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On-farm trainings held in the midst of hillside fields are part of CATALIST staff work in Central Africa's Great Lakes region.

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Welcome to CATALIST

Millions of people suffer from food insecurity in Central Africa’s Great Lakes Region (CAGLR), due to low agricultural productivity. In the face of such a great challenge, IFDC’s ambition is to catalyze local efforts and resources in order to contribute to the creation of an environment favorable to food security improvement and poverty reduction.

Revitalizing Agriculture

The name CATALIST stands for "Catalyze Accelerated Agricultural Intensification for Social and Environmental Stability." CATALIST aims to increase food security, reduce poverty and improve regional collaboration to foster peace and security in the Great Lakes Region. At a time when the world food crisis is the focus of national and international development efforts, CATALIST is enabling farmers to increase their production and incomes through an integrated approach that combines sustainable agricultural intensification technologies with farm-to-market linkages and road infrastructure construction.

Targeting Peace and Environmental Stability

To contribute to peace and environmental stability in the region, the CATALIST project focuses on agricultural intensification, agribusiness market development and public works (HIMO). The project’s activities are targeted to increase agricultural productivity (crop and livestock) and to develop associated agricultural input and output markets. Additionally, HIMO activities help vulnerable population groups, including demobilized, internally displaced and returnee populations, by creating jobs and developing local economic exchange. This three-pronged approach addresses a principal root cause of regional instability – farmers’ inability to provide for their families due to land degradation resulting from overpopulation and a reliance on low-input agriculture.

CATALIST News

Conférence Régionale à Bujumbura sur la problématique d’accès aux engrais (article in French, “Regional Conference on Fertilizer Access Problems”)