Download - Kenya Agricultural Carbon Project (KACP) Features and lessons learned

Amos Wekesa, Vi Agroforestry COP17, Durban

Kenya Agricultural Carbon Project (KACP)

Features and lessons learned

By Amos Wekesa, Vi Agroforestry


Win-Win-Win scenario

In KACP it is evident that mitigation finance provide significant incentives to leverage agricultural investments that generate:

1) productivity increases,

2) reduction/removal of greenhouse gases and

3) increased climate resilience.


Area characteristics

Western Kenya (Kitale & Kisumu)

3% population growth

80% of population are farmers

25% of children below 5yrs are underweight

Average land size owned is around 1ha

90% of populations use firewood or charcoal for cooking food every day

Around 50% of smallholders live on less than 1USD/day


Implementation status 2011 and key features

30field officers providing advisory services

20,262 farmers adopting SALM (target 60,000)

9,656 hectare under SALM (target 45,000)

1,122 groups recruited (target 3,000)

598 groups contracted


KACP and Climate Smart Agriculture

• For mitigation of land degradation and greenhouse gases

• For adaptation to climate variability

- Terraces

- Water retention ditches

- Residue management

- Mulch

- Composting

- Controlled grazing

- Crop rotation

- Cover crops

- Improved fallows

- Nitrogen fixing trees intercropped


KACP – save space and secure food >80% smallholders (Farmsize:

0.7 ha in Kisumu; 1.1 ha in

Kitale)

Multi-functionality of

agroforestry

• Ecosystem services

• Hign productivity

• Food security

• Sustainability

• Resilient landscape

For every hectare put into

agroforestry alternatives, five to

ten hectares can be saved

(ICRAF).

Diversification of a farming

system is very important in case

weather or market is unreliable

or if pests attack the products.

Agroforestry diversifies the

timing of production so that

farmers do not receive their

entire year’s income at one time.


Holistic approach in KACP

FED

VS&LA SALM

SALM=Sustainable

Agricultural and Land

use Management

FED: Farm

Enterprise

Development

VS&LA: Village

Savings and Loan

Associations


Key methodology features: Generic and can be scaled up Model approach with activity-based

monitoring The model is 4-5 cheaper than soil

sampling, minimizing transaction costs and helps farmers to reach their objectives

Long-term research in Kenya confirms model applicability

Non-soil modules (using approved CDM AR methodologies for tree carbon)

Methodology submitted to Verified Carbon Standard (VCS):

Methodology development


KML files

Database

GIS

Farm polygon

KACP – precision in MRV


KACP and food security

0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

2009 2010 2011

Percent of household s experiencing increased food

security due to SALM

KACP shows yields increased

by 15 – 30 %


Trees on agricultural land is increasing

Source: Vi Agroforestry (2011)

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

2009 2010 2011

Avg no of trees on cropland


Conclusion/Recommendations KACP show that carbon payments can be well

integrated into projects promoting sustainable

agricultural development

Extension and advisory services prerequisite

for successful implementation and needs more

attention and funding

Bottom up and participatory approaches gives

best results

Carbon finance should leverage climate smart

agriculture

Training and capacity building for project

entities is essential

Merge adaptation and mitigation funding

Combine financing from public and private

sources