Evaluating agroecological practices is a prerequisite for screening those that are suitable for adoption by smallholder farmers in East Africa. Extension officers and farmers need to be guided in making decisions that will promote socioeconomic and environmentally sustainable agri-enterprises. Utilising the indicator framework, results of stakeholder surveys, and desk reviews, a tool for collecting quantitative and qualitative data required for socio-economic and
environmental assessment of Integrated Agriculture-Aquaculture farms was developed for use by farmers and agroecology advisors. The tool will be used for collecting data on farm and farmer characteristics, socio-economic and agroecological data, and biophysical data. The tool also contains the methods for data collection including interviews, surveys, and case studies, how this data can be analysed and presented to make decisions. The results can be used for making decisions on how to establish an agroecologically compliant IAA farm, assess its compliance over time, sustainability, and management practices.

In Uganda, a solar powered aquaponics model farm deploying a circular water and nutrient management using deep-water culture, media bed and a Nutrient Film Technique has been deployed. This system is testing the scientific and economic viability of aquaponics systems as a form of Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture in smallholder farming systems in East Africa. Low-cost sensors affordable for smallholder farmers in Tanzania are used to monitor water quality, nutrient quantity. The monitoring system will be linked to the Decision Support Tool where farmers and agroecology advisors are alerted when parameter readings are below or above optimum levels. This system has been adapted to Ugandan conditions and used as a training centre for farmers who want to venture into aquaponics farming as a business. The adaptation includes testing with various techniques, species, and materials to inform decision-making such as using fish tank effluent for vegetable growth and optimizing water-energy-nutrient resources. The solar-powered aquaponics system is low cost and free from unstable electricity.

In Morogoro, Tanzania, a solar powered model farm for fishpoultry-crop integration as a form of Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture (IAA) system has been set-up. The purpose is to test a circular system with floating solar panels on ponds and rooftops, to increase electrical efficiency and reduce pond eutrophication. It is designed to reduce feed costs and increase resource use efficiency by utilising poultry excreta as a source of fish feed, and fishpond effluent as a fertiliser for crops. Biochar is being produced from agricultural waste to substitute inorganic fertilisers and improving soil fertility. Low-cost sensors affordable for smallholder farmers in Tanzania are used to monitor water quality, nutrient quantity, and soil quality. Fish quality, crop performance, and poultry performance are also monitored. The monitoring system will be linked to the Decision Support Tool where farmers and agroecology advisors are alerted when parameter readings are below or above optimum levels. This system has been adapted to Tanzanian conditions and being used as a training centre for farmers who want to venture into integrated fishpoultry-crop farming as a business.

In Kisumu, Kenya, a solar powered domestic wastewater treatment system to produce fresh water for fish farming, Black Soldier Fly Larvae for proteins in fish feed, and effluent from fishponds for fertigation are being tested as elements of a circular energy-water-nutrient-feed system. A Membrane BioReactor developed from locally available materials is used for domestic wastewater treatment. Cultivated Black Soldier Fly larvae are processed to provide proteins in fish feed. The effluent from fishponds is used for fertigation of vegetables, hence promoting land use efficiency and resilience to climate change. Low-cost sensors affordable for smallholder farmers in Kenya are used to monitor water quality, nutrient quantity, and soil quality. Fish, crop, and black solder fly performance are also monitored. The monitoring system will be linked to the Decision Support Tool where farmers and agroecology advisors are alerted when parameter readings are below or above optimum levels. The system has been adapted to the Kenyan conditions and now serves as a training centre for farmers who want to venture into integrated fish-black soldier fly-crop farming as a business.

The PrAEctiCe Decision Support Tool has been designed to assist smallholder farmers in East Africa to manage their farms more effectively and access advisory services through three end-user applications: an indicator monitoring centre, an advisory DST, and a mobile application. This tool will support farmers while facilitating connections with advisors. The mobile application will enable farmers to monitor their farming activities and collect essential data on current
farming practices, farm performance using predefined proxy indicators, and incorporate satellite data on soil, water, and plant health. If deviations from optimal measurements occur, the DST will issue alerts to farmers with recommendations for corrective actions and estimated budget requirements. Agroecological advisors will have access to a data-rich interface that allows them to monitor and manage multiple farms. An advanced alert system will keep them informed about potential issues detected by sensors, satellites, or farmer reports in each farm. This system will enable both farmers and advisors to address challenges and facilitate a seamless transition to agroecology.

