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The document examines the gap between South Africa's comprehensive climate and disaster risk management policies and their practical implementation. It highlights that while the 2015/2016 El Niño-linked drought caused severe agricultural losses, the adoption of conservation agriculture by grain farmers in the Western Cape demonstrated improved resilience. The brief argues for a shift from disaster relief to proactive risk reduction, calling for better intergovernmental cooperation, streamlined water resource planning, and targeted financial mechanisms for vulnerable farmers.

The briefing highlights how small businesses, specifically domestic seed companies, support climate risk management (CRM) in developing countries. It recommends that these companies improve decision-making regarding seed choices, increase knowledge of climate-resilient varieties, and strengthen distribution and quality control systems. Additionally, it suggests that development practitioners support these efforts through infrastructure improvements, capacity building on climate risk integration, and facilitating access to climate finance, while researchers should investigate small businesses as climate knowledge brokers.

The report estimates that ending world hunger by 2030 will require an average of USD 11 billion in additional annual public spending, with USD 4 billion provided by donors and USD 7 billion by poor countries. This investment is projected to trigger an additional USD 5 billion in annual private investment. The analysis focuses on three intervention categories: social safety nets, farm support, and rural development. Using a sample of seven African countries to extrapolate global costs, the report identifies that Africa, particularly Central and South East Africa, will require the highest level of support, with some countries depending on donors for over 90 per cent of their budgets.

The document examines the role of micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in enhancing climate resilience within agricultural value chains, using a case study of Equator Seeds in northern Uganda. It argues that small businesses can reduce climate vulnerability for suppliers and clients by providing climate-resilient seed varieties, complementary training services, and flexible financial arrangements. The analysis identifies key investment priorities for seed companies, including improving informed decision-making for farmers, raising awareness of improved seed varieties, and strengthening quality control systems to combat counterfeit seeds. It concludes with recommendations for practitioners and researchers to improve the enabling environment, enhance MSME capacity to use climate information, and facilitate access to climate finance.

The document positions irrigation as a primary tool for agricultural transformation in Africa, essential for improving resilience to climate change and extreme events. It identifies significant barriers, including water scarcity, limited technical skills, and a massive investment gap, estimated by the World Bank at over USD 40 billion. The paper advocates for a comprehensive approach involving national Master Plans for Irrigation, the integration of groundwater use to combat droughts, and a shift toward public-private partnerships to fund both large-scale and smallholder irrigation systems. It emphasizes that achieving full irrigation potential in Sub-Saharan Africa over a 50-year horizon would require diverting up to 50 percent of agricultural expenditures to water management.

The Resilient Integrated Food Systems (RIFS) project in Lao PDR aims to improve food security and nutrition for 200,000 direct beneficiaries across six vulnerable provinces. The project employs a 'farm-to-fork' value chain approach, combining climate-smart agricultural inputs, diversified farming systems, and watershed management to mitigate the impacts of floods and droughts. Key interventions include the establishment of Farmer Field Schools (FFS) for gender-responsive extension, the introduction of solar-powered irrigation, and the restoration of 60,000 hectares of land per province annually through agroforestry and reforestation. The project is structured as a 100% grant of approximately 40.79 million USD, focusing on both adaptation and mitigation through carbon sequestration.

The document outlines the risks associated with bulk marine sediment mining in South Africa, specifically the use of Trailing Suction Hopper-Dredge technology. It highlights severe ecological threats, the absence of a legal governance framework, and the potential for devastating impacts on shared fish stocks and food security. The text notes that other countries, including Namibia, New Zealand, Mexico, and Australia, have refused such operations or implemented moratoria due to these risks.

The document argues that the EU's LULUCF proposal should establish a separate target for soils and forests to prevent carbon sequestration from being used to offset industrial emissions. It emphasizes the need for improved accounting rules, safeguards for bioenergy, and the protection of ecosystem integrity and food security, particularly for indigenous peoples and small-scale farmers.

The document proposes a four-year programme (2017-2021) to enhance coastal resilience in Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Saint Lucia, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It targets the most vulnerable populations, particularly women and the poor, through a grants-on-lending framework focusing on coastal protection, food and water security, health, renewable energy, and tourism. The programme aims to fund at least 20 local investment projects with individual grants ranging from USD 300,000 to USD 600,000, requiring a 20% counterpart contribution from grantees. The initiative emphasizes ecosystem-based adaptation, such as mangrove rehabilitation and coral reef restoration, to mitigate the impacts of sea-level rise and extreme weather events which have historically caused severe GDP losses in the region.

The Center for International Environmental Law (CIEL) argues that the Committee on the Rights of the Child should recognize an implied right to a healthy environment to ensure the effective realization of children's rights. Drawing on jurisprudence from other human rights bodies, CIEL demonstrates how a healthy environment is a necessary precondition for the rights to life, health, food, water, and an adequate standard of living. The document highlights that over 140 states have already incorporated environmental rights into their national constitutions, supporting an evolutionary interpretation of the Convention.

