PrAEctiCe: Potentials of Agroecological Practices in East Africa

PrAEctiCe — Potentials of Agroecological Practices in East Africa with a Focus on Circular Water-Energy-Nutrient Systems — set out to help smallholder farmers in their agroecological transition. Co-funded by the European Union under the Horizon Europe programme, it brought together 16 research institutions, universities, government agencies and development organisations from Europe and Africa, and ran from November 2022 to April 2026.

What the project did

PrAEctiCe developed an agroecology indicator framework for East Africa and a decision-support tool that helps agroecology advisers select the combination of practices best suited to a local context. A key focus was circular water-energy-nutrient systems through integrated aqua-agriculture — a practice with high potential for efficient farming with minimal climate impact.

Solutions were validated through Living Labs in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. Knowledge was shared through regional trainings, student exchanges, events and a cascading train-the-trainer course, so that agroecology advisers could train farming representatives who then support farmers locally.

AAA’s contribution

In Kenya the project focused on Kisumu, Siaya and Homa Bay counties. As a consortium partner, AAA:

• mapped stakeholders, networks and programmes working on agroecology, environment and business in East Africa, including their capacity needs;
• ran co-creation activities for stakeholders to share knowledge, experience and lessons on agroecology;
• delivered cascade (train-the-trainer) training on the PrAEctiCe indicator framework for agroecology advisers;
• contributed policy briefs for county and national entities in East Africa, and recommendations for relevant EU policies;
• produced practice abstracts that share practical knowledge from the project with farmers;
• helped identify around ten best-practice examples across East Africa’s climatic zones and analysed selected case studies to understand what made them succeed.

AAA also delivered practical training in agroecology, sustainable land management and agroforestry to farmers in Kiambu County as part of the project.

We thank the European Union, the project coordinator Hochschule Karlsruhe, our fellow partners, and all the farmers, researchers and advisers whose commitment made PrAEctiCe a success.