We produce organic vegetables to reduce food related issues

Climate Change (CC) poses severe threat to the underprivileged and the rural masses, by reducing their access to food, energy and water. Communities, relying on natural resources are the worst hit and often fall victims even to a slight change in weather.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). 37 countries, including 28 in Africa, depended on food aid, 226.7 million people are starving in Africa

20% of households suffer from extreme food shortages,
30% of the population is acutely lack malnutrition; and 40% to 50% of people live below the poverty line, meaning they have a daily income that is on average below $1.25.  Each day, 25,000 people, including more than 10,000 children, 3.2 million children under the age of 5 die each year from hunger and related causes disease. Gambia has major challenges in Agriculture. historically market vendors struggle to buy vegetables to the urban markets. usually they buy from Senegalese who uses chemical fertiliser and as a result the quality and preservation drops. I have been accessing, studying and analysing the markets for long and concluded that there is a sufficient demand in the market for fresh organic produce.

There is a need to adapt to changing climatic conditions to reduce the vulnerability of rural communities to climate change. This would be possible by introduction of fundamental changes in agricultural practices. Integration of traditional knowledge with innovations in agriculture also has a huge scope to enhance the adaptive capacity of the rural communities. International organizations and research institutes worldwide have developed an approach that tackles both the issues of climate change and food insecurity.

Climate-smart agriculture is an approach to guide actions to transform and reorient agricultural systems to effectively and sustainably support development and food security under a changing climate (FAO). Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) promotes production systems that sustainably increases productivity, resilience (adaptation), reduces/removes GHGs (mitigation), and enhances achievement of national food security and development goals. Rural communities in Gambia are one of the most vulnerable to climate change impacts.  Rising temperatures, erratic rainfall patterns and the increased frequency of natural disasters create challenges for the agrarian society of many west African Countries.

Gambian economy is dominated by agriculture as more than 65% of the GDP comes from this sector. Climate change will therefore greatly impact the existing farming practices and thus the livelihoods of those dependent on it.  The rural Gambian are the poorest part of the country, with a high proportion of the population living in poverty.

 The overall goal of the proposed project is to increase food security though adoption of climate smart agriculture practices.I founded KARAKUNKU FARM to be purely organic and zero carbon emission to be the icon of change and innovation using the latest automated drip irrigation system technology to water the crops yearly to increase effeciency, productivity, high yield and reduce human labor. With this process we will achieve food sufficiency and solve the above mentioned

We have more than 700 people in my community alone and these exclude childeren under 9 years of age. we will aggresively produce vegetables to the community and beyond to help solve their food insecurities, unemployment and increase their income. but also we plan to

1. To sensitize the farming community in Barrou kunda village about the linkages between food security and climate change.
2. To promote adoption of climate smart farming practices suitable for the agro- ecological region of Bonsaaso through capacity building and training of 500 farmers.
3. Establish a resource centre to serve as information hub and library for the farmers to get latest information on climate change.

Project Activities

1. Mapping and Situation Analysis: The purpose of this activity is to understand the current situation in my community. This would include mapping of socioeconomic, political, and environmental aspects of the area
2. 2. Development of awareness tools to suit the local communities: Audio- Visual material will be developed to sensitize the local communities on climate change risks and threats. Leaflets, booklets, flashcards will be developed in vernacular to create greater impact. Documentaries made by international agencies on climate change will also be translated.
3. Awareness campaign: Awareness generation is a key activity towards achieving project success. Farmers will adopt climate smart agriculture practices only after they understand the implications of climate change on food security. Following sub activities will be undertaken to sensitize the communities.

• Community Meetings: Project team will initiate community meetings to discuss about the project and also share information on climate change risks and food security threats.
• Distribution of leaflets and pamphlets: Communication material developed in vernacular language will be distributed. Use of easy language will help in developing a better understanding of the issues.
• Documentary screening: A documentary will be screened in a community hall, to showcase the threats of climate change.
• Mobile Information Centre: For dissemination of information a mobile van will be used. This will serve as a information centre and people who could not attend the awareness camp will also benefit from it.

1. Promotion of area specific agricultural activities: area specific technologies that are aligned to agro-ecological principles will be promoted in the villages. Adoption of such technologies will help in improving the biological, social and economic systems resilient to climate change.
2. Trainings will be imparted on following aspects of climate smart agriculture 

• Crop and nutrition management
• Conservation Agriculture
• Livestock management
• Agro forestry
• Aquaculture
• Diversified energy systems
• Soil and water management
• Risk insurance
• Weather forecasting
• Technological interventions.

