Robust data and frameworks for measuring climate adaptation are urgently needed to guide investments and boost the resilience of smallholder farmers across Africa.
By: Anastacia Wanjiru, Lucy Njuguna
With the impacts of climate change intensifying across Africa, adapting to a changing climate has become a necessity.
For millions of smallholder farmers and the climate-vulnerable communities they support, effective climate adaptation strategies can make all the difference. They determine whether farmers live in an almost perpetual crisis or become resilient to the extreme weather events that increasingly affect them.
But, what makes climate adaptation strategic? Researchers and other stakeholders who focus on climate change mitigation (reducing the emission of greenhouse gas emissions into the atmosphere) have advanced the definition of clear metrics for measuring progress.
However, climate change adaptation is more complex, involving an array of social, economic and environmental dimensions.
This complexity makes it difficult to establish universal and readily applicable frameworks for measuring success.
Inadequate data and the lack of frameworks for tracking project progress are the major challenges.
This has led to fragmented efforts and, in some cases, actions that inadvertently increase vulnerability rather than reduce it. This is what researchers call ‘maladaptation’.
So, for African agriculture to become more climate resilient, we need a much more compelling evidence base to inform action, whether that’s on a small or larger scale.
That’s what the new Adaptation Insights project aims to deliver. Its ambition is to increase the availability, quality and use of data on climate adaptation in Africa to boost investment and accelerate action.
By offering data-driven roadmaps, it supports African countries to identify and prioritize investments in resilience, particularly for smallholder farmers, ensuring that resources are allocated effectively to maximize impact.
The launch event highlighted the intense demand for a reliable and consistent approach to measuring the impact of adaptation interventions.
The Adaptation Insights team place great value on inclusive approaches to the delivery of the project, collaborating with a diverse array of stakeholders to ensure that strategies reflect the realities of those most affected by climate change. In addition, local knowledge is integrated into every stage of planning, making solutions sustainable and practical.
The project was recently launched at the ILRI campus in Nairobi, where a workshop brought together representatives from the national government, research institutions, local NGOs and development agencies.
Speaking at the launch, Dr. Lucy Njuguna - the project's co-lead and a climate adaptation and policy expert at the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT - emphasized that “establishing a gold standard means that we’re not just aiming for assessing adaptation progress; we’re striving for the highest level of effectiveness in adaptation efforts.”
By defining what successful adaptation looks like, the project is building the capacity of governments, development partners and private sector investors by providing tools to scale impactful and sustainable interventions. Dr. Njuguna highlighted the importance of the project by saying: "This is about more than just tracking progress, it’s about transforming how we approach adaptation so that we deliver results that matter”.
Dr. Cromwell Lukorito - University of Nairobi/Vice Chair of IPCC AR7 Working Group II - addressed the challenges of translating scientific solutions into practical applications: “Science must go hand-in-hand with society. Too often, the best tools remain unused because they fail to resonate with the people they’re meant to serve. Adaptation Insights is an opportunity to change that”.
Dr. Todd Rosenstock - Project Leader and Principal Scientist at the Alliance - highlighted that “this isn’t just about data; it’s about making that data actionable. Adaptation Insights is helping to define what successful adaptation looks like and providing the roadmap to get there.”
Steven Prager from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation emphasized the transformative potential of the project: “This is just the tip of the iceberg. What Adaptation Insights is doing now will drive impactful and lasting change in communities across Africa and beyond.”
While commenting on the inclusive approach of the project that ensures that local knowledge is integrated into every stage of planning, Dr. Mary Mbole-Kariuki - Innovations Expert at the African Union Inter Bureau of Animal Resources (AU IBAR) - emphasized the importance of designing locally relevant solutions: “Adaptation cannot succeed without understanding the needs and values of those it seeks to serve. It’s not enough to provide solutions, we must ensure that they resonate with local contexts.” She argued that climate innovations must consider socio-economic realities to gain traction with communities and individuals.
As the project gains momentum, it can equip governments, development partners and investors with the tools to scale effective solutions for climate adaptation.
With the next UN climate summit - COP30 - set to be hosted by Brazil in November 2025, Adaptation Insights is well positioned to inform emerging adaptation strategies, including informing the development of indicators for the Global Goal on Adaptation (GGA) and providing the data required to measure and advance adaptation across scales.
Adaptation Insights is led by The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT with contributions from the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) and the CGIAR Climate Impact Platform alongside many partner organizations. The project is funded by The Gates Foundation and will be implemented over 2024-2026.