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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"e578175932bb77e4219d2a5e4e14d7df","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/43543277-c1e2-4b65-be2a-11e4d0f0d047/retrieve","id":"723097134"},"keywords":["wheat","Indian wheat genomics initiative","genetic resources","genomics selection","gene bank","abiotic stress","biotic stress"],"sieverID":"25d37d77-8cf7-4844-bbae-e28a63cae9fc","pagecount":"19","content":"G × E interaction, will facilitate crop improvement through enhanced climate resilience, by combining biotic and abiotic stress resistance/tolerance and maximizing yield potential. In this review article, we have summarized different constraints being faced by Indian wheatbreeding programs, challenges in addressing biotic and abiotic stresses, and improving quality and nutrition. Efforts have been made to highlight the wealth of Indian wheat genetic resources available in our National Genebank and their evaluation for the identification of trait-specific germplasm. Promising genotypes to develop varieties of important targeted traits and the development of different genomics resources have also been highlighted.Wheat is one of the major staple cereal food crops in India. However, most of the wheatgrowing areas experience several biotic and abiotic stresses, resulting in poor quality grains and reduced yield. To ensure food security for the growing population in India, there is a compelling need to explore the untapped genetic diversity available in gene banks for the development of stress-resistant/tolerant cultivars. The improvement of any crop lies in exploring and harnessing the genetic diversity available in its genetic resources in the form of cultivated varieties, landraces, wild relatives, and related genera. A huge collection of wheat genetic resources is conserved in various gene banks across the globe. Molecular and phenotypic characterization followed by documentation of conserved genetic resources is a prerequisite for germplasm utilization in crop improvement. The National Genebank of India has an extensive and diverse collection of wheat germplasm, comprising Indian wheat landraces, primitive cultivars, breeding lines, and collection from other countries. The conserved germplasm can contribute immensely to the development of wheat cultivars with high levels of biotic and abiotic stress tolerance. Breeding wheat varieties that can give high yields under different stress environments has not made much headway due to high genotypes and environmental interaction, nonavailability of truly resistant/tolerant germplasm, and non-availability of reliable markers linked with the QTL having a significant impact on resistance/tolerance. The development of new breeding technologies like genomic selection (GS), which takes into account theWheat, a climate-sensitive crop, is grown on 31.76 million ha in India (ICAR-IIWBR, 2021). Most of the wheat-growing area faces several biotic and abiotic stresses and soil nutrient scarcity, resulting in poor quality grains and, finally, reduced yield (Pillay and Kumar, 2018;Grote et al., 2021). In the coming years, we will face a slew of challenges in ensuring food security for India's millions of people (Dev and Sharma, 2010;Pandey et al., 2021). It is the need of the hour to explore the idle genetic diversity leading to the development of resilient and better-performing cultivars under challenging situations (Phogat et al., 2021). Breeding wheat varieties that can give high yields under different stress environments has not made much headway due to large genotype × environment interaction, non-availability of truly resistant germplasm, and non-availability of reliable markers linked with the QTL, having a significant impact on resistance to biotic and abiotic stresses and quality traits (Vishwakarma et al., 2015;Beres et al., 2020;Khakda et al., 2020;Xiong et al., 2021). Despite consistent efforts by breeders to utilize genetic resources in breeding programs which is reflected in the form of discussions, review articles, meetings, and presentations made on harnessing the advantage of genetic diversity present in conserved germplasm, there are only a few success stories till date where specific traits have been introgressed from traditional landraces or germplasm to elite breeding lines (Mascher et al., 2019;Sharma et al., 2021;Zeibig et al., 2021). One of several other reasons is the lack of concerted efforts to create a single platform for key people working on the harvesting of diversity at the national and international levels. Markedly, the dwarfing genes, which led to the Green Revolution, were introduced into wheat and rice breeding lines from East Asian landraces (Hedden, 2003). In the case of barley, the deployment of the mlo alleles, commonly found in Ethiopian barley landraces (Jorgensen, 1992), led to broad-spectrum resistance to powdery mildew. In 1967, Krull and Borlaug stated, \"the problem at present is less, a lack of genetic variation, but rather of efficiency in identifying and incorporating it\" (Pistorius, 1997). Currently, genebank managers, plant breeders, and geneticists have reached a consensus that there is an urgent need for the systematic evaluation of the evolutionary potential of large seed collections stored in cold rooms (Mascher et al., 2019;Singh et al., 2020;Zeibig et al., 2021). Collection and conservation of these genetic resources are the primary prerequisites for their access and use in crop improvement programs. Over the past several decades, concerted efforts have been made toward extensive collection and ex situ conservation of wheat germplasm accessions belonging to each gene pool category. Reportedly, around 800,000 wheat accessions are conserved across 80 different germplasm collections (Singh et al., 2007). These collections are proportionately represented in major global gene banks, the data for which can be accessed on the Genesys PGR platform. The Genesys database has information on 464,784 wheat accessions held in 40 global collections. The largest collection is that of CIMMYT,Mexico (150,178), followed by 246), ICARDA (48,149), the Australian Grains Genebank (42,626), and the NI Vavilov Institute (35,314) (\"https://www.genesys-pgr.org\" accessed on 25 Jan 2022). Out of the total entries of wheat in the Genesys system, 7,535 accessions are of Indian origin, which are held in the Australian Grains Genebank (1,533), USDA-ARS (1,320), CIMMYT (1,315), John Innes Institute, United Kingdom (1,174), NI Vavilov Institute (1,154), and ICARDA (407) (Jacob et al., 2015;Gauchan and Joshi, 2019). A major proportion of these (1,879) are traditional cultivars or landraces, which constitute the high-priority genetic wealth in any crop (Azeez et al., 2018;Marone et al., 2021). Of the 7,535 accessions, 2,197 are declared as part of the multilateral system (MLS) of ITPGRFA and, hence, freely available for distribution to all signatories of the treaty from their respective holding institutes (Jacob et al., 2015;Vernooy, 2019). Even before the treaty regime, these Indian resources have made a significant contribution to global wheat programs, and the most significant examples are those of NP4 and Hard Red Calcutta (Singh S. K. et al., 2015). The NP4 and Hard Red Calcutta are prevalent in the pedigrees of several modern wheat varieties grown across the world. The National Genebank in India is the second-largest genebank in the world and has the fifth largest collection of wheat genetic resources, including several unique landraces and exotic ones (Tyagi, 2016;Phogat et al., 2021). Based on the ex situ germplasm collection size conserved in long-term storage, the Indian National Genebank has the second-largest collection in the world (a total of 459,885 accessions conserved in NGB, India, as on 31 March 2022), next only to the USDA Genebank (Tyagi et al., 2015). In the case of wheat, its ex situ collection in the National Genebank (34,000 accessions as on 31 March 2022) is the fifthlargest collection in the world (CIMMYT Genebank ranks first) (Jacob et al., 2015;Adhikari L. et al., 2022). These indigenous germplasm accessions are a valuable repository of economically important traits. The main goal of this review was to chart out a strategy for accelerating the use of this germplasm in the wheatbreeding program to address the various challenges in wheat production that in turn would minimize yield losses and maximize farmers' income.Most of the wheat-breeding programs across the world have relied more on limited sets of diverse genotypes. This has resulted in the narrowing of the genetic base of cultivated wheat and became a dominant production constraint. Therefore, an expansion in the genetic base of genotypes should be considered in the wheat-breeding program. This can be carried out in various ways: 1) use of plant genetic resources, including wild relatives and landraces; 2) germplasm-assisted breeding using advanced genomic tools; and 3) development of transgenic and use of modern techniques like gene editing. Several gene banks across the globe house a large number of diverse germplasm accessions of wheat. These germplasm accessions harbor many important genes not only for various biotic and abiotic stresses but also for nutritional qualities and yield traits. To harness the true potential of the vast wealth of accessions stored in the Indian National Genebank, the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Govt. of India, has supported a mega project to dissect the available genetic resources for new trait discovery using genomics and phenomics approaches and their integration for improving climate resilience, productivity, and nutritional quality. In addition, it will also help in the identification of the novel QTL and the markers linked with these QTL for these traits. The presented reviews emphasized the dominant stresses limiting wheat production in India and its impact on global food security. The possible path of a second green revolution using preserved genetic resources in the Indian Genebank with prospects to make a necessary plan for the exigencies that may be arising due to various biotic and abiotic stresses, nutrient utilization, and sustainability was also discussed.Wheat is one of the key cereal crops not only in India but also in the world and is the primary grain consumed by humans around the world. It is a food source for around 35% of the world population, a major cereal crop, and the main contributor to the agricultural economy of India (Nagarajan, 2005;Joshi et al., 2007a) and needs to be systematically worked upon for sustenance and improvement. With a world population that is estimated to increase to nearly 10 billion by 2050, the demand for wheat would also increase at an annual rate of about 1.7% (Alexandratos and Bruinsma, 2012). On the other hand, wheat yield is growing at about 1% annually, hence, is not keeping pace with the increasing demand (Hatfield and Beres, 2019). Wheat production is being hampered by newly evolved, more aggressive pests and diseases, limited water resources, limited arable land, and rapidly changing climatic conditions (Beres et al., 2020). Wheat plays a substantial role in global food security and provides nutrition to a major part of the population in developing countries. Although with the breeding efforts made over the decades, several countries, including India, have attained self-sufficiency in wheat production, it is high time to think and plan for the future. This is important because the population is expected to grow at a higher rate than the dwindling land area for cultivation every year, pathogens are ever-evolving, and abiotic environments are constantly changing, all mingled with sudden outbreaks (Hussain, 2015;Hasanuzzaman et al., 2019). The first challenge to wheat productivity has been biotic stress, which is caused by an infinite, ever-evolving pathogen, and mining appropriate Indian wheat germplasm against such incidents is required.The production and productivity of wheat crop is hampered by various diseases including, rusts (leaf rust, stem rust, and stripe rust), powdery mildew, spot blotch, Karnal bunt, and Fusarium head blight (Singh and Rajaram, 2002;Hussain 2015;Vikas et al., 2020;Roy et al., 2021). Although, continuous efforts have been made to develop disease-resistant wheat varieties for several devastating diseases, it is also true that knocking down of the resistance genes against these diseases happens simultaneously (Ahirwar et al., 2018;Kumar et al., 2018). This is where the emphasis is needed because resistance breeding programs have frequently relied on single major genes, and there is large-scale cultivation of genotypes with almost identical resistance (Vikas et al., 2020;Roy et al., 2021). Moreover, due to directional selection, the genetic base has become narrow, leading to a monoculture (Bourke et al., 2021). This is going to be a very serious threat to wheat production in the coming decades. There is a need for the identification and stacking of multiple resistance genes for a particular disease in a single genotype so that the duration of resistance can be increased. Similarly, the combination of resistance genes for multiple diseases can prove very effective in tackling any kind of disease epidemic. There have been frequent breakdowns of deployed resistance against major diseases such as rusts, powdery mildew, and spot blotch. This suggests a need for continuous effort to search for novel sources of durable resistance against the emerging virulent races of wheat rusts in available wheat germplasm.Rusts are still a significant biotic stress in wheat. Various researchers describe a capitulate loss of 10-100% in wheat due to rust diseases, which depends on the genotype of the cultivar, whether resistant or susceptible, inceptive infection time, rate of pathogenesis, duration of the disease, virulence factor, and the environment (Singh G. et al., 2017;Bhardwaj et al., 2019). Rust losses can vary from one year to the next and from region to region (Sawhney, 1995). The first stem rust epidemic was reported in 1786 in Madhya Pradesh, a major wheat-growing state in India (Nagarajan and Joshi, 1985), while we have experienced the continuous incidence of stripe rust in the northern part of India (Gupta and Kant, 2012;Vaibhav et al., 2017). Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici, a causative agent of stem rust, resulted in up to 100% yield loss (Leonard and Szabo, 2005). The instantaneous emergence of a novel race of stem rust in Africa called Ug99 spread to the Middle East, Iran, and other countries, making it a serious concern for global wheat productivity (Singh et al., 2008;Singh R. P. et al., 2015). This race was compatible enough to break down the Sr31 gene, which has been widely used by breeders against stem rust to have a sufficient level of resistance for over two decades (Pretorius et al., 2000). This pathogen has been rapidly evolving since 1999, resulting in thirteen diverse variants under one lineage (RustTracker.org, 2019). In India, stem rust threatens approximately seven million ha of wheat-growing area (Bhardwaj et al., 2019). Similarly, stripe rust caused by P. striiformis Eriks. is dominating the northern provinces of India (Bhardwaj et al., 2019) and takes a heavy toll by reducing annual yields by about 30-50%. The wheat variety PBW343, which was a ruling variety in the North Western Plains Zone of India, has succumbed to stripe rust (Singh R. P. et al., 2017;Bhardwaj et al., 2019). The gross capital loss expected due to leaf rust (Caused by P. tririciana) pathogen varies and may be up to 60% under severe conditions (McIntosh, 1998).Breeding for disease resistance is the most economic and imperishable component of integrated crop disease management (Vasistha et al., 2017;Kumar S. et al., 2015). Approximately, 83, 80, and 61 stripes, leaf, and stem rust resistance genes, respectively, have been curated and cataloged in wheat (McIntosh, 2020). However, the prompt evolution of novel virulent races makes most of the resistance genes ineffective. Unfortunately, the majority of the Indian wheat cultivars lack resistance to stripe rust and their tolerance has been fleeting even though they were evaluated as possessing an adequate level of resistance before being released to farmers. This posed a need for a durable and sustainable solution. In wheat, genetic resistance to rust pathogens can be categorized as follows: 1) all-stage resistance and race-specific or seedling resistance conferred by major genes (Chen, 2013); 2) race-specific adult plant resistance (APR); and 3) partial resistance and slow-rusting or non-race-specific adult plant resistance conferred by minor genes (Johnson and Law, 1973;Das et al., 1992). If resistance genes are used alone, there is a danger of the outbreak of a disease, but if several genes are combined into a single genotype (gene pyramiding), the duration of efficient resistance can be increased. The combination of minor genes with major disease resistance genes has been found to be effective and can attain durable resistance.Tilletia indica is the causative agent of Karnal bunt, a disease with the greatest impact on the grain and food industry. The disease not only causes yield loss but also adversely affects grain quality due to infested kernels (Fuentes-Dávila and Rajaram, 1994). Grain infested with Karnal bunt attracts quarantine regulations that restrict infested seeds' transboundary movement. It was first reported in Karnal, India (Mitra, 1931), and was characterized as a minor disease till 1968. The disease was further ascertained in innumerable other regions throughout Northern and Central India. Later on, the disease was observed in several other countries, such as Nepal, Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Pakistan, Mexico, South Africa, and the United States (Rush et al., 2005). The pathogen infects wheat at the heading stage before seed formation; hence, the symptom is manifested only when the grains are matured in the ear heads. Traditional use of genetic resistance could be the best solution to manage disease severity. Although a huge collection of resistance sources was retrieved from diverse adapted zones, very few of them have been studied for detailed genetic analyses and used in the breeding program. Development of genetic markers, mapping of resistance genes, and characterization of new resistance loci can help to develop improved cultivars using germplasm (Brar et al., 2018).FHB, or head scab, is caused by different Fusarium species where F. graminearum and F. culmorum are considered dangerous due to the contamination of the grains by mycotoxins like deoxynivalenol (DON), nivalenol (NIV), and zearalenone (ZON). Yield losses occur due to shriveled grain, low test weight, and failure of seed formation. Mycotoxin accumulation is a major concern from an international trade perspective. Mycotoxins, especially DON and its acetylated forms (3-ADON and 15-ADON), make grain unsuited for food or feed upon accumulation (Brar et al., 2019). Although the import or export of FHB-infested wheat grain across international boundaries is allowed by defining a certain threshold, many beverage and food industries have self-imposed regulations (McMullen et al., 2012). Like with other diseases, the adoption of resistant cultivars is the most effective and convenient way to control this disease (Steiner et al., 2017). The complex genetics of FHB resistance makes it difficult to dissect desired resistance because it is under multigene control and associated with genotype × environment interactions. The classic example includes Fhb1 derived from a Chinese variety, Sumai 3 that provides resistance against FHB was popularized by various breeding programs (Lv et al., 2014). However, Fhb2 from Sumai 3 (Lu et al., 2010) and Fhb7 (Guo et al., 2015;Wang et al., 2020) from Thinopyrum ponticum have also been used in the resistant breeding program. Meanwhile, pyramiding resistance genes into susceptible cultivars remains a formidable challenge because major sources of resistance genes (such as Sumai 3 and Wangshuibai) are associated with undesirable agronomic traits (Dvorjak, 2014;Li et al., 2016). In the Indian context, it causes notable yield loss if rain coincides with anthesis, which is prevalent in Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and hilly areas of Tamil Nadu. There is a dire need for incorporating resistance against FHB in Indian cultivars, keeping in view the importance of increasing exports of Indian wheat. Germplasm could be the ideal source of resistance for sustainable approaches against such cataclysmic diseases.Spot blotch (SB), a destructive leaf disease of wheat caused by Cochliobolus sativus (anamorph: Bipolaris sorokiniana), is considered an economically important disease prevalent worldwide. This disease could result in as high as 70% yield losses under severe epidemic conditions (Ayana et al., 2018). The disease-favoring climate is more prevalent in South Asian and American countries, where warm and humid conditions persist throughout the wheat cropping season (Saari, 1998;Joshi et al., 2007b;Gupta P. K. et al., 2018). From the Indian perspective, the eastern parts are the main epidemic zones, from where it is spread into the cooler traditional rice-wheat areas like the North West Plain Zone (NWPZ) (Villareal et al., 1995;Joshi et al., 2007a). The resistance level in high-yielding wheat genotypes is unsatisfactory and needs to be improved remarkably, mainly in the humid regions of South Asia (Sharma and Duveiller, 2006;Joshi et al., 2007b). Complex quantitative inheritance of SB resistance in wheat has slowed the progress in breeding for SB resistance (Kumar S. et al., 2015). Crucial findings using both bi-parental mapping populations and association mapping panels have accessed assorted SB resistance QTL on all chromosomes except 1D, 3B, 3D, 4A, 4B, 4D, 5D, and 6A (Lu et al., 2016;Gupta P. K. et al., 2018). Nevertheless, only three prime QTLs were assigned, Sb1 on 7D (Lillemo et al., 2013), Sb2 on 5B (Kumar S. et al., 2015), and Sb3 on 3B (Lu et al., 2016). Accessing novel resistance genes by exploiting wheat germplasm could be vital against such a ruinous disease.Another cataclysmic disease caused by the biotrophic fungus Blumeria graminis (DC) E.U. Speer f. sp. tritici Em. Marchal (Syn. Erysiphe graminis DC f. sp. tritici, Em. Marchal) is powdery mildew (PM) of wheat, a foliar disease of universal occurrence resulting in dreadful yield loss (Mwale et al., 2017). Its severity usually climaxes in areas with high precipitation and a maritimelike climate (Bennett, 1984). However, it has gained importance in other regions due to the application of a higher dose of nitrogenous fertilizer and the cultivation of modern semidwarf wheat genotypes (Wang et al., 2005;Morgounov et al., 2012). As far as yield losses are concerned, they range from 15 to 40% depending upon the varieties and climatic conditions. Earlier, this disease was confined to the North Hill Zone (NHZ) of India, but now it is also spreading toward the North-Western Plains Zone (NWPZ) of India due to climate change, which has led to the development of new races. The gene with the highest level of resistance was studied on the wheat-rye translocation (1B/1R) fragment that originated from the cultivar Veery. This cultivar was substantially used to develop many PMresistant cultivars around the globe (Friebe and Heun, 1989), including India (Vikas et al., 2020). Also, 68 loci providing resistance against wheat PM have been mapped to various wheat chromosomes (McIntosh, 2020). Moreover, the finding of several PM resistance genes, research should be carried out on finding novel resources to unravel genes, alleles, and SNPs because of the breakdown of truly race-specific resistance genes due to the emergence of new pathotypes or races (Hsam et al., 2003). Hence, it is necessary to explore adaptive wheat germplasm to identify refreshed resistance genes and use them against rapidly evolving pathogens.The yield losses due to insect pests have increased in the post-Green Revolution era (Dhaliwal et al., 2010). Unlike biotic stress resistance, the resistance gene had a very minor contribution in protecting wheat against insect pests because of the high impact of environmental conditions like temperature and light on the survival and behavior of the insects (Alford et al., 2014). Thus, a more concerted effort and methodology are required to identify and recruit the most effective insect pest resistance genes. Amongst the different pests, aphids, wheat weevil, wheat midge, termites, Hessian fly, armyworm, and cereal cyst nematode (CCN) are important arthropods feeding on wheat. CCN is becoming a serious threat to wheat production in several states of India (Singh and Kaur, 2015;Smiley et al., 2017). There is a higher perception of the CCN threat due to the fact that the identified genes confer a limited level of resistance to specific CCN pathotypes. Since the molecular mechanism of known genes is not known, it is essential to identify new genes and understand their interactions and functions in conferring resistance to CCN. Figure 1 basically explains the challenges faced by biotic and abiotic stresses in wheat production for the Indian wheatbreeding program which in turn accelerates or develops genebank genomic selection models using a combination of genebank genomics, genetic diversity, population structural analysis, and genomic sequences with phenomics, precise trait data, high throughput trait data, and speed breeding which is effective for speeding up the use of wheat germplasm lines coupled with breeding to enhance the process of variety development club with the genomic selection.Abiotic stresses are equally important which limit wheat production worldwide. Among abiotic stresses, salt, drought, and terminal heat stress are the three utmost constraints for successful wheat production in most parts of India. Climate change has been shown to have a high impact on wheat yield due to rising temperatures and water scarcity in India and other wheat-growing regions of the world. Wheat grain filling is suppressed at a temperature above 30 °C because of reduced starch synthase activity (Jenner, 1994). Short-term extreme increases in temperature of 5-10 °C can have quite catastrophic effects on yield, as an increase in the ethylene signal after heat spikes has been shown to lead directly to grain abortion (Hays et al., 2007). Moreover, it is estimated that a 1 °C increase in temperature can result in a 10% decrease in wheat productivity in low-altitude countries (Lobell et al., 2011). Heat stress at the terminal stage of the wheat crop is a crucial abiotic stress that restricts plant growth and the accumulation of starch, which in turn causes yield unpredictability in many wheat-growing parts of the world (Gupta et al., 2012). Different reports have predicted that the average global temperatures will increase in the coming years (Malhi et al., 2021). With an estimated rise in global temperatures of up to 1.5 °C by the year 2030 and a 1.8-4 °C rise by the end of the century, the challenges facing wheat production are enormous and need to be tackled immediately. In addition to this, the pattern of diurnal and nocturnal temperatures has also started changing, which is resulting in warmer nights (Gupta et al., 2012). Heat stress, particularly at the terminal stage of wheat, is the major limiting factor for plant productivity and is a major cause of yield instability in many parts of the world. Changes in temperature patterns accompanied by unpredictable rainfall patterns are also affecting crop productivity in several countries, including India (Singh G. et al., 2018). The threat perceptions due to the impact of global climate change on agriculture are going to be huge in the coming decades. There is a complex genetic basis for most of the improved traits in wheat related to water-deficient and heat-stress conditions (Sallam et al., 2019). This is because each of these traits is polygenic and each gene has a small effect. Improvement of polygenic traits is itself a difficult task (Ranjan et al., 2021). The genetics behind abiotic stresses is more complex as compared to that of biotic stress. Although many studies have been conducted to elucidate the genetics of these traits, only limited success has been achieved in utilizing the vast wealth of data in the crop improvement programs. Global warming is severely affecting weather patterns, resulting in extremes of temperature, drought, frequent frost, and snowfall in high altitudes (IPCC. Climate Change, 2013). In the last few years, droughts and heatwaves have become frequent in a large part of India, posing a serious threat to future wheat production. In an estimate, the average yield loss of wheat in India due to a 1 °C rise in temperature is reported to be 9.1 ± 5.4%, while the global yield loss triggered by the same is projected to be 5.5%, accounting for an aggregate loss of 35 M tons (Wang et al., 2018). This calls for the deployment of varieties that can withstand heat stress during the anthesis and seed setting stages. Furthermore, the accelerated use of wheat germplasm in a sustainable and planned manner is a viable option for addressing biotic, abiotic, and malnutrition threats.In the last few decades, due to drastic changes in climatic conditions, most of the world faced low water accessibility, especially in South Asia and Africa. Among all the abiotic stresses, drought and terminal heat stress are the major limitations to food production worldwide, including India. Hence, developing genotypes that hold terminal heat tolerance is one of the crucial precedents of wheat improvement programs in India. The continuous shrinking of water resources around the world has further compounded problems, in addition to thermal stress, leading to reduced production and productivity (World Meteorological Organization, 1997), and there is a need for additional sustainable approaches to increasing productivity on restricted land, which will prevent the detrition of biodiversity (Pretty and Bharucha, 2014). Climate change is predicted to have a high impact due to rising temperatures and water scarcity in the densely populated regions of India. In many of the global wheatgrowing areas, drought and terminal heat stress cause maximum damage.Around nine million ha of wheat in the subtropical or tropical zone (Lillemo et al., 2005) are heat stressed in countries including India, Bangladesh, Uganda, Nigeria, Sudan, and Egypt that have traditions of cultivating wheat since long ago (Abdelmageed et al., 2019). An estimate suggests that India's 13.5 million ha of wheat cultivated land comes under a heat-stressed zone (Joshi et al., 2007a). Terminal heat stress is one of the measures of sudden remarkable enhancement in temperature during the grain filling stage till maturity. The mean temperature above 31 °C during caryopsis ripening in wheat comes under the influence of terminal heat (Kumari et al., 2015;Dubey et al., 2020). Due to climatic fluctuation, the commencement of early summer than normal and late sowing of wheat due to a mixed cropping system are the possible factor for terminal heat stress in wheat (Gupta et al., 2012). Terminal heat stress causes severe damage to wheat, which alters its physiology and grain filling mechanism. Intense high-temperature waves are likely to become more damaging if the current trends continue and future predictions about global warming hold true. Notably, it significantly impacts starch synthesis and accumulation which is a measure of grain filling rate and gross productivity declined by the sudden outbreak of heatwave during caryopsis development (Jenner, 1994;Kumar et al., 2016c). Furthermore, current approaches for crop management utilize the application of irrigation water, which can reduce heat stress on plants (Badaruddin et al., 1999) but is not feasible for large areas. To date, our limited understanding of the complex interaction of cellular/molecular mechanisms with whole-plant adaptation has restricted deterministic approaches to breeding for heat tolerance (Reynolds et al., 2021). Germplasm could be a reliable source of gene or QTL for heat tolerance, especially at the ripening stage and seed maturation. Additionally, it could be managed by the introduction of trait-like late maturity genotype, stay green-harboring germplasm, and their wider use for adaptability against the current scenario.Drought is the second most serious abiotic stress limiting wheat production in different parts of the world and occurs with varying frequencies (Boyer, 1982;Chaves et al., 2003). Drought affects wheat crops more frequently in tropical and subtropical regions, where most of the developing countries are situated. Around 17% of the cultivated wheat areas worldwide were affected by drought during the period of 1980-2006(Dai, 2013)). In India, 29% of the total cultivable area faces drought conditions, of which 10% is under severe drought (Anonymous, 2003). This has caused an estimated 20-30% reduction in total wheat yield in stressed areas. Reduced bioavailability of water across the heatwave at the terminal growth phase of the spike is negatively correlated with productivity. Basically, they both occur at the same time, and their additive effect causes aborted grain filling (Sattar et al., 2020). Drought stresses impact on their own or in combination that significantly affect several agronomical features like heading days, the height of the plant, numbers of tiller per plant, and length and occupancy of the spike. However, an indirect correlation was suggested in terms of expressed results of GWAS or mapped QTL possibly due to a paradoxical association between traits and genetic loci (Tahmasebi et al., 2016;Abou-Elwafa and Shehzad, 2021). Therefore, a significant effort will be required, including molecular tools to breed superior drought-tolerant varieties. Whole-genome sequencing for each genotype was not possible earlier, but the commencement of high-throughput sequencing technology makes it accessible for extreme landrace and exotic lines (Khadka et al., 2020). The number of genes contributing directly or indirectly to drought tolerance relies on the associated traits' magnitude and proximity of the genes associated with the markers. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) or QTL mapping could be used to identify genes, involved in drought tolerance in unexplored germplasm, which could then be used to improve crop drought tolerance (Zeng et al., 2014;Sukumaran et al., 2018). Furthermore, advanced breeding programs for crop improvement are assisted by genomic selection and gene editing for improving drought tolerance in wheat (Singh S. K. et al., 2015).Among abiotic stresses, increased soil salinity and sodicity pose a challenge to agriculture. The high salt concentrations of the soil can be attributed to the poor land and water management practices as well as the lack of soil reclamation processes in many parts of the world. In India, approximately 8.6 mha of the cultivated land is affected by soil salinity. Furthermore, the areas under salinity are expanding each year due to low precipitation, mixing with the coastline, saline water irrigation, high surface evaporation, and poor cultural practices (Jamil et al., 2011). It has been extrapolated that about 50% of the cultivated land area may be impregnated with salt by the mid of twenty-first century (Mahajan and Tuteja, 2005;Sharma et al., 2012). Salinity tolerance could be accessed by using conventional (El-Hendawy et al., 2005) to modern spectral imaging techniques (Moghimi et al., 2018). Although, most of the affected parameters were known for salt tolerance which limits productivity, inadequate large-scale phenotyping could be a possible factor for a significant outcome (El-Hendawy et al., 2005;Rosenqvist et al., 2019). Finding well-studied genes/transcription factors from wheat germplasm like AVP1, NHX2, DREB, and SHN1 and their associated marker (Díaz De León et al., 2010;Goyal et al., 2016;Singh A. K. et al., 2018;Kumar et al., 2020c) for the utilization for tolerance breeding could be a sustainable approach for generating salt-tolerant wheat genotypes (Choudhary et al., 2021). Hence, there is a compelling need to develop salt-tolerant wheat varieties. Although in the context of salt tolerance germplasm utilization, there is little progress yet, notably germplasm which harbors extreme salt-tolerant genes could be rescued for generation of pre-breeding lines for crop breeding which could stand against the high saline condition.Wheat genetic resources are an ideal solution for addressing the issue of nutritional security in the Indian population. Malnourishment exists both in underprivileged rural populations as well as in wealthier urban populations, where anemia is a major health challenge in children and women (Müller and Krawinkel, 2005;Sethi et al., 2020). Due to its consumption by a major chunk of the Indian population, the development of iron, zinc, and protein fortified wheat is well justified as it can provide these essential micronutrients and proteins through routine edible product intake. (Borrill et al., 2014;Balk et al., 2019). The main objectives for the quality improvement are the enhancement of protein contents, biofortifying with essential amino acids which are basically absent in wheat, elevation in flour quality by modifying starch and glutenins, and elimination of anti-nutrient factors like phytic acid and polyphenols (Grewal and Goel, 2015;Adhikari S. et al., 2022). Although basic research on flour quality was documented, a translation aspect for wheat improvements would be fruitful. Screening of massive wheat germplasm for quality traits and their utilization for quality breeding would be an appropriate sustainable solution (Joshi et al., 2007b;Ramadas et al., 2019). However, breeding in wheat is quite difficult due to complex genetic and metabolic networks, differences in wheat plants' micronutrient use efficiency, translocation coherence, sourcesink relationship for metabolite allocation and partitioning, and genotype-dependent metabolite translocation (Ramadas et al., 2019). Hence, for efficient breeding, it is necessary to understand the genetic basis of micronutrient accumulation in grains and, accordingly, explore the conserved collection for suitable resources. Plant nutrients, including nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P 2 O 5 ), and potash (K 2 O) are the major and most salient nutrients required by the plants (Zörb et al., 2018;Rajičić et al., 2019). The genetic architecture of the plants plays an important role in fertilizer uptake (Sandhu et al., 2021). Therefore, different genotypes respond differently to the amount of supplied nutrients (Mkhabela et al., 2019). Not only agronomic practices but also breeding plays an important role in improving nutrient-use efficiency. As a result, nutrient-use efficient lines/varieties can be developed by modifying root architecture, stem phenology, and leaf phenology (Dharmateja et al., 2021). The variable germplasm with miscellaneous structures, viz., deep root systems, enormous taproots, and the diverse shapes of roots previously adopted to low nutrient soil needs to be assessed under highly precise and uniform conditions.The ratio of a different nutrient may be studied for better uptake and efficiency. Using the precision nutrition platform, a large number of genotypes could be evaluated with high precision and accuracy. Overall, Indian wheat germplasm could be served for such unusual traits (Table 1), which could be useful after being incorporated into desired wheat genotypes.Archaeological and botanical evidence reveals the domestication center of einkorn (Triticum monococcum) and emmer (Triticum dicoccum) to be in the Mesopotamian crescent of the Near East at about 7500 BC (uncalibrated) and from there, it spread to the Middle East, Asia, and North Africa, and ultimately Europe, America, and South Africa (Gustafson et al., 2009). In an evolutionary context, the A genome of wheat is predominated and domesticated earliest during wheat evolution. It circumscribed to cultivate as wild einkorn. With the introduction of large-scale genomics analysis like genotype by sequencing, SNP array revealed that the origin of T. urartu is the closest genome for subgenome A (Maccaferri et al., 2019;Adhikari L. et al., 2022). Furthermore, with the commencement of remarkable genetic diversity losses in the pericentromeric and donating B genome by T. speltoides give a new tetraploid T. turgidum. A second hybridization event between the resulted tetraploid and third D genome donor followed by chromosome doubling has occurred to gain hexaploidy or T. aestivum (Gustafson et al., 2009;Maccaferri et al., 2019). Widely cultivated with dynamic adaptability, wheat can be grown at varying altitudes ranging from the sea level to 4500 m above the mean sea level (AMSL) under diverse agro-ecological conditions. Currently, it comprises several high-yielding varieties suitable for a wide range of environments, ranging from the low-humid regions of India, Nigeria, Australia, and Egypt to the highly humid regions of South America (Damania et al., 1997). Currently, the Asian continent is the leading wheat producer. For example, the total area under wheat crops is nearly 31 million ha, divided into three ecozones: the Northern Himalayan Zone, the Central Zone, and the West South Zone (Kulshrestha, 1985;Singh et al., 2007). The crop gene banks came into existence in response to the growing concern over the rapid erosion of agro-biodiversity due to the preference of superior modern cultivars over landraces and indigenous lines (Díez et al., 2018).Recognizing and deploying relevant genetic and genomic variation from wheat germplasm stored at gene banks to breeding programs is an important strategy for sustaining crop genetic improvements and conserving genetic diversity (Mir et al., 2012;Sehgal et al., 2015;Mondal et al., 2016). Recent next-generation studies have charted new approaches for eliminating redundant duplication in large gene bank collections, thus facilitating the availability of manageable collection sizes for effective molecular breeding (Mascher et al., 2019;Singh et al., 2019). Gene banks around the world maintain a huge collection of wheat germplasm (Prada, 2009). The Indian wheat genetic resources are collectively conserved in its National Gene Bank (NGB) located at the NBPGR, New Delhi. The National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) is an official institute at the national level for the governance of plant genetic resources (PGR). Its headquarters is in New Delhi. The Indian NGB housed at ICAR-NBPGR has also been reported to store more than 31,000 wheat accessions, which include landraces, exotic lines, and indigenous collections (Tyagi, 2016). The major mandate of the institute is to intend, assemble, and coordinate exploration and collection of native and exotic plant genetic resources from extreme environments for sustainable agriculture and to introduce, exchange, and supervise intellectual property right-based quarantine of plant genetic resources.These are of infinite value for agriculture, food, research materials, human resources development for sustainable agricultural growth, boosting the efficient use of genetic and genomic resources of cereals, pulses, and other orphan and ornamental crops, and allied research (Singh S. et al., 2018). In addition, coordinating, capacity building in PGR management, germplasm policy access, and sharing social benefits are also pivotal. Genetic and molecular profiling of agri-horticultural crops, genetically modified plant (GMP) detection technology research, and development of information networks on plant genetic resources (Tyagi, 2016;Singh, 2018) are also mandated activities of NBPGR. Currently, the NGB of India has the largest collection of wheat in the Asian region, with around 34,000 accessions (of 51 species) in its long-term storage (data not ported in Genesys). This collection has over 18,000 indigenous and 14,000 exotic accessions (Tyagi, 2016). The wheat genetic resources are further complemented by other institutes within the National Agricultural Research System (NARS), viz., the Indian Institute of Wheat and Barley Research (IIWBR) in the Karnal district of Haryana, Punjab, Agricultural University in the Ludhiana district of Punjab, and the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), New Delhi. India's national wheat germplasm collection is genetically rich in its species diversity and indigenous wealth. It has around 2,000 accessions belonging to the category of traditional cultivars'/landraces'/farmers' varieties, drawn from diverse ecological zones within the country. The states of Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, and Madhya Pradesh are the major areas from where these indigenous resources have been collected and conserved over the past 5 decades (Figure 2). All these genotypes are treasure mines of unique genes related to several economically important traits. For example, as annexed in Table 1, drought-tolerant genotypes are Safed and Lal mundri, high yield-producing genotypes are Jhusia, Kishva, and Churi, excellent chapatti-making genotypes including Kankoo, Dharmauri, and Lal gehun, and biscuit-making quality exhibited by Mishri and Naphal. However, Bhati could be utilized as excellent fodder for livestock and Bhuri mundiya for high biomass. Additionally, augmentation efforts have been made through repatriation of Indian origin accessions from the USDA Gene Bank, Australian Grains Gene Bank, and John Innes Institute, United Kingdom. The repatriated germplasm resources comprise landraces, wild species, and relatives, which are the critical components of the wheat improvement program.These accessions might prove very useful in the development of high-yielding and climate-resilient wheat varieties if the gene/ germplasm is deployed in adapted cultivars in a planned way. However, only a small proportion of this collection has been utilized in breeding programs to date, primarily due to a lack of information about the traits and associated genes/markers in this collection. The evaluation of huge gene bank collections for the targeted traits is a costly and labor-intensive task. Although recent efforts have been made to develop core sets based on agro-morphological traits, these may not accurately represent the original collection's diversity because agro-morphological parameters are influenced by environmental conditions (Dutta et al., 2015). Precise characterization and documentation of these valuable germplasm lines are prerequisites for germplasm utilization in breeding and genomics studies (Table 1). These germplasms have been characterized by several traits in recent years, indicating that a reasonable number of indigenous germplasm lines are tolerant to both biotic and abiotic stresses because they have co-evolved with their environments for a long time.Global warming is severely affecting weather patterns, reflecting extreme heat, drought, frequent frost, and snowfall in high altitudes (IPCC, 2013). In the last few years, drought and heatwaves have become frequent in a large part of India, posing a serious threat to wheat production. During 2014-15 and 2015-16, wheat production was far below the expected target due to severe drought in various regions of the country. Soil salinity and sodicity are also anticipated to increase from the current 6.73 million ha to 20 million ha by 2050 (Sharma et al., 2012). The wheat-breeding program for abiotic stress tolerance, especially for drought and heat stresses seems to be challenging. The slow genetic progress accomplished to date is a consequence of non-adaptive genotypes with concerned environments, yield constituent compensation, the enigmatic origin of drought, and heat tolerance (Maich et al., 2007). Landraces have long served as the source of traits for local adaptation, tolerance to various stresses, yield stability, and optimum nutritional profile. Evaluation of landraces and local germplasm for finding traits pertaining to abiotic stress tolerance, and their deployment in the elite breeding lines could be the best strategy. Although, in the recent decade, scientists from NBPGR and their collaborators worldwide have made huge efforts to harness the genetic potential prevalent in wheat genetic resources (Table 2), a large proportion is still untouched in the context of trait identification and omics study. Hays et al. (2007) report that high temperatures during grain filling can cause a yield potential loss of up to 40% under dreadful stress. Drought is limiting wheat production in different parts of the world (Fahad et al., 2017;Abhinandan et al., 2018). Globally, about 17% of the wheat cultivated area is distressed by drought (Dai, 2013). In India, the fraction of total cultivable land affected by drought is 29%, of which 10% is under severe drought (Anonymous, 2003). Water has emerged as a limiting factor for sustained cultivation of wheat and other crops in various parts of India, even in the water-rich Indo-Gangetic Plains (Joshi et al., 2007a). Therefore, the generation of drought-tolerant varieties through breeding is essential for achieving enhanced crop productivity and food security for the hundreds of millions of people living in rural areas (Ortiz et al., 2008). Excellent drought-specific markers were identified to determine tolerance against droughts such as Dreb and Fehw3 (Rasheed et al., 2016). Consequently, the existence or absence of Dreb and Fehw markers can be analyzed in any promising germplasm. Several drought-tolerant lines have been identified in India (Kumar et al., 2018), which can be used for favorable allele mining. The identification of novel genetic loci for the improvement of drought tolerance can be achieved by GWAS or QTL mapping using germplasm lines (Zeng et al., 2014;Sukumaran et al., 2018) (Table 2).Over the past decade, there has been a substantial advancement in the development of genomic tools and techniques in wheat (Alaux et al., 2018;Purugganan and Jackson, 2021). The wheat gene pool possesses a tremendous amount of genetic variability for a trait of interest. Several high-density genetic and physical maps of wheat have been developed (Chao et al., 2007). The release of the gold standard reference genome assembly of wheat into the public domain will expedite the use of genomic resources in breeding (IWGSC, 2018). Moreover, high-throughput genotyping tools such as SNP arrays and GBS platforms have also been developed. In recent years, there has been an outburst of innovations in the field of \"genomics\" which can be employed for the identification of genes or genomic regions for useful traits from a large set of germplasm collections conserved in gene banks (Crossa et al., 2016;He and Li, 2020). The important ones to mention are high-throughput genotyping assays, whole-genome sequencing (WGS), GWAS, and genomic selection (GS) (Muleta et al., 2017). Of these, GS is of special interest and has emerged as a promising approach for genetic improvement of complex traits  (Ali and Borrill, 2020;He and Li, 2020). GS could be used for large plant breeding populations with genome-wide molecular markers to predict the total genetic value for complex or economically important traits such as yield. The key conceptual difference between conventional breeding and genomic selection approaches is that in the former, selections of candidate varieties are based on the observed phenotypic performance, whereas, in the latter, selections are based on the genetic makeup and genotype × environment interaction (Crossa et al., 2016;He and Li, 2020). A robust theoretical and experiential report suggests that GS methods can predict performance with adequate accuracy to allow selection based on molecular markers alone (Ali and Borrill, 2020). Furthermore, GS is a promising approach for accelerating the rate of genetic gain in plant-breeding programs by enabling selection for complex traits (like yield under heat stress) early in the breeding cycle and therefore reducing the cycle time, which increases the annual gain. Genomic selection has a potential breeding strategy to map numerous genetic loci for diverse traits of interest. Various research groups started working on Indian wheat and associated germplasm genotype for crop improvement against biotic resistance (Juliana et al., 2021;Budhlakoti et al., 2022). But still, more accurate prediction from a large genotype reservoir of Indian wheat germplasm is necessary for germplasmassisted crop improvements for abiotic and quality-related traits.In GS, genome-wide molecular markers are used to predict total breeding values called genomic estimated breeding value (GEBV) and make selections of individuals or breeding lines before phenotyping (Larkin et al., 2019;Kumar et al., 2021). This approach has several advantages, especially for 1) making  selections before phenotypic evaluation, which reduces the time needed to make selections and 2) increasing the size of breeding populations since genotyping of a large number of lines can be carried out at a lower cost than phenotypic evaluation (Crossa et al., 2016;Muleta et al., 2017;He and Li, 2020). This component aims to develop genomic selection for yield-related traits to accelerate genetic gain. Genomic selection approaches have been proven to be effective for complex or economically important traits such as yield, using an elite set of lines, including germplasm (Roy et al., 2021). From our perspective, there is little information available about Indian wheat germplasm, and a short table was prepared (Table 3) in the context of genes, transcripts, and QTL identified so far. In addition to the huge sustaining potential (Table 1), the Indian germplasm lines will be used to develop a prediction model using the existing genotyping and multi-location phenotyping data (Figure 3). The focus of this review would be to envisage candidate genotypes preserved in the national gene bank, which can be produced in abundance under varying climatic conditions. To the best of our knowledge, this would be the first time that genomics-and physiology-based hypothetical networks would be used to maximize the value of wheat germplasm in India. The collection of representative lines in this study will generate a public resource of elite germplasm lines with well-characterized phenotypic and genotypic information, along with seeds and their genetic constitutions. This resource would lead to determining the optimized configuration of wheat-breeding systems to support coming generations.The outcome of the Indian wheat germplasm genomics initiative would be a comprehensive pipeline connecting germplasm evaluation and genomic information, which could be used to accelerate the utilization of indigenous wheat germplasm in the national breeding programs for the improvement of biotic, abiotic, and quality traits (Figure 3). The following envisaged expected output could be: 1) a detailed insight into the extent and pattern of quality traits in the indigenous wheat collection, 2) wheat germplasm and genomic resource database containing phenotypic evaluation data and associated genomic information in the form of SNP markers for large-scale genotyping applications, 3) molecular tags such as markers, genes, and haplotypes associated with important agromorphological, yield, and grain quality associated traits, 4) novel gene/markers conferring resistance to important wheat diseases (rusts, powdery mildew, and spot blotch, etc.) and tolerance to environmental stresses (heat, drought, and salinity), 5) elite germplasm/accession/genetic stocks based on extensive phenotyping and genomics-based analysis, 6) stable and cross-validated genomic prediction model to calculate the genomic-estimated breeding value for faster genetic gain in elite and pre-breeding lines for various traits (heat, drought, nitrogen use efficiency, rusts, spot blotch, and yield, etc.), 7) integration of physiological traits into the national wheat-breeding program to develop high carbon-capturing pre-breeding lines or candidate varieties, and 8) rematriation of old landraces of wheat to evaluate them at their native place to know their adaptive functionality. Wheat genetic resources include extant cultivars, obsolete cultivars, parental lines, advanced breeding material, mapping populations, and explored germplasm lines. Globally, there is a huge reserve of conserved wheat genetic resources, though much of it remains unexplored for trait-specific information. Genetic data on traits and their association with suitable markers will facilitate the use of wider variability in crop improvement. In this project, such an effort has been put forth to strengthen the Indian wheat-breeding program. The pre-breeding lines generated in the project will have enhanced climate resilience and combining both abiotic and biotic stress tolerance and maximized yield potential. This work would also set a precedent for further enrichment of the national wheat collection with wild and weedy relatives of wheat (wild Triticaceae such as species of Aegilops, Elymus, and Eremopyrum), distributed primarily in the western and northwestern Himalayas, for use in future programs on climate resilience. It would also serve as a reference for identifying the required areas for exploration and collection of Triticum species based on the gaps identified in the gene bank holdings, especially for trait-specific and unique germplasm accessions.","tokenCount":"8653"}

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+{"metadata":null,"keywords":null,"sieverID":"50996778-9a37-4f87-88b4-cc64705a9499","pagecount":"0","content":"MANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS \nEN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO \nDE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\n© Centro Internacional de la Papa, Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de \nMaíz y Trigo, Alianza Bioversity International-CIAT, Bayer CropScience LD, \nInstituto Interamericano de Cooperación para la Agricultura, 2022. \nAutores\nHoracio Rodríguez Vázquez, CIP\nDavid Ramírez Collantes, CIP\nJavier Rinza, CIP\nHeloisa Schneider, CIP\nNancy Gabriela Panchi Umaginga, CIP\nJulio Escobar, IICA\nAndrea Enríquez, IICA\nEdición\nHoracio Rodríguez Vázquez\nConceptualización y dirección\nJosé Luis Moya\nDiseño gráfico\nDAL Grupo Creativo\nCitación correcta\nRodríguez Vázquez, H., Ramírez Collantes, D., Rinza, J., Schneider, H., Panchi \nUmaginga, N.G., Escobar, J., Enríquez, A. (2022). Manual de prácticas bajas en \ncarbono en el cultivo de papa a pequeña escala. Quito: Centro Internacional de \nla Papa, Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo, Alianza \nBioversity International-CIAT, Instituto Interamericano de Cooperación para la \nAgricultura. 18 páginas.\nEste manual forma parte del proyecto “Enabling Smallholder Farmers to \nAccess Carbon Markets A Multi-Stakeholder Collaboration in Latin America. \nOne CGIAR and Bayer, 2021-2022”. \nLas denominaciones empleadas en este producto informativo y la forma en que aparecen \npresentados los dato que contiene no implican, por parte del CGIAR, CIP, CIMMYT, la Alianza \nBioversity International-CIAT, Bayer CropScience y el IICA, juicio alguno sobre la condición \njurídica o nivel de desarrollo de países, territorios, ciudades o zonas, o de sus autoridades, ni \nrespecto de la delimitación de sus fronteras o límites. La mención de empresas o productos \nde fabricantes en particular, estén o no patentados, no implica que el CGIAR, CIP, CIMMYT, la \nAlianza Bioversity International-CIAT, Bayer CropScience y el IICA los aprueben o \nrecomienden de preferencia a otros de naturaleza similar que no se mencionan.\nLos contenidos y opiniones expresadas aquí son responsabilidad de los autores y no \nreflejan necesariamente los puntos de vista del CGIAR, CIP, CIMMYT, la Alianza Bioversity \nInternational-CIAT, Bayer CropScience y el IICA.\nPresentación \nLa región de América Latina y el Caribe experimenta el reto de encontrar el \nbalance entre la agricultura y la conservación de la naturaleza. El sector \nagropecuario es fundamental para la economía de la región, pero también se \nestima que es responsable del 70% de la pérdida de ecosistemas. Entre otros \nfactores, esto hace que el sector aporte cerca del 40% de las emisiones \nregionales de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI), que aceleran el cambio \nclimático.\nSin embargo, existen soluciones innovadoras, basadas en la ciencia, que \ndemuestran que la agricultura puede ser parte de la solución a la crisis \nclimática que enfrentamos. Este manual busca, precisamente, difundir \nprácticas productivas bajas en carbono aplicables a pequeña escala. Es \nresultado del trabajo conjunto y articulado de tres centros de investigación del \nCGIAR en la región (CIP, CIMMYT y la Alianza Bioversity International-CIAT), \ngracias al financiamiento de Bayer CropScience y la colaboración del Instituto \nInteramericano de Cooperación para la Agricultura (IICA).\nEl fin último de esta alianza es facilitar el acceso de pequeños productores a \nmercados de carbono, pues desde el CGIAR hemos demostrado hace tiempo \nque dichos instrumentos financieros tienen el potencial de reducir el impacto \nambiental de la agricultura y abonar a la seguridad alimentaria. \n \nJoaquín Lozano \nDirector Regional para América Latina y el Caribe \nCGIAR \n3\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nCambio climático\nEl cambio climático es cualquier alteración del clima de un lugar, por causas \nnaturales o actividades humanas. \nEl clima siempre ha variado, pero los cambios que vivimos hoy son mucho más \nrápidos e intensos por el calentamiento global, que se denomina al aumento de \nlas temperaturas en nuestro planeta que se debe, principalmente, al \nincremento de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI) en la atmósfera. \nLa concentración acelerada de los GEI, en particular el dióxido de carbono (CO2), \nha sido provocada por nuestras actividades; por ejemplo, la combustión de los \nvehículos, la tala de árboles, el uso de maquinaria agrícola, la ganadería, la \nindustria; entre otras. \n \n¿Cómo afecta el cambio climático a la agricultura?\nLa agricultura depende en gran medida del clima. El clima de un lugar \ndetermina qué tipo de cultivo se puede sembrar, así como las fechas de siembra \ny cosecha. \nLos principales efectos negativos del cambio climático en la agricultura son:\n• Pérdidas por fenómenos climáticos extremos: sequías, heladas fuera de \ntemporada, inundaciones y/o altas temperaturas.\n• Aumento de insectos plaga, malezas y enfermedades.\n• Alteración de los ciclos de cultivo (periodo entre la siembra y cosecha), lo que \npuede afectar el crecimiento y desarrollo de las plantas, así como los \nrendimientos.\nCO2\nCO2CO2\nCO2\nCO2\n4\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nHuella de carbono\nEl carbono es uno de los elementos químicos más importantes, pues nos \nproporciona los compuestos orgánicos que necesitamos para vivir.\nEl carbono existe en muchos sistemas naturales: la atmósfera, la vegetación, los \nsuelos y los océanos. La vida en la Tierra depende del balance de carbono entre \ndichos sistemas. \nTodas nuestras actividades generan un impacto en el entorno. Uno de estos \nimpactos es que las reservas de carbono pasen de un sistema a otro, \nocasionando un desbalance. Por ejemplo, cuando preparamos un terreno para \nsembrar, el carbono almacenado en el suelo se libera hacia la atmósfera. Lo \nmismo ocurre cuando talamos un bosque para destinar más tierras al cultivo. \nEste carbono en forma de gas (dióxido de carbono) se eleva y su mayor \nconcentración en la atmósfera forma una especie de invernadero, elevando la \ntemperatura global. Por eso el dióxido de carbono y otros gases se llaman gases \nde efecto invernadero (GEI).  \n¿Qué es?\nLa huella de carbono es el total de GEI emitidos directa o indirectamente por \nuna persona, institución, producto o proceso. \n¿Cómo se mide?\nSe cuantifican los GEI emitidos y se convierten a su equivalente en dióxido de \ncarbono (CO2). Por eso se denomina huella de carbono. \nPara obtener la cantidad de GEI emitidos por un producto agrícola se hace un \nanálisis de ciclo de vida, desde su producción hasta el fin de su vida útil. \nTomemos por ejemplo el cacao, su huella de carbono es la suma de los GEI \nemitidos en todos los pasos necesarios para su producción, comercialización, \nconsumo y desecho o reciclaje:\nHUELLA DE \nCARBONO DE \nUNA PAPA\nPreparación del \nterreno, siembra \ny labores \nagrícolas\nFertilizantes / \nagroquímicos y \notros insumos\nCosecha, \nmanejo \npostcosecha\nTransporte y \ndistribución\nComercialización Consumo Desecho o \nreciclaje\nCO2\n5\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\n¿Por qué es importante medir la huella de carbono de los cultivos?\nPara minimizar el impacto negativo de la agricultura en el cambio climático es \nclave conocer la huella de carbono de las fincas y/o cultivos. Cuantificar la \ncantidad de emisiones de gases de efecto invernadero (GEI) le permite a un(a) \nagricultor(a) plantear metas y formas de reducirlas.\nEs importante resaltar que la agricultura no solo emite GEI, sino que también \ncontribuye a capturar carbono según las prácticas de manejo, por lo que \nalgunos métodos productivos pueden generar un efecto positivo en la \ndisminución del calentamiento global. El efecto neto de una finca será neutro si \nésta emite y captura carbono en la misma medida. Al contrario, si se eliminan \nbosques para sembrar cultivos con menor poder de captura, se eliminará la \ncompensación, aumentando la huella de carbono. \nUn buen sistema de registro y organización del proceso productivo para medir \nsu huella de carbono puede aumentar la productividad de una finca y hacerla \nmás competitiva en los mercados locales, nacionales e internacionales. Por \notra parte, los productos “verdes” se comercializan mejor y a veces reciben un \nprecio mayor.\nFinalmente, medir la huella de carbono es el primer paso para acceder a los \nmercados de carbono, lo que significa una fuente de ingresos alternativa a los \npequeños productores que implementan prácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono. \n¿Qué son los mercados de carbono?\nSon sistemas comerciales (obligatorios y voluntarios) en los que se venden y \ncompran créditos de carbono. Un crédito de carbono negociable equivale a una \ntonelada de dióxido de carbono (CO2), o la cantidad equivalente de un gas de \nefecto invernadero diferente, que ha sido reducido, secuestrado o evitado. Estos \ninstrumentos financian diversas acciones de mitigación, adaptación y resiliencia \nclimática. \nAlgunos países como México y Colombia cuentan con mercados de carbono \npara reducir la huella de carbono, alineados con sus estrategias de Reducción de \nEmisiones por la Deforestación y Degradación de los Bosques (REDD+), donde \nla agricultura juega un papel central. \n \n6\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nPrácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono\nLa agricultura es esencial para la vida; pero también es una de las actividades \nque más impactos genera en el ambiente.\nLas prácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono (es decir, con una menor huella de \ncarbono) son aquellas actividades para producir un cultivo que emite menos \ngases de efecto invernadero (GEI) hacia la atmósfera. De esta manera, \ncontribuyen a reducir el calentamiento global y en consecuencia generar un \naporte desde la agricultura al cambio climático. \nAlgunas de estas prácticas favorecen también la conservación de los \necosistemas y su biodiversidad, manteniendo la calidad y salud de los suelos, \nel agua y el aire.\nCada vez más, este tipo de prácticas son valoradas por los consumidores, por lo \nque además mejoran el acceso de los pequeños agricultores a mercados \nmás exigentes y aumentan la rentabilidad de sus parcelas. De esta manera, \ncontribuyen al bienestar de los productores, sus familias y sus comunidades. \nPor lo anterior, las prácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono ayudan a que \ntengamos un planeta más sano y justo para las generaciones presentes y \nfuturas. \nAlgunas de las prácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono más comunes son:\nA continuación, se describen algunas prácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono que \npueden ser aplicadas en el cultivo de papa a pequeña escala. \nCategoría\nManejo agronómico\nFertilización inteligente\nLabranza del suelo\nManejo del agua\nManejo de agroquímicos\nAgrobiodiversidad\nPrácticas agrícolas bajas en carbono\nCultivos de cobertura.\nRotación de cultivos.\nCultivos intercalados que fijan nitrógeno (por ejemplo, leguminosas).\nArreglo topológico (densidad de siembra, espacio entre plantas/surcos). \nDiagnóstico (análisis de suelos, análisis de tejidos, uso de sensores).\nDosis, tipo de fertilizante y momento de aplicación más eficiente.\nCompostas y/o estiércoles animales.\nUso de bioles.\nUso de microorganismos benéficos.\nLabranza mínima.\nLabranza de conservación.\nNivelación del terreno / uso de curvas de nivel. \nCosecha de agua.\nTecnificación del riego.\nAplicaciones eficientes.\nManejo integrado de plagas y enfermedades.\nMonitoreo de plagas/enfermedades en campo.\nUso de variedades nativas.\nUso de híbridos / variedades mejoradas adaptadas a condiciones locales.\nÁrboles en tierras agrícolas.\nUso de barreras vivas.\n7\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nAbonos verdes\nSiembra de un cultivo transitorio para ser incorporado posteriormente al suelo. \nPueden usarse cereales o leguminosas de rápido crecimiento como avena, vicia, \narveja, chocho, fréjol, falso chocho, entre otros.\nSe deben incorporar al inicio de la floración. Una vez cortados, es recomendable \ndejarlos sobre el suelo varios días o semanas según el clima (mínimo cuatro \ndías) y se incorporan superficialmente al suelo.\nEs importante considerar que mientras el campo está ocupado por un abono \nverde, no se pueden sembrar otros cultivos.\nEl objetivo de esta práctica es incorporar nutrientes y materia orgánica al suelo \ncon lo cual se mejora la filtración y retención de agua, aireación y  otras  \npropiedades  biológicas y físicas del suelo.\n \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nCualquier productor(a) que desee mejorar sus \nsuelos e incrementar los nutrientes   antes de \nla siembra de su cultivo principal.\nVentajas Desventajas\nImplica mantener el suelo por  un tiempo sin \nproducción comercial (únicamente en descanso).\nLa incorporación requiere de mano de obra \nadicional.\nSu efecto no es fácilmente visible.\nNo   requiere de altas inversiones.\nDe fácil aprendizaje e \nimplementación.\nSi se usa una leguminosa, incorpora \ngrandes cantidades de nitrógeno \npara los cultivos.\nSe recomienda aplicar después de \ncada cosecha.\n8\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nTecnificación del riego\nInstalación de algún sistema de riego (por aspersión, por goteo) en parcelas de \nproducción, con la finalidad de evitar la pérdida de suelo y el gasto innecesario \ndel recurso agua al momento de regar, usando la cantidad óptima según las \ncaracterísticas agroecológicas de los suelos, la pendiente y del propio cultivo.\n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores cuyos predios tienen acceso a \nagua para riego.\nVentajas Desventajas\nSu instalación implica una inversión \neconómica inicial.\nSu instalación requiere de mano de obra \ncalificada.\nSe deben contemplar acciones de \nmantenimiento. \nPuede ser instalado entre varios \nproductores o en asociación.\nEl sistema de riego se puede adaptar \na diferentes cultivos y usar en \nalgunos ciclos.\nLa inversión se amortiza en varios \nciclos de cultivo.\nEs compatible con otras prácticas.\nEn cualquier momento del año y \ndurante todo el ciclo de cultivo.\n9\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nTecnificación del riego\nEl manejo del tubérculo-semilla comienza en el campo antes de la cosecha y \ncontinúa hasta que es sembrado. La producción de semilla sana está basada en \ntres principios de sanidad:\n1. Aislamiento: consiste en establecer el lote de semilla, alejado de campos de \npapa comercial, para evitar el traslado de plagas y el contagio de enfermedades.\n2. Protección: combinación del uso de plaguicidas y la práctica de labores \nculturales que buscan proteger el cultivo de plagas y enfermedades.\n3. Erradicación: consiste en la eliminación de tubérculos y plantas atípicos.\nContar con un tubérculo-semilla de buena calidad nos permite reducir los \nriesgos de presencia de plagas y enfermedades, mejores rendimientos y \nproducción de calidad.\n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores que deseen mejorar el \nrendimiento y la calidad de su producción.\nVentajas Desventajas\nSu implementación requiere de un proceso \nde capacitación.\nSu manejo implica mano de obra y \nactividades específicas un tanto diferentes a \nlas de un cultivo con fines comerciales.\nRequiere adaptaciones en bodegas e \ninfraestructura básica de almacenamiento. \nPuede ser implementada entre \nvarios productores.\nPermite contar con semilla de forma \npermanente y accesible de \nvariedades adaptadas. \nDesde antes de la cosecha hasta \nque el tubérculo-semilla sea \nsembrado.\n10\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nUso eficiente de fertilizantes\nConjunto de prácticas que permiten obtener el máximo rendimiento con la \nmenor cantidad (dosis) de fertilizantes.\nConsiste en el uso del análisis de suelo como herramienta de diagnóstico para la \naplicación de fertilizantes, acorde a los requerimientos reales del cultivo.\nOtras actividades a tomar en cuenta:\n Aplicación oportuna y localizada de los fertilizantes.\n Evitar deficiencia de agua en períodos críticos de desarrollo de la planta.\n Nivelar el suelo y hacer drenajes en suelos mal drenados.\n Corregir la acidez del suelo previo a la aplicación del fertilizante.\n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores que deseen mejorar la fertilidad \nde sus suelos de forma eficiente.\nVentajas Desventajas\nLos análisis de suelos pueden ser costosos y/o \nno estar disponibles localmente.\nLa toma de muestras de suelo requiere \ncapacitación.\nRequiere técnicos o personal especializado \npara interpretar los análisis del suelo y \ndeterminar la dosis de fertilización. \nReducción de la cantidad de \nfertilizantes utilizados.\nReducción de costos en insumos.\nIncremento del rendimiento del \ncultivo. \nRealizar la planeación antes de la \nsiembra del cultivo, y en \nmomentos críticos de su \ncrecimiento y desarrollo.