Burkina Faso is a Sahel country where 80% of the population[1] depends on traditional agriculture, mainly rain fed, and subject to agricultural risks typical of the Sahel such as short and intense rainy season and sometimes erratic, floods, locust invasions, crop and animal diseases, volatility of domestic prices, etc. In addition to these traditional risks, there is a growing agricultural population, evolving climatic risks and new security risks.

It is in this context that PARM and the Government of Burkina Faso, through the Ministry of Agriculture, Hydraulic Development and Mechanization (MAAHM), signed an Aide Mémoire in November 2019 to formalize the country’s engagement in the PARM Horizon 2 process.

The mission falls within the implementation framework of the first phase of the joint Action Plan defined together with the MAAHM, which includes the setting-up of the ARM process and risk assessment and prioritization by country stakeholder. A national advisory committee and a technical committee have also been set up under the lead of the MAAHM with the key players in ARM in the country to guide and support the ARM country process.

The two workshops brought together more than 50 stakeholders active in the field of agricultural risk management, from the public, private, academic, and civil society sectors. The active engagement and contributions from the various actors have been instrumental to inform the validation and appropriation of the preliminary results of the risk assessment study (RAS), which will inform the next phase of the PARM process on the identification of tools for project design to ensure better management of agricultural risks in Burkina Faso.

[1] According to the FAO

Knowledge sharing and learning event – 14-15 July, 2021

This two-day event reunited over 50 participants representing a diverse set of key stakeholders from the public sector, the private, civil society, academia and donors active on ARM, including the national advisory committee members. Through interactive and participatory approaches, the event allowed to: (i) raise awareness on and understanding of the key concepts of ARM, (ii) strengthen the ministry and key partners’ engagement and participation in the RAS results and PARM process; (iii) promote and facilitate knowledge exchange and partnerships on ARM, including showcasing and sharing experiences from over 10 initiatives on ARM in the country.

A joint PARM/MAAHM and key partners knowledge publication on “Learning from experience: practices and lessons for managing the risks of drought and price volatility in Burkina Faso” will result from the event. The publication will have two main objectives: (i) collect agricultural risk management practices based on the results of the assessment study; (ii) inform practitioners in the field of agricultural risk management and identify good practices and lessons to respond to the risks of drought and volatility in Burkina Faso bringing together the set of initiatives presented and including the discussions and conclusions reached during the event.

RAS presentation and validation workshop- 16 July, 2021

The risk assessment study (RAS) has been carried out by the CIRAD/IRAM/IPAR consortium to identify and prioritize the main risks affecting the country’s agricultural sector as a whole (including livestock and fisheries). On the last day of the mission, PARM organised a technical meeting on the RAS with the Technical Committee of the RAS, during which the main findings of the study, the main prioritized risks, and the methodology used in the study have been presented. The workshop gathered the Technical Committee (15 members) and engendered very fruitful discussions on the findings and methodology, as well as some interesting suggestions and comments.

The workshop fulfilled its purpose by gathering the Technical Committee for an exchange on the study, securing their buy-in of the results and involvement in the PARM process, validating the preliminary results, namely the priority risks (droughts, price volatility and insecurity), and agreeing on a set of tools that could respond to those priority risks.

Next steps

The workshops built the foundation for a clear way forward in the process, anchored to the existing priorities and realities of the landscape and actors in Burkina Faso’s rural sector; based on the RAS findings and the policy dialogue initiated during the mission, the MAAHM, with the support of PARM, can now start preparing the tools identification phase of the process.

MORE RESOURCES

TV

Service TV de RTB – TV, (Min. 17:00-19:00)
Service TV de BURKINA INFO TV, (Min. 19:34-22:00)

JOURNAL

Article de OBSERVATEUR EL PAALGA
Article de SIDWAYA

RADIO

Service Radio OMEGA (Min. 09 :56-12 :28)

EN LIGNE

Article de LEFASO.NET
Article du MAAHM