Training sessions will also be given on some traditional agricultural practices like – mulching, intercropping and manure production. All the training sessions will be given in vernacular so as to facilitate easy learning and understanding amongst the farmers.

Project Results

• Increased awareness among the community on linkages between climate change and food security.
• Enhanced learning of various aspects of climate smart agriculture.
• 500 farmers adopt the climate resilient practices and supplement their income.
• Resource centre established in the village becomes an information hub for neighboring villages and farmers gain knowledge about various new technologies and agriculture practices.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Project team will undertake monitoring and evaluation, at all levels as per the Monitoring & Evaluation plan. Monitoring will be carried out right from the project inception, so as to ensure that processes and results are documented regularly. This would in turn allow steering decisions and modifying the project processes to meet the deliverables in a timely manner. Data gathered during monitoring will help in evaluating the project progress at the end.  Quarterly activity reports will be submitted to the donor agency which would help in project evaluation.

we need help like technical assistance, training, monitoring but mainly financial assistance to scale up our business. often we do our accounting on our own which is not world class and we also lack legal help like lawyers but we are managing that for now. but our primary problem is financial

Climate-smart agriculture isn’t distinct from sustainable agriculture; rather it’s a way of combining various sustainable methods to tackle them. specific climate challenges of a specific farming community. The first step is to assess the particular climate risks, since a farm facing prolonged water shortages will need different strategies than one confronting frequent flooding, for example. We use a variety of tools to assess the climate risk and vulnerability of a landscape, taking the local ecosystems and the specific crop into account. Finding the right combination to manage a specific farm’s climate challenges—and to build resilience to future impacts—is what makes climate-smart agriculture “smart.” Where drought and prolonged dry seasons are the main risks, a climate-smart approach might focus on planting cover crops or mulching to improve soil structure, water infiltration and retention, and overall soil fertility,” Rainforest Alliance environment director Martin Noponen explains. “In places where the risks are heavy rain and flooding, a climate-smart approach would likely focus on trenching, planting cover crops, and controlling surface water runoff with activities like vegetation barriers.

climate-smart program aims to:

• Improve farmer productivity, and as a result, livelihoods;
• make farms more resilient to climate impacts they’re facing now, and to those likely to hit in the future;
• and, where feasible, curb greenhouse gas emissions associated with growing food.

Here are some of the areas in which we help implement climate-smart methods:

CROP MANAGEMENT

Once an assessment of climate impacts and risks has been conducted, climate-smart strategies tailored to a particular landscape, farming community, or even individual farm can be determined. In cocoa, for example, pruning is essential, but it has to accord with the local climate risks: Where there is extreme rainfall, pruning should be done more often to ensure stronger trees that recover faster, whereas in prolonged dry periods, a farmer needs to avoid pruning so much that primary branches and trunks are exposed to too much sunlight. Harvesting and fermentation (in the case of cocoa) also require different practices for different climate situations. In the event of heavy rains or excessive moisture, simple solar dryers can be created from wood frames and plastic sheets to dry beans.

SOIL MANAGEMENT

Heavy rainfall can wash away fertile top soil, especially on sloping land. Planting ground cover helps keep soil in place in the event of heavy rains—and it’s extremely beneficial in drought-prone regions, too, because it helps retain moisture in the soil. In flood-prone areas, farmers can build drainage systems to keep nutrient-rich topsoil from being washed away; trenches can also help control excess water and keep soil where it needs to be. Planting on contours, such as hills or natural terraces, is an effective way to cut down on soil erosion, as well. Mulching—applying organic matter from crop residues to the soil—can also help.

All practices that improve soil quality and structure also improve productivity—a core goal of all climate-smart agriculture. Healthy soils are also important carbon sinks that hold carbon dioxide and keep it out of the atmosphere, thus helping fight climate change.

PEST AND DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Global warming can give rise to pests and diseases that can reduce yields drastically and even destroy entire farms. Rising temperatures have helped the roya fungus, for example, to proliferate and wipe out coffee farms all over Central America. In a changing climate, the tried-and-true ways of battling pests and diseases often fail; desperate farmers may be tempted to increase the amount of pesticides, but over-application will only increase costs, harm beneficial insects, and increase the risk of contaminating people and the environment.

Climate-smart agriculture trainings provide farmers with the knowledge they need to apply just the right amount—and at the right time of year—to combat these newly proliferating pests. Investing in pest-resistant seedlings can also help. When it comes to weeds, we advise farmers in any climate situation to use manual weeding as much as possible, taking aim at noxious weeds while leaving soft weeds that can actually replenish soil and prevent nutrient-rich top soil from eroding.

