On February 18 and 19 2020, ILRI hosted key government staff from the Climate Change and Livestock directorates within the ministries of environment and agriculture in Ethiopia, Kenya and Uganda. The aim of the visit was to familiarize these key stakeholders with the technical aspects of ILRI’s research on climate change and livestock. Continue reading
Category Archives: CCAFS
CRP on climate change, agriculture and food security
Index-based livestock insurance: Reflecting on success
One of the International Livestock Research Institute’s (ILRI’s) major success stories in recent years has been the development of an index-based livestock insurance program (IBLI), which protects livestock keepers in drought-prone arid and semi-arid lands from climate-related losses. Continue reading
Expanding livestock production in Asia and Africa key to environmental as well as human welfare gains—New study
A new paper, published this month in Global Food Security and led by scientists at ILRI, confirms a wealth of similar evidence showing that, with sufficient and targeted investments in their livestock sectors, low- and middle-income countries can achieve both better nutrition and incomes for the poor and greatly reduced greenhouse gas emission and agricultural water use. Continue reading
A new project is launched to support climate-smart livestock strategies and investments in East Africa
A new Program for Climate-Smart Livestock Systems has been launched to support governments, the private sector and local stakeholders in realizing their development objectives while achieving their climate change adaptation and mitigation goals. Continue reading
German agroecological livestock research investments are benefiting both people and the planet
ILRI was honoured this week (3 Sep 2018) to host a high-level German delegation including Maria Flachsbarth, parliamentary state secretary to Germany’s federal minister for economic cooperation and development, and Stefan Schmitz, deputy director of the Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), as well as senior staff of the Kenya Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Irrigation, including Andrew Tuimur, chief administrative secretary, and Ann Onyango, agriculture secretary; and representatives from several other CGIAR centres working in Kenya, including Tony Simons, director general of ICRAF, and representatives from the Nairobi-based International Centre of Insect Physiology and Ecology (icipe). Continue reading
How changing the world’s food systems can help to protect the planet
Food systems must be transformed to produce more nutritious food with a lower environmental footprint. There are a number of initiatives around the world working towards this end. Here are just five that use different kinds of science—from smart approaches to breeding livestock and crops to recycling wastewater—that could help humans settle their growing debt to the planet. Continue reading
Science helps tailor livestock-related climate change mitigation strategies in Africa
The implementation of effective mitigation strategies relies on accurate GHG emission data. But what if the underlying assumptions upon which these GHG emission estimates are based are inaccurate? Continue reading
Largest-ever micro-insurance payout made to Ethiopian pastoralists
More than 2,250 pastoralists received insurance payouts following the extremely poor rains this year in southern Ethiopia. Low levels of rainfall have led to the loss of approximately 300,000 livestock in 2017 in the Borana zone of the southern Oromia region. The insurance payouts of more than ETB5.233 million (USD220,000) was the largest-ever micro-insurance indemnity made in Ethiopia. Each insured pastoralist received an average of ETB2,255 (USD96), which will allow the herders to purchase feeds for their surviving animals and to restock their herds. Continue reading
Record payouts being made by Kenya Government and insurers to protect herders facing historic drought
More than Ksh214 million is on tap for 12,000 pastoral households in six counties of northern Kenya through innovative policies that use satellite imagery to trigger payments for feed, veterinary supplies and water. Continue reading
Sustainable livestock systems – highlights from ILRI’s corporate report 2015–2016
In 2015–2016, the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and partners revealed extraordinary findings that the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from cattle in Kenya maybe up to 10 times lower than previous estimates, clearly making the case for improving Africa-specific understanding of GHG emissions to develop better-targeted climate change mitigation and adaption strategies. Continue reading