Climate change poses a serious threat to the livelihoods of smallholder farmers in African semi-arid regions. Effective adaptation requires integrating local knowledge with policy interventions. This study examines the perceptions, endogenous adaptation strategies, and support needs of smallholder farmers to enhance their resilience to climate change in the Sudano-Sahelian zone of Burkina Faso. A survey of 300 smallholder farmers was conducted in the Central-East region using a semi-structured questionnaire. Questions focused on perceived climate change indicators, adverse impacts, existing adaptation strategies, and expectations from support projects. Relative frequencies of smallholder farmers' responses were compared using the Kruskal-Wallis test. Principal component analysis and Sankey diagrams were applied to explore adaptation practices and support expectations, respectively. Smallholder farmers identified 15 key climate change indicators (p < 0.0001), most frequently early cessation of rainfall (78.00%), droughts (52.67%) and strong winds (41.67%). Nineteen adverse effects were reported (p = 0.0002), affecting natural resources, agricultural activities, and socio-economic conditions. Common adaptation strategies included crop associations, trade diversification, abandonment of certain crops, and seasonal migration, with patterns varying by age, gender and ethnicity. Smallholder farmers emphasized the need for agricultural inputs and development projects to strengthen resilience.The findings underscore the importance of combining local knowledge with scientific and policy-driven approaches to design effective, sustainable, and socially inclusive climate adaptation strategies in African semi-arid regions.
Climate change, population growth, and the accelerating depletion of natural resources are placing unprecedented stress on the global food-energy-water nexus, necessitating integrated and sustainable solutions. Agrivoltaics (AV), the co-location of solar photovoltaic systems with agricultural production, has emerged as a promising dual-use land strategy to enhance resource efficiency and climate resilience. However, its widespread adoption is impeded by fragmented disciplinary approaches, regional research imbalances with over 70% of studies concentrated in temperate Global North regions, and unresolved system trade-offs. To address this issue, the current review employs a novel, integrated framework, including both quantitative bibliometric analysis and an in-depth critical synthesis of 305 peer-reviewed publications from 2020 to 2025 that disentangle the agronomic, technological, environmental, and socio-political dimensions of AV systems. The study aims to fill the knowledge gaps by mapping the evolution of AV research, quantifying crop-specific performance under diverse AV configurations, and proposing implementation frameworks aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Findings indicate that AV systems can substantially enhance land equivalent ratios by modulating the microclimate; however, crop responses differ, with shade-tolerant species showing productivity gains while photosensitive crops often exhibit yield reductions. The review also highlights inconsistencies in soil organic carbon trends under partial shading and identifies five major research clusters: (1) socio-environmental dimensions and policy perspectives, (2) agronomic optimization under solar integration, (3) system design, modeling, and technological innovation, (4) controlled environment applications and crop-specific insights, and (5) the water-energy-food (WEF) nexus. Key barriers to AV adoption include high initial capital costs for elevated structures, fragmented land tenure systems, and regulatory misalignments, particularly within OECD countries. Overcoming these barriers requires innovative financing models, supportive policy frameworks, and adaptive system designs tailored to local agroecological and socioeconomic contexts. The review, therefore, recommends context-specific AV deployment pathways incorporating spectral-selective photovoltaic technologies, dynamic microclimate regulation, and inclusive policy incentives. Overall, this review provides a comprehensive assessment to guide future research, policy development, and real-world implementation for a climate-smart and resilient agricultural future.
Nitrogen fertilisers sustain yields but increase greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and water pollution. This review synthesises field experiments, meta-analyses and life cycle assessments (LCAs) published through 2024 on fertiliser technologies and management strategies that raise nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) and reduce cropland nitrogen losses. Loss pathways include nitrous oxide (N2O), ammonia (NH3) volatilisation and nitrate (NO3−) leaching; these pathways are shaped by soil properties, climate and management. Four product classes are assessed: enhanced-efficiency fertilisers (EENFs), bio-based and organo-mineral amendments, recovered nutrient products, and low-carbon synthetic fertilisers. For each class, mechanisms and measured effects on N2O, NH3 and NO3− losses and crop yield are summarised. Integrated nutrient management is evaluated, including variable-rate application, sensor-guided decisions and coordinated irrigation, to align nitrogen supply with crop demand. Performance is compared across climates, soil textures and farming systems, with reported effects on soil health indicators. Adoption barriers include costs, operational complexity and regulatory conditions, alongside policy instruments supporting uptake. Monitoring, reporting and verification (MRV) requirements are outlined to quantify field-scale emission reductions. The evidence shows that novel fertilisers, when matched to soil, climate and crop context, can cut N2O emissions while sustaining yields across many contexts. Evidence gaps include long-term field studies, smallholder systems and next-generation fertiliser formulations and delivery systems.
