Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is CIRAWA?

CIRAWA is a European Union funded project that works with small-holder farmers in West Africa to improve food nutrition, local livelihoods, and ecosystem health. The project brings together 14 partners from 9 countries and aims to develop new agroecological-based practices centred on existing local and scientific knowledge to help create more resilient food supply chains in 8 regions across Cape Verde, Ghana, Senegal, and The Gambia. 

 

2.  What is agroecology and how can it help improving food resilience systems in West Africa?

 Agroecology promotes sustainable and locally adapted farming practices that can improve food resilience in Africa. It can enhance soil fertility, diversify crops, reduce input costs, and promote community involvement and knowledge sharing for more resilient food systems. CIRAWA will also place emphasis on other agroecological practices such as such as agro-waste revalorization to reduce waste, the selection of high-quality seeds to improve yield and quality, and phytoremediation to clean up contaminated soils.  

CIRAWA will also develop and implement tools to improve the management of land and irrigation. These tools can help farmers to make more informed decisions about when and how much to irrigate, as well as how to manage soil nutrients and pests in a sustainable way. By promoting the use of these tools, agroecology can help farmers to optimize their resources, reduce costs, and improve yields, all while maintaining the health and resilience of the surrounding ecosystems. 

For more on this topic, check out the article What is Agroecology.  

 

3. What is the duration of the CIRAWA Project? 

The project was launched on 1 January 2023 and will last until June 2027. 

 

4. How is it funded?

The project is funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme with a total budget of 6,947,466 euros. For more information, go here.  

 

5. Who is involved in the project?

The project is coordinated by CARTIF and brings together 14 public and private partners including 3 universities, 3 research and technology organisations, 2 small and medium-sized enterprises, 4 non-governmental organisations and 2 governmental organisations from 14 countries across Europe and Africa. 

For more information about our partners, check out our webpage.   

 

6. Where will the project be implemented?

The project’s proposed solutions will be tested in 8 regions across four West African countries: 

• Cape Verde: Maio and Santo Antão islands 

• Ghana: Central Gonja District in the Northern Region and the Nabdam District in the Upper East Region 

• Senegal: Senegal River Valley and the Central-West zone   

• The Gambia: North Bank and the Central River regions 

 

7. What are the project’s main goals? 

CIRAWA aims to demonstrate how working with nature can enhance ecosystem health and biodiversity, while improving local livelihoods and climate resilience using four key agroecological approaches – agro-waste valorisation, phytoremediation, quality seeds and land management practices.  

 

8. What will the main outcomes of the project be? 

The project aims to empower local farming communities with the tools to boost the climate resilience of their land, their agricultural yields and the quality of their produce. This in turn will contribute to strengthening food security, employment opportunities and mitigating resource scarcity in an area of the world that is highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and social challenges like poverty.  

 

9. Who benefits from CIRAWA?

The main stakeholder group addressed by the CIRAWA Project involve smallholder farmers in West Africa. The bottom-up approach of the project will seek to implement solutions that improve the entire farm to fork chain in the target regions. Those farmers will also benefit from boosting the resilience of their plots of lands against the changes in the climate.  

 

10. How can I get involved? 

If you are interested in following our progress and activities, visit our website, follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, and Facebook, or send an email to info@cirawa.eu or contact our regional partners directly.