rural stakeholders in Southern Africa through regional cooperation

The Agriculture in Southern Africa

Agriculture plays a significant role in Southern Africa. However, its contribution to economic growth, poverty reduction and food security remains constrained by insufficient technical capacities, the prevelance of subsistence farming, and vulnerability to extreme weather events. In the last decade, frequent and prolonged dry spells, floods, and extreme high temperatures have threatened the food security and livelihoods of many smallholders in Zambia, responsible for up to 90 % of the food produced in the country.

Portrait Southern Africa

Zambian agriculture’s contribution to the GDP shrank from 8.2 % (2011- 2015) to 3.3 % in 2022 while the sector employs 24 % of the labor force.

National food security is reliant on maize, mostly produced by smallholders prone to agririsks. Agriculture’s share of South Africa ‘s GDP was 2.4 % in 2022.

The Project

Green Futures aims to contribute to food security and economic development in Zambia and South Africa while fostering international cooperation and science diplomacy. Designed to tackle different aspects of food value chains, the project aspires to strengthen and support marginalized groups working in the agricultural sector — including women, smallholders and local entrepreneurs — as well as university students through various knowledge transfer activities linked to climate change resilience, circular economy, agrobiodiversity, indigenous crops, innovations in the food sector and data science.

Project Goals

Empowerment of marginalized groups, with the goal of promoting inclusion and gender sensitization
Collaboration among different countries, fostering regional cooperation and international relations through science diplomacy
Contribution to address regional challenges, leveraging local and international expertise in agriculture and food, thereby tackling global challenges

Results and Successes

The consortium members leverage their respective expertise to address regional and local challenges, through an effective network of experts and evidence-based practices in the fields of agriculture and climate change.
Trainings and excursions promote farmer’s knowledge on indigenous crops and practical tools in the food-energy-waste nexus, biodiversity monitoring and innovative solutions for businesses in the food sector. Webinars and hackathons target international research on water balance and near-term climate projections, and data-science knowledge for agriculture. The participation of women is actively pursued.