The unidirectional flow of phosphorus (P) from mineral reserves to croplands, freshwaters and ultimately to marine environments surpasses sustainable limits for human development. Addressing the dual challenges of rising food production and mitigating P pollution necessitates spatially explicit assessments. However, significant uncertainties persist regarding the spatial patterns of cropland-P runoff in China, largely due to inadequate methodologies for accurately estimating P runoff that incorporate climate variability, soil characteristics, and P fertilization rates. Here, we conducted a fine-gridded estimation of cropland-P runoff across China, using a data-driven artificial intelligence model in conjunction with county-level P fertilization data. Results indicated that cropland-P runoff in 2018 totaled 109.9 kilotons P yr−1, representing 0.79% of China's mineral P fertilization, aligning with national surveys from 2017. Notably, P runoff fluxes from uplands exhibited an inverse relationship with latitude, highlighting hotspots in regions south of the Yangtze River, driven by lower soil pH, intensive crop ration, and elevated soil organic matter. In rice paddies, hotspots were concentrated in the Pearl River Delta, Yangtze River Delta and western Sichuan basin, linked to higher irrigation and P fertilization. These patterns suggest that mineral-fertilizer-induced cropland-P runoff hotspots mainly occur where high P input coincides with runoff-prone soil, climate and irrigation conditions. This study provides a spatially explicit basis for prioritizing future monitoring and management of cropland-P runoff in these vulnerable regions.
Climate change poses escalating threats to agricultural systems in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), with vegetable crops among the most vulnerable due to their sensitivity to biotic and abiotic stresses. Impacts of climate change on crop productivity have been widely documented, but its effects on vegetable quality and food safety remain less comprehensively synthesized. This systematic review analyzes evidence from 140 peer-reviewed studies published between 2014 and 2026 to evaluate how climate variability and change affect the production, quality, and safety of tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.), onion (Allium cepa L.), and pepper (Capsicum spp.) in SSA. Findings reveal that climate impacts on vegetable quality are complex and context-dependent. Elevated temperatures, drought, erratic rainfall, and increased atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) alter physiological processes and nutrient composition, affecting concentrations of vitamin C, lycopene, capsaicin, quercetin, sulfur compounds, and essential minerals. These responses depend on crop species, cultivar, stress intensity, timing of exposure, and post-harvest handling practices. Climate change intensifies food safety risks by favoring the proliferation of fungal pathogens and mycotoxin-producing species, increasing the incidence of bacterial diseases, and facilitating the spread of invasive pests such as Tuta absoluta and onion thrips. These challenges are further compounded by inadequate storage and cold-chain infrastructure, contributing to post-harvest losses (PHL) that frequently exceed 40% across many SSA vegetable value chains. Findings indicate that effective adaptation requires integrated pre- and post-harvest interventions, including stress-tolerant cultivars, climate-smart irrigation, integrated pest management, biological control agents, improved curing and storage systems, modified-atmosphere packaging, and digital climate advisory services. Major knowledge gaps identified are (i) predominance of studies examining single climate stressors, despite the reality that vegetables are increasingly exposed to multiple interacting stresses; and (ii) post-harvest quality and food safety impacts remain under-researched relative to production outcomes. In conclusion, this review suggests that: (i) safeguarding vegetable production systems in SSA requires a shift from yield-centered adaptation approaches toward strategies that simultaneously protect productivity, nutritional quality, and food safety; (ii) strengthening breeding programs for nutritional resilience, expanding affordable cold-chain infrastructure, and promoting integrated climate-smart technologies for enhanced food security, public health, and smallholder livelihoods under future climate change scenarios.
The DeNitrification-DeComposition (DNDC) model is a crucial tool for estimating soil greenhouse gas fluxes and understanding soil-plant interactions. This study evaluates the performance of the DNDC model in simulating soil temperature, moisture, crop yield, and nitrous oxide (N2O) fluxes across different land utilization types in Western Kenya. The land utilization types included: i) agroforestry M (agroforestry with Markhamia lutea, ii) sole sorghum, iii) agroforestry L (agroforestry with Leucaena leucocephala), iv) sole maize, and v) grazing Land, each replicated thrice. Fertilizer and manure were applied as part of the management practices, with manure applied at 2t ha−1. Soil greenhouse gas samples were collected using vented static chambers and analyzed via gas chromatography. Sensitivity analysis was conducted by varying soil pH, soil organic carbon, clay content, bulk density, and nitrates. The model was calibrated and validated using input data from grazing land. Model performance was assessed using mean error, root mean square error, normalized root mean square error, Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency, and the index of agreement (d). Across land utilization types, agroforestry systems showed higher soil organic carbon (2.07–2.23%) compared to sole cropping systems (0.61–1.50%), while daily field-measured N2O fluxes were also elevated under agroforestry (1.75–2.55 g N2O–N ha−1 day−1) compared to sole maize (0.56 g N2O–N ha−1 day−1). The DNDC model demonstrated high sensitivity to soil pH and bulk density, with good fit in simulating daily soil temperature and moisture. However, the model showed variable performance in simulating N2O emissions and crop yields. The model performed well in predicting soil temperature (0.98 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.99, 0.91 ≤ d > 0.99), moderately well for soil moisture (0.88 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.99, 0.56 ≤ d ≤ 0.94), and had mixed results for crop yields (0.4 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.9). The model showed poor to moderate performance for simulating N2O fluxes (0.4 ≤ R2 ≤ 0.66, 0.87 ≤ d ≤ 0.97), suggesting it can be a useful tool for estimating N2O emissions and improving reporting of Nationally Determined Contributions. The inclusion of manure and fertilizer application as management practices highlights the importance of nutrient management in influencing soil greenhouse gas fluxes and crop productivity.
