In surveys conducted by the Organisation for Rural Development (ORUDE) from 2010 - 2012, maize stood out as the second most important food and cash crop in Busoga after sweet potatoes. Due to climate change, farmers desired to have drought-tolerant seed varieties, However, lack of formalized maize seed supply systems...

Evergreen Agriculture is a combination of conservation agriculture and agroforestry practices within the same spatial and temporal dimensions. In other circles, evergreen agriculture is referred to as agroforestry based conservation agriculture or Conservation Agriculture With Trees (CAWT). Evergreen agriculture is being tested by ICRAF in conjunction with partners in Malawi...

This study builds on an earlier research done by the researchers in Chivi south district on the impact of conservation farming on food security. The major focus of this study however is on the conflicts and contradictions embedded in conservation farming owing to differential perceptions and life-worlds and implications thereof...

Selon l'auteur, le cas de Madagascar illustre bien les pays à base agricole, à potentiels multiples mais à performances agricoles stagnantes et à population rurale pauvre. L'intégration de ses petits producteurs aux marchés figure parmi les options de sortie de la pauvreté proposées. Les contextes et les opportunités peuvent cependant différer...

A key emerging strand in the development of smallholder agriculture in South Africa is the effort to integrate smallholders into corporate food retail value chains. In this, the private sector and government have a common agenda, which is to build a commercial smallholder class that does not require ongoing financial...

Ankole Longhorn cattle can survive in extremely harsh, dry conditions such as those in Sub-Saharan Africa – which is becoming drier and hotter. In a context where herders are strongly encouraged to keep exotic and hybrid cattle, the innovative LIFE approach led Ugandan herders to revalue the Longhorns for their...

 En Afrique de l'Ouest et au Bénin en particulier, la production traditionnelle de l'igname est basée sur les systèmes itinérants de défriche sur brûlis des jachères naturelles causant la déforestation, la dégradation et la baisse de la productivité des sols. Dans le but de contribuer à la sédentarisation de la...

The use of finger millet seedlings has shown very positive results in the region of Tahtai Maichew, near Aksum, Ethiopia, as has the use of alternative management practices for a number of other crops. The principles that make up a System of Crop Intensification are now spreading through the regions...

Southern African Agriculture and Climate Change: A Comprehensive Analysis examines the food security threats facing eight of the countries that make up southern Africa — Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe — and explores how climate change will increase the efforts needed to achieve sustainable food security...

This brochure highlights some of IFPRI’s work in the region carried out in partnership with West and Central African governments, organizations, and institutions over the course of the past two decades and describes new initiatives that are expected to positively influence food security policies that benefit the poorest.

The Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP) implemented during the 2000s in Zimbabwe represents the only instance of radical redistributive land reforms since the end of the Cold War. It reversed the racially-skewed agrarian structure and discriminatory land tenures inherited from colonial rule, whereby over 6,000 large-scale white farmers and...

Although it is increasingly recognised that Zimbabwe’s Fast Track Land Reform Programme (FTLRP), initiated in 2000, was redistributive (Moyo et al 2009; Scoones et al 2010), few studies have examined the qualitative character of this outcome and its prospects for progressive social and political transformation in a largely agrarian society....

L’absence de matériels de pêche (filets, pirogues, etc.) installe de nombreux acteurs de la filière à Madagascar dans une pauvreté chronique. Mais grâce au « micro projet coup de pouce » initié par le Projet FIDA Appui au Développement du Menabe et du Melaky (AD2M) et qui a mis à la...

While seed security is key to food security, concrete means for building resilient seed systems remain unexplored in research and practice. A new toolkit, the Seed System Security Assessment (SSSA), examines what actually happens to seed systems during crises and highlights specific features that foster or undermine resilience. Drawing evidence...

Small-holdings in sub-Saharan Africa are prone to low crop yields. Problems contributing to low yield are mainly related to poor soil fertility and weed infestations compounded by inappropriate application of recommended technologies. Researcher-managed trials were done to determine fit for technologies to prevailing socio-economic conditions. The research was done as...

Au Burkina Faso l'agriculture a connu des gains de productivité très conséquents, passant  en quelques décennies de l'abattis-brûlis à la culture continue. Les services liés à la production cotonnière et en particulier le crédit à l'équipement, ont joué un rôle majeur dans cette intensification des systèmes de production. Pourtant la malnutrition touche encore une part  importante de la...

In this chapter we present our assessments of the current socioeconomic and biophysical vulnerability of the Ethiopian agricultural sector, mainly focusing on key indicators of socioeconomic vulnerability and selected food enterprises. General circulation model (GCM) projections to 2050 are used to uncover what the future holds for the agricultural sector...

The FAO-Finland Programme is supporting Tanzania in its efforts towards developing and implementing national efforts on integrated fire management as a key factor to reduce deforestation and forest degradation. All stakeholders1 see the fire situation in Tanzania as complex, difficult, widespread and of significant concern. The detail of the fire...

The preparation of this report was initiated because of the increased need for information about the characteristics of rice production and its producers in Ethiopia for the design of effective research and development interventions. The emerging importance of rice in the country is well recognized following the approval of the...

The agriculture sector continues to be viewed as a vehicle through which economic growth and development can be achieved; particularly for developing economies. This view is incorporated in South Africa’s rural development framework in the National Development Plan, which indicated that this sector will be the main driver in developing...