Report on the Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension (CRMAE) curriculum training of master trainers in Rwanda

The Climate Risk Management in Agricultural Extension (CRMAE) – Rwanda curriculum aims to equip agricultural extension and advisory service (EAS) providers with the foundational knowledge and skills necessary to integrate climate services into their support for smallholder farmers, thus contributing to more resilient agricultural systems. The curriculum is organized into four core modules: climate basics, climate information available for agriculture, climate-sensitive agricultural decisions, and integrating climate services into extension. The curriculum was adapted for Rwanda following a co-design consultation workshop (5–7 August 2025) and validated by key national stakeholders at a short workshop (7 November 2025).
A 10-day training of trainers (ToT) was subsequently organized in Musanze on 10–21 November 2025, in collaboration with the Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board (RAB) and the Rwanda Meteorology Agency (Meteo Rwanda). The primary objective was to train a limited group of 28 master trainers— national-level agricultural experts and university professors—to ensure the sustained adoption and mainstreaming of the curriculum within their respective institutions.
The intensive course utilized interactive methods, covering foundational knowledge and practical tools across the four modules. This training directly supports Rwanda’s strategic plan for the transformation of agriculture (PSTA 5) by promoting sustainability measures and enhancing customized dissemination of weather and climate information. Crucially, the program supports PSTA targets aimed at increasing farmer access to weather information, seeking to reach 20% access by 2024/2025 and 65% by 2028/2029.
Upon successful completion and deliberation, certificates of competency were awarded to the 28 master trainers, co-signed by the International Research Institute for Climate and Society (IRI), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Meteo Rwanda, and RAB.
The integration roadmap for the curriculum involves these next steps:
1. The final CRMAE guide for Rwanda will be finalized and handed over in December 2025.
2. The newly certified master trainers will implement cascading training sessions for district, sector, and site-based extension agents over two weeks in January–February 2026.
3. Educational stakeholders, including the University of Rwanda, will be engaged to integrate the CRMAE content into existing curricula for long-term institutionalization.