Innovations in the News and Around the World
Breaking Barriers with Shahira Yahia
Not everyone believes in cleaner agriculture. For investors, a lack of awareness and understanding about the industry and biotech products can be intimidating – they may be discouraged by these new technologies and thus lack trust in them. For conventional customers, it is often still belittled and many doubt the efficiency of organic products in meeting their needs in quickly and effectively countering pests.  

But Shahira Yahia, Chief Marketing Officer and Co-Founder of Chitosan, is counting on a mindset change.
Solar Milling – How Miyonga Uses Climate-Smart Technologies 
Yvonne Otieno is founder and CEO of WE4F-partner Miyonga Fresh Greens. The company works together with cooperatives and farmers, purchasing second grade fruit and increasing their value by processing into dried fruits and fruit powders. Milling is done via solar-driven mill from the Kenyan manufacturer Agsol, the processing happens at farmgate level. To learn more, check out the new video on the project and set-up of the mill!
Joelle Hajjar – Combining Science, Business, and Volunteer Work to Improve Lebanon’s Food Industry
For International Day of Women and Girls in Science, WE4F invited Joelle Hajjar, Co-Founder and Operations Manager of WE4F's Lebanese innovator, GOBaladi, to share her inspiring story on becoming a successful entrepreneur and leading figure in the Lebanese agri-food landscape.
Call for Innovations in CĂ´te d'Ivoire: Four Enterprises Awarded!
On February 24, the West Africa Regional Innovation Hub organized an award ceremony in Abidjan. During the ceremony the four winners of the National Call for Innovations were honored by the representatives of the German Embassy and the European Union, among others. Following the call in Summer 2021, four Ivorian innovators were chosen from 18 candidates. The winners are AD Solar Officiel, Green Agro Valley CI, LONO and Grainotheque, who will soon start the acceleration program with WE4F. Their innovations aim to improve the conditions of smallholder farmers in the region across the value chain, for example by working with solar energy or reusing wastewater. The West Africa RIH is looking forward to starting the partnerships! 

You will soon find more information, including photos and a video of the whole process on our communication channels! In the meantime, you can watch can watch Business24 Africa's coverage here (in French).
Finding A New COVID-19 Normal: How MimosaTEK Successfully Switched Business Strategies – and Came Out Stronger
MimosaTEK has always been a company concentrated on the needs of their farming customers. When they first launched their Internet of Things (IoT) solution in 2014, they focused on making a usable system that could help farmers manage their irrigation plans and use less water. Over the years, as their customer base grew, MimosaTEK also piloted a new business strategy to increase revenue and outsource their existing vegetable-farming customers’ crops to processing and exporting companies. When COVID-19 struck, they needed to rely on that customer focus and ability to pivot to adapt to the new normal.  
Program Updates
Site Visit to Projects in Senegal: WE4F meets with GGGI and E4I
At the end of November and beginning of December 2021, the West Africa Regional Innovation Hub team carried out two site visits in Senegal. The goal was to visit demonstrationprojects that are implemented with technical support from WE4F partners, Global Green Growth Institute (GGGI) and Energy 4 Impact (E4I). The WE4F team was able to assess the project implementations’ effectiveness by visiting the facilities and reviewing the documentation of activities carried out during the first six months of implementation. At the same time, the visit served to strengthen the relationship between the project’s partner teams. 
WE4F and Miyonga: The Trainings Must Go On
COVID-19 has led to empty spaces and abandoned offices worldwide. This has been no different in Kenya, where several measures were put in place by the government to prevent the spread of the virus. For several months, a nationwide dust-to-dawn curfew was in force, restricting intercounty travel and prohibiting in-person meetings. Only companies providing essential services were allowed to operate as normal. Miyonga, with whom the WE4F East Africa Hub established one of its first partnerships, is considered a provider of an essential service, as it ensures that famers contribute to food security and the stable continuity of farmers’ income. This also means that Miyonga was a able to organize small group trainings from August 2021.
How to Create Climate-Resilient Food Production: Tools, Trainings and Pilots for Solar Powered Irrigation Systems
The climate crisis is a water crisis. Sustainable agricultural water management plays a major role in enhancing the climate-resilience of smallholders around the world. Efficient irrigation practices are one of the key ways to put smallholder farmers on a path towards a world without hunger. Solar powered irrigation systems (SPIS) are an innovative climate-smart irrigation solution that links energy and water with increased food production by efficiently using resources.

