TECHNOLOGY & INNOVATION TO MODERNIZE saharan agriculture

20-21 NOVEMBER 2024

The conference

context

The world is facing significant changes marked by major climate disruptions, economic and security crises, geopolitical conflicts, as well as increasing food and demographic challenges, especially in Africa, agricultural performance becomes a vital necessity. It is in this context that the International Conference on Technology and Innovation for Modernizing Saharan Agriculture is held, a major event that explores ways to feed populations while reducing environmental risks and ensuring sustainable oasis development.
Climate change is exerting increasing pressure on Saharan agriculture. Rising temperatures and decreasing precipitation disrupt natural water cycles, leading to land degradation, reduced agricultural yields, and biodiversity loss. These disruptions threaten food security and weaken the economies of already vulnerable regions.
Faced with these major challenges, it becomes imperative to adapt our food systems to make them more resilient. This involves adopting sustainable agricultural practices that enhance the resilience of crops and livestock to extreme climatic conditions. Integrating sustainable and efficient agricultural techniques helps preserve ecosystems while ensuring viable agricultural production in the long term. In this regard, Saharan agriculture must shift towards intelligent climate practices. This entails sustainably increasing agricultural productivity, strengthening adaptation and resilience, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Technologies such as efficient irrigation systems, drought-resistant and adapted seeds, and advanced soil management techniques play a crucial role in this transition towards smarter and more sustainable agriculture. Innovation is also an essential pillar of this transformation.
The development of new agricultural technologies, the adoption of more sustainable farming practices, and improving access to information and markets for farmers are key elements. Digital agriculture offers solutions to optimize resource use, predict weather conditions, and manage crops more effectively and efficiently.

Alongside these advancements, it is important to sustainably manage natural resources to mitigate ecological risks. This includes soil conservation, sustainable water management, and biodiversity protection. Adapted and resilient practices, combining nature conservation and agricultural production, offer a promising way to preserve ecosystems while ensuring sufficient agricultural yields.

Ecological risks associated with unsustainable farming practices, such as deforestation, desertification, biodiversity loss, and pollution of water and soil resources, must be managed in an integrated manner. It is also essential to establish coherent and integrated agricultural and environmental policies to address these complex and interconnected challenges.

Finally, international cooperation and partnerships between the public and private sectors are essential to address global challenges related to climate change and food security. Collaboration between countries allows for the sharing of knowledge, technologies, and resources, thereby promoting innovative and sustainable solutions.

Thus, the International Conference on Technology and Innovation for Modernizing Saharan Agriculture aims to identify and promote innovative solutions to transform Saharan food and agricultural systems. The goal is to make them more resilient to the impacts of climate change while minimizing ecological risks and ensuring sustainable and equitable development for all affected populations.

Objective

The International Conference on Technology and Innovation for Modernizing Saharan Agriculture aims to identify and promote innovative solutions to transform Saharan food and agricultural systems. The goal is to make them more resilient to the impacts of climate change while minimizing ecological risks and ensuring sustainable and equitable development for all affected populations.