Climate- smart agriculture:What role for fertilizers?From Abuja to Marrakesh

Charlotte Hebebrand - Director GeneralThe International Fertilizer Association

« From Science to Action » Break-out session Sustainable and Resilient Soil Management

13 November 2016, Marrakesh 

The State of African Soils

• Deteriorating Soil Fertility• Nutrient removal > (all)

Nutrient Inputs = Nutrient Mining

Resulting in Low Yields, Poverty and Environmental Degradation

Source: IPNI, 2016

• 75% of the arable land in SSA is degraded (IPNI, 2016)

2006:The Abuja Fertilizer Summit

• 53 African Agriculture Ministers sign the Abuja Declaration to accelerate the access of farmers to fertilizers and increase the average use per hectare from 8kg/ha to 50 kg/ha by 2015

“To feed our people, we must first feed the soil. This is the hour for Africa, let’s take this bold step together and expand food security and incomes across Africa ” H.E. Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Nigeria, 2006, Abuja.

Source: IPNI, 2016

2015: The Paris Agreement & INDCs• Inclusion of food security in Paris Agreement text• Countries submit INDCs ahead of COP21 & signing of the

Paris agreement: all African countries place strong focus on adaptation and agriculture

In several African INDCs, fertilizers feature prominently with regard to climate change mitigation.

Are environmental ministries coordinating with agricultural ministries?

“Agriculture: Gradual replacement of 100% of mineral fertilizers

with organic fertilizers by 2030”

“Reduce the use of nitrogen in

agriculture by 2030”

“Programme objectives (…) reduced GHG emissions due to

reduced fertilizer use and less turning of the

soil”

2016: COP 22 and the AAA initiative• Morocco places food security at the

heart of the COP22 – objective is to transform African agriculture

• Strong Focus on Climate-Smart Agricultural Practices to:– Sustainably increase productivity;– Enhance resilience & reduce GHGs

where possible;– Enhance achievement of global food

security

CSA: Global Food SecurityGLOBAL FOOD SECURITY DEPENDS ON

FERTILIZERS • Fertilizers contribute to 50% of today’s food

production, & demand will increase over time

• Goals of eliminating hunger and poverty must be the priority for Africa

• SSA needs to triple grain production by 2050• Average fertilizer use today around16 kg/ha

Evolution of SSA’s average fertilizer application rate (kg nutrients/ha)- Source:IFA

CSA: AdaptationFERTILIZERS ARE CRUCIAL FOR ADAPTATION

• Proper Plant Nutrition builds resilience in crops– Micronutrients (Zn, Ca) help plants with water

stress– Phosphoric fertilizers help plants grow strong

roots. • Correct Fertilizer Use Enhances Water Use

Efficiency (and vice versa);• Most adaptation options build on existing Best

Management Practices rather than on access to new technologies.

CSA: Reduce GHGs Where Possible N2O EMISSIONS FROM FERTILIZER APPLICATION ARE NOT THE 

PRIMARY PROBLEM IN AFRICA TODAYIn much of SSA, substantial increases in N inputs would greatly increase crop yields with little immediate risk of significant N2O emissions• Fertilizer demand (2014) of 3.4 m nutrient tons

= 1.9% of global demand (IFA)• BUT few would suggest continent-wide

recommendation of 100kg/ha

• Could SSA leapfrog the usual Nutrient Use Efficiency?

Fertilizer Best Management Practices

• Site- Specific Nutrient Management (SSNM) = efficient way to reduce GHGs from fertilizer application and ensure farmer profitability

• Importance of Integrated Soil Fertility Management: to integrate organic and mineral nutrient sources

• Flexible approaches can help farmers more than blanket fertilizer recommendations!

• The 4Rs: Applying the right nutrient source; at the right rate, at the right time and in the right place.

• Enhanced Efficiency Fertilizers

Another Look at Reducing GHGs• Higher yields on arable land can protect

forests (deforestation = 10-11% global GHG emissions) – Importance of Life Cycle Analysis

• Soils can store up to 50- 300 tonnes of carbon/ha, or 180-1100 tonnes of CO2.

• 89% agriculture’s mitigation potential based on soil carbon sequestration (IPCC)

• Fertilizers help create biomass that helps create Soil Organic Matter- which improves soil health & productivity = more CO2 capture

From INDCs to NDCs• Maintain focus on higher crop yields – no

immediate risk of high GHG emissions from increased fertilizer use

• Seek to combine higher yields with optimal Nitrogen Use Efficiency (NUE) to avoid N losses

• Opportunity to leap-frog over usual evolution of agricultural management (higher yields, declining NUE) with improved practices & supportive policies = high yields + optimal NUE

Policy options for Africa• Build capacity in adaptive nutrient

management: support of local practices and 4Rs

• Support balanced nutrient inputs: ISFM, macronutrients (N,P,K,S) and micronutrients

• Strengthened & equitable access to fertilizers

• Emphasis on social equity – women should be included in decision- making and have improved access to fertilizers

• Monitor GHG emissions intensity

Useful informationCCFAS policy brief: Fertilizers and low emission development in sub-Saharan Africa – Meryl Richards- CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change,

Agriculture and Food Security, Gund Institute, University of Vermont, Burlington, VT, U.S.A.

– Martin Van Ittersum-Wageningen University – Tekalign Mamo- ATA Agricultural Transformation Agency, Ethiopia,– Clare Stirling- Global Conservation Agriculture Program,

CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre) ,– Bernard Vanlauwe- International Institute of Tropical

Agriculture (IITA)– Robert Zougmoré- International Crops Research Institute for

the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT)

Useful InformationThe Nutrient Management

Handbook• By WFO, GACSA and IFA• For farmers, practitioners, Policy-

makers… anyone interested in nutrient management!

• User-friendly guidebook: straightforward explanation of FBMPs, soil health, sustainability!

• Available for download on IFA’s website:

Thank you!Find out more about IFA by visiting our website: www.fertilizer.org Or by writing to us: ifa@fertilizer.org

We are also on social media:

@FertilizerNews

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