\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\n11\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nSIN EFECTO\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nLabranza de conservación\nSerie de prácticas que permiten detener o revertir los efectos nocivos del exceso \nde laboreo sobre las características físicas y químicas del suelo, promoviendo los \nprocesos biológicos y, por tal motivo, permitiendo conservar o recuperar su \nproductividad.\nLa labranza de conservación incluye como mínimo las siguientes prácticas en \nconjunto:\n No quema de los residuos del cultivo anterior.\n Incorporación de los residuos del cultivo anterior al suelo.\n Labranza cero, mínima o reducida.\n Rotación de cultivos. \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores que deseen mejorar la fertilidad \nde sus suelos de forma eficiente y que \ncuenten con la maquinaria adecuada para la \nagricultura de conservación.\nVentajas Desventajas\nSus efectos se evidencian a largo plazo.\nRequiere maquinaria especializada o \nincremento de mano de obra.\nImplica mayor tiempo en la preparación del \nsuelo. \nReducción de la cantidad de \nfertilizantes utilizados.\nReducción de costos en uso de \nmaquinaria e insumos.\nIncremento del rendimiento del \ncultivo.\nMejora la fertilidad física y química \ndel suelo.\nNo contamina el aire por la quema \nde los residuos de cosecha.\nAumenta la capacidad del suelo de \nretener la humedad.   \nDesde la preparación del suelo y \nhasta el momento posterior de la \ncosecha.\n12\nManejo integrado de plagas (MIP)\nConsiste en mantener el nivel del daño de enfermedades e insectos plagas por \ndebajo del Iímite económico aceptable, combinando varias formas de control:\n Control mecánico.\n Control cultural.\n Control biológico.\n Uso de variedades tolerantes y resistentes.\n Diversificar variedades / rotación de cultivos. \n Control químico de forma eficiente (específico y en dosis adecuadas).\nEl énfasis del MIP está en el diagnóstico, porque sirve para determinar con \nanterioridad la posible aparición de enfermedades y plagas, para también \noptimizar la actividad de los enemigos naturales.\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores que deseen conservar la \nagrobiodiversidad en sus fincas, puede usarse \npara cualquiera de sus cultivos.\nVentajas Desventajas\nRequiere de mano de obra adicional para su \nimplementación.\nLa(s) persona(s) encargada(s) del manejo \ndebe(n) conocer los síntomas de las \nenfermedades e identificar insectos plaga y \nbenéficos.\nTecnologías y/o prácticas poco conocidas. \nNo requiere de altas inversiones.\nDe fácil aprendizaje e \nimplementación.\nReducción de costos de producción, \nal disminuir el uso de insumos \nquímicos.\nMejorar la autonomía de los \npequeños agricultores.    \nSuelo Cultivo \nCulturales \nEnemigos \nnaturales\nInsecticidas\nDurante todo el ciclo del cultivo y \ncon todos los cultivos sembrados. \nPlagas\n13\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nManejo integrado de plagas (MIP)\nConsiste en la introducción de árboles y/o arbustos al sistema de producción, ya \nsea como:\n Cortinas rompevientos.\n Cercas vivas.\n Árboles dispersos o en los linderaos.\nLas especies de árboles pueden incluir especies frutales o especies nativas de la \nzona, lo que puede generar una mayor cantidad y diversidad de alimentos para \nla familia, o ingresos adicionales por la venta de estos productos. El beneficio \npara el cultivo principal es mejorar la calidad de los suelos, reducir el riesgo de \nataque de plagas y enfermedades.  \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores que deseen conservar la \nagrobiodiversidad en sus fincas, protegiendo \na la vez el suelo y sus cultivos.\nVentajas Desventajas\nEl crecimiento de los árboles es lento.\nSus resultados son a mediano y largo plazo.\nRequiere mano de obra adicional para la \nsiembra y cuidado de los árboles.  \nPueden utilizarse especies nativas.\nPueden utilizarse especies \nmultipropósito (frutales, maderables, \netc.).     \nSon hábitat de polinizadores, \ninsectos benéficos y fauna nativa. \nContribuyen a minimizar la huella de \ncarbono de la finca / cultivo. \n   \nEn cualquier época del año, \nespecialmente en la época de \nlluvias si no se cuenta con agua \nde riego, para asegurar la \nsupervivencia de los árboles y \narbustos.  \n14\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nAbonos orgánicos y biofermentos\nAplicación de abonos sólidos y líquidos a base de ingredientes de origen animal \no vegetal que aportan nutrientes a los cultivos y que pueden ser elaborados \naprovechando insumos de la propia finca.\nAlgunos de estos abonos son estiércol de animales, compost, humus de \nlombriz, té de estiércol, abono de frutas, biol, bocashi, entre otros.   \n \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores que deseen mejorar la fertilidad \nde sus suelos y a la vez conservar la \nagrobiodiversidad de sus fincas. \nVentajas Desventajas\nRequieren mano de obra para su elaboración.\nSu elaboración toma tiempo.\nLos resultados de su uso se ven a largo plazo.\n \nNo requiere de altas inversiones.\nSon de fácil elaboración.\nReduce la dependencia a insumos \nexternos.\nAprovecha insumos generados en la \npropia finca. \nUsa materiales fáciles de conseguir. \nPrincipalmente antes de la \nsiembra del cultivo y en las \naplicaciones complementarias.  \n15\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nCosecha de agua de lluvia\nTécnicas (desde simples a complejas) capaces de aumentar la cantidad de agua \nde lluvia que se almacena en el suelo o en estructuras construidas, de tal \nmanera que pueda ser utilizada posteriormente en condiciones de déficit de \nlluvias.\nUn ejemplo son los reservorios, que consisten en excavar y aislar una porción de \nsuelo para captar y almacenar agua de lluvia, en forma dosificada y acorde a la \netapa del cultivo. \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nProductores con limitado o nulo acceso a \nagua de riego.\nVentajas Desventajas\nLa construcción requiere de mano de obra.\nRequiere de una inversión inicial que puede \nser alta.\nSe puede adaptar a los recursos de \ncada finca.\nMateriales fáciles de conseguir.  \nAntes del inicio de la época \nlluviosa.  \n16\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nUso de variedades adaptadas a las condiciones locales\nEl uso de variedades (nativas o mejoradas) con cierto grado de tolerancia al \nestrés abiótico ocasionado por las amenazas del cambio climático (por ejemplo, \naltas temperaturas, heladas y escasez de agua, entre otras). \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nEn la planificación del cultivo (selección de la \nvariedad a sembrar). Todo tipo de \nproductores, especialmente con problemas \nrecurrentes vinculados al clima. \nVentajas Desventajas\nAlgunas semillas pueden ser costosas, o estar \npoco disponibles en un lugar determinado.\nPuede ser que una variedad resistente no \ntenga buena aceptación en los mercados. \nReduce la mano de obra para el \nmanejo de las amenazas climáticas.   \nEn la planificación del cultivo \n(selección de la variedad a \nsembrar).   \n17\nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\nContribución a la resiliencia climática de la pequeña agricultura.\nProductividad y \ncalidad del cultivo\nAdaptación al \ncambio climático\nMitigación \n(reducción de la huella \nde carbono)\nConservación y uso adecuado \nde la agrobiodiversidad\nSistemas de alertas tempranas\nSon tecnologías que permiten, a través del monitoreo de las condiciones \nclimáticas (estaciones meteorológicas), detectar los cambios sensibles en las \ntemperaturas que pueden ocasionar heladas o altas temperaturas extremas. \nAl detectarse una alerta climática para una zona, se envía la alerta a los \nagricultores (puede ser mediante sus celulares) para que puedan prepararse \ncon diversas alternativas para prevenir los daños; por ejemplo, mediante un \nriego adicional. \n¿Cuándo puede aplicarse? ¿Quién puede aplicarlo?\nTodo tipo de productores, especialmente con \nproblemas recurrentes vinculados al clima. \nVentajas Desventajas\nRequiere mano de obra calificada.\nImplica una inversión inicial.\nSe requiere de una estación meteorológica o \nacceso a información climática.\nRequiere disponibilidad de agua de riego y un \nsistema tecnificado. \nPuede ser implementada entre \nvarios productores o en asociación.\nSu impacto es visible y a corto plazo.\nEvita pérdidas en el rendimiento del \ncultivo.    \nDurante todo el ciclo del cultivo.   \n18\nCGIAR es la mayor plataforma mundial de organizaciones de \ninvestigación agrícola para el desarrollo. La misión del CGIAR \nes transformar sosteniblemente los sistemas alimentarios, \nterrestres y acuáticos en el contexto de la crisis climática. El \nCGIAR realiza sus acciones de investigación e innovación a \ntravés de 15 centros especializados, en estrecha colaboración \ncon cientos de socios, incluyendo institutos nacionales y \nregionales de investigación, organizaciones de la sociedad civil, \nla academia, organizaciones de cooperación internacional para el \ndesarrollo y el sector privado.\nwww.cgiar.org \nCentro Internacional de la Papa (CIP)\nFundado en 1971, el CIP es un organismo internacional de investigación \npara el desarrollo sin fines de lucro, miembro del CGIAR, que ofrece \nsoluciones innovadoras, basadas en la ciencia, para mejorar el acceso a \nalimentos nutritivos y asequibles, fomentar el crecimiento sostenible e \ninclusivo de las empresas y el empleo, e impulsar la resiliencia climática \nde los sistemas agroalimentarios de raíces y tubérculos. Con sede en \nLima, Perú, el CIP tiene presencia en más de 20 países de África, Asia y \nAmérica Latina y el Caribe. El CIP cuenta con el banco de germoplasma \nin vitro más grande del mundo, resguardando como patrimonio de la \nhumanidad 7,180 accesiones de papa; 8,026 accesiones de camote; y \n1,556 accesiones de raíces y tubérculos andinos. \nwww.cipotato.org\nCentro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo (CIMMYT) \nEl CIMMYT es una organización internacional centrada en la \ninvestigación y la capacitación agrícola sin ánimo de lucro que capacita \na los agricultores a través de la ciencia y la innovación para alimentar al \nmundo en plena crisis climática. Aplicando una ciencia de alta calidad y \nasociaciones sólidas, el CIMMYT trabaja para lograr un mundo con \npersonas más sanas y prósperas, libre de crisis alimentarias globales y \ncon sistemas agroalimentarios más resilientes. La investigación del \nCIMMYT aporta mayor productividad y mejores beneficios a los \nagricultores, mitiga los efectos de la crisis climática y reduce el impacto \nmedioambiental de la agricultura. \nwww.cimmyt.org   \nAlianza Bioversity International - CIAT\nLa Alianza es un organismo internacional de investigación para el \ndesarrollo sin fines de lucro, miembro del CGIAR que genera soluciones \ncientíficas que aprovechan la biodiversidad agrícola y transforman los \nsistemas alimentarios de manera sostenible para mejorar la vida de las \npersonas en medio de una crisis climática. Con sede global en Roma, \nItalia, tiene su oficina regional para América Latina y el Caribe en Cali, \nColombia. \nwww.alliancebioversityciat.org \nMANUAL DE PRÁCTICAS BAJAS EN CARBONO EN EL CULTIVO DE PAPA A PEQUEÑA ESCALA\n19\nEsta publicación está registrada por el Centro Internacional de la Papa (CIP). \nEstá licenciada para su uso bajo la Licencia Internacional de Atribución 4.0 de \nCreative Commons.\nEl CIP agradece a los donantes y organizaciones que apoyan globalmente su trabajo, \na través de sus contribuciones al Fondo Fiduciario del CGIAR: www.cgiar.org/funders\n","tokenCount":"4596"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"c288cbd0de4cce4bae75f8640f6145cc","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/bab3b98c-2c99-44ed-ba19-52c6c001e98f/retrieve","id":"-910259866"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"07ec9500-9183-45a6-a4fe-0a02c12d3466","pagecount":"119","content":"iii DECLARATION I, Atsede Teklay Berhe, hereby present for consideration by the Department of Animal, Rangeland and Wildlife Sciences within the College of Dryland Agriculture and Natural Resources at Mekelle University, my thesis in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Masters in Livestock Production and Pastoral Development with thesis research entitled 'Green Feed Management and Utilization for Dairy Production in Irrigated Areas along Ahferom-Adwa-Laelay Maichew Milk sheds in, Central Zone of Tigray.' I sincerely declare that this thesis is the product of my own efforts. No other person has published a similar study which I might have copied, and at no stage will this be published without my consent and that of the Animal, Rangeland and Wildlife Sciences department.. Perception of farmers toward improved green fodder in milk increment (n=100) .. Table 24. Perception of farmers toward improved green fodder in body condition (n=100)... Table 25. Perception of farmers toward improved green fodder in animal health improvement (n=100) ..    This study was conducted in Ahferom-Adwa -Laelay Maichew milkshed areas, Central Zone of Tigray, with the aim to assess irrigated green feed, production, management and utilization for dairy production. Five Tabias were selected purposely based on their potential in green feed production and dairy farming using purposive sampling method. A total of 200 respondents using the random sample from the list of green feed user and non-user. These were stratified to (100 irrigated forage adopters and 100 non-adopters). Primary and secondary data collection methods were employed during the course of the study. The primary data were collected using household interviews, focus group discussions, direct field observations, informal discussions and some measurements to understand the biomass (DM yield) of the irrigated forages. Descriptive statistics and econometric analysis were done using probit model. The study found that the common green fodder was Sesbania sesban, alfalfa, elephant grass, leucaena, cowpea, lablab and local grass. Major feed resources were crop residues, hay, green feed and weeds, Attela, improved forages and browse trees. From these crop residues and hay contribute largest. Sesbania sesban, alfalfa, elephant grass, leucaena, cowpea, lablab and local grass are the major improved forage species grown under irrigation in the areas. The DM productivity of these common green feed were measured to be 1.79t/ha for Alfalfa, 4.2t/ha elephant grass, 0.061t/ha Leucaena, and 0.8t/ha Sesbania. The management practices of green feeds differ according to the nature and type of plants. The tree legumes are planted by seedling and direct sowing, elephant grass by cutting stems and splitting roots, and herbaceous legumes by direct seed sowing. Out of the total green feed users, 69% practice land preparation, 68% watering practice, 69% fertilizer and close their land from grazing. The farmers feed the green fodder to animals alone (48%) majority grass species, herbaceous legumes in mix with roughage (17.5%) and both (25%). The probit model showed that sex, education level, land size, seed access, media access and distance extension service canters significantly determined green fodder adoption. Shortage of land, shortage of water, health problem (especially bloating), shortage of capital, poor knowledge and awareness, low forage production, shortage of labor, shortage of input, shortage of forage seed, free grazing and lack of credit access were identified as constraints for green fodder production. The forage producers get institutional support from both governmental and non-governmental organizations. Feeding green feed have good on the milk production, body condition and controlling health problems. Farmers have good perception on green feed and appreciated for their importance in improving feed supply, soil fertility, crop yield and animal diseases tolerance. There are more opportunities for green forage development related to the institution, research, policy, technology, extension and market demand. From the study, common irrigated green feed was identified, production, management and utilization practice of respondents were assessed, eleven determinant factor for green feed adoption was determined and the effect of green feed on dairy production, body condition and health conditions was discussed. from these findings, the study recommends that was scale up the size of common irrigated forages and increase the adoption rate of nonadopters by training, awareness creation and demonstration of the adopters work. Strengthen the utilization mode of forage, improving relation of forages production with market oriented commodities and strength forage development of government attention and NGOs to improve adoption.Key words: Green fodder, fodder management, fodder utilization, irrigation, milksheds.Livestock is a major contributor to food and nutritional security, and serves as an important source of livelihood for nearly one billion poor people in developing countries (Frans Swanepoel, 2010). Keeping livestock is an important risk reduction strategy for vulnerable communities, an important provider of nutrients and traction for growing crops in smallholder systems. Livestock products like milk, meat and other products contribute 17 percent to kilocalorie consumption and 33 percent to protein consumption globally (Melkamu Bezabih Yitbarek, 2014).Most of the dairy production in the country is mainly dependent on indigenous Zebu breeds.Total cattle population in Ethiopia with ~52 million cattle. Integration of cross breed cattle to the sector is imperative for dairy development in the country. The promotion of large private investment in dairy farm and smallholder's dairy production increases milk production. The government promotes integration of cross breed cattle in to the smallholder sector through artificial insemination service, veterinary service and credit (Tsegay, 2010).Dairy production is one branch of livestock production with many uses. It is an important matter in Ethiopia's-livestock-based society where livestock and their products are important source of food and income, and dairy has not been fully exploited and promoted (Tangka et al., 1999). In Ethiopia, the increase in milk production was mainly due to the increase in herd size and due to improvement in productivity per animal resulting from technological intervention (Mamo and Dessie, 2007).One of the major problems to low milk production in the country is associated with shortage of livestock feeds both in quantity and quality, especially during the dry season (Wondatir, 2010).During years of good rainy season, forage is not adequate to feed livestock in the highlands for reasons associated with controlled grazing land and poor management (Gashu et al., 2014). A basic failing of the natural grasslands as a source of feed for livestock is their low production of dry matter, absence of proper utilization of natural grass lands ,keeping unproductive animals and the seasonality of plant growth, which is an image of the annual rainfall circulation pattern, further limits the accessibility of herbage for the grazing animal to four or five months of the wet season over most of the natural grasslands of the country (Galmessa et al., 2013).Thus, feeding management is significantly important for dairy production. Availability, quality and quantity of feed vary among dairy production systems. Cattle largely depend on rangeland grazing or crop residues that are of poor nutritive value. The feed is not uniformly supplied and the quality is poor. Seasonal fluctuation in the availability and quality of feed has been serious challenges in livestock production (Mengistu, 2005). The feed shortage mostly happens in dry season of the year (Ibrahim and Olaloku, 2000). In other words, under normal circumstances in lowlands when there is adequate feed for cow, milk tends to be sufficient for home consumption as well as for market (Nardos, 2010). Improving the improved forage supply is a base for introducing intensive indoor dairy management and feeding practice (Tesfay, 2014).In an attempt to solve the animal feed shortage and poor management, forage development programs have been undertaken in Ethiopia in general and the Tigray region in particular.Likewise, farmers of Tigray have grown forage in their land holding. Various improved forage species have been introduced across time since the last 20 years. Regardless of the efforts, however, the forage progress goes and consumption practices were not respected and could not achieve the probable change in animal feed supply. Feed is the most important input in livestock production and its satisfactory supply throughout the year is an essential prerequisite for any substantial and sustained expansion in livestock production (Menbere et al., 2008) .The present green feed management and utilization for dairy production need to be addressed fully in order to design proper forage improvement programs with the dairy production in the region in general and the study areas in particular. Identifying the actual useable green feeds, assess current management practices, modes of utilization and determinants for adoption of irrigated forage in a given region is a prerequisite for planning appropriate forage developments and increasing dairy production and productivities that largely benefit producers. understanding the level of green feed gaps in the availability of different feed resources is also essential for implementing appropriate supplementation strategies. With this knowledge, this study was done to investigate and analyze the green feed management and utilization for dairy production systems in Ahferom-Adwa-Laelay Maichew district, central zone of Tigray.Ethiopia has a large livestock population with low production where there is scarcity in quality and quantity of feed to sustain the demand of livestock. Additional irrigation practices are common in crop production with small forage cultivation. Irrigated feeds play a great role during dry season to increasing production and productivity and contributes to job creation.There is scarcity of studies on green feed management and utilization for dairy production in irrigated areas in Ahferom-Adwa-Laelaymaichew districts. The available irrigated fodder types, fodder management practices, irrigated green fodder utilization methods, determinant factor for the green feed adoption, the existing constraints in green fodder production, management and utilization and impact on dairy production had not yet studied. So, it has been difficult to take solutions for development of green feed management and utilization for dairy production in the area. Hence, this study was designed to investigate green feed management and utilization of dairy production systems in selected irrigated areas along Ahferom-Adwa-Laelay Maichew milk sheds in the central zone of Tigray, Northern Ethiopia. The general objective of this study was to investigate irrigated forage and local grass utilization and identify major constraints for dairy production systems in selected irrigated areas along Ahferom-Adwa-Laelay Maichew milk shed in the central zone of Tigray, northern Ethiopia.1. To identify and estimate common useable improved feeds and local grass for dairy cattle along Ahferom-Adwa-Laelay Maichew Milksheds.2. To assess current production, management and utilization practices of green feeds along the Ahferom-Adwa-Laelay Maichew Milk Sheds.3. To identify determinants of the adoption of irrigated green feeds in the study areas.4. To identify the existing constraints in irrigated green feed production, management and utilization in the study areas.To assess the impact of irrigated green feed development on milk yield, body condition and health condition1. What are the useable irrigated green feeds used for dairy cattle in the study area?2. How much irrigated biomass production is available within household level?3. What do the current management practices on irrigated green feeds in the study area look like?4. What are the specific modes of utilization of irrigated green feeds for dairy cattle?5. What are the main determinant factors for adoption of irrigated green feed plants?6. Has the current green feed production brought any positive changes in production (E.g. Milk yield and improve production and body condition?7. What are the key constraints in the irrigated green feed production, management and utilization practices?These study district are characterized by huge natural resources such as irrigation areas and various feed resources. Different groups and individuals will be benefited from the result of the paper. The findings of the study will different governmental organizations and development partners in understanding the current green feed production and utilization and thereof to design their future programs and strategies with regard to green feed production and utilization in the study areas. It may also help for researchers as an input in their further research works.The major sources of feed for cattle in Ethiopia including Tigray are hay, crop residues, grazing, crop aftermath and non-conventional feedstuffs (like 'Atela' and weeds) (Mengistu, 2003). In the finding of Yadessa (2015) pasture grazing, crop residues such as wheat and barley straw, hay, Atella and crop aftermath were mentioned as the major feed resources for livestock.Pastoral livestock production sole depends on extensive range grazing while the mixed croplivestock production systems use both natural pastures and crop residues to sustain the animal requirements.Feed resources commonly used for dairy include grazing land, hay and purchased succulent grass, cereal crop residues, maize Stover, improved forages, mixed/balanced homemade concentrate feeds, plant weeds, and non-conventional feeds like attella (brewery by-product from locally produced beer, and other alcoholic drinks), and leaves of other palatable agroforest plant. Maize Stover is the most usually used roughage feed resource in all the production systems during wet and dry seasons (Sintayehu Yigrem and Gebremedhin, 2008). According to Tekalign (2014) the utilization of animal feed in Ethiopia covers natural pastures 57.49%, crop residue 29.61 %, improved forage 0.22%, hay 7.05%, by-products 0.91% and others 4.72%.Forage development is one of the strategies to address feed scarcity and low livestock productivity in Ethiopia. Fodder production and management is predominantly traditional, with modern efforts in forage development being undertaken by the Office of Agriculture and Rural Development (OoARD), and community and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) (Shiferaw et al., 2011). The dominant forage development strategies practiced in central and eastern zone districts are backyard development, alley cropping, intercropping and gully treatment and by small number of farmers a combination of three strategies (backyard development, alley cropping, and gully treatment) are used by most forage growers (Tesfay et al., 2016).Many factors influence the level of success of forage development endeavors. Perhaps one of the major factors is the full participation of communities. The basis for the development forage, continuously need to adapt a process approach, which allows communities to contribute in all stages of the forage development cycle, i.e., from planning to implementation and evaluation (Ayele, 2003).In the highlands; better ways are the low-cost methods such as backyard, under sowing and over sowing, which are more attractive to farmers. These strategies provide farmers with proper use of their land for cultivation of crop/pasture and forage/trees, where products can be used for food, feed and firewood respectively. Some perennial grasses can be planted vegetatively;Festuca arundinacea, Phalaris arundinacea and Setaria sphacelata are well adapted to waterlogged conditions and easily established by root splits (Mengistu, 2006). Integration of forage into farming system in Ethiopia heavy emphasis is put on the use of forage legumes in cropping systems (through under sowing, improvement of fallows and establishment of tree legumes hedges) to partly address the major problems of long-term sustainability of crop production (Mengistu, 2006).The common strategies that are currently practical across different districts include intercropping of annual food crops with legumes, planting in eroded communal areas and irrigated fields, rain-fed arable farms, watersheds, and at the backyards (Tesfaye, 2010).Irrigation has been experienced for many years. This is a good opportunity for off-season pasture and forage crops. The potential for irrigated forage is unexploited and still there is a great opportunity for producing seasonal and long term irrigated pasture and forages. In trails in the highlands of Ethiopia wheat and barley under sown with Lucerne, annual clovers, tall fescue, perennial rye grass, Setaria and Phalaris, the sowing of both cereals and forages was at the same time. All under sown forages established successfully except Lucerne and there was no significant reduction of cereal yield (Mengistu, 2006).Even useful forages have been selected for different zones, but the adoption rate is very low in Tigray. Improved pasture and forages have been fully-grown and used in government ranches, state farms, farmers' demonstration plots and dairy and fattening areas. From grass species, the most regularly occurred are elephant grass (Pennisetum purpureum) and Rhodes (Chloris Guyana); from legumes the most frequent species are sesbania (Sesbania sesban), Leucaena (Leucaena leucocephala), and alfalfa (Medicago sativa) (Tesfay et al., 2016).Even if diverse kinds of forage species are tried to introduce in Tigray, the adoption and practical uses of such feeds for meat animals is low. Thus, agricultural extension workers and producers should apply intensive efforts to make use of such green feeds for commercial meat production (Tesfaye, 2010).Effective collection, preservation and proper utilization of crop residues and hay making might increase the quantity of available feed, and observing for other alternative options such as use of urea treatments, nutrient block, silage making and scale-up of improved forage species with participatory approach can improve the nutritional quality of available feed for dry season (Abera et al., 2014).Even in the presence of plentiful crop residues, which are often freely fed to ruminants, forage crops, especially legumes are needed to improve the utilization of crop residues. Crop residues often provide energy while forage legumes provide proteins. Forages also provide benefits such as soil fertility through their nitrogen-fixing ability and are also useful in breaking insect, weed or disease cycles, which are likely to occur when they are not supplemented. In many situations, however, forages compete with other crops. In land scarce smallholders, forages may compete with other crops for land, while inland abundant pastoral systems, they may compete for the herders Labor (Birhan and Adugna, 2014).Forage crops are commonly grown for feeding cattle with oats and vetch mixtures, fodder beet, elephant grass mixed with siratro and dismodium species, Rhodes/Lucerne mixture, phalaris/trifolium mixture, hedgerows of sesbania, leucaena and tree-Lucerne (Alemayehu, 2003). According to the Mekonnen Yirga and Ali Seid (2013) tree legumes are extremely important elements in improved forage production programs because of their productivity and multipurpose uses. They have deep rooting systems which help them increase their productivity during the dry season, and they provide other products such as fuel wood, construction timber, and pollen and nectar for bees.The productivity of forage depends upon many factors, including available moisture and nutrients and the presence of productive forage species. Loss of production may be due to weather, the decline in fertility and poor management. While it may not be possible to influence the weather, there are options to correct some of the other causes. The presence of productive forage species in pasture ecosystem is a significant factor in determining the productivity of the forage field. Choice of species and combination need critical consideration. In grass-legume mixed pastures, dry matter yields quite often are higher per unit area than either sole grass or sole legume pasture. Production yields vary widely, depending on such factors as species of grasses and legumes, inherent soil fertility, fertilization (amount and time of application), percentage of legume, available soil moisture, intensity of defoliation, light intensity and temperature (Tanko, 2014).Even many species was introduced to Tigray forage productivity is generally low, in central and eastern zone of Tigray on average about 430 kg/ha, and contribution to livestock feeding is less than 25% (Tesfay et al., 2016).Production of livestock forage through irrigation has recently been identified as one of the potential intervention measures of dealing with the highly variable livestock feed supply.Ethiopia has a long history of traditional irrigation systems. Simple river diversion still is the dominant irrigation system in Ethiopia (Ayele, 2011).Irrigation is a good opportunity to grow off-season pasture and forage crops. Medium-and large-scale schemes are of much more recent origin, mostly in the Rift Valley for cash crops.There is some irrigated forage in the Rift Valley growing lucerne/Rhodes mixture for commercial fattening and dairy farming. The potential for irrigated forage is untapped and still there is a great opportunity for producing seasonal and long-term irrigated pasture and forages (Mengistu, 2006).This will entail growing, harvesting and storing of the forage in the form of hay, or preserving it as standing hay and utilizing it during the dry season when the open pastures have been completely utilized (Schatz, 2003).Legume forage crops can improve the utilization of low quality roughages and they are being used more extensively throughout the world. In various production systems legumes are capable of enhancing both crop production through sustained soil fertility and livestock production through increased availability of high quality feed (Assefa and Ledin, 2001).To deal with this challenge, range land scientists, pasture experts and animal production specialists has considered several options of 'bridging' the feed supply/demand gap. One of them is the large-scale cultivation of fodder through irrigation within the arid and semi-arid lands where water for irrigation is available from sources such as rivers, dams, or harvested rain water stored for use during the dry seasons. A number of studies have evaluated the performance of range grasses under irrigation and some species have shown great potential for higher yields under rain fed cultivation (Opiyo, 2011).Feeding management is an important idea for dairy production. Availability, quality and quantity of feed vary among dairy production systems. Cattle largely depend on rangeland grazing or crop residues that are of poor nutritive value. The feed is not uniformly supplied and the quality is poor (Ibrahim and Olaloku, 2000). Seasonal fluctuation in the availability and quality of feed has been a common phenomenon, inflecting serious changes in livestock production (Mengstu, 2005). The feed scarcity mostly happens in the dry season of the year (Ibrahim and Olaloku, 2000). In contrast, under normal circumstances in the lowlands when there is sufficient feed for cow, milk tends to be adequate for home consumption as well as for market (Nardos, 2010). Even though there are different improved forage species cultivated in the different areas of Tigray but the utilization practice is not as expected. Cultivation of these species has good quality to increase the dairy production with proper management.The season can vary the production of forage. The problems of seasonal availability of roughage feeds can be minimized through conventional feed conservation practices like hay making, silage making and straw treatment so that sustainable supply of roughage feeds can be ensured throughout the year (Mapiye et al., 2006b). The stage of green feed for direct consumption is on the green leaf 50 % flowering and before setting seed, whereas for the storage cutting, of the hay during the autumn season, especially in September month and from irrigation product especially for direct use on fresh or green feed for their cattle. Seasonal changes in the nutritive value of improved grasses have been quantified on hand-clipped forage and on esophageal extrusa. The most important feature is the decline in protein content as the wet season progresses (as the plant matures) (Mapiye et al., 2006b). The amount of forage vegetation available is mainly influenced by rainfall variability, while the productivity, then, depends how the available forage resources are used (Sonder et al., 2003).Fodder conservation is an important tool for evening out peaks and troughs in feed supply in a grazing enterprise and the fodder conservation process commences with the cutting of the crop still latter use (Meconen, 2014). The timing of the cutting influences the potential quality or feed value of the hay or silage. Cutting forage at a phase in the growth cycle, where vegetative growth and plant sugars are at or near their peak. This ensures that important feed attributes such as protein, digestible energy, dry matter percentage and digestibility are at their highest potential at the beginning of the conservation process. Most grasses and limited legumes have made into hay of varying quality. However, all successful hay making relies on wilting the cut plant to a moisturizing or dry matter level where it is dry enough not to ferment and wet enough not to shatter when baled. This is usually at about 12-14% moisture content, but varies according to bale size and shape (Tesfay, 2014).Farmers use different forms of conservation practices in Tigray. The most common practices for conservation of feed resources are hay making, traditionally conserved crop residues, and grazing in the form of standing hay. It is the oldest and still the most important conserved fodder in all altitude zones, despite its reliance on the presence of suitable weather at the time of harvest.Forages play varying role in different livestock production systems. In general, however, they are important as a mix to crop residues and natural pastures and may be used to fill the feed gaps during periods of inadequate crop residues and natural pasture supply by coming to feeding place as cut and carry system, give to the animals either by chopping and cutting. Even in the presence of abundant crop residues, which are often free fed to ruminants, forage crops, especially legumes are needed to improve the utilization of crop residues. Crop residues often provide energy while forage legumes provide proteins by mixing crop residue with improved forages and also improved forage production as livestock feed and natural conservation structures in Tigray .The purpose of mixing the different feed ingredients is to improve the quality and intake of the inferior quality feed resources such as crop residues (Feyissa et al., 2014).Legume forages also provide benefits such as soil fertility through their nitrogen-fixing ability and are also useful in breaking insect, weed or disease cycles, which are likely to occur when they are not supplemented. In many situations, however, forages compete with other crops. In land scarce smallholder, forages may compete with other crops for land and in land abundant pastoral systems, they may compete for the herders labor (Birhan and Adugna, 2014).In Tigray livestock feeding is based on grazing communal grazing lands, roadsides, area closures and crop residues (straw, maize and sorghum Stover). There is a culture of closing part of grazing lands during the rainy season, but the system of utilization of grasses grown in closures differs from place to place. In some areas, farmers have bylaws to administer and use closures at the end of the rainy season (Gebreyohannes and Hailemariam, 2011). The crop residue mixes with irrigated forage, upgrade the quality and palatability of feed. Whereas societies having the potential of irrigation opportunity cultivate improved and local grasses around the side of cultivated land, intercrop with vegetation or sow separately and use the fodder through cut and carry system to feed their animals (Birhan and Adugna, 2014). In Central and Eastern zone of Tigray Farmers used to improve crop residues include mixing with other feeds and helping a mixed feed to livestock (Tesfay et al., 2016).Feeding is a fundamental aspect of dairy cattle production. In order to improve milk production levels, energy inputs such as concentrate feeds have to be considered essential for any dairy enterprise. Dairy cows compared to other farm animals produce large amount of milk, hence require sufficient quantity and quality feeds with all necessary nutrients, including energy, protein, minerals and vitamins. Various improved legume and grass forages like alfalfa and elephant grass are fed to dairy cows to satisfy their nutrient demand. In a good quality pasture, some dairy cattle weighing 400kg are able to eat 40-60 kg fresh grass per day, which is enough for a milk yield of about 7-8 kg. If the pasture is poor (dry season, overgrazed), additional feed is required even at lower milk production levels (MOA, 1999).From the tree legumes Leucaena leaf meal is often fed to cows and the more Leucaena leaf meal provided, the higher the milk yield. A level of 2.6 kg of Leucaena leaf meal with 1.8 kg of cottonseed husks gave similar milk yields as a manufactured1.8kg cotton seed cake (Chaussa, 2013b).The adoption process of new technology is defined in several ways adoption process refers to changes that took place within the mind of an individual with respect to an innovation from the moment that he/she first becomes aware of the innovation to the final decision to continuously use it or not. The term adoption defines as it relates to the use or non-use of a particular innovation by individuals (Say farmers) at a point in time or during an extended period of time (Colman and Young, 1989).The rate of adoption is defined as the percentage of farmers who have adopted a given technology and the intensity of adoption is defined as the level of adoption of a given technology. Intensity of adoption increases with the extent of market participation, household resource base, contact with extension workers and secure land tenure (Arega, 2009). The number of hectares planted with improved seed or the amount of input applied per hectare will be referred to as the intensity of adoption of the respective technologies (Gashu et al., 2014).The conditions for successful introduction of forage technologies could be socio-economic factors, policy options and feeding system. Potential for adoption may be advanced where livestock productivity is high, where livestock respond to improved feed technology and where profitability is high due to market-oriented production systems, such as dairying in the mixed competition of forage production for resources (land, labor, and possibly other inputs) with crop production; and relatively low price of animals, and animal products that does not encourage farmers to intensify their livestock production (Tsegay, 2010).A number of empirical studies have been conducted by different people and institutions on the adoption and diffusion of agricultural innovations both outside and in Ethiopia. But, the studies are mainly conducted around major cereals and other crops and practices and due to this fact, the studies conducted in the area of green feed management and utilization are very limited. As a result of this, the review mainly included such studies conducted in different contexts. For ease of clarity the variables so far identified as having a relationship with adoption are categorized as personal and demographic variables, economic factors, socio-psychological related factors, and extension/communication factors (Petros, 2010).Household's personal and demographic variables are among the most common household characteristics, which are mostly related with farmers' adoption behavior. From this category of variables, education, experience in farming and age are cause factor for adoption of green feed (Arega, 2009).It is important to note that dairy farming is not taken as a major economic stay of the farmers in the rural areas; rather it is mostly treated as opposite. Such a tendency is also observed in urban centers. The development or progress so far shown since its beginning is believed to be unsatisfactory in which demand proceeds supply due to high rate of population growth in most urban centers (Tsegay, 2010).Especially due to land scarcity and crop-dominated farming there has been limited spontaneous introduction of improved pasture and forages. During the Fourth Livestock Development Project, different strategies and species for pasture and forage development were selected (Mengistu, 2006). Low adoption of forage can affect for the production of animals. According to Wondatir and Mekasha (2014) the major constraint to such low productivity is a shortage of livestock feeds in terms of quantity and quality, especially during the dry season. Moreover, progressive decline of average farm sizes in response to rising human populations, encroachment of cropping land onto grazing areas and onto less fertile and more easily erodible lands, and expansion of degraded lands, which can no longer support either annual crops and pastures contributes to shortage of feed resources. Feed supply from natural pasture fluctuates following seasonal dynamics of rainfall (Alemayehu, 1998). Despite these problems, ruminants will continue to depend primarily on forages from natural pastures and crop residues. According to Nardos (2010) the average landholding size of the smallholder dairy producers was reported to be 0.089 hectares (ha) in Mekelle, which is less than the result of Guteta and Abegaz (2015) the average farm size of the catchment of Arsamma Watershed, Southwestern Ethiopian Highlands was 0.98 ha .This has negative consequences on the household income and dairy production.Access to credit is one of the ways in order to finance and expand any business like dairy business. Absence of access to credit and limited their production by having only few numbers of cross breed cows and shortage of improved as well as green feed. These credit need to have more cows if they get access credit to finance their dairy farm (Nardos, 2010).The majority of the farmers could not afford to raise enough capital to purchase the required inputs (such as planting material, fence, machinery, implements, fertilizer, chemicals, etc.).And later meet the labor costs required to manage the forages (Jahnke et al., 1988). Capital availability was a major factor affecting adoption of improved forages in Kenya (Steinfeld H, 2006). Access to credit for purchasing inputs plays a crucial role in the development and adoption of new technologies and improved feed resources, especially in low-income households (Mapiye et al., 2006a).Little yields and lack of persistence were stated as one of the factors limiting adoption of forage legumes in this study. This was mainly qualified to low rainfall, especially during the dry season. Low agronomic performance was described as a restriction for adoption of some browse species in the Chikwaka communal area in Zimbabwe (Hove et al., 2003). In Uganda, Kabirizi J ( 2004) designated that forage legumes were not the best option for resolving dry season feeding because of the little yield and absence of persistence during the dry season. Persistence is a significant quality of forage legumes that regulates their use as permanent pastures (Frans Swanepoel, 2010).The adoption process of agricultural technologies depends primarily on access to information and on the willingness and ability of farmers to use information channels available to them.Mass media exposure was also hypothesized to be one of the determining variables to affect the adoption of conservation technologies. A study showed that media exposure (exposure to radio, TV and printed media) has a positive effect on adoption of technologies (Petros, 2010).Mass media and neighboring farmers also important in diffusion of agricultural innovations, and Particularly, interpersonal communication networks among farmers are important and reported in many studies to have positive influence on farmers' adoption decision. This have positive relationship of mass media with adoption of agricultural technologies (Gecho, 2005).Performance of dairy cattle can be measured by the production and reproduction parameters which are done by different researchers. Dairy cattle which do not access adequate feeds necessary to meet their nutritional requirements for maintenance, production, and reproduction, results in delayed age at first calving, long calving intervals and low milk yield. For a normal dairy cow, dry matter consumed within 24 hours should be 2.5-3% of its body weight. For a cow weighing 600kg require 15.4kg dry matter when grazing for 8 hours (Chaussa, 2013a).Good quality roughage is the basis of a high milk production. Examples of good quality pasture grass and hay which has been harvested at an early stage of growth (before seed setting), various legumes, and elephant grass with dark green color and harvested at the length of 90 cm.Roughages of poor quality are maturing hay, cereal straw, maize stove and overgrown Napier grass (Chaussa, 2013a).According to Weldemariam (2010)   (Weldemariam, 2010).Management through different trainings, study tours to exemplary areas inside and outside the district was another reason for the milk production improvement.More number of useful forages have been selected for different zones, although the adoption rate is extremely low. This is obviously reflected in many parts of Tigray where the agricultural extension system has tried to introduce and distribute various improved forage species and up now the success rate, measured in terms of better-quality animal production benefits, is under expectancy (Tesfaye, 2010). In other studies, the major constraints to forage and browse legumes were shortage of inputs (27.2 % of the households), low yield and lack of persistence of legumes (24.0 %) and lack of fencing material (18.6 %). Other constraints mentioned were lack of capital (10.0 %), lack of knowledge (7.1 %), shortage of labor (5.7 %), shortage of land (4.3 %) (Mapiye et al., 2006a).These constraints result in low milk production, longer parturition intervals, and lower animal weights. Shortage of feed and high cost of feed is a number one problem. Shortage of feed happened due to many reasons, mainly due to less provision of crop production and depends on rain fed agricultural system. Crop production availability is based on the season, during the dry season animal feed like hay and roughage are very scarce and with a high price (Nardos, 2010).The main inputs limiting adoption were scarcity of planting material, inoculants, implements, fertilizers and chemicals. Farmers infrequently collect or use seeds from their own farms or from their neighbors, as they still imagine the forage/tree seedlings or seeds from projects, government and non-governmental organizations (Mapiye et al., 2006a). Provision of inputs and services related to livestock production is important in improving the productivity of the livestock sub-sector. The major inputs related to livestock are forage seeds, forage planting materials (Gebreyohannes and Hailemariam, 2011).Land is an important asset for the resource poor farmers, helping to prepare improved feed by planting different types of grass like alfalfa, elephant grass which helpful for milk production increment and minimize cost of feed to be purchased. Even if dairy producers are interested to expand their dairy farm, the land size may not allow most of them to do so. As land size increases more and more facilities become inevitable that take-up space other than the animal barn (Nardos, 2010).Water shortage affect the forage growth and production. Proper utilization of water and conserving for dry season is good to sustain forage development .Under Infrequent irrigation had reduced biomass accumulation of sorghum forage ; the reduction of biomass was higher when low irrigation frequency (Aishah et al., 2011). Other studies indicate about drip irrigation decreasing water supply decreased fresh and dry yield of alfalfa however it increases Irrigation water use efficiency and consequentially water saving (Ismail and Almarshadi, 2011).Ruminates require water to maintain the water content of their body, and water availability affects voluntary feed intake; less water leads to inadequate intake of dry matter. For animals kept under pastoral production system, the frequency of watering is very important. During the dry season water is available only from wells and some lakes and streams (Ibrahim, 2002). This leads to overgrazing around watering points. Water intake increases as watering frequency is decreased and feed conversion efficiency becomes lower as watering interval increase (Ibrahim and Olaloku, 2000).   The map of the study districts was made by Ethiopian projection coordination system which was by Adindan-UTM-zone 37 North. The study was carried out in five tabias of the three selected districts, namely Ahferom, Adwa and Laelay-Maichew, which are located in the central zone of Tigray region, northern Ethiopia.These three districts are found in the milk shed belts of the region for their suitable climatic conditions for improved dairy breeds. In addition, these three districts are working sites of the livestock and irrigation value chain for Ethiopian smallholder's LIVES-ILRI project which offered financial support to this research project. The four stage sampling techniques were applied in sample selection processes. In the first stage three districts were selected based on their potentiality in dairy production and irrigated forage cultivation purposively.in second stage five tabias (Table 1) were chosen purposively based on their potentiality in dairy production and irrigated forage cultivation. In third stage from the household of study tabias 3.5 % of the household were purposively selected proportional to size for the sample size. A total of 200 respondents were selected. Fourth stage the dairy producers were stratified in to irrigated feed adopters (100) and non-adopters (100) using random sampling methods from the list of districts. Of the total sampled dairy producer respondents about 13.5% were female households. The list of common green forage users and non-users for dairy production were taken from the district and tabias offices of agriculture and rural development. In this study, both primary and secondary data sources were employed to gather the required data. Primary data were collected through interviews, focus group discussions, field observation and personal observation during sample were taken. Secondary sources such as published and unpublished literatures were collected from different governmental and non-governmental offices. The source and methods used to obtain data for the research are outlined below.The questionnaire was translated in to the local language (Tigrigna) and pretested in nearby tabias. After checking the pretested semi-structured questionnaire, it was continued for practical collection of the data from individual respondents. Available data were collected by interviewing respondent's perception in their own words, a very desirable strategy in qualitative data collection. Structured and semi-structured questionnaire was developed to collect data through the household interview. This allows the surveyor to present the meaningfulness of the experience from the respondent's perspective. The research interview made to understand the situation from the subject point of view, to unfold the meaning of people experience and uncover their lived world. A total of 200 dairy producer respondents were interviewed using the semi structured questionnaire. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected on: Household socioeconomic characteristics: sex, age, family size, education level, land size holding, livestock type, number of dairy cattle, experience in dairying, purpose of cattle rearing and other relevant information; Farmers' indigenous knowledge and management practices on green forage utilization; The green fodder harvesting and utilization techniques in relation to dairy production; Agronomic practices for each and every irrigated species; The propagation practices/methods of irrigated feed; The green fodder preservation and conservation methods; Irrigated forage production with the benefit of producer and consumer; The impact of green feed on animals productive and body condition like milk production, body condition, health condition; Challenges and prospects of dairying; The potential determinants for adoption of green forage; availability of green feed to utilize, merits of plant (increase animal productivity), the distance of home (from the FTC, districts), education level, sex of household, access to training, access of seed, land holding, communication media and type of livestock production in the study area; Constraints related to irrigated feed production, management and utilization practices; and Perceptions of the dairy producers toward the introduced irrigated green fodders.Five focus group discussions (one from each tabias) were held to gather qualitative data and prioritize some important variables. The group discussion was composed of 10 people comprising of key informants, elders, women and youths. A list of questions was forwarded for discussion in which the researcher acted as facilitator. In addition to this, formal and informal discussions were held with districts experts, tabias administrators and development agents. The discussions enabled to gather qualitative data that also helped to validate the data collected through household surveys.First the major available forage species were identified and prioritized according to their importance and availability during the group discussions. Field measurements for biomass production were carried out on the common forage species that cultivated in the study areas.Herbaceous forages were measured using quadrant methods (1m x1m size) from representative samples. About 42 sample quadrants were taken to measure the biomass of alfalfa, elephant grass and composite local grass from pasture area within three level of production from high production level, medium and from low production within five study areas to represent the sample. All the herbages that fell within the quadrant were cut off about 5cm height from ground level and measured by balance to know fresh biomass. Then after sample herbages were dried using overnight oven at 105 o c within 24 hours and DM amounts of species was estimated through calculation. Similarly, fodder trees/shrubs samples were taken to measure their amount in age class, from each household then forage biomass yield was measured by calculating the number of legume trees X productivity of each plant kg/year from literature X frequency of harvest per year. adoption the econometric analysis by using probit models were used.The identified fodder species, constraints of fodder production and merits of green fodder were prioritized using preference index. Ranked data were computed using Microsoft Excel as an Index (for example for three levels of rank I = sum of ranks (3 X rank 1 + 2 X rank 2 + 1 X rank 3) given for an individual reason (attribute) divided by the sum of ranks (3 for rank 1 + 2 for rank 2 + 1 for rank 3) for overall reasons, criteria or preferences.Tables, figures and graphs were used to summarize and present findings. Econometric models were employed to analyze the determinant factor for improved feed adoption from the collected data. It was used probit model to determine the association between variables. Mean differences of both discrete and continuous variables among adopters and non-adopters were computed using X 2 and ttests, respectively.Descriptive statistics such as mean, percentage, frequency and ratio supported by test statistics for the variables demographic and socioeconomic, and institutional characteristics of sample respondents were applied to analyze the access of green feed production and green feed utilization for dairy production.Limited Dependent Variable models have been widely used in technology adoption studies.Probit and logit models are commonly used in studies involving qualitative binary choices. The logit model uses the cumulative logistic function. But this is not the only cumulative distribution function that one can use. In some applications, the normal cumulative distribution function has been found useful. Estimating model that emerges from normal cumulative distribution function is popularly known as the probit model. The probit specification has advantages over logit models in small samples (Fufa and Hassan, 2006). Then taking logit or probit model is matter Variables were assumed to influence green feed management and utilization entry decision.Selection of independent variable needs to born in mind that the omission of one or more relevant variables or inclusion of one or more irrelevant variables may result in error of specification which may reduce the capability of the model in exploring the economic phenomena empirically.Education level of the Household Head (HHEDUCA): Intellectual capital or education, measured in terms of categorical schooling of household head, has an effect on the green feed utilization participation decision. Sometimes, because of cultural and socio-economic characteristics, education has opportunity costs in alternative enterprises (Lapar et al., 2002).Therefore, education level of the household is assumed to increases the participation or adoption of green feed increases. The dummy variable taking one for male headed and zero for female headed households. In mixed farming system, both men and women take part in livestock management. Generally, women contribute more labor input in area of feeding whereas access to institutional credit, access to extension service, may affect women's participation and efficiency in livestock production (Tangka et al., 1999).Land holding size: It is a continuous independent variable measured in hectare. As input for dairy production, land is very important for forage and pasture development to feed dairy cows.It expected that as size of land increases, proportion of land allocated for feed development and improvement increases. The hypothesis can be affected the adoption of utilization of green feed participation positively for dairy.This is a continuous variable measured in kilometers from the households' residence. Farmers' exist in far from the FTC may not frequently contact with extension agents, as a result extension information less utilized; therefore, constrains to get knowledge and improved inputs.Access to extension service: is dummy variable that expected to have attending dairy product extensional advices from agricultural office worker has contribution in smallholder dairy irrigated feed utilization participation.Total Livestock in TLU (TLSTLU): This is the number of live animals measured in tropical livestock unit. This variable is expected to get impact on smallholder dairy production and cultivated irrigated feed utilization participation Dairy farming experience: is a continuous variable measured in number of years' respondents engaged in dairy farming activities. This experience in dairy production influences on increasing knowledge and management of dairy inputs and adoption of new technologies.Access to seed: It is a dummy variable 1 for get seed and 0 otherwise. Then the availability of seed has an effect to cultivate green feed for their cattle. This variable is expected to have positive effect on the participation of green feed utilization.Radio, TV and/or mobile and 0 otherwise. These information source materials may play a significant role in creating awareness about new technologies in a fastest possible time.Family size /Labor access: Labor access also play a role in whether farmers adopt forages or not, and household size was shown to influence adoption of forage/browse legumes in this study. The times when labor is required for forages/browses, it is often already occupied by other crop activities. Hence, labor constraints may continue to be a factor influencing adoption of improved forages. Farmers rely on hired labor for farm operations such as weeding and fodder conservation while family labor is used for land preparation, planting and harvesting (Mapiye et al., 2006a).This chapter presents the findings of descriptive and econometric analyses. In the first section, descriptive results of demographic, socio-economic and institutional factors of adopters and non-adopters are presented. Furthermore, identification and estimation of green feed;production, management and utilization of green feed; constraints and opportunities of green feed utilization; and impacts of green feed utilization for dairy milk production, body condition and health condition results are also addressed. In the second section, determinant factors for adoption of green fodder by sample dairy producer identified and presented.The sample household heads age ranged from 20 to 72 years. The mean age of sample household heads was about 45.845±8.596 years with almost similar between adopters (46.04±8.566 years) and non-adopters (45.64±8.626 years). The average family size of sample household was 6.42±2 persons per household, Non-adopters had smaller productive members (6.25±1.7) than adopters (6.59±2.39). Sampled households were consisted of 86.5% maleheaded and 13.5% female-headed; gender difference was an issue between adopters (82% male)and non-adopters (91% male). About 66.5% of the sample household heads were literate and the rest 33.5% were illiterate. About 81% of adopters were literate compared to 52% of nonadopters. Thus, educational status between adopters and non-adopters was statistically significant (P<0.01). The mean dairy production experience of non-adopters and adopters was 8.45 and 9.06 years, respectively with minimum and maximum experience of 1 and 28 for nonadopters and 1and 48 years for adopters. It was not statistically different. About 83% and 80% of non-adopters and adopters started their dairy keeping activity through buying cow from markets and the rest 17% and 20% of the non-adopters and adopters, respectively through inheritance and given from parents. The breed of dairy of non-adopters and adopters were HF (46,42 %), Jersey (28,33%), Begait (15,14%) and the rest were local breed (Table5).  The study showed that the mean number of livestock kept per household was 5.43± 2.32 TLU for adopters and 5.27±2.15 TLU for non-adopters with no significant difference (P>0.05) (Table 4). Even though statistically it was insignificance, this result indicates that adopters have slightly more livestock number than non-adopters. This is probably due to the fact that adopter farmers can occasionally sell some of their livestock and the money obtained from sales can be used to buy seeds and other inputs for production of new crop and for the green fodder technology. The number of cattle (4.145) was more when compared with other livestock species. Cattle were followed by donkeys (0.61), goats (0.30) and sheep (0.25) in number. Most of the non-adopters are trader for that matter the total income of non-adopter is higher than that of adopter mostly they have trade activities as additional income source. According to the respondents, cattle are kept for different purposes such as land ploughing, income source, breeding, manure, food source, asset building and other socio-economic functions. The respondents tried to rank these purposes as breeding, income source, home consumption, ploughing source, asset building and social values according to their importance.The purpose of cattle keeping in case of non-adopters is for ploughing (3 rd ), home consumption (4th), and sale for income generation (2nd), breeding purpose (1st), asset building (5 th ) and social value (6th). Whereas adopters keep cattle for the purpose of land ploughing (4th), home consumption (3rd), sale for income generation (2nd), breeding purpose (1st), asset building (6 th ) and social value (5th). Livestock perform serious functions and play multiple roles for both poor and non-poor livestock-keepers. Livestock production can also be taken as job opportunity (investment) for a lot of people since human population and demand of livestock product is increasing through a period of time. Land is an important production asset for the smallholder farmers. Results from this study indicated that the average land holding per household in the adopters and non-adopters was 0.51 and 0.398 ha, respectively which included arable land, private grazing, irrigated land and forage land. The overall results showed that most of the households (78.5 %) possess land below 0.5 ha and 16.5% household own 0.51-1.00 ha of land. Only 1.5 % of the households have total land of greater than 1.5 ha. There was significant difference (P<0.001) in land holding among the adopters (0.51ha/HH) and non-adopters (0.42 ha/HH). The classification of the household land use patter is indicated in Table 7. Cultivated land (0.405±0.23 and 0.405±.19), grazing land (0.0077±0.039 and 0.0074±0.052), forage land (0.0076±0.035 and 0.039±0.133), irrigated land (0.057±0.108 and 0.12±0.107), fallow land (0 and 0.004±0.028), shared out (0.005±0.05 and 0) and shared in (0.067±0.2 and 0.048±0.2), respectively for the non-adopters and adopters.Even the land size of the adopters and non-adopter show small, adopters shared for forage production and for crop production efficiently, whereas the non-adopters prioritize for crop production. This indicates that land is a scarce asset and this might be due to the increasing human population pressure. This has formed serious scarcity of cropland and forage farm as well as grazing land. Farmers trade part of their agricultural products immediately after harvest to cover their costs of production, social duty and crucial family expenses in the nearby market. The result indicates that the average distance of farmers' residence from the nearest market place was 12.38 ±4.91km. Non-adopters' residence (11.67km) was the nearest market than that of adopters (13.1km) (P<0.05). Infrastructure is another key service for farmers, as it helps them to sell their farm products. The average distance of the farmers' home from district agricultural office was 12.56 ±4.67km; however, there was little significant difference in residences distance from main roads between adopters (13.14km) and non-adopters (11.97km). The FTC has been established before a decade at each Tabia to serve as nodes, which could provide extension service (packages), training (short term and modular), demonstration and centers of exhibition and information, as a result, disseminates agricultural technologies (Gebremedhin et al., 2006).The average distance of farmers' home from FTC was 3.79 ±1.92km. The difference between average distance of adopters (2.3 km) and non-adopters (5.28 km) home from FTC was seen to be significant (P<0.001) (Table 9). The major livestock feed resources in dry and wet periods are presented below (Table 10).Overall, the most vital feed resources to livestock in the study areas during the dry season are crop residues, hay, green feed and weeds, Attela, improved forages and browse trees. Among these feed resources, crop residues and hay contribute the largest share of feed to livestock.Whereas during wet season the major feed sources are weed and green feed, crop residues, browse legumes, Atella, herbaceous legume and grass and hay. Natural grazing as a major livestock feed resource is weakening from time to time due to the high degree of chronic degradation and shrinking of grazing land in size. Each and every feed source has its own unique constraints for utilization and improvement.Improved feed as source of feed in the study area during wet season from the overall respondents 16% of total feed source shared from improved forages. While during dry season 12.3% of the feed resource from improved forages.The study areas receive limited amount of rainfall with unimodal from mid-June to early September. In the wet period of the year major livestock feed resources are ranked as weeds and green grasses, crop residues, browse legumes and grasses, Atella (residue of local beverage), improved herbaceous forages plants, household wastage, industrial by products and natural pastures consecutively. While in adopters in wet season, it was ranked as weeds and green grasses, crop residues, browse plants, improved herbaceous forages and Atella in that order (Table 10). In the wet season, non-adopters feed their cattle with weeds and green feeds, crop residue, hay, Atella and household wastage. Usage of natural pasture is not common in the study area because the areas are closed rather they access the hay from protected grazing areas via cut and carry system. Green grasses and weeds are good feed resources for animals in wet seasons in both respondent groups. Relatively better feed is available during the wet season (July to September). During this period animals gain body weight and body condition for the improved feed supply. But later on, as the long dry period proceeds the body weight of the animals reduce. Months of March to June are feed shortage especially during drought time for animals.During the dry period of the year the major livestock feed resources in the study areas were ranked as crop residues (1 st ), hay (2 nd ), Attela (3 rd ), weed and green feed from irrigation (3 rd ), crop aftermath (4 th ), improved forages (5 th ), herbaceous legumes, household waste and industrial by products according to the order of their importance. Crop residues are fed often starting from November to June. Hay is given mainly for ploughing oxen during the months of February to May as well as for milking cow in addition to the green feeds and concentrates throughout their lactation period. Attela, mill wastes and food leftover are fed to animals occasionally based on the availability. The availability of Attela is linked with social and religious festivals and holidays. Crop residues and hay are fed to cattle while shoats are made to graze themselves. The main annual crops grown by the farmers in the study area were listed as Teff, sorghum, maize, Hanfets (mixture of barley and wheat), barley, wheat, and finger millet. About 82% farmers had grown Teff whereas 66 %, 11%, 3%, 7%, 9%, 8% and 15% of the farmers had grown wheat, barley, Hanfets, legumes, maize, sorghum and millet, respectively, in the nonadopters. Adopter farmers had grown 90% Teff whereas 63%, 10%, 7%, 34%, 1% and 34% had grown wheat, Hanfets, legumes, maize, sorghum and millet, respectively. The area of crop and conversion factor of crop residue is listed in table 12. In the mixed cereal dominated crop and livestock farming system of the Ethiopian highlands, crop residues provide about 50% of the total ruminant livestock feed resource. Green feed management is integrated with crop production activitiesBased on the below table, a household can collect about 20.376 quintal crop residues annually.In the past 2015/2016 summer the rainfall amount was not enough in the study area even in regional level this might decrease the production of both yield and crop residue production.Out of the total crop residues produced at household, majority is obtained from Teff straw (6.85qt/HH), wheat straw (5.65qt/HH) and barley straw (2.98qt) followed by maize Stover (1.75qt), finger millet straw (1.43qt), sorghum Stover (1.37qt), legume straw (0.27qt), Hanfets straw (0.0089qt) in that order. This shows that Teff, wheat and barley are staple crops in the area and preferred by farmers.Table12. Crop residue production from each crop type in the study areas (n=200)     14. The production level, management practices and utilization mode of the cultivated forages was investigated through respondents' interview. Based on the reply of the respondents, sesbania, alfalfa, elephant grass, leucaena, lablab, local grass, cowpea, pigeon pea and Rhodes grass are the available forage species in the areas. Of these introduced forage species, Alfalfa and sesbania are dominantly produced by the growers and followed by elephant grass, leuceana, cowpea, lablab, local grass, Rhodes and pigeon pea in that order.Cowpea, lablab, Rhodes and pigeon pea often used for seed production and marketing. The mean dry matter forage yield of the common green feeds is presented in Table14. On average about 6921 kg DM is harvested at household level. The forage is largely contributed by elephant grass (60.2%), followed by alfalfa (26%), sesbania (12%) and Leucaena (1.8%) in that order.  