<p><strong>Brief on the awareness-raising workshop on &ldquo;Low emissions livestock: supporting policy through science in West/Central Africa&rdquo;</strong></p>
<p>By Ackim Mwape</p>
<p>From 26 to 28 March 2019, nearly 60 senior government policy and science representatives working in the livestock and related sectors from 22 West and Central African countries will convene in Dakar, Senegal, for an awareness-raising workshop on low emission livestock development.</p>
<p>The workshop, entitled <em>&ldquo;Low emissions livestock: supporting policy through science in West/Central Africa</em>&rdquo;, is being organised by the Global Research Alliance on Agricultural Greenhouse Gases (GRA), the research program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) through CGIAR (formally the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research), Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the World Bank with local partners from the Senegalese Institute for Agriculture Research (ISRA).</p>
<p>This workshop builds on the success of the regional workshop on Low Emissions Livestock held in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia in 2018 and aims to share countries&rsquo; ambitions, showcase relevant ongoing work, understand countries&rsquo; needs and identify ways to help build regional and national capability to address climate change.</p>
<p>The specific objectives of the workshop are to:</p>
<ul>
<li>Discuss countries&rsquo; ambitions for livestock development and climate change, and understand the challenges</li>
<li>Showcase relevant ongoing work that is focused on: (i) Improving the efficiency of livestock production; (ii) reducing greenhouse gas emissions and enhancing resilience; and (iii) strengthening national measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) for low emissions livestock systems</li>
<li>Understand how science underpins this work, including helping to support countries&rsquo; Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) to climate action, and</li>
<li>Identify ways that the GRA, CCAFS, FAO, the World Bank and other partners can help build regional and national capacity through tailored initiatives in the future.</li>
</ul>
<p>The workshop sessions will include discussion on agricultural development and greenhouse gas objectives for Francophone countries of West and Central Africa and how greenhouse gas reporting tools can be enhanced to reflect changes in sector production trends.</p>
<p>The role of science in developing low emitting livestock systems, the challenges of estimating agricultural greenhouse gas emissions at the national scale as well as ongoing regional activities and initiatives on low emissions livestock development, will all be part of the workshop sessions.</p>
<p>These sessions will be led by national, regional and international experts from the livestock sector, including from the ECOWAS (Economic Community of West African States), FAO, CCAFS, GRA and The World Bank.</p>
<p>Senior government officials and other dignitaries from the Ministry of Environment, the Minister of Livestock and Animal Productions and Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Equipment in Senegal, will also speak at the workshop.</p>
<p>The outputs of this workshop will contribute to increasing understanding of low emissions livestock, key challenges, priorities and opportunities at regional and national level.</p>
<p>This will allow stakeholders (policy-makers and researchers) to strengthen their strategies and develop partnerships to reduce agricultural greenhouse gases in the context of improving farm productivity and contributing to global food security.</p>
<p>The workshop will also increase the level of awareness of GRA activities and the potential relevance of its work for Africa.</p>