In Uganda, Integrated Agriculture-Aquaculture (IAA) practices have been implemented primarily in small-scale farming systems and are largely undocumented. A search of multidisciplinary databases and academic publications with information on crop-livestock-fish integration was undertaken to identify the common IAA practices and bottlenecks. From this review, the most popular fish species farmed was found to be tilapia grown in over 98% of farms. 46% of farmers integrated crops and fish with 44% growing vegetables and approximately half of the farms produced chicken or cattle in combination with aquaculture. IAA has the potential to change the conventional agricultural practices in Uganda but will require improved extension services to provide knowledge and skills to farmers. In addition, researchers need to investigate the best combinations and ratios of fish and the corresponding plants/livestock suited for the Uganda conditions to achieve maximum yields. As Uganda’s population continues to increase and the threats of food insecurity intensify, IAA represents a promising technology for producing both high quality animal protein and crops.

In Tanzania, the Integrated Agriculture-Aquaculture (IAA) approach has helped small-scale farmers become more resilient to climate change, enhanced their livelihoods, and has shown a positive environmental and social impact through enhanced food security, water availability and income diversification. A survey was carried out on IAA farmers in Tanzania to identify the common practices and bottlenecks. The most popular fish species to farm was tilapia, grown in over 90% of farms. Catfish was the next most common aquaculture species in 55% of farms in Tanzania. 91% of farms grew vegetables and 18% grew seaweed in combination with fish. More than half of farms produced chicken and cattle in combination with fish. In Tanzania, farming all three types of products together (crops, livestock, and fish) was the most common IAA system. IAA not only enhances farm productivity but also addresses issues of water quality in fishponds and mitigates the environmental impact of nutrient-rich water discharge. The reduction in water-related expenses and the decreased reliance on chemical fertilizers further underscore the economic and ecological benefits of IAA in Tanzania.

Integrated Agriculture-Aquaculture (IAA) is in its early stages in Kenya, with fish being integrated with other agricultural activities. Despite being actively promoted, IAA is still a marginal farming system in the country due to complex socioeconomic, environmental, technical, and institutional factors. A survey was carried out on IAA farmers in Kenya to identify the common practices and bottlenecks. Of the farmers surveyed, it was identified that the most popular fish species was tilapia, grown in over 98% of farms. 87% of farms integrated crops with aquaculture of which a majority grew vegetables. Integration of fish and chicken was the most common form of livestock IAA and has led to high yields of both. Kenya has embraced IAA practices with different types and levels of integration of fish, crops, and livestock. Some of the challenges identified include high cost of quality feeds and seed, access to market, post-harvest handling, and access to finance. To address these challenges, it is important to strengthen the sector through policies, capacity building, enhanced access to credit and markets, and strong support for post-harvest handling and processing.

Contextualizing agroecology indicators specifically for East Africa is essential for accounting for the unique environmental, social, and economic needs of the region. PrAEctiCe has developed a framework that integrates and contextualises to East Africa, the Sustainable Intensification Assessment Framework, the Tool for Agroecology Performance Evaluation, and the Sustainability Assessment of Food and Agriculture Systems. These three frameworks were selected to provide the foundation for East Africa’s framework because they incorporate measures for increased agricultural productivity with limited land resources, local knowledge and community-led monitoring, traditional farming practices  and ecological insights, climate adaptation and biodiversity, and social inclusion, all of which are important to East Africa. These supplement the comprehensive scientific indicators for environmental, social, economic, and governance  assessments. This new framework is usable to measure farmers’ and other stakeholders’ transition to resilient and economically viable agroecology based agri-food systems in the East African or similar contexts.

East Africa stakeholders recognise that agroecology as a practice, is intrinsically linked to the other components of the agri-food system. Smallholder farmers and other actors such as researchers, agroecology advisors, food processors, distributors, and consumers need to be incentivised and handheld through the transition process by actors with the knowledge, technologies, and other resources required. Farmers require scientifically proven and economically viable integrated crop-livestock agroecological systems to address food, nutrition, and income security. Access to scientific knowledge, agribusiness skills, technologies, finance and market that fits their agroecology, social, and economic system is critical. These services are provided by researchers, consumers, and private companies in food processing, finance, and trade. Governments therefore need to provide a regulatory environment that guarantees fairness, quality,  and sustainability from production to consumption. Mutually beneficial support is required among agri-food systems actors from production to consumption for accelerated transition to agroecology.

