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The ECHO East Africa Biennial Symposium on Sustainable Agriculture and Appropriate Technologies connects individuals and organizations who seek to share their knowledge and best practices in these areas:

  • to improve nutrition, reduce poverty, hunger, and physical hardship by engaging farmers more effectively to adapt their farming systems
  • to respond to climate change and declining yields in Africa with sustainable options which improve the environment, regenerate soils and water catchments, recycle resources and mitigate the effect of weather extremes
  • to combine a wide range of approaches holistically to enhance the resilience of the vulnerable and to care for the earth
  • to have a relevant response to the current COVID pandemic
  • to promote continued learning and sharing through networks

The ECHO East Africa Biennial Symposium will provide a network and training opportunity for those involved in alleviating hunger and poverty in East Africa.



  1. 2023-02-21 Session:Legumes are the chief source of global dietary protein for most of the small holder farmers. Although, there are several legumes existing, only few have been domesticated and utilized by the human community. Anticipating the most burning challenge on overcoming the adverse effects of...
  2. 2023-02-23 Session: The session will be divided among three themes: biodiversity and the hidden cultural identity, Slow Food and the future of seed sovereignty, and Food rights and regenerative actions. Biographical information: Frank Ademba is Country of We Effect and Chairperson for Kilimanjaro Convivial...
  3. 2023-02-22 Session: This presentation will focus on urban tree audits, forestry planning and their importance. Daniel will share about the UN-FAO Tree Cities of World recognition of Kampala for its impact on tree management through the transformation from a treeless downtown Kampala to treed streets and the...
  4. 2023-02-22 Session: The presentation will discuss recent changes being implemented in the TFS Meru Plantation Forest through the ‘Taungya’ management of land. Farmers contract to cultivate land which is planted to forestry species for annual crops until the tree canopy closes, but until recently, did not...
  5. 2023-02-21 Session: The importance of the media to motivate sustainable agriculture and care for the soil The session will challenge agricultural stakeholders to use the media more fully to motivate people to adopt sustainable agriculture. Media can help reduce the number of farmers dependent on chemical...
  6. 2023-02-21 Session: The presentation will present the vision, mission, and approaches used by SAT. Common agroecological interventions of SAT will be shared and challenges faced, including milestones on enhancing wide adoption of ecological practices. Biographical information: Dr. Kizito Mwajombe is an...
  7. 2023-02-23 Session: Agroforestry systems have a poor record of adoption/diffusion! New innovative systems prioritize placement of highest value crops, flexibility of pruning regimes for optimal diffused shade by time of day & year, and that match to crop needs for mulch or green manure. The presentation...
  8. 2023-02-22 Session: We overestimate what we can do in one year and underestimate what we can do in 10! Working with small communities: The presentation will address gaining trust, developing volunteer leaders, Identifying local needs and resources. Sustainability doesn’t just happen; beyond “I have taught,...
  9. 2023-02-22 Session: Crop-raiding by elephants can devastate small farmers, leading to food insecurity, lost opportunity costs, and even death, as well as negative attitudes towards elephants, but finding effective and inexpensive solutions has proven extremely difficult. Beehive fences surrounding crops...
  10. 2023-02-22 Session: The presentation will highlight the successes, challenges, and best practices to mobilize community buy-in in the adoption of FMNR and rainwater harvesting. * See Session Video Here Biographical information: Njamasi Chiwanga works as the Director of Programs at LEAD Foundation - a local...
  11. 2023-02-21 Session: The use of draft power to reduce human drudgery has been in existence in East Africa and other parts of the world for millennia. While there is so much potential in using draft power, especially for small-scale farmers, there are also challenges that need sustainable solutions....
  12. 2023-02-23 Session: The session will focus on PELUM Tanzania’s experience on intervention and impacts on land rights and local seed advocacy in Tanzania. Biographical information: Pessa I. Kussaga is PELUM-Tanzania’s Farmers Seed Advocacy Officer. He holds BSc in Agricultural Economics and Agribusiness from...
  13. 2023-02-22 Session: We cannot face the climate crisis alone. We need solutions from grassroots communities, scientists, technology companies, governments, and the private sector. We need to create new pathways to share knowledge and best practice to accelerate ecosystem restoration. Let's imagine together...
  14. 2023-02-21 Session: This presentation will entail a discussion on the promotion of the ‘Maresha seed planter through the mechanism of private farmers who act as service providers for payment, and how the private sector can be an effective means of scaling up a project. Biographical information: Neil Rowe...
  15. 2023-02-21 Session: Climate change is severely affecting crop production in semi-arid area in Tanzania. However, yield potential is greater from using a tied ridged system in combination with manure, drought resilient maize intercropped with pigeon peas compared to yields from conventional, non- climate...
  16. 2023-02-23 Session: Conservation Agriculture (CA) provides clear soil conservation benefits, but meta-analyses from across sub-Saharan Africa indicate that CA on its own only provides a small increase in yields – not enough for most farmers to overcome food insecurity in the short term. Taking a more...
  17. 2023-02-23 Session: The session will discuss Hand in Hand’s work for the economic and social empowerment of marginalized women and their communities. It supports the creation of sustainable enterprises and jobs through community engagement, full participation in community socio-economic activities and...