In order to improve access and use of SPIS, WE4F has released update resources and will host trainings throughout 2022.
Opportunities
Apply to Y Combinator
Y Combinator is accepting applications from startups for the Summer 2022 funding cycle. It will take place from June–August 2022.

The batch will be remote with optional in-person components depending on the pandemic.

If you want to apply, please submit your application online by 8 pm PT on March 24. Startups that submit early have a small advantage because Y Combinator has more time to read applications. Applications after the deadline can be submited after the deadline, but keep in mind that Y Combinator can’t guarantee an exact date of when startups will hear back from them with a decision.
SPIS Toolbox :|: Online-Trainings for Advisors
Do you want to become an expert in solar-powered irrigation systems (SPIS)? Register for this online SPIS toolkit training organized by Water and Energy for Food! You'll learn to use the most important tools and gain essential SPIS knowledge from subject instructors and experts.

French sessions: Mar 22-24, Sept 20-22
English sessions: Feb 22-24, May 17-19
Policy dialogue: Access to end-user financing to drive groundbreaking water-energy-food nexus innovation scaling in Africa for climate adaptation
With all four WE4F Regional Innovation Hubs now established in Africa (West, East, MENA, and Southern and Central), this session brings together the combined force, learnings, and opportunities for scaling water-energy-food (WEF) innovations to improve water and food security for millions of Africans, increase income for base of the pyramid women and men in both rural and urban areas, support the scaling of innovators’ WEF nexus solutions, and promote climate and environmental resilience. Through a policy and investment lens co-hosted by AMCOW, this session shares the opportunities and challenges for scaling WEF nexus solutions in Africa in a multi-partner, multi-innovator model.
South and Southeast Asia RIH: Program Assistant - Thailand  
Tetra Tech seeks a Program Assistant that is a legal resident in Thailand to support the implementation of the USAID-administered Water Energy for Food South and Southeast Asia Regional Innovation Hub (WE4F Asia RIH). The position is full-time, and hiring is contingent upon USAID approval. Visit https://www.we4f.org/asia for more information. The Program Assistant is recent graduate or young professional with an entrepreneurial mindset, a strong work ethic, with solid written and verbal communication skills and the ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment. 
Southern and Central Africa RIH: Communications and Knowledge Management Specialist - South Africa  
Tetra Tech is recruiting a full-time Communications and Knowledge Management (CKM) Specialist to work in Pretoria, South Africa. The (CKM) Specialist will support the implementation of the USAID-administered Water and Energy for Food Southern and Central Africa Regional Innovation Hub (WE4F S/C Africa RIH). See https://we4f.org/sca for more information. The CKM Specialist is key personnel on the contract, and hiring is contingent upon USAID approval. The candidate must be local to South Africa with the ability to legally work. 
West Africa RIH: Conseiller - Secteur privĂ© (eau et accès au financement) (H/F) - CDD - RĂ©ception candidature   
Water and Energy for Food is looking for a new national colleague (advisor) with experience in working with the private sector, access to finance and the water sector.
Resources
Diversification for climate resilience. Thirty options for forest and farm producer organisations 
This report is written for representatives of forest and farm producer organisations (FFPOs) and their technical support partners. It explains why climate resilience matters and what it is. It introduces a climate framework and how to build it – including 30 practical climate-resilience options. It includes new analysis of 10 international climate-resilience case studies that show the extraordinary extent to which FFPOs are pushing ahead with climate-resilience options. 
Equality and Empowerment for All Genders: A New Vision for LGBTQI+ Inclusion  
This event will explore the intersections of gender equality, transgender visibility, and the human rights and inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and other people of diverse genders and sexualities (LGBTQI+ people). It will also highlight USAID's efforts on these issues particularly for lesbian, bisexual, queer (LBQ) women and transgender people. USAID will discuss how to strengthen support to these communities in our programs by engaging in conversation with leaders from the global gender movement and LGBTQI+ communities. 
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