Open Access

This report assesses the impact of Southern Africa Accelerated Innovation Delivery Initiative (AID-I) Rapid Delivery Hub interventions in mitigating the effects of El Niño-induced drought in Zambia: drought-tolerant maize varieties (DTM), improved legume seeds and an early warning campaign. Approximately 620,000 households (3.1 million people) gained access to DTM seeds through AID-I interventions, cultivating over 230,000 hectares during the 2023/2024 season. Of these, about 462,600 farmers (~27% of smallholder farmers in Zambia) benefited directly from growing DTM, with yield gains averaging 240 kg more maize per hectare (~US $64) compared to non-DTM varieties. Of that group, 180,000 households (900,000 people) benefited directly from AID-I. The benefits varied by location, with gains up to 660 kg per hectare in the Copperbelt province. The AID-I supported DTM varieties contributed about 235,000 MT of maize production, representing about 19% of Zambia's 2023/2024 national production. Considered in its totality, this represents a strong return from the 10% of the total maize area that was planted with these game-changing types of maize that can produce even under drought conditions. Furthermore, more than 2,000 farmers received improved seeds of cowpeas, groundnuts, and soybean, which are less sensitive to dry spells. These farmers produced an average of 80kg of groundnuts, and 175kg of soybean per household, earning approximately US $75 and US $58, respectively. At the national level, AID-I supported production for both groundnuts and soybean was 205 tons, representing about 14.3% of national production. Most of those who benefited from improved legume seeds were women. AID-I facilitated the dissemination of an early warning campaign reaching 502,420 farmers with El Niño advisories and established 84 winter production demonstration sites, reaching over 2,000 farmers with alternative cropping strategies. Together, these interventions contributed to enhancing farmers' resilience against the impacts of El Niño-related weather extremes in Zambia.

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