This video describes the implementation of the inclusive business model approach to support trading relations between small-scale cotton producers and ginners in Kenya.

This paper assesses whether tractor investment is a rational and profitable decision for farmers using firm investment theory and tractor owner survey data collected in 2013. Under erratic rainfalls, timeliness of farming operations is critical for farmers. Based on the hypothesis that owning a tractor and hiring tractor services are...

Food insecurity is considered a defining feature of poverty in Lesotho. The underlying root causes of the problem are linked to low level agricultural productivity and crop failures attributed to extreme events driven by climate change and variability and associated issues such as degradation of arable and rangelands and inefficient...

Ethiopia encompasses an extraordinary number of ecological zones and plant diversity. However, the diversity of plants is highly threatened due to lack of institutional capacity, population pressure, land degradation and deforestation. An adequate documentation of these plants also has not been conducted. The farmers in Ethiopia face serious and growing...

Given the success of conditional cash transfer (CCT) programs elsewhere, in 2010 the Government of Tanzania rolled out a pilot CCT program in three districts. Its aim was to see if, using a model relying on communities to target beneficiaries and deliver payments, the program could improve outcomes for the...

The investigation of the supply chain challenges faced by small scale farmers at Etunda irrigation farm is the core of this study. The main rationale for the investigation is the fact that Green Scheme projects, of which Etunda is one of them, is one of the key economic development and...

Au hameau de Kpayéroun, situé au Nord du Bénin (Commune de Djougou), les cultures principales sont l’igname,le manioc, le  haricot africain (Vignaunguiculata) et le sorgho. Fondée en 2009, l'association ORAD (Organisation des Ruraux pour une Agriculture Durable) est composée d’agriculteurs du hameau (autour de 45 adhérents) qui ont constaté les...

Interviewed onsite at The Economist Feeding the World Summit 2014, Rose Akaki tells Farming First the key challenges faced by female farmers in Uganda and offers her recommendations for improving agriculture in her country.

As part of our larger strategy to adapt smallholders in drylands to climate change, ICARDA’s science has sharpened its focus on producing more with less in irrigated and agropastoral systems, and sustainably intensifying cereal-based rain-fed production systems through research platforms in Egypt, Ethiopia and Morocco.

In this paper, we will explore the ways in which sustainable intensification interventions often overlook fundamental social dynamics in rural landscapes. We provide evidence of the underlying social, political and environmental contexts that affect farmers’ land-use decisions. While there are numerous initiatives to promote a Green Revolution for Africa, many...

Family farming is vital in ensuring food security, says the Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development on the occasion of World Food Day. Joining the ministry in celebrating the occasion which falls annually on 16 October are two United Nations agencies, the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) and the...

La malnutrition et les carences en nutriments, ainsi que le surpoids, autant de problèmes de santé liés au régime alimentaire qui entravent l’épanouissement des populations, les empêchant de jouer pleinement leur rôle dans le développement socioéconomique de leur pays. Aujourd’hui, la nutrition occupe une bonne place dans les stratégies et politiques...

The EU and FAO support rural communities in Southern Africa to lessen the impact of drought, floods and cyclones and to increase their resilience by introducing adapted crops and seeds and promoting good agricultural practices.Mitigating the impact of climate change.

This paper investigates the ‘megatrends’ shaping African economic, political and social landscapes and asks which ones depend endogenously on processes that are within the realm of policy influence and which ones are indeed exogenous. Based on this analysis, it sketches four plausible scenarios for African food systems and discusses how...

Sub-Saharan African countries, through their regional organizations, have embarked on the harmonisation of plant variety protection (PVP) systems. These initiatives are largely modelled on the UPOV 1991 act, which claims to incentivize plant breeding and facilitate agricultural development. Civil Society Organisations (CSO), however, strongly criticise this process for being out...

Smallholder agriculture has long served as the dominant economic activity for people in sub-Saharan Africa, and it will remain enormously important for the foreseeable future. But the size of the sector does not necessarily imply that investments in the smallholder sector will yield high social benefits in comparison to other...

Fisheries play an important role in the economic and social life in Burundi. Yet, about 10 to 15% of the harvest was lost during the processing phase. Fish drying, which is the most common processing technique in the country, was done generally on bare ground. This has led to partial...

Smallholder agriculture in many developing countries has remained largely self-financed. However, improved productivity for attaining greater food security requires better access to institutional credit. Past efforts to extend institutional credit to smaller farmers has failed for several reasons, including subsidized operation of government-aided credit schemes. Thus, recent efforts to expand...

Comparing and contrasting where the challenges to and opportunities for growth in productivity are located, and doing so at multiple scales and over time, can give us powerful insights that can enrich our understanding of the variables that affect agricultural productivity. The Atlas of African Agriculture Research & Development presents...

David Booth investigates the scope for reforming African agricultural policy choices. While recognising the difficulties that many countries face in developing the agricultural policies they need to transform their economies, he encourages policymakers to abandon 'pessimistic' political-economy diagnostics. Instead he provides evidence that social and economic reforms can be achieved...