There are different strategies for forage production development. This depends on availability of land, scale of production, interest of farmers and other factors. In this study, the forage species were found to be cultivated under irrigation areas as the study purposively targeted on the irrigated green fodder under the dairy producers in milk shed areas. Alfalfa, sesbania, leucaena, elephant grass, lablab and local grass were identified during the survey. According to the respondents', these investigated forage species are grown around irrigation areas to get water source as well as intercropping system. Next to irrigation areas, forage species were grown as alley farms, backyards, intercropping, over sowing, area closure and soil and water conservation structures. For instance, farmers produce lablab and cowpea with maize in the space between rows. Thee common green species, which are cultivated in the study area and their managements are listed in table 16. The different species have their own propagation way and managed differently based on their growth habit and nature. Alfalfa, cowpea, lablab and Rhodes are established by direct sawing. Leuceana and sesbania can be also planted by using direct sowing and planting seedlings. The seeds of leucaena and sesbania are hard and thus boiled and crashed.Most of the respondents use stratification treatment for alfalfa seed before planting to facilitate germination and establishment to minimize from high density. Elephant grass is planted by vegetative propagation (cutting and splitting root). The common agronomic practices for irrigated green fodder being employed in the study areas include land preparation, water supply, fertilizer use, weeding practice and harvesting. These are practiced to improve the forage production in order to get enough green feed to dairy cattle.About 92.7% of the forage growers prepare land for forage production while the rest 7% do not so. Likewise, about 87.6% of the respondents irrigate their forage plantation with water, and the 13% did not water their forage fields. Out of the respondents 96% use organic fertilizer and the least 4 % did not use fertilizer. About 88 % of respondents weed their forage plantation and 96% of the respondents grow the green feeds under protection in closed areas. All the interviewed dairy producers have started feeding fodder to their animals. The farmers use the fodder in different ways and majority of respondents (48%) give the grass fodder alone to animals after some roughage feeds are eaten. And some (17.5%) mostly alfalfa give in combination with roughage feeds. About 26% of the dairy producers replied that they utilize the fodder in both ways and few of them (8%) allow their animals to directly graze on the forage plantation. Regarding the feeding management of green fodder, the farmers responded that they use the fodder directly in fresh form with no any treatment (47%) and some of them (25%) use the herbage in wilted form to avoid health problem on animals. And the remaining farmers feed the fodder to animals in both options. The feeding form and feeding management of the respondent vary among them as presented in table 18. According to the respondents, using the green fodder may or may not cause health problem on animals depending on the feed type and feeding management. Of the dairy producers, majority of them (68%) did not face any health problem occurrence while the rest producers (32%) face the problem. Diarrhea (2%) and bloating (30%) were identified as the major health problems which often caused due to poor feeding management of the fodder. This indicates that bloating is a serious problem in animal feeding. The reasons for occurrence of bloating were mentioned to be due to poor feeding management such as feeding without wilting (29%) and consuming fodder before roughage (3%).  The dependent variable in this analysis is a dummy variable, taking the value one if a farmer adopts on green feed and 0, otherwise; whereas the explanatory variables comprises both continuous and discrete. A total of eleven explanatory variables were considered in the model, of which six variables were found to significantly influence smallholder farmers' participant on the green feed adoption practice. Marginal effect (for continuous explanatory variables)indicates that the effect of one unit change in an explanatory variable on the dependent variable, while for the dummy variables the values reported are changed in the dependent variable in response to a change in the binary variable from zero to one.Salt and oil 1Running animal, salt, tsray swa, oil and areqi 8 Salt, oil and areqi 14Using tambock for treatment 1The probit model result shows that sex of the household head had negative and significant influence on extension service access at (p=0.019). Given other factors constant, as the sex of household head becomes male probability of the farmer access to green feed adoption reduced by 24.7%.Farm land holding had positively and significant effect on green feed adoption participation.As farmers' farm size increase by one hectare his/her probability of access to extension service increased by 199%. Because green feed production needs land to cultivate feed for animals. It is farm activity that required enough land and it is usually true that small land holders and landless farmers do not practice or decrease practice. Hence, farmers with large farm size might be participated in improving green feed management activities than others.Education level has positive significant difference on the green feed adoption at (p=0.002). As the respondents' increase level of education, the adoption capacity of the respondents increase by 24.7%.The other highly significant variable in this model is distance of farmers' residence from the Farmers Training Centre. This is in fact farmers resides far from the FTC have less attended in extension programs such as dairy visit, workshop and trainings regarding green feed management for dairy improvement than those who resides near to FTC in which the distance of the home from farmers training center is far decrease the adoption of green feed by 13.4%.Moreover, farmers also acquire extension information and knowledge regarding dairy and feeding improved fodder through mass medias, for instance in this case, by possessing Radio, TV and mobile. Farmers who owned minimum one of these three information source increased the probability of access to adoption of green feed by 47.6%.The seed supply one from the explanatory variables which is positively highly significant at 1%, this indicates as seed supply increase the probability being adopter becomes increase by 47.8%. The major constraints to adoption of green feed on the study area were identified to be shortage of land (first), shortage of water (second) and shortage of forage seed which are ranked third by the non-adopter respondents based on their importance. and lack of credit access in the order of their importance from first to ninth. All this and that, limit the wide spread of improved fodder species adoption in the study areas. According to the respondents, green feed increases the potential of production and reproduction performance of dairy cattle. This indicates that proper feeding of animals improves milk production, body condition and health condition and this varies with the observation level of farmers from very good to low. To summarize the impact of green feed for dairy production, the green fodders were ranked through the respondents' observation on their dairy cattle.Milk production during dry period and after feeding green feed have different yield. This indicates during dry season non-adopters get 1.3±1.8 litres/day/cow and during wet season 2.4±2.14liter/day whereas adopters during dry season 3±2.7 and during wet season 6 ±3.5 litre/day according to the respondents of the study area. From the common green feeds used for dairy cattle, respondents put their priority rank according to the use of feed to their cattle. From the adopter respondents; green forages improve productivity, even if all are useable for milk production increment, the level of increasing was ranked as very good (45%), good (42%) and moderate (13%). This indicates that the forage adopters have positive attitude toward the introduced fodder plants, implying the need for wider adoption in the future. Not available =Not observe the impact of green feed from their dairyThe farmers appreciated the importance of improved fodder in improving the body condition of animals. All the respondents agreed with the importance of the fodders in the animal feeding system. The respondents ranked the forage species in improving the body condition of their animal as very good (43.8%), good (46.5 %) and moderate (9.5%). The respondents confirmed also that improved fodders with good feeding quality improve the health condition of animals. Animals with improved body condition can resist any diseases from the external environment. It implies that animals get balanced feed which are source of minerals to control from external and internal disease outbreak. The observation of respondents on controlling disease through feeding green feed were ranked as 28% of very good perception, 50% good and 10.9% moderate while 11.1% did say nothing. CHAPTER 5: DISCUSSIONSThe average age of dairy producers was 45.94±8.12 years. The age of the producer is one of the factors which affect the decisions and actions made. Even though most of the dairy cattle keepers range from 30-60 years old, there was significant (P<0.001) difference in ages between respondents in the study area. The study revealed that the majority of the respondents were males, and they were mostly involved in dairying enterprise (Table 2). About 13.5% of the respondents were female producers indicating that smallholder dairy farming provides selfemployment for women and therefore, contributes to the improvement of the living standard in this particular group. Most of the dairy management practices are done by women as men are involved in other additional income generating activities. Results show that the majority of the respondents were married couples. The advantage of the family in dairy enterprise is to provide family labor to dairy cattle like milking and feeding in the absence of hiring labor so that production level can be maintained.The majority of the respondents (63%) were literate, which is good for improved technology adoption and dissemination. Educational level of respondents increases farmers' ability to acquire innovation easily. Due to higher literacy level, community is more likely to violently participate in looking for skills regarding their dairy cattle management as a means of improving milk yield. Education is an important tool to bring fast and sustainable development and has roles in affecting household income, adopting technologies, health management and as a whole the socioeconomic status of the family as well. This might be a good contribution to adopt technologies to the study area. Level of education is also related to have the ability ofThe average livestock herd size in the districts were estimated to be 5.28 TLU/HH and 5.428  (Hassen et al., 2010).Livestock production is an important component of the farming system. Livestock are kept as sources of draft power; milk, meat, skin and hides, and they are also the main sources of income and are closely linked to the social and cultural lives of the community. The major reasons responsible for declining livestock number are shortage of grazing land, population growth, expansion of crop land and shortage of feeds and water.Cattle are kept by farmers for different purposes. The purpose of cattle keeping was indicated at table (6). The same thing was reported by Yadessa (2015) the main purpose of cattle rearing in the study district was for draught power and income generation (100%) and this was similar with Menbere et al.(2008) in Tigray region. Similarly, Gebreyohannes and Hailemariam (2011) indicated that the most qualities of keeping livestock purposes in Tigray were for income and trade, food, savings (livestock have better rate of return than interest from banks or credit and savings institutions), risk management (buffers to withstand crises), wealth creation, animal traction (drawn plough), social capital, manure and accessing communal lands.Most vital feed resources to livestock in the study areas during the dry season were found to be crop residues, hay, green feed and weeds, Attela, improved forages and browse trees. Among these feed resources, crop residues and hay contribute the largest source of feed to livestock in the study areas, which is similar with the finding of (Tesfay, 2014).Whereas during wet season or irrigation time the major feed sources are found as weed and green feed, crop residues, browse legumes, Atella, herbaceous legume and grass and hay. In general, the amount of production in wet and dry season was not enough for the available livestock within the household. Because there was scarcity of water during the summer of study conducted. According to Kechero et al.(2013) the main sources of feed for livestock were natural pasture (30.39%), aftermath and road side grazing/browsing (19.34%), fodder trees and shrubs (17.12%) and crop residues (17.67%) in Jimma zone, south west Ethiopia .Similarly, Birhan and Adugna (2014) said in Ethiopia the source of animal feed are natural pasture, crop residues and agro-industrial by products. Also Tesfay (2014) reported that the most vital feed resources to livestock in Tigray region were found to be crop residues, natural pasture, hay, stubble grazing (crop aftermath), browse trees, industrial by products, cactus, improved forages and Attela. And the total DM production of crop residue within household were 20.3 tone.The crop residue production of present study was greater than 8.74 t DM at Adami Tullu Jiddo Kombolcha District which was reported by (Assefa and Nurfeta, 2013). The dominant crop type legumes are capable of enhancing both crop production through sustained soil fertility and livestock production through increased accessibility of high quality feed (Assefa and Ledin, 2001). On the average, crop residues provide 10-15% of the total feed intake in the mixed croplivestock producing areas in the central highlands of Ethiopia (Alemayehu, 2004).Adoption depends on better targeting of extension to farmer needs as successful outcomes will depend on the participation of the farmers and stakeholders in the livestock industry (Mapiye et al., 2006b) . Out of the determinant factor of green feed adoption, a total of eleven explanatory variables were considered in the model; of which six variables were found to be significantly affecting the adoption of fodder. Sex and distance to FTC are negatively and significantly determining the forage adoption while education level, land size, seed access and access to media influencing smallholder farmers' participant on the green feed adoption practice positively significant. Other variables do not contribute to the farmers' sustained adoption decision behavior of green feed technology in the study area.Gender of the respondents implies negative sign at 10 %. That means participation of being males decrease the green feed adoption. This disagree with the result of Berihun (2014) and off-farm participation is positive and statistically significant at 1% level.The probit result of the study found that education level of the respondents is positively significantly at 1% level. The positive sign indicates that literate farmers have 68.4% of higher probability of participation on the green feed adoption. This is similar with the finding of (Berihun, 2014) who reported that the magnitude of positive sign those literate HHs, keeping other things constant, have 23.14% higher probability of participation unlike their counter parts.Also similar with the finding of Tiamiyu et al.( 2014) the positive sign on the education variables implies that those farmers with higher education level adopt more quality enhancing technologies.The farm size of the study is positively significantly at 1% level. This implies that large land size can really increase the probability adoption on green feed production. Land size as independent factor, a unit increase would increase the probability of participation on green feed adoption by 177 %. In line with Berihun (2014) reported that large land holding size is found to be imperative for producing a relatively higher crop yield. And comparative with study of Oyewole et al. (2014) the coefficient for farm size (0.501) was positive and significant at 1 percent, implying that increase in farm size would lead to an increase in output of rice.Access of forage seed supply also highly significant at 1% for the adoption of green feed. That implies when the supply of farmers selected seed was present cultivation of green feed increase at the available land similar with study Wondatir (2015) of to increase production and productivity of crop and livestock, input utilization is important. Inputs such as improved seed, fertilizer, pesticides, insecticides, irrigation facilities, livestock feed and improved cattle breeds were mentioned by the respondents.In the current finding distance to farmers training center has been negative significant at1%.This indicates as the farmers' house far from farmers training center the probability of adoption decreases by 37% because they might not be participated on trainings, agricultural extension services and other at farmers training center on time. The FTC has been established before a decade at each tabias to serve as nodes, which could provide extension service (packages), training (short term and modular), demonstration and centers of show and information, as a result, distributes agricultural technologies (Gebremedhin et al., 2006). Extension service which get from FTC is crucial in uptake and adoption of improved technologies (Yadessa, 2015).Other studies Yayeh et al. (2014) revealed that constraints for dairy production were animal disease, lack of crossbred genotype animal, feed shortage, milk market, land (space) shortage and water shortage.According to the respondents, green forages mainly legumes, besides feed resource of dairy animals, they can improve the productivity of crop yield and pastures by improving the fertility status of the soil. They can also improve the feeding value of roughages since they have more protein content. The benefits of improved fodder were prioritized by the local farmers based on their importance and accordingly milk production was ranked first and followed by animal growth performance (i.e. animal fattening), improve breeding, improving soil fertility and improved disease resistance. The same benefits were mentioned in the survey work of Gebreyohannes and Hailemariam (2011). And also this result is agreement with the previous reports of Welle et al. (2006) who indicated that desho grass has valuable role in soil conservation. And study of Eba (2012) said feed resource improved soil and water conservation.Green feed as one element from the factors of dairy production, in this study others components as constant, green feed has positive impact on the dairy production performance and body condition. The average milk yield was estimated to be 1.3 litres/day/cow and 2.4 litres/day/cow during dry and wet seasons, respectively in the case of non-adopters. Similarly, the milk yield was estimated to be 3 litres/day/cow (dry season) and 6 liters/day/cow (wet season) in case of forage adopters. This shows that fodder adopters get higher milk yield than that of non-adopters with the same cow breed, which could be attributed to many factors including the utilization of improved fodder. The average milk production of the study area was comparable with the study of Yayeh et al. (2014)   (Duguma et al., 2012). The same authors added that feed shortage, silent estrus and difficulties to heat detection might have contributed considerably to the long days open. Likewise, longer calving interval could be due to poor heat detection and less access to AI services and poor feeding practices (Gebremichael, 2015). A. Forage production 1. Do you produce irrigated fodder? 1) Yes 2) No 2. If yes, for what purpose? 1) for milk/dairy 2) For fattening 3) For sale 4)For maintenance 5) Others………………………… 3. Experience in growing forage? 1) < 1 years 2) 1-5 years 3) 5-10 years 4) > 10 years 4. What are the common green fodders used for your dairy cattle or other animals? 1) Pasture forage crops 2) Improved herbaceous legume 3) Improved grasses 4) Forage legume tree 5) Others………… 5. Where did you get these forage seed? 1)Gov't2) NGO 3) Private 4) Others ���………………. 6. List the common cultivated green feed available and area coverage?Strategies: Backyard=1, irrigation=2, irrigated backyard=3, alley=4, intercropping=5, under cropping=6, enclosures=7, swc structures=8 etc. ","tokenCount":"13155"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"1f07d6abcfa40dbce9fa7dcf96283981","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/e84563ff-17e4-45a3-9a30-4ceaa85ab11a/retrieve","id":"400569128"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"2bcb9f4b-fb9c-46aa-80b0-da270d469af5","pagecount":"73","content":"Th~s is a report of the Animal Sciences Review Team invitad by the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations to aasist the staff of CIAT in the plonning of ~ts research and training programs in the animal sciences This review was made during the pcriod July 28 -August 25, 1968 Details of places v~sited and sorne examples of work observed are giycn in Append~x II Br~efly, seven days were spent in Colomb~a, three daya in Ecuador f~ve days in Brazil, three days in Venezuela and a final aix doyo ~n Bogota for discussions and preparation of this report The Rev~ew Team members wish to expreas the~r personal thnnlts ond appreciation to all of those officials and staff membera of institutiono viaited These sc~Lnt~sts and officiala were most cooperativa and helpful at all times and provided much useful information and data nceded for thio review Special acknowledgement is given to Dr Ned S Raun, Dr R l{ \\Jough, Dr J H Mancr and Dr E D Robcrta of the Rockefeller Foundotion otnff and Dr James Plaxico of the Ford Foundation in Colomb~o for their assiotoncethroughout the study for their msny courtesies and hospitality, nnd for ~nvaluable informat1on on the prel~minary plans that have been developedfor CIATThe review was made on the assumption that the bas1c objcctivc of the An1mal ScLences Program of CIAT w1ll be to contrLbute to incrc~oed efficiency of production of livestock and livestock products in the lo1land tropical areas of the world, especially in Latin America Further, it LS assumed that majar emphas1s is to be gLven by CIAT to the an1mal sc1ences program as a pare of the total Lnter•disciplinary approach necessary for modernLzation of agriculture Ln the underdeveloped arcas o;the world This LmplLes that allocation of resources, hpman and financial, and facLl1t1es w1ll be suffLcient over a perLad long enough for the program to have maJar 1mpacts on lLvestock production It is esscntLcl to recogn1ze that w1th the except1on of poultry and S\\7Lne, resulto f~cm animal research accrue more slowly than io true for soils and crops        (2) l:.valuatton of local products -.s sources of these elements for swine (Gontent and avatlability)2) Manabement lhere LS 1 ¡,r ... at d<.l!ctc.ncy 1n the information reg1rding building   ¡¡ 9, ') ","tokenCount":"370"}

data/part_3/0021986075.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"f4954ad4f8542bd65bb589355db1132c","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/d1e146d1-52ad-402d-ae11-ac86f7ad8932/retrieve","id":"2292025"},"keywords":["lnte mattonol C enle r fOf\" Tropical Agricu Hure \\Caren\\BGBD Project\\Progress Reporting\\Giobafi.Report 2004\\Annua/ report 03\\ann_prog03 1_ Ver3/.ttf","Huising","12/0712004"],"sieverID":"ea0eeb91-c50c-44be-9947-3c0a6d94c9fa","pagecount":"28","content":"Soil organisms, including bacteria, fungi , protozoa and invertebrates, constitute what is now referred to as Below-Ground soil Biological Diversity (BGBD). The numbers of types, and population numbers, of below BGBD is staggering. For example, just one square metre of soil in a tempera te forest may contain more than 1000 species of invertebrates, whilst the number and diversity of microbes in just one gram of soil may be even greater. The importance of this diversity is only just being recognized fully through ecological and phylogenetic studies, but in tropical regions where the híghest levels of BGBD are found , few detailed studíes have been completed.Soil organísms provide essential services for the sustainable functioning of al\\ ecosystems and are ímportant resources for sustaínable management of agricultura! ecosystems. These ecological services include control of mineral nutrient cycling, carbon sequestration in soils and reductions of greenhouse gas emissions, maintenance of soil physical structure and water retention capacity, nutrient acquisition by plants, especially via mycorrhizal fungi and nitrogen-fixing bacteria; and maintenance of plant health through natural predation and parasitism of plant pathogens and pests. Apart from their importance to agriculture, soil organisms, especially fungi and microbes are potential source of pharmaceuticals and chemical for industry through bioprospecting. For éxample, the immuno-suppressant drug, cyclosporin, was first isolated from the soil microfungus, Tolypocladíum ínflatum, in a mountain soil sample from Norway.BGBD is dramatically reduced when forests are converted to agriculturalland, and when agricultura! land use is íntensified . This can lead to decreases in agricultura! productivity reducing the \"resilience\" of agricultura! systems, makíng them more vulnerable to adverse climatic events, erosion, pests; disease and other threats.Sustainable management of BGBD will enhance the resilience and sustainability of man 's productive ecosystems, whilst at the same time conserving soil genetic resources for bioprospecting.The driving force behind the development of the 'Conservation and Management of Below-Ground Biodiversity (CMS-BGBD)' project was the urgent need to slow loss of BGBD and better assess the potential uses of soil biodiversity in ecosystem management and bioprospecting.You have before you the first annual progress report of the 'Conservation and Management of Below-Ground Biodiversity (CMS-BGBD)' project. The report covers the period from August 2002 (the official start of the project) to December, 2003.    On August 1, 2002, the project document was signed by Mr. E Ortega, representative of UNEP as co-implementing organization, and Professor Mike Swift, the then director of TSBF, marking the official start of the project \"conservation and sustainable management of below-ground biodiversity\" with the acronym CSM-BGBD. The project is generally referred to as the BGBD project however.The BGBD project is, at this moment, the only full sized project dealing with below ground biodiversity within the 'biodiversity' focal area with financia! support from the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and implementation support from the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). The executing agency is the Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility institute (TSBF), nowadays an institute within the lnternational Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT). The project's main goal is to generate information and knowledge that can be used to better manage and conserve BGBD in tropical agricultura! landscapes in order to maintain agricultura! productivity and reduce extensification of agriculture into natural landscapes. The project will build capacity for conservation and sustainable management of BGBD through South-South information exchange and training supported by international institutions.The major goals of the project are:1. To develop internationally accepted standard methods for characterizing and evaluating BGBD, including indicators for BGBD loss;2. To inventory BGBD at sites representing a broad range of globally significant ecosystem and land use types, and to develop a global exchange network for information on BGBD;3. To identify sustainable and replicable land management practices for BGBD conservation, and to pilot implementation of these practices at demonstration sites in the seven countries;4. To promete alternative land-use practices that will enhance conservation of BGBD especially though policy advice support systems; and5. Through the above and other activities, improve the capacity of institutions and stakeholders to conserve and manage BGBD in a sustainable and efficient manner.The project is implemented through seven country programmes (CP), by a range of stakeholders, including government and other research institutes, plus NGOs. Working groups (WG), each linked to a major output of the project, and representatives from each of the seven country programmes provide scientific and technical inputs into the project while invited scientists from internationally recognized institutions advise the WGs on specialist technical matters. Overall project supervision is provided by the BGBD Project Advisory Committee (BGBD-PAC). The PAC comprises scientists from each pilot country and also from other international organizations working on the interface between agriculture and environment. The project, being executed under the responsibility of TSBF-CIAT also reports to the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) of TSBF-CIAT. The Project Steering Committee (PSC) has overall responsibility for implementation and execution of the project. The PSC includes the Project Coordinator (PC), a GEF representative, the TSBF-CIAT Director and the participating Country Programme Conveners (CPC).The project coordinator and the conveners of each WG constitute the Project Coordinating Committee (PCC). The PC is based at TSBF-CIAT headquarters in Nairobi and is supported for administrative, financia! and information management services by the Project Facilitating Staff (PFS).Stakeholders include an inter-disciplinary team of scientists working in BGBD taxonomy, ecology, economic evaluation and soil management in agricultura!, forestry and other ecosystems. They range from field practitioners to decision makers, but all share the goal of raising awareness on BGBD conservation and the potential benefits to agricultura! production.By developing standard inventory and characterization methods for BGBD at the benchmark sites, the project will generate knowledge that will aid studying and understanding the role of BGBD in ecosystem services across a range of diverse ecosystems. This will contribute to the use of soil organisms in conserving the environment, improving ecosystem health and enhancing agricultura! productivity, thus contributing to enhanced food security, improved carbon sequestration and conservation of soil genetic resources.The global information platform developed and maintained by the project will enhance knowledge exchange and create awareness on the importance of BGBD in ecosystem services and enhancing agricultura! productivity beyond the seven pilot countries.ldentifying and recommending alternative land-use practices will assist in the management of BGBD, and thereby support soil processes that sustain crop production. Through this , the project will contribute to improving livelihoods of tropical farmers by improving the sustainability of their farming systems , whilst the enhanced environmental services provided by these farming systems will yield benefits to surrounding non-farming communities in towns and cities.Progress in project implementation during its first one-and-a half year An initial implementation workshop was held at the Wageningen Agricultura! University from August 26 to 30 2002, marking the start of the project.  Memoranda of Agreement between TSBF-CIAT and the implementing organisations in the participating countries were signed in the months of November and December of 2002. Funds were in sorne countries not available until February 2003 and this delay of availability of funding resulted in inactivity in the country teams. There has been a lag period whilst the members reassembled and re-familiarised themselves with the project. The effect of this lag period on getting the project activities started was still very much experienced throughout 2003.A second global workshop was held in Lampung, Indonesia from February 24 to 28. This workshop can be considered the start of the project, from a practica! point of view. The week prior to the global workshop a planning workshop on the economic valuation of BGBD and associated ecological services was held in France, with representatives from each of the countries. At the workshop in Lampung the project management and implementation structure were decided upon. Further, much attention was devoted to discussion of technical issues (site selection, sampling strategy and methods for the inventory) and to planning of project activities.The implementation of the project structure, both at country level and at the global coordination level, has taken time. The staff of the coordinating office was expanded with a secretary as of May 1 51 and the project information manager (PIM) took up his duties as of November 1 51 , 2003. In the countries the project teams had to be partly re-established and project structure implemented. National planning workshops were held in each of the countries and sometime separate workshops were held to discuss methods for inventory. In sorne countries training activities were organised in preparation of the fieldwork. The project coordinator has visited each of the countries to support project implementation (apart from Indonesia). These visits generally served severa! purposes: to revive the country programmes by meeting with the project members and visiting representatives of the implementing to get confirmation of their commitment to the project, to support project implementation by discussing the project structure and associated administrative and financia! affairs, planning of project activities and discussing technica l issues related to site selection and methods.Project organisation has been established and project structure implemented at different pace in the countries. This has impacted on the functioning of the working groups that operate across countries. lt has, for example, impacted on the discussions related to the development of standard methods. In the original planning it was envisaged that standard methods would be devised prior to the start of the field work, aiming at September 2003. This proved not to be possible, partly also because of lack of communication mentioned earlier. In the mean time countries were urged to start field activities and to consider this as a pilot phase, rather then to postpone these. In most countries a start with the inventory had been made by the end of 2003 or early 2004. A few countries had already decided befare then to start field work, irrespective of the issue of standard methods not having been resolved . Where the delay in the provision of standard methods for inventory of BGBD caused sorne countries to postpone the start of the inventory exercise, it did not withhold the larger number of the countries to proceed with preparatory E:\\Caren\\BGBD Project\\Progress Reporting \\Giobai\\Report 2004\\Annua/ report 03\\ann _prog031_ Ver31.rtf; Huising; 12107/2004 activities related to site characterisation, land use mapping or community involvement.Given the problem with communication within the project, the communication infrastructu re was placed high on the agenda of the PI M. The development of a project brochure and publishi ng of the first newsletter also featured prominently on that agenda. Both items were presented in the first months of 2004.The status of the activities and achievements, as far as the purpose and the goal of the project are concerned, is described in the table below. lt provides a summary of what is being described in more detail in the next sections. Description of outputs and milestones achieved and the status of the activities is based on the output and milestones and logframe as defined in the \"Monitoring and Evaluation\" document (tables 2 and 3 thereof respectively) the farm to the nation.Global methodology and database for BGBD developed and utilised .Most of the methods for the inventory and evaluation of 8G8D that have been selected by now are well-known and well established. See for example Anderson & lngram (1993) in \"Tropica l Soil 8iology and Fertility: A handbook of methods\" and Swift and 8ignell ( 2001) in \"AS8 Lecture note 68\". The AS8 Lecture note 68 provides standard methods for assessment of soil biodiversity and in particular macrofauna. nematodes, rhizobia and mycorrhizas.Although these are known methods, they have not been applied and tested in each of the countries. Moreover there are new techniques that have been developed over the last years that need to be considered and incorporated in the protocols, and that not all country teams are familiar with. Result on testing of the proposed methods will be presented in September 2004. The selection of methods is a milestone that has been achieved (see table below).At the Lampung global workshop a number of functional groups of soil organisms were defined, like \"macrofauna\" as the soil engineers. For all of these 'broad' functional groups methods for inventory are available, see for example the AS8 Lecture Notes 68. Methods for inventory of some of these groups are not contentious issues and will require only settlement of minor issues. However, in Lampung it was decided to adopta systematic sampling grid, rather then the transect sampling generally described in literature, and this does have implications for the sampling protocols. Thus, where the methods for sample collection in it self are not disputed, the protocols need to be adapted and tested in the field.At Lampung we did not consider measures for assessing diversity directly, using molecular techniques. Rather, the discussion on this tapie was consigned to a workshop on molecular techniques that was held from September 27th to October 3rd. 2003 at Ca li, Colombia. However, the issue of the use of molecular techniques was not resolved and will need further discussion.The methods for economic valuation of 8G8D were discussed at the workshop held in Quissac, France in February 2003. Here the decision was taken to apply methods and techniques, as know to environmental economics, in assessing Direct Economic Value, lndirect Economic Value, Option Value and Existence Value. Guidelines and protocols for assessing these values to BGBD are very complex and far from clear, and will require investigative research. Countries will conduct case studies. •-----  The inventory of land use, soils, etc. in the benchmark sites has been has been initiated and is progressing in a number of countries. Annex 2 presents the land use map of the Benjamin Constant benchmark area in the Amazons, Brazil, as an example of a result obtained from interpretation of satellite imagery. In a few countries the inventory of benchmark sites still has to start. In many countries these activities are linked to the design of the sampling scheme. In Brazil, for example, a reconnaissance soil survey is carried out in preparation for layout of the sampling windows . In sorne countries use is made of aerial photos to define the location of the sampling windows . In many countries descriptive materials (and maps) of the benchmarks sites are available, but often the data is too general for the purpose of our study and requires additional efforts. For exa mple, given the small and fragmented land use patterns in many of the benchmark sites (e.g. Brazil, Uganda, Cóte d'lvoire) existing land use maps do not provide the spatial detail needed for designing the sampling schemes. High resolution satellite imagery or aerial photos that would provide the spatial detail are often not available. As a consequence country teams have relied on direct observation in the field to locate sampling frames and comprehensive documents or geographical databases on the benchmark sites was given less of a priority.In each country the benchmark sites have been visited and reconnaissa nce data have been gathered . As such there is a clear idea of the range of land use intensities represented in the area. A definition of land use intensity and standard method for assessment of land use intensity is still asked for and will be given priority in 2004.By establishing sampling frames in all benchmark the milestone for outcome 2 has been achieved.As mentioned, the survey of BGBD has started in 2003 (or early 2004) in a number of countries: Mexico, Brazil, Uganda, Kenya and Indonesia. These surveys are generally still in preliminary stages, referring to test sampling and familiarizing surveyors with the proposed methods for inventory. In particular cases very preliminary results have been presented. The work on the global information exchange network has taken a start with the appointment of the Project lnformation Manager (PIM). Given the commun ication problems experienced within the project, setting up a communication infrastructure was given a first priority. The work on the project brochure and project newsletter should be seen in this light as well.The brochure and the first newsletter have been presented in January and February 2004 respectively. The work on a WEB based communication platform for the project is in progress. In the mean time use is made of the CIAT WEB site to communicate information on the project to project participants and other interested parties.  Milestones and outputs related to sustainable management practices for BGBD conservation are all expected to be realized during the second year of the project or during the second phase. The development or design of management practices is aimed to be done with the participation of the farmer communities. Farmer participation and community involvement are therefore to be addressed under this outcome.In a number of countries like Mexico, Brazil and Kenya communities have been approached actively to seek active involvement of these communities in the project. This so far has been in the form of workshop or meetings with community representatives. The outputs and milestones defined in the \"Monitoring and Evaluation\" document related to this project outcome all refer to the establishment of the demonstration sites, which is an activity planned for the second phase of the project. Work done on community involvement and farmers participation, i.e. introducing the project, getting the perception and knowledge of the farmers on belowground biodiversity and their function is not reflected in the outcomes and project activities as described in the logframe, apart from the assessment of local resource management practices. The policy advisory system is part of the anticipated output under this outcome of the project. Outcomes and milestone are expected to be obtained during the second phase of the project. Awareness raising activities and establishing strategic links with other programmes and initiatives both at the national and international leve! are also part of thís component of the project. Within that context the participation in the Convention on Biological Diversity -Fourth workshop on Sustainable use of Biological Diversity, 6-8 May, Addis Ababa, should be placed. The aim in general is to get more specific attention for the below-ground component in recommendations and resolutions regarding biodiversity.The ASB programme (Aiternatives to Slash and Burn) is a strategic partner to the project, amongst other because of their involvement in the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment that offers interesting opportunities for links with the BGBD project. The BGBD project coordinator attending the 1 ih ASB GlobalSteering Group Meeting as representative TSBF-CIA T _ CIAT, served to strengthen those links.The BGBD project was further represented at the lnternational Workshop Agricultura! Biodiversity and Sustainable Development 23-25 Oct 2003, Nairobi, Kenya and at the EcoAgriculture Partners meeting November 6, Nairobi.In a number of countries the project has been launched officially, generally coinciding with the national planning workshop, to attract media attention. Also the global workshops are generally covered on either TV or radio (local The outputs defined for this project component are all related to the analysis of the policy environment and policy negotiations at national and global levels, which are generally planned for the second phase of the project and will therefore not be reported on in table form .In 2003, two workshops were held that combined both training and planning components. The workshop in France, though primarily intended for planning purposes, clearly had a training component to it. There were delegates from each of the countries, many of whom proved not to have particular experience with applying environmental economics. The workshop was as such a very usefu\\ introduction to the subject and will undoubtedly be followed by others. At the workshop it was decided to conduct to case studies in each of the countries. One case study will relate to economic benefits derived from nitrogen fixation by legume nodulating bacteria. The subject of the second case study will be determined later. Apart from investigating economic benefits these case studies serve to train the country teams at the same time.From the September 27th to the 3rd of October a training workshop was held in Cali, Colombia on the use of molecular techniques. Each country team had delegated their expert to the workshop. Focus was on one particular technique: a method known as \"terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism\" (T-RFLP). The workshop addressed all stages in the analysis from the soil sampling to the data analyses and will be of benefit also if other molecular techniques are to be considered . One representative from each country was invited. Planning for the use of molecular techniques with in the BGBD project as well as the use of standard methods for inventory of BGBD was being discussed as well.In various countries training workshop were held on particular tapies to train and refresh project participants on methods and techniques.    Knowledge of soil biota and The project brochure and first newsletter of the awareness and its management project have been issued. In sorne countries knowledge of disseminated to farmers, brochures and leaflets have been published BGBD and its extensionists, NGOs and targeting national audience and especially public at functions among lower governments the benchmark areas. Development of training stakeholders from Decision makers utilise soil material underway in sorne of the countries. farmers to biodiversity information in national planners national and regional plansTesting and documenting of standard methods will be finalized in 2004. This will include the sampling protocol, processing and handling and analysis (identification). Functional groups have been selected whose inventory is mandatory and for which standard methods are provided. The inventory of a number of functional groups have been indicated optional and will be done depending on the capacity and ski lls available. In all cases an element of eva luation of the methods will be included in the study and experience from the various countries will by synthesised at the global leve\\. A start will have been made in 2004 with the testing of indicators, but will not be concluded until the year thereafter. In sorne countries molecular techniques will be applied to look at microbial diversity as an indicator for soil biodiversity. In other countries the use of indicator species will be investigated, based on the data obtained from the inventory. Countries will develop their own plans with regard to activities in this field for 2004.As far as the economic valuation of BGBD resources is concerned a start with case studies will be made in 2004, for which the countries will submit proposals to the coordinating office.lnventory of BGBD and global information exchange network lnterpretation of aerial photos or satellite imagery will be finalized and results presented in the form of a land use map. The data will be combined with other geographical thematic data to create a comprehensive GIS database of the benchmark area sti ll within the first half of 2004.In 2004 the inventory of BGBD wi\\1 be the major activity in each of the countries. At least the inventory of one of the benchmark areas in each of the countries will have been concluded and reported on, though we may not have reached the stage in which all data and information are already included in the national and global data bases by the end of the year. ---•----.. __lnformation on the BGBD project can be found on the CIAT WEB site in the pages of the TSBF lnstitute (http://www.ciat.cgiar.org/tsbf institute/). The project will operate its own WEB site (to be established during the first half of the year 2004) that will include a communication platform for the project and working group members. Testing and evaluation of these fa cilities will be done still befare the first half year ends. In 2004 still a second newsletters will be published (also through the internet). The work on the database will start with the annual meeting in February, where the requirements and objectives will be discussed from there the database design will be worked on such that we have fully operational information system by the end of the year.The collection of socio-economic baseline data will continue in those countries where it has already started and in others it will start. Socioeconomic data in this context refers to farming system, land management practices, land use, ownership structure and other and might even include social organisation. This will evolve into a diagnostic that will address the ecological and economic viability of the systems identified from which opportunities and entry points for improved management of BGBD can be identified. Based on this information development of the demonstration sites for the year thereafter will be under taken .The above mentioned activities are all suppose to contribute to the recommendation of alternative land use practices. However, no specific activities (like policy analyses) related to this output are foreseen for this year. lmproved capacity of to implement conservation and management of BGBD This year training will be provided in each of the countries in methods for the inventory of the various groups of soil organism and especially in identifying these organisms. The emphasis of these training courses will vary depending on the needs of the particular countries . The emphasis may be on the methods for samp!e collection and identification of soil organisms at the level of functional groups in one country whereas in the other country emphasis might be on identification at family or species leve! if relevant. Also the emphasis on particular functional groups for training might vary between countries. Use will be made of the expertise available within the BGBD team and facilities and opportunities that exist within the countries themselves or regions that they are part of.Training and support will also be provided with respect to data analyses. This may refer to the va rious aspect of processing and ana lyses of the data, whether to the derivation of diversity índices, processing and analyses of the socio-economic baseline data or to methods for analysis of spatial distribution patterns. The latter, being more specific, will be framed as a particular research component.In general the benchmark areas are located in remate areas and are difficult access. In all but one country two or three bench mark areas were selected, with benchmark areas located at large distances from each other, further complicating logistic support. In all countries the above situation poses a complicating factor in trans porting and accommodating of staff as well as in analysing of samples, for which in some countries requires local infrastructu re to be set up (in order to be able to analyse samples within a certain time frame).The above might easily have consequences for delivering planned outputs, the volume of work and finances. Confronted with the organisational and logistic difficulties, countries had already phased the activities between their benchmark areas. The inve ntory has started or will start in one benchmark area and a number of countries have indicated to probably reduce their number of benchmark areas (most likely Mexico and Uganda) . Other countries may f ol!ow. Whether to discard of postponed inventory to later phase depends of the significance of the benchmark area (in terms representation of important eco-regions). In case of Mexico where the Calakmul benchmark area is the only benchmark areas representing drier conditions, this decision will be take n later in the year.Communication has been a problem, causing delay in project implementation. This has been most noticeable in the definition of standard methods for the inventory of BGBD that suffered from lack of feed-back from the working group members in the various country teams. At thte same time it seems that communication regarding the methods has not reached the persons concerned in the country teams.In some countries communication is hampered by lack of facilities (due to limited number of computers avai lable or limited internet access). Part of the problem is related to the sheer number of people involved in the project. However, there are also organisational and attitudinal dimensions to this problem which may, in turn , be related to time constraints because people are heavily committed to other project and activities.We hope to overcome the communication problem partly by providing a proper communi cation infrastructure that will enable participants to retrieve information without havi ng to rely on direct email contact. Publishing a newsletter (in hard copy and soft copy form) is part of that solution. We will also try to improve management of the communication and information exchange.Communication becomes very critica! where people that are distributed over very distant locations have to work together to achieve common objectives . A more flexible approach to project implementation, giving the country prog rammes more independence in defining and executing their prog ramme is a more strategic solution to the problem. 'reporting ' and 'communication' as medium or high risks factors. All these risk factors relate to project management. The other risk factor rated as medium or high was 'work flow', which relates to organisation. Based on the interna! evaluation of project progress we will review management on a country by country bases as far as issues identified above (implementation, budget, planning reporting and communication) are concerned. We as part of that review address issues related to organisation and management structure: reviewing roles and responsibilities of collaborating institutes and participants to see how performance can be improved and risks minimized.The complexity of the project in terms of its objectives being pursues and its multi-disciplinary character may be considered an opportunity on the one and a constraint on the other hand. This project serves both research and development goals in the sense that it wants to investigate BGBD in relation to intensity of land use and it want to promete and develop techniques for the sustainable management and conservation of BGBD. The project aims not only to assess BGBD but also to valuate it and to involve farmers and communities in the process. As such the project unites people from various disciplinary backgrounds and of varying capacity. The project is further challenged by important developments in the various disciplines over the past years, like in soil micro-biology for example.The fact that there are seven countries united within this project offers great opportunities. We will start making use of this comparative advantage in organising training activities, in which we will where we try to match demand and supply within the project as a whole. The same principie could also be applied to, for example, the analyses of samples collected within the different countries, where different capacities exist within each country. We will facilitate some kind of virtual market place where demand side and supply side can meet, for countries to organise themselves.In 2004 we will actively explore opportunities for collaborating with other institutes and organisations outside our own direct network, both at national, regional and global levels. We will further explore further collaboration with programmes/project within CIAT. Special reference should be made in this context to the following programmes/projects: lmpact Assessment, Agrobiodiversity and Biotechnology, lntegrated Pest & Disease Management, Communities and Watersheds and Land UseActivities in the year 2003 have stood in the light of project implementation: establishing the project management and implementation structure, defining standard methods for the inventory of BGBD and making the preparations for the field work to start. Clear progress has been made, though the project has witnessed a late start and further delays with respect to planned activities has occurred for which the reasons have been explained. Given this situatian the project will request far an extensian af the first phase af the project with ane year, ending in June 2005, in arder ta camply with its abligatians as farmulated in the praject dacument. A request ta this end will be submitted ta UNEP, supparted by a revised budget and adjusted plan af wark.One af the majar lessans learned from last year is that it is extremely difficult ta harmanize and synchranise activities between the seven cauntry programmes, given the different conditians and environments under which the country programmes operate. The cauntry programmes will be allowed sorne latitude in defining and implementing their own programmes, though results have to contribute to the common goals of the project. With respect to the inventory of BGBD a minimum (though still quite extensive) programme has to be carried out using standard methods. With respect to conservation and management countries wi ll define their programme in response ta their specific conditions and needs.","tokenCount":"5320"}

data/part_3/0034890993.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"8054fe4d9b510a219e1171468733ef33","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/796fbcd2-ea69-4fe1-8372-a52389ae98b9/retrieve","id":"1675164581"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"312e1311-2805-4fdf-8f37-1a4f6a5d1f11","pagecount":"15","content":"Improved forages: Set of forage species (grasses and legumes) with wide adaptability to diverse climate and soil conditions, of high production and quality, and tolerant or resistant to pests and diseases in pastures. X The magnitude of changes may be affected by location and farm-specific factors (e.g., climate, type of technology adopted, willingness of farmer to reinvest, etc.).• The study uses a primary dataset collected in 2017 by CIAT and different Partners.• Data were obtained through a multistage sampling procedure with 1,039 cattle households• A propensity score matching (PSM) model was used to assess the causal impact of technology adoption on producer welfare (PPI, HDDS)• We considerer adopters at different levels: non-low adoption (>25%); partial-adoption (>50%); highadoption (>75%); and full adoption (>99%).This study aims at measuring the causal effect of adopting improved forages in cattle systems on poverty indicators at the household level.  • Estimation of p-scores using a probit-logit model.• Matching algorithm: teffects and psmatch2.Results-Adoption of improved forages  Results-Probit model Location Producers from the Caribbean and Orinoquia regions are more likely to adopt improved forages than the ones from the Amazon region.Credit access and technical assistance have a negative and significant effect on forage adoption.Climate change vulnerability Producers who have faced climatic events like droughts and floods are more likely to adopt improved pastures.Households and farm characteristics • Household and sociodemographic characteristics seem not to affect adoption.• Improved forage adoption is negatively affected by farm size. Results-Causal effect on poverty. o Adopting improved forages reduces the probability to fall under the poverty line. The effect is only significant at higher levels of technology adoption (full adoption). o Cattle farmers who adopt improved forages for the whole pasture area in their farms, reduce their probability of living in poverty (4% and 3%, according to the poverty line).o The adoption of improved pastures, although considerable with respect to the total farm area, is dominated by improved pastures released before the 90's which are used with management deficiencies (fertilization).o The variables technical assistance and access to credit seem to be discouraging the adoption of improved pastures.o Improved adoption of forages is significantly influenced by location. Several factors can contribute, including agro-ecological conditions, institutional factors, and regulations.o Producers were less likely to live below the poverty line with full adoption of improved forages.o Better production indicators (e.g., stocking rate) and more frequent fertilization of pastures (although still at low levels) are highlighted at higher levels of adoption.","tokenCount":"404"}

data/part_3/0048941691.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"cdd13d36b1c312ced986d4c6dd2dae26","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/4a4d5bcc-e876-4f0d-a4e6-c9acc241d93e/retrieve","id":"-1194678054"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"93df92d7-765d-463c-ae87-af3ed6bab7d7","pagecount":"28","content":"El objetivo de este estudio se orienta a realizar una revisión y análisis de proyectos implementados por el Centro Internacional de la Papa (CIP) para articular la producción agrícola con la nutrición y presentar una síntesis de los resultados obtenidos. Estos proyectos son parte de una estrategia conceptual de contribución a la disminución de la desnutrición y la anemia en la zona andina.Desde hace algunos años se viene tratando de desarrollar un enfoque de intervenciones en la agricultura como estrategia para mejorar el estado nutricional de las poblaciones rurales (Haddad, 2000;Pinstrub-Andersen y Pandya-Lorch, 2001). Masset et al. (2011), realiza la siguiente clasificación de intervenciones: introducción de alimentos biofortificados; huertos familiares; acuicultura y pequeña piscicultura; producción lechera y promoción de alimentos de origen animal.La biodiversidad -tanto silvestre como cultivada-contribuye a la sostenibilidad de la producción agrícola mediante el acceso a la diversidad genética y al material necesario para impulsar la innovación y la adaptación a nuevos procesos.Frecuentemente, los aportes nutricionales y de salud de la biodiversidad no se toman muy en cuenta, dejando de lado que cuando se conectan la biodiversidad, la agricultura y la nutrición pueden lograr una fuerte asociación que conduce a una mayor seguridad alimentaria y nutricional -Proceso de incrementar la densidad de vitaminas y minerales en un cultivo, mediante el fitomejoramiento o prácticas agronómicas -Tiene la finalidad de mejorar el estado nutricional de las personas que lo consumen.-Es una estrategia sostenible y complementaria a otras intervenciones para disminuir los niveles de desnutrición en poblaciones vulnerables.  Se han identificado 24 variedades nativas de un grupo de 200 variedades, provenientes de Apurímac y Huancavelica, que por sus altos niveles constituyen una alternativa para complementar los requerimientos de macro y micro nutrientes en poblaciones vulnerables.Asimismo por sus contenidos de antioxidantes naturales son la base para una diferenciación comercial que amplíen su comercio y generen ingresos para los pequeños productores.Se han implementado 108 granjas familiares y 60% de las familias han incrementado notablemente el número de cuyes, entre 50 a 80 cabezas y vienen comercializando en las ferias locales. Las familias incluyen en su dieta la carne de cuy, las vísceras y la sangre de alto contenido de hierro, ideales para la alimentación de los niños y madres gestantes.Más de 200 productores de Apurímac y Huancavelica han participado en sesiones de aprendizaje en técnicas para la producción de semilla de calidad (\"selección positiva\" dirigida a pequeños productores). En la campaña 2012/2013 se ha encontrado un incremento del volumen de producción comercial en alrededor del 40% y una mejora de la calidad (sanidad y tamaño), atribuido al uso de semilla de calidad.A través de las Redes de Salud han sido capacitados en habilidades comunicacionales y en consejería nutricional un total de 42 profesionales de la salud y 60 agentes comunitarios de salud (voluntarios y voluntarias comunales), en 37 sesiones demostrativas, 25 consejerías nutricionales y 30 sesiones de vigilancia comunitaria con niños menores de tres años.Se ha desarrollado conjuntamente con el MINSA la \"Guía de Consejería Nutricional\" que está siendo ampliamente difundida.En Apurímac se ha incorporado la agenda de seguridad alimentaria en el Plan Estratégico Regional del Sector Agrario (PERSA) y se ha aprobado la Ordenanza Regional que reconoce el PERSA 2012 -2021. En Huancavelica, la Unidad de Gestión Educativa Local (UGEL) ha incorporado nuevas temáticas de alimentación y calidad de vida y productividad agropecuaria en la currícula escolar de la región.Asimismo, los gobiernos locales de cinco distritos, cuentan con ordenanzas aprobadas en sesión de consejo a favor de la lucha contra la desnutrición crónica en niños/as menores de tres años.• Se ha utilizado una muestra de 148 familias participantes, en las regiones de Huancavelica y Apurímac, donde se observaba una alta prevalencia de desnutrición crónica infantil (42% en menores de 2 años).• La literatura empírica que analiza en forma rigurosa los vínculos agricultura-nutrición en los sistemas productivos basados en papa es todavía escasa (Creed-Kanashiro et al., 2015).• Se presentan varios resultados obtenidos sobre las relaciones existentes entre las características productivas y nutricionales de hogares vulnerables con intervenciones en los sistemas de producción basados en papa.Un modelo de regresión lineal múltiple truncada donde las variables dependientes se refieren a las características nutricionales de interés: porcentaje de adecuación del consumo diario recomendado (ACD) de hierro y de zinc en niños menores de 3 años que son cubiertos por la dieta familiar. Las variables independientes, seleccionadas a través de análisis de correlaciones univariadas, identifican las características productivas y socioeconómicas de los hogares de la muestra. Se observó una relación positiva y altamente significativa entre la producción de papa nativa destinada al consumo en los hogares con el porcentaje de ACD de hierro (p≤0.004) y zinc (p≤0.0001) en los niños entre 6 meses y 3 años de las familias integrantes de la submuestra. También, se observó una relación positiva y altamente significativa entre ACD de hierro (p≤0.009) y zinc (p≤0.0001) con la crianza en los hogares de animales menores para el consumo y venta. Otras variables con relación positiva y significativa fueron la edad del menor (p≤0.0001) con ACD de hierro y zinc y el área de papa mejorada (p≤0.043) con ACD de hierro únicamente. Los resultados indicaron que el consumo de cultivares de papas nativas con mayores contenidos de hierro disminuían la probabilidad de tener un consumo inadecuado de hierro.Cantidad adicional de papa vendida (t/agricultor) .• La mejora de la producción agrícola y la diversificación de la dieta son elementos interrelacionados en la agricultura familiar de estos sistemas agroalimentarios que deben ser complementados con estrategias de generación de ingresos, adecuadas a cada territorio.• Deben formularse y adaptarse instrumentos de intervención concretos y operativos en distintas dimensiones, incluyendo innovaciones agrícolas (ej. nuevas variedades de papa adaptadas a las condiciones locales), educación nutricional (ej. mensajes para aprovechar disponibilidad de alimentos locales), y un enfoque territorial que aproveche o complemente las capacidades e intervenciones locales existentes, como los programas de protección social del gobierno.Continúa… .• La articulación sectorial en el ámbito territorial es un factor clave para armonizar las políticas que se implementan a nivel nacional con la participación de actores regionales y locales con mayor presencia y llegada en esos territorios.• Las intervenciones para mejorar los sistemas de producción con base en innovaciones (Mi Riego, Agrorural, PSI-Sierra, Foncodes) se deberían articular con intervenciones de los programas de protección social relacionadas con la nutrición y la salud (Cuna Más, Qali Warma, Dieta Andina, «La mejor compra», más recientemente Hambre Cero, educación nutricional con las postas de salud), y con los fondos de investigación que también tengan el objetivo de aumentar la producción agrícola para la seguridad alimentaria y nutricional. .Continúa… .• Las experiencias y resultados presentados generan evidencias que las intervenciones en los sistemas agrícolas basados en papa combinados con la educación nutricional pueden mejorar el consumo de categorías específicas de alimentos y promover la diversidad de la dieta, pero faltan todavía evidencias más específicas sobre los alcances nutricionales y de salud en los integrantes de las familias.• Considerando que la crisis generada por la COVID-19 afectó fuertemente a los sistemas productivos y alimentarios de los segmentos más vulnerables de la agricultura familiar, se debe introducir esta variable en análisis posteriores. ","tokenCount":"1183"}