In Living Lab 3, a 30kWp PV system will autonomously power Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture (IAA) facilities, considering socio-economic needs and robustness. Two 10x20m fishponds will be constructed and floating PV panels
in the ponds will increase electrical efficiency and reduce pond eutrophication. An integrated aquaculture-poultry system will use chicken manure as fish feed and irrigate the 1000m2 agricultural area of cash crops with nutrient-rich pond water. In addition, a biochar stove will produce biochar from agricultural waste, benefiting the environment and agriculture by reducing fertiliser use and improving soil fertility. Validation of PrAEctiCe DST will take place in Tanzania, integrating fish-poultry-vegetable production for food security and sustainability. Solar PV, satellite observation and sensor technology will improve agricultural efficiency and impact assessment, ensuring compliance with farm-to-fork principles and sustainable food systems. 

At Living Lab 2 in Kajjansi a PV system for semi-autonomous operation of Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture (IAA) facilities will be developed, addressing socio-economic needs and barriers in East Africa. A circular water and nutrient
management system will be installed for aquaponic systems using different techniques, such as a combination of deep water culture and media bed as well as a NFT system. A low cost sensor system will help to focus on optimal water quality and nutrient balance. Validation of the PrAEctiCe Decision Support Tool (DST) will occur at the Aquaculture Research & Development Centre Kajjansi (ARDC, NARO), which will be adapted to Ugandan conditions and serve as a training centre. The living lab will experiment with various techniques, species, and materials to inform decision-making. By using fish tank effluent for vegetable growth and optimizing water-energy-nutrient resources, PrAEctiCe aims to address challenges in aquaponics adoption, including high water and energy bills. The installation of a 10 kW PV system with a 10 kWh battery and real-time water sensors will increase system resilience and efficiency of the system.

Living Lab 1 in Kisumu involves the construction and operation of two key systems: The construction of a membrane bioreactor (MBR) for domestic wastewater treatment and the design and installation of grow-out fishponds using the MBR permeate. For the construction of the MBR as much equipment as possible will be purchased locally. Local partners and students are involved in the whole process and will be trained. Various sensors will be installed to aid learning and feed the decision support tool. In addition, a photovoltaic (PV) system will semi-autonomously power the Integrated Aquaculture-Agriculture (IAA) facilities, addressing socio-economic needs and barriers in the East African region. The Living Lab also integrates organic fish feed production using Black Soldier Fly and vegetable intercropping with aquaculture, promoting land use efficiency and resilience to climate change. This holistic approach aims to overcome technological and socioeconomic barriers, enhancing food security and economic growth while complying with regulatory frameworks.

Agroecological farming approaches provide effective techniques to enhance food production while conserving the environment. In the context of increasing population and land size, producing food in soilless systems is a promising strategy for agricultural production since it utilizes less water than traditional agriculture. The limited expertise coupled with challenges related to changing customary practices undermine diffusion and adoption of this technology. Data and information about system design and environmental conditions to help local farmers to maximize production in their aquaponics operation is insufficient. In the PrAEctiCe, researchers are working on establishing modular aquaponic systems that efficiently balances the growth of plants and fish and efficiently enhance nutrient utilisation. To guide small-scale farmers, three different modular aquaponic systems are being established that will deploy media-based culture, nutrient film technique, and deep-water culture. The developed modular systems use low-tech installations, making them suitable for use in East African countries.

The PrAEctiCe Decision Support Tool is designed to help smallholder farmers in East Africa to effectively manage their farms and access advisory services through three end-user applications: indicator monitoring centre, advisory DST, and a mobile application. It will provide support to farmers and link them to advisors. A mobile application will provide farmers with monitoring and information gathering capacities. The application will capture farmers current practices, monitor the performance of the farms using predefined proxy indicators and satellite data for soil, water, and plants at farm level. In case of deviations from optimum measurements, the DST will provide warnings to the farmers with indications of the appropriate corrective actions and required budget. The agroecological advisors on the other hand will have a data-rich interface that allows them to monitor and manage multiple farms. An efficient alert system will keep them updated about potential issues detected by sensors, satellites, or farmers in each farm. The system will help farmers and advisors to address challenges as they emerge and smoothly and swiftly transition to agroecology.

