This framework presents ten interrelated principles/elements to guide Sustainable Agricultural Mechanization in Africa (SAMA). Further, it presents the technical issues to be considered under SAMA and the options to be analysed at the country and sub regional levels. The ten key elements required in a framework for SAMA are as follows: The analysis in the framework calls for a specific approach, involving learning from other parts of the world where significant transformation of the agricultural mechanization sector has already occurred within a three-to-four decade time frame, and developing policies and programmes to realize Africa’s aspirations of Zero Hunger by 2025. This approach entails the identification and prioritization of relevant and interrelated elements to help countries develop strategies and practical development plans that create synergies in line with their agricultural transformation plans. Given the unique characteristics of each country and the diverse needs of Africa due to the ecological heterogeneity and the wide range of farm sizes, the framework avoids being prescriptive.

Food security and agricultural research; Climatic variability and crop yields; Climatic vulnerability of major food crops; Climatic variability and factors of agricultural production; Climate modeling and climate change; Social and economic implications of climate-food interaction; Strategies for coping with climatic fluctuation and change.

In West Africa, especially in the Sahelian countries of Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali and Mauritania, erratic rainfall sequences within and between years has often led to a high uncertainty in rainfed crop production. Over the past three decades, severe food shortages attributed to drought have been frequently reported in several Sahelian countries, most of which are amongst the least developed of the world. Innovative and indigenous ways to achieve improved crop yields through integrated land and water management such as rainwater harvesting and soil water conservation have been successfully tested and, in some cases, adopted in West Africa. This paper highlights the successful interventions of improved indigenous rainwater harvesting/soil water conservation technologies such as Zaï or tassa, stone rows and half-moon in the Sahelian zones of West Africa over the past 10 years, and their contributions to enhancing food security and alleviating poverty. The potential for adoption of these technologies at the farm level and their outscaling to areas with similar agroecological zones are also discussed.