"Agricultural intensification, value chain development and human capacity

strengthening: How can we build these Together"

Kindu MekonnenILRI, Addis Ababa, 21 July 2014

Contents of the presentation

1. Concepts/ definitions

2. Global challenges

3. Why IVCCD?

4. Achieving IVCCD

4.1. Partnership

4.2. Understanding systems

4.3. R4D intervention options

4.4. Documentation and scaling best bet options

4.5. Communication

5. Lessons from earlier project initiatives

1. Concepts/ definitions

Intensification:

• producing more units of output per units of all inputs and through new combinations of inputs and related innovations.

Value chain:

• a network of different functions or stages from production to consumption, including all supplementary support services.

Capacity development:

• A locally driven process of transformational learning that leads to actions, which support changes in institutional capacity areas to advance development goals.

2. Global challenges

• Population increase

(World: 8.3- 10.9 billon

and SSA –2 billon

people in 2050)

• Climate change

• Resources scarcity

• Energy demandHigh youth population at a small village in Wolaita, Southern Ethiopia

2. Why IVCCD?-Current situations- Africa

• Increasing food demand

(African meet 13% of the

continent’s food needs by

2050)

• Land is degrading (75% of the

total in SSA)

• Stagnant yields for some crops

(< 1 ton ha-1)

Soil nutrient depletion in central Ethiopia

Poor barley crop performance in central Ethiopia

• Feed scarcity (Average deficit

in 2009 in Ethiopia= 45.64

million t DM yr-1)

• Competing uses of resources

(grazing land, crop residues)

• Farm-to-market links are

weak

• High rates of hunger and

malnutrition

4. Achieving IVCCD-Linkage and integration

Agricultural Intensification)

Value chain development (crop and livestock enterprises) Capacity

development

Outputs Inputs

InputsProduction

StorageProcessingMarketing

Indirect:

FoodNutritionIncome

Direct:Land WaterLabour

Chemicals, OM Biodiversity

Financial capital Knowledge

Infrastructure Technology

Market

Policy, Institutions

4.1. Partnership

Potential partners:

• Research orgs

• Higher learning Institutions

• Extension

• NGOs

• Framers

• Market actors/traders/ service providers

Crop pest and diseases control service provider in the rural areas of Basona Worena, Amhara

Scale of partnership: Local, regional, national and global level with d/t roles and responsibilities

Examples of successful partnership: ILRI-UNEP-WU CC adaptation Kabe watershed project

UNEP – Overall oversight of the projects and linking to donors

ILRI- Provide technical support and link UNEP and Wollo University

WU- Lead the implementation of the project at the landscape scales

in collaboration with ILRI, SARC and extension + capacity building

SARC (ARARI) - action research

Woreilu Wereda Office of Agriculture - community Mobilization

Land-care with mass mobilization in Kabe watershed, Amhara

4.2. Understanding systems

Scale:

• Farm level

• Landscape

• Watershed

A woman farmer showing how bacterial wilt disease has become serious at her farm in Lemo, SNNPR

• Constraints, farm typologies and opportunities in relation to IVCCD

Tools/approaches:

• RTS (Rapid telephone survey)

• PCA (Participatory Community Analysis)

• SLATE (Sustainable Livelihood Assets Evaluation)

• AKT5 (Agro-ecological Knowledge Toolkit )

• VCA (Value chain assessment)

Wealth ranking during PCA exercise in Bale

Examples of diagnostic results that required IVCCD interventions:

Example 1. Africa RISING sites

• Shortage of quality improved seeds

• Weeds, diseases and insects and storage pests

• Lack of improved farm tools

• Inadequate soil and water management practices

• Poor storage facilities

• High input and low output prices

Priority crop related constraints:

• Feed shortage (quality and quantity)

• Poor vet services and vaccines

• Labour consuming milk processing

• Decline of grazing lands

• Diseases, internal and external parasites

• Price fluctuation for live animals

• Shortage of water during the dry periods

Priority livestock related constraints:

Example 2. SLP project sites in east Africa

Kobo Nekemte Kakamega0

5

10

15

20

25

30

soil fertility decline

high inputs/low outputs price and inputs unavailability

lack of information/services

problem of weeds, pests and diseases

rainfall/drought problemOcc

urre

nce

in 8

vi

llage

s

Main constraints of crop production in 3 east African countries

Kobo Nekemte Kakamega0

5

10

15

20

25

30

lack of services and train-ings

high cost of cbs/ other inputs

feed shortage

diseases and parasites

Occ

urre

nce

in 8

vi

llage

s

Main constraints of livestock production in 3 east African countries

WaterDegradation

HighRun-Off

IndigenousTree Loss

SpringDevelopment

Niche-CompatibleAfforestation

Soil & Water Conservation

Integratedwatershed

Management

Integrated SolutionProblem

Cluster 1. Soil and water management cluster

Example 3. African Highlands Initiative (AHI) project in the Ethiopian highlands

Soil

Fertility

Fuel

Feed

Energy Sources & Efficiency

Seed Crop Germplasm, Husbandry, Markets & Integrated Nutrient

Management

Income

Feed, Genotypes & Income

Cluster 2. Integrated production and nutrient management cluster

Problem Integrated Solution

Time frame:

• Short-term- entry points

• Mid-term

• Long-term

4.3. R4D intervention options

20

Upstream

Midstream

Downstream

Upstream

• Collective action (SWC)

• Trans boundary issues (forests, water, grazing land)

Targets/social groups:

• Gender

• Wealth

• Sex

• Watershed/Landscape positions

Research:

• Action

• Empirical

• Strategic

• ExploratoryParticipatory soil and nutrient losses assessment from 3 land use systems at AHI site in Galessa, Ethiopia.

Side view of a landscape level SWC at Galessa, AHI site

• Fallow land = 30 t ha-1 yr-1

• Cultivated land with soil bund = 23 t ha-1 yr-1

• Cultivated land without soil bund = 40 t ha-1 yr-1

Locations:

• Farm- Action research

• FTC- Empirical research

• Research and University plots - Empirical research

• School and church compounds- Empirical research

• Communal land- Action research

Approach:

• IPs

• FRGs

• FFS

Scaling: zonal, regional and national level ?

• Tree FRG in

Wolmera, Holetta

and Dendi – Ginchi,

Central Ethiopia

• Gully rehabilitation

FRG- Galessa,

Central Ethiopia

Examples of Africa RISING project R4D interventions

Forage development

Vetch

Oat

Involvement of local partners in protocol development and their implementation- how to improve it?

Improved crop varieties

(wheat, potato and faba

bean)

Potato varieties

Storage- DLS

Maket

Food security

Examples of integrated and intensified crop production from AHI project in the highlands of Ethiopia

Oat varieties

Cross breed cows Milk processing for consumption & income

Examples of intensified livestock husbandry from AHI project in the highlands of Ethiopia

Tree lucerne

29

Examples of water related interventions in ILRI-UNEPWU project at Kabe watershed, Amhara (digital stories)

Examples of Africa RISING capacity development approaches

• Trainings

• Cross-site visits

• Field days

• Workshops/

learning events

• Student attachment

• Gap assessment and filling of local partner institutions

Farmers research groups identification at Jewe, Africa RISING kebele in Lemo, SNNPR

Examples of Africa RISING value chain development approach

• Selection of cross cutting VC enterprises across AR sites- (crop-wheat, fababean and potato) and (livestock- dairy cattle, beef cattle and sheep)

• Mapping of VC actors and service providers

• Rapid assessment of VC actors and service providers

• Sampling and interviewing of selected actors and service providers

• Develop VC interventions (7 crop and livestock related interventions)

4.4. Documentation and scaling best bet options

Scaling:

• Out scaling (horizontal scaling up)

• Up scaling (vertical scaling up)

Documentation:

• Processes

• lessons

• Site level

• Project level-on line

• Within or beyond

Africa RISING sites?

• Scaling strategies

• Targets

Strengthen

through training

4.5. Communication

• How to pack and make available information to various end users – from farmers to policy makers?

Some Tools:

• Posters

• Brochures

• Briefs

• Digital stories

• Videos

• Publications

Access:

• Online

• Knowledge center

• Local language- farmers

5. Lessons from earlier project initiatives and Africa RISING project

• Identification of the categories of farmers that have common

interest/s - to target their needs, contributions and decisions.

• Reflection/feed backing/evaluation at different levels of the

research-to improve approaches and actions.

• Farming communities and local admin express their commitments

when R&D partners work with them on priority issues.

• Interventions that give immediate benefits to the farming

communities (e.g. improved crop varieties) – NRM agenda.

• Linking the high value produces to the market – benefit

communities - encourage them to participate in d/t R&D

initiatives.

• Project exist strategies – sustainability of R&D efforts.

• Documentation of processes and lessons – share experiences to

practitioners

• Integration challenges – capacity of supporting institutions

• Data sharing/data base issues – staff turnover dynamism

Thank you for listening!!