Agroecology holds great potential to address food system challenges and enhance food security in East Africa. However, the region's unique complexities require tailored indicator frameworks adoptable by smallholder farmers who are the main food producers in the region. The existing agroecological frameworks also fall short in addressing key aspects, such as aquaculture and the circular water-energy-food system, leading to a lack of evidence on integrated  aqua-agriculture practices. The project evaluated various agroecological frameworks pertinent to East Africa, identifying nine promising candidates: SIAF, TAPE, Fivedimensional Presidia, IDEA, MESMIS, SOCLA, OASIS, SAFE, and SAFA. These frameworks underwent screening for applicability, practicality in data collection, socio-economic viability, and environmental sustainability, particularly in the East African context. These indicators will empower agroecology consultants and service providers to monitor the adoption of optimal agricultural methods, facilitating smallholder farmers in transitioning to agroecology.

Demand for animal protein in Africa is increasing. As agriculture is facing challenges of land scarcity and water shortage, it is important to support the agricultural sector with aquaculture. Aquaculture production in East Africa, has increased in recent years, responding to an increased demand for fish, however, the current production is still low and struggles with several challenges. The concept of integrated aqua-agriculture (IAA) increases water efficiency and reduces the need for synthetic fertilizers. Through integration of aquatic and terrestrial components, incorporating fish, crops, and livestock, waste from one element serves as nourishment for another. IAA holds the potential for elevated sustainability, profitability, productivity, and resource efficiency, harnessing the full potential of water, land, and labour. The PrAEctiCe project will provide guidance on how these IAA could operate more efficiently, helping local farmers diversify their food and income production.

• Map of Integrated Aqua-Agriculture in East African Countries (KY, UG amd TZ)

A comprehensive analysis of agroecological practices in East Africa to facilitate accelerated transition was conducted. Mixed farming was the most practiced approach where multiple crop species and animal species/breeds are grown/reared concurrently to optimize land use and resources. Agroforestry, integrated pest management, soil and water conservation, integrated aquaculture-crop production etc. are being practiced. The documented practices are mostly traditional practices that are compliant with agroecology principles and elements. Advocacy for agroecology in East Africa has resulted into introduction of new practices such as permaculture, vermiculture. Major challenges include among others high labour intensity of existing practices, limited access to agroecology compliant inputs and knowledge, and limited access to markets that recognise the distinction between agroecology and conventionally produced farm products. Context-specific strategies for mobilising more stakeholders beyond farmers to address the challenges faced and enhance food security, farmer well-being, soil health and environmental conservation are necessary.

PrAEctiCe engaged stakeholders practicing agroecology to cocreate mechanisms for accelerating transition to agroecology at scale in East Africa. Stakeholders expressed that agroecology is not a completely new concept. Its novelty is in the integration into one concept, all the sustainable agriculture elements from indigenous and scientific knowledge. It is thus important to build upon the knowledge and practices deployed by stakeholders as a starting point for transition at scale. Practical indicators, and extent to which a given stakeholder can be designated as practicing agroecology and not need to be defined. While developing new technologies, jointly defining the value proposition of the new technologies to different stakeholders, and engaging them in the co-creation is important. Given the diversity of agro-ecological zones, social and governance settings in East Africa, technologies must be co-developed with the end-users to ensure that their context, capacities, and interests are taken into consideration. Technologies and innovations should be availed in a user-friendly format with options for continuous capacity building.

A mapping of stakeholders engaged in Agroecology in Kenya, Tanzania, and Uganda was conducted. Stakeholders and their interactions, constraints, and opportunities for accelerated transition were profiled. Producers and producer organizations, research and academia, consumer groups, development partners, and government agencies were the most common stakeholders. Producer groups were the most engaged given that traditional approaches to agricultural production already comply with several agroecology principles. Only extension and advisory services providers had a holistic understanding of agroecology while other stakeholders were aware of few elements. Main challenges among stakeholders were limited access to agroecologically compliant inputs and knowledge, and limited access to better markets for agroecology products. Accelerated transition to agroecology in East Africa requires development of a simplified framework relevant to local context, and creation of platforms for capacity development, access to inputs and knowledge, and awareness of the importance of and how to comply with agroecology principles.