conservation agriculture research and … agriculture research and development in southern ......
TRANSCRIPT
Conservation Agriculture Research and
Development in Southern Africa: a
Review of Achievements and Review of Achievements and
Challenges in the Past 20 Years
Presented by
Lewis HoveFAO – Sub regional Emergency Office for Southern Africa
Paper Presented at Regional Conservation Agriculture Symposium, 8 January 2011
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
Key features of Southern Africa
•Up to 80% population depending on rain-fed agriculture for
livelihoods
•Poor markets for inputs and produce
Under-resourced national extension and research systems•Under-resourced national extension and research systems
•Climate related constraints – droughts (season, in-season)
•High levels of land and soil degradation
•Low agricultural productivity
•High levels of poverty
•Chronic food insecurity in some countries
CA Research and Development in southern Africa – A Review
CA Research
•Stakeholders testing and promoting conservation
agriculture technologies since the 1970s
•Focus on sustainable yield increases
•Evaluation of conservation tillage techniques (Nyagumbo, •Evaluation of conservation tillage techniques (Nyagumbo,
1999; Chivenge et al 2007)
•Mulch ripping; Tied ridges; Tied furrows
Soil physical and chemical parameters
Crop yields
Labour requirements
•Plot level studies
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA and Soil Organic Matter and Water
Conservation Agriculture increases soil organic matter storage
(Chivenge et al 2007; Smith et al, 2010)
Clay soils – through reduced tillage and addition of
organic inputsorganic inputs
Sandy soils – through addition of organic inputs
Conservation Agriculture reduces water loss from fields
(Nyagumbo 1999; Mupangwa et al. 2007)
Reduces surface run-off
Increases infiltration
Increased microbial activity under CA –termites
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aCF plots FP pllots
CA increased yields by 15 -200% - depending on soil type and rainfall
regime and experience of farmer (ICRISAT, 2007)
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NR II NR III NR IV/V AllDistricts
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
Wide-Scale CA Promotion in Southern Africa
What has been promoted?
Who has been involved in the promotion?Who has been involved in the promotion?
What approaches have been used to promote CA?
What have been the challenges and what should be the
focus in the future?
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Techniques Being Promoted in the Region
Wide-scale promotion and adoption of CA (3 principles) started in the
1990s
Conservation Agriculture as a part of the climatic risk reduction
strategy
Estimated area of about 750,000 ha less than 1% of arable land
More than 600,000 farmers practicing some form of CA
Manual Options - planting basins (pot-holes); Jab planters;
Mechanized – Ripping, Direct Seeders/No till planters
Residue retention, cover crops, Intercrops; Crop rotation
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Techniques Being Promoted in the Region
Tractor- and animal-drawn no-till planters
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Techniques Being Promoted in the Region
Jab planter Hand-hoe planting basin
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Promotion in Southern Africa
Large scale commercial farmers – RSA, Zambia and Zimbabwe
Reduced tillage , crop residue retention and crop rotation
Reduction of production costs (save on fuel, machinery) and
increased profits were major incentives for adopting CA
(Mazvimavi, 2011)
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Promotion in Southern Africa
Smallholder farmers
•Introduced as part of humanitarian assistance – efficient inputs use
•Vulnerable households primary target - free inputs
•Programmes without free inputs in some countries, e.g., Madagascar, •Programmes without free inputs in some countries, e.g., Madagascar,
Malawi, Zambia
•Major players - NGOs, Government Extension, International Research
and Development Organisations, Farmer Unions
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Promotion in Southern Africa
Benefits and Challenges
•More labour required for weeding, especially when converting from
conventional system – more work for women?
•Increased labour productivity
•Number of CA farmers increasing and closely related to availability of
project funding
•Increased yields with CA – early planting crucial (over 40% of yield
gains – GART, 2009)
•CA difference between harvest and no harvest
Source: GART
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Promotion in Southern Africa
•Confounding effects of input quality (fertilizer, seed) with
technology
•Dis-adoption when free inputs are discontinued
Crop residue retention a challenge for most smallholder farmers in
crop-livestock systems -
Crop rotations not fully practiced – lack of know-how on cropping
patterns, lack of appropriate good quality seed
Participatory approaches (Participatory Action Research,
Participatory Extension , etc) not fully utilized in the promotion of
CA. Complex nature of CA requires participatory approaches
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Training
•Field extension staff and farmers are primary targets for training
Different approaches used
Train and visit
Lead farmer approach
Farmer Field SchoolsFarmer Field Schools
The training is complemented by exposure tours,
demonstration plots, exchange visits
•Training provided by African Conservation Tillage Network,
Foundations for Farming (ZW), Conservation Farming Unit (ZM),
CIMMYT, ICRISAT, ARC (ZA), Conservation Agriculture Thrust (ZA),
•Few agricultural education institutions offer courses in CA
•Need to allocate more resources in CA training
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Coordination
Conservation Agriculture Task Forces (CA stakeholders)
•Coordinate the promotion of CA at country level
•Standard message, information sharing, training, resource mobilization, monitoring and evaluation
•There are other CA networks in some countries
CA Regional Working Group (CARWG)– Institutions promoting CA at CA Regional Working Group (CARWG)– Institutions promoting CA at the regional level
•Regional study tours, Symposium, Commission studies policy, Assessment of CA Equipment
Task forces at different levels of development and effectiveness
Need to embrace all networks involved in CA
Encourage participation of private sector networks
Task forces to identify research and development gaps for scaling up
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
CA Policy Research
Analysis of national and regional policies and processes and how they
can be improved to support CA adoption by farmers
•FANRPAN leading the policy analysis work
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
Future Research and Development Needs
•Generate science-based evidence and use in advocacy – on-farm
and complementary on-station research
•Promote a diverse range of complementary technologies, e.g
agroforestry, fodder crops, IPM, production of organic fertilizers, etcagroforestry, fodder crops, IPM, production of organic fertilizers, etc
•Strengthen and implement robust M&E systems
•Monitor farm level, landscape, catchment/basin impacts of CA
adoption
•Training and capacity building - increase CA knowledge and skills
among the farmers and extension. This should include agronomic
practices and use of CA equipment and herbicides
CA Research and Development in Southern Africa – A Review
Future Research and Development Needs cont’d
•Develop and strengthen innovative extension approaches, including
those led by farmers, farmer unions and private sector
•Promote farmer linkages to inputs and produce markets – seed for
rotation legumes critical
•Increase farmer access to appropriate CA tools and equipment –•Increase farmer access to appropriate CA tools and equipment –
increase labour productivity and area under CA
•Analyse and improve relevant policies
•Mainstream CA in national and regional programmes and policies –
education, extension, research
•Facilitate farmer access to carbon markets
Partnerships and cooperation - farmers, private, public, civil society
Thank you!Thank you!