data/part_3/0050476934.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"fe79c252cc3c81186c0c81d2bc53ce97","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/5d0efeb0-28e6-44ac-bef9-8b535d21becc/retrieve","id":"-1085266432"},"keywords":["potato","value chain","potato marketing","seed potato","India","Meghalaya"],"sieverID":"5aba17a9-a364-437b-baef-fdffa738592d","pagecount":"68","content":"This document was produced with the support of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and the European Union (EU). The views expressed herein can in no way be taken to reflect the official opinion of IFAD and EU.Potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) is the world's third most important food crop after rice and wheat (FAO, 2016) due to its high productivity per unit area, culinary versatility, and significant levels of vitamin C, iron, zinc, and other micro-nutrients compared to cereals. In South Asia, potatoes attained their leading rank among vegetables only recently, particularly in the last several decades, coinciding with increasing incomes in the region.India is currently the second largest producer of potato worldwide, after China. Potatoes are the number one vegetable crop in the country, accounting for nearly a third of the total vegetable production. Apart from use as seed, almost all (95%) of potatoes are consumed fresh while the remaining 5% are processed as chips, fries, and other potato products (Reardon et al., 2012). In most parts of the country, potatoes are consumed as a vegetable accompanying rice or a wheat base, and have been considered a \"luxury staple\" (Bouis and Scott, 1996) among high income households. Moreover, the ratio of the potato to rice calorie price in 2010 was an estimated 7.0/1.0 in India. Therefore, for most parts of the country, it is more expensive for consumers to obtain their energy needs from potatoes than from rice or wheat. Despite this, potatoes serve as an increasingly important source of dietary and culinary diversity throughout India. The role of potato in ensuring food security is even greater in Meghalaya, India. The annual per capita availability of potato in Meghalaya is 78.7 kg (Singh et al., 2003), more than four times the national per capita availability of about 18 kg.With the growing predominance of marginal and small-scale farmers in the agricultural sector, including potato producers (NCEUS, 2008), and the growing dependence of these farmers on income from sale of their crops; improving the linkages between these farmers and different types of markets and increasing efficiency in the food value chain are key issues of agricultural development today (Reardon et al., 2012). However, the detailed characteristics of current value chains and the way they are changing are not well understood, even for economically important crops such as potato. Recent literature has mostly focused on innovations in agricultural production that bring about large productivity increases and price decreases. Innovations in trading, marketing and processing could also have significant impacts on agricultural performance and productivity that benefit both producers and consumers, however, less research has been undertaken in this area (Minten et al., 2011). Therefore, there is need for a holistic study of crop value chains; especially increasingly important crops such as potato.The North-Eastern Hill (NEH) states occupies a significant place in India's plan for economic development both for socio-economic as well as geo-political reasons. At the same time, the relatively low rate of development in the region impacts on the country's overall progress. The region is endowed with rich agricultural resources and lush green vegetation, but there are few signs of prosperity. This is very apparent in Meghalaya, one of the eight NEH states, a predominantly agricultural state which produces various crops including potato. Because of high poverty rates and low development indicators, many international development agencies are already involved in improving the livelihood status of NEH states, especially the state of Meghalaya.Among them is the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) funded project titled Food Resilience through Root and Tuber Crops in Upland and Coastal Communities of the Asia-Pacific (FoodSTART+). It is being implemented in the state of Meghalaya in partnership with the Livelihoods and Access to Markets Project (LAMP) program of the Meghalaya Basin Development Authority (MBDA). The overall goal of FoodSTART+ is to enhance food resilience among poor households in upland and coastal communities of the Asia-Pacific region. One of the project's initial objectives was to carry out RTC scoping studies in the study sites, which recommended the conduct of a potato value chain study in key producing areas in Meghalaya.Potato is grown throughout the year in one part or another of the NEH region, contributing about 10% of the total area for potato production in the country (Gupta et al., 2004). Potato is an important part of prevailing cropping systems among farmers (Kumar et al., 2006), as well as of local diets of the people in the region. In terms of both volume and value, potato is the major commercial crop and the most important root crop in the state (Annex I and II). Meghalaya is the second largest producer of potato in the region, after Assam, in terms of cultivated area at about 18,000 to 20,000 ha. It is cultivated under rainfed conditions, mainly in the hilly tracts of East Khasi Hills which accounts for two-thirds of the area of tuber crops (Annex III). Meghalaya also has an advantage of being able to produce potato in the off-season in most areas, which allows producers to sell at premium prices, unlike other parts of India. However, the proportion of areas being cultivated under various seasons and the linkage of various seasons in terms of seed supply and the varieties used is still unknown.Moreover, the area planted to potato in proportion to the net cropped area in the region is about four times the national average but the average yield is less than half of the national average at around nine tons per hectare. While the yield is quite low, average per capita availability of potato in the state is still higher than the national average. Of these, over 140,000 tons per year enter the marketing chain to supply the local and other NEH states markets, as well as for exports to Bangladesh via informal channels. Nevertheless, in terms of total national production Meghalaya is not a major producer, producing less than 0.5% of the 44 million tons produced in India.This situation is similar to other NEH states, which, despite having 10% of the total potato area of the country only contribute to 4% of the total production. Kadian et al. (2010) attributes this to low productivity in the region, due to the following factors:• Inadequate supply of healthy planting material at reasonable prices due to the high transportation costs of bringing seed from seed production areas in North India which is more than 2000 km away, resulting in use of low quality seeds replanted over many generations.• Fast degeneration of tuber seed caused by viruses and other plant diseases, particularly late blight, due to lack of information on integrated disease management practices.• Lack of awareness and adoption of improved agro-techniques for farmer-based quality seed production.• Unorganized informal seed producers, such as in North and Northwest India.• Limited knowledge of appropriate seed storage practices.• Shifting (Jhum) cultivation in some areas leading to soil erosion, nutrient loss, and degraded soil quality.• Poor plant nutrition, lack of moisture due to lack of irrigation, and out-of-date varieties.Part of the reason for the mainly seed-related constraints listed above is the vegetative propagation of potato through the tuber. RTCs, including potato, also face additional marketing challenges due to its perishability, as well as storage constraints because of its bulkiness (CPRI, 2007). The hilly topography in northeastern states, covering about 70% of the total area, is also a hindrance to potato marketing, increasing transportation costs (Sah et al., 2011). Saikia (2001) further highlighted the lack of storage, processing, and marketing facilities in the northeastern region.These constraints, together with problems of access to agricultural inputs and information, need to be considered in understanding the situation of potato farmers in the region. Diagnosing the problems and identifying alternative strategies can lead to better income flows for farmers. This value chain assessment, therefore, was conducted towards this end. Brown (2009) defined value chain as \"the set of interconnected, value-creating activities undertaken by an enterprise or group of enterprises to develop, produce, deliver and maintain a product or service. \"The overall goal of the study is to characterize the entire potato value chain in Meghalaya to be able to identify major constraints and areas where interventions could significantly increase returns for potato producers including input supply, varietal distribution over seasons, production, processing, and marketing. The results of this assessment will be used to plan LAMP/MBDA activities in this sub-sector.The specific objectives are to:1. Collect and collate the data on various aspects of potato production, marketing, and utilization at the regional and national levels;2. Describe existing market chains for potato in the various seasons;3. Identify the benefits of market participation of potato producers, especially food insecure households;4. Map potato value chains and characterize the actors;5. Examine how the value chain is organized, coordinated, and governed among the key actors;6. Determine profit and marketing margins obtained by actors along the value chain;7. Identify problems, bottlenecks, and opportunities in existing and novel market chains based on the perceptions of different groups of chain actors and stakeholders; and 8. Identify potential innovations for piloting in RTC value chains relevant to food security and equity, as well as efficiency and competitiveness.This study aims to provide a holistic view of the potato value chain in Meghalaya, including the cropping systems and production practices, but focusing more on post-production activities such as storage and marketing. Unlike past research, particular attention was given to ensure that the views of multiple stakeholders were included in this assessment. By understanding the roles and the distribution of benefits and constraints among the various actors across the existing value chain; this study seeks to improve the efficiency of the whole chain and increase the economic benefits flowing back to farmers and other actors in the chain. The results of this research also provides a basis for formulating policies for the benefit of the potato sector within Meghalaya.As with other studies of similar nature, this study was limited by time and financial resources. For this reason, data gathering was restricted to three districts, however, the investigators took measures to ensure that the significant production areas were included. Moreover, due to the limited time for field study, not all key resource persons were interviewed and some seasonal variations and fluctuations such as demand and prices could not be validated.Another challenge encountered during the conduct of this study are inadequate and unreliable data, both from primary and secondary sources. The investigators experienced difficulty in extracting accurate information from farmers and other actors, especially in terms of costs and profits. At the same time, data on agricultural production and marketing from secondary sources are sometimes unreliable or, in the case of cross-border trade of potato, lacking.This study followed a value chain analysis approach to meet its objectives. When a product moves from the producer to the consumer, value is added as several transformations and transactions take place along the chain of interrelated activities, hence, the term value chain is used to describe the product's movement and interaction along this chain. Value chains adapt and respond to several factors, including local conditions, policy and institutional environment, market power, and consumer preferences, among others. The aim of a value chain analysis, therefore, is to assess these factors that influence the value chain.To capacitate the MBDA staff in conducting a value chain analysis, a learning workshop was conducted on 13-15 June 2016 in Shillong, the capital of Meghalaya. Staff members were trained on the concept of value chain analysis and the proposed methodologies to be used in conducting the assessment.The workshop was led by value chain experts from CIP and other resource persons and followed a learning-by-doing approach.A cross-sectional research design was used in this study to be able to collect information from various stakeholders including scientists, extension workers, traders, processors, farmers, seed producers, and other persons or groups involved in the potato value chain in Meghalaya. Data was gathered through literature reviews, key informant interviews (KII), focused group discussions (FGD), survey of respondents using questionnaires, stakeholders meetings, market visits, and observations. The specific methods used for each of the various data types and information analyzed in this study are shown in Table 1.Primary data collection activities, such as the KII, FGD, surveys, market visits and observation, were done between December 2016 and March 2017. Similarly, guided questions were used in conducting the FGDs with male and female potato producers and traders. A total of six FGDs were done, two for each of the three districts selected.Meanwhile, survey questionnaires were designed for the different value chain actors including farmers, seed producers, aggregators, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers in the three selected districts in Meghalaya: East Khasi, West Khasi, West Garo. These districts were purposively sampled because they have the largest land areas for potato and are able to plant in all potato cropping seasons. The target number of respondents for each group as well as the sampling method used are summarized in Table 2. It should be noted that because some questionnaires were incompletely answered, the actual number of respondents included in the analysis were less than the target numbers.Various statistics on potato production and marketing in Meghalaya, as well as other information previously indicated in Table 1, were obtained from existing publications, both print and online. Data sources used in this study include, but are not limited to the following institutions and research organizations:• Directorate of Horticulture (DOH)• State Seed Potato Farm    The data collected were assessed through simple statistical analysis such as frequencies, means, range, and ranking; as well as economic analysis such as gross margin analysis, marketing margin analysis, and production cost. Moreover, mapping analysis were used to map potato value chain linkages between actors, processes and activities in the value chain.Where applicable, this research also used a combination of the following tools for value chain analysis as recommended by Emana and Nigussie (2011):Mapping the value chain helps in getting a better understanding of the connections between actors and processes and their interdependency in a value chain. A value chain map allows the depiction of all activities, actors, and relationships among segments of the chain and illustrates the interaction between actors.Analyzing the costs and margins of a particular agricultural product or sector enables the researcher to determine how a pro-poor value chain should be developed.  Governance encompasses the system of coordination, organization and control that preserves and enhances the generation of value along a chain, thus, a governance and service analysis helps in identifying opportunities for interventions that improves the overall efficiency of the value chain.Analyzing linkages helps to identify how value chain actors are linked along the value chain. Linkages analysis involves not only identifying which organizations and actors are linked with one another, but also distinguishing the reasons for those linkages and assessing whether the linkages are beneficial or not.A review of available literature revealed that despite the importance of potato in India, research on its value chain in are limited, except for a study in Bihar State by Minten et al. (2011). This section presents this study in India, as well as similar potato value chain studies in relevant developing countries including Bhutan and Ethiopia.The study by Minten et al. (2011) published by ICAR found that potato production in Bihar is largely on the hands of smallholders. These farmers encounter several problems in potato production including crop damage from late blight disease. Farmers also rely relatively little on seed markets and almost all farmers store their own seeds in cold storages, while larger farmers replace seed more often. In Bihar, the white potato variety has now become much more important than the traditional red variety, however, consumers prefer red over white potatoes and are willing to pay a price premium for that quality. Because of this, Bihar still relies on potato imports from other states.During harvest season, farmers sell to a village broker while in the off-season, potatoes are mostly sold to traders at the cold storage. Wholesale market sales by farmers are of less importance and credit or advances are not often used in market transactions. The major reason for the farmers' choice of a trader is whether he pays immediately. The researchers' evaluation also showed that the wastage level in the value chain is at 8% during the harvest period and 9.3% in the off-season. While public policies have encouraged the setting up of cold storage to bring down wastage, however, this might not be the only factor influencing overall wastage level. There is a boom in cold storage capacity for potatoes with almost all farmers using cold storage to store their seeds, while larger farmers also store potatoes to sell at an expected higher price in the off-season, which is twice the price during the regular season.The rapid emergence of cold storage is linked with the better provision of public goods. Presently, the Agricultural Producers Market committee (APMC) has been repealed in Bihar and potato sales have moved away from auctions to direct one-on-one deals with traders.According to Joshi and Gurung's (2009) potato value chain assessment in Bhutan, the potato subsector in the country is potentially of great importance for pro-poor growth, however, the market for Bhutanese agricultural products is highly competitive and volatile. The authors conclude that the prospects for marketing Bhutanese potatoes are very good due to the seasonal difference in cultivation, however, the present value chain is still under developed. In the domestic market, most potatoes are sold by farmers directly to consumers, while for the export market, the potatoes generally flow from producers to Indian traders through auction yards. The value chain analysis revealed that the local traders and intermediaries such as cooperatives are not involved in the process of product delivery, particularly in Eastern Bhutan.In terms of production, potatoes in Bhutan are largely rainfed and yield depends greatly on the amount of rainfall. In some years there is a bumper harvest while in other years there is much less production. Potato prices generally depends on prices in India and if there is a bumper harvest, prices go down. This, coupled with limited on-farm storage facilities, often results in low prices during the peak production periods. These seasonal fluctuations in supply of, as well as demand for, potatoes greatly affects the income of potato producers.Potato producers in Bhutan also face other challenges, including shortage of labor and inadequate access to quality seeds, fertilizers and chemicals. Moreover, pest and diseases such as the potato tuber moth and late blight, crop damage caused by wild pigs, and high post-harvest losses due to poor infrastructure and substandard storage and handling practices also limit the growth of the potato subsector in Bhutan. Therefore, that authors recommend that the private sector need be encouraged to get involved in agribusiness to enhance the access of potato growers to the inputs/service market.In Ethiopia in East Africa, Emana and Nigussie (2011) reported that the major potato value chain actors include input suppliers, producers, wholesalers, brokers, retailers and consumers. There is no significant structural difference between the potato value chains in various regions of the country, however, there is a difference in the quantity and prices of potato marketed at different levels and the level of value addition by the different market actors. Potato production is affected by several issues including low quality seeds and untraced variety, wherein the specific needs of consumers are not adequately considered in variety selection. Moreover, input supply is not adequate and the planning of input supply through the extension system focuses only on rainfed crops and excludes the irrigated ones. Farmers are also not getting adequate advisory service to increase potato productivity. In terms of post-harvest problems, post-harvest loss is high due to lack of adequate storage and are often damaged when transported because of inadequate transportation facility and poor handling.An analysis of staple food value chains in Asia by Reardon et al. (2011) indicated that a transformational modernization is under way for potato food chains and India is taking the lead with the spectacular rise of potato cold storage facilities in Agra. Important drivers of the transformation of rice and potato value chains have been the increase in scale and change in technology of rice milling and potato storage. On the demand side, there was a surge in the demand for potatoes and other vegetables with increases in incomes and populations of megacities. The study points to the importance of farm input supply chains upstream from farmers and of midstream and downstream post-harvest activities such as logistics and wholesale, cold storage and milling, and retailing. The authors also purports that little empirical research work has been done on these areas, but is needed for the policy debate and the systematic evaluation of policy impacts on food security.Similarly, the South African Cities Network (SACN, 2015) observed that value chain activities take place along the rural-urban continuum, but most production occurs in the rural areas while processing and retailing occurs in the urban and peri-urban areas. Agro-food value chains are dominated by large commercial operations. Smallholder farmers here also face many production and market related constraints within the value chain such as those mentioned above.Similar with the situation in India, cold chain maintenance is an important part of the value chain in South African countries, and retailers and market agents have significant buying power. Meanwhile, processor constraints are largely due to supply issues including threats of cheaper imported processed products. While barriers to entering the potato value chain are in general relatively low, quality and quantity factors present strong barriers to entry into the more profitable markets.The SACN assessment also concluded that local governments have an integral role to play within agro-food value chains in both rural and urban areas by creating an enabling environment for the development of the agro-processing sector as well as the national fresh produce markets. These markets represent one of the existing points of participation by the local government within the value chain, as they provide an easy and accessible market for small scale and emerging producers to sell their produce.Potatoes were first grown in India in the late 16th and early 17th centuries, most likely brought aboard ships from Portugal. Today, potato is one of main commercial crops grown in India, which ranks as the world's second largest potato producing nation after China. Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, and Bihar are the three leading potato producing states (Table 3), accounting for 65.9% of the total potato area and 72% of the total production in 2012 to 2013.Potatoes have become an important cash crop that provides significant income for farmers, even though it was not primarily a rural staple in the past. Potato contributed around 2.42% of the agricultural gross domestic product (GDP) in 2008 from 1.25% cultivable area. Between the years 1960 and 2000, potato production in India increased by almost 850% and continued to increase in recent years (Figure 1). This is partly in response to the growing demand, especially from higher income urban populations. Internationally, India exports nearly 0.25 million tons of potato while locally, the demand for potato is expected to grow at 3.80% annual compounded growth rate. Since 1990, per capita consumption has risen from around 12 kg to 26 kg annually and potato has now become a vital and inseparable part of Indian cuisine and daily food intake.Consumption of processed potato products is also growing fast, yet the proportion of processed potato to total production in India is still low at 7.5% compared to 60% in developed countries. The overall size of the snack food market is estimated at 45-50 billion Indian Rupee (INR) and still growing at 7% to 8% annually. Potato chips is estimated to constitute nearly 85% of India's total salty snack food market of about 25 billion INR. The organized snacks category is sub-divided into the traditional segment (bhujia, chanachur), western segment (potato chips, cheese balls) and the newly established finger snacks segment, which is an adaptation of traditional offerings in the western format. Mirroring the trends all over India, potato has also become one of the most economically important crops grown in the hilly regions of Meghalaya. It is believed that the crop was introduced by Captain David Scott, a British Officer who first came into contact with the Khasis at Nongkhlaw, West Khasi Hills District. His military campaigns and exploits in Meghalaya eventually led to the rule of the British crown being extended over the entire region. Since then, potato cultivation quickly spread throughout Meghalaya because its climate and geographical conditions were suitable to the crop. At the same time, potato have become an integral part of the dietary habits of the people of the state.Table 4 shows the most recent data on potato production in Meghalaya. It can be seen that there is a slow but steady annual increase in area, production and yield in the three year period. The average yield of potato in 2016-2017 is 11 tons per hectare (t/ha), which is far below the national average of 20 t/ha. Majority of this goes directly to consumption, without any processing or value addition. Therefore, there is a lot of scope and hope for improving the yields and increasing the value of potato in the state.At present, the per capita availability of potato is 78.7 kg per annum which is comparable to many European countries. It is grown on over 18,000 ha of land and shares 8.56% of the total agricultural land in Meghalaya, which is highest among all the potato producing states in India.Area and production trends from 2002-2013 (Figure 2) show that while the area grown to potatoes are stable, total potato production has been erratic over the 10-year period. Periodic decreases in production in 2003 and again in 2007 could be attributed to widespread yield loss due to potato blight. On the other hand, the drastic increase in 2009 is due to the introduction of new high yielding varieties of potato such as the Kufri Jyoti variety.  A closer look at area and production trends per district in Meghalaya (Figure 3) reveals that East Khasi Hills, West Khasi Hills, and West Garo Hills are the top three potato producers out of the 11 administrative districts of Meghalaya. These three, therefore, were chosen as target districts of this study. As the figures and Table 5 show, East Khasi Hills is well above all other districts in terms of both area and production. In fact, East Khasi Hills alone contributes to 63.65% and 66.99% of the total area and production in Meghalaya, respectively.  The following sections describes the three selected districts in detail:East Khasi Hills is in the central part of Meghalaya and covers a total area of 2,748 km 2 . It lies approximately between 25°07\" and 25°41\" N Latitude and 91°21\" and 92°09\" E Longitude. It is bounded by the plain of Ri-Bhoi District in the north, gradually rising to the rolling grasslands of the Shillong Plateau interspersed with river valleys, then falls sharply in the southern portion forming deep gorges and ravines in the Mawsynram and Shella-Bholaganj Community and Rural Development (CandRD) Block, bordering Bangladesh. The district is bounded by the West Jaintia Hills District to the east and West Khasi Hills District to the west. As shown in Figure 3, East Khasi Hills dominates potato cultivation in Meghalaya. Potato is grown mainly as a summer/spring crop and in small proportions as an autumn crop. The climate of the district ranges from temperate in the plateau region to the warmer tropical and sub-tropical pockets on the northern and southern regions. The whole district is influenced by the south-west monsoon which begins generally from May and continues till September. The weather is humid for most of the year except for the relatively dry spell, usually between December and March.East Khasi Hills is sub-divided into eight CandRD Blocks.West Khasi Hills is the largest district of Meghalaya, occupying an area of 5247 km 2 . It accounts for 20% of the total potato area and 15% of the total potato production in Meghalaya (Table 5). Since the climate is similar with that of East Khasi Hills, potato is also grown mainly as a summer crop and in small proportions as an autumn crop. West Khasi Hills is sub-divided into four CandRD Blocks.West Garo Hills is located in the western most part of Meghalaya. It is mostly hilly, with plains fringing the northern, western, and southwestern borders. The district occupies an area of 3714 km². Its climate is largely controlled by the south-west monsoon and seasonal winds. Since the district is relatively lower in altitude than the rest of Meghalaya, it experiences a fairly high temperature for most part of the year ranging from a minimum of 5°C to a maximum of 36°C. The potato growing season in West Garo Hills is winter. The district accounts for 2% of the total potato area and 1.5% of the total potato production in the state.Although it has been reported that potato is grown in the state in two distinctive seasons in a year, namely summer and autumn, the survey conducted among farmers indicates that there are four seasons of potato cultivation, depending on location (Table 6). Summer is the main potato growing season, according to more than 80% of farmers in the East and West Khasi districts. Another significant planting season in Khasi hills is the spring season. There is only a thin temporal difference between these two and minor differences in farming practices, therefore these two seasons are often lumped together and referred to as the summer season. Potato is also cultivated in autumn, especially in West Khasi District (25%) while winter season cultivation is only being done in West Garo. Spring potatoes are planted from mid-January to mid-February in low land paddy fields preceding the rice crop, and harvested in May. Summer potatoes are mostly planted on upland farms, often in raised beds. Planting takes place at the end of February through March, while harvesting is done from July to the end of October with farmers often delaying lifting until prices rise later in the year. Autumn potatoes are planted in the rainy days of August and September and harvested in November and December, using seeds from the summer crop. Lastly, winter potatoes are grown at lower altitudes usually in the lowlands of Garo Hills with planting done in October and November and harvested in February and March.Value chain mapping systematically maps the actors participating in the production, distribution, processing, marketing, and consumption of a particular product or products. Moreover, it analyzes the characteristics of actors, profit and cost structures, and flow of goods throughout the chain; as well as employment characteristics and the destination and volumes of domestic and foreign sales. The following sections discusses the potato value chain map in Meghalaya.Value chain actors are classified as those individuals who take ownership of a product, through the exchange of money or equivalent goods or services, during the transaction process of moving the product from conception to the end user. Those individuals or firms providing a service without taking ownership of the product are classified as service providers. The basic value chain process for potato is shown in Figure 4.Input suppliers -Value chain actors who provide the various inputs needed by farmers to cultivate potato, including seeds, pesticides, farm tools; as well as information on farming technologies or technical support and credit or loans.Producers -Meghalaya farmers who cultivate potatoes and sell the produce to wholesalers, traders, aggregators, vegetable vendors and consumers.Transporters -Value chain actors who bring harvested potatoes from the producers' farms to markets or traders.Traders -Value chain actors usually found in Iewduh market and Mawiong who purchase potatoes from farmers in relatively larger quantities and sell them to wholesalers in the neighboring states of Assam, Tripura, Manipur, and Mizoram. There are also traders in Garo District who go to villages and purchase potatoes directly from farmers.Wholesalers -Value chain actors who purchase potato in large volumes from farmers, traders, aggregators and sell to retailers. They are mostly located in the neighboring states of Assam, Tripura, Manipur, and Mizoram; but are also present in Meghalaya markets, usually in Iewduh and in West Garo District towns.Retailers -Value chain actors who purchase from wholesale traders and sell directly to consumers who are present in Meghalaya or neighboring states and also refers those who purchase from farmers and sell to consumers.Aggregators -Value chain actors located in villages who purchase potatoes in small quantities from farmers, pool them and sell to wholesalers.Vegetable vendors -Value chain actors who purchase potatoes from farmers and sell them in formal markets or roadside markets.Consumers -Persons or hotels or institutions who are final users of potato tubers.The various value chain actors specific to the study sites and their functions are further summarized in Table 7 and discussed below.Potato farmers in the study areas get seed from different sources. Majority of East and West Khasi farmers (97-98%) use their own tuber seed. A few also buy from the Horticulture Office, but their supply cannot meet the farmers' demand. In West Garo Hills, farmers buy tuber seed from traders in Dhubri (Assam). On the other hand, most farmers use both organic and inorganic fertilizers, while some farmers use only organic fertilizers such as manure and compost. Their decision on what type of fertilizer to use depended on the land size and perceived soil fertility. Farmers purchase manures, fertilizers, and fungicides from agricultural suppliers in Shillong and Tura for Khasi and Garo districts, respectively, as well as other nearby markets. For other farm implements, farmers get traditional spades, and sickles from the local blacksmith; bamboo baskets from craftsmen; labor from family and hired farm workers; and jute sacks from rice shops.Credit support. In general, farmers tend to utilize savings from profits made in the previous season and loans from family members., Farmers also avail of loans from formal sources such as nationalized banks, cooperatives and rural banks in the village or nearby villages. Both male and female farmers are able to apply for loans since title deeds are often named after women farmers. Various types of credits are extended to farmers including cash loans, term loans, and kisan or farmers' credit cards. They usually avail credit during the planting time in January to February for procuring inputs like manure and fertilizers and then repay the loan after harvest. Some traders, especially wholesale traders in Shillong market, lend in cash or kind to farmers which farmers pay back come harvest time, either in cash or by selling their produce. Despite these, some farmers still claim that they cannot expand production due to lack of access or difficulty in availing of credit.Technical advice. Knowledge on potato cultivation is most often shared among farmers, who also get information from the DOH, particularly trainings on seed production. Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) or the Farm Science Centre in Khasi and Garo Hills are also active in information dissemination on potato. ICAR-NEH complex and the Central Potato Research Station (CPRS) in Upper Shillong were also involved in technology back up for the farmers through their outreach programs.Based on the survey results as summarized in the table below, potato farming is done mostly by both male and female smallholder farmers (95%), with holdings of less than two hectares, and very few larger farmers (5%). The average farm size of farmers in East and West Khasi districts are smaller (0.65 ha) compared to those in West Garo District (2.79 ha). Similarly, the average farm size cultivated with potatoes by farmers in Khasi Hills were also smaller (0.31 ha) than those in West Garo Hills (0.55 ha). The results also revealed that there are slightly more female farmers involved in potato farming than males (55% to 45%). The average age and farming experience of female farmers (41 and 23 years) is slightly less than male farmers (45 and 24 years), however, it could be seen that female farmers had more years on school than male farmers at eight and five years, respectively. Source of income, consumption and livelihood are the reasons stated by the farmers for planting potatoes A slight majority of the farmers believe that the area planted to potato is slowly increasing (58%), while some felt the area remain unchanged (30%) or even decreasing (12%). Surprisingly, exactly onethird of the farmers each thought the potato yield is either increasing, decreasing, or unchanged. Their reasons for the increasing yield include high quality seeds, good cultivation practices, and application of chemical fertilizers while the reasons for decreasing yield are climate change, specifically intense rain, frost, rotting in low land due to excess rains; poor quality seeds, diseases such as blight, and soil infertility. Majority of the potato farm land is individually owned, while some are lands owned by the clan or community that the farmers can use as long as they need without the ownership rights. Some lands are rented out on a yearly basis from private landowners.The potato value chain begins with production, which entails various activities and decision making in terms of potato variety, input supply, farming practices, storage, and marketing. The chart below illustrates the calendar of potato production activities per season, according to farmers in Meghalaya (Figure 5). These activities are discussed in detail in the preceding sections.Potato varieties. Meghalaya farmers usually grow a mix of varieties, depending on their characteristics and suitability. The common varieties are Kufri Jyoti, Kufri Megha, Phan saw or Local Red Skin Potato, Phan Jatira or Arron Consul, Phan Sorkari, Lah lhew, Phan shidieng, Lah Taret, and Kufri Giriraj.However, most farmers prefer Kufri Jyoti and Kufri Megha. More particularly, Kufri Jyoti is preferred by majority of farmers in the three districts for its high yield, taste, better cooking and keeping qualities and good demand in the market. Initially it was highly resistant against late blight, however, it has recently become very susceptible, causing low yields. Kufri Megha is another popular variety, liked for its taste and cooking quality and tolerance to late blight. It is commonly called Lah Imdieng, Phan Imdieng or Phan Imduh due to its characteristic green stem which remains green even at maturity unlike other varieties which dries up. While it is less preferred than Kufri Jyoti because of its lower yield and shorter shelf life, farmers have realized that its high tolerance against late blight helps assure production, and therefore income; hence, even if it's out of the breeder's seed production chain, farmers maintain Kufri Megha seeds independently.On the other hand, Kufri Giriraj is a recently introduced variety that is gaining popularity among farmers because of its high yield and tolerance to late blight. However, some farmers are still hesitant to try this variety owing to its poor keeping quality and short dormancy. For household consumption, usually as a snack, the Local Red Skin Potato is planted by farmers due to its better taste. Old varieties, like Great Scott (Lah Lhew), are still cultivated by some farmers due to its short dormancy period; especially farmers who plant for two seasons in a year. Meanwhile, the Bengal Tiger variety is the dominant variety in Garo Hills, where potatoes are planted in the winter season. Potato varieties cultivated in the different seasons based on the survey are presented in Table 9.  Land preparation. In Khasi Hills, land preparation for potato cultivation in both lowland and upland farms is done in the traditional way, locally called Nur Bun, using traditional long-handle spades or Mohkhiew. First ploughing is done by men using spades and then the raised beds or Nur Bun are made. Nur is the agricultural land unit in the local Khasi language and refers to one raised bed of 1-1.5 feet high and 1-1.25 m wide, while length depends on the land topography. Bun refers to the method of preparation of these raised beds. The Nur Bun method is basically a type of ridge and furrow method, which has been modified to suit difficult mountainous or hilly terrain and high rainfall conditions during the potato growing season. Afterwards, fine tillage of the beds is done by women. Very few farmers in Meghalaya use power tillers for ploughing and fine tillage, except in the Salsella Block of West Garo Hills where farmers use power tillers and tractors for land preparation.Planting. After land preparation, the men dig pits on the bed with a row spacing of 30-40 cm and plant spacing of 20 cm. The men are also tasked with carrying inputs like tuber seeds, manures and fertilizers to the main field. The fertilizers are first mixed together, while the seed tubers are first placed in the pit with the tuber eyes facing upward. This is followed by manure application directly on top of the seed tubers and fertilizer mixture application on the outer circle of the pit. The pit is then covered with soil to level the bed which prevents the seed tubers from drying in case of a dry spell after planting. It is also believed that this method protects the seed tubers against insect and pest damage.The planting procedure is slightly different in the winter crop of the Salsella Block of West Garo Hills.The fertilizers are first mixed together then after the last ploughing, line marking is done using a wooden plough drawn by two men to form small ridges and furrows. The tubers are then placed in the furrows at a spacing of 10-15 cm apart. The spacing between rows is 20-25 cm. Moreover, cultural practices like hilling up and weeding, are done by both men and women six to seven weeks after planting using bare hands and traditional tools like spades.Fertilization. Fertilizer use for potato mostly involves application of manure, but only during spring and summer seasons. The dose varies from 15 to 20 t/ha, depending on the land type. According to farmers, the farmyard manure applied to the spring and summer crops also provides nutrients to the following season's crops like paddy or vegetables. The commonly used manures are cattle manure, poultry manure, pig manure and decomposed grasses. The cattle manure is either from their own cattle or bought from neighboring cattle farms while poultry manure is usually bought from traders in Assam who would bring the manure to the village directly after farmers placed orders over the phone. It may be noted that the recommended dose for potato is only 120:120:60 kg of NPK/ha, which reveals that farmers have a tendency to apply excess nitrogenous nutrient. It was also observed from the survey that farmers cultivation practices for seed potato were more or less same as that of ware potato except they apply slightly more fertilizers and pesticides at 456:134:75 kg NPK/ha.In view of the official promotion of organic agriculture in Meghalaya, the State Government has withdrawn the subsidy for chemical fertilizers, making potato cultivation at present more expensive and less profitable for farmers. Some farmers, including registered seed growers and progressive farmers, received organic fertilizers on a subsidized rate from the DOH for trial in their potato fields.Pests and diseases management. The most common pest in potato fields are white grub, cut worm, red ants, leaf eating caterpillar, and leaf beetle; while the potato tuber moth is the main pest during storage. Most growers do not apply any chemical insecticide to control potato tuber moths, and would rather spread tobacco and lantana (sohpangkhlieh) fresh leaves on the heap of harvested potato in storage. The leaves may need to be replaced after some time, depending on the degree of the pest infestation.On the other hand, major diseases in potato are late blight, bacterial wilt and viruses. Late blight, locally called Iapiong, is more common in upland than lowland farms. This disease appears in the late vegetative stage of the spring or summer crop and in the more critical early vegetative stage of autumn crop, thereby causing more economic losses in the autumn rather than the summer potato season. The common management for late blight is spraying Indofil/Dithane M-45 after six weeks of planting at 10 teaspoons per 16 liters when the first fog appears. Second spray is at eight weeks after planting, with the autumn crop receiving more at three to four fungicide sprays. Furthermore, bacterial wilt, locally known as Iapbieit or Jlop, is a disease which causes the whole plant to droop and die at random. The common control for bacterial wilt is crop rotation and uprooting the infected plant.Irrigation. Potato is grown as a rainfed crop in East and West Khasi districts; while in some areas of West Garo Hills, farmers give one to two times irrigation during the vegetative stage. Irrigation water comes\\ from the bored wells in the fields through use of diesel water pumps.Harvesting. Potatoes are harvested by both male and female farmers after potato tubers reach maturity, usually at 100-110 days after planting. The women are mostly involved in digging and picking the tubers while the men are more involved in headload carrying the produce from the field to the storage place. In Khasi Hills, the bulk of summer potatoes are harvested during July to August. Spring potato in the lowlands are harvested in the month of May to June to prepare for next crop and to prevent rotting due to the accumulation of rainwater, while in Garo Hills harvesting of winter potato is done on February and March.Harvesting is done by unearthing the plant using a long-handled spade and then shaking the soil from the tubers. Most farmers collect the tubers in baskets and then bring them to the store immediately afterwards. Some fields are 1-5 km away from the villages and both men and women are involved in carrying the produce to the storage place or nearby accessible road.Furthermore, harvesting in the uplands can be delayed to prevent price crash, reduce storage loss due to insect infestation, prolong the availability of potato, and at the same time efficiently allocate family labor. Delayed harvest also helps in reducing rotting in storage during the peak harvest of the summer months.Post-harvest management and storage. After harvesting and cleaning the dirt off the potatoes, majority of farmers separate damaged and undamaged tubers, and discard bruised, diseased, damaged, or rotten ones for use as pig feed. Farmers estimate post-harvest losses of about 10%. The initial sorting and grading is done in the field where medium sized tubers from the good yielding mother plants are sorted to be used as seeds and smallest tubers are sorted for feed purposes. The bigger size tubers are packed in jute sacks of 50-60 kg capacity for the markets. Some farmers do not grade potato based on size but sell them as mixed size to the Mawiong regulated arket. The potato variety Bengal Tiger produced by Garo Hills farmers are also smaller in size compared to potato varieties from Khasi Hills. The following are the grade system based on weight or size, used by farmers in Meghalaya:• Special Grade: Tubers that are more than 40 grams (g), marketed as big sized potatoes.• No. 1 Grade: Tubers that are 30-40 g, marketed as standard sized potatoes.• No. 2 Grade: Tubers that are 20-30 g, for use as own seeds.• No. 3 Grade: Marble size tubers that are less than 20 g, used as seeds in case of seed deficit.• Marble Sized, used for pig feed.Long term storage of potato for more than three months is done by farmers for both consumption and for seed purposes. While farmers do not apply any chemical insecticides to protect stored potatoes against potato tuber moth, they do spread tobacco leaves and lantana (sohpangkhlieh) fresh leaves on the heap of harvested potato as a traditional control mechanism. The leaves are replaced after some time depending on the degree of the pest infestation. The short-term management of potato before selling may involve leaving in open heaps or keeping them in a shed for drying and curing. During summer, some farmers keep the potatoes on sand for its cooling effect. The most common storage systems according to the farmer respondents are:• Storage on a wooden floor in the house (25%).• Storage in heaps in the field (25%).• In situ storage or on the ground storage at maturity of the crop with delayed harvesting (20%).• Containers such as bamboo baskets, jute sacks, gunny bags, among others (17%).• Stand-alone structure which may be basic or more sophisticated wooden structures of 10-12 ft. high with tin roof, which are built near the farmer's house. Within these structures, potatoes for consumption, selling, or seed are stored in 3-4 inch layers on wooden platforms or in heaps (13%).• Underground storage in pits dug by farmers for storing potato (<1%).Due to heavy rainfall in the months following the harvesting time (June-September), grass growth provide cover or shade to the potato beds. This allows farmers to keep the potatoes in situ or in the field for two to three months due to low soil temperature. Harvesting of potato stored in this method was reported to be done when the market price rises after the harvest period. According to farmers, there is less rotting with in situ storage than in stand-alone structures.Labor use in production. Farmers in Meghalaya use both family members and hired farm workers during potato production. However, survey results on the quantity of labor inputs per production activity for each season show that potato producers rely more on family labor during spring (91.01%) and summer (70.21%) seasons, than during the winter season (42.40%) ( The same data on labor inputs were also disaggregated per gender as shown in Figure 6. It could be seen from the figure that female labor dominates the cultivation operations in the spring and summer seasons in the East and West Khasi districts at 59% and 57%, respectively. However, this is not the case in the winter season, with male labor share is higher at a 57%. It could be seen that female labor dominate in weeding, land preparation, harvesting and storage operations. Results of the farmer survey revealed that a farming household in East and West Khasi districts produce an average of 2,290 kg of potatoes, with production ranging from 3000 kg to 10,000 kg per family. Out of these, an average of 343 kg are allocated for home consumption, while almost two thirds or 1,480.32 kg are sold with a maximum of 6,700 kg and minimum of 100 kg. Almost a quarter of produce or 466 kg are kept as seed. In the case of West Garo hills where potato is cultivated during winter in the low lands, average production per family is 7,608 kg and ranges from 80 kg to 24,000 kg, significantly higher than in Khasi Hills mostly due to higher potato cultivated area per family and use of irrigation. The average quantity of potato allocated for home consumption per farming household was 264 kg, while all the remaining produce are sold with an average 7,333 kg. West Garo potato farmers don't keep seed tubers for their cultivation in next winter season.Around 30% of potatoes produced in Meghalaya is utilized for home consumption within the state. Potato forms an important part of daily food intake with the average family of six consuming approximately 600 kg of potatoes each year. The preferred and most widely eaten potato dish in Khasi Hills and Garo Hills is potato curry, a local preparation made with other vegetables and eaten with rice or roti. Alu Paratha, a north Indian stuffed chapatti is another widely consumed dish, especially for breakfast. Other potato dishes include whole boiled potatoes as a snack, such as Phansaw, which is mainly taken with tea in the morning or evening in rural areas. Fried potato dishes like french fries or chips are also prepared by rural and urban households and taken as snacks or for lunch and dinner.Local dishes such as Alu pakoda or potato fritters and samosa, a deep fried conical dough containing spicy mashed potato and a small amount of other vegetables, are also consumed as snacks.*Land preparation also includes fertilizer application.Potato dishes such as those mentioned above are also prepared in restaurants and other establishments like hostels, hospitals, among others. Restaurants, often small tea shops in rural areas, usually purchase about 75 kg of potatoes per week during peak season and 60 kg per week in the off season, either from wholesalers, retailers, or farmers. While potato is available in the market during much of the year, supply is usually scarce in March and April.Meanwhile, there is hardly any processing of potato in Meghalaya, except for fried potato chips made by households in very small quantities and sometimes sold in village shops.Potato passes through different channels before it reaches the consumer, referred to in this study as potato marketing channels. Even before harvesting, farmers have to make various decisions that affect how their produce is marketed, as well as their income from it. In fact, some farmers in Meghalaya practice staggered harvesting to avoid oversupply in the markets and to get better prices for their produce. Like other agricultural products, potato prices have a high level of fluctuation across the different cropping seasons, with the lean months of June to August commanding the highest prices (Figure 7).Potato marketing in Meghalaya involves various value chain actors, particularly traders located in Iewduh and Mawiong who purchase potatoes directly from farmers and sell to wholesalers of adjoining states. Majority of the potato produce in Khasi Hills region is exported to neighboring states from the months of May till December while potato is imported from the plains during the months of December to May. The major local markets where potato is traded include Iewduh and the Mawiong regulated market. In West Garo Hills, a small proportion is marketed in neighboring areas like the Tura and Phulbari market while a very small portion of potato from Garo Hills is also marketed through a traditional border market or haat along the Indo-Bangla border at Kalaichar.Gender also plays a small role in marketing activities, with wholesale marketing dominated by men, whereas retailers and aggregators are equally divided between men and women. These results show that women are not only are active in production but also in trading.Based on FGDs, KIIs, and observations made in the major potato markets in the study sites; the marketing channels were differentiated between ware potato and seed potato in the different seasons, as discussed below.Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Low Medium HighThe assessment of potato value chains in the East and West Khasi districts and between the spring and summer seasons did not identify major differences, so these are presented as a single set of value chains, with several channels (Figure 8).Channel 1. This is the largest channel which accounts for 70-80% of the total locally produced potato in Khasi Hills. In this channel, the Iewduh market in Shillong and the Mawiong market is the aggregation point for the locally produced potato which is being traded in an informal auction. The Iewduh potato market, or big market in the local Khasi language, starts in May and ends in October with a peak period in June. This is where the best two grades, Special Grade and No. 1 Grade, are mostly sold. There are about 100 male and female traders who buy the produce from the farmers through price bidding and then resell the potatoes to wholesale traders from the neighboring states of Assam, Tripura, Manipur, and Mizoram with representatives or agents in Iewduh.Potato is sold in the Iewduh market in 50 kg sacks with prices ranging from 10 to 23 INR/kg. Farmers transport their produce to the market individually or in groups in small trucks of less than 5 tons. Sometimes truck drivers take the potato to the market, sell it, and give the money to the farmers in the evening. The transport cost is approximately 1 INR/kg while the labor fee for unloading the potato at the market is 20 per sack. The farmers also have to pay a market tax of 5 INR/sack and weighing fee of 10 INR/sack. The traders also deduct 3 kg per sack of more than 70 kg from the farmers. Moreover, in case potato is not fetching a good price for the day, the farmer can keep his produce in the local warehouse (godown) for 5 INR/sack/day.It was found that 70% of the traders are local women. One trader usually buy about 30 sacks of potato from the farmers, which they sell on the same day to the next traders for a commission of 1 INR/ kg. Data also shows that an average of 12 tons of potato leave the market each day from Monday to Saturday in June to October. This is supported by the market monthly arrivals report for potato from January to December 2016 (Figure 9). After buying the produce from traders, wholesalers from neighboring states load them in trucks of 5-10 tons each for transporting to markets in Barbeta, Siliguri, Silchar, Tezpur, Tinsukia, Jagi Road, Guwahati and Nalbari in Assam, Agartala in Tripura, Aizawl in Mizoram, and Imphal in Manipur. The wholesaler bears the loading and the transport cost to the market outside the state. The wholesalers in these markets then supply to the retailers and consumers in these states.On the other hand, the Mawiong regulated market only has three traders and receives mostly the lower quality ungraded and Grade No. 2 potatoes. This is because most farmers in Khasi Hills prefer to trade the better quality potatoes at Iewduh for its convenient location, better price, and larger number of traders. Also, farmers must compete with the many aggregators who also bring potato produce to Mawiong. This market is active from the month of June to December every year, trading produce to neighboring states like Assam, Mizoram, and Manipur; while some goes to the Paltan bazaar in Shillong for the wholesale market. Unlike Iewduh, prices are not determined via auction. Farmers know the prevailing prices before bringing the produce to the market by enquiring over the phone directly from the traders. There is no deduction in the weight of the traded potato in Mawiong, also unlike in Iewduh, and farmers and traders can take back the empty sacks.Based on different data sources, it is estimated that 21 tons of potato leave the Mawiong regulated market each day from Monday to Saturday from June to December. Figure 9 also reflects the higher amount of potato being traded in the Mawiong regulated arket in year 2016.Channel 2. This channel accounts for 10-20% of the local potato traded. Farmers still trade produce in Iewduh, but this time they trade through the many wholesalers who trade potato to various parts of the Meghalaya state. The farmers usually discuss the price of the potato for the day over the phone before bringing or harvesting their produce. These wholesalers pay the farmers in cash or credit. The potato is then sold to retailers who come to Iewduh. The wholesalers are mostly non-local males who have long experience in the business.Channel 3. This channel accounts for only 5% to 10% of potato traded, where farmers sell their produce in the local markets through the vegetable vendors. While the volume traded in these markets are small, there are hundreds of these traditional weekly or bi-weekly markets in the rural areas where local produce are traded, including potato. In these markets the vendors are mostly women.Channel 4. Aggregators, mostly local men, collect potatoes from various farmers in the village or nearby areas and supply the potato to the traders in Mawiong market. Some aggregators also supply wholesalers or traders in other markets like Ladrymbai, Guwahati, and Jagi Road, among others.Channel 5. Farmers sell their potato directly to the retailers in the markets like Mairang and Mawngap for subsequent sale to consumers.Channel 6. In a limited number of cases, few consumers source their potatoes directly from farmers who they may know or have some link to.There are two main and two minor channels through which the winter potato harvest is marketed in Garo Hills, with Channel 1 and 2 equally accounting for 30-40% of the total amount of traded potato (Figure 10).Channel 1. Most farmers sell their potato to traders who visit their villages and these traders in turn sell to wholesalers in urban centers in Garo hills, where retailers from Bhaitbari, Phulbari, and Tura markets purchase the potatoes for sale to consumers. The traders pack the produce in jute sacks of 50 kg each. Usually the traders contact the wholesalers in advance and collect the produce either in a cart, mini-truck or bus.Channel 2. Several farmers also sell their potato in the weekly local markets through vegetable vendors who move from one local market to another each day.Channel 3. Some farmers sell their produce directly to consumers in their villages.Channel 4. In a few cases, farmers sell their potatoes to aggregators in the villages who in turn, sells to retailers.Potato from other states are sold in Meghalaya during the months of October to May every year, particularly from West Bengal (30%), Assam (20%), Punjab (10%), and Uttar Pradesh (5%) (Figure 11). Only medium or large sized potatoes are imported, specifically varieties like Kufri Chandramukhi from West Bengal, Kufri Jyoti, Agra variety, and Kufri 3797. Moreover, the potato variety Kufri Pukhraj comes from the same states mentioned above during January and February and is notably bigger than other varieties. The demand for imported potatoes peaks March to end of May, during which local potato supply in Meghalaya is almost zero.As shown in the figure above, potato from wholesalers in Paltan bazaar, Shillong is sold to semiwholesalers (70%), retailers (20%) and restaurants/hotels (10%). Consumers of these imported potatoes are mostly from Shillong (60%), Jaintia Hills (20%) and other parts of Khasi hills (20%).According to traders, the ratio of locally produced to imported potato being traded from the Paltan Bazaar is 30:60, with the imported potato coming from cold storage from the exporting states. The profit margin for traders is 0.5-0.8 INR/kg of potato, however, there is a 300-400 kg weight loss per 20 tons of potato purchased. As much as 97% of farmers in Khasi Hills use their own potato seeds or obtain seeds from other farmers according to interviews (Figure 12), indicating how pervasive the farmer-based informal system is. A trader-based informal system also operates on a very small-scale in Khasi Hills, bringing seeds from other states for direct sale to farmers. Meanwhile in West Garo, the trader-based informal system dominates (Figure 13) where 99% of seeds are purchased from traders in Assam, mostly the variety Bengal Tiger. This is often because farmers are unable to maintain seeds for several seasons in between croppings, including a very hot summer. In both regions, there is neither private company nor farmers' cooperatives supplying tuber seed potato, while the very small remaining seed demand is met by the national and state government managed formal seed system.  In Meghalaya, among the several limiting factors attributing to poor potato productivity is the lack of reasonably priced, quality seeds. This is because while most farmers use their own seeds, the entire region is, in fact, unsuitable for production of potato breeder seeds. This is due to the prevalence of virus vectors and other diseases almost throughout the crop season, which is responsible for the degeneration of available seed stocks (Gupta et al., 2006). A small quantity of basic breeder seed is imported from Himachal Pradesh which is more than 2000 km from the Northeast Region, however, bringing quality seed from this distance incurs high transportation costs for the resource poor farmers of the region. The farmers' use of suboptimal management practices also accelerates the degeneration rate of seeds. For instance, many farmers are ignorant of the seed plot technique. The adoption of improved technologies can facilitate the farmers' use of the same seed for more generations without significant reduction in yields (Kadian et, al., 2010).Despite these issues, the use of their own kept seed or seed tubers obtained from neighbors are still very widely practiced by potato farmers in Meghalaya. Farmers select the tubers for seeds during harvesting of ware potato based on size, or sometimes taking into consideration the productivity of the source plant. In some of the villages there is special care taken for seed production. For example in Kyiem Village, East Khasi Hills, the tubers which are meant for seed production are grown in the upland while the ware potato is grown in the lowland. The seed tubers are also cut into halves to check for symptoms of disease infection. The disease infected tubers are discarded and only the healthy tubers are sown. According to farmers there is no degeneration of the variety due to this practice.Moreover, potatoes harvested before October are generally not stored as seed because of higher storage losses in the rainy season brought about by to higher temperatures and high humidity. It is also common for farmers to keep the potatoes in the field long after the plant has deteriorated to reduce storage losses. In autumn, farmers plant local varieties or improved varieties which have short or no dormancy. To meet seed requirements for the autumn season, the farmers harvest the summer crop in June and keep part of the produce in country stores under rice straw or grass to break the dormancy or to accelerate the sprouting of tubers.The common varieties used for seeds are same as ware potato. For Kufri Jyoti, potatoes are harvested in May to October which is then stored for seed to be sown in February to March due to its dormancy. The seeds are stored in a storage shed on a raised platform that is made of wooden planks and covered with tin sheets. The tubers are kept in stacks of layers of wooden planks for aeration.In terms of the trader-based informal seed system, some traders supply seeds to the farmers directly while others have an informal contract system to buy back the produce from the farmers. In West Garo, farmers purchase seed from traders coming from neighboring markets of Assam, such as Dhubri, just before the sowing period. The interviewed traders pointed out that, unlike in other plain states, there are no proper seed markets for potato in Meghalaya which may be one of the reasons for low yield.There is also a formal seed system in the state, wherein the foundation seed is supplied by the DOH to progressive farmers or registered growers to produce certified seeds, which are then bought back by the DOH and distributed among farmers. The registered seed growers are identified by the DOH who also monitors production during the season. The DOH purchases basic breeder seeds from the CPRI in Shimla. Kufri Jyoti and Kufri Megha are the major varieties multiplied by registered seed growers and also procured and multiplied to foundation seed by the DOH at the experimental station in Upper Shillong.The sorting and grading is done on the field with medium sized tubers often sold back to the DOH as seeds, while the bigger tubers of minor quality are sold as ware. The seed tubers are packed in perforated nylon bags of 50-60 kg capacity and labelled with details including variety names, generation, and farmer's name, among others. The registered growers of Khasi Hills transport their potatoes themselves to the concerned offices of the Horticulture Department with pickup trucks and mini trucks. The average transport cost is 1 INR per kg. The DOH's implementation of this system depends largely on farmers' seed demand. However, with a total annual seed requirement of about 45,000 tons, it is only able to meet less than 2% of the total seed requirement in Meghalaya. Therefore, the rest of the seed used by farmers is informally produced (Kadian et al., 2010) This study revealed that the value chain governance is similar in both Khasi Hills and in West Garo Hills, wherein the key value chain actors are the wholesalers operating in neighboring states. They play a decisive role on how the chain operates since they determine the flow of commodities as well as prices. It can even be argued that they govern the value chain and that most other chain actors subscribe to their unwritten rules that guide the marketing process. The wholesalers have sufficient information about the supply of potato and which direction it flows along the marketing channels in different parts of the country, thus they are capable of setting potato prices. They are also strongly networked mostly through telephone contact. For instance, a potato wholesaler in Guwahati, Assam state or in Tripura where there is good demand for Meghalaya potato can contact wholesaler trader agents in the Iewduh or Mawiong via telephone. In turn, these trader agents call known local farmers and other traders in Meghalaya for information on the local supply situation and the prospects of harvest in their area. At the same time, trader agents obtain information on potato prices from the wholesalers in Meghalaya and beyond. Then, trader agents in Shillong agree on their buying price, considering their profit margins.Consequently, farmers accept the buying price offered by trader agents with hardly any negotiation due to fear of unsold produce. Because of this farmers do not have any significant influence on the value chain. They are also often not organized, and their major source of market information are their neighbors or fellow farmers who sold potato during the previous market days. It is rare for the farmers to receive potato market price information through mass media. This value chain governance is similar to that of West Garo Hills.Except for this networking and business relation, there is no formal means of transactions in the potato value chain in Meghalaya. Money is transferred through banks and more often than not, wholesalers in the different markets have never personally met. More recently, the use of mobile phones in the rural areas to inquire about potato prices is increasing.Value chain linkages refer to the relationships existing between actors in a chain. Data from Khasi and Garo Hills show that farmers have good relationships among themselves, maintaining regular contact and showing a satisfactory level of trust. This relationship and mutual trust among farmers is evident in seed exchanges, information sharing on cultivation practices and market prices, and in labor exchange. This can be the basis for looking at options for collective marketing in the area, which will be further discussed in the next sections.On the other hand, the relationship between farmers and traders is very informal and they have moderate trust even though their contact with each other is quite regular. Poor levels of trust exists in some cases where traders and wholesalers use irregular weighing practices and farmers suspect cheating. Very few farmers enter into written agreement with the traders and nearly 80% of the volume of Meghalaya potato trading takes place through traders in Iewduh and Mawiong who have connections to wholesalers in neighboring states. Both are interdependent in the transaction as farmers have to sell to these traders through auction and these traders have to procure tubers from farmers. The price is decided by the wholesalers depending on the prevailing supply and demand.Farmers also maintain a moderate linkage with banks for acquiring loans through a formal written agreement. Meanwhile, the farmers' linkages with the Agriculture Department and Extension Agency is also moderate and formal but mostly through verbal agreement, often through farmers' participation in training programs.Presently, there are two regulated markets under the Agriculture Produce Market Committee Act in the state of Meghalaya: the previously mentioned Mawiong regulated market in East Khasi District and Garobadha regulated market located in West Garo District. The latter operates under the MSAMB and was set up in 1983 to develop marketing infrastructure and to provide marketing support to farmers in the State. Notably, potato is one of the main commodities in Mawiong but it is not marketed in Garobadha.Among non-regulated markets, Iewduh Bara Bazaar is the major market supplying vegetables to residents of Shillong city and the wider region in the absence of a regulated market for vegetables. Farmers within a 60 km radius of Shillong city sell their produce in the market where approximately 300 to 400 small and big traders are operating. Iewduh is run and managed by the Syiem of Mylliem, an indigenous institution linked to Khasi ethnic population. The most distinctive feature of this ancient market is the dominance of retail trade by Khasi women. Although the market is non-regulated, interviewed farmers revealed that they pay a 10 INR tax for each 50 kg sack of potatoes to the indigenous authority. This fee goes to the provision of facilities in the market such as sanitation and parking. On the other hand, non-local traders are required to have a trading license issued by the Khasi Hills Autonomous District Councils.To provide better marketing facilities for these farmers, the Government of Meghalaya through the MSAMB agreed to set up a Farmers' Market under Additional Central Assistance (ACA) at a cost of 4,718,731.00. INR The Upper Shillong Farmers' Market is built on land belonging to the State Agriculture Department at 5th Mile Upper Shillong, on the road to Shillong peak. The main objectives of establishing the Farmers' Market is (1) to provide a place which is equipped with infrastructure and facilities for the farmers to sell their produce in a transparent and fair manner to buyers and sellers alike, (2) to enable farmers to come together and manage the facility, (3) to provide a platform to farmers for exchanging information and for the Department of Agriculture to meet with farmers with a view to providing technical information and advisories, and (d) to facilitate direct seller and trader interaction and trading between farmers and traders which eliminates the operation of superfluous value chain actors to a great extent. To date, the construction of this Farmers' Market has been completed, but it is yet to be inaugurated.To improve the marketability and add value to farmers' produce, the State Government has proposed to set up a Collection and Forwarding Centre adjacent to the Farmers' Market. In here, the produce will be properly graded, stored, and packed; before being transported to larger markets outside Shillong and even outside