19/06/2019

Press release: Climate-Smart Agriculture for Resilient Food Production (CSA - RFP) project starts

Women in forest

18 June 2019 - Honduras: SNV has recently started the Climate-Smart Agriculture for Resilient Food Production (CSA - RFP) project (2019 - 2021) with the objective to produce food in a climate resilient way (RFP) by local producer families and organisations in the context of ancestral practices in Honduras. The project is implemented in partnership with the Association for the Integrated Management of Watersheds of La Paz and Comayagua in Honduras (ASOMAINCUPACO), the strategic partner is Centro Universitario Regional del Centro (CURC-UNAH), and Honduras Political counterpart: Presidential Office of Climate Change of Honduras (Clima+), Honduras, and Guatemala Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources and is funded by the European Union through the EUROCLIMA programme.

By validating and accelerating the adoption of climate-smart agricultural methods (CSA) in Honduras and Guatemala, focused on the efficient use of water resources, facilitating processes and platforms to encourage the dissemination and scaling up of experiences in the project in the region. The project will contribute to improved capacities in order to increase climate change resilience, the efficiency of agricultural and livestock production systems in relation to carbon and water, as well as interconnected food and agricultural value chains, in accordance with sectoral commitments related to the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC).

The project will promote resilient food production amongst 600 families— or 3,000 people (50% women) —from the Lenca indigenous communities and the Mestizo population, while adopting a gender-based and culturally diverse perspective. It is based on a sustainable water management approach applied to the Chiflador - Guaralape and El Venado watersheds, located in Honduras.

With regard to resilient production, capacity building initiatives will be carried out at local and national levels to improve food and nutritional security and adopt climate-smart agricultural production systems in the value chains of honey, coffee, basic grains, and cattle ranching. The initiative will also promote inclusive green credit, inclusive businesses, and/or commercialisation plans so that indigenous families can be integrated into these value chains.

On the theme of governance of the sub-watersheds, watershed organisations will be created to promote efficient use of water and carbon in farming systems and food production value chains. The ultimate goal is to create an enabling environment for resilient food production, while leveraging existing key actors. The project will help these organisations in formulating, approving, and implementing Comprehensive Watershed Management Plans and in institutionalising water governance mechanisms.

Also, on the basis of the South-South Cooperation approach, the generated knowledge will be shared amongst key actors in Central America. This will have a twofold effect: first, it will contribute to the escalation of resilient food production on the basis of a comprehensive management of resources—i.e., water, forests, and soil— and, secondly, it will contribute to the promotion of and compliance with the Intended Nationally Determined Contributions of Honduras, as well as other national strategies.