Burundi-Rwanda Integrated Development Program (BRIDEP)

Adaptation Need

The Ruzizi Plain is highly vulnerable to climate-induced hazards, such as floods, heatwaves, prolonged droughts, and landslides. During 2015-2016 El Niño-induced drought affected over 1.6 million people in Burundi and destroyed more than 25,000 hectares of crops. Severe land degradation, particularly in Muyinga, Bururi, Gitega, Kayanza, Karusi, and Rutana, all within or adjacent to the Ruzizi Plain—already reports annual loss of approximately 37.9 million tons of soil. This contributes to over $400 million in crop production losses each year. Without effective climate adaptation measures, these climate-related threats are expected to continue reducing yields of maize and rice, the two most important staple crops. Under the RCP8.5 high-emissions scenario, maize yields are projected to decline by 9.8 percent (compared to 2018 levels), and rice yields by 21.1 percent (compared to 2005 levels).

GCA’s Added Value

GCA is supporting the integration of targeted climate-smart measures within the BRIDEP program in the Ruzizi Plain. This includes scaling proven climate-smart technologies developed by CGIAR Centers through the development of adoption and investment guides. Additionally, GCA’s support is towards strengthening the climate resilience of communities and farming systems in the Ruzizi Plain by conducting capacity-building on the production and management of climate-resilient seeds, along with market analysis to identify bottlenecks and barriers to the adoption and scaled use of climate-resilient seed varieties—particularly for maize and rice—that are designed to withstand climate extremes and reduce yield declines caused by climate-related threats.