the state.Besides Iewduh, Mawiong, and Garobadha markets, districts also have traditional non-regulated rural markets established at the village level or cluster level. In these weekly or bi-weekly markets managed by local authorities, small and marginal farmers of nearby villages sell their produce. Being traditional establishments, these rural markets lack basic infrastructure facilities to handle fresh produce. The cost of cultivation was computed based on the variable cost in which input costs, both purchased and owned, and labor costs, both family and hired labor, are included. The total cost of cultivation for each potato cultivation season are shown in Table 11 below. Results show that production costs are higher in winter mainly because of higher seed rates and prices, which are purchased from traders and not self-produced. Labor costs account for 50% while seed costs is almost 40%. Moreover, among the production operations, land preparation and harvesting entailed higher labor costs in all seasons. This assessment shows that there is scope for reducing cultivation costs with interventions like seed production in the case of winter season and use of tillers during land preparation in spring and summer. However, overall cost of production relative to yield is actually lower for winter potato at 10.03 INR/kg because of its substantially higher yield rates, which may be due to irrigation practiced in surveyed villages. This analysis sought to understand how much value is added by the different value chain actors in the three seasons studied. Value addition is the difference between the costs invested and the selling price at each stage of the value chain. Producers' share and price spread were also worked out to assess the percentage of the total value enjoyed by the farmers. The detailed results for each the three seasons are shown in Annex IV and V.As previously mentioned, there are six channels in the value chain map for spring and summer seasons in Khasi Hills. In Channel 1, which accounts for 70% to 80% of the total volume traded, the market margins for producers, traders, wholesalers, and retailers are 3.30, 1.00, 0.50, and 1.50 INR/kg, respectively. Among the channels, producers could get the highest value addition of 5.4 INR/kg in Channel 6, where they sell directly to consumers. On the contrary, they get the least value added in Channels 4 and 5, where they sell within the village to aggregators and traders.In the winter season in Garo Hills, value addition in Channel 1 was 2.50 INR/kg for producers' ,1.00 INR/kg for traders, 0.08 INR/kg for wholesalers, and 1.00 INR/kg for retailers. Among the channels, producers could get maximum value addition of 4 INR/kg in Channel 3 where they sell directly to the consumers followed by Channel 2 where product moves from farmer to wholesalers, retailers, and consumers within Meghalaya.Additionally, the producers' percentage share of the total value added was calculated for all the channels (Table 12). Results show that Channel 6, which involves direct sales to consumers, gave farmers the highest percentage share of value added at 95%. However, this channel accounts for only a very small part of overall transactions. Although farmers' margins were smaller in channels 4 and 5 where they sell in the village at lower prices, farmers actually enjoy a higher share of the total value added because these are shorter value chains. Farmers also get a higher proportion of value added in Channel 2, where they sell to wholesalers in the lewduh market who then sell on to retailers. The lowest share of value added was in the most important Channel 1, with the largest number of value chain actors involved. In the winter season, farmers' share is greatest in Channel 3 where they sell direct to consumers, and least in Channel 1 where purchases are made by traders in the villages and there are several other actors in the chain. The data presented on market margins shows that value addition is most significant among farmers, than with intermediate actors who handle much larger volumes, thus adding much smaller margins. Farmers' value addition activities include grading and taking the product to Iewduh market while the intermediate actors' value addition involves simple product transport and interaction with other actors. Despite this, the great volumes handled by these intermediate actors means they still get higher profit margins than farmers. In fact, even though the producers' share of value addition is more than 75%, in absolute terms the market margin is only 2.00 to 7.00 INR/kg. There is opportunity for increasing market margins across the value chain, including farmers, if more value adding activities for can be done, such as improved packaging or grading.The key challenges experienced by various potato value chain actors interviewed in this study are summarized in the Figure 16 below.As can be expected, price spread is also highest in channels with several actors along the chain and least in channels where farmers sell directly to consumers. In the spring and summer seasons price spread is least in Channel 6 and most in Channel 1 with three different actors in the chain between producers and consumers (Table 13). The channel where the producers' price share is higher clearly benefits farmers more and the channel in which the price spread is less benefits consumers more. The fewer the intermediate value chain actors, the greater the benefits to both producers and consumers. Therefore, these channels need to be encouraged, although in East Khasi Hills the current direct sales from producers to consumers accounts for a very tiny part of the total volume marketed, indicating probable constraints on this type of marketing.Input related problems are primarily associated with the use of high quality seed materials of improved varieties. This is a multi-dimensional problem which includes the lack of availability, untimely or delayed supply, lack of new or appropriate varieties, and high costs of seeds. Other production problems include the susceptibility of current varieties to diseases and pests, especially potato late blight, low soil fertility, and environmental stresses related to climate change.Notably, while the supply of the improved Kufri Jyoti variety has improved overtime, in recent years its tolerance to late blight has broken down. An alternative variety that is appropriate for local conditions is Kufri Giriraj, but it is not yet included in seed multiplication schemes. Moreover, soil fertility is affected by increased fertilizer prices, largely due to the removal of subsidies on inorganic fertilizers. This is a result of the government's promotion of organic agriculture which could lead to further increase in cost of production as potato is a heavy nutrient feeder. Farmers also identified the decreasing availability of timely labor as a growing problem in potato production. Further, the National Rural Employment Scheme which guarantees 100 days of labor work to each family leads to scarcity of labor and rise in wages of both male and female in rural areas as less numbers of laborers willing to work in the potato field.In terms of post-harvest issues, value chain actors stated that the quality control of potato is mostly done through physical observations only and that there is no standardized potato quality control mechanism in the country whether in seed production, ware potato transportation, or in potato packaging. Modern branding practices are also not being used in the study area. Quality parameters used by consumers in purchasing potato are size, color and absence of damage.Moreover, there is almost no processing of potato in Meghalaya and all types of processing units are absent. As was noted earlier, only about 7.5% of potato production is processed nationally, but this is still higher than in Meghalaya and this is an area of potential growth.Both farmers and traders expressed concerns about price instability and even price crashes that have occurred in the past, which led farmers to sell at a loss. Farmers also feel that the lack of information on market prices in other states, which have a considerable effect on potato prices in Shillong, is a significant constraint. Because they are not aware of the exact price at which they could sell their product before coming to Iewduh market, farmers have no choice but to accept the price bids of traders. In addition, even though nearly 70% of potato production in Meghalaya is marketed to neighboring states, there is no formal mechanism available for the farmers to sell the product to other states. Standard affordable common storage facilities are also lacking while proper transportation options are limited which increases post-harvest losses. Farmers often transport potatoes on the floor of trucks over long distances which results to skin damage.This study also documented various opportunities for overcoming these challenges and strengthening the potato value chain, as well as specific strategies and the stakeholders involved, as shown in Table 14. The specific recommendations based on the study results include both short and long term strategies and actions. The scoping study of RTCs in Meghalaya led by FoodSTART+ and LAMP in 2016 recommended conducting a potato value chain study in key potato producing areas in India to strengthen the value chain and increase benefits to farmers. This study was therefore conducted in late 2016 with the overall objective of characterizing the entire potato value chain in Meghalaya including input supply, varietal distribution over seasons, production, and marketing; and to identify major constraints and areas where interventions could significantly increase returns for potato producers. These information will be used to plan LAMP/MBDA activities in the potato sub-sector.This study followed a value chain analysis approach and involved a cross-sectional data collection among a range of stakeholders and value chain actors through review of secondary data, key informant interviews, FGDs, and surveys. The study was conducted in the main potato-producing districts of East Khasi, West Khasi and West Garo as well as in markets in Shillong and other urban centers of Meghalaya and in adjoining states.Potato is a vital and inseparable part of the Meghalaya cuisine. The per capita availability of potato in the state is almost 80 kg per annum, more than four times the national average, indicating that it is an important food crop in the state. This is partly due to the fact that potato can be grown in Meghalaya during most of the year in four distinct seasons, unlike other parts of India where it is a seasonal crop. This enables potato to be sold at premium prices outside Meghalaya.The value chain mapping revealed that farmers, traders, wholesalers, retailers, and consumers are the main actors, and they are supported by input suppliers and government organizations. The important varieties cultivated were Khufri Jyoti, Khufri Megha, Bengal tiger, Great Scot, Phan Sohiong, and Jatira. The major value chain channel for spring and summer potato grown in Khasi Hills involves farmers selling to traders in a Iewduh, a non-regulated market in Shillong, who then sell to wholesalers or their agents from neighboring states, who then sell to retailers, who then sell to consumers in that state. On the other hand, in the winter season in Garo Hills, the major channel involves the farmer selling to traders who visit the villages, they then sell the potatoes to wholesalers in urban centers in the region, who sell to retailers, who sell to consumers there. Potato is also traded in the markets in Mawiong and Garobadha. A little over two thirds of the production from Meghalaya is exported to neighboring states, mainly during June to August, and the rest is consumed locally. Conversely, Meghalaya imports nearly 70% of the potato demand during the months of October to January from West Bengal, Assam and Uttar Pradesh.The importance of the export and import markets of ware potato from neighboring states explains why wholesalers dominate the potato value chain. They dictate the flow of potato to and from other states and strongly influence prices. In effect, they govern the value chain and most other chain actors submit to the informal rules set in the marketing process.Research also show that 98% of the seed requirement during the spring and summer seasons were from the farmers own seeds and only 2% were from certified seeds, while winter season seeds were mostly purchased from traders from Assam. Potato farming requires a relatively large labor force and female labor dominates in both cultivation and post-harvest management. The cost of production of potato in spring, summer, and winter seasons were 12.54 INR/kg, 13.48 INR/kg and 10.03 INR/kg, respectively.Potato farmers and other value chain actors also identified the prevalent issues and challenges that affect potato production and marketing. Among their major concern is the lack of quality potato seeds of improved varieties in Meghalaya. This affects yield which are already well below national average. Another production issue affecting potato yield is decreasing soil fertility, which is confounded by the removal of state subsidies on chemical fertilizers as part of the promotion of organic agriculture. Other constraints include both biotic and abiotic stresses, the latter linked to climate change.In terms of post-harvest issues, farmers and traders mentioned that lack of a formal quality control and the absence of any branding of the Meghalaya potato affects potato prices and demand. There is also no post-harvest processing being done for potato. Moreover, poor transportation and lack of appropriate storage results in product damage and the absence of processing means that defective tubers have no alternative market. These production and post-harvest issues lead to the major marketing problem of unstable potato prices throughout the year. This can be alleviated through better storage options and the existence of value adding processing. Price volatility could also be reduced if farmers have more information on the prevailing market prices, especially about prices in neighboring states. Information on market prices can influence harvesting decisions and help reduce price volatility by limiting oversupply. At the same time, farmers could greatly benefit from opportunities to directly market their produce to other states and collective marketing, which are both currently absent in Meghalaya. Collective marketing can also improve farmers' revenue from local sales in Shillong.To overcome the challenges faced by actors in the potato value chain, especially for farmers, this study also identified opportunities for intervention. These include options for increasing the supply of and farmers' access to high quality seed of modern varieties to improve the seed value chain. The ware potato value chain could also be improved through better post-harvest handling, quality control mechanisms, and the use of proper storage. Opportunities for improved potato marketing includes providing market intelligence to farmers to help stabilize prices, building the marketing and entrepreneurial capacity of farmers, identifying processing options, and developing a branding strategy for Meghalaya potatoes to market to other states. All these can be done through better collaboration between farmers, other value chain actors, and government agencies.Area: hectares 2000-  167.88 149.42 141.60 167.03 188.20 174.59 120.53 162.44 155.88 165.67  ","tokenCount":"14788"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"4b46aef1d9791b74eef5c912668fa027","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/fe1ca96f-bed0-4d19-9314-636dcc41cd7d/retrieve","id":"1760739524"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"6eab3572-17af-4da5-9777-81b5fa368c98","pagecount":"130","content":"A DIOS por ser mi luz en cada momento de mi vida.A mi mamá por ser quien me dio el ser y a quien le debo haber terminado esta etapa de mi vida, pues con su amor y confianza apoyó cada momento de mi carrera.A mis abuelitos por estar en cada momento en el cual he necesitado de ellos, por brindarme su gran amor y a mi abuelita especialmente por sus oraciones en los momentos más importantes de mi vida.A mis hermanos por ser parte de mis alegrías y mis tristezas.A mi papá por acompañarme en mi carrera y por enseñarme todo aquello que sabía, por ser mi compañero de risas y de locuras.A mi gran amiga Sandra por que sin su tolerancia, perseverancia y gran amistad no se hubiera podido culminar este trabajo con éxito, a ella y su familia siempre los llevaré en mi corazón.A Hoover por soportar mis momentos de mal genio y por ser mi gran amigo además de mi amor.Y muy especialmente a mis amigos (as) Merlyn, Oscar, Jose, Álvaro, Diego, Jaime, Alex, Elkin, Marino, Cony, Katherine, Anderson, Mauricio T, Ana María Lozada, Maria Claudia, Ana Milena, Chicho, Ricardo, Cléver, Karim, Martha, Lina, Lili, Patico, Sandra García, mi Yorla por estar siempre ahí cuando mas los necesité, por ser complices de mis alegrias y mis tristezas y por ser quienes son.A Dios por estar conmigo en todos los momentos de mi vida, y no dejarme desfallecer, además por darme la familia tan espectacular que tengo.A mis padres por apoyarme en todas mis decisiones, por su compañía en este transcurso de mi vida, por darme la oportunidad de ser alguien en la vida, por la formación que me han dado y sobre todo por todo el amor que me brindan.A mi hermana Paola por estar a mi lado en los momentos de tristeza y alegrías, por apoyarme y respetarme.A Herman, mi cuñado, por entender todos mis dilemas, por su gran ayuda y amistad.A mis abuelos por su amor que solo ellos saben dar.A mi MEJOR AMIGA JOHANNA, por soportar mi genio, por su ayuda, por esa amistad tan incondicional y única que hizo posible que tantas cosas nos saliera tan bien.A mi MEJOR AMIGO ALEJANDRO por sus consejos y por estar siempre al lado mío.A mi amiga Merlyn por esas largas charlas y momentos felices que pasamos.A mis amigos Jose, Oscar, Alex, Jaime, Alvaro, Patico, Sandra G., Catherine, Lina, Martha, Ana María Lozada, Conny, Marino y a las monas, quienes con su sonrisa y compañía hicieron que esta étapa tuviera los mejores momentos de mi vida.A los abuelos de JOHA por su confianza y apoyo moral en toda mi carrera.A mis amigos(as) Mauricio Cuevas, Anderson, Mauricio Tamara, Karim, Ana Milena, Chichos, Cléber, Ricardo, Adrian, que a pesar de ser de otras carreras estuvieron en todo momento conmigo compartiendo ratos inolvidables.A mi gran amiga María Claudia por esa amistad tan sincera, por toda su ayuda Sandra patricia v.Manifestamos nuestros agradecimientos para la culminación de este trabajo:Al Centro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical (CIAT) por dejarnos una huella imborrable de grandes enseñanzas.Al Doctor Fernando Correa por el gran apoyo que nos brindó para la culminación de este trabajo, por su confianza y por sus enseñanzas, las cuales son básicas para nuestra formación como profesionales.A James García por su gran ayuda, su amistad y en especial su confianza.A Gustavito por que fue un gran compañero en nuestro trabajo, gracias por meterle toda tu tenacidad a esta tesis y sobre todo por tu amistad.Al profesor Ariel Gutiérrez por su paciencia, perseverancia y gran ayuda para que este trabajo fuera exitoso.A Girlena por sus grandes enseñanzas.A Fabio Escobar por su compañerismo, a Joanna Dossman y Sandra Salazar y en general a todo el equipo de arroz del CIAT.A Liliana Escobar por su gran amistad y ayuda.A Luz Dary, Luis Rosero y Daniel Zambrano por su valiosa colaboració n.A Elizabeth por su valiosa colaboración en la edición de este trabajo y por estar siempre dispuesta a colaborarnos.A Miryam Cristina Duque y James Silva por su gran ayuda y por su gran conocimiento aportado.A la Universidad Nacional por formarnos como profesionales.Al profesor Fernando Marmolejo por ser quien nos motivó a amar la fitopatología.A los profesores Jaime Eduardo Muñoz, Carlos Iván Cardozo, Pedro Díaz, Mario García, Edgar Iván Estrada, Franco Alirio Vallejo y Mauricio Salazar por darnos lo mejor de su trabajo como verdaderos maestros.El entorchamiento del arroz es una enfermedad causada por el Virus de la Necrosis Rayada (VNRA), el cual es transmitido por el hongo del suelo Polymyxa graminis. En este estud io se compararon tres métodos de inoculación para identificar la que presentara transmisión del hongo vector y una mayor incidencia de entorchamiento, con el objetivo principal de poder evaluar germoplasma de arroz por su resistencia al virus. El método 1 consistió en la siembra directa de la semilla sobre suelo contaminado recolectado directamente de campos de agricultores con una alta incidencia de la enfermedad; en el método 2 se pusieron en contacto las semillas con suelo humedecido y altamente infestado por el hongo vector y posteriormente se sembró en materos con arena estéril; en el método 3 se sembraron las semillas en bandejas con suelo infestado y a los 10 días después de siembra se arrancaron las plántulas para causar heridas en las raicillas y se transplantaron a materos que contenían del mismo suelo contaminado. Se determinó que la mayor incidencia de la enfermedad se presentó con el método 1. Posteriormente se evaluó la reacción al virus de la Necrosis Rayada (VNRA) bajo condiciones de invernadero de 16 líneas preliminarmente clasificadas como resistentes y 10 susceptibles, resultantes del cruzamiento y retrocruzamiento de la especie silvestre de arroz O. glaberrima como parental resistente y la variedad comercial BG90-2 O. sativa utilizada como parental recurrente en las generaciones RC 2 F 5 Y RC 3 F 4 .De esta evaluación se seleccionaron 9 líneas altamente resistentes al VNRA que pertenecían a la población RC 2 F 5.Se estudió la resistencia al virus y/o al hongo vector P. graminis en líneas resistentes al VNRA, en los parentales BG90-2 y O. glaberrima y en la variedad susceptible Oryzica 3, y se concluyó que la resistencia al VNRA puede deberse a una resistencia al vector y no necesariamente al virus, por lo cual se recomienda realizar estudios para dilucidar los mecanismos de resistencia observados.Se evaluó la efectividad del fungicida HIMEXAZOL como control químico del hongo vector P. graminis aplicado al suelo o la semilla, dando como resultado un buen control a concentraciones de 1ml de HIMEXAZOL en 199 ml de agua aplicado al suelo, aplicado al suelo. Concentraciones mayores causan una alta toxicidad y mortalidad de plantas. En la aplicación a la semilla no se observó ningún efecto del fungicida para el control del hongo P. graminis vector del VNRA.Palabras Claves: Entorchamiento, Polymyxa graminis, líneas resistentes, control químico, HIMEXAZOL.The rice disease known as crinkling or rice stripe necrosis virus (RSNV) is transmitted by the soil pathogen Polymyxa graminis. Three inoculation methods were compared in this study to identify the best transmission of the fungus and symptom development, and the highest incidence of the disease, with the objective of evaluating rice germplasm for resistance to the virus. Method 1 consisted in planting dried seed directly on contaminated soil collected from farmers fields with a high incidence of RSNV; for method 2 the seeds were placed in contact with soil highly infested with P. graminis which had been previously moistened, and then planting the seeds in pots containing sterile sand; in method 3 the seeds were planted temporarily in highly infested soil on flat trays for ten days, seedlings were then pulled off the soil causing small wounds in the roots and transplanted to pots containing the same soil highly infested with the pathogen. The highest incidence of the disease was observed with method 1 of inoculation. This method was used to evaluate and corroborate the reaction to RSNV of rice lines derived from the insterspecific cross and backcross between the wild rice Oryza glaberrima (resistant parent) and the cultivar BG-90-2 of the cultivated species O. sativa used as the recurrent parent in the BC 2 F 5 and BC 3 F 4 populations. Nine lines were selected as highly resistant to RSNV from the population BC 2 F 5.The resistance to the virus or vector was studied in lines selected as highly resistant to RSNV, the parents (BG90-2 and O. glaberrima), and the susceptible cultivar Oryzica 3.The results suggest that the resistance to RSNV observed could be due to resistance to the vector and not necessarily to the virus; therefore, it is recommended to conduct additional studies to elucidate the nature and mechanisms of the resistance observed.The fungicide HIMEXAZOL was evaluated as chemical control of the vector P. graminis applied to the soil or as seed treatment. Effective control was observed for the concentration 1X applied to the soil. However, higher concentrations of the fungicide were toxic causing plant death. Seed treatment was not effective for the control of the vector of RSNV at any concentration. Ibagué, con síntomas característicos como el enrollamiento de la hoja principal, fusión del tejido foliar que da origen a un pseudotallo con una hoja principal que emerge en forma de zig-zag. Las hojas afectadas se tornan necróticas, y finalmente las plantas detienen su desarrollo normal (Restrepo, 1969). En 1991 se presentó en la zona arrocera de los LlanosOrientales (Bastidas y Montealegre,1994). En los años siguientes la incidencia de la enfermedad ha sido errática y ha variado apreciablemente de un semestre a otro.En 1999 se encontraron en el Valle del Cauca lotes con incidencia hasta del 90% (Reyes y Holguín, 2000).En el control del Virus de la Necrosis Rayada del Arroz, transmitido por el pseudo-pseudohongo Polymyxa graminis se han intentado varios métodos. Hasta la fecha, los tratamientos con productos químicos no han resultado ser económicamente viables en condiciones de campo. Las principales estrategias en la mayoría de los países templados afectados por estos virus transmitidos por Polymyxa spp., han sido, las prácticas culturales y la rotación de cultivos (Morales, 2001).Teniendo en cuenta la importancia del cultivo del arroz en Colombia y el nivel de daño causado por esta enfermedad, junto con los elevados costos de los agroquímicos utilizados como control y su inefectividad, se hace necesario hallar algunas medidas de control para el \"entorchamiento\" del arroz como el desarrollo de posibles fuentes de resistencia al virus y/o vector.-Profundizar en el conocimiento de la interacción de germoplasma de arroz con el virus de la Necrosis Rayada del Arroz y de su vector el pseudo-pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis.-Comparar tres metodologías de inoculación del pseudo-pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis para identificar la que presente mayor incidencia de la enfermedad para su uso en los ensayos posteriores de evaluación de germoplasma de arroz.-Evaluar el comportamiento de las líneas resultantes del cruzamiento y retrocruzamiento de una accesión de Oryza glaberrima como parental resistente y la variedad comercial BG90-2 ( Oryza sativa) utilizada como parental intermedio recurrente en las generaciones RC 2 F 5 , RC 3 F 4 y RC 3 F 5 al virus del entorchamiento del arroz en condiciones de invernadero .-Determinar si las líneas resistentes al Entorchamiento, seleccionadas en el retrocruzamiento estudiado, presentan también resistencia a la infección de la raíz por parte del vector Polymyxa graminis.-Evaluar la efectividad del fungicida HIMEXAZOL en el control químico de Polymyxa graminis, vector del entorchamiento.El arroz es un cultivo de ciclo corto de vital importancia para la dieta alimenticia de los colombianos, tanto en la zona rural como en la urbana; es una fuente de calorías (14.3%) y de proteínas (12.5%) (Prado, 1994) La enfermedad se manifiesta en zonas tropicales, pero es posible que se presente en zonas templadas ya que el pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis proviene de estas zonas. (Morales et al, 1995) Debido a la importancia económica que ha alcanzado el entorchamiento, es necesario iniciar un programa de evaluación e identificación de posibles fuentes de resistencia al virus para ser incorporadas en los programas de mejoramiento de desarrollo de variedades de arroz (Carrillo y Correa, 1998) 1.3 SINTOMATOLOGIA Los síntomas de la enfermedad durante el desarrollo del cultivo se manifiestan de la siguiente forma: durante el estado de plántula se observa una proliferación de raíces secundarias que elevan la planta sobre la superficie del suelo, enroscamiento con o sin moteado de las hojas, enanismo, pérdida de turgencia, aceleramiento del desarrollo y muerte de plantas. En las plantas que sobreviven, el macollamiento se adelanta, las hojas y tallos se deforman, el anclaje es débil, las nuevas macollas emergen con deformaciones y enanismo que en la mayoría de los casos no se desarrollan y mueren (Agudelo et al, 2001).Polymyxa graminis es un parásito obligado de las raíces de plantas susceptibles. Esta especie produce zoosporas biflageladas, las cuales nadan hacia los pelos radicales o a la superficie de la epidermis de las raíces, donde se enquistan, inyectando su protoplasto en las células atacadas. Este protoplasto se divide para formar un plasmodio multinucleado, que se convierte en un zoosporangio. Esta estructura produce zoosporas secundarias, encargadas de continuar el proceso de infección. En condiciones adversas los plasmodios producen cuerpos de resistencia, llamados cistosoros, los cuales pueden sobrevivir varios años en ausencia de hospederos y condiciones ambientales favorables. (Chen et al, 1991) La enfermedad se manifiesta tanto en condiciones de irrigación temporal como en secano, teniendo mayor incidencia en suelos de textura liviana, como los Franco Arenosos. Esto se debe a la mayor movilidad de las zoosporas en este tipo de suelos, siempre y cuando tenga un contenido de humedad apropiado para el desplazamiento de las zoosporas y crecimiento del cultivo. La incidencia del \"Entorchamiento\" puede estar influenciada por factores climáticos, coincidiendo los brotes más severos con la ocurrencia de periodos de sequía y lluvias alternadas. (Morales et al, 1995) A nivel regional, el pseudo-pseudo-hongo vector y el virus que porta, se propaga por diferentes medios. El agua de riego y sus fuentes de agua (lagunas, ríos, etc) pueden ser un medio de difusión de zoosporas virulíferas. Las labores de cultivo, los implementos y la maquinaria agrícola, así como semilla contaminada con suelo infestado constituyen un vehículo de contaminación de suelos libres del pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis y del Virus de la Necrosis Rayada del arroz (VNRA). En algunas regiones productoras de arroz la maquinaria es alquilada y transportada por largas distancias, sin tomar las medidas necesarias para descontaminarla luego de haber sido utilizada en campos afectados por entorchamiento. (Morales, 2001) Polymyxa es un género económicamente importante con solo dos especies: Polymyxa graminis Lendinghan y Polymyxa betae Keskin.Polymyxa graminis y Polymyxa betae están registradas como especies separadas por Karling (1968) (citado por Barr 1979) en su monografía de pseudo-hongos plasmodioforos por lo siguiente: las paredes de los cistosoros en P. graminis son fusionadas, mientras que en P. betae son separadas por una sustancia y por que difieren en el tipo de huéspedes.D'Ambra (1967) (Citado por Barr, 1979), encontró una cercana semejanza entre las dos especies y concluyó que esta diferenciación no es posible morfo lógicamente, es decir que la clasificación es posible solo por características citológicas de los núcleos durante la mitosis y por el huésped específico. ( Barr, 1979) Polymyxa betae es un patógeno de la remolacha en Europa y en Norte América (Keskin, 1964 citado por Barr, 1979), mientas que Polymyxa graminis fue el primer plasmodioforomiceto identificado como un vector del virus en plantas de trigo (WMV) (Ratna et al 1990). P. graminis es un parásito biotrópico registrado en las raíces de especies de la familia de las gramíneas (Adams, et al, 1986). Aparentemente no causa pérdidas en la cosecha directamente, siendo este un vector de virus en cereales: virus del mosaico del trigo que habita en el suelo (WSBNV) en los EE.UU. e Italia; virus del mosaico rayado del trigo (WSSMV) en Canadá, EE.UU. y posiblemente Francia; virus del mosaico de la avena (OMV) en EE.UU. y posiblemente Nueva Zelanda; virus del mosaico amarillo de la cebada (BaYMV) y virus del mosaico necrótico del arroz (RNMV) ambos en Japón (Barr, 1979).La enfermedad viral descrita como \"Entorchamiento\", es causada por el furovirus de la necrosis rayada del arroz (VNRA), transmitido en África a través del suelo por el pseudohongo P. graminis. (Fauquet y Thouvenel, 1983;citado por Morales et al, 1995) Restrepo (1969) en Colombia observó una nueva enfermedad en los cultivos de arroz de la Meseta de Ibagué con una sintomatología caracterizada por presentar enrollamiento de la hoja principal, fusión de tejido foliar dando lugar a un pseudotallo que contiene una hoja principal que emerge en forma de zig-zag, las hojas afectadas se tornan necróticas, y finalmente las plantas detienen su desarrollo normal. (Bastidas y Montealegre, 1994) Fue después de 22 años cuando se volvió a detectar en Colombia un problema similar, observado en los municipios de Castilla la Nueva y de San Carlos de Guaroa, en el departamento del Meta (Bastidas y Montealegre, 1994), esta vez destacándose la presencia de rayas cloróticas paralelas a las nervaduras de las primeras hojas, sumándose a estas los síntomas descritos en 1969. (Morales et al, 1995) El efecto de algunos herbicidas, la interacción de residuos de herbicidas con minerales del suelo y la transmisión por insectos o por organismos microscópicos que infectaron las plantas con alguna sustancia de tipo viral o que ocasionaron un daño directo fueron asociados con la enfermedad (Bastidas y Montealegre, 1994).En 1993 Tapiero y Parada (citado por Acosta N. et al 1997) asocian la presencia del áfido Rhopalosiphum rufiabdominalis con el síndrome del entorchamiento, sin embargo en los estudios de transmisión estos investigadores obtuvieron síntomas del entorchamiento en plantas sembradas en suelo con poblaciones del áfido y en suelo esterilizado con o sin áfidos, no confirmándose la transmisión de este insecto. (Acosta, N. 1997) En 1994 Pardo y Muñoz luego de realizar un estudio donde se asperjaron plántulas de arroz con una suspensión de nematodos con los que reprodujeron los síntomas de entorchamiento, concluyeron que el nematodo del género Pratylenchus era el agente causal de la enfermedad del entorchamiento en el cultivo de arroz de los Llanos Orientales.A finales de 1993 se realizaron las primeras investigaciones sobre el agente causal del \"entorchamiento\" de arroz en la Unidad de Virología del CIAT; donde se investigó la posibilidad de que se tratara del virus del moteado amarillo del arroz (RYMV) transmitido por crisomélidos (Bakker, 1970;citado por Morales et al 1995) por presentar similitud en los síntomas, sin embargo los resultados fueron negativos. En 1994, se inició la investigación sobre la posible existencia de un furovirus, habiéndose observado partículas tubulares degradadas en extractos de hojas sintomáticas, y estructuras similares a esporangios en raíces de plantas de arroz afectadas por entorchamiento. Estas investigaciones concluyeron ante el informe de que el agente causal del entorchamiento era el nematodo del género Pratylenchus. (Morales et al 1995) En 1995 Morales y colaboradores reanudaron las investigaciones debido a la persistencia de la enfermedad a pesar del uso intensivo de nematicidas. Para dicho estudio se utilizaron plantas de arroz de diferentes variedades, afectadas por \"entorchamiento\", procedentes de las localidades de Santa Rosa, Acacías, y San Carlos de Guaroa, en el departamento del Meta. Se hicieron observaciones directas de extractos de plantas con síntomas de \"entorchamiento\" en un microscopio electrónico, se tomaron diferentes muestras del sistema radical de plantas de arroz sanas y afectadas por \"entorchamiento\" para la detección de microorganismos en microscopio de luz, se utilizó tejido foliar y raíces de plantas de arroz afectadas por \"entorchamiento\" para el aislamiento del agente causal y se determinaron sus características por medio de espectrofotometría, finalmente se realizó un análisis de proteínas y ARN de doble filamento. En dicha investigación se demostró la presencia de estructuras similares a los cistosoros característicos del pseudo-hongo plasmodioforomiceto Polymyxa spp., en plantas de arroz afectadas por \"entorchamiento\", de igual manera se demostró la asociación con esta enfermedad de un patógeno viral perteneciente al grupo de los furovirus. (Morales et al 1995) El síndrome del \"entorchamiento\", presentó similitudes con los síntomas de la enfermedad viral conocida como \"Necrosis Rayada del Arroz\" descrita en África. Aislamientos de dicho virus de África y de Colombia, así como extractos de plantas de arroz afectadas por Esta enfermedad se ha distribuido en 22 municipios de ocho departamentos en Colombia (tabla 1). Los plasmodioforomicetos son pseudo-hongos cuyo soma vegetativo es un plasmodio, es decir, una masa amiboidea de protoplasma que posee muchos núcleos y que carece de una pared celular definida. (Agrios, 1997) En el orden de los plasmodiforales el soma vegetativo es también un plasmodio, pero se forma sólo en las células de la planta hospedero y sus esporas latentes se producen en masas y no en cuerpos fructíferos bien definidos. Los plasmodiforales producen zoosporas que por lo común poseen un par de flagelos (Agrios, 1985).El grupo de los plasmodioforales penetra y parásita las raíces y otros órganos subterráneos de las plantas e incluye tres géneros fitoparásitos obligados: Plasmodiophora, Polymyxa y Spongospora. Estos pseudo-hongos se encuentran ampliamente distribuidos en los suelos, donde invernan como esporas latentes. Cuando la temperatura es favo rable y la humedad abundante, la espora latente produce una zoospora que infecta un pelo radicular y produce un plasmodio. Este último se transforma en un zoosporangio que produce abundantes zoosporas secundarias que, quizá después de haberse apareado, penetran en la raíz o en los tejidos de un tubérculo, producen un plasmodio y ocasionan la enfermedad característica.El plasmodio se propaga en los tejidos del hospedero y finalmente produce esporas latentes invernantes. (Agrios, 1985) Estos pseudo-hongos son parásitos obligados y aun cuando pueden sobrevivir en el suelo como esporas latentes durante muchos años, sólo pueden desarrollarse y reproducirse en un número limitado de hospederos. El plasmodio vive a expensas de las células del hospedero que ha invadido sin que las destruya. Por el contrario, en algunas enfermedades, muchas células adyacentes y las que han sido invadidas son estimuladas por el patógeno para que crezcan y se dividan, lo cual hace que este último disponga de una mayor cantidad de nutrientes. Los patógenos se propagan de planta a planta mediante zoosporas o mediante cualquier vector que lleve suelo o agua conteniendo esporas, mediante transplantes infectados, etc. (Agrios, 1997) Los géneros Polymyxa y Spongospora, además de las enfermedades que producen transmiten diversos virus que atacan a diferentes especies; Spongospora es el vector del virus del enanismo de los tallos de la papa, mientras que Polymyxa graminis es el vector del virus del mosaico del trigo que habita en el suelo. (Agrios, 1985) 1Los plasmodioforomicetos son un moho mucilaginoso cuyo soma es un plasmodio. El plasmodio produce zoosporangios o esporas latentes. Cuando ambas estructuras reproductoras germinan, producen zoosporas. Las zoosporas producidas a partir de las esporas latentes penetran en los pelos radícula res del hospedero y ahí forman un plasmodio. A cabo de algunos días, el plasmodio se fragmenta en porciones multinucleadas y rodeadas por membranas individuales; cada una de las porciones forma un zoosporangio.Los zoosporangios salen del hospedero a través de poros que hay en su pared celular y cada uno de ellos libera de cuatro a ocho zoosporas secundarias. Algunas de estas zoosporas se fusionan en pares para formar cigotos que producen nuevas infecciones y un nuevo plasmodio. Por último el plasmodio produce de nuevo esporas latentes que son liberadas al suelo después de haberse producido la desintegración de las paredes celulares del hospedero por la acción de microorganismos secundarios. (Agrios, 1997).El control de virus transmitidos por pseudo-hongos plasmodioforomicetos, como P.Graminis, ha sido intentado por varios métodos. Hasta la fecha, los tratamientos químicos no han resultado ser económicamente viables en condiciones de campo. Las principales estrategias en las mayorías de los países templados afectados por estos virus transmitidos por Polymyxa spp., han sido:• Las practicas culturales donde se adelanta o atrasa la época de siembra para reducir la incidencia de la enfermedad y la rotación de cultivos.• Es posible darle un manejo integrado al \"Entorchamiento\" del arroz, el primer paso seria la \"exclusión\" del patógeno en países o regiones donde no se ha presentado aún.• Evitar la compra de semilla proveniente de regiones productoras de arroz afectadas por esta enfermedad.• Cuando el pseudo-hongo vector y el VNRA se manifiestan en un lote determinado, lo mas indicado es tomar las medidas necesarias para no contaminar otros lotes vecinos.Por ejemplo, manejando el agua de riego o canales de drenaje, así como evitando el movimiento de personal e implementos agrícolas contaminados entre lotes afectados y libres de la enfermedad. Una vez cosechado el lote afectado se debe evitar la siembra de arroz antes de hacer una rotación con una especie no gramínea.• Hacer un buen control de gramíneas silvestres antes de la siembra de arroz. El suelo se seca en los invernaderos de CIAT a temperatura ambiente y se muele en máquina para ser distribuido en materos de 8'' de diámetro y 500 gr de capacidad. En cada matero se siembra 10 semillas de la variedad Oryzica 3, altamente susceptible (incidencia de entorchamiento mayor al 70%), para determinar el nivel de infestación del suelo. Una vez realizada la prueba las plantas se cortan al nivel del suelo, para mantenerlo altamente infestado con el pseudo-hongo, se deja secar hasta su próximo uso. Este suelo una vez seco se vuelve a moler, dejándolo de esta manera listo para la evaluación del germoplasma. Este proceso ayuda a aumentar la infestación del suelo con estructuras de Polymyxa graminis. Se utilizan materos sin agujeros, para evitar que al regar las plantas se laven las zoosporas y otras estructuras producidas por el pseudo-hongo. De esta manera, el suelo mantiene residuos de raíces infestadas por Polymyxa graminis que luego sirven como inóculo primario.Las evaluaciones para las tres metodologías se incluyeron como fuentes de variación para los ensayos estadísticos y se iniciaron a los 20 días después de la siembra y se seguían realizando cada 7 días, según la escala visual descrita en la tabla 3. Se fertiliza con sulfato de amonio a los 15 días después de la siembra y cada 15 días hasta terminar las evaluaciones.Se evalúa según los parámetros y las fechas establecidas anteriormente.Se ponen en contacto las semillas de los genotipos a evaluar con suelo humedecido y altamente infestado por el entorchamiento, con el propósito de lograr que partículas de suelo infestado se impregnen en la semilla y sirvan de inóculo.Luego se procede a sembrar la semilla impregnada con suelo infestado en materos con arena estéril.Se fertiliza con sulfato de amonio a los 15 días después de la siembra y cada 15 días hasta terminar las evaluaciones, aplicando simultáneamente solución nutritiva.Se evalúa según los parámetros y las fechas establecidas anteriormente.En bandejas tipo restaurante se siembran 10 semillas de cada genotipo en el suelo infestado sometido al procedimiento descrito inicialmente.A los 10 días después de la siembra se arrancan las plántulas para causar heridas en las raicillas y permitir la penetración del pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis, luego se transplantan a materos que contengan suelo contaminado el cual ha pasado por el mismo procedimiento de secado y molido.Se fertiliza con sulfato de amonio a los 15 días después de la siembra y cada 15 días hasta terminar las evaluaciones. Se evalúa según los parámetros y las fechas establecidas anteriormente.Para todo el ensayo se realizaron 10 repeticiones, y se utilizó un diseño de parcelas divididas, siendo la parcela principal el método de inoculación y la subparcela los diferentes genotipos.El esquema del análisis de varianza se muestra en la tabla 4. Se incluyeron como testigos: BG90-2, Oryza glaberrima y Oryzica 3 como testigo susceptible 2.3.2 Metodología: Todas las líneas se siembran de acuerdo con el método 1 que fue el de los mejores resultados en el ensayo realizado previamente (ver resultados Pág. 28).Se utilizó suelo recolectado tanto en fincas de Jamundí como del Tolima, sembrando 10 plantas de cada genotipo por cada matero por cada suelo. Una vez realizado este procedimiento se estudió la incidencia de la enfermedad, realizando tres evaluaciones; la primera se hizo a los 21 días después de la siembra, tiempo que tarda en manifestarse la enfermedad; la segunda a los 36 días y la tercera a los 51 días; teniendo en cuenta los mismos caracteres del ensayo de metodologías (Entorchado, Rayado, Enanismo y Mortalidad) y fertilizando a los 15 días después de la siembra y cada 15 días hasta terminar las evaluaciones.Se analiza la información de tres siembras para decidir cuales genotipos son tolerantes o resistentes y para continuar el proceso de evaluación. De cada genotipo se sembraron 10 plantas por matero que contenía suelo infestado de la zona de Jamundí y se fertilizó con sulfato de amonio a los 15 días después de la siembra y cada 15 días hasta la última evaluación.Las plantas se evaluaron teniendo en cuenta la aparición de entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo, mortalidad y plantas sanas que de acuerdo con el ensayo preliminar debe hacerse a los 23, 37 y 51 días después de la siembra.Estos 30 genotipos se distribuyeron en el invernadero de acuerdo con un diseño de Bloques Completos al Azar con estructura factorial, con cuatro repeticiones. El análisis de varianza para este ensayo de comprobación se muestra en la tabla 5. Para este ensayo se seleccionaron las 5 líneas más resistentes del ensayo anterior, los progenitores O. glaberrima y BG90-2; y el testigo susceptible Oryzica 3. Se sembraron 10 semillas de cada uno de los genotipos en materos que contenían una mezcla de arena y suelo infestado, esto para que las plantas al ser colectadas no perdieran sus raíces.Cada 10 días después de la siembra se tomaron 100 raíces de cada genotipo y se lavaron para realizar las observaciones bajo el microscopio y determinar la reacción de cada genotipo al pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis. Esta prueba permite conocer si la resistencia seleccionada es contra el virus o contra el pseudo-hongo vector.El conteo de cistosoros se realizó a los 10, 20, 30, 40, y 50 días después de la siembra.Los 8 genotipos se distribuyeron en materos de acuerdo con un diseño de bloques completos al azar, con dos repeticiones (tabla 6). Repetición (genotipo) 7Total 15Se sembraron 10 plantas por matero, de cada uno de los cuatro genotipos de arroz (BG90-2, Caiapó, Oryzica 3 y Fedearroz 50) y se hicieron cinco repeticiones distribuidos en el invernadero de acuerdo con un diseño de bloques completos al azar. Se utilizó como fuente de inóculo el suelo del ensayo de comprobación de la resistencia y susceptibilidad de genotipos. Cada matero contenía 500 gr de suelo infestado.Se evaluó entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo, mortalidad y plantas sanas a los 21, 35 y 48 días después de la siembra. El análisis de varianza para este ensayo se muestra en la tabla 8. Los datos se analizaron con base en la metodología uno (siembra directa), y la metodología tres (transplante), ya que en la metodología dos (semilla infectada sembrada en arena estéril) las plantas morían antes de manifestar los síntomas de la enfermedad.Según la tabla 9, se puede observar que para todos los síntomas y en todas las épocas de evaluación hay diferencias significativas entre las variedades.Hubo también diferencias estadísticas entre los métodos al considerar todos los síntomas, para entorchamiento no hubo diferencias entre los métodos en las dos primeras y en la ultima evaluación, para rayado no se establecieron diferencias en la evaluación de los 27 días. Para la medición de la mortalidad de plantas, no hubo diferencias entre los métodos a los 48 días.El síntoma de entorchamiento en los primeros 27 días es de baja expresión en las variedades estudiadas como se observa en la tabla 10 con excepción de la variedad susceptible Oryzica 3, en la cual hubo una alta manifestación del síntoma desde los 21 días.A los 48 días la expresión del síntoma disminuyo en las variedades mas susceptibles como Oryzica 3, Fedearroz 2000 y Oryzica Yacú 9 (Tabla 10, graficas 11,12,14). Al parecer este síntoma es difícil de observar en plantas adultas, por tal motivo no hubo diferencias entre los métodos para estas evaluaciones.La mortalidad de plantas alcanzan los mayores valores a los 48 días en todas las variedades, con excepción de la accesión resistente Oryza glaberrima (Tabla 13) en este caso no se detectan diferencias entre los métodos.La interacción variedad x método fue significativa especialmente para los síntomas de enanismo y mortalidad; para entorchamiento la interacción fue significativa solamente a los Para el síntoma de mortalidad de plantas y especialmente en la evaluación de los 48 días (Tabla 13) la línea CT 8220 -2-15 y las variedades Makalioka, Oryzica Caribe 8 y Oryzica Yacú 9 presentan valores mas altos en el método 1, mientras que en las otras variedades los valores son mas altos con el método 3. Oryza glaberrima no presenta mortalidad.Al tener en cuenta los cuatro síntomas, entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad, se puede considerar que el método de siembra directa, presenta los valores mas altos con las excepciones ya analizadas (Graficas 1,2,3 y 4), sin embargo, hay que considerar que el rayado y el enanismo, son los únicos síntomas que se expresan en la accesión resistente O.glaberrima y es el enanismo el de mayor expresión con valores que van desde el 10.4% para la evaluación de los 20 días, hasta 17.1% a los 48 días con el método 3, para el rayado los valores son bajos, pero a los 34 días presentan un 2.3% con el método 1. En la grafica 4 se observan valores mayores para mortalidad con el método de transplante, pero al analizar la tabla 13 dichos porcentajes son muy bajos comparados con el resto de síntomas. De acuerdo con las tablas 10, 11, 12 y 13 de promedios de los porcentajes se analizaron los síntomas de la siguiente manera:3.1.1 Entorchamiento: Como se muestra en la tabla 10, en las cinco evaluaciones se presentó la tendencia a una mayor expresión de este síntoma con el método 1 (siembra directa).En general, el síntoma tiene muy poca exp resión en los primeros 27 días . a partir de los 34 días, se comienza a observar la diferencia en el comportamiento de los diferentes genotipos evaluados y hay una mayor expresión a los 41 días (Grafica 6 -14). A los 48 días el síntoma se manifiesta ligeramente en las variedades Coprosem 1, Oryzica Caribe 8, Irat 128, y Oryzica Yacú 9 (Graficas 8-11) o tiende a decrecer como en la línea P3082-F4-18 y en las variedades Fedearroz 2000 y Oryzica 3, aunque en esta variedad, para el método de siembra directa, el síntoma decrece mas claramente a partir de los 34 días. Esta variedad es un buen testigo susceptible para este síntoma.La accesión de Oryza glaberrima no presenta entorchamiento en ninguna de las evaluaciones (Grafica 5). La variedad Makalioka presenta porcentajes muy bajos, y solamente a los 41 días llega a 3.4 y 5% para el método 1 y el método 3 respectivamente (Grafica 6). La línea CT 8220-2-15 (Grafica 7), presenta porcentajes bajos de 5.3 a 9.3% y estables a partir de los 34 días.Al parecer evaluaciones hechas a los 34 y a los 41 días son suficientes para separar los genotipos en los rangos de resistentes a susceptibles. Oryza glaberrima la cual no presentó síntomas en ninguno de los métodos. La variable continuo con la misma tendencia de crecimiento durante el resto de evaluaciones, pero siempre se manifestó mas en el método 1 que en el método 3 (Gráfica 2).Oryza glaberrima se comportó de una manera muy similar con los dos métodos (Gráfica 15), la línea CT 8220-2-15 y la variedad Makalioka presentaron mayores índices de rayado en la siembra directa, sin embargo en los días 27 y 41 respectivamente se comportaron de igual manera en los dos métodos (Gráficas 16, 17), el índice de rayado para la variedadCoprosem 1 fue muy parecido en los dos métodos hasta el día 34, a partir del cual la manifestación del síntoma fue mayor por medio de la siembra directa (Gráfica 18), en la variedad Irat 128 el síntoma se manifestó mejor con el método de transplante hasta el día 48, donde se presentó un índice mayor en la siembra directa (Gráfica 20), la v ariedad Oryzica yacú 9 en las dos primeras evaluaciones no presentó diferencias significativas para la manifestación del síntoma; sin embargo a partir de la tercera evaluación el síntoma se manifiesta mejor en el método de siembra directa (Gráfica 21).La variedades Fedearroz 2000, Oryzica 3, Oryzica Caribe 8 y la línea P3082-F4-18 presentaron mayores porcentajes del síntoma con la siembra directa que con el transplante durante todo el ensayo (Gráficas 22, 23). Todas las variedades excepto Oryzica 3 presentaron inicialmente un índice de enanismo menor en el método 1 que en el método 3, como se observa en la tabla 12, esto pudo deberse a que en el método 3 (transplante) las plantas se sometían a un nivel de estrés el cual no permitía su rápido crecimiento. Sin embargo, a partir de la tercera evaluación esta tendencia empieza a cambiar y variedades como Fedearroz 2000, Oryzica 3, Oryzica caribe 8 , Oryzica Yacú 9 y las líneas CT-8220-2-15 y P3082 F4-18, presentaron un mayor índice de enanismo en el método 1 (siembra directa) que en el método tres (transplante); se debe tener en cuenta que esta evaluación se realizó 48 días después de la siembra, tiempo en el cual el síntoma se podía evaluar claramente (Grafica 25-34 ).En la cuarta y quinta evaluación solo Irat 128, Makalioka y Oryza glaberrima presentaron mayores promedios en la metodología tres que en la primera (Gráfica 3).  Todas las variedades manifestaron porcentajes muy bajos del síntoma para los dos métodos excepto la accesión Oryza glaberrima que no manifestó el síntoma durante el ensayo en ninguno de los dos métodos (Gráfica 35) la variedad Makalioka y la línea CT8220-2-15 cuyo índice de mortalidad fue ascendente a través del tiempo con los dos métodos, pero hasta la cuarta evaluación los índices de mortalidad fueron mas altos con el método de transplante; en la quinta evaluación el índice de mortalidad fue mas alto en la siembra directa (Gráfica 36 -44).En general la accesión de Oryza glaberrima utilizada como testigo por su resistencia a la enfermedad no mostró síntomas de entorchamiento ni de mortalidad, sin embargo presentó bajos promedios de rayado con el método de siembra directa y promedios mas altos de enanismo con el método de transplante.Los síntomas se manifiestan mejor a medida que se h acen las evaluaciones en plantas adultas, y en la cuarta evaluación a los 41 días cuando se alcanzan los valores mas altos pues ya en la quinta evaluación, a los 48 días los porcentajes de los síntomas tienden a disminuir o se estabilizan.Oryzica 3 es la variedad más susceptible de las evaluadas y presentó los promedios más altos para todos los síntomas con la metodología 1, excepto para el síntoma de mortalidad (Gráfica 4).Con base en los resultados descritos anteriormente, se llegó a la conclusión que en el método de siembra directa hay una mayor manifestación de los síntomas, entorchamiento, rayado y enanismo los cuales son de gran importancia al hacer selección por resistencia al VNRA, además es un método rápido para su utilización con grandes poblaciones.   De las líneas aquí evaluadas, quince líneas resistentes se derivan del RC 2 F 5 y solo una del RC 3 F 4. de 10 líneas susceptibles ocho se derivan del RC 2 F 5 y dos líneas del RC 3 F 4. Para la evaluación se tuvieron en cuenta l os promedios de los porcentajes de los cuatro síntomas entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad. Se incluyó el conteo de plantas sanas, como una variable de respuesta, pues de acuerdo con la experiencia del ensayo anterior, esta variable puede resumir el comportamiento de una línea.Para el análisis de los resultados se tuvo en cuenta la evaluación a partir de los 37 días después de siembra, ya que para esta fecha se empiezan a mostrar diferencias entre los genotipos y los porcentajes mas altos de los síntomas de una forma más clara.Para determinar la resistencia de una línea se tomó como índice, que presentará como mínimo 97.5% de plantas sanas y un porcentaje máximo de 2.5% para cada uno de los síntomas, entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad.Como se puede observar en la tabla 16 las tres líneas utilizadas de la población se consideraron como susceptibles con base en el bajo porcentaje de plantas sanas y altos porcentajes de manifestación de los síntomas entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad. Las líneas 1080 y 1164, continuaron con su comportamiento preliminar, como líneas susceptibles. La línea 1135, previamente clasificada como resistente en esta evaluación resulto ser susceptible. La línea 1135 del RC 3 F 4 y las líneas 138 y 478 clasificadas como resistentes previamente, en esta evaluación se manifestaron claramente susceptibles por sus altos porcentajes en cada uno de los síntomas.Las líneas 403, 514 y 859 presentaron porcentajes relativamente bajos para los síntomas evaluados, pero su porcentaje de plantas sanas estuvo por debajo del índice establecido. La línea 513 merece una nueva evaluación pues no presenta ni entorchamiento, ni rayado ni enanismo, pero su porcentaje de mortalidad es del 5%. Esta variable parece ser la menos útil pues la mortalidad puede ocurrir por alguna otra causa y no necesariame nte por la acción del virus. En el caso de esta línea es dudoso que sin tener ningún síntoma, haya un 5% de plantas muertas por el virus.  enanismo, en donde se puede ver un grupo susceptible conformado por el testigo Oryzica 3, el parental susceptible BG90-2 y la población RC 3 F 4 , un grupo intermedio conformado por la población RC 2 F 5 y el testigo comercial Coprosem 1 y bien diferenciado aparece O.glaberrima como un genotipo completamente resistente al virus.Se puede resaltar cómo estos grupos reflejan claramente lo que se ha encontrado en este estudio, que con dos retrocruzamientos es suficiente para transferir la resistencia. En esta evaluación toda la población RC 3 F 4 resultó susceptible. Oryzica 3 y O. glaberrima son muy buenos testigos susceptible y resistente respectivamente.También se confirma, que la variable porcentaje de mortalidad, no es adecuada, al menos como se tomó en este estudio, para determinar la resistencia o la susceptibilidad de un genotipo. De acuerdo con la Tabla 17 y la gráfica 53, esta variable no supera los genotipos evaluados en este estudio.En la tabla 18 y en las Gráficas 45,46, 47, 48 y 49 se puede observar el comportamiento de las líneas frente a todos los síntomas de una forma general durante todo el proceso de evaluación.Las líneas 1080, 1135 y 1164 de la población RC 3 F 4 tuvieron un promedio muy alto para todos los síntomas (entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad) en todas las evaluaciones, observándose así la susceptibilidad de estas líneas frente a la enfermedad.De la población RC 2 F 5 se pueden señalar las líneas 1004,299,303,395,405,489,513,514 y 810 como las más resistentes a la enfermedad según la tabla, ya que presentaron los promedios más bajos para entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo, mortalidad y los mas altos para plantas sanas; siendo las líneas 405 y 810 las más resistentes.El progenitor silvestre O. glaberrima no manifestó ningún síntoma y tuvo el porcentaje mas alto de plantas sanas, lo que nos permite confirmar que esta especie es resistente a entorchamiento, mientras que la variedad BG90-2 manifestó la enfermedad.La variedad comercial Coprosem 1 presenta índices más bajos de los síntomas (entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad)que la variedad BG90-2 y Oryzica 3, esta última presentó promedios muy altos para cada uno de los síntomas(entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo y mortalidad) confirmando su susceptibilidad a la enfermedad, y porcentajes bajos para plantas sanas. Gráfica 49. Área Bajo la Curva de la Comprobación de la Resistencia y Susceptibilidad en Genotipos Seleccionados de Poblaciones de BG90-2/ O. glaberrima para Plantas SanasPara la variable entorchamiento todas las variedades y poblaciones evaluadas tuvieron un comportamiento ascendente en cuanto a la manifestación del síntoma, excepto, el progenitor silvestre O. glaberrima, que no lo manifestó en ninguna de las evaluaciones.La población RC 2 F 5 tuvo un comportamiento muy similar a la variedad comercial Coprosem, al igual que la población RC 3 F 4 y el progenitor BG90-2.La variedad Oryzica 3 manifestó el síntoma con índices mayores que las otras variedades y poblaciones desde la primera evaluación (Gráfica 50), en la variable rayado podemos observar que entre la población RC 3 F 4 y la variedad BG90-2 no existen diferencias en    No se observó ningún efecto del fungicida HIMEXAZOL en tratamiento a la semilla para el control del pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis vector del VNRA, sin embargo se encontró que con algunas concentraciones el porcentaje de los síntomas disminuía, por tal motivo para este tratamiento no se puede especificar cual es la mejor concentración para el control de los síntomas, ya que cada concentración actúa de manera diferente para cada una de las variedades y estas a su vez están cambiando con el tiempo.El análisis se realizó solo hasta concentraciones de 10X ya que a concentraciones de 50X las plantas no germinaron.  Al igual que en el tratamiento anterior la mejor época para evaluar el efecto del fungicida es la que se realiza a los 35 días.Como se puede observar en las figuras anteriores del ensayo de aplicación del fungicida al suelo se presentó un grado de toxicidad y mortalidad de plantas a partir de concentraciones de 5X, el mayo control se observa con dosis de 1Xen todas las variables evaluadas, sin embargo, se recomienda realizar ensayos a nivel de campo, para corroborar dicha información.-En la siembra directa (método 1) de inoculación del VNRA hubo una mayor manifestación de los síntomas de la enfermedad (entorchamiento, rayado, enanismo), mientras que en el método de transplante (método 3), el mayor índice fue para el síntoma de mortalidad, debido probablemente al estrés al que fueron sometidas las plantas al momento del transplante. Además en el método de siembra directa el manejo de la siembra es mas sencilla que en transplante. Con base en estas observaciones se concluyó que el método de siembra directa es el mejor para hacer evaluaciones de la resistencia al virus.-El momento óptimo para la evaluación de síntomas se determinó a los 34 días después de la siembra (tercera evaluación), ya que en esta fecha los porcentajes de los síntomas fueron altos y suficientes para discriminar el efecto del método. Evaluaciones posteriores no incidieron en la determinación de cada síntoma.-Utilizando el método de siembra directa se pudo seleccionar líneas resistentes al virus.En 1230 líneas evaluadas sólo 16 resultaron resistentes, que representan el 1.3% de la población, en la comprobación de la resistencia o susceptibilidad, solamente 9 líneas quedaron al final resistentes las cuales representan el 0.73%. Estas líneas fueron 299,303,395,405,489,513,514,810,1004. El uso de una sola repetición puede permitir sin embargo escapar a la infección y a una mala selección.-O. glaberrima mostró su alta resistencia al Virus de la Necrosis Rayada del Arroz en todas las evaluaciones durante todos los ensayos, mientras que la variedad BG90-2 usada también como progenitor tuvo un comportamiento intermedio frente a la enfermedad. La identificación de líneas altamente resistentes demuestra que la resistencia de O. glaberrima al VNRA se transfirió a la especie O. sativa.-Se detectaron líneas resistentes al VNRA provenientes del segundo retrocruzamiento (RC 2 F 5 ), pero no en líneas del tercer retrocruzamiento. Esto sugiere que al realizar el tercer retrocruzamiento se debe seleccionar por resistencia al VNRA antes de realizar selección por otros caracteres.-Con la Variedad Oryzica 3 utilizada como testigo susceptible se pudo demostrar que el suelo, la metodología y los días en que se evaluó la enfermedad eran apropiados, ya que esta siempre manifestó altos índices de la enfermedad.-Para el ensayo de r esistencia al vector la variedad Oryzica 3 usada como testigo susceptible fue la que presentó un mayor número de cistosoros y desarrollo de síntomas, lo que indica que esta variedad es altamente susceptible tanto al pseudo-hongo vector como al virus.-Las líneas seleccionadas por su resistencia al VNRA y usadas para el ensayo de resistencia al vector, mostraron un porcentaje muy bajo de cistosoros comparado con el testigo susceptible Oryzica 3. Esto sugiere que la resistencia al VNRA pueda ser debida a una resistencia al vector y no necesariamente al virus. Igualmente la especie silvestre O. glaberrima mostró un porcentaje bajo de cistosoros.-No se observó ningún efecto del funguicida HIMEXAZOL en tratamiento a la semilla para el control del pseudo-hongo Polymyxa graminis vector del VNRA.-El funguicida HIMEXAZOL solo mostró efecto en el control del pseudo-hongo vector del VNRA al suelo sin presentar mortalidad significativa de plantas a concentraciones de 1X (1ml HIMEXAZOL + 199 ml H20). Con concentraciones de 5X o mayores se presentó una alta toxicidad y mortalidad de plantas.-Para la evaluación y selección de líneas resistentes al VNRA se recomienda utilizar el método 1 de siembra directa de semilla seca sobre suelo altamente infestado con el vector Polymyxa graminis. La evaluación y selección de líneas resistentes para los diferentes síntomas de la enfermedad debe hacerse a los 50 días después de la siembra.-Debido a que la resistencia al VNRA se ha transmitido eficientemente de la especie silvestre O. glaberrima a la especie cultivada O. sativa se recomienda hacer una evaluación de las líneas seleccionadas en este estudio bajo condiciones de campo para corroborar dicha resistencia antes de ser utilizadas como progenitores.-Debido a l a alta resistencia al pseudo-hongo vector Polymyxa graminis observada tanto en las líneas resistentes al desarrollo del síntoma del VNRA como de la especie O.glaberrima, se recomienda realizar estudios adicionales para determinar si la resistencia es al vector solamente o al virus también.-Aunque el tratamiento más efectivo para el control de todos los síntomas de VNRA fue aplicación al suelo en dosis 1X, se recomienda que la evaluación del producto se realice bajo condiciones de campo con diferentes concentraciones, ya que a nivel de invernadero se observó una alta toxicidad y mortalidad de plantas en concentraciones de 5X -50X.","tokenCount":"8280"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"690a6db266130fddb8e7f7683a1c36e9","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/b204b729-0524-4b5a-a881-c52c41cd99d3/retrieve","id":"1677328828"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"76408042-8285-4e92-8537-b3436fa4906a","pagecount":"12","content":"• Technological innovations, including improved seeds of staple food crops, have had significant effects globally in terms of reduction of economic and food poverty (Asfaw et al., 2012;Pingali et al., 2012).• Productivity and food security transformation have not been accompanied by a commensurate reduction in gender inequalities (Rao, 2020).• Presents a major setback to the achievement of multiple SDG' targets -SDG 1, SDG 5, SDG 10 etc.• Promoting technological innovations must be complemented by social and technical innovations for a broader transformative impactThe Study:• Document existing STIBs and understand the social and systemic factors that influence the adoption of technological innovations.• Inform more effective and inclusive agricultural policies and practices through socio-technical innovation bundlingWhat specific strategies can be implemented to improve the inclusivity of bean value chain innovations in Tanzania, Malawi, and Burundi?• Existing studies examine innovations in isolation or were not intentional about how technical and social innovation interact to influence technology use, particularly in a gender-sensitive context.• Existing bundling is ad hoc and inclusivity objective often occurs as an afterthought. Significant statistical by country, suggesting contextspecific differences in use of improved bean seed.• Significant cross-country differences reported (p < 0.01) • Indicative of various context-specific differences in socio-economic factors, availability of technologies, technology environment?Market innovations almost non-existent:• High adoption of mobile technology• Varied adoption of institutional marketing• Institutional marketing is almost nonexistent in Malawi and Tanzania• Low rates of selling to processors• Country disparities in aggregation• Very low access to seed credit across countries. ","tokenCount":"246"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"486cf39428813b9c30cefb2f86a82c8b","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/f063954e-bd82-4f2a-aa18-cea9c0d63792/retrieve","id":"-1656496713"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"7e3b63c1-5fb0-4ae8-ae5a-6e9ee61d1f1a","pagecount":"2","content":"Among the World's continents, Asia has the highest number of tree species that are actively managed, for diverse purposes such as timber, non-timber products, energy and other ecosystem services -a reflection of the enormous cultural diversity of human populations in the continent. At the same time, more than 1700 of Asia's tree species are threatened with extinction. APFORGEN, established in 2003, works to enhance the conservation and sustainable use of tree species and their genetic diversity in Asia and the Pacific.APFORGEN is the only network in Asia and the Pacific that specifically focuses on the conservation and sustainable use of the genetic diversity of trees.APFORGEN has 14 member countries: Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Malaysia Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam Forest genetic resources (FGR) are the heritable materials maintained within and among tree and other woody plant species that have current or potential economic, environmental, scientific or societal value.Genetic diversity enables tree species to resist abiotic and biotic threats and adapt to changing environments, and is the basis for present and future selection and breeding programmes.The value of regional collaboration Regional collaboration and coordination is essential for the conservation and sustainable use of tree species whose distribution crosses national boundaries. Many such species hold great potential for improvement and enhanced use but are threatened by, for example, illegal cross-border trade and unsustainable resource acquisition.Regional networking facilitates synergy in research and conservation activities and helps achieve more through concerted efforts.1) Strengthen national programmes on forest genetic diversity in the participating countries 2) Enhance regional networking and collaboration on conservation and management of FGR 3) Locate and characterize, conserve and facilitate exchange of genetic diversity of selected priority forest species 4) Promote sustainable use of genetic diversity in natural and man-made forests 5) Enhance linkages with other regional and international networks Key achievements ","tokenCount":"307"}

