Agroecological practices to improve smallholder farmers’ resilience to climatic variability: Insights from the North Sudanian agroecological zone of Burkina Faso

This thesis examines the potential of agroecological (AE) practices and agroecological intensification (AEI) to improve productivity, food self-sufficiency and resilience among smallholder farmers in rainfed systems in the North Sudanian agroecological zone of Burkina Faso. Agriculture in the region faces major challenges, including climate variability, declining soil fertility, and limited access to inputs, which contribute to persistent yield gaps. Using farm characterization, participatory resilience assessment, on-farm experimentation, and crop modeling, the study analyzes farmers’ adoption criteria, risk perceptions, adaptive capacities, and the performance of AEI practices. Results show that farmers prioritize yield improvement but evaluate AE practices using multiple socio-economic and labor-related criteria. Co-designed farming systems developed jointly by farmers and researchers achieved meaningful yield gains, highlighting the value of participatory innovation. However, long-term simulations reveal that climate hazards, especially rainfall variability, can strongly affect household food security. The study underscores that successful agroecological transitions require enhanced risk management, resource access, and supportive institutional environments.