Why EBAFOSA: achieving the UN Environment aim of scaling climate actions that enhance socioeconomic wellbeing needs stakeholders from diverse sectors – government, private sector, development partners, individual citizens – working towards the same end-goal. And to achieve this, a common and inclusive framework is needed to convene all these actors for partnerships. So EBAFOSA stands at the crossroad of multiple global change challenges - land degradation, desertification and recurrent drought and Climate Change that are the root causes of food insecurity in Africa. EBAFOSA is tailored to provide a nexus solution that also addresses pollution

What is EBAFOSA: EBAFOSA is an inclusiveness framework that leverages primarily on the skills, talents, networks & ongoing actions of diverse actors in a country – individual citizens, government, private sector - to drive transformational climate action right down to communities through what is called Innovative volunteerism. By doing this, EBAFOSA builds on already ongoing initiatives and aggregates them for bigger impacts rather than launching new initiatives from scratch and  reduces the problem of silos in Africa – where different stakeholders end up duplicating efforts rather than working together for synergy which has bigger impacts. 

 How does EBAFOSA work? The EBAFOSA approach is based on section 5 of the Paris Agreement and goal 17 of the Sustainable development Goals which calls for bringing multiple stakeholders to work in complementary partnerships to bridge implementation gaps at policy & operational level in other to unlock leading socioeconomic priorities. Operationally, EBAFOSA simply provides an integrative framework for rallying both state and non-state actors for climate actions voluntarily and coherently. This is based on relational appeal of the solutions embodied in EBAFOSA that’s generated by the people themselves, and built on the conviction of the direct individual and communal benefits they see in it.

EBAFOSA competitive strengths:

1) Leveraging on inclusive market driven partnerships to incentivize climate actions: EBAFOSA is providing a common & inclusive framework where multiple complementary stakeholders - form voluntary mutually beneficial partnerships that simultaneously scale-up climate action.

2) Strategic messaging: premising climate action in implementing the Paris Agreement as an opportunity to actualize leading socioeconomic development priorities shared across countries in Africa

3) Building on already ongoing initiatives rather than starting new initiatives: The missing link that EBAFOSA is bridging is providing a common convening framework to ensure silo initiatives can be mobilized and implemented within a broader continuum so they contribute coherently to a wider effort of socioeconomic transformation.

4) Low cost implementation: EBAFOSA uses Innovative Volunteerism which leverages on peoples skills, networks, ongoing actions in market driven collaborations to bridge implementation gaps.

Select Achievements to Date

Policy Level: at policy level, EBAFOSA is supporting countries establish inter-ministerial policy task forces. Example of policy impacts;

o   The Gambia is among countries afflicted by illegal emigration of its youth to Europe in search of better livelihoods. To curtail this challenge, the Gambia department of immigration is through the Gambia EBAFOSA Inter-Ministerial policy task force working complementary ministries – energy, agriculture, industry among other participant ministries to develop a counselling curriculum to enhance youth capacity to tap into income opportunities in EBA-based, clean energy powered agro-industrialization continuum.

o   In Nigeria, the Inter-Ministerial policy task force has prioritized EBAFOSA, by virtue of mobilizing diverse state & non-state actors critical to implementing Nigeria's nationally determined contributions as a low risk implementation platform for operationalizing Nigeria's $60million Green Bonds to implement nationally determined contributions priorities in clean energy & sustainable agriculture. To cement this position, EBAFOSA been integrated into the Federal Ministry of Environment’s budget & strategic plan.

o   In Sierra Leone, EBAFOSA Sierra Leone policy task force is building on four ongoing policy initiatives across complementary ministries to establish tax concessions for agro-based industries in rural areas. Establishment of this tax concession policy is aimed at incentivizing investment in clean energy powered agro-value addition enterprises near farming areas.

o   Still in Sierra Leone, their policy task force has participated in a national stakeholder meeting towards amending policies to incentivize consumption and marketing of local, EBA produced crops to incentivize their production by communities. A key policy prescription being prepared is the procurement of 20% locally produced foods in all institutional feeding programmes in the country. This targeting of EBA farmers is set to enhance their incomes at community level while incentivizing them to apply more EBA – thus directly scaling up climate actions as well.

 Operational Level: at operational level, EBAFOSA is providing a common framework that is convening enterprises in agriculture, clean energy, micro-finance, Information Communication Technology – to foment market driven partnerships that enhance climate actions. Examples of operational impacts;

·       In Kenya EBAFOSA Kenya has developed an Information Communication Technology "one-stop-shop" application for seamless end-to-end linkages of processes, products & services. This application is providing a virtual demand & supply market - where farmers can order inputs including clean energy and sell their fresh and processed EBA agro-products. This has now mapped out EBA farmers, clean energy and micro financial actors.

·       In Cameroon, EBAFOSA has convened clean energy actors, local cassava processors & Information Communication Technology actors to work in complementarity to scale clean energy & enhance processing & value addition of cassava. As a result, over 500 women now have access to clean indoor energy – biogas stoves for cooking cassava chips which fetch more money than fresh unprocessed cassava. A total of 10 youth groups have been engaged to link the women to cassava chips retail markets & clean stoves suppliers creating green jobs for approximately 100 young people. This dissuades them attempting illegal migration in search of livelihoods. It dissuades rise of conflicts in the community driven by lack of food or income.

·       In Nigeria, EBAFOSA has convened the Ogun state agriculture department to work with the commercial financers & the renown Nigeria Incentive Based Risk Sharing Facility for Agriculture Lending toward integrating EBA as a risk reducing component in loans extended to farming enterprises. This collaboration is providing private financing to scale EBA approaches , clean energy and hence enhance food security simultaneously with climate resilience.

·       In Uganda, the Buganda Kingdom with over 6 million citizens is leveraging on EBAFOSA partnerships to integrate EBA & clean energy value addition – especially solar powered irrigation & solar driers – to minimize losses at farm level and stabilize the cassava supply chain for the Ugandan Breweries. This is enhancing income for both the farmers & brewer while also enhancing use of EBA & clean energy for climate resilience.  

·        In the Democratic Republic of Congo EBAFOSA has provided a convening platform where farmers using EBA approaches interact with those not using to share successes & incentivize large scale shift towards EBA farming.

·       In Zambia, EBAFOSA Zambia is convening mutual partnerships between the Rural Electrification Agency, under the Ministry of Energy, and the Agribusiness Incubation Trust, Zambia’s pioneer agribusiness incubator company towards developing pilots of sorghum value addition enterprises powered by clean energy. It is also developing community level clean energy options from sorghum waste.