data/part_3/0072864178.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"a40a0acc98377a78cbaba47be791815c","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/a473454e-cec0-4ec0-9b3a-c888998d4e71/retrieve","id":"1844471610"},"keywords":["NARS","NGOs","universities","CGIAR SP-PRGA members","SP-IPM members CGIAR system linkages: Organization and Management (70%); Training ("],"sieverID":"7743b42e-6567-4d9f-a34b-c5f312cd7ecb","pagecount":"58","content":"To develop, apply, disseminate and institutionalize participatory methods, analytical tools, and principies of organizational design that result in demanddriven responses among R&D stakeholders and contribute to improved agroecosystem productivity and health Widely applicable methods to involve users in the development of technology for crop production and natural resource management and to develop institutional models for conducting client-oriented research at the farm and landscape levels.Users will be involved at early stages in decisions about technology design. Methods will be available for eliciting and incorporating users' preferences. Participatory research will be applied on a routine basis in CIAT programs. At least three majar universities in Latín America will have the capacity to teach participatory research methods. At least 1 ,000 trainees and 40 trainers will be able to teach these methods in the region. Training materials and methodology will be published and widely disseminated. The contribution of participatory research to rates of technology adoption will be measured in targeted areas. Lessons learned and methodologies will be disseminated worldwide in conjunction with the systemwide program on participatory research and gender analysis (SP-PRGA) convened by CIAT and through a project on Farmer Participatory Research for IPM (FPR-IPM ) of the systemwide IPM program (SP-IPM).' lntegrated Crop management (ICM) is defined to encompass pest. disease. water and fertility management by farmersThe most significan! 1998 Milestones are: Courses offered on methods in three countries with replication of the CIAL institutional model now occurring in eight countries; Methods introduced to NARs for participatory plant breeding and research management in at least six countries; Release of a user-friendly statistical application for analysis of farmer preference data; Nationalization of the CIAL methodology by CORPOICA in Colombia; lnterinstitutional plan for application of the CIAL methodology in Honduras and for linking the CIALs to participatory breeding of maize and beans . Tools for monitoring and evaluation of CIALs; Website and listserver for the FPR-IPM project of the SP-IPM; Workshops in three countries to introduce GIS and other decision support tools to stakeholders. Analysis of issues related to sustainable development and recommendations for orienting agricultura! R&D in the forest margins benchmark site. (For a comprehensive list, see Logical Framework) At least 40 trainers prepared . Methods developed for decentralized; participatory research on ICM 1 and crop-crop livestock systems. User-differentiated adoption impact assessed in economic terms. Methods disseminated worldwide lnstitutionalization of methods in NARS and CGIAR as widely accepted tools of development-oriented agricultura! research, in conjunction with SP-PRGATo develop, apply, disseminate and institutionalize participatory methods, analytical tools, and principies of organizational design that result in demand-driven responses among R&D stakeholders and contribute to improved agroecosystem productivity and health Methods for farmer participation in ICM, Models and procedures for organizing germplasm improvement and NRM participatory researchConsolidate and scale-up CIALs• Develop models and procedures for Develop methods for participatory monitoring organizing CIALs at the second-order level and evaluation, and impact assessment of that incorporate mechanisms for self-CIALS sustaining financing and management Develop participatory methods and tools for ./'!\": .. • Relea se of user friendly statistical applicalion for analysis of farmer dataNational Technology      of access to credit, technical support, and markets. Therefore, agricultura! technology alone is highly unlikely to make significan! impacts on wellbeing. 4. There are important gaps and entrenched prejudices in our understanding of colonist smallholder farmers in the region , particularly in terms of their socioeconomics, culture, knowledge, and decision making. A crucial aspect of this problem relates to the opportunistic, diversified economic activity of the farmers, and how they utilize on and off-farm resources. Effective R&D must build upon the productiva mosaic managed by farmers. 5. Available productiva on-farm technology developed by national and intemational institutions is often unsuited to smallholder needs. An important effort in adaptation and integration of technologies is needed.Participatory approaches to R&D are extremely new in the region , current activities are poorly coupled with existing local expertise, and show strategic limitations (e.g. , gender bias that underestimates the role of women in farmer family production and wellbeing).7. lntegrated approaches (even technological) to R&D are generally lacking. • User feedback obtained on decision support tools for natural resource conservation at watershed level • Methodology developed for participatory systems tria! at the landscape leve! with stakeholder groups related to:1 . control of leafcutter ants 2. control of the maize pest Macrodactylus ovaticollis 3. control of soil erosion with live barriersSN-3 has just completed a book length report to the W.K. Kellogg foundation on the CIAL methodology. This report covers achievements related to the following outputs:1.1 FPR Methods at the farm scale 1. The objectives of the project \"Development of Casava Germplasm for the semiarid conditions of Northeast Brazil,\" include increasing the genetic diversity and contributing to the stability of the production system in this fragile zone. The project contemplates the implementation of a participatory methodology that involves farmers in the process of germplasm selection that they carry out on their farms. Participatory Breeding of Cassava (PBC) was tested and adapted to Brazilian conditions through a strategy of training in diagnosis. planning, evaluation and feedback.The methodology has been applied in the northeastern states of Bahía, Pernambuco and Ceará and has involved collaboration between CIAT and CNPMF. The effort has a four year history in Brazil and has brought CNPMF national recognition amongst EMBRAPA centers as the leader in participatory research.Among the results is the multiplication of planting material of varieties selected by farmers. This can be considered as the initiation of a process of adoption of technology generated with the participation of the users themselves. Progress on participatory methods for decentra/ized plant breeding A total of 94 participatory trials were established from 1994-1997. The process developed most rapidly in the Quixada site, resulting in the release of two varieties \"Rosa\" (BGM -260)for fresh consumption and animal feed and \"Amansa Burro\" (BMG 0549) as raw material for farinha production. The variety BGM 0195 is now in the pre-release phase.The main advantage of BMG 0260 is excellent culinary quality compared to the local variety \"Buja\". BGM is superior to \"Buja\" as a raw material for farinha production. 8oth possess better gerrnination and establishment rates, important characteristics for semiarid conditions, and retain their leaves during extreme droughts, thus providing a source of animal fodder. The participatory evaluations have resulted in multiplication and distribution of these materials by farrners, overcoming a traditional bottleneck in the diffusion of improved cassava varieties. Fanners' selection criteria are summarized in T able 2. • Gerrnination rate• Ease of harvest• Starch content and farinha quality• Ease of peeling • Number of thick roots• Absence of root cracks • Capacity to produce cuttings (multiplication • Absence of root peduncle rate)• Root skin color • Root flesh color• HCN content in the roots • Plant type (low to medium height)• Number of branches • Retention and yield of foliage Contributors:• Wania Fukuda, CNPMF \"-. Agricultura! R&D in tropical agroecosystems that achieves ecologically sound, sustainable impact is a complex multipurpose endeavor. lt involves striking a balance, in specific settings, among a set of requi rements that have not traditionally come together. These requirements are related to the CGIAR's two overall goals, poverty alleviation and ecological sustainability. The requirements are integration, impact, and generalization. They are listed here in approximate JogicaJ order, so that we would expect that adequate integration should lead to desired impact, and, in due time, allow generalization. lntegration can be seen then as a special skill or technical expertise that we need to develop and apply in order to obtain sustainable impact on socioeconomic and ecological health, as well as to better assess where and how can we fruitfully apply our experience beyond the pilot stage and the initial case study site.By integration, we refer to three different challenges: (1) integrated understanding of issues; (2) integrated development of solutions; and (3) integrated intervention. What must be integrated are the multiple actors-perspectives-purposes and aspectssectors-scales of reality of which ecological-economic systems are made. In practice, the three aspects of integration are linked , so that understanding (diagnosis) is notan independent activity, but makes a permanent part of the development of solutions and the unfolding of interventions. In this sense, integrated understanding can be seen as a synonym of built-in project monitoring or impact assessment. The key consideration is that integration provides an adaptive framework for action.Critically exploring the pressing issues of a specific agroecosystem or landscape with an open mind (as uncluttered by disciplinary bias as possib le) provides the first glimpses of on what, with whom, where, when , and how our own efforts and abilities can be better used. This activity shou ld not be taken for granted even in heavily studied settings. Scientific research and policy-making, by definition, are biased toward the points of view and the values of the researchers and policy makers involved in a given moment, and often fai l to provide other perspectives or a sense of dynamics. This is particularly true of offer-driven technological research, based upon highly specialized knowledge and often limited to short-term intensive interventions.A critica! exploration of issues also provides a clearer picture of factors or driving forces that escape our own capacity of action, but sti ll are of paramount importance in the behavior of the system. These driving forces, which trame or limit our impact, must be confronted in practice throughout strategic alliances and consequently a wider set of actions (anda greater commitment) than traditionally allowed. lssues and stakeholders are inextricably linked. Therefore, stakeholder participation is inextricably linked to the solution of issues. At the same time, we must be aware that not all stakeholders have the same access to scientists and policy makers. More often than not, it is the peor who we are supposed to serve (and the poorest among the peor, such as indigenous peoples, women and children), those whose saying has the lesser acceptance. A sound exploration of issues must then make visible not only the ignored facts, but also, and overall, the forgotten actors. lndeed, toa great degree, the value of integrated understanding can be seen as shedding light on the overseen, the underestimated, and the forgotten; thus challenging our tendency to rest our judgments on what has been previously labeled as known, important, and relevant. lntegrated research must be used as a decision support tool. lt must be used to prioritize actions and combine different specialized interventions, as well as to update our decision maps. Finally, in its more powerful application, integrated research must provide input for progress, by challenging our worldviews and intentions.This document explores and intends to provide an integrated view of the pressing issues in the Ucayali region of Amazonian Peru. The most heavily populated, farmed, and ecologically disturbed area of Ucayali, nearby the city of Pucallpa and along the road to the country's capital , is a benchmark site for the CGIAR, in the \"forest margins\" ecoregion. Here we provide an analysis of basic issues affecting the benchmark site, as suggested by Peruvian and international experts, and identify interactions between them, as well as major gaps. Then , we re-integrate a group of selected issues into one set, in order to highlight interactions and facilitate discussion of decisions and actions. This set roughly corresponds toa discussion of the economic activity in the region, with an emphasis on agriculture and development. Two other sets of issues, related to (1) the identity or nature of the small colonist farmers, as related to land use and sustainable development in the region, and (2) land use and deforestation in the agricultura! frontier, will be the matter of separate documents. These sets of issues have been chosen to inform the main concerns of the CGIAR institutes: agricultura! economic development, ecological-economic degradation, and the rural peor.The document includes a group of specific recommendations for the enhancement of the CG centers' activities and impact in the Pucallpa benchmark site. Beyond its expected value as food for decisions in a specific setting, this review also exemplifies the systemsoriented, integrated approach to research advocated by the CIAT-Guelph project.The Site Pucallpa is the capital city of the Ucayali department or region 6 , in the Peruvian Amazon lowlands (Figure 1 ). Ucayali has an area of 102,517.18 Km 2 . This territory líes largely below 500 m.a.s.l., in the bread basin of the Ucayali river. A road connecting Pucallpa with Lima (Peru's capital city) exists since the 1950s and it has facilitated the spontaneous colonization of Ucayali.Within Ucayali we recognize several sub-regions that bear significant differences in terms of ecological characteristics, demographic features and economic activity (Figure 2). Land use and economic processes in the different sub-regions articulate in a regional pattern of production. We differentiate:1. The agricultura! and heavily settled territory along the Pucallpa-Lima road and the Aguaytía river, including the city of Pucallpa (the Pucallpa sub-region ). Human population in Ucayali concentrates in Pucallpa city (65%, INEI 1994) and along the road and its main branches. Overall, the Pucallpa sub-region contains 82% of Ucayali's total human population at an average density of 19 individuals/Km 2 (IIAP/CRP 1996). The rest of the department is sparsely inhabited, with population densities as low as 0.19 ind./Km 2 in remete Purús. Deforestation and agricultura! activity in Ucayali concentrate also in the Pucallpa sub-region. The rest of Ucayali is still domínated by meandering rivers and rainforests .2. The natural forests and main timberlands toward the Tamaya and Upper Ucaya!i rivers.3. The extensive swamps and lakes of the Ucayali floodplain, rich in freshwater fish and aguaje 7 palm forests .4. The relatively isolated uplands and hills covered by almost undisturbed primary forests to the SW and SE of the region, including the valley of the Purús rive~.The CGIAR has identified its benchmark site for the \"forest mar~ins\" eco-regían in the Pucallpa sub-regían, in an area covering roughly 100 Km (Figure 3). The best available information on the benchmark site and its conditions is provided by the recent surveys led by Sam Fujisaka (CIAT) within the context of the collaborative project on alternatives to slash-and-burn, and by Joyotee Smith (CIFOR). (See Fujisaka 1997, Smith et al. 1997).Although it contains part of the Aguaytía river's floodplain , the benchmark site is a largely upland area, where very poor soils domínate. These uplands sharply contrast with the Ucayali's lowlands, seasonally flooded by the rivers and covered by rich entisols. East of the benchmark site, toward Pucallpa city, the terrain is swampy and dominated by aguajales (swamp palm forests) . West of the benchmark site, as we climb up toward the Eastern slopes of the Andes, the terrain becomes increasingly hilly and the climate wetter. According to IIAP regions have not lived up to the promise of decentralized economic and political power that brought them into existence. Given its extent. the department of Ucayali alone is also a regían .7 Mauritia flexuosa.(1996) croplands in Ucayali concentrate in this last area, in the Padre Abad province. Therefore, the benchmark site does not include most of the agroecological diversity in the Ucayali region or in the Pucallpa sub-region, although it may include the most challenging agricultura! soils of the regían.A constant flow of goods and people connect Ucayali at an ínter-regional scale to the departments of the north-central jungle, particularly those in the Eastern Andean slopes (San Martín and Huánuco) and the Loreto department, in the Amazon lowlands. These departments are the main sources of immigrants to Ucayali, acting also as steppingstones for immigrants from the Andes and the Pacific coast (Figure 4, IN El 1997).San Martín, Huánuco, and Ucayali conform a fluid ínter-regional network of commerce, production diversification, and access to land and labor. This ínter-regional level is also related to the cultivation of coca for the illegal production of cocaine : Ouring the 1990s. about 61% of the nation's coca-growing area concentrated in the Huallaga Valley of San Martín and Huánuco and in the nearby Aguaytía Valley of Ucayali (USAID/US Embassy Peru 1997).Peru is a highly centralized country, with economic and political power concentrated in Lima City. lt is the direct communication with Lima what has made Ucayali an important Amazon frontier. The most important product of the region, timber, is destined almost exclusively to the Lima market, and the main timber industrial and commercial enterprises are based in Lima. Decisions on agricultura! and economic policy, such as credits, subsidies, and exchange rates are taken in Lima, and directly affect agricultura! production in Ucayali.Therefore, the economic behavior of the region responds to a great extent to the política! economy of the nation. According to Gonzales and Samamé (1994), basic characteristics of Peru are (1) semi-industrialized economy oriented to primary exports, with very low levels of investment;(2) divorce between export-oriented industry and internally-oriented industry, wíth strong dependence of the internally-oriented industry on imported goods and technology; (3) weakness of political institutions able to resolve socioeconomic conflict and fragmentation , leading to increasing distributive inequity; and (4) lack of autonomy of the economic institutions from política! power. The emergent behavior is a permanent swinging of economic policies between populism and orthodoxy, coupled to periods of subsidized economic expansion followed by subsequent recession, respectively. This behavior has been named \"the Peruvian pendulum\" (Gonzales and Samamé 1994).About 60% of Peru's territory is covered by Amazonian rainforests . Nation-wide, topquality arable land is extremely scarce (6.60%; ONERN 1982, Dourojeanni 1990). Rural poverty and annual population growth are relatively high (90. 1% and 2.0%, respectively; INEI 1994INEI , 1995a)). Urban population, fed by a continuous exodus from the countryside , makes 66% of the total population, and concentra tes in the cities of the arid coast (IN El 1996). Consequently, food security is a serious concern for Peru.This situation, combined with a perception of Amazonia asan empty and rich land, has repeatedly fed ideologies of Amazon conquest, justifying since the 1940s the building of penetration roads and incentives for colonization and entrepreneurial activities in the Amazon. According to this vision, Amazonia must be occupied and developed into the food basket of Peru. The ideology of Amazon conquest was popular in Lima and among other governments of the Amazon region until the early 1980s, when the ecological and economic costs of failed colonization schemes became a world-wide public issue. The neo-liberal regime of Peruvian President Alberto Fujimori {1990-present) does not offer incentives to colonization nor assigns to the Amazon lowlands the strategic importance that former administrations did. lnstead, it views the Amazon as a potential source of native agroindustrial export products such as timber, camu-camu (Myrciaria dubia), an endemic fruit rich in vitamin C, and uña de gato (Uncaria tomentosa), an endemic medicinal plant. There is strong governmental propaganda to convince Peruvian Amazonian farmers to invest on this \"promising\" new crops.We have followed a three-pronged approach to the identification of issues:A first path involved independent brainstorm exercises with CIA T scientists working in the benchmark site (March 1997) and with Peruvian local experts (May 1997). We arranged the suggested issues thematically, identified common issues between CIAT scientists and local experts, and falsified the suggested issues against available evidence.A second , related path involved a wide consultation of bibliographic material published in the last three decades, mostly of Peruvian sources. This provided us with a clearer picture of nation-level issues and how they affected the study site. Also , we were able to complement the original list of issues, as well as obtaining consolidating evidence. Finally, this literature review updated us on in-country research (mostly socioeconomic), strengthened our historical and cultural context and helped to build a better understanding of key information gaps.Third, we repeatedly interviewed a wide arrange of people representing GOs, NGOs, and grass-roots organizations ; international, national, and local. We want to stress the importance of th is activity. Throughout open dialogue and confrontation of different viewpoints and data our understanding and language rapidly evolved to a level closer to that of local stakeholders, and at the same time we were enriched by the crossfertilization allowed by our interaction with different peoples who normally do not interact among themselves. lndeed, we consider this active dialogue and cross-checking of views and data one crucial strength of the research method. A significant byproduct of this repeated dialogue was that it allowed us to keep track of recent developments in the study area and the nation.To a large extent, our sources of information and dialogue partners were professional researchers and policy-makers. Grassroots representatives and direct practitioners are still under-represented in this review.Different Mental Maps: Different Objectives?One important initial finding is that the spatial reference for sustainable development in the study area is dramatically different between CIA T researchers and national researchers and policy-makers. While CIAT scientists refer to \"Pucallpa\" and a \"benchmark site\" area approximately 100 Km 2 in size, local experts repeatedly refer to the whole Ucayali region, a territory 100,000 Km 2 in extent (see Figure 3). lndeed, CODESU, the broad-base NGO that is the CG's main local partner in the Pucallpa benchmark site is named Consortium for the Sustainable Development of Ucayali.The regional perspective is assumed by locals irrespective of the extent or location of their specific activities. Local experts readily acknowledge the significance of the Pucallpa sub-region in Ucayali, where the benchmark site is located. However, the emerging rationale for their regional perspective lies in the fact that the ecologicaleconomic dynamics of the Pucallpa sub-region (and therefore the benchmark site) is inextricably linked to the land-use dynamics of the rest of the Ucayali region , particularly the timber-rich natural forests and the fish-rich and soil-rich floodplain. In other words, when discussing the development of the Pucallpa benchmark site, nationals assign strategic importance to the natural resources offered by the Ucayali region outside of the benchmark site and the Pucallpa sub-region, and to the historical exploitation of those resources .This notion of a densely populated sub-region were ecological-economic problems concentrate, but which dynamics (and arguably its development) depends toan important degree of resources outside the sub-region, must be kept in mind as a keystone characteristic of the Pucallpa sub-region and the benchmark site. Taking th is finding in consideration, together with the notion that the regional leve! of analysis is better fit for integrated, inter-sectoral research (Hegsdijk and Kruseman 1993), we decided to privilege a regional approach in this project, although keeping in mind the specific weight of the road-influenced sub-region, were the benchmark site is located .Brainstorming is increasingly being used as the main source of ideas in a number of strategic planning applications. Planning-By-Objectives workshops normally start with a brainstorm of \"problems\", which are then organized in problem trees. A great deal can be said about the shortcomings of this approach to strategic planning, particularly on the dramatic effects of the composition of the planning group, including presence/absence of key participants (i.e. , particularly knowledgeable and vocal people), the leve! of previous agreement or acquaintance among participants (i. e., degree of shared language, goals, and approaches), and the impact of hierarchical relations among the participants.However, brainstorms provide a quick and rich list of working themes, allowing the planning exercise to flow. Thus, brainstorms cannot be dismissed completely . We decided to deal critically with the results of our brainstorm exercises. We were particularly interested in (1) comparing the performance of the national and international researchers (which could shed light on the value of local participation), and in (2) evaluating the quality of the brainstorm exercise, regarding the level of truthful and relevant information embodied in the lists of suggested issues. This could shed light on the value of brainstorm exercises in general.When reading this section, severa! important caveats must be kept in mind. First, the list of issues was obtained in brainstorm exercises, where spontaneous ideas are encouraged and criticism is kept to a mínimum. A more critica! exercise would have yielded a more focused or site-specific set of issues, at the expense of breadth (and possibly also depth) of understanding, without necessarily improving the truthfulness of the final set 9 . Second, issues without evidence in favor are not always necessarily wrong, since in certain cases we simply lack corroborating evídence about them. Third, not all the possibly important issues were identified in the brainstorms. lndeed, this document responds to our need of obtaining a fuller picture of the case-study agroecosystem. Fourth (and related to third) that an issue has evidence in favor does not provide clues about the overall significan ce or relevance of the issue. Only contextualization, cross-checking and confrontation with other issues can provide us with that information. Fifth, the participants in the brainstorms were all experienced researchers, mostly related to the agricultura! sector. Thus, the suggested issues carne from a very specific set of stakeholders and must be considered as a biased set of issues. Still, they provided us with excellent orientatíon.Severa! important discoveries stem from a review ot Table l. First. shared issues with evidence in favor make only 8% of the total. Non-shared issues in the exercise do not necessarily express conflict or disagreement between national and international experts. They only express difference. Still, difference was surprising ly large (87% of suggested issues were not shared). lt is likely that this difference has already decreased significantly, as CIAT and Peruvian experts increased their interaction and collaboration. ? Evidence against, insufficient, or contentious.In general, national researchers showed slightly better aim than international researchers, which could be used as an argument in favor of local participation. Although the results suggest that the shared subset bears more evidence in favor than the total set, approaching the truthfulness of the nationals' subset, the small absolute value of shared issues does not allow any conclusions in this regard , although it again suggests possible synergic advantages in a participatory approach, where local social actors are consulted at the onset. National researchers tend to confront the local reality with greater frequency than international researchers, and have more opportunities to discuss and re-check their concepts against the evidence freely provided by their working environment. On the other hand, international researchers, at their best, may contribute a sense of the larger picture, as well as cross-fertilization from a wider choice of concepts and experiences. lnfluence Diaqrams A simple way of assessing relationships , externa! validity, relative importance, and gaps among issues is arranging them across scales of reality and drawing influence connectors between issues. Figure 5 offers such influence diagram for Ucayali. Only majar connections have been drawn to facilitate the reading of the diagram, and important chains have been emphasized with color. In interpreting the diagram, please keep in mind that issues at a given scale also happen at lower scales, usually with some specific features ; while issues at lower scales may contribute or not to issues at higher scales. In other words. higher hierarchies influence lower hierarchies, but lower hierarchies do not always influence higher hierarchies. Plus(+) signs in the connectors identify reinforcing interactions (the food of positive feedback loops); minus (-) signs identify dampening interactions (the food of negative feedback loops). There are very few minus signs in the diagram, suggesting a strongly self-reinforcing problematic, but this is partially dueto the fact that almost exclusively problems (and not opportunities) are mapped. We find that:1. In economic terms the net outflow of capital from Ucayali (a region-level phenomenon) establishes strategic constraints for the infrastructural and institutional development of the region as a whole. Thus, a classical trickle-down approach to development is unlikely to succeed in Ucayali if the unfavorable capital flows are not corrected somehow.In political terms, the concentration of power in Lima (a nation-level phenomenon), mirrored by the concentration of power in Pucallpa city, stimulates directly or indirectly the economic outflow from Ucayali (as discussed above), the relatively low institutional development of the region, and urban immigration from the countryside . Centralism, a structural characteristic of Peru, determines a low development ceiling for most of the country, particularly for marginal regions like Ucayali.In ideological terms , the extractivistic 1 productivist bias in the production of goods (a global issue), mirrored in Peru by the ideology of Amazon conquest, extractive economic booms (e.g., rubber), and government incentives to monocropping, has had a strong effect on deforestation and biodiversity loss (global issues), and wasteful exploitation of key regional resources such as timber and fish. On another path, this ideological bias has influenced research and technological development, favoring top-down, reductionist, and offer-driven approaches that (among other things) failed to appreciate the potential of native biodiversity and traditional multicrop farming systems. Evidently, here is were agricultura! R&O institutions have direct impact and can make an important difference.The phenomenon of migration to the city from the countryside, although a global issue, has specific and dire consequences in Ucayali. Pucallpa city suffers a severe shortage of jobs and services, as well as serious health and pollution problems. On the other hand, it is a contentious issue if migration to the city is leading to a labor bottleneck for agricultura! production in the Pucallpa sub-region and the benchmark site.A complex of issues including lack of access to credit and technical support, and unreliable markets establishes a low ceiling for agricultura! productivity and development, and acts as an expeller of rural population. lt appears unlikely that any significant development will be achieved in farmer productivity or income without some leve! of credit.The influence diagram allows quick identification of information gaps among the partici pant stakeholders (areas where no issues have been suggested). We find that main gaps concentrate at the farm leve!, reflecting the identity of the stakeholders involved (researchers, not farmers), and providing evidence of the need to involve grassroots in this kind of process. From top to bottom in the scale hierarchy, gaps relate to:1. The impact of globalization and global power interactions.2. At the national level ( or at the sea le of the Western Amazon lowlands) there is an important gap in our understanding of land-use patterns and dynamics. However, projects such as Alternatives to Slash-and-Burn, CIAT's PE-4 (including this project), and CIFOR's [Secondary Forests] are contributing to fill the gap. 3. At the same level, there is a major gap in our understanding of technological demand and offer for natural resource use and agriculture in the Western Amazon . IIAP 10 in Peru and TCA 11 in the Amazon region are dedicated to improving knowledge on both areas (although biased toward technological offer rather than demand), which identifies them as strategic allies. 4. Finally, at the level of farmers in the Pucallpa sub-region and the benchmark site, there are still large gaps in our understanding of their socioeconomics, their decisionmaking, and the dynamics of their knowledge (i.e .. who knows what, how is knowledge gained and how it is shared among farmers). In this regard, the surveys led in Pucallpa by the CG centers in 1996, 1997, and 1998(Fujisaka 1997, Smith 1 997) contain a wealth of information that is not being used in its full potential. Also, we may expect that as participatory interventions develop in the area, they will provide us with first-hand information on the farmers and their livelihood, although this must not be taken for granted 12 .From literature reviews, repeated visits to Pucallpa, and a number of interviews in Peru, we have identified the next additional issues:1. \"Subsidy from nature\" (Redford 1 992) to unsustainable farming system through timber, fish, game, and firewood. 2. Strong gender bias against women in agricultura! R&D (national and international), although national expertise available and utilized by a few projects and grassroots organizations. 3. Complete lack of integrated approaches to R&D in the region (with the possible exception of the MADEBOSQUES project). 4. Lack of understanding of regional and national market dynamics among researchers , officers, and farmers. 5. lnsufficient and sometimes inadequate technological offer. 6. Significant degree of alienation of farmers from the Ministry of Agriculture . This is mostly dueto top-down attitude among government officers and priorities decided in Lima without farmer input. 7. Multiactive and opportunistic economic performance among farmers: access to offfarm ecosystems 1 resources and to on-farm non-agricultura! resources .10 Instituto de Investigaciones de la Amazonia Peruana (Peruvian Amazon Research \\nstitute) . 11 Tratado de Cooperación Amazónica (Amazon Cooperation Treaty). 12 We must differentiate between tactical and strategic PRA. For instance, participatory research may be limited to the testing or development of specific agricultura! technology, without ever bothering to significantly increase kn owledge on the farm ing system and the farmer society, just as non-participatory research may be designed to provide exactly that kind of information. Participatory research and action need to be specifically designed in order to increase socioeconomic knowledge among the participants (researchers, extensionists. and farm ers), thus empowering them to achieve system-level, sustainab\\e deve\\opment.8. Lack of clear goals in cattle ranching activity: Underutilized pastures, high cost of cattle ranching to small farmers, stiff market constraints, important regional beef-andmilk substitutes, and contentious nature of extensive cattle ranching in the Amazon. 9. Lack of access to markets by producers. Dominance of the middlemen by means of indebtment, due in large part to lack of working capital among smal/ farmers. 1 O. Lack of knowledge and expertise on participatory approaches among most local researchers and government officers, although national expertise available and utilized by a few projects and grassroots organizations. 11 . lnter-sectoral divorce, particularly along the agriculture-health-fisheries axis, related to land use and food production. 12. Significant (increasing?) chronic malnutrition among the rural population (particularly children), linked to food insecurity (particularly supply of high-quality protein) and perhaps unsound feeding habits.In this section we discuss selected issues together, grouped in one thematic line: economics and agriculture. Two more thematic lines, colonist farmer livelihood, and land use and deforestation, will be treated in separate documents. The idea of the following account is to stress links between issues and sort them out by their relative importance, as they relate to the sustainable development of the region and the benchmark site.The Invisible ForestAccording to INEI (1993) during the period 1979-1992 agricultura and agroindustries made up 50% of Ucayali's GDP, \"standing out the exploitation of timber\". According to Blanco et al. (1986), in 1983 the Gross Value of Production (GVP) in Ucayali's timber activity contributed 53% of the agricultura! GVP, and 20% of the department' s total GVP. According toAra (1997), in 1996 the timber activity in Ucayali contributed 22% of the regional GDP, 4% of it from its primary subsector (extraction) and 18% from its secondary subsector (transformation).In order to understand the importance of these figures, we must compare them against the total contribution of the primary and secondary sectors to the regional GDP. In 1996, the total primary sector contributed 33.2% to the regional GDP, 96% of it corresponding to agriculture (INEI 1997). Therefore, if we follow Ara's figures, the timber activity alone would correspond to 12.0% of the primary GDP, and to 12.6% of the agricultura! GDP. Unfortunately, we do not know how trustable are these calcu lations on the primary sector, since it is not clear to what degree the extraction of timber (a partially clandestine activity) is accounted for in the officia l estimation of the regional GDP 13 . Therefore, the importance of the timber activity is largely under-estimated . In the secondary (transformation) sector, however, timber is well recorded . Thus, if we take into account that the total transformation sector contributed 25% of the regional GDP in 1996 (IN El 13 Economic statistics in Peru aggregate \"silviculture\", wildlife hunting and agricultura! production (crops and livestock) in one clas s. When these figures are compared against crop and livestock statistics alone, it often appears that \"silviculture and wildlife\" are named but not recorded . The repeated and ill-recorded changes in política/ interests, currency, and administrative boundaries obscures even more a correct interpretation of primary sector statistics at the regional leve/.1 997), then as much as 72% of the secondary GDP was contributed by the timber industry.All the evidence leads to conclude that in spite of the tendency to view Ucayali as an agricultura! frontier dominated by monocrops and cattle, the main \"agricultura!\" activity in the region's history is timber exploitation from natural forests. This activity has a dominant impact in the region's economy. The following overview of the activity sheds light on the productive structure of the region and on the structural constraints to its development.Most of Ucayali's timber production is consumed within the country, particularly in Lima. Ucayali alone supplies 35.6% of the sawn wood produced in Peru, 59.3% of the plywood, and 32.3% ofthe flooring tiles (INRENA 1994). Pucallpa is known as the \"timber capital\" of Peru. Only a small fraction of Ucayali's production is exported, but its value is considerable: In 1981 , Peru exported US$ 2 mi Ilion of sawn wood from Pucallpa (CORDEU et al. 1 982). This only represented 2. 7% of the total industrial timber production of Pucallpa, but it accounted for 73% of all the exported sawn wood that year (INRENA 1994). More recently, in 1994, Peru exported more than US$ 20 million of wood products, 90% as sawn wood (Barents & Trivially 1 996 ).Logging in Ucayali does not operate by clear-cutting , but by selective extraction. Out of the 2,500 woody species estimated in the Amazonian lowland forests , only six species 14 make up 90% of the extracted vol u me in Ucayali (CORO EU et al. 1982, Barents & Trivelli, 1 996). lndeed, while the estimated average commercial vol u me of the Ucayali forests is 100 m 3 /Ha, only 5 to 7 m 3 /Ha are normally extracted 15 (!turraran 1988, cited in Barrantes & Trivelli 1 996). Up to 90% of extraction is performed by ill-trained, informal loggers with a chainsaw. Logs are taken to sawmills in Pucallpa, mostly by river, where they are turned into sawn wood , plywood, and flooring tiles. Then, these products are transported to Lima by road , and commercialized in that city.Vertical integration between extraction, transformation , transport, and commercialization is very weak. Consequently, costs are high and inefficient, there is a permanent conflict of interests between subsectors, and each subsector is grossly over-dimensioned 16 . In 1994, the sawmills in Pucallpa were working at 40% of their capacity, a chronic fea tu re of the industry (Barrantes & Trivelli 1 996). The situation is worsened by the strong dominance of the activity by commercial companies based in Lima. For instance in 1981 , when sawn wood exports from Ucayali reached a peak, 96% of the exported volume was channeled by commercial companies in Lima , with two of them (owned by the same investor group) concentrating 50% of the volume. An astounding 96.6% of the value of the exported sawn wood from Ucayali stayed with companies in Lima (CORO EU et al.Oue to a lack of quality standards , inadequate machinery, and unskilled labor, selective logging is wasteful and performed with extensive damage of extracted and not extracted ' • Progress on analytical tools for defining research agendas in comp/ex settings trees. A 1987 study found that only ene out of every five log sections arriving to the sawmills in Pucallpa could be considered sound: 48% of logs were cracked, 23% bent, and 7% had significant holes (Gauthier 1987, cited in Barrantes & Trivelli 1996).In the 1980-1992 period 2,398,478 m 3 of sawn wood were produced in Ucayali (INRENA 1994(INRENA , 1995a(INRENA , 1995b ) ). Assuming a very conservative 30% of losses during transformation, they represent 3,118,021.4 m 3 of logged wood. Not considering losses in extraction and transportation (but see above paragraph), and assuming a high-end estimation of 7 m 3 extracted per Ha of natural forests, only sawn wood would represent at least 445.432 Has of forest degraded by the timber activity in Ucayali in twelve years, or about 4% of the region's territory. However, selective logging has occurred at the above recorded levels for at least three decades.Thus , however ene makes the calculations, we can safely say that more than ene mi Ilion hectares of forest have been logged and degraded in the last 30 years in Ucayali (a full 10% of the region). This is an enormous expanse of land. However, the ecological and economic impact of thís activity is largely unrecognized, as if the trees, once cut-down and commercialized, had turned invisible. This invisible forest has subsidized an important fraction of the economically active population of Ucayali for half a century and continues subsidizing the economy of the region.In order to stop the waste and buy time for reordering the activity toward greater economic efficiency, the Peruvian government has recently issued severa! policies regarding timber exploitatíon. Since 1992, a moratorium on new contracts of timber exploitation is in place. In 1995 the reforestation tax to timber extraction in Ucayali was increased in 115% for class A and in 80% for class D hardwoods. Also, the Regional Direction of Agriculture has banned several river basins to timber exploitation. The moratorium, the increased taxes. and the bans, if anything, make more acute our perception of an \"invisible forest\". We can se e truckloads and rafts of logs in the streets and the river port of Pucallpa on a daily basis. However, since timber exploitation is supposed not to be happeníng (or it should be decreasing), this timber seems to pass largely unrecorded. In an official recognition of the invisibility of the activity, the agricultura! census of 1994 does not provide any direct information on timber exploitation in Ucayali. Since timber extraction was largely banned or heavily taxed , informal loggers had an incentive to identify themselves as agriculturists. and their logging lands as agricultura l. Therefore, we may also suspect an over estimation of croplands and farmers in the census.The main crops of Ucayali, in order of cultivated surface, are plantains and bananas, manioc, rice and grain corn. However, the total area in coca fields for the production of illegal cocaine was greater than the total area of plantains and bananas between 1994 and 1996 (INEI1995b; USAID/US Embassy 1997). lnterestingly, in 1996 there was an increase in cultivated area of plantains anda decrease in coca cultivation. 8oth phenomena reversed decade-long trends. Therefore, the domination of coca very likely has existed at least since the early 1980s.Considering its particularly high price, coca for cocaine could be regarded as the most important crop in the agricultura! history of Ucayali. However, due to its illegal and clandestine nature, the contribution of coca to the farmers and to the regional economy has been mostly unrecorded and unresearched.Still, it is most likely that coca has significantly subsidized the colonist society of Ucayali during most of the last two decades. lndeed , at least one internationally-funded agricultura! development project in the 1990s survived due to a inflow of farmer earnings derived from coca cultivation. When the Peruvian government strengthened its persecution of cocaine labs and dealers, farmers beca me unable to repay the project'_s credits, and the project failed (Elena Trigoso, President of AMUCAU 17 , pers. comm. June 1998).Although all official reports claim that coca production in Ucayali is decreasing in the last few years, several field-experienced professionals working in the region claim that production has migrated and dispersed like a metastasis from its traditional area in Aguaytía , increasing but becoming much more difficult to identify and monitor.During the 1980s, the Peruvian government enthusiastically subsidized the production of rice and corn monocrops as well as cattle ranching in the Amazon (Labarta 1997). Cattle ranching in the Amazon has been stimulated by national and international R&D organizations since the 1970s. In a vivid example of the concept of development that inspired cattle ranching in the Amazon, K. Santhirasegaram, a tropical forage expert from FAO who visited Pucallpa in the early 1970s and largely laid down the research program for the following 20 years, wrote: \"Such conditions as the complete removal of the climax vegetation are unavoidable, and are the basis of our civilization\" (Santhirasegaram, 1973).According to the agricultura! census of 1994 (INEI1995b), a total of 106,081 Ha of pastures exist in Ucayali, 98% of them concentrated in the Pucallpa sub-region. Twenty years ago, about one third of the pastures were dominated by native and introduced grasses of low productivity. However, by the early 1980s, thanks to the efforts of Peruvian and international institutions, it was already apparent that a selected grass, Brachiaria decumbens, was dominating Ucayali's pastures. In 1994, according to the Agricultura! Census, 97% of the pastures in Ucayali were exclusively selected Brachiaria.In spite of the improvement of the pastures, Ucayali's livestock production is extremely low. In the benchmark site, only 1 out of every 5 farmers who have pastures actually owns sorne cattle (Fujisaka 1997). Cattle production reached a peak in the mid 1980s, in response to President Alan García's aggressive incentive policy, but it has declined since, apparently by the combined effect of the dismissal of subsidies, the increasing political violence toward the end of the 1980s, and the coca boom.Arguments have been repeatedly advanced in favor of stimulating double-purpose cattle production in Ucayali (e.g., Acción Agraria 1998). The rational for this proposal is double: First, there is a large expanse of under-used pastures which productivity could be enhanced by improved grass-legume combinations. Second, there is a milk-and-beef deficit in Ucayali and the nation.Due to the extremely contentious nature of the issue, it is reasonable to inquire what are the goals that may be accomplished by increasing the numbers of cattle in an Amazon lowland. While a reduction of wasted pastures and the enhancement of their productive potential are probably desirable outcomes, particularly if part of integrated farming systems, cattle represent a stiff investment, out of reach for most small farmers , and it is not necessarily the optimum livestock species for the ecological-economic cond itions of the benchmark si te. The available evidence strongly suggests that the growth of the cattle herds in Ucayali was a largely subsidized phenomenon that mostly favored a handful of large investors and became rapid ly unsustainable when subsidies decreased. Even the advocates of extensive cattle ranching in the Peruvian Amazon recognize that the activity needs to happen in large operations to achieve economies of scale that justify the investment (Acción Agraria 1998). Therefore, the development value of extensive cattle ranching for small farmers is, at least, unclear.The argument of a milk-and-beef deficit is even more troublesome. In order to develop this argument we must first accept the assumption that beef and mil k are basic or irreplaceable resources for human nutrition in the region or the nation, or must demonstrate a significant market demand for those products in the region . This is far from granted. The only significantly large market for beef-and-milk is Lima. While Peru's production does not meet the national demand, and there is evidence that the Lima market suffers a deficit of milk-and-beef, the high production and transportation costs from Ucayali make beef-and~milk from the region non-competitive. At the regionallevel , there is a number of foods, many of them native, that can replace beef and milk with much smaller ecological impact and economic investment.In particular, freshwater fish taken from rivers and lakes without major ecosystem transformation actual/y are the main source of animal protein in Ucayali. Fish production in Ucayali is about ten times beef production, averaging 8,000 MT/yr. (Saavedra 1996(Saavedra , 1998)). Fish provides high-quality protein to the urban majority and the riverine human population of Ucayali. Although there are not published records, apparently wild game and other forest animals provide the main animal protein to the upland rural popu lation (Osear Vásquez 18 and Marco Romero 19  , pers. comms. 1998).Progress on analytical too/s for defining research agendas in complex settingsAlthough fish are produced in larger quantities, they are consumed directly or sold at significantly lower prices than beef. Therefore, the contribution of fisheries to the regional GDP is very small. The watery ecosystems that produce the fish subsidize the livelihood of most city-dwellers and an important proportion of the rural human population of Ucayali. However, its small apparent economic contribution, the marine bias of the fisheries sector in Peru, and the divorce between the health, the agricultura!, and the fisheries sectors in the region tend to make freshwater fish and their ecosystems, again, largely invisible.As for milk, several studies conclude that most peoples with Amerindian genetic background (including mestizos) develop non-reversible hypolactasia by four years of age. Thus, they cannot consume non-transformed milk, although they can consume cheese and yogurts. (See Paige et al. 1972 for Peru; see Sahi 1994 for an updated review) The population of Ucayali are mostly mestizos of strong Andean or Amazonian indigenous ancestry. Last February, we interviewed Ms. Lucy Noriega from the Nutritional Support Program in Ucayali (PRONAA), which provides milk-based food reinforcements to school children (the famous \"vaso de leche\"), and she confirmed to us that they recorded problems with lactase intolerance at the beginning of the program.Although she dismissed the issue as one that stopped occurring after a while, this seems highly unlikely, given the genetic nature of hypolactasia. lt is more likely that affected children stopped consuming the milk-based reinforcements or that the problem continued unrecorded. Thus, plans to increase the dietary intake of milk in the regían should also include the transformation of mil k into cheese or yogurt.In spite of the dietary contribution of fish and forest animals, varied evidence suggests that undernourishment, particularly chronic child undernourishment is high and increasing among the rural population of Ucayali. An important part of rural malnutrition may be related to a lack of high-quality protein in the diet. Growing concerns on the declining status of fishing stocks in the Ucayali basin, particularly the large and preferred species, have stimulated the development of aquacultural technology for native species by IIAP. Although this technology is already developed and available, its relative complexity and the high costs of growing compared to catching fish have led to very meager adoption, particularly by small farmers . Also, there is evidence that forest game is largely over-hunted and scarce, particularly in the Pucallpa sub-region. Therefore, it makes sense to look at on-farm animal production as a strategic source of food security in the region . However, what system of animal production is best fitted for the small farmers of Ucayali is still an open question.The general conclusion of this discussion is that Ucayali is an open, multi-scale, and dynamic ecological-economic system. lt cannot be effectively understood or sustainably modified if research and interventions concentrate in one sub-region and exclude interactions with other sub-regions. lt cannot be effectively understood or sustainably modified without a careful monitoring of its larger-scale constraints and determinants. lt cannot be effectively understood or sustainably modified if research and interventions concentrate in one short-time period . Specific conclusions are:• The Pucallpa sub-region and the benchmark site are not isolated areas. Their socioeconomic dynamics depends to a large extent of activities and resources that Progress on analytical tools for defining research agendas in complex settíngs happen outside the sub-region and the benchmark site themselves, and that are not strictly agricultura! in nature. • The agricultura! development of the Pucallpa sub-region and the benchmark site depend historically of a heavy subsidy from nature, transient economic booms, and different forms of government subsidies; these factors are Jargely exogenous to the sub-region's systems of crop and livestock production, and to the regional markets. • Centralism and institutional instability in Peru and net economic outflows from the region determine important structural constraints to economic growth and development anywhere in Ucayali. We suggest that a low-ceiling for development exists in the region. This low-ceiling will limit significant impact of agricu ltura! R&D if ít is not íntegrated with basic organizational and economic solutions. • Small farmers in Ucayali are poor in capital (and probably also in labor). They face a complex set of externa! difficulties that preclude the enhancement of productivity, economic growth, and development. Difficulties include lack of access to credit, technical support, and markets. Therefore, agricultura! technology alone is highly unlikely to obtain significant impacts on farmers' wellbeing. • There are still important gaps anda number of entrenched prejudices in our understanding of small colonist farmers in the region , particularly in terms of their socioeconomics, culture , knowledge, and decision making. A crucial aspect of this problem relates to the opportunistic, diversified economic activity of the farmers, and how they obtain a living by securing access to off-farm resources as well as on-farm non-agricultura! resources. Effective R&D must build upon the productive mosaic faced and managed by farmers. • Available productive on-farm technology among national and international institutions seems insufficient and is sometimes inadequate for small farmers. An important effort in adaptation and integration of technologies is needed. • Participatory approaches to R&D are extremely new in the region , current activities are largely unaware of existing local expertise, and still show strategic limitations (e.g., gender bias that underestimates the role of women in fa rmer family production and wellbeing). • lntegrated approaches (even technological) to R&D are still missing.Given the high stakes at play, a permanent critica! revision of the priorities and interventíons of applied research in Ucayali is called for. From the above discussion, we dare to suggest that applied research on agriculture and natural resource management will significantly contribute to the sustainable development of the benchmark site only íf at least two key conditions are met in the determínation of priorities and interventions.First, research must be explicitly oriented to empower regional actors and increase the proportion of value added that is generated and reinvested in the region (in our case , local small farms). This calls for a participatory approach in the determinatíon of research príoritíes and the strengtheníng of local organizatíons at dífferent levels, but with a major emphasis in the grassroots. The main objective of interventions should be the increase of self-sufficiency and on-farm security among small farmers.For commercial production, the local empowerment condition implies the need for a carefu l selection of products and markets that must simultaneously meet the criteria of low risk and increased reven ues for the local producers. We are far from underestimating the challenge represented by this consideration. Specific ways of meeting the challenge include:• further research on land-use policies and their impact on sustainable development in the region; • further research on interactions between poverty, land use, and ecological degradation in the Pucallpa sub-region (already under way); • building a shared local database of national related initiatives, organizations, and individuals in the region, and using it to identify expertise and strategic alliances in areas not supported by the CG centers; • development of initiatives specifically aimed to the strengthening and creation of local grassroots organizations, such as producer cooperatives, with self-sufficiency as their primary goal; • further development of formal strategic alliances with local NGOs and R&D institutions, specifically aimed to strengthen those organizations and building a critica! mass of participatory expertise in the region .Second, effective research must efficiently integrate biophysical and socioeconomic disciplinary perspectives. Special attention must be paid to the subsidy from nature represented by timber, fish, and forest game and firewood . These extractive natural resources play a strategic role in supporting the growing human population and providing resilience to the system. A crack-down of these life-supporting resources would inevitably have catastrophic consequences.Possible paths of integrated participatory research, in arder of increasing specificity, include:• further development of integrated participatory research methodology;• the implications to sustainable development of social relations and decision making among small colonist farmers, with an emphasis in gender relations and cooperative networks; and • the development and application of integrated agricultura! production systems for the sustainable solution of health and food security problems among small colonist farmer families .   1976-1981 and 1988-1993. Flows greater than 1,000 people.  Watershed management involves the integrated management of a multitude of common and privately owned resources such as cropland , pastures, forests and water. In the Andean hillsides, farms are generally small, and the population is characterized by great cultural, religious, and economic diversity. Watersheds in this region are managed at the level of numerous individual and independent holdings rather than in a concerted fashion with a view to entire landscapes. As a result, in their day-to-day management of natural resources, farmers may lose sight of important watershed properties, such as soil and water flows, landscape structure and the existence of habitats for particular species.As part of its interdisciplinary research, CIA T's Hillsides and Farmers Participatory Research and Gender Analysis projects are working in two, small multi-ethnic watersheds (Los Zanjones and Guadalito) in the Andean hillsides of southern Colombia. The objective of this work is to find ways to foster collective or concerted action among watershed users and other stakeholder groups in their day-to-day management of natural resources and thereby enable them to deal with problems that cannot be solved effectively by individuals acting alone. So far, this work has dealt with problems related to water management and conservation , erosion control , and pest control (white grubs and leaf cutting ants). The accomplishment of these initiatives are indicators of success, although the actual impact on the management of natural resou rces still has to be evaluated .The project has been focused on the development of a methodology to identify stakeholder groups in arder to accomplish collective management of natural resources in micro watershed 20 . The rationale for developing a stakeholder analysis methodology for micro watersheds arase from a practica! experience in other parts of the Rio Cabuya! Watershed. The decision made by the watershed users organization FEBESURCA (now ASORBESURCA) to stop the burning of forests around natural springs, was violated as a result of not all stakeholders being included in the decision-making process. ASORBECURCA recognized this and invited more stakeholders to participate in the analysis and exploration of possible alternatives. This incidence triggered our research on a methodology that recognizes all stakeholders and identifies contrasting perceptions through a sequence of individual interviews and meetings.The research aims to identify key elements in fostering and facilitating collective action for watershed management and is producing a set of handbooks on key issues, such as stimulating interest in collective watershed management and stakeholder identification aimed at NGO's and other agencies working in natural resource management.• U ser feedback on NRM technology and prototype production systems • Review of literature on collective action with specific emphasis on landscape management and scaling up (to be completed)• Through FPR methods the combination of lime and lorsban has been identified as an effective means of control of leaf cutting ants • Farmers have evaluated and planted live barriers against soil erosion. The biophysical effect still has to be evaluated. • Together with researchers farmers have done trials aimed at identifying maize varieties resistant to Macrodactylus ovaticollis Bates • Reforestation of natural springs has been initiatedThrough FPR methods the combination of lime and lorsban has been identified as an effective means of control of leaf cutting antsThe experiment took place in the micro-watershed, Los Zanjones, situated in La Laguna in the Andean hillsides in southwestern Colombia. Los Zanjones comprises 44 hectares, subdivided among 14 individual owners, giving an average plot size of 3.1 hectares. An anthill inventory, conducted with the owners in 1997, identified 39 anthills or nests. Map 1 shows the extensions of the 14 plots, overlaid by the location of the 39 nests. On the basis of farmers' experience from a number of anthills in the area, the average radius of action of the leaf-cutting ants, that is the distance from the nest that the ants move to forage, was estimated at 80 meters. A circle with a radius corresponding to 80 meters has therefore been drawn around each nest in map 1 to indicate their areas of influence. As it can been seen the ants transcend farm boundaries and collective action to control the ants is necessary to achieve a significant impact of the control.Four possible alternative control methods and a control (no treatment) were se!ected for farmer experimentation in La Laguna for control of existing anthills. These are: • agricultura! lime, pumped into the anthill • lime mixed with lorsban, pumped into the anthill • gasoline, poured into the anthill and set tire to in arder to produce an explosion • washing powder, poured into and around the entrances/exists of the anthill Map 1. Location of anthills, their radius of action and farm boundaries, Los Zanjones, La Laguna, Colombia Table 1 shows the results from the ant control treatment in Los Zanjones Farmers have planted live barriers against soil erosion. The biophysical effect remains to be evaluated.Uve barriers of rice, sugarcane and pasture have been sown in the mini-watershed Los Zanjones. In total, 382 meters of pasture, 318 meters of rice and 971 meters of sugarcane have been sown.Farmers opted for planting the live barriers in order to improve soil fertility, i.e. to reduce erosion and promete the building up of organic matter/humidity.Asked about what would be their indicators for eva luating whether the barriers were serving their purpose, farmers mentioned the following possibilities:• that the plants in between the rows would grow better • on the other hand, if the soillooks 'bright', it is getting tired • that there wouldn 't be any gullies • that the soil would be flat An activity that has been initiated to evaluate the eros ion control effect of the live barriers involves using equipment to measure changes in the shape of the slope.Highlight 3Together with researchers farmers have conducted trials aimed at identifying maize varieties resistant to Macrodactylus ovaticollis Bates.To determine if the phenology of maize could serve as a basis for management of pests.comparisons of 1 O genotypes of maize were made. 8 lines of \" maiz blanco\" and 2 local variants were tested . Dates were collected in relation to the time of flowering , ripening, adaptation to the environment and the damage done by M ovaticol/is. The flowering of 5 lines with maize blanco and the local varieties coincided with the maximum presence of M. ovaticollis. As a result nearly 50% of these maize varieties were damaged. On the contrary 3 of the lines evaluated (SEW-HG\"A\", SEW-HG\"B\", and SEW-HG\"AyB\") flowered befare the population peak of M. ovaticol/is. Only 8.6% of these maize varieties were damaged. The conclusion is that the use of early maize varieties could serve to reduce impact from M ovaticollis infestation.Reforestation of natural springs has been initiatedFarmers have taken the initiative to plant guadua (bamboo), and the tree species, canelo and nacedero around the springs. The work has been organized as mingas but only few of the farmers have participated. Furthermore the decision to plant the trees and the sort of trees to plant were taken by few members of the micro watershed. Thus some owners of the land down to the springs have removed the trees because they think that e.g. guadua will provide shadow for the coffee . Another example that illustrates that problem resolution of natural resource management problems requires the involvement of as many stakeholder as possible.Rationale: Some problems of natural resource management cannot be solved on the farm or plot level but has to involve some sort of collective or concerted management of natural resources at the level of landscapes. This is especially true for management of natural resources in watersheds where water, soil and nutrient flows are evident (from the top of the watershed to the bottom of the watershed) and in relation to pests which easily cross boundaries.Though it is evident that there are some problems the farmers cannot solve individual/y, organization around collective action is not easy. Transaction costs may be to high especially in watershed selected by the size and number of families and not selected by type and importance of natural resource management problems. Furthermore concerted action may demand organizational skills the farmers , and researchers , do not have.Finally, inherent conflicts, which have nothing todo with the actual management of the natural resources, may hinder communication and collaboration among the farmers . This may be especially true when working with natural and not socially defined groups of natural resource users 22 • Stakeholders defined by the use of natural resources will not have social relations or norms that can motívate or force the actions of the individual farmers.2. Methodoloqy to identify stakeholder qroups and to stimulate collective management of natural resources in micro watersheds• Organizational models for facilitating user participation in analysis of and research on NRM issuesTesting the stakeholder analysis methodology in the micro watershed of Guaicoche. Review and completion.• The methodology applied serves to identify maximum variation in perceptions and contrasting opinions on use, problems and conflict over natural resource management (see annex 1 and 2 for steps and diagram of the methodology). • The methodology serves to stimulate sorne degree of collective management of natural resources among watershed users, because it opens a public space for analysis and negotiation of natural resource management problems.In most projects with participatory approaches, stakeholder identification and gender analysis is applied to reach normative goals like benefiting the poorest and equ ity. Projects dealing with collective management of natural resources stakeholder identification may have the same purpose. However, a basic assumption for our project is, that to achieve a real impact of collective management of natural resources all stakeholders have to be identified and invited to become involved in decision-making processes and negotiation. Thus stakeholder identification does not only become a normative goal but a precondition to the activities and impacts of collective management of natural resources.Collective management of natural resources implies a broad range of activities of which stakeholder identification is ene. Thus the development of the stakeholder methodology is only a step forward towards a more comprehensive understanding of which actions 22 Stakeholders are defined by interest. lnterests are often associated with social relations like ethnicity, gender, age, and culture or defined politically or administratively like municipalities. regions etc. Working with the collective management of natural resources we find it relevan! to define stakeholders due to their interdependency in use and management of natural resources. As such watersheds (and other landscapes) becomes the boundaries of our work and the stakeholders defined by their interdependency of the natural resources within this bio-physical boundary. These stakeholders may belong to different social and political defined units but all have an interest or \"sta ke\" in the same natural resources.[ANNEX 1. 