The paper argues that relying on future large-scale negative emissions to 'undo' current carbon emissions is a high-risk strategy that may lead to insufficient near-term decarbonization. It identifies three primary risk types: technological/biophysical infeasibility, unacceptable social and ecological impacts, and the potential for sequestered carbon to be re-released or for climate impacts to become irreversible. The authors evaluate four land-based options, concluding that while ecosystem restoration and reforestation may provide some viable negative emissions, high-reliance scenarios (e.g., those requiring 1,000 Gt CO2) are likely unachievable. BECCS is highlighted as particularly risky due to unproven commercial scale and extreme land and resource requirements. The paper advocates for a 'zero fossil carbon' goal over 'net zero' to ensure aggressive immediate mitigation.

The proposed programme aims to transition Rwanda's agriculture sector toward a low-carbon, climate-resilient model by mainstreaming adaptation and mitigation into national policies and the Strategic Plan for the Transformation of Agriculture (PSTA-4). With a requested grant of 30 million USD, the initiative focuses on implementing climate-smart pilots, building institutional capacity, and creating an enabling environment to overcome economic and policy barriers. The programme targets the agriculture sector, which is responsible for 78% of Rwanda's total greenhouse gas emissions and is highly vulnerable to climate variability, including floods and droughts.

The document examines the intersection of financial services and climate risk management (CRM) in Uganda's rice value chains. It focuses on the role of the Centenary Bank in Eastern Uganda, exploring how financial service providers can enable CRM for value chain actors and proposing a framework of core functions for such management. The text aims to provide practical options and recommended actions for researchers and practitioners to enhance climate resilience and food security in developing countries.

The report examines the application of climate-smart agriculture (CSA) in Nepal's Terai, mid-hills, and high hills regions, emphasizing the need for interventions tailored to local contexts and socially disaggregated vulnerabilities. Key findings highlight that farmers are more likely to adopt technologies with multiple benefits—such as improved cattle sheds for manure management or rice-and-duck farming—when they are delivered as integrated packages rather than in isolation. The report argues that sustainability is enhanced through local ownership, mandatory community contributions, and strategic partnerships between NGOs, the private sector, and government extension offices. It specifically notes the differing priorities between dalit households, who focus on food and nutrition security, and janajati households, who prioritize market-driven commercial production.

The document examines the intersection of agricultural finance and climate risk management (CRM) through a case study of Centenary Bank's operations in Eastern Uganda. It highlights how climate hazards like floods and droughts disrupt the entire rice value chain, increasing loan default rates for banks while threatening farmer livelihoods. The research identifies that while existing savings and credit services provide some buffers and allow for income diversification, there is a need for more tailored products, such as preferential interest rates for CRM strategies and improved climate information services, to enhance resilience for both value chain actors and financial providers.

The document examines how foreign agricultural investments in Africa exacerbate water stress and the legal tensions between investor rights and the human right to water. It highlights the vulnerability of customary water rights compared to statutory contracts and the potential for investment treaties to limit a state's ability to reallocate water during shortages. The authors recommend integrating international human rights and environmental law into domestic legislation and investment contracts to ensure sustainable water governance.

The document outlines a framework for climate risk management (CRM) within agricultural value chains, specifically drawing on research regarding the rice sector in Uganda. It emphasizes the necessity of identifying core CRM functions and the role of service providers—such as domestic seed companies providing climate-resilient varieties and financial institutions like Centenary Bank—in protecting investments and enhancing the resilience of actors throughout the value chain against climate hazards.

The document outlines systemic obstacles to Tanzania's agricultural potential, including poor infrastructure, credit shortages, and unclear land laws. It notes that domestic agro-processing struggles to compete with higher-quality imports from South Africa and Kenya. To improve, the document argues for better synergy between government departments and a nuanced approach to public-private partnerships that prioritizes food security, environmental protection, and transparent contracting for smallholder farmers.

The maize value chain in Tanzania is characterized by fragmentation and inefficiency, primarily driven by small-scale farmers operating under rain-fed conditions. Significant constraints—including land tenure uncertainty, limited finance, and poor infrastructure—discourage investment despite growing domestic and regional demand. The document argues for a jointly developed National Maize Development Strategy between public and private sectors to foster a positive business environment and encourage 'Green Growth' options.

The briefing argues that for agricultural value chain investments to be sustainable, climate resilience must be a priority, requiring all actors to perform three core CRM functions: climate risk assessment, adaptive management, and responding to shocks. Using the Ugandan rice sector as an example, it demonstrates that while all actors are exposed to climate hazards like droughts and floods, smallholder farmers are the most vulnerable due to limited assets. The document emphasizes the critical role of service providers—offering climate information, financial services, market data, and resilient infrastructure—in enabling these CRM functions. It concludes by recommending that development agencies integrate CRM into training, strengthen service provider capacities, generate economic evidence for the business case of CRM, and align agricultural policies with systemic risk management.