The weaknesses in the financial and technical capacity of Nigeria’s agrodealers came to light when many of them could not provide the financial backing for their role in distributing inputs under the growth enhancement support scheme. They are also not adequately equipped, organized, or buoyant enough to be able to...

The United Nations declared 2014 the International Year of Family Farming. Although many forms of production were once family-based, agriculture is now one of the few that are still dominated by families. Because family farms are so prevalent, making them more productive could help combat poverty and hunger in many...

The primary objective of this project has been to promote a shift to agroecological farming. This involves rebuilding soil organic matter and protecting it from further depletion, and promoting are turn to productive diversity through intercropping and rotation. By increasing biodiversity and habitats, farmers are restoring the balance between pests...

Pour remplir sa mission de consolider la structuration du mouvement paysan pour qu’il soit un véritable interlocuteur auprès des autres acteurs sociaux, économiques et politiques, à tous les niveaux de la société congolaise, la CONAPAC vient de lancer son site web dont l’adresse officielle est www.conapacrdc.org. Ce site web de...

In Liberia, P4P addresses constraints along the value chain, including production, post-harvest handling, marketing and quality control. WFP works in partnership with the government, NGOs and other UN agencies, linking its purchasing activities to a capacity development programme focused on increasing smallholders’ market competitiveness and productivity. These activities help prepare...

Sub-Saharan Africa has just experienced one of the best decades of growth since the 1960s. Between 2000 and 2012, gross domestic product (GDP) grew more than 4.5 percent a year on average, compared to around 2 percent in the prior 20 years (World Bank various years). In 2012, the region's...

The local farmers in Mutoko, Zimbabwe, face constant food insecurity due to a number of factors which include the loss of biodiversity and traditional food crops. One of the traditional crops that has dwindled in production over the years is the Bambara nut. In the resettlement sector in Mutoko, Bambara...

Trente-cinq participants dont 7 femmes ont pris part active à l’atelier préparatoire sur le FACT tenu du 26 au 29 mai 2014 à Kindu, ; province du Maniema. Cet atelier qui a connu une implication du Gouvernement provincial du Maniema à travers son Ministère de l’Agriculture et du Développement rurala...

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...