1 Paso 5Cómo dialogar sobre los intereses de conflicto que existen entre los usuarios?Como analizar el uso, los problemas y los conflictos de manejo de los recursos naturalesDónde poCiemos aplicar la metodología de análisis de grupos de interés?Cómo presentar la idea de manejo colectivo de los recursos naturales y como aclarar expectativas?Cómo podemos asegurar que todos los grupos de interés están representados? ","tokenCount":"11097"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"47ec02f49866f44fe58fe286b10dbf8d","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/243e6b2f-3d5b-4ee3-b255-fe53eca219a7/retrieve","id":"831392880"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"9ff80ead-5f45-4b78-8a2e-f70ddd6e855b","pagecount":"6","content":"The RUFORUM/ West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL) WASCAL component will specifically focus on knowledge and capacity building activities with the ultimate goal to enable university players (staff and students) research and extension service providers at regional and national-level to access knowledge, technologies, and decision-making tools for uptake of climate information services (CIS) and climate-smart agriculture (CSA) by actors and end users. To this end, RUFORUM as an African-wide network of universities, envisions to use its longstanding experience in training curricula development and in capacity building in agriculture and food security, to develop curricula and training materials that will make accessible to other SSA countries, the knowledge on CSA and climate agro-advisory services generated in the six intervention countries. An example, areas of focus and competence have been identified by the core universities and the areas of intervention for the different stakeholders have been mapped out.The Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) Project builds on the initiatives and achievements under the CGIAR Research Program on the Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) in Africa. With a focus on climate-smart agriculture (CSA) technologies and on climate information services (CIS), the AICCRA project includes an important capacity development component for the benefit of six (6) countries in Africa. RUFORUM is a global partner to AICCRA to work in West Africa and the East and Sothern Africa but also to work at the continental level. AICCRA will collaborate with the African Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) to develop curricula and training materials that will make accessible to other SSA countries, the knowledge on CSA and climate agro-advisory services generated in the six intervention countries. In partnership with other players, RUFORUM envisages to mobilise universities to contribute towards the Project Development Objective: To strengthen the capacity of targeted CCAFS partners and stakeholders, and to enhance access to climate information services and validated climate-smart agriculture technologies in IDA eligible countries in Africa.Given that WASCAL, the West African Science Service Center on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL) is a large-scale education and research-focused climate service Institution operating through 12 graduate schools across West Africa, RUFORUM is partnering with WASCAL to implement the West Africa component of its AICCRA partnership agreement. WASCAL will, together with RUFORUM member universities in Ghana, Mali and Senegal, develop curricula and training materials on CSA and CIS and make them widely accessible to WA stakeholders through WASCAL and RUFORUM university/academia networks. Further noting that the climate change impacts have a gender dimension as much as men and women experience small holding agriculture differently. All activities will pay special attention to gender issues and the participation of women in the training and other activities undertaken under the project.The RUFORUM/ WASCAL activities in West Africa align to the AICCRA Project Development Objective indicators to: i) support the uptake of climatesmart agriculture innovations through piloting; ii) knowledge generation and sharing for effective services; and iii) partnerships for delivery. To this end, partnerships will be launched/ strengthened to enhance the number of CCAFS partners and stakeholders increasingly accessing enhanced climate information services and /or validated climate-smart agriculture technologies in West Africa.AICCRA will collaborate with the African Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) and West African Science Service Centre on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use (WASCAL) to develop curricula and training materials. The knowledge on CSA and climate agro-advisory services with specific models/attributes which can be mainstreamed into the expected curricula and training materials generated in the six intervention countries will be made accessible to other SSA countries. The project will enhance the capacity of RUFORUM and WASCAL to develop delivery models for climate services and for CSA knowledge, approaches and tools.to support effective intra-regional and southsouth adoption in various value chains. RUFORUM will be seizing the opportunity of this additional funding support to WASCAL (from AICCRA-WA directly) to work in synergy with WASCAL to ensure effective implementation of the WA component of the agreement between RUFORUM and WASCAL.RUFORUM and WASCAL AICCRA partners will be expected to participate in training events organized by the AICCRA WA cluster to get access to enhanced climate information services (CIS) and/or validated climate-smart agriculture (CSA) technologies generated from AICCRA. The accessible real-time CIS will derive from the next gen CIS development tools. The CSA technologies to be made accessible will be those prioritized and validated through various tools and approaches mainly developed through CCAFS.Apart from the expected results, the RUFORUM/ WASCAL collaboration will be an opportunity for continental CSA/CIS spillover training effects and south-south learning across regions, countries, continent while also strengthening the already existing institutional collaboration between the two educational networks.RUFORUM and WASCAL will develop training materials and curricula on CSA and CIS that will support the scaling of CSA and CIS to benefit extentionists (public and private) and to capacitate university students (master, PhD programs, etc.). WASCAL and RUFORUM will use their networks to promote the materials developed out of the AICCRA project outputs and outcomes.In collaboration with all other regional stakeholders, RUFORUM and WASCAL will identify and outline the various required curricula and training materials, based on existing knowledge of best-bet CSA and CIS options for value chains in West Africa-to this end RUFORUM will produce a discussion paper/Working paper/White paper.A concept note that synthesizes the essence of the partnership developed with WASCAL, i.e. the goal, objectives, activities and expected outputs and outcomes.The implementation will be in three RUFORUM/ WASCAL core Universities in Ghana, Senegal and Mali. These RUFORUM as the core partner in the AICCRA project will engage country cluster leads to integrate and identify CIS and CSA areas of focus to be adopted by the selected member universities. Specifically, a) AfricaRice in Mali with a focus on monitoring and forecasting system for rice area and yield, maprooms for web-accessible climate information, location-specific weather prediction, ag-data hubs, iterative climate-related risk areas maps, and cropping calendar tools to escape drought and flooding in rain fed rice systems and water scarcity and cold in irrigated rice systems in Mali. For training focus will be on the deployment of gender and socially inclusive CSA packages, improved management of water and irrigation systems, nature-based solutions for agricultural development, small-medium enterprises, and small scale agribusiness and climate-resilient storage facilities and processing technologies. b) ILRI in Senegal on delivery pathways for early warnings (e.g. SCF), climate services and climateinformed digital agro-advisories to support agricultural decision-making and backstopped by ICRISAT and IRI. The entry points, use and potential value of climate information for decision making across the major dryland value chains (cereals, livestock, fodder) to be informed by value chain analysis led by ILRI. CSA knowledge, approaches and tools to support effective adoption and implementation of CSA technologies and practices at scale in various value chains. c) IITA in Ghana on roots and tubers, maize, cowpea and vegetable value chain as well as strengthening irrigation extension services with digital innovations and tailored irrigation advisories identified and integrated into digital crop health apps/services and dissemination systems. CSA and agroforestry measurement, reporting and verification (MRV) system to monitor adaptation and CSA indicators in Ghana and Benin.RUFORUM and WASCAL in consultation with the WA Regional Program Lead and the country cluster leads to identify, outline and prioritize training materials for the various required curricula, based on existing knowledge of best-bet CSA and CIS options for value chains in West Africa. Program implementation will include collaboration on the development of curricula and training materials and knowledge on CSA and climate agro-advisory services that will be made accessible to other countries under both WASCAL and RUFORUM Networks.The RUFORUM and WASCAL activities will be aligned to the deliverable under the West Africa regional program to enhance the capacity of public institutions and private firms to provide climate service delivery models. Specifically, AICCRA will collaborate with RUFORUM, to generate training products. AICCRA will encourage the participation of women scientists and researchers in partner institutions. In undertaking activities under AICCRA, RUFORUM and WASCAL will: a) Engage with country cluster leads to establish areas of focus to be adopted for training and or integration in university curricular. b) In partnership other partners, scoping and selection of units within selected universities that have the best fit for modification and adoption of the AICCRA thematic areas. Interaction will be conducted to investigate the curricula of the schools to have a list of modules or courses in CSA as well as the training material already developed by those institutions for the benefit of stakeholders. The potential trainees will be also identified • The training will be evaluated at the end of each session using a questionnaire. ","tokenCount":"1441"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"5909de1e46cb3a2f4d33b24d1c37acfe","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/c26b8f87-4ef1-4054-941c-b0ddc0d585c6/retrieve","id":"-864664119"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"8a51df36-65df-4944-add7-58d4e6fada45","pagecount":"38","content":"This is a working paper that has not been formally peer reviewed. The opinions expressed in this paper and any possible errors are the responsibility of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the position of the Commission on Sustainable Agriculture Intensification, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, or of the institutions and individuals who were involved in the preparation of the report.Increasing investment and spending in agricultural innovation is not enough to meet Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets of ending poverty and hunger because the effectiveness of investments in low-and middle-income (LMI) countries is affected by the low quality of infrastructure and services provided, and by different norms and practices that create a considerable gap between financing known technical solutions and achieving the outcomes called for in the SDGs. As an important part of a nation's common innovation infrastructure, financial and extension services are major \"enablers\" of investments, favorably contributing to national innovative capacity. However, the contribution of these services to innovation in LMI countries has been limited. Financial services in LMI countries face low rates of return; high risks and lack of acceptable collateral; and limited outreach in rural areas. Similarly, the performance of extension services has been affected by ineffective and costly strategies that have promoted rigid recommendations with poor understanding of how farmers learn and lacked context-specific focus on solving problems.At present, a wide variety of information and communications technology (ICT) tools and innovations in financial and extension services offer new opportunities to improve performance, increase access and reduce costs through economies of scale and more efficient operations. Recent innovations in financial technology offer new ways of expanding the inclusion of the financially excluded into the financial system by providing them with a wider range of financial services and products; reaching sparse customer bases spread over difficult-to-access rural geography; reducing costs through economies of scale and more efficient operations; and enabling profitable inclusion of low-cost products or services that meet the needs of previously excluded populations. In the case of extension, the new ICT technologies can make services more demand-driven, up-to-date and inclusive, contributing to revitalizing the interaction between extension services and farmers.Considering the new opportunities that ICT innovations bring to improve performance of financial and extension services, this study looks at the potential contribution of financial and extension services to the SDGs. The approach used extends the standard Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model to include longer-term management goals and find a solution that balances the efficient use of innovation investments and the achievement of policy goals, making this approach well suited for the analysis of the SDGs.How does the extended DEA approach work? First, DEA is not a foresight model to make projections based on economic theory, nor a model that needs to be calibrated to historical data and that can be evaluated based on its accuracy in \"predicting\" historical events. Instead, it is a powerful method for comparing and analyzing data. Specifically, in this case, it compares poverty and undernourishment levels across countries, relating those levels with the resources that each country has allocated to reduce poverty and undernourishment. It then finds out which countries have achieved the best results in terms of poverty and malnutrition alleviation given the quantity of resources allocated to this goal. These countries constitute the best-practice frontier in the use of investment for poverty and malnutrition alleviation. Countries that do not lie on the frontier are less efficient in the use of investments. In other words, a country is deemed inefficient because comparisons show that other viii countries, using the same level of resources as this country, have achieved better policy results. The model allows the setting of policy targets (levels of poverty and undernourishment) and provides three major results for each country: a) it determines if the country can or cannot achieve the policy target given investments; b) it gives the minimum level of poverty and undernourishment a country can reach; and c) it estimates the level of investment needed to achieve the policy goals if the country falls short of the target.The model is solved for the 69 LMI countries, setting as a policy target the reduction of the poverty headcount (PHC) and the prevalence of undernourishment (PoU) to 5% or less to obtain the maximum level of output (minimum level of poverty and undernourishment) that the country can achieve, given public and private levels of investment in innovation and of fixed or structural variables. PHC and PoU were chosen to measure policy targets because they are among the main indicators used to quantify the achievement of SDG 1 (eradicate extreme poverty for all people everywhere) and SDG 2 (end hunger, achieve food security and improve nutrition). The analysis is conducted using average values of variables for the period 2000-2018. Results of the impact of increased access to financial and extension services are obtained from a scenario that determines the levels of financial and extension services that maximize achievement of policy goals.Results show that LMI countries fall short of achieving the policy target of 5% PHC and PoU. The attainable poverty and undernourishment levels calculated by the model were 25% and 15%, respectively. This is equivalent to an attainable poverty reduction of 100 million people, bringing the number of poor people from 618 million to 518 million. The number of undernourished can be reduced by 96 million, from 560 to 463 million people.To further reduce poverty and malnutrition, countries could increase investment in innovations and services like finance and extension that facilitate producers' access to those innovations. The DEA model is then used to determine how far countries can go on the reduction of poverty and undernourishment if they improve access to financial and extension services without changing levels of innovation investment in agriculture. Results show that the combined effect of improved access to financial and extension services is a reduction in the attainable number of poor people from 518 to 488 million (a reduction of 30 million poor people) and in the attainable number of undernourished people from 463 to 428 million (a reduction of 35 million undernourished people).Increasing investment and spending in innovation, defined here as the development and application of new ways to produce goods and services, is not enough to meet Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) targets because the effectiveness of investments in lower income countries is affected by the low quality of infrastructure and services provided, and by different norms and practices that create a considerable gap between financing known technical solutions and achieving the outcomes called for in the SDGs (Kenny and Snyder, 2017). As impact often depends on additional complementary activities and investments both within and beyond agriculture (Tomich et al., 2019), countries need to complement these investments with considerable improvement of institutions, services and policy tools to ensure that additional investment is effectively turned into improved outcomes.In this context, financial and extension services are often considered major \"enablers\" of investments in innovations targeting achievement of SDGs, and in some cases could directly contribute to the outcome. The financial system is an important part of a nation's common innovation infrastructure which, together with sound institutions, a functioning educational system and effective research and development (R&D) policies, favorably determines national innovative capacity (Meierrieks, 2014), providing services that lower transaction costs and consequently facilitate investment in innovative entrepreneurial activities (Levine, 1997). Extension services are also part of the innovation infrastructure of a country, having played a pivotal role in agriculture by providing smallholders with the information, knowledge and qualifications required to exploit innovation emerging opportunities (Darr et al., 2014). But as in the case of financial services, the contribution of extension to innovation has been limited by ineffective strategies that have promoted rigid recommendations with insufficient understanding of how farmers learn, and have lacked context-specific focus on solving problems that can only be addressed through the engagement of multiple interdependent actors and through improving farmers' access to broader information relating to market and credit linkages (Davis and Franzel, 2018;Norton and Alwang, 2020).At present, a wide variety of information and communications technology (ICT) tools and innovations in financial and extension services offer new opportunities to increase access and reduce costs through economies of scale and more efficient operations. For example, recent innovations in financial technology (FinTech) provide a wider range of financial services and products, reaching difficult-toaccess rural areas. These innovations are also transforming extension services, where cell-phonebased networking and messaging apps are becoming common even in developing countries, and their use in extension is growing rapidly (Davis and Franzel, 2018;Beriya and Saroja, 2019).In the context of the new opportunities that ICT innovations bring to enhance access to these enabling services, this study looks at the potential contribution of financial and extension services to the SDGs. Could enhanced access to financial and extension services contribute significantly to the achievement of SDGs, facilitating access to innovations brought about by investment efforts in LMI countries? Or, as discussed in Duvendack and Mader (2019) for the case of financial services, might they not even have a meaningful net positive effect on low-income users considering that they are only two among many possible determinants of their life chances to access and adopt innovations? We attempt an answer to these questions by using a model proposed by Stewart (2010) that extends the standard Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) model by balancing the efficient use of innovation investments and the achievement of policy goals. This goal-programming DEA (GP-DEA) model is therefore well suited to the analysis of SDGs. Here the model is used to determine values of SDGs that can be achieved by individual countries given their levels of investment in R&D and non-R&D innovation and to measure the impact that improved access to financial and extension services have on the achievement of SDGs. The rest of the paper is organized as follows: Section 2 presents a characterization of the financial and extension services in LMI countries; Section 3 describes the GP-DEA approach used in the analysis; Section 4 discusses results; and Section 5 concludes.Recent innovations in FinTech offer new ways of expanding the inclusion of the financially excluded into the financial system by providing them with a wider range of financial services and products; reaching sparse customer bases spread over difficult-to-access rural geography; reducing costs through economies of scale and more efficient operations; and enabling profitable inclusion of lowcost products or services that meet the needs of previously excluded populations (Hinson et al., 2019).Several studies and development agencies have embraced digitalization of core functions of the financial system to scale up agricultural finance and include smallholder farmers. According to the World Bank (2017), digital technologies cut the cost of providing financial services by 80-90%, can promote digital payments in agriculture value chains, and facilitate innovation in agricultural finance by leveraging mobile technology. These technologies can also contribute to closing the financing gap between male and female farmers; create a digital footprint that can be leveraged to access credit and other financial services; increase the amount of savings; and contribute to poverty reduction, especially for women and female-headed households (World Bank, 2017;Bastian et al., 2018).Figure 1 shows the importance of different financial indicators in LMI countries between 2015 and 2019, grouped by income per capita. The figure clearly shows that high values of the bottom four indicators in the figure are associated with developed financial systems, reaching high values in upper middle-income countries. On the other hand, the proportion of adults receiving payments in cash is highest in low-income countries and seems to be associated with underdeveloped financial systems. Three indicators show similar values across income groups: the proportion of rural population that borrowed to start, operate or expand a farm or business; the proportion of the population that received payments for agricultural products into a financial institution account; and the proportion of population that received payments for agricultural products through a mobile phone.The observed importance of different indicators across income groups is valuable information used in the GP-DEA model to define variables that capture structural differences between financial systems across countries and indicators of financial services that do not depend on financial development and income. Data on agricultural extension are much weaker than for financial services and estimates of the impact of extension on productivity and other relevant outcomes are rare. One global database has been recently made available, compiled by the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services and covering the period 2009-2012 (Swanson and Davis, 2014;Davis et al., 2020). Information from this dataset is summarized below to present a characterization of extension services in LMI countries, comparing values of different indicators to those of high-income (HI) countries, including qualification and specialization of extension staff, the use of new communication technologies and the reach of extension services.Major differences between extension services in LMI and HI countries are observed in staff qualification and use of ICT, as shown in Figure 2. Almost 60% of extension staff in LMI countries have no tertiary education while only 9% hold an MSc or PhD degree. In contrast, HI countries show only 29% of staff without tertiary education and 36% of staff holding an MSc or PhD degree.Differences in the use of ICT in extension services are also significant. Only 48% of field extension staff in LMI countries have internet access in their office (versus 100% in high-income countries), while 40% of staff in LMI countries still work in print and mass media compared to only 8% in HI countries, where most of the staff work with computer-based information technology.The reviewed literature on extension seems to agree on the fact that new ICT tools can make services more demand-driven, up-to-date and inclusive, contributing to revitalizing the interaction between extension services and farmers. However, ICT is but one element in the wider transformation toward improved reach of extension services. As a supporting tool, it can only achieve widespread support if used by an organized extension system and can neither do without nor replace face-to-face interaction between farmers and extension agents. As shown in Figure 2, LMI countries are falling behind HI countries in the use of ICT tools, but are also significantly behind in qualification of extension staff. Support to enhance extension systems in LMI countries should therefore be broader than the introduction of ICTs, a task that will be difficult to advance in the medium term given the need of investment in infrastructure for ICT and the limited supply of skilled staff in these countries.Source: Elaborated by authors using data from Davis and Franzel (2018). DEA is a mathematical programming approach originally developed to evaluate the individual efficiency or performance of a decision-making unit (DMU) 1 that operates in a certain application domain such as agriculture, energy, transportation, health care, education, the banking industry and many others. DEA has been widely used to identify sources of inefficiency, rank DMUs, evaluate management, evaluate the effectiveness of programs or policies, and to create a quantitative basis for reallocating resources, just to name some of the most frequent applications of this approach (Liu et al., 2013). At present, the use of DEA is not restricted to measuring operational performance of organizations but has moved beyond the analysis of efficiency to look at environmental and social performance of various enterprises, like assessments of the effectiveness of policies controlling CO2 emissions; estimating energy saving and undesirable output abatement across countries; supervising methods in management and evaluation; and future planning (Shabanpour et al., 2017).The GP-DEA model presented here was proposed by Stewart (2010), who extended the standard DEA model to include longer-term management goals. The model uses a goal-programming structure to find a solution that balances the efficient use of innovation investments and the achievement of policy goals. These characteristics make this approach well suited for the analysis of the SDGs committed in 2015 by leaders of all countries to \"eradicate extreme poverty and hunger for all people everywhere\".Given the wide variety of DEA applications and the fact that the best-known applications of this method were used to assess historical efficiency of DMUs as part of monitoring and control, it is important to clarify up front how the approach used here differs from traditional DEA applications. First, DEA is not a foresight model to make projections based on economic theory, nor a model that needs to be calibrated to historical data and that can be evaluated based on its accuracy in \"predicting\" historical events. Instead, it is a powerful method for comparing and analyzing data.Second, the use of GP-DEA regarding the SDGs is essentially prospective and relates to planning. It is not about how countries performed in the past, but rather about where countries want to be, specifying benchmarks for SDGs to define future attainable goals toward which countries should aspire given where they are at present (Stewart, 2010).Third, the model allows the setting of policy targets (levels of poverty and undernourishment) and solves to get as close as possible to those targets (the SDG targets) given investments and structural constraints. GP-DEA works by comparing poverty and undernourishment levels across countries, relates those levels with the resources that each country allocated to reduce poverty and undernourishment, and then finds which countries have achieved the best results in terms of poverty and malnutrition alleviation given the quantity of resources allocated to this goal. These countries constitute the best-practice frontier in the use of investment for poverty and malnutrition alleviation and can be used as reference or benchmarking countries to analyze performance of countries that are not at the best practice frontier.Fourth, DEA models include the usual outputs and controlled inputs. These are inputs controlled by the policymaker over which policy decisions are made (for example, level of investments allocated to the achievement of SDGs; allocation of investment across R&D and non-R&D innovation, extension, etc.). However, there are some variables that directly affect the results of investment (poverty and undernourishment reduction) that are not controlled by policymakers or that are part of longer-term policy plans not directly related to the achievement of the SDGs. That is the case, for example, with structural variables like the share of agriculture in gross domestic product (GDP) and in total employment, urbanization, extent and quality of physical infrastructure (roads, railways, ports, airports), average income, quality of political institutions, and human capital. Non-controllable variables are introduced in the GP-DEA model as constraints that reshape the relationship between outputs and controllable inputs. When introducing non-controllable inputs, the benchmark point for a country obtained with the GP-DEA model is selected among countries with controllable input/output that cannot be improved with the actual levels of non-controllable inputs. For example, introducing income per capita as a non-controllable input forces the model to compare the country of interest to countries at the frontier with the same or smaller income per capita as the country being evaluated.Finally, the model provides three major results for each country: a) it determines if the country can or cannot achieve the policy target, given investments and non-controllable variables; b) it gives the minimum level of poverty and undernourishment a country can reach, given investments and noncontrollable variables; and c) it estimates the efficient level of investment toward achieving the policy goals if the country falls short of the target. This could be the case because non-controllable or fixed variables become more constraining than the levels of investment in R&D, which means that increasing investment would not affect poverty and undernourishment unless the levels of noncontrollable variables are modified. If that is the case, the model defines the levels of investment that minimizes the gap between policy targets and the achievable levels of poverty and undernourishment, given fixed levels of other variables. Based on the three major results obtained from the model we define the following concepts:• Efficiency is achieved by a DMU when the maximum possible output is obtained from a set of inputs. A DMU is inefficient if the same or greater output could be produced with less input. Maximum output refers here to the maximum output that can be produced with the available technology, while the term \"efficiency\" refers to the relationship between the amounts invested in R&D and non-R&D innovation and the levels of poverty and undernourishment achieved. • Effectiveness addresses how well a DMU can meet its predetermined goals, and it is defined as the ratio of the observed output to the predetermined goal. In this study, the goals are the levels of poverty and undernourishment to be achieved as defined in the SDGs, while the output is the level of these two indicators reached by countries. • Attainable level of output is defined as the maximum level of output a DMU can achieve given its levels of investment (other things being equal). By comparing outputs and investment from all countries, GP-DEA can determine the \"efficient\" level of investment needed to achieve different levels of output.Using the proposed GP-DEA approach, we look at the performance of 69 LMI countries committed to minimizing poverty and undernourishment by investing in public agricultural R&D and non-R&D innovations. In this context, policymakers in each country decide on how much to invest in public agricultural R&D and non-R&D innovations to reduce poverty and undernourishment. The level of poverty and undernourishment obtained as the result of this investment is the policy output. The level of this output does not depend uniquely on the investment made by policymakers as discussed above but is also subject to non-controllable factors that are assumed to be fixed. These constraints can only be changed in the long term by some form of investment and/or policy changes.The focus of the analysis is not on the levels of R&D and non-R&D innovations needed to achieve the SDG targets on poverty and undernourishment, but on the contribution of financial and extension services to achieving those targets, given the observed level of investment in innovations at the country level.Outputs, investments controlled by policymakers, and structural constraints considered are presented in what follows. All variables used are averages for the period 2000-2018. For some variables, information for that period is only partially available, but in those cases, we also use an average of the available values for the period. The extension data is the most limited, as it is the result of the assessment of the status of agricultural extension and advisory services worldwide for the period 2009-2013.• Poverty headcount (PHC: percentage of people earning less than USD 1.90/day, dollars of 2011). • Prevalence of undernourishment (PoU: percentage of the population whose food intake is insufficient to meet dietary energy requirements continuously).The best-practice frontier, the distance of non-frontier countries to the frontier, and the effectiveness in the use of investments are calculated by comparing countries' outputs and controllable investments:• Public agricultural R&D • Spending in non-R&D innovations.These determine the \"environment\" affecting potential performance of controllable investments in each country, and include indicators of economic structure, policy, infrastructure and private investment. They enter the GP-DEA model playing a different role than the controllable investments. Policy outputs are not directly compared to non-controllable inputs. The role of these inputs is to control for structural differences between countries, constraining the model to compare countries only against those with similar values. For example, including GDP per capita as a non-controllable variable implies that a country with an average income of USD 3,000 could only be compared to countries with an average income of USD 3,000 or less. In this way, constraints imposed by noncontrollable variables define the subset of countries to which a country is compared, making sure that comparisons are conducted between \"similar\" countries. The selection of these variables is central to the analysis, as it could determine the size of the response of poverty and undernourishment to changes in extension and financial services. If the model does not include some of the structural variables that determine the level of extension and financial services a country can achieve, the model would tend to overestimate the impact of increasing access to these services. This is because part of the response would be the result of a flawed comparison between countries at different levels of development (higher level of non-controllable variables), assuming increases in the short run that can only be achieved through structural changes.The description of the nine non-controllable variables used for the analysis follows. Detailed information on the sources and methods used to construct these variables can be found in the Annexes.• Economic development and economic structure: i) GDP per capita; and ii) index of economic structure, including information on the importance of agriculture on GDP and employment in a country's economy. • Infrastructure: iii) index of quality of infrastructure summarizing information on the quality of roads, railways, ports, airports and electric generation and ICT development. • Political institutions: iv) index of quality of political institutions, including information on voice and accountability, political stability, government effectiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law and control of corruption. • Human capital, health and basic education: v) average years of schooling; vi) index on health and basic education, including information on the incidence of disease (HIV prevalence, incidence of malaria and tuberculosis, infant mortality, life expectancy) and the quality of basic education at the country level. • Innovation capacity: vii) enrolment in tertiary education as a structural factor constraining the supply of researchers; and viii) index of innovation, including information on R&D investment at the country level, collaboration of business and universities for innovation, and sophistication of demand. • Private R&D investment and knowledge spill-ins: ix) other R&D investment including information on private R&D investments, knowledge spill-ins from private and public investment in other countries, and spill-ins from CGIAR investment.As the focus of the analysis, these services are treated differently in the two scenarios defined below to measure the impact on policy outputs of further extending the reach of each.• Financial services (inputs): i) percentage of the rural population aged 15 or older that borrowed to start, operate or expand a farm or business; ii) percentage of the rural population aged 15 or older that used a mobile phone or the internet to access an account • Extension services: iii) number of extension staff (in full-time equivalents).The variables representing access to financial and extension services were selected by looking at the relationship between all available financial and extension variables and structural variables like income per capita and financial development. Those variables showing high and positive correlation with non-controllable variables were discarded assuming that they can only change in the long run as the result of a country's economic transformation. As the selected variables show low correlations with income per capita and financial development, it is assumed that countries can change the level of those variables in the short and medium run to complement investments in innovations. Within this framework, the question to be answered using the GP-DEA model is: What is the contribution of increased access to credit, to financial accounts through ICT, and of expanding extension services (number of extensionists) to poverty and undernourishment reduction in LMI, given actual investments in innovation and structural characteristics of the countries? To answer this question, the model is solved separately for the 69 countries setting a policy target of 95% of the total population above the poverty and undernourishment lines in four scenarios.Scenario 1: This scenario uses the percentage of poor and undernourished people as policy outputs to evaluate the effectiveness of the use of public R&D and non-R&D investment in the country to achieve policy goals. In this scenario, structural constraints and financial and extension services are treated as non-controllable variables, and the effectiveness of public investment in innovation is obtained by comparing countries with similar structural characteristics and similar development of financial and extension services.Scenario 2: As in Scenario 1, Scenario 2 evaluates the effectiveness of the use of public R&D and non-R&D investment at the country level to achieve policy goals. The only difference from Scenario 1 is that here countries are given more flexibility to achieve policy goals, as the model defines the level of financial and extension variables the countries need to achieve to maximize the impact of public investment in innovation on policy outputs given structural variables. This means that the model increases the observed levels of these variables to the point where no more improvements in policy outputs are obtained because other variables become more constraining than financial and extension variables. The description of the model in Annex 3 includes an explanation of how increased values of extension and financial services are determined in the model.While Scenario 2 simulates the increase of financial and extension services simultaneously, Scenario 3 focuses on the effect on poverty and undernourishment of an increase in financial services only, while Scenario 4 looks at the impact of increasing the number of extensionists with no changes in financial services.Results of the GP-DEA model setting a policy goal of 5% of the PHC and PoU for every country are shown in Figure 3. The model solves finding the closest value to the 5% goal of PHC and PoU for each country. Results indicate that the lowest average attainable PHC for the sample of 69 countries was 25%, while the lowest average attainable PoU was 15%. The figure also shows that the gap between observed (31%) and attainable (25%) PHC levels is 6 percentage points compared to 3 points in the case of PoU (18% and 15% respectively). This means that, on average, countries are investing enough in public innovation to reach 25% and 15% of PHC and PoU, respectively. The comparison between the number of poor and undernourished people in LMI countries (Figure 4) shows that closing the gap between observed and attainable levels of PHC and PoU could result in 100 million fewer poor people living in extreme poverty (518 million instead of 618 million) and 98 million fewer undernourished people (463 million instead of 560 million people).There are two relevant comparisons to be made from these results that have different implications. One is the difference between the attainable level of PHC and PoU in each country and the policy target of 5%. The second comparison is between the observed level of PHC and PoU and the attainable level of these indicators. Whereas the differences between the 5% desirable goal and the attainable PHC and PoU goals are mostly the result of structural differences between countries, the differences between attainable goals and observed PHC and PoU in each country are the result of ineffective use of public innovation investment. Even though countries with attainable goals higher than 5% cannot achieve the 5% policy goal, they could further reduce PHC and PoU if they can improve their performance and move closer to the PHC and PoU values of their peers or reference countries in the best-practice frontier, closing the gap between attainable and observed values.These results show how GP-DEA could be used to define policy targets that are attainable and represent best practices. Results could also be used to determine policy changes needed by countries to close the gap between attainable and observed values of PHC and PoU given investments in innovation. Even though this is a relevant policy issue in the context of achieving the SDGs, it is beyond the scope of this study. Instead, we turn to the analysis of the impact of enhanced access to financial and extension services on the achievement of policy goals.Source: Elaborated by authors.Source: Elaborated by authors.The impact of improved access to financial and extension services is shown in Figure 5. Expanding extension services has no impact on poverty as it only reduces the average attainable poverty level in LMI countries from 518 to 512 million -only 6 million fewer people living in extreme poverty. On the other hand, enhanced access to financial services has a much larger impact on poverty than increasing spending in extension, as it reduces the attainable poverty level in LMI countries by 20 million. Simultaneously increasing access to financial and extension services reduces the attainable level of poverty by 30 million -from 518 to 488 million people.Reductions of the attainable level of PoU are also significant only when the number of extensionists and access to financial services are increased simultaneously, going from 18% with observed access Our results so far show that improved access to financial and extension services could contribute to poverty and undernourishment alleviation, improving the effectiveness of investments in innovation. However, as only two among several factors affecting poverty and undernourishment, these services are not determinant of the achievement of poverty and undernourishment goals and can only contribute significantly to SDGs if they can effectively complement investments in innovation and structural economic changes in LMI economies. In a study on the impact of financial inclusion in LMI countries, Duvendack and Mader (2019) come to a similar conclusion when they state that:From this review, the (perhaps boring) truth that seems to emerge about financial inclusion is that it is not changing the world. On average, financial services may not even have a meaningful net positive effect on poor or low-income users, although some services have some positive effects for some people. Considering that for most people financial inclusion … will be only one among many possible determinants of their life chances and their socio-economic well-being…. Note: The attainable level of the poverty headcount and of the prevalence of undernourishment is the level of these indicators a country can achieve given its actual investment in public innovation (and non-controllable variables). Increased access to financial and extension services is determined by the DEA model so as to minimize poverty and undernourishment given R&D and non-R&D investment and structural constraints.Which are the major factors within extension and financial services explaining the different outcomes in Figure 5? Table 1 compares 2018 levels of financial and extension indicators to values of the same variables under increased access to services. The table shows that increases in the number of extensionists (16.2%) and in the proportion of the population that borrowed to start or operate a farm or business (12.8%) are the main drivers of the reduction in attainable levels of extreme poverty and undernourishment in LMI countries. On the other hand, the proportion of rural population that used a mobile phone or the internet to access an account remained almost unchanged, decreasing from 12.6% to 12.3%, which means that increasing access to accounts through ICT has no effect on poverty and undernourishment. Finally, we look at the sensitivity of the results, assuming that results are mostly dependent on the selection of non-controllable variables for the model. As mentioned before, missing structural variables in the model could result, in most cases, in an overestimation of the effect of increasing access to financial and extension services. This is because part of that effect would be the result of structural changes wrongly attributed to financial and extension services when comparing countries with different characteristics. To check the effect of missing variables in our results we run Scenario 2 nine times, each time dropping one of the nine non-controllable variables. The results of these simulations compared to the original results for Scenario 2 are shown in Table 2. We focus on the attainable levels of poverty and undernourishment in each scenario. The effect of missing variables varies significantly with the different variables. For example, when dropping enrolment in tertiary education, increased access to financial and extension services reduces poverty by an extra 45 million people and undernourishment by 30 million. In contrast, not including one of the variables of infrastructure, innovation capacity, quality of institutions or years of schooling would result in a very small difference from the results obtained in Scenario 2 in both poverty and undernourishment. The fact that not all non-controllable variables affect poverty and undernourishment in the same way, however, makes it difficult to reduce the number of these variables in the model. Quality of political institutions and years of schooling seem to have a significant effect on results for undernourishment while having a smaller effect on poverty. The opposite seems to be true for health and basic education and GDP per capita. However, when dropping infrastructure, economic structure and innovation variables from the model we obtain similar results from those obtained with the original model, as shown in the last row of Table 2. Increasing investment and spending in innovation is not enough to meet SDG targets without considerable improvement of institutions, services and policy tools to ensure that additional investment is effectively turned into improved outcomes. As an important part of a nation's common innovation infrastructure, financial and extension services are major \"enablers\" of investments, favorably contributing to national innovative capacity. At present, a wide variety of ICT tools and innovations in financial and extension services offer new ways of expanding the inclusion of the financially excluded into the financial system and could contribute to revitalize the interaction between extension services and farmers, making services more demand-driven, up-to-date and inclusive. In this context, this study looks at the potential contribution of financial and extension services to the SDGs as enhancers of the impact of public investment in innovation. The approach used extends the standard DEA model to include longer-term management goals and find a solution that balances the efficient use of innovation investments and the achievement of policy goals, making this approach well suited to the analysis of the SDGs. The model is solved for 69 LMI countries, setting as policy target the reduction of the PHC and PoU to 5% or less to obtain the minimum level of poverty and undernourishment that a country can achieve, given public and private levels of investment in innovation and fixed or structural variables. Results of the impact of increased access to financial and extension services are obtained from a scenario where the model determines the levels of financial and extension services that maximize achievement of policy goals.Results show that given observed investment, LMI countries could reduce the number of people living in extreme poverty from 618 million observed in recent years to 518 million, while the number of undernourished people could be reduced from 560 to 463 million, without increasing investment in innovation -only increasing the effectiveness with which this investment is used.To enhance the impact of investment in innovation on the reduction of poverty and malnutrition, countries could increase investment in extension and financial services that facilitate producers' access to those innovations. Results of a scenario simulating improved access to these services without changing levels of innovation investment in agriculture show that improved access to both financial and extension services would bring attainable poverty levels from 518 to 488 million (a reduction of 30 million poor people) and undernourishment levels from 463 to 428 million (35 million fewer undernourished people). This is achieved by increasing the number of extensionists in LMI countries by 16% and access to credit in rural areas by 12%. We conclude that improved access to financial and extension services could contribute to poverty and undernourishment alleviation, improving the effectiveness of investments in innovation. However, as only two among several factors affecting poverty and undernourishment, these services are not determinant to the achievement of poverty and undernourishment goals; their impact is limited and can only contribute to SDGs if they can effectively complement investments in innovation and structural changes in LMI economies. The information for the Infrastructure Index used in the analysis was extracted from the Global Competitiveness Index developed by Xavier Sala-i-Martin and Elsa V. Artadi (World Bank, 2021). The index is built as a weighted average of many different components, each measuring a different aspect of competitiveness. The components are grouped into 12 categories, the pillars of competitiveness: 1) institutions; 2) infrastructure; 3) macroeconomic environment; 4) health and primary education; 5) higher education and training; 6) goods market efficiency; 7) labor market efficiency; 8) financial market development; 9) technological readiness; 10) market size; 11) business sophistication; and 12) innovation.The Global Competitiveness Index is the tool used by the World Economic Forum in its Global Competitiveness Report to assesses the competitiveness landscape of 137 economies. Data and methodology are available at http://reports.weforum.org/global-competitiveness-index-2017-2018/.• Usage: The indicators included in this group capture ICT intensity and usage.• Skills: Data on mean years of schooling and gross secondary and tertiary enrolment ratios from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Institute for Statistics.Available data is normalized and rescaled to identical ranges, from 1 to 10. We rescaled the index to run from 0 to 1. Information on the index and data is available at https://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Pages/publications/mis2017/methodology.aspx.Data from Worldwide Governance Indicators (Kaufmann et al., 2021) was used to build the index of quality of political institutions. WGI reports aggregate and individual governance indicators for over 200 countries and territories over the period 1996-2020, for six dimensions of governance:• Voice and accountability: Captures perceptions of the extent to which a country's citizens can participate in selecting their government, as well as freedom of expression, freedom of association and a free media. • Political stability and absence of violence/terrorism: Measures perceptions of the likelihood of political instability and/or politically motivated violence, including terrorism. • Government effectiveness: Captures perceptions of the quality of public services, the quality of the civil service and the degree of its independence from political pressures, the quality of policy formulation and implementation, and the credibility of the government's commitment to such policies. • Regulatory quality: Captures perceptions of the ability of the government to formulate and implement sound policies and regulations that permit and promote private sector development.• Rule of Law: Captures perceptions of the extent to which agents have confidence in and abide by the rules of society, and in particular the quality of contract enforcement, property rights, the police and the courts, as well as the likelihood of crime and violence. • Control of corruption: Captures perceptions of the extent to which public power is exercised for private gain, including both petty and grand forms of corruption, as well as \"capture\" of the state by elites and private interests.Each of the six aggregate WGI measures are constructed by averaging together data from the underlying sources that correspond to the concept of governance being measured. PCA of the six indicators included in the WGI dataset for 212 countries is used to summarize the information of the six variables into a synthetic measure of quality of political institutions.Results of the PCA are presented in Table A2.2. The first component captures 86% of the total variation of the six indicators, so we used this first component as the index of quality of institutions, where indicators are added using the coefficients of the first eigenvector (Comp1) in the second part of Table A2.1. build this indicator is from ASTI (2021), while private investment data was built by authors based on Fuglie (2016).The information on R&D for this indicator and for public R&D and non-R&D investment in innovations was not used as such, but used first to build knowledge stocks to capture the lagged effect of research investment. This is because investment in a given period does not influence productivity, poverty or undernourishment in the same period; it takes time for this investment to have an effect. Once there is an effect, this same investment will continue affecting productivity or other related variables for several years to come. To capture this effect of investments in innovation we used the perpetual inventory method to calculate the level of capital built by investments from previous periods. This method is simple and uses only three parameters to define knowledge stocks based on past investments: a depreciation or decay rate of knowledge; a gestation period, or the number of years that takes to an investment to fully contribute to knowledge stock; and a parameter B that models the trajectory of the contribution of investment to the knowledge stock during the gestation period. A detailed discussion of the use of the perpetual inventory method to build knowledge stocks can be found in Nin-Pratt and Magalhaes (2016).which means that the model solves to minimize the distance between the attainable (optimal) level of output and the policy goal without consideration of the efficient allocation of output. When α=0, the model only considers efficiency, disregarding the policy goal. Values of α between 0 and 1 result in different ponderations of the importance of efficiency and goals.\uD835\uDEFF\uD835\uDC5C \uD835\uDC5A , \uD835\uDF11 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5B = slack variables for outputs and inputs, capturing the difference between the benchmark values of y and x and the observed value of \uD835\uDC65 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5B (A3) and the value of \uD835\uDEFC\uD835\uDC47 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5A + (1 − \uD835\uDEFC)\uD835\uDC66 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5A in (A4)\uD835\uDC64 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5A , \uD835\uDC62 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5B = subjective weights defining the importance given to different outputs and inputs. This means that the model allows for different results depending on the preferences or goals of the analyst. For example, a value of \uD835\uDC64 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5A = 1 for both outputs means that we are giving the same importance to achieving the target levels of poverty and undernourishment. Say that we are trying to achieve both policy goals, but the priority was given to poverty alleviation as two-thirds of investments in innovation target the achievement of this goal while the remaining one-third of investments was allocated to the reduction of undernourishment. Then we would want to evaluate the results based on our preferences. In this case we can give different weights to poverty and undernourishment (for example 0.66 to poverty and 0.33 to undernourishment) in the objective to evaluate results based on our preferences. For this study we used values of \uD835\uDC64 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5A = 1, so the same importance was given to the reduction of poverty and undernourishment.Notice, as mentioned above, that all right hand side variables in equations (A1) \uD835\uDC67 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5F , (A2) \uD835\uDC65 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5B and (A3) \uD835\uDC66 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5A are actual values of the non-controllable variables, inputs (investments in innovations) and outputs (observed poverty and undernourishment), respectively in country \"o\", the country being compared with all countries (\"c\"). This is the model solved in Scenario 1. For Scenarios 2, 3 and 4, the model is modified as follows. First, equation (A2) is split into two equations:∑ \uD835\uDF06 \uD835\uDC50 \uD835\uDC50 \uD835\uDC67 \uD835\uDC50,\uD835\uDC53\uD835\uDC56\uD835\uDC65 ≤ \uD835\uDC67 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC53\uD835\uDC56\uD835\uDC65 (A2.1) ∑ \uD835\uDF06 \uD835\uDC50 \uD835\uDC50 \uD835\uDC67 \uD835\uDC50,\uD835\uDC53\uD835\uDC56\uD835\uDC5B\uD835\uDC52\uD835\uDC65 ≤ \uD835\uDC63 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC53\uD835\uDC56\uD835\uDC5B\uD835\uDC52\uD835\uDC65 (A2.2) Equation (A2.1) is equivalent to equation (A.2), but in this case, it includes only the non-controllable variables (represented by the set \"fix\") and does not include the financial and the extension variables. These are included in (A2.2) where \"finex\" is the set of financial and extension variables and where v on the right hand side is unknown and results from the solution of the model. v is the level of financial and extension services that maximizes the objective.Notice that equation (A2) in the original problem is the equation that forces comparisons of country \"o\" with \"similar\" countries. Say that r=GDP per capita, \uD835\uDC67 \uD835\uDC5C,\uD835\uDC5F is GDP per capita of \"o\" and \uD835\uDC67 \uD835\uDC50,\uD835\uDC5F is GDP per capita of country \"c\". Then the value of \uD835\uDF06 \uD835\uDC50 obtained from the solution of the problem (the same in all equations) needs to be such that complies with the inequality in (A2), that is, comparisons for \"o\" are done with countries in \"c\" with GDP per capita equal or smaller than that of \"o\".The Commission on Sustainable Agriculture Intensification (CoSAI) brings together 21 Commissioners to influence public and private support to innovation in order to rapidly scale up sustainable agricultural intensification (SAI) in the Global South.For CoSAI, innovation means the development and uptake of new ways of doing things -in policy, social institutions and finance, as well as in science and technology.Contact us: [email protected] wle.cgiar.org/cosai","tokenCount":"7903"}

data/part_3/0139381822.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"6c4eaa51c321d5b72090649c91437524","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/cb22e311-5510-4c14-8a22-02fa8039d629/retrieve","id":"1338094452"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"60570c4a-1bf6-4ed0-8621-9ebd2a4f5c14","pagecount":"7","content":"El mtrógeno es uno de 10b nutnentes más rcqucndos por el -,r ro? y por mucho tlCmpo los técmcos en este CUltivo han hecho Varl'lS pruebas de fertlllzaclón con mtrógeno en todos los ,n,{ses de ,\\menca La~ hna Los estudios de fertIlización so han hocho el :lrrOz de secano y de rwgo Los lesultaclos de un gran numelO do est?s prue'jas h\".n md,cado que los suelos no respo\"lden bIen d mtrógeno o que l~ apltcaclón :'t.-,-'$-, --\"\"'''''''':'';,' de mucho mtrógeno ha aumentado muy poco 1\" producciónDur-,nte 1;:. etapa de NZ (Nltró[,eno 8119(050), un\", ¡¡n'n p\"rte ele éste se perd,ó por la volatlhzac1ónEn 12 Flgura 2 6e r0prcscn~a 1\"\\ tphc,-\"clón de. 111trog0rlO en arroz de BeC11no El mtróGeno. no lmrort2 51 es en f01IT <' ele ~momo o de nitrato • todo será convertIdo \" 1\" forln, Je mtratos L\" convcrslOn ocurre con rap,dez  .-125-En 1\", práctlc'l hay d0S f~ctores en el mc.neJo del ':l[lU0. que afectan la efiClenCI0. de la utülzacIón del nItrógeno, estos son 1 El herrpo requerido par<l la ¡nundaclón ,lespués de la ferhhzaclón COn nltrógeno 2 El nitrógeno perdIdo entre la fertIlIzaCIón y el drenaje Durante los úlhmos dos afios estos factores fueron e9tuchado~ en l?, Ílnca del CIA T En el prImer experlInento se estudIÓ el ttempo requerIdo para Inundar después de 10. fertlhzaCIón Se emple<lron las dOSIS de 0,100 y 200 ka/ha de N que se ,phcaron en suelo .. ~ cuan10 el <'rroz tenía 25-30 días de, edad y los tratamIentos de inUndaCIón usados fueron 1) O (el mIsmo día)2) 3 días después de la fcrl1hzacIón3) (, días después de la fertlhzaClón 4) 9 días después de la fertuIzacIón Los result?dos mdIC-lron que SIn mtrógeno, la producción fué 5 500-S 700 kg/ha Esta produCCIón representa el nItrógeno sumInIstrado -prlOclpclmcnte por el sudo El mejor tratamIento fué 100 kg N inundado el mIsmO día y prodUjO cerCa de 7 000 kg CU'lndo le. InundaCIónfué demorada 3, 6 Y 9 días, el aumento en 1\", prodUCCIón fué muy poco tndIéando la pérdIda de la gran mayoría del mtrógeno ( ","tokenCount":"343"}

data/part_3/0144155200.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"18047a6fc88e4ead1c27783e930925dd","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/91b84279-f00c-46fc-b673-b87771e44daa/retrieve","id":"307901232"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"a13c4388-3464-4968-99fd-8fef1eec4b16","pagecount":"24","content":"The linkage between conservation and use is embedded in both the Convention on Biological Diversity and the FAO Global Plan of Action for the Conservation and Sustainable Utilization of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. The Convention identifies the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity and the sharing of benefits from use as its central objectives. The improved utilization of Plant Genetic Resources (PGR) is one of the four major thematic areas of FAO the Global Plan of Action.While the importance of using genetic resources is fully recognized, there is also a continuing concern that in many ways PGR are under-used. The FAO State of the World Report, 1996 listed 20 or so different bottlenecks to use which were identified in the country reports. Over the past 20 years, many eminent scientists and others concerned with PGR, have also expressed their concern about the poor use of material stored in ex situ collections.However, if we have to improve the use of PGR, there needs to be some substantial reconsideration of what constitutes use and a much better knowledge of the current patterns of use and problems encountered in improving the use. Some aspects of these concerns are illustrated below:The information, opinions and designations in the Newsletter are not necessarily those of IPGRIThe IPGRI Homepage on the World Wide Web of Internet:Much of the genetic diversity of the world crops is still maintained in farmers' fields, orchards, pasture lands and forests. For many useful plant species and for many crops, conservation through use in productive agro-ecosystems by farmers and communities will continue to be the most important conservation method in terms of the amount of genetic diversity maintained over time. This is so, firstly, because farmers will continue to need the diversity in their production systems. Secondly, sufficient ex situ facilities will probably be never available to maintain many useful tropical fruits, minor vegetables, forage species, medicinal plants and other useful species.In recent years, the importance of the continuing maintenance and use by farmers of their own local cultivars of both major and minor crops has been fully recognized by the conservation community and on-farm conservation has become a part of the conservation agenda. At present, this work often focuses on major crops. However, in the longer term, conservation through use is likely to be even more important for minor crops, perennial species and for species which are under-represented in ex situ collections because of the difficulties associated with their conservation.September-December 1999The International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI), formerly IBPGR, is one of the 16 Centres of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) with its Headquarters at Rome. IPGRI's mission is to encourage, support and engage in activities to strengthen the conservation and use of plant genetic resources world-wide with special emphasis on the needs of developing countries. IPGRI works in partnership with other organizations, undertakes research and training, and provides scientific and technical advice and information. IPGRI operates in five geographical areas: Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), the Americas, Europe, Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA), and Asia, the Pacific and Oceania (APO). APO Regional Office is based in Serdang, Malaysia with offices for East Asia and South Asia located in Beijing, China and New Delhi, India, respectively.The APO Newsletter is produced thrice a year and is mainly aimed at promoting the overall concern on plant genetic resources, with emphasis on their conservation and use. [Contd. on page 4] NEWSLETTER FOR ASIA, THE PACIFIC AND OCEANIAIn contrast to conservation through use, conservation for use describes the maintenance of ex situ collections in ways that support the supply of material to different users. This is the conventional responsibility and concern of many genebank managers who constitute IPGRI's primary collaborators and the supporters of the global conservation effort. Increasingly, the value of these collections is being judged in terms of the \"use\" that is made of them. Their ability to obtain resources depends on demonstrating that the collections have been used to improve production in some way.Use of accessions from ex situ collections can take many different forms, some of which are often ignored or overlooked. It could be argued that use of accessions includes any activity that adds value to an accession, contributes to our agricultural knowledge or contributes to improved production. Thus, use can take many forms and meet many objectives from complex breeding programmes for cultivar improvement to direct use or for carrying out detailed studies of metabolism and gene control. A few brief points can be made on the three different aspects of use.Work that adds value to an accession includes characterization and evaluation. While a number of commentators have argued that these activities do not really constitute use, there are good reasons for emphasizing their importance for improved use and their value in improving both knowledge and productivity. Firstly, in order to identify accessions with desirable characters (disease resistance, stress tolerance, etc.), it is usually necessary to screen a large number of accessions, many of which will turn out not to have the desired traits. All the accessions have, in fact, been used and the ability to provide the right accession to plant breeders depends on having all the accessions available and evaluating and characterizing them properly. Secondly, plant breeding programmes always have a rather limited capacity to include new material in the crossing plans. The amount varies from crop to crop and programme to programme but, typically, it is unlikely to be more than a few accessions per year. Improving use, depends not on increasing the number of accessions provided to breeding programmes but on improving the usefulness of the material provided i.e. on being able to provide material with that has already been characterized and screened for known, desirable characteristics.The contribution made by PGR to improved agricultural knowledge has been rather overlooked. At IPGRI, we have just completed a survey of the use of PGR based on research reports in four international journals (Crop Science, Plant Breeding, Euphytica and Theoretical and Applied Genetics). Over 20% of the 800 articles published in these journals in 1996 used PGR that came from ex situ collections or directly from field collecting. These genetic resources were used to investigate key aspects of crop performance, of genetic control of important traits (yield, disease resistance, stress tolerance etc.) and of exploring different ways of improving production. It would be valuable to extend this work to cover a wider range of nationally important agricultural journals which are also likely to include work where genetic resources from an ex situ collection have provided the necessary material to improve crop production.Plant breeders have always been considered to be the primary users of crop genetic resources. Meeting their continuing need for additional diversity, for new traits and for new combinations of traits has been a central concern of many genebanks. It is important to recognize that the number of accessions that breeders can use will often be very small. Indeed, plant breeders often report that their preferred genebank is one that can provide a small number of well characterized accessions that avoids the need for large trials to determine accessions that should enter a crossing programme. If information on accessions is limited, breeders may well limit their use of new materials because of the extra labour involved. However, there is a continuing and increasing use of genetic resources in the major breeding programmes of many countries and of many international programmes. For example, wheat lines released by CIMMYT today have over 50 landraces in their pedigrees, while those released 25 years ago had only 5-10 landraces.While recognizing that there are many different forms of use that are often undervalued, it also has to be accepted that the information we have on the extent of PGR use is quite inadequate. This may reflect an incomplete knowledge of the amount of material sent out from genebanks, the destination of the material and the use that is made of it. However, it may often happen that while this data exists, it has never been collated or analysed. Many genebanks which keep records of the material despatched and of its destination, have not had the time or resources to analyse this data to identify key uses and users and, more importantly, the key gaps or bottlenecks to use. It must now be a priority to work firstly to understand patterns of distribution, and then to follow up with users to determine the ways in which the material has been used. This will provide the information needed to identify ways in which distribution and use could be improved. Such work will be of direct benefit to all involved in conservation. It will provide direct factual evidence on the utility of genebanks, on how to improve use and clear evidence on impact. This can be shared with policy makers and national planners who need to be convinced of the value of conserving PGR [Dr Toby Hodgkin, Principal Scientist, Genetic Diversity, Genetic Research Science and Technology Group (GRST), IPGRI-HQ, Rome, Italy].For the first time, IPGRI hosted its Forest Genetic Resources (FGR) programme meeting at its Headquarters in Rome from 22-29 September 1999. In view of the relatively rapid growth of the FGR programme which started in 1993, it was felt important to convene a meeting to bring together all regional and Headquarters FGR staff in order to: Ways of integrating proposals examined and strengthening interregional linkages determined.The meeting was highly successful in fulfilling its objectives and achieving its outputs to the extent that participants felt the need to organize such events on an annual basis in future. The details on various aspects are given below:Several conventions and recommendations at the global level are legally binding at national level and have implications for FGR management. It was recommended that IPGRI's FGR programme should identify crucial FGRspecific policy and legal aspects which need to be taken into account in developing national plans, and in forthcoming international conventions. The FGR programme should encourage partners to integrate FGR issues in their national programmes and provide information and advice to countries as they formulate their policies. The scope for regional activities on FGR policy aspects needs to be further explored.Specific locations for consolidation of thematic activities were chosen in each region, for instance in the APO, the thematic focus will be on:i) The impact of logging and extraction of non-timber forest products and valuable tree species in the Western Ghats (India),ii) Locating genetic diversity in mainland Southeast Asia (Thailand, Vietnam),iii) Assessing genetic erosion in the Pacific, and iv) Conservation and sustainable use of bamboo and rattan genetic resources in the varied INBAR locations.The enhanced cooperation between the HQ FGR project (Global FGR strategies) and the FGR research activities carried out in the regions was highly recommended. Regional activities and global strategies need to be better integrated into a logical framework structure to avoid duplication and to improve collaboration according to the principle of subsidiarity.The participants to the meeting, as well as representatives from ICRAF, CIFOR and SGRP expressed the need for an adequate information system on FGR at system-wide level. The following agenda for action was proposed and agreed upon:i) An inventory of information available under all electronic and nonelectronic forms including databases, newsletters, publications, research projects, etc. in the CG centres needs to be developed. This would help identify areas of potential collaboration and complementarity between them. This work should lead to the development of a common IPGRI-CGIAR Webpage on FGR.ii) The common denominators/ standards need to be developed to pool and share information and ensure compatibility of the information systems. Standardization is needed at the level of tree species (taxonomy/ nomenclature), countries and regions, as well as ecosystems. CG standards for taxonomy and country codes are being set under SINGER.iii) Networks are considered as an important tool for promoting awareness and action on plant genetic resources. ANSWER: This is the Asian Network for Sweet Potato Genetic Resources (ANSWER) and its second meeting was held from 3-5 November 1999 at the Regional Office of the International Potato Centre (CIP), Bogor, Indonesia, with financial and technical support from IPGRI. See page 6 for more details.RECSEA-PGR: The Regional Cooperation in Southeast Asia on PGR (RECSEA-PGR), is a sub-regional network. Its second meeting was held in Malaysia from 7-8 September 1999. See page 7 for more details.The collaborators of TaroGen met on 21 October 1999 to review and discuss the progress made, identify additional areas that needed attention and to facilitate linking of each other's activities. This led to better understanding of each other's roles in furthering TaroGen activities. The second TGRC meeting took place on 22 October 1999, at South Pacific Commission (SPC), Suva, Fiji, immediately after a meeting of the subcommittee of Regional Conference of Permanent Heads of Agricultural and Livestock Production Services (PHALPS). The Team Leader reported on collecting and characterization, conservation and improvement, establishment of the Regional Germplasm Centre and in situ conservation study with IPGRI support. QUT/QU (ACIAR project) reported on characterization and diagnostics development of taro viruses; DNA fingerprinting of germplasm and technology transfer. QU/SPC also plan to develop a proposal to study genetic integrity of tissue cultured taro. HortResearch, Auckland reported on taro leaf blight (TLB) testing methods. Other issues discussed included: taro description and rationalization. Specific assistance from IPGRI on developing regional core collection has been sought. Movement of germplasm/virus indexing; plant breeding and pathology workshop; Regional Germplasm Centre; location and date of next meeting, etc. were also discussed [Dr V. Ramanatha Rao, IPGRI-APO, Serdang, Malaysia].  Ten candidates were awarded fellowships for MS PGR course at University of the Philippines Los Baños (UPLB), 4 being funded through the ADB grant to IPGRI and 6 by South East Asian Regional Centre for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA). All the IPGRI and SEARCA scholars will be working on problems related to coconut genetic resources.The MS PGR Dialogue was held at IPGRI-APO, Serdang from 11-13 November 1999, with participants from Philippines (UPLB, SEARCA), Sri Lanka (University of Peradeniya), Nepal (LI-BIRD) and Malaysia (UKM) and IPGRI. Representatives from India could not attend the meeting due to unavoidable circumstances but the paper submitted by them was discussed. MSc degree course on PGR is already being conducted jointly by the Indian Agricultural Rsearch Institute (IARI) and the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR), New Delhi, India and UPLB, Los Baños, Philippines and similar courses will start in Malaysia and Sri Lanka from the year 2000.It is well recognised that very little of the existing knowledge on PGR conservation and utilization is adopted for curriculum development and to apprise the students with theoretical and practical knowledge and application; disseminate the important information to relevant people or conduct further research on different topics. The approach has to be multidisciplinary in conducting courses at the institutions of higher learning.The progress thus far made in different institutions, in the above mentioned countries were discussed. Various constraints and problems were identified and suitable suggestions were outlined to meet the needs. Main topics of national and regional importance were highlighted and needs of various countries to conduct the courses were noted. Both basic and fundamental courses at undergraduate level and major courses for the degree programme were identified and discussed. Suggestions were also made to streamline the contents of courses to fit in with the available time frame of two academic years. Use of the available curricula for short-term training was also discussed [Dr A.N. Rao, IPGRI-APO, Serdang, Malaysia]. The scientists working on vegetables in the South and Southeast Asian regions agree that indigenous vegetables could make a significant contribution to world food production because they are well adapted to adverse environmental conditions and are generally resistant to pests and pathogens. There is also an overall concern about the rapid disappearance of old local varieties and indigenous species.In an attempt to deliberate on this important subject, 30 scientists from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Taiwan and Vietnam recently met in a planning workshop on collection, conservation and utilization of indigenous vegetables at the Asian Vegetable Research and Development Centre (AVRDC), Taiwan from 16-18 August, 1999. Apart from scientists from AVRDC Headquarters, Drs Dharam Pal Singh and Romeo T. Opena, Heads of AVRDC Regional Centres in Bangladesh and Thailand, respectively, also participated in the workshop.Implemented by AVRDC through its Genetic Resources and Services Unit (GRSU) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), the three-year project, known as Technical Assistance (TA) 5839, is an answer to the need of exploiting the tremendous potential of indigenous vegetables in enhancing nutrition and diversifying production systems. In his opening remarks during the workshop, Dr Dimyati Nangju, lead agronomist of ADB said that \"ADB approved the Technical Assistance (TA) to AVRDC because it deals with the use of biodiversity and we cannot discount the fact that indigenous vegetables are considered economically important crops in the Asian region\".Dr Liwayway Engle, Head of GRSU and Principal Coordinator of the project said that the decreasing utilization of indigenous vegetables could be attributed to lack of seeds, lack of information about their performance, input requirements and how they fit into production systems. She emphasized that the current project outputs will pave the way for enhancing utilization of indigenous vegetables. She further mentioned that, \"The real challenge is to link conservation with utilization. If indigenous vegetables are to become a part of existing cropping systems, there is a need to develop strategies for their genetic enhancement, and improve on their cultural management.\"In the light of the fact that AVRDC and ADB have had various successful collaborations in the past, Dr Samson C.S. Tsou, Director General of AVRDC said, \"this project hopes to achieve a similar milestone in vegetable research\". \"There are still many vegetable compounds which are health related and are yet to be explored and so we really need to do further studies on indigenous vegetables,\" he said.The Project which commenced in July 1999, is composed of the following components: i) conservation and utilization of genetic resources of indigenous vegetables; ii) human resources strengthening; iii) identification of species which have potential for inclusion in production systems and iv) multiplication of the collected germplasm for exchange and utilization. AVRDC is the executing agency and is responsible for coordinating, monitoring and supervising the activities of the whole project.Each country participant presented a paper focusing on the current status, problems and potentials of the indigenous vegetables. As a counterpart for the country presentations, some AVRDC scientists provided an overview of the Centre's research activities and evaluation in relation to the workshop's objectives. Further, during the workshop, participants deliberated and exchanged ideas on how to fine-tune the details of project implementation. Issues discussed ranged from identifying strategies for systematic collecting and the rules and regulations on bioprospecting, exchange and quarantine [Ronald G. Mangubat, Special Assistant in Communications, Office of the Director General, AVRDC, Taiwan].The second meeting of Asian Network for Sweet Potato Genetic Resources (ANSWER) was held from 3-5 November 1999 at the Regional Office of the International Potato Centre (CIP), Bogor, Indonesia, with financial and technical support from IPGRI. Most ANSWER members participated, except Japan, Republic of Korea and Papua New Guinea (PNG). Seventeen participants attended the meeting. Both Dr Gordon Prain (CIP) and Dr V. Ramanatha Rao (IPGRI) presented the welcome addresses. Dr Michael Hermann from CIP, Lima took the lead to review progress in sweet potato germplasm conservation activities by ANSWER participants. It also took stock of sweet potato holdings in the region and developed plan for inter-genebank database. Efforts were made to identify problems of sweet potato conservation in the ANSWER region. Efforts were also made to develop a plan for a regional sweet potato conservation project with emphasis on coordinated actions and shared resources. This will be further followed up (coordinated by Dr Hermann). Two separate working groups discussed different topics and defined project priorities and outputs. Based on the discussions, initial guidelines on governance and management of ANSWER activities were developed. Dr Algerico Mariscal from the Philippines was elected as the Coordinator. CIP agreed to be the Secretariat of ANSWER and this can lead the way to make the ANSWER network sustainable. IPGRI will continue to provide scientific and technical backstopping to ANSWER and support CIP to make the network sustainable through collaborating in project development, resource identification and by supporting the publication of the proceedings of the second ANSWER meeting [Dr V. Ramanatha Rao, IPGRI-APO, Serdang, Malaysia].The eighth meeting of the Regional Technical Coordination Committee (RTCC) was held from 30 August -1 September 1999 at the International Irrigation Management Institute (IIMI) Programme Office, Lahore, Pakistan. All the members from national systems, international centres and the advanced research centres attended the meeting. Dr R.L. Yadav has been appointed as the new Rice-Wheat Coordinator in India and Dr M. A. Bakr in Bangladesh. The website of the consortium on the internet (http://www.cgiar.org/rwc) has been updated with more information on the research activities, contact information, publications, rice-wheat bibliography, etc. There is increased emphasis that Facilitation Unit has put in place the Management Information System (MIS). The Regional Steering Committee (RSC) has advised the RWC to develop an information and monitoring system for the National Agricultural Technology Project (NATP) of ICAR, New Delhi in the initial phase, which could be used as the base by the other three NARS (Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal) and also by the Facilitation Unit to develop the regional information system. The Facilitation Unit is supporting the design and development of websites for the NATP of the Indian Council of The third RECSEA-PGR meeting was held in Malaysia from 7-8 September 1999. Members also attended the National Meeting on Tropical Fruits Conservation and Networking in Malaysia on the 9 September 1999. The Malaysian Agriculture Research and Development Institute (MARDI) with assistance from IPGRI-APO as interim secretariat hosted the meeting. Members and technical representatives from Indonesia, Malaysia, The Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam attended the meeting. The new chairman for RECSEA-PGR is Dr Crisanto Escano from the Philippines ([email protected]).IPGRI-APO remains the interim secretariat ([email protected]). The next meeting in 2001 will be held in the Philippines.Dr Percy E. Sajise has joined as the Regional Director, IPGRI Office for Asia, the Pacific and Oceania (APO) with effect from 17 January 2000. He is a citizen of the Philippines. He obtained his MSc and PhD in Plant Ecology from Cornell University and BSc in Agricultural Botany from the University of Los Baños, Philippines. Dr Sajise held notable positions as the Director of SEAMEO SEARCA -Southeast Asia Ministers of Education Organization Regional Centres for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture in the Philippines (1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999), Division Head and Development Action Coordinator of the Institute of Environmental Science and Management (IESAM) at the University of the Philippines (1989Philippines ( -1994)), and Director of the Programme on Environmental Science and Management at the University of the Philippines (1978 -1986). He was also the Dean, College of Arts and Sciences, U.P. Los Baños (1984Baños ( -1986) ) and Dean, College of Human Ecology, U.P. at Los Baños (1982)(1983)(1984). Dr Sajise has extensive work experience with exposure at the national and international level.In addition to the above, Dr Sajise is currently the Chairman of the Philippine National Working Group on Biodiversity Research in the Philippines and has been a member of several national and international committees. He serves as Executive Secretary of the Asian Association of Agricultural Colleges and Universities (AAACU) and as Coordinator and Chair of the Southeast Asian Universities Agroecosystem Network (SUAN). He served as Co-Principal Investigator of a project on 'Conditions of Biodiversity Maintenance in Asia' from 1994 to 1999. Dr Sajise is also a Professor at the University of the Philippines, and a member of the CIFOR Board of Trustees.We welcome Dr Sajise to IPGRI-APO.Members exchanged information on conservation of fruit crops in their countries through their technical reports. An invited speaker, Mr Clark Peteru from Samoa, spoke on IPR issues having impact on germplasm and information exchange. The following activities were decided for the next two years for the network: i) increase public awareness of PGR activities; ii) promote technical collaboration for training in PGR work through in-house or regional training by experts from the region; iii) member countries should report the activities in the APO Newsletter; and iv) develop a proposal for indigenous fruits development in the region. Besides these, on-going activities of updating the directory of PGR workers and directory of services within member countries will be carried out. Efforts will also be made to contact all the countries in Southeast Asia to join the network [Dr Paul Quek, IPGRI-APO, Serdang, Malaysia].The attention on publications continued. Studies on genetic diversity assessment in rattan were recently completed at Forest Research Institute, Kuala Lumpur, supported by IPGRI. The objectives of this study were: i) to determine genetic variation among seeds, seedlings and mature plants (male and female) of three rattan species, and ii) to examine the relationship between multi-and single locus estimates of genetic diversity parameters with seedling growth traits. Conservation measures require an understanding of the genetic system of the target species particularly an understanding of spatial patterns of genetic variation. For the genetic conservation of a particular species, conservation of unique characteristics of geographic races is needed. In Calamus andamanicus, the Andaman and Nicobar provenances were found to be genetically variable. Within Andamans, several distinct phenotypic variations were also present within one population.In C. thwaitesii, 2 phenotypically distinct populations were observed, based on the stem diameter, leaf arrangement and fruit size.A good knowledge of reproductive biology is essential for conservation and genetic improvement programmes of rattan as these are dioecious.Outcrossing species are particularly prone to inbreeding depression. When establishing artificial plantations of rattans, care should be taken to collect seeds from the highest possible number of mother plants preferably growing about 100 m apart and to mix all the progenies together before planting.Conversely, there is also a tendency for insect pollinated species to have stronger genetic differentiation among stands than wind pollinated species. The scattered distribution of rattans and the time difference in flowering in different areas can contribute to increase the differentiation.Moreover, the irregularities in chromosome number in somatic cells noticed in rattan species studied has got a distinct role to play in the evolution of the species. The National Biodiversity Programme (NBP) was initiated in August 1998 for coordinating all activities on biodiversity conservation and utilization including policy issues etc., and to facilitate regional and international cooperation. It has four operative sections, namely, Agrobiodiversity Section (ABS), National Herbarium and Flora of Bhutan Section (NH&FB), Royal Botanical Garden Section (RBGS) and the Information Section. Since its establishment, several activities have been undertaken. The  The Nature Conservation Section (NCS) of the Forestry Services Division (FSD) organized a two-day workshop at Thimphu from 30-31 August 1999 to discuss its on-going programmes in various parks and conservation areas.  To The \"Coconut Data Analysis Training Course\" was conducted from 6 -10 September 1999 at the Southeast Asian Regional Centre for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA), Los Baños, the Philippines. The course is a collaborative activity of IPGRI, COGENT and SEARCA, and funded by ADB and IFAD. Nineteen participants from 14 countries attended the course with project leaders of the ADB and IFAD funded projects. The objectives of the course were to train coconut researchers on methods of data analysis and to familiarize them with new developments in software for data analysis and database interchange. The second annual meeting of the IFADfunded project entitled \"Sustainable use of coconut genetic resources for enhancing the income and nutrition of smallholders in Asia and the Pacific\" was held from 13 -15 September 1999 in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The meeting was attended by the project leaders, donors, and representatives from IPGRI and partner institutions. It was hosted by the Oil Plant Institute (OPI) and funded by IFAD and IPGRI. The keynote speech and the opening address were delivered by Mr Le Quoc Khanh, Deputy Minister, Ministry of Industry, Vietnam. In his speech, Mr Le Quoc Khanh said that Vietnam appreciated its involvement in the IFAD-funded project because it is useful and practical to uplift the income of coconut farmers.The meeting reviewed the 1998/1999 accomplishments and 1999/2000 workplans of the 17 projects in 14 countries. Reports were presented on farmer participatory research to promote multi-purpose uses of the coconut, identify suitable varieties for these uses, and to apply these findings in strategies for coconut germplasm conservation. Reports presented included the projects on increasing incomes through coconutbased farming systems, palm sugar production, tender nuts, and other uses.The The The Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines signed a workplan for 2 years (1999)(2000) for collaboration in the area of rice research on 14 June 1999 in New Delhi. Dr M. Hussain, DDG, IRRI and Mr B.K. Chauhan, Secretary, ICAR signed the agreement. The major collaborative research will be on the improvement and development of rainfed rice, hybrid rice technology, biotechnology, germplasm collection and exchange and rice-based cropping systems. The two organizations will also collaborate in crop resources management, socio-economic studies, human resource development and joint publications on rice research [Abstracted from ICAR Reporter, July-September 1999].Under the aegis of Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR) is the nodal organization for all PGR activities in India. In order to coordinate and attain higher targets in these activities in the National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS), NBPGR has undertaken a project on \"Sustainable Management of Plant Biodiversity\" under the World Bank funded National Agricultural Technology Project (NATP), which is a mission-mode project of ICAR. The project was developed after a series of intensive discussions and interactions with the various stakeholders/partners/representatives from over 100 cooperating centres identified in different agroecological regions/zones. The project has been sanctioned for a period of five years (1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004) with a budget outlay of Rs 199.5 million (approx. 4.5 million US$). The NATP on Plant Biodiversity was launched on July 16, 1999 with release of a publication entitled \"Jai Vigyan National Science and Technology Mission on Conservation of Agro-Biodiversity (Plant Genetic Resources)\".The NATP project aims to coordinate, organize, and conduct comprehensive surveys, collecting, and inventorization of diversity of PGR from the whole country, with focus on landraces, primitive cultivars, less known food crops, backyard crops, stress tolerant lines and wild relatives of fruit plants, multipurpose trees, vegetables, medicinal and aromatic plants, aquatic plants, and forage legumes and grasses. Germplasm collecting would be carried out involving intensive explorations with partners (ICAR institutes, other national scientific bodies, NGOs, farmers' organizations, teaching institutions, local bodies). All these activities would include need-based on-job training as well as human resource development components. The diversity so collected will be subjected to Geographic Information Systems (GIS) network to develop reflectance signal to facilitate further gap filling through Reflectance Library Networking. A comprehensive database on distribution, density, uses, and ethnic information on PGR will also be compiled and documented.  In-house brain storming discussion on 'Future Research Requirements on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants' was organized by the National Research Centre for Medicinal and Aromatic Plants (NRC-MAP) at Gujarat Agricultural University, Anand during May 31-June 1, 1999. It was inaugurated by Dr S.P. Ghosh, Deputy Director General (Horticulture), ICAR and was attended by 39 scientists representing ICAR, State Agricultural Universities (SAUs), NGOs and Private Sector Enterprises. The important issues were discussed in three separate technical sessions. In Session I, Quinquennial Review Team (QRT) Recommendations relating to All India Coordinated Research Project on Medicinal and Aromatic Plants, AICRP (M&AP) were discussed. Besides fixing time targets for cataloguing of medicinal and aromatic plants, modalities of publication of a book/bulletin based on the three decades of work in AICRP (M&AP), were also discussed.In the second technical session, future action plan of AICRP( M&AP) was refined and 13 crops were identified as mandatory crops for different centres. Emphasis was given on identification of new areas and developing criteria for collection and selection. Basic work, such as development of male sterile lines, package of practices for Ashwagandha (Withania somnifera) hybrids and creation of variability in Glycyrrhiza, were discussed. Crop-wise technical programme of AICRP (M&AP) for 1999-2000 was developed. In the third technical session, a work plan for collection and conservation of biodiversity of 56 species of medicinal and aromatic plants was discussed and finalized.A field genebank of endangered medicinal plants of tropical and subtropical region has been established at the NRC(MAP) with the main objectives to conserve endangered medicinal plants species for future generations. Species to be maintained/ conserved in this genebank are Acorus calamus, Artemisia pallens, Celastrus paniculatus, Commiphora wightii, Chlorophytum borivilianum, Gloriosa superba, Pterocarpus santalinus, Rauvolfia serpentina and Saraca ashoka.Commiphora wightii (Guggal) is one of the endangered medicinal plants of desert ecosystem. A very easy and effective 'air-layering' technique has been developed and demonstrated by Anand centre of the AICRP (M&AP) at Gujarat Agricultural University (GAU). Scientists of NRC (MAP) also developed a simple hard wood cutting technique. Pencil thick 20-30 cm long stem cuttings were dipped in IBA 100 ppm solutions for 12-14 hours before planting in raised Participants of short course on PGR policy and emerging IPR issues organised at NBPGR, New Delhi, India beds. The rooting and new flush of leaves was observed after 7-10 days of planting [ Dr S.Maiti, Director, NRC(MAP), Anand, Gujarat, India ].The grey mildew disease of cotton, which is also known as 'Areolate mildew' in USA and South America and is caused by the fungus Ramularia areola Atk. (syn. Ramularia gossypii (Speg.) Ciferri) has assumed serious proportion in cottongrowing countries of the world. A total of 1592 Gossypium arboreum germplasm lines were screened for grey mildew resistance wherein seven lines, namely, 'Bangladesh', 'G-135-49', belonging to Gossypium arboreum race bengalense and the '30805', '30814', 30826', 30838' and '30856' belonging to G. arboreum race cernuum were found immune to the disease. Immunity of these seven lines has been tested for nine consecutive crop seasons (1990 to 1998) under artificial conditions of inoculation in glass house and in the field. The lines were found immune to grey mildew pathogen isolates collected from various cotton-growing states/areas of India, viz., Nagpur and Akola (Maharashtra), Surat (Gujarat), Dharwad (Karnataka), Coimbatore (Tamil Nadu) and Lam Farm, Guntur (Andhra Pradesh). of molecular studies. Subsequent presentations on the theme of wild legumes addressed taxonomy and evolution (Yoshinabu Egawa, Japan) and ecogeographic surveys (Nigel Maxted, U.K.), diversity studies of Phaseolus (Daniel Debouck, CIAT, Colombia), wild soybeans, Glycine soja (Jun Abe, Japan), Vicia subgenus Vicia (Elena Potokina, Russia) and the Vigna angularis complex (Duncan Vaughan, Japan). Evaluation and use of wild legumes included papers on evaluation of Phaseolus spp. for amylase inhibitors (Masao Ishimoto, Japan), Vigna genome mapping (Desiree Hautea, Philippines), analysis of allelopathy in wild legumes (Yoshiharu Fujii, Japan) and use of wild legumes in breeding (Peerasak Srinives, Thailand). The presentations and discussions helped to provide a perspective of wild genetic resources being pivotal in plant genetic resources research and use rather than an adjunct to the large collections of cultigens in genebanks.The second theme 'In situ Conservation Research' covered both on-farm and natural habitat conservation. Dr Devra Jarvis from IPGRI discussed the initial results coming from a multi-country collaborative project. Dr Nigel Maxted focussed his presentation on the methodology for rational choice of natural habitats for in situ conservation using Vicia spp. of the Mediterranean region as an example. Subsequent presentations covered specific collaborative projects on buckwheat in Nepal (H. P. Bimb, Nepal), rice in Vietnam (Shuichi Fukuoka, Japan) and tomato in Chile (Takanori Sato, Japan). Daniel Debouck from CIAT presented perspectives from Latin America on in situ conservation using examples from several New World crops. The in situ conservation research theme was summarised by Dr Hiroko Morishima, a pioneer in the field of wild genetic resources and in situ conservation of rice. She emphasized for a balance in research approaches in these two thematic areas. On the final day, an excursion to the countryside around Tsukuba provided an opportunity to the participants to see wild soybeans (Glycine soja) and wild adzuki bean (Vigna angularis var. nipponensis) in Japan and taste the seasonal cultivated genetic resources such as persimmon and sweet potato. The proceedings of this workshop will be published by MAFF, Japan [ Dr Duncan Vaughan, NIAR, Tsukuba, Japan].The Plant Genetic Resources Centre (PGRC), Sri Lanka maintains nearly 9000 germplasm accessions of over 100 species. It has brought out several catalogues based on collections held in the genebank. One catalogue exclusively deals with passport data giving information for each accession on five descriptors, namely, scientific name, accession number, accession name, origin and organization.The characterization catalogue on brinjal (60 accessions) is based on study of 40 descriptors, tomato (93 accessions) for 37 descriptors, okra (108 accessions) for 28 descriptors, green gram (83 accessions) for 28 descriptors, and winged bean (153 accessions) for 24 descriptors. The passport data on these have not been included as this has been published/catalogued separately [Dr A.H.M. Jayasuriya, Senior Deputy Director, PGRC, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka]. Session-I: Citrus Improvement -i) strengthening efforts for germplasm collecting, cataloguing and conserving through in situ and ex situ approaches including establishment of field genebanks, ii) use of cryogenic technology to put a check on loss of genetic diversity, iii) understanding the host plant resistance of insect pests and developing strategies for evaluation of germplasm based on relative reaction.Session-II: Citrus Biotechnology -i) production of citrus transgenics using CTV coat protein gene, ii) use of DNA finger printing in identification of disease free seedlings, iii) standardization of micropropagation and micrografting techniques for commercial application.Session-III: Integrated Production System -i) rejuvenation of old declining orchards, ii) screening Poncirus trifoliata relatives for high density planting, iii) biological weed control using fungal pathogens, iv) use of molecular markers for early detection of nutrient deficiency, v) increased use of organic citrus production.Session-IV: Integrated Pest and Disease Management -i) molecular cloning of coat protein gene for mapping viruses, ii) use of IGR's hormones and spray oils for effective pest management, iii) prioritized research on bark eating caterpillar and stem borer, iv) IPM approach for citrus blackfly and fruit sucking moth management.Session-V: Post-harvest Technology -i) pre-harvest sprays of fungicides and phytohormones, ii) use of edible coatings and biodegradable films for removal of bitterness and preparation of blends using sweet orange juice with grapes and papaya juice [Dr Shyam Singh, Director, National Research Centre (Citrus), Nagpur, India].  The report is based on the study conducted by the Mountain Enterprise and Infrastructure Division of ICIMOD and examines the feasibility of developing micro-enterprises based on processing of ginger and pineapple crops in the West Garo hills, Meghalaya in Northeastern India. An intensive survey was conducted to interact with farmers, traders and credit institutions. While ginger drying was considered as a viable option, pineapple processing requires large-scale investment and hence, not feasible for community level enterprises. Integration of improved farming methods and market regulation with value addition were identified as imperatives for the success of micro-enterprise development. The book covers all aspects of grape cultivation, improvement and production. The contents in 18 chapters provide synthesis of information on grape growing regions and their ecological requirements, varieties grown and varietal improvement, propagation and root-stocks, vineyard establishment, pruning, growth and productivity, nutrition, management, quality improvement, diseases/pests and their management, and harvesting and postharvest management. The book is a very useful addition on tropical viticulture. This research report, examines the effects of research and development on productivity in India and reveals that India is still benefiting from the public funded system of agricultural research and extension associated with expansion of irrigated area and rural infrastructure and improvement in human capital. Its different chapters deal with investment in productivity, research system, technology transfer, extension and infrastructure and the development and spread of modern crop varieties, total factor productivity in the Indian Crop Sector, sources for the growth of total factor productivity in Indian agriculture and assessment of policy implications. The report also shows that the public benefits from private research can be substantial.Crops (BUROTROP). The symposium will review the current status of oil palm genetic resources programme and develop a strategic plan for the next millennium. For more information, write to Director General, PORIM, 6 Persiaran Institusi, Bandur Baru Bango, 43000 Kajang, Selangor, Malaysia or visit PORIM's Homepage: http://porim.gov.my. No. 30The publication includes the deliberations of the Working Group on barley. Part I deals with discussions and recommendations, providing details on the European Barley Database (EBDB), the status of national collections, responsibilities for conservation, and promoting the use of barley genetic resources. Part II deals with the papers presented and these include status report on European Barley Database (EBDB), country status reports on barley collections held by Australia, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, France, Germany, Ireland, Israel, Lithuania, Nordic Gene Bank, Poland, Suceava, VIR Slovak, Spain and Turkey. Information on breeding and evaluation aspects promoting the use of barley is also covered in five papers. Part II deals with research reports relating to bamboo and/or rattan species in India, China and Thailand, and some specific topics such as evaluation and conservation, micropropagation and in vitro techniques for conservation, bamboo seed technology for variability testing and germplasm conservation, estimation of nuclear DNA content of various bamboo and rattan species. The publication will be useful to all concerned to promote the conservation and sustainable use of bamboo and rattan.  The report presents activities of the SGRP in 1998. It highlights the significant progress towards more effective System-Wide cooperation and greater impact in the CGIAR's contributions to the global genetic resources efforts; thus dealing with its contributions to global fora and programme; policy review and formulation; information; training; intercentre collaboration and research.With the recent trend in high input agriculture in India, there has been a decline in areas under chickpea. The successful introduction of French bean as an alternative pulse crop during winter in the Northern plains has opened new vistas. Both vegetable types and grain types form an important component of traditional diet of the hilly regions of Jammu and Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and Western Uttar Pradesh. The Institute of Agricultural Sciences, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi has pioneered research on the introduction of this crop in the plains in 1980 and presently holds a sizeable collection of 625 lines from Jammu and Kashmir.To augment the germplasm resource, an exploration trip to Western Uttar Pradesh hills was undertaken and 68 accessions of French bean were collected from the districts of Dehradun, Tehri and Uttar Kashi. These collections showed variations for plant growth habit, flower colour, pod length and shape, and seed shape, colour and size.The 68 accessions were grown at the Institute of Agriculture Sciences, Varanasi and the results indicated considerable variation for plant height (25.6 -127.6 cm), pods per plant (6.8 -37.6), seeds per pod (2.7 -6.3), test weight (8.9 -59.7 g) and days to maturity (108 -165). Six elite types were selected and yield tested in three replications with three checks. Accession No.50 gave significantly higher yield than the check varieties. This line is presently being tested in the coordinated varietal trial Mango is a typical recalcitrant species. To date, no successful cryopreservation of mango germplasm has been reported. Earlier research findings indicated that embryos cannot survive after liquid nitrogen treatment even after using the pretreatment techniques of encapsulation-dehydration and sucrose or glycerol pretreatment. IPGRIsupported project on cryopreservation of excised embryo of mango is continuing at Zhongshan University, China and the emphasis is on establishing a plant regeneration system to exploit and examine the possibility of cryopreservation of mango germplasm.The progress of the in vitro culture of red mango (Mangifera indica L. var. Zihua, Gui-siang) is as follows:The embryonic axes with 1.0 cm x 1.0 cm cotyledon were individually cultured on different agar media as indicated in Table 1. The cotyledon of about 2 × 3 cm and 0.5 × 3 cm were cultured on the medium as indicated in Tables 2 and 3 in addition to the medium of Table 1 for observations on rooting. All growth regulators were added to the medium before autoclaving. The pH value of all media was 5.8. Culture conditions were 27±2°C and 12 h light /12 h dark cycle.Effects of sterilization methods on contamination of embryonic axes from mature fruits: Bacterial contamination assessment of the embryonic axes after 10 day-inoculation by different sterilization methods and that of the young shoot section after 20 day-inoculation indicated that sterilization methods had significantly different effect on the extent of contamination. The most effective method is: seeds without hard outer seed coat were rinsed in running tap water for about 1 hour, the thin inner seed coat is removed, immersed in 5% Chlorox for 15 minutes, rinsed with sterile distilled water at least once, sterilized with 0.1% HgCl 2 for 12 minutes.Effects of the component of medium on growth of embryonic axes: The medium components appear to have little effect on the growth and development of the embryonic axes. The mean height of plantlet of the embryonic axes after 10 day-inoculation was about 8.0 cm, no matter on which medium.Effect of plant growth regulators and supplemented compounds on the rooting of cotyledon: Some white spots appeared on the surface of the cotyledon section (2 × 3 cm and 0.5 × 3 cm) one week later. These gradually developed roots 7-20 days after culturing. Changing the plant growth regulators and concentrations did not affect the rooting of the cotyledon section. But rooting was delayed when the cotyledon was cultured on the medium with 5 mg/l IBA. Roots on the medium with 1/1 and 1/10 of auxin/ cytokinin were stronger than that on the other media. It is interesting to note that rooting appeared only on the section surface close to the embryonic axes when it was cut into several sections.Effect of preculture duration in RIM on the rate of rooting of the young shoot section: One or more buds developed from the young shoot section between the cotyledon and stem, 1-8 weeks after culture. A small part of the cotyledon left/attached to the shoot section improved regeneration of the bud of the explant, while the young shoot section without cotyledon, darkened and died. A few roots (2-20 mm long) developed from the basal part of the young shoot section when they were pretreated with 5 mg/l IBA for 2-7 days and then inoculated on ROM for 3-7 days. Maximum rooting (95%) was observed with pretreatment at 5.0 mg/l IBA in dark for 5 days the roots were strong, with white or yellowish white tip. If preculture duration was longer than 5 days in dark, it caused the regenerated buds to become yellow and ultimately to ","tokenCount":"7739"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"0a9bb100c5d5744e9b7ffd0e7fd93689","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/52c80fdc-e614-4758-b568-1e7cc094dbfa/retrieve","id":"-24787398"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"9634db06-44ab-4c2e-841b-6553b1834511","pagecount":"48","content":"countries' entrepreneurs have received training in drone operation and service delivery as part of the Eyes in the Sky project. cooperatives and their members in Cameroon and DRC have been trained in good governance and leadership as part of the Manioc 21 programme. farmers were registered in East and Southern Africa by the Data4Ag project which aims to improve their access to inputs, crop husbandry advice and markets. high-level participants attended 4 Brussels Briefings events. individual users viewed a total of 2,350,303 CTA web pages with a new blog currently driving 9% of traffic to the CTA website.Small Island Developing States implemented policy measures to enhance agri-tourism thanks to the CTA project, Linking agriculture to tourism markets in Africa, the Caribbean and the Pacific.It is becoming increasingly evident that a strong focus on digitalisation as a means to drive agricultural transformation is bearing dividends in the forms of increased production, better livelihoods, more efficient value chains and ultimately greater food and nutrition security. Our current strategy has three intervention areas. One is promoting youth entrepreneurship and creating employment for young people, particularly through the use of information and communication technologies (ICTs). The second, digitalisation, cuts across all intervention areas and focuses on the application of digital technologies to transform business models and provide new revenue throughout agricultural value chains. The third focuses on building farmers' resilience to climate change through the promotion of climate-smart agricultural practices.It is becoming increasingly evident that a strong focus on digitalisation as a means to drive agricultural transformation is bearing dividends in the forms of increased production, better livelihoods, more efficient value chains and ultimately greater food and nutrition security. Digitalisation is also key to attracting youth back to agriculture.The use of a wide range of technologies -from mobile phones to drones -is helping smallholders gain access to the information and data they need to transform their businesses. One of the goals in CTA's 2016-2020 Strategic Plan was to reach 1 million farmers, and a focus on digitalisation is helping us to achieve that.In many of our activities, there is a strong focus on supporting youth and promoting women empowerment. To give just one example, CTA's Pitch Agri-Hack competition, which took place in Rwanda during the African Green Revolution Forum in September 2018, had as its theme 'Women Entrepreneurs Innovate for Agricultural Transformation'. At the award ceremony, which was attended by four heads of state and some 20 government ministers, I was able to tell a large audience that the 26 entrepreneurs who had reached the finals -14 young women and 12 young men -will help transform agriculture for future generations and encourage young people to see the potential in farming and agribusiness.There are many reasons to be optimistic, and I believe the stories in this report illustrate that CTA together with our partners is well positioned for a future beyond the end of the Cotonou Agreement, under which CTA operates, to continue to make a difference.The future prosperity of agriculture depends on engaging young people in the sector. A wide range of CTA projects are encouraging them to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) to help improve agricultural productivity. So far, over 1 million farmers have benefited from the services of youth start-ups involved in CTA's annual Pitch AgriHack competitions. In 2018, the competition, held in Rwanda, focused on young women. Meanwhile, projects in West Africa and Kenya are successfully tackling high levels of rural unemployment and low productivity by engaging young entrepreneurs in agricultural value chains.The future prosperity of agriculture depends on engaging young people in the sector. A wide range of CTA projects are encouraging them to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) to help improve agricultural productivity. So far, over 1 million farmers have benefited from the services of youth start-ups involved in CTA's annual Pitch AgriHack competitions. In 2018, the competition, held in Rwanda, focused on young women. Meanwhile, projects in West Africa and Kenya are successfully tackling high levels of rural unemployment and low productivity by engaging young entrepreneurs in agricultural value chains.Since the launch of CTA's Pitch AgriHack Talent Initiative in 2013, over 1 million farmers and agricultural stakeholders have benefited from services provided by start-up companies involved in its annual competitions. Their ICT-based innovations have helped to raise more than €2 million from investors and development specialists.he 2018 Pitch AgriHack competition -the third of its kind -was held in September 2018 in Kigali, Rwanda, during the African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF). Its theme was 'Women entrepreneurs innovate for agricultural transformation.' \"We wanted to focus on young women, as few of them are currently leading agricultural technology start-ups,\" says Ken Lohento, CTA Senior ICT4Ag Programme Coordinator. \"As a matter of fact, just 10% of tech start-ups internationally are led by women. This was an opportunity to show that women are every bit as capable as men when it comes to developing new technologies and managing ICT businesses.\"The announcement for this year's Pitch AgriHack competition in April attracted 335 applications from ACP countries. Of these, 164 start-ups were led by women. The most promising 26 were invited to take part in the finals in Kigali, where 14 of the finalists were represented by women. The eight winners included four companies run by young women and four by young men. The awards, which included cash prizes as well as support for business incubation and the opportunity to participate in other ICT-related events, were presented in the presence of two Theads of state, two heads of government and some 20 government ministers.\"These are entrepreneurs who have been inspired to make a difference -to help transform agriculture for future generations and to encourage young people to see the potential in farming and agribusiness,\" said CTA Director, Michael Hailu, at the awards ceremony.Before the judges chose the winners, the 26 finalists and 14 other guest start-ups benefited from a two-day training workshop on investment readiness. Here they learned how to better manage their financial accounts and how to secure deals with investors. \"Pitch AgriHack has been fantastic,\" said Varun Baker, CEO of Farm Credibly, one of the winners in the early stage category. \"The investment readiness workshop has been extremely useful for us. We'll definitely make better use of funding, having gone through this training.\" Farm Credibly is using blockchain technology to help Jamaican farmers without bank accounts to gain access to finance. Most farmers find it difficult to get loans or investment to expand their businesses, as they lack the financial records lenders require. Farm Credibly is using blockchain to record farmers' transactions with input companies, processors and supermarkets. The farmers' digital profiles illustrate their capacity to use loans effectively and their ability to repay them.Among the women-led start-ups to win in Kigali was Fenou Foods from Benin, a company that develops local agro-processed products. With 'Fenou Packaging,' Sonita Tossou and her team had the innovative idea of providing 100% biodegradable packaging. The company are targeting local, youth-led agri-food processorsand the climate-conscious packaging is helping them to compete with imported products. Following Pitch AgriHack, Tossou was also selected as one of six winners receiving CTA funding to attend the Agristartup Summit held in France, where Fenou Packaging won third prize. CTA also provided support for some of the Kigali winners to attend the UN Social Good Summit, where they had the opportunity to make a pitch to potential investors.During 2018, many of the winners of the 2017 Pitch AgriHack, held in Côte d'Ivoire, made good progress. To give just one example, Bayseddo, a Senegalese start-up that uses crowdsourced finance to invest in agricultural production, raised about €150,000 to support several projects. These have yielded a 10% return for investors and the company is currently developing a new mobile application for its platform, using financial support from CTA. Collaboration with the government agency Délegation de l'Entrepreneuriat Rapide (DER), which focuses on supporting young entrepreneurs, is currently being finalised.  In many West African countries, the lack of employment opportunities in rural areas has led to an exodus of young people, both to major cities in the region and to Europe. This is a serious loss, as the young offer a potentially dynamic labour force at a time when the agricultural sector is desperately short of workers.two-year project launched by CTA in early 2018, 'Promoting Youth Entrepreneurship and Job Creation in West Africa's Rice Value Chain' (PEJERIZ), is tackling the problem by encouraging young people in Mali and Senegal to stay in the countryside and help to increase the rice sector's productivity. The project involves a collaboration with AfricaRice and the Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture.There are good reasons for focusing on rice. In West Africa, rice consumption has been steadily increasing as a result of changes in eating habits and rapid population growth. However, production lags far behind demand, and every year about 40% of the rice consumed comes from Asia. Many urban consumers favour imported rice, as it tends to be cleaner and better packed than local rice, most of which is manually processed. It is hoped that raising the production and quality of rice through PEJERIZ will reduce imports and boost the rural economy.There are two main components to the project. One focuses on training young people in technical subjects related to the rice value chain. This is managed by AfricaRice. The other component, managed by the Syngenta Foundation, involves setting up centres of mechanisation and promoting a mobile app which provides farmers with advice. It is anticipated that over 660 new jobs will be created by the project, which will lead to significant increases in revenue for 10,000 smallholder farmers.Over 300 young Senegalese and Malians, approximately one-third of whom were women, attended two mobilisation workshops organised by AfricaRice in July and October 2018. They learned about the income-generating opportunities presented by the rice value chain and the importance of mechanising the industry.Following the workshop, AfricaRice selected 205 young people from the original 300 who attended the mobilisation workshop to attend further training sessions on a range of topics, such as entrepreneurship, marketing and the provision of services. The first sessions were held in October 2018 and the final session is scheduled for early 2019. AfricaRice will then select 80 young trainees with the most promising business ideas, and they will be provided with financial support and further training.\"Some of the young participants are already running their own businesses and wish to upscale the innovative ideas they developed in the rice sector,\" says Dr Mandiaye Diagne, Regional Coordinator of PEJERIZ. \"Providing them with technical training and coaching will help them to become successful agripreneurs.\"Meanwhile, the Syngenta Foundation established 10 Centres for Mechanised Services (CEMAs), five in Mali and five in Senegal. \"Once these are fully running, each of the centres will have between five and 10 full-time employees and 30 part-time employees, most of whom will be young people,\" says Vincent Fautrel, CTA Senior Programme Coordinator, Value Chains.By the end of 2018, the CEMAs had recruited and trained 45 service agents, who are responsible for promoting the RiceAdvice app to farmers. Developed in Nigeria and Mali by AfricaRice, the app is a decision-support tool, which farmers can download free on an android smartphone. It generates recommendations which help farmers to apply mineral fertilisers more efficiently and decide exactly when to sow, plant and harvest. Nigerian rice farmers using the app reported significant yield increases and income gains of up to US$200 per ha. By late 2018, the PEJERIZ project had introduced over 470 rice farmers in Mali and Senegal to the app and they were planning to use it the following season.  Some of the young participants are already running their own businesses and wish to upscale the innovative ideas they developed in the rice sector.Agriculture is the mainstay of Kenya's economy, employing more than 70% of people in rural areas and contributing 26% of the GDP. However, youth unemployment in the countryside, as well as in the cities, is growing. ome 30% of Kenyans between the age of 20 and 24 are currently out of work. Increasing youth employment in agriculture could do much to address this problem, and it is one of the main aims of CTA's 'Youth Economic Empowerment through Agribusiness in Kenya' (VijaBiz) project.The project was devised by CTA and a Kenyan organisation, USTADI Foundation, in response to a call for proposals from the International Fund for Agricultural Development. It is implemented and co-funded by CTA and USTADI. \"We believe there is huge potential to get more young people into profitable agriculture in countries like Kenya, and it is crucial to support the growth of their businesses,\" says CTA's Ken Lohento, manager of the project. \"Many young people have innovative ideas and they're willing to take risks, but they often lack the skills, knowledge and assets they need to establish viable agribusinesses.\"Following an invitation to join the project -shared via radio, newspapers and on the internet in September 2018 -380 youth groups from Kilifi and Nakuru counties responded. It was stipulated that the groups should have a minimum of 10 members, with at least 30% being women. Ninety percent of those who responded were under the age the 35, including the group leaders. After a comprehensive selection process, and with the support of the two county governments, CTA and USTADI chose 165 youth groups, which between them represent about 2,400 young farmers and 1000 small agribusinesses. The two-year project will develop the entrepreneurial skills of 2,250 young people and the enterprises.The national launch of the VijaBiz project was held in August 2018 in Nairobi, in the presence of officials from the two county governments and from the National Ministry of Youth. Under the project, the selected groups are receiving support to help develop their businesses. Training sessions are already helping young people identify market opportunities in three value chains -cereals, dairy and fisheries -providing them with the skills required to add value to agricultural products. The youth groups will also benefit from training in leadership and a range of other skills required to strengthen businesses along the food chain, such as the use of ICTs for agribusiness. Mentoring and business operations reviews, as well as access to finance and various growth opportunities, will be offered throughout the project's timeframe.Examples of the selected groups include the Blessing Hand Self Help Group from Nakuru. This is composed of 12 members, nine of whom are women. They are involved in cereal value addition, grinding, packaging and selling. Another group is the Greenbelt Youth Group, composed of 12 members and engaged in dairy value addition, which involves the sale of fresh milk and locally produced yoghurt. Another is Kibao Kiche Fish Farmers Group, based in Kilifi and composed of 25 members, nine of whom are women. The group is raising fish in ponds to sell to the public.VijaBiz will be providing the youth groups with grants worth between US$1,000 and US$20,000. These will enable them to buy hardware, such as machinery and cold storage facilitiesfor vegetables and fish, for example -and to hire the services of business consultants. The two-year project will develop the entrepreneurial skills of 2,250 young people and the enterprises, which benefit from VijaBiz support, will indirectly support at least 10,000 young people.According to the United Nations, Kenya's population is expected to rise from 50 million today to around 85 million by 2050. Projects that focus on transforming the agricultural sector through youth and women empowerment provide a template for tackling the twin problems of low productivity and high unemployment. For over 20 years, CTA has been promoting digitalisation -the application of digital technologies to change a business model and provide new revenue -as a way of increasing smallholder productivity. In Uganda, digital profiling and a unique service bundle, which provides agronomic tips, insurance and weather information, has dramatically increased crop yields and profits.In West Africa, market information provided by SMS is having a similar effect. A new consortium of African drone users, initiated at a CTA workshop, is helping the technology take off across the continent. In addition, a mobile app developed by one of CTA's partners in Samoa is linking smallholder farmers to buyers and consumers, significantly improving their income and the efficiency of the value chain.One of CTA's most innovative digitalisation projects, the Market-Led User-Owned ICT4Ag-Enabled Information Service (MUIIS), made good progress in 2018, helping smallholder farmers in Uganda significantly improve their crop yields and profits. Launched in late 2015 with support from the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs, MUIIS set itself the goal of increasing the yields of 200,000 Ugandans farmers by at least 25% and their profits by 20%.n March 2017, MUIIS launched a unique service bundle, delivered by text to mobile phones, which provides farmers with agronomic tips, weather alerts and index-based insurance. It was originally hoped that 100,000 farmers would sign up for the service, which cost US$2 per cropping season, by the end of the second year. However, progress was disappointing, with just 379 farmers subscribing during the second season. Most farmers in Uganda were used to receiving advisory services for free and were unwilling to pay for the product. Nevertheless, those who did receive the service bundle reported significant increases in yields and profits.\"From our research, we could see that lack of access to finance was a serious barrier to adopting a whole range of innovations which could improve productivity,\" says Benjamin Kwasi Addom, CTA Team Leader, ICT4Ag. In late 2017, he and his colleagues began discussions with the Rabobank SMART SOLUTIONS, TARGETED LOANS, HIGHER YIELDS I ©CTAWe had been hoping that farmers would increase their soybean yields by 25%, but they did much better than that.Foundation about the possibility of introducing a loans scheme to smallholder farmers. \"We pointed out that by digitally profiling farmers, we had already gathered the sort of information banks and financial institutions need when assessing creditworthiness,\" says Addom. By the end of 2017, MUIIS had digitally profiled 130,000 farmers, a figure that would double during the course of 2018. The profiles provide detailed information on everything from geographical location to crops grown, size of family to assets owned -just the sort of information banks need when assessing loan applications.Rabobank Foundation approved a loan of USh1 billion (€230,000).The MUIIS project agreed to manage the loan, with the money being channelled through the financial arm of the Ugandan Cooperative Alliance. Farmers who applied for the loans, which they could use to buy inputs like seeds and fertilisers, received USh80,000 (€17) per ha, up to a maximum of 2 ha each. As a condition of the loans, the farmers took out a subscription to the MUIIS service bundle.The first tranche of loans was distributed to 1,890 farmers, covering 2,000 acres of cropland. Lydia Kiwuka was a typical beneficiary: \"Last season I used cow dung and urine to fertilise my maize because I couldn't afford to buy fertiliser,\" she said. \"With this loan I have paid for fertiliser needed for the whole season. I've even bought some preventative pesticide in case the armyworm [a major pest of maize] comes back to my farm.\"To provide empirical evidence about the impact of both the service bundle and the loans, CTA commissioned a study which was carried out by the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa and the National Agricultural Research Organisation of Uganda. The study, which focused on soybean, maize, beans and sesame, provided compelling evidence that the service bundle and loans led to a significant increase in crop yields.\"We had been hoping that farmers would increase their soybean yields by 25%,\" says Addom. \"But they did much better than that.\" Soybean yields increased by 60% and bean yields by 90%. At the time of going to press, there had been a good rate of loan repayment. Addom believes that hard evidence of increasing yields will encourage organisations like the Rabobank Foundation to make further loans in future.  One of the main pillars of their work since 2017 has involved the digital profiling of over 85,000 farmers who are members of eight farmers' organisations across Africa. Farmer profiling can yield a wide range of benefits: it can help to improve access to inputs and extension services, can provide the information banks require before they provide credit, and can help farmers find new markets.One example of how data has transformed lives can be seen in Uganda, where the digital profiling of coffee farmers by the National Union of Coffee Agribusinesses and Farm Enterprises (NUCAFE) has given farmers access to global certification. Just 6 months after this CTA-B In sub-Saharan Africa, the yield gap -the difference between a crop's potential and the real yield -is often high, with many farmers harvesting 25% of the amount of maize, millet or other staple crop they could be getting, using the right information, technologies and inputs. This helps to explain why only 20% of the food produced in many African countries is sold, as smallholder farmers need to keep the rest just to feed themselves. Hence low incomes and widespread rural poverty. ©AgroCenta In 2018, over 3,000 farmers saw their incomes increase by over 25% thanks to the traceability of their coffee and access to certified markets. funded project was launched, international buyers from Italy were offering profiled farmers €3.51 per kg of coffee, compared to €2.16 paid for untraceable coffee of a similar quality. For a typical Arabica coffee farm of 0.4ha producing an average 600 kg per year, this translated into additional income of €850 a year. \"In 2018, over 3,000 farmers saw their incomes increase by over 25% thanks to the traceability of their coffee and access to certified markets,\" says Addison. He estimates that 10 times as many members of NUCAFE could benefit in 2019.CTA is also responsible for managing the capacity development element of the Global Open Data for Agriculture and Nutrition (GODAN) project, known as GODAN Action. This initiative promotes the sharing and use of data to make information about agriculture and nutrition accessible and usable for all.Through face-to-face training sessions, webinars and online training courses, open data users acquire the skills and knowledge they need to tackle food security and nutritional challenges. Following its launch in 2017, GODAN Action significantly increased its outreach and influence during 2018.Four editions of the e-learning coursedesigned in 2017 at a workshop hosted by CTA and organised by the UN Food and Agriculture Organization -attracted over 3,000 participants, including 'infomediaries' such as journalists and ICT workers, as well as policymakers, project managers, researchers and scientists. Those who took part now have a good understanding of the principles and benefits of using open data.By September 2018, around 1,500 people had also taken part in CTA webinars on open data. These give participants the opportunity to ask questions and receive feedback on a wide range of topics. CTA has found that these are a good way of reaching relatively large audiences and encouraging different communities to share their experiences. Over 4,000 people now read CTA's GODAN material online each month and there is a vibrant community of practice for GODAN trainers.According to André Laperrière, GODAN Executive Director, CTA has played a significant part in promoting GODAN and its activities. \"They've been helpful in many different ways,\" he says. \"They provided funding -but that's just a minor part of it. They have been particularly influential in terms of capacity building and training, and they have helped to influence policymakers and others, especially in Africa. The demand for services is booming, and in January 2018 the African Union took a policy decision to encourage member states to make use of drones to increase agricultural productivity.drone services. CTA encouraged the creation of the consortium and has supported its development.The operators at the Ghana workshop had all attended at least one of the two CTA-supported training events in 2017 at the Paris headquarters of AIRINOV, a private-sector pioneer in dronebased farming applications, with whom CTA is working closely. Here they learned how to use drones and multispectral sensors, and how to process remote-sensed data. Participants were also provided, on a co-funding basis, with drone equipment, including sensors.\"Drone technology is really beginning to take off in Africa,\" says Giacomo Rambaldi, CTA Senior Programme Coordinator, ICT4Ag. \"The demand for services is booming, and in January 2018 the African Union took a policy decision to encourage member states to make use of drones to increase agricultural productivity.\" CTA played a key role in the formulation of the new policy.However, there are many challenges when it comes to mainstreaming the use of drones, and CTA is helping its partners not only to develop their skills and business management, but also to learn how to operate in a world where the regulatory environment is frequently unclear. This is being done under its 'Transforming African Agriculture: Eyes in the Sky, SmartTechs on the Ground' project, which runs from 2017 to 2019.Major clients for CTA's Africa drone partners include agribusinesses, government agencies, international donors, NGOs, research agencies and universities, large-scale farmers and farmers' organisations. Some are involved in a wide range of different sectors and activities. Global Partners, for example, currently focuses its activities on agriculture, land use planning and biodiversity conservation, but it has also become an important training centre for drone operators in West Africa.Africa Goes Digital is benefiting from advice provided by Ernst & Young Enterprise Growth Services. It will facilitate cooperation and networking between members and represent their interests. Just as importantly, the consortium has begun linking members to agribusinesses, development agencies, NGOs, government departments and others looking for drone-based services.Dr Lawani and his colleagues at EKU run faceto-face teaching courses on drone certification and the use of drone-based services. He, EKU and the consortium are now adapting the curriculum to provide online training courses for drone operators in Africa. These will be tailored to meet the different regulatory needs of countries in Africa. This is a work in progress, but members of the consortium have already held discussions with government departments in Benin and elsewhere. \"For many years, public market information systems in West Africa were designed to inform agricultural policies without necessarily responding to the direct needs of farmers,\" says Vincent Fautrel, CTA Senior Programme Coordinator, Value Chain Development. \"The idea of this initiative was to build on the success of the N'kalo service developed by RONGEAD and help the regional grain association, WAGN, develop information services for its members with a clear focus on qualitative data, including some prospective analysis.\"Established in 2009, the N'kalo market information system was initially designed to gather, analyse and disseminate information for cashew T For the vast majority of people living in West Africa, cereals are an important part of their diet. They are also the staple crop for hundreds of thousands of small-scale farmers, and boosting productivity and sales could do much to improve regional food security and tackle hunger. However, a lack of reliable information about market conditions and profitability are hindering the efficient operation of cereal value chains.©James CourtrightOur current project builds on the concept of N'kalo and it is already having a significant impact for both traders and producers.producers in Burkina Faso, Côte d'Ivoire and Mali. RONGEAD soon realised that information on prices alone would not be enough. Farmers also needed advice about when to sell.Later, the project expanded to cover other crops besides cashew, such as sesame, maize, onion and yam, and was made available in eight other countries in West Africa. With support from CTA, the project provided training for over 7,600 producers, and information which reached over 47,000 producers, bringing about significant increases in income to small-scale farmers.\"Our current project builds on the concept of N'kalo,\" says Fautrel, \"and it is already having a significant impact for both traders and producers.\" The project focuses on the four key West African cereal crops -rice, maize, millet and sorghum -grown in in Senegal, Guinea, Mali, Côte d'Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Togo, Benin and Niger.Like N'kalo, the service provides a detailed analysis of market trends, informing users about what is likely to happen in the near future and providing advice on when to sell their crops. CTA has funded the training of market analysts in each of the countries covered by the project, and their data and projections are transmitted to users via SMS, as well as a regular newsletter. Twenty-two newsletters were sent during the second year of the project.Over 25,500 operators who used the service via the WAGN network saw their turnover increase by around €280,000 in the first year of the project. By the end of 2018, the project's Economic Bulletin on Cereal Markets in West Africa, which provides comprehensive analysis of the cereal market, had 2,652 subscribers, most of whom were grain traders. Furthermore, the bulletin is now used as a reference source by many organisations, including FAO and World Food Programme.The N'kalo service was initially provided free of charge, but it proved so successful that information was eventually provided to subscribers only. It is estimated that as a result of the service, producers are earning €25 to €100 more each year. It is anticipated that the current service provided by WAGN will be equally successful, although there is still some uncertainty about whether it will generate sufficient revenues to be self-sustaining in the long run. For many years now, most small-scale farmers in the Pacific Islands have struggled to make a decent living. The shift from the traditional diet of fish, fruit, indigenous tubers and fresh vegetables to one based on cheap, imported, calorie-dense foods not only reduced demand for local produce but led to major health problems, with the Pacific now suffering from some of the highest rates of diet-related diseases in the world. At the same time, the remoteness of the Pacific Islands has made it difficult for farmers to take advantage of markets abroad.owever, this is beginning to change -most notably in Samoa, where CTA supports Women in Business Development (WIBDI), an organisation which is linking local farmers with hotels, restaurants and households, as well as major retailers with a global reach, such as the Body Shop and All Good Organics.\"Small island economies are never going to be major food producers, capable of competing with neighbouring countries like Australia,\" says Isolina Boto, who manages CTA's Brussels office. \"But they can focus on producing high-quality food and other products, such as coconut oil, for niche markets.\" WIBDI is using a range of innovative ICT4Ag tools to address the challenges facing local food producers. Its Farm to Table app, developed with support from CTA, now ensures that more than 1,300 small-scale farmers are linked to the people who want to buy nutritious, locallyproduced and mostly organic food. The app allows for better production planning and marketing and ensures that supply matches demand. Hotels, restaurants and individuals can place orders using the app, which is also proving a useful resource for anybody searching for a good meal cooked with locally grown organic ingredients. WIBDI's reputation internationally largely stems from its success in supplying organic virgin coconut oil to the Body Shop, which, in 2018, began discussions to double its order. Cosmetics made with the island's coconut oil are now being sold in more than 3,000 shops across 66 countries. The trade is proving immensely important, both for Samoa's economy and for the welfare of hundreds of farming families.WIBDI has benefited from a number of digitalisation initiatives besides the Farm to Table app. It now has a digital database, developed with support from CTA, which includes information on approximately 800 organic farms, providing details of their location and production systems. WIBDI has also used drones to map coconut groves and count coconut trees from the air. All of this is helping to make operations more transparent and efficient.Looking to the future, WIBDI anticipates that its Organic Warriors Academy -established in 2016 as part of the youth employment project funded by the United Nations Development Programme with systems support from CTA -will continue to provide training for young people, especially women, as well as access to services and markets. WIBDI is currently investigating new high-value products for export and there are plans to increase support for value addition activities at community level, and to organise agri-tourism business fairs.CTA's relationship with WIBDI is set to continue, with a major new project