SHADE TREES

Planting shade trees is beneficial no matter what the climate risk to a specific farm or community: the right number of trees, of the right species, with the right amount of canopy can help protect the farm from excessive sun, harsh winds, and strong showers. Excessive shade, however, can contribute to a more humid microclimate on the farm, and with cocoa, for example, excessive humidity creates more favorable conditions for certain fungal diseases.

That’s why our climate-smart trainings help identify the best tree species, the ideal number of trees to plant, and an appropriate overall shade-tree system—one that might include the use of trees as windbreaks and live fences, as well as shade for crops that benefit from shade. Especially in hotter and drier climates or areas with heavier rainfall, it is important to plant different types of trees that shed their leaves at different periods of the season to ensure a continuous canopy.

WATER CONSERVATION

Agriculture consumes 70 percent of the world’s available supply of freshwater. As the planet continues to heat up, water shortages—already a problem in many regions—will become a more severe threat. Harvesting rainwater is one way for farms to prepare for water shortages. Communities can dig ponds lined with bamboo to better retain the water. On individual farms, there are several ways to collect rainfall, from simply placing barrels outside to creating more sophisticated systems that channel rain from roofs into barrels through a series of gutters and pipes. Traditional irrigation methods can also help address water stress on farms. Using watering cans is labor-intensive and potentially wasteful, since very dry earth can’t absorb large amounts of water at once—but placing bamboo sticks or bottles filled with water next to plants can create low-tech, slow-drip irrigation.

Climate change can also bring about too much water. The combination of long dry periods, which make the ground hard, followed by heavy rains, set the stage for flooding. Building drainage systems and trenches can channel excess water and protect crops from moisture-fueled diseases.

Introduction

The evolution of agriculture in the future will be shaped by its response to climate change . Farmers need to adapt their practices to accommodate climatic conditions, and agricultural activities will need to be modified to reduce greenhouse-gas (GHG) emissions. But climate change is only one of the major forces that will change the future of agriculture. Others include population growth and increases in income as well as changes in human capital, knowledge, and infrastructure. Much of the change in agriculture will stem from new innovations, both in terms of technologies and institutions. WE will identify the major categories of innovation associated with CSA . We distinguish between technological, managerial, and institutional innovations and between micro (farm level) vs. macro (farm-system) innovations. 

BUT FIRST: depending on the range of mitigation actions taken in the next decades, we can expect that climate change will lead to increased temperatures throughout the world by 1–3 °C, which is equivalent to a shift of 300–500 km of weather patterns away from the equator and towards the poles. Similarly, temperature variability in regions at higher altitudes will also increase. While climate change may have negative overall impact on agricultural production, the distributional impacts are much more substantial than the aggregate affect. Thus, for instance, some warm agricultural areas in Western Africa will become unviable for crop production. Innovations to respond to changes in temperature may involve adopting new crops and varieties in some areas, to migration away from regions unviable for agricultural production in others, or investment in infrastructure and other activities in new regions. The effect of weather migration will not be limited to plants, but rather felt across multiple species. For example, temperature serves as an important barrier to prevent pest infestations and while insects and other pests can move in response to changing conditions, trees are stationary. Pest migration can endanger viable tree-based economies and will require monitoring and interventions. The people displaced because of these trends may not be the ones that are able to take advantage of new opportunities presented by climate change . Development of new technologies and other economic activities to facilitate adaptation to climatic changes and amelioration of painful displacement will be valuable. Innovations to adapt to migration of weather will vary across location reflecting spatial heterogeneity . In some areas, new solutions will be required to address movement of pests as well as to modify crop varieties to adjust to changing weather conditions. In other areas, entirely new crops may need to be introduced. Finally, in some regions mechanisms may need to be introduced to facilitate out migration of people. The design and implementation of these solutions is challenged due to uncertainty about magnitude and timing of change.

Technological Innovations
Micro, Farm-Level Approaches
Pest control

The migration of pests may prompt the need to develop new pest management techniques, which are both environmentally friendly, cost-effective, easy to use, and efficacious. A diverse approach utilizing biological, mechanical, and  in concert with genetic approaches, will be needed. An on going effort to identify emerging pest problem will need to guide the development these pest control innovations.

Input use efficiency enhancing technologies

Frequently, there is a significant gap between the level of applied inputs and the amount utilized by the crop. For example, with flood irrigation, input use efficiency may be 50%, but with technologies like drip irrigation, efficiency may increase to 90%. Frequently the residue (i.e. the input not taken up by the crop) is a source of externalities. Khanna and Zilberman (1997) suggest that adoption of input use efficiency enhancing technologies tend to increase yield, save input, and reduce pollution. Better application technologies may reduce water, fertilizer, and chemicals while reducing the side effect associated with their use. The notion of input use efficiency enhancing technologies applies to crops and even livestock. Some crop varieties may increase output while the change in feeding regimes for livestock may decrease greenhouse gas emissions .

On-farm storage

Parfitt et al. (2010) suggest that there is significant post-harvest loss on the farm and much of it occurs among subsistence farmers in developing countries that lack basic storage capacity. Innovative on-farm storage infrastructure can help address yield losses brought on by increased temperature as well as increased frequency of shocks. The challenge is to design systems that are affordable, easy to install and operate, and reliable. The design of the system must address heterogeneity in bioclimatic conditions.

Higher yield and longer shelf life

Crop varieties, as well as livestock, that increase yield per area tend to reduce agricultural footprint and the effort required to compensate for production loss due to climate change . Longer shelf life would decrease transportation costs, storage costs, and, especially, waste associated with agricultural distribution. Shelf life enhancement is important in the context of climate change because increased temperatures increase the likelihood of spoilage.

Sustainable Land Management (SLM)

Frequently, agricultural practices in farmlands lead to reduced soil quality. Extreme weather associated with climate change may worsen this problem unless improved agronomic practices are introduced. SLM practices aim to increase yield without degrading soil and water resources. In addition, they aim to sequester carbon. There are already several SLM practices such as organic fertilization, minimum soil disturbance, and incorporation of residues, terraces, water harvesting and conservation, and agroforestry (Branca et al. 2013), but there are many opportunities for developing new SLM practices and refining existing ones to accommodate spatial and climatic variability.

Farm System Approaches
Low-cost flood protection and water storage facilities

Because of the concern of rising water level, and the resulting instability due to floods, innovation that reduces the cost of protection against rising water levels and floods will be a priority. In assessing such investments, it is important to consider the benefit of avoided conflict due to reduced climate migration.

Weather information distribution technologies

There is significant evidence that availability of weather information, including its implications on irrigation (evapotranspiration losses), enable farmers to modify their irrigation and pest control strategies which lead to significant increases in yield and saving of water and other inputs (Parker and Zilberman 1996). Reliable weather information will be especially important during periods of heightened climate change during which farmers face greater uncertainty of weather patterns. But information about weather systems requires both weather stations as well as delivery systems that provide useful and reliable information across many users. This system must be affordable and fit the needs and capacity of poor farmers.

Improved mitigation

Reducing GHGs is a key to effective adaptation to climate change in the long run, and an important CSA goal and thus it includes innovation and adoption of cultural practices, crop varieties, management practices, and institutions that will accelerate mitigation . Already, the transition to no- or low-tillage practices has been considered a major source of carbon sequestration, and adoption of higher yield varieties and conservation technologies that reduce the land, atmospheric, and fossil fuel footprint of agriculture is another important mitigation strategy (Lal 2011; McCarthy et al. 2012).

Managerial Innovations
Micro, Farm-Level Approaches

The differences between technological and managerial innovations are not clear cut. New machinery or input require innovative management practice to be effective and adopted. Here we will emphasize innovation that mostly emphasize improve management – but may also involve use of new technologies.

Input use efficiency management techniques

The efficiency of water use or chemical input can be significantly increased through the adoption of information intensive management practices that optimize the timing and quantities of application of inputs. Precision technologies vary variable input application over space and time based improved monitoring of field and weather conditions. Dobermann et al. (2004) suggest that precision farming may save input and/or increase yield and that both mechanisms for monitoring spatial or other sources of variability and methods to utilize this information have a large potential for further improvement. Development of precision techniques for resource poor developing countries is a special challenge as they may be the major beneficiary from these techniques.

Integrated Pest Management (IPM)

The likely increases in pest pressure because of climate change may require new technical solutions but also increase effectiveness of pest management in terms of detection and coordination of pest control activities. IPM emphasizes measurement of pest pressure and integration of alternative approaches (cultural practices, chemical, genetic modification and biological) to optimize the net benefits of treatment, taking into account pest dynamic and environmental side effects. The adoption of IPM is constrained by the cost of monitoring pests and difficulty of tailor-made IPM approaches specific to bioclimatic conditions (Waterfield and Zilberman 2012). The effectiveness of responses to climate change will benefit from the development of affordable and easy to implement IPM strategies.

Land use and on-farm management practices

Changes in both the mean and variability of climatic conditions accompanied by changes in technologies and economic conditions will require improved management tools used to facilitate the selection of crop types and crop varieties, allocation of land among crops, and selection and implementation of production practices. The improvement of quality of data, computation capabilities and communication will provide opportunities for introducing new management tools that are affordable and accessible even to small farmers in developing countries .

Resilient crops and livestock

we uses novela F1 and F2 varities in the farm because of rising temperatures and increased variability, development of new crop varieties and livestock breeds that can tolerate these changes will be very important. Due to the frequency of change, it will be important to detect change and develop genetic material that can adapt to this change relatively fast.

Distribution technologies

We use drip irrigation systems. There is significant evidence that availability of irrigation (evapotranspiration losses), enable farmers to modify their irrigation and pest control strategies which lead to significant increases in yield and saving of water and other inputs (Parker and Zilberman 1996).

Innovations for Climate Smart Agriculture

There are many ways to categorize innovations (Sunding and Zilberman 2001). Economic growth theory distinguishes among technologies depending on their impact on inputs and outputs. For example, distinctions can be made between capital saving, labor saving, quality improving, and risk reducing innovations. Another way of distinguishing innovations is according to their form, e.g. technological, managerial, and institutional innovations. Technological innovations are embodied in new machinery, and can be further divided into mechanical (e.g. tractors), biological (e.g. seeds), and chemical (e.g. fertilizers) innovations. Managerial innovations are not embodied in physical capital, but rather are described by better practices such as Integrated Pest Management, improved pruning techniques, and crop rotation. Institutional innovations may include new organizational forms (e.g. cooperatives) and arrangements for trading (e.g. future markets and contract farming). Because of the heterogeneity and randomness of climate change impacts, there are several types of innovation that will be especially valuable, and the following section outlines many of these innovations. above section we present and analyze the innovations that are likely to be required to adapt to climate change . We classify them in three categories: technological innovations, managerial innovations and institutional innovations. The technological and managerial innovations are divided into micro–farm level innovations and macro-farm system innovations. All the institutional innovations we consider are at the macro level.

Distribution technologies

We use drip irrigation systems. There is significant evidence that availability of irrigation (evapotranspiration losses), enable farmers to modify their irrigation and pest control strategies which lead to significant increases in yield and saving of water and other inputs (Parker and Zilberman 1996).

 KARAKUNKU FARM is an agricultural vegetable production that believes in the power of farming and processing local food products for local consumption and beyond. Our mission is to make
production a sustainable, profitable business for my commuity and country 
nd beyond to educate active interested farmers of all nation race, religion and tribes. we welcome eguity and inclusion, we are  diverse and welcome change.

we have a great, educated and experienced team to undertake this project to the successful final conclution. the project director with the team sprit create a well conducive environment for all. 

At scale, karakunku farm will generate revenue by producing vegetables 
and packaging it, and selling it directly to major supermarket chains, and indirectly to open-air markets through regional distributors. Approximately 90% of vegetavles consumed in my country are imported but to registed profitability of our business depends on our ability to aggressively.

 We believe that the best way to generate this constant supply of
high-quality produce is through networking, aggrements, Independent retailers and groceries , Hotels, lodgings, eating joints and processing it or industries which we have dont successfully.

combintion of all

1. Access to Capital (loand and grants or raising capital)

Trust me on this one, manytimes it takes money to make money, and i’ll need a money to it to run a successful staffing business. Typically, i’ll need initial startup capital to get myself staffing firm up and running, ongoing working capital to maintain your day-to-day operations and investment capital to put back into your company and support growth.

To access this capital, you can either self-finance which is hard for startups so we plans on applying for grants or take a loan out at a bank 

2. Profitability

When it comes to profitability, balance counts (and there can be negatives on each side). If your profitability is too low, it may have a negative impact on your cash flow and increase stress throughout your organization. Low profits leave no room for revenue or expense fluctuations and limit your ability to reinvest, which can ultimately compromise your financial sustainability.

On the other side of the token, if your profitability is too high (yes, there is such a thing) it may open you up to undercutting by lower-priced competitors, especially MSPs. 

selling products: we plan to start with one acre of land which can provide 500 beds and each bed is able to produce $100 per month therefore 100*500=$50,000 and this money will be used to be reinvested into the business but to be able to do this or reach this production cycle we need a startup capital.

REVENUE GENERATED PER SEASON using own small small funings