Agroforestry for a Changing Climate: Sarah Kezia’s Insightful Session at WCA2025

Today at the 6th World Congress on Agroforestry in Kigali, Vi Agroforestry takes pride in spotlighting one of our driving messages for the region: Agroforestry for Sustainable Livelihoods. At the heart of this was the presentation by Sarah Kezia titled “Climate-Resilient Agroforestry Systems for Drylands: Pathways to Adaptation and Sustainability in East Africa.”

Setting the Scene

Dryland regions across East Africa face escalating climate pressures: erratic rainfall, soil degradation, shrinking pasture and grazing lands, and growing vulnerability for smallholder farmers. Against this backdrop, the partnership between Vi Agroforestry and the Swedish International Agricultural Network Initiative (SIANI) through the East Africa Dryland Agroforestry Expert Group is responding with urgency. (Vi Agroforestry)

Within this framework, Sarah Kezia’s session marked a key moment, creating a direct link between evidence, practice and policy. It aligned with the Expert Group’s aim to boost understanding of dryland agroforestry, promote farmer-led innovation, and influence national and regional frameworks. (Vi Agroforestry)

Key Themes and Highlights

Sarah Kezia emphasised how agroforestry, the integration of trees alongside crops and livestock, can restore degraded drylands while securing livelihoods and linking to climate action.

She underscored real-world examples from East Africa where tree-based systems have strengthened soil health, improved water retention, diversified incomes and empowered both women and youth.

Engaging with the audience, she posed a question that resonated: “How can we make dryland agroforestry systems more inclusive and scalable?”

“Agroforestry is one of the most practical solutions to climate challenges in drylands. When we work with nature, we create systems that last.”

Strategic Links to the Expert Group and SIANI Support

Sarah Kezia’s session remains firmly rooted in the work of the Expert Group supported by SIANI. Together they have developed a policy brief titled Scaling Agroforestry as a Climate Resilience and Food Security Solution in Drylands of Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania. This document highlights agroforestry’s role in boosting yields by 30–58% and regenerating soil organic matter by up to 36% in five years. (Vi Agroforestry)

Through the Expert Group’s continuous learning, farmer engagement, policy dialogues and communication-led outreach, Vi Agroforestry is advancing its mission: Where Trees Grow, People Grow.

Why It Matters

At this congress, Sarah Kezia’s session amplified crucial ideas:

People: Smallholder farmers, pastoralists and agropastoralists in drylands gain resilient systems and diversified incomes.
Planet: Degraded land is regenerated, biodiversity is restored and carbon is sequestered.
Profit: Farmers see increased productivity and access more value from agroforestry practices.

For Vi Agroforestry, this is a core message. Agroforestry is not a side activity but a strategy for sustainable livelihoods. The organisation’s decades of field experience across Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania are now connected to policy, climate resilience and ecosystem health.

Invitation to Engage

We invite our audience—farmers, policymakers, researchers and supporters—to join this journey.

What do you think is the biggest barrier to scaling agroforestry in dryland regions?
How can youth and women be more meaningfully integrated into agroforestry value chains?
Which policies or financing mechanisms have worked (or failed) in your context?

Your participation matters. Share your thoughts, experiences and suggestions, and together we will move toward sustainable, inclusive land-use systems in East African drylands.

This article originally appeared on Vi Agroforestry and is republished here with permission.