As Africa accelerates the transition toward resilient and sustainable food systems, the ability to generate reliable, evidence-based data is becoming increasingly important. To support this transformation, the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), in collaboration with the European Commission Joint Research Centre (EU-JRC) and RUFORUM, is convening a two-day Training on Earth Observation for Agroecology from 29–30 June 2026 at The Palms by Eagles Hotel in Accra, Ghana.
The training serves as a pre-event capacity building initiative toward the CIRAWA Agroecology Conference 2026 (July 1-3, 2026) and is organized under the Regional Multi-Actor Research Network (RMRN) initiative. It brings together researchers and technical experts from across Africa to strengthen their capacity to apply Earth Observation (EO) technologies in agroecological research, policy development, and sustainable land management.
Building Digital Capacity for Africa’s Agroecological Transition
Agroecology is increasingly recognized as one of the most promising pathways for transforming Africa’s food systems. By integrating ecological principles into agricultural production, agroecology supports improved soil health, biodiversity conservation, climate resilience, and sustainable livelihoods.
However, scaling agroecological practices requires more than sound agricultural knowledge. Researchers and decision-makers also need accurate, timely, and spatially explicit data to monitor landscapes, assess crop performance, evaluate biodiversity, and understand environmental change.
Earth Observation technologies—including satellite imagery, remote sensing, and geospatial analytics—provide exactly these capabilities. Yet across many African institutions, limited technical capacity has constrained their widespread adoption.
The RMRN-CIRAWA training addresses this challenge by equipping participants with practical skills to integrate EO technologies into agricultural research and innovation systems, ultimately improving research quality, policy relevance, and development impact.
A Strategic Partnership for Research Excellence
The training reflects a growing collaboration between European and African institutions working to strengthen scientific capacity for sustainable agriculture.
Led by Earth Observation specialists from the European Commission Joint Research Centre (EU-JRC), the programme is coordinated by FARA and RUFORUM, who are responsible for logistics, documentation, and knowledge sharing.
Together, the partners aim to build a new generation of researchers capable of using digital technologies to solve complex agricultural and environmental challenges facing Africa.
Nine African Countries Represented
The training programme brings together 14 agricultural experts from the RMRN network representing: Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
By bringing together researchers from diverse agroecological zones, the training creates opportunities for peer learning, regional collaboration, and long-term scientific partnerships that extend beyond the workshop itself.
From Theory to Practice
Unlike conventional technical workshops, the training adopts a highly practical learning model.
Participants begin by exploring the fundamentals of satellite remote sensing, land-use mapping, and Earth Observation applications in agriculture before progressing to hands-on exercises using industry-standard tools such as Google Earth Engine (GEE) and QGIS.
The curriculum enables participants to process satellite imagery, generate land-cover maps, and interpret spatial datasets that can support research, extension, and policy formulation.
Real African Case Studies
A distinctive feature of the programme is its emphasis on real-world African applications.
Participants will work on practical case studies focusing on:
- Crop type classification
- Landscape-level crop diversity
- Cocoa and coffee mapping
- Agroforestry characterization
- Land-use analysis
- Shade cover estimation using canopy height data
Hands-on exercises draw on examples from Kenya and Côte d’Ivoire, enabling participants to apply Earth Observation techniques to actual agricultural production systems using Sentinel-2 imagery and machine learning approaches such as the Random Forest classifier.
Supporting Better Research and Better Policy
The training goes beyond technical skills.
Participants are expected to strengthen their ability to interpret geospatial information and translate scientific evidence into policy recommendations that support sustainable agriculture.
By the end of the programme, participants will be able to:
- Understand key Earth Observation concepts relevant to agroecology.
- Access and process satellite datasets, including Sentinel and Landsat imagery.
- Apply EO techniques to monitor agroecological systems.
- Develop research proposals integrating Earth Observation technologies.
- Strengthen collaborative research networks across Africa.
Advancing Africa’s Digital Agriculture Agenda
Digital innovation is rapidly reshaping agricultural research worldwide.
Earth Observation technologies now support climate-smart agriculture, early warning systems, soil health assessment, crop monitoring, biodiversity conservation, and landscape restoration. As African countries seek to improve food security while responding to climate change, these technologies are becoming indispensable.
Through initiatives such as the RMRN-CIRAWA training, African researchers gain access not only to cutting-edge tools but also to collaborative networks that promote innovation, knowledge exchange, and evidence-based decision-making.
Looking Ahead
The Earth Observation Training marks an important milestone in strengthening Africa’s scientific capacity to accelerate agroecological transformation.
By combining advanced geospatial technologies with collaborative learning, the programme empowers researchers to generate actionable evidence that supports farmers, policymakers, and development partners across the continent.
As preparations continue for the CIRAWA Agroecology Conference 2026, the training demonstrates the shared commitment of FARA, EU-JRC, RUFORUM, and the RMRN initiative to building resilient agricultural systems through science, innovation, and regional collaboration.
The knowledge and partnerships developed during these two days will continue to influence research, policy, and sustainable agricultural development well beyond the conference—helping shape a more food-secure, climate-resilient, and environmentally sustainable future for Africa.
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