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• Conservation Agriculture is able to mitigate climate change in Africa. • Both annual and perennial crops are able to contribute to C sequestration. • Potential estimate of C sequestration is 145 Mt per year, which is 533 Mt CO 2. • This figure represents about 95 times the current sequestration figure. Africa is the smallest contributor to global greenhouse gas emissions among the continents, but the most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. The effects will not be limited to a rising average temperature and changing rainfall patterns, but also to increasing severity and frequency in droughts, heat stress and floods. Agriculture is not only impacted upon by climate change but also contributes to global warming. However, not all agricultural systems affect negatively climate change. Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a farming system that promotes continuous no or minimum soil disturbance (i.e. no tillage), maintenance of a permanent soil mulch cover, and diversification of plant species. Through these principles it enhances biodiversity and natural biological processes above and below the ground surface, so contributing to increased water and nutrient use efficiency and productivity, to more resilient cropping systems, and to improved and sustained crop production. Conservation Agriculture is based on the practical application of three interlinked principles along with complementary good agricultural practice. The characteristics of CA make it one of the systems best able to contribute to climate change mitigation by reducing atmospheric greenhouse gas concentration. In this article, the carbon sequestration potential of CA is assessed, both in annual and perennial crops, in the different agro-climatic regions of Africa. In total, the potential estimate of annual carbon sequestration in African agricultural soils through CA amounts to 143 Tg of C per year, that is 524 Tg of CO 2 per year. This figure represents about 93 times the current sequestration figure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The ongoing global warming is projected to persist throughout the entire century if effective mitigation measures are not put in place. The warming is associated with occurrence of extreme climate events that are prone over Africa. This study uses model data from 24 CMIP6 modeling centers to investigate future changes in extreme climate events over Africa under 1.5 °C, 2.0 °C and 3.0 °C global warming levels (GWLs). The amplified impact in extreme climate events by additional is computed relative to GWL1.5 °C. The models generally simulate observed climate extremes well, with the ensemble mean minimizing data uncertainties. The entire continent is projected to get warmer with the Sahara, Kalahari and parts of the Mediterranean depicting relatively higher temperatures. Both Rx1day and Rx5day are projected to increase over the continent except for the northern and southern regions of the continent. Rx5day is projected to increase by 4–10% for GWL1.5 and GWL3.0 °C. In comparison, an additional 0.5 °C warming between GWL2.0 °C and GWL1.5 °C will lead to an increase of about 43% impact for the climate extremes. An additional GWL1.5 °C (GWL3.0 °C) could result in about 68% increment in climate extremes. The amplified impact of global warming will result in devastating socioeconomic impacts over Africa. This stresses the need of formulating and implementing more ambitious climate change mitigation measures in effort to limit global warming to 1.5 °C. • Future changes in extreme climate are projected over Sahara, Kalahari and parts of the Mediterranean region. • Higher increase in Rx5day compared to Rx1day is projected for GWL1.5 – GWL3.0 °C. • Additional 0.5 °C (GWL1.5 °C) warming will lead to an increase of about 43% (68%) impact for the climate extremes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

For almost two decades, politicians have been negotiating temperature limits to which anthropogenic global warming should be restricted, and 2 °C has emerged as benchmark for danger. However, there has been a lack of scientific research into the implications of such a change for African climate. This study aims to provide information for mitigation debates; through an examination of temperature and precipitation changes in Africa associated with 1 °C, 2 °C, 3 °C, and 4 °C of global warming. Data from Global Climate Models show little significant precipitation change at 1 °C, then larger anomalies at 2 °C which are strengthened and extended at 3 °C and 4 °C, including a wet signal in East Africa, and dry signals in Southern Africa, the Guinea Coast, and the west of the Sahel. Some of the models project changes with potential for severe societal implications. Despite the uncertainty attached to these projections, they highlight risks associated with 2 °C and beyond. Using these findings as a framework for impact assessment and evaluation, further research has the potential to uncover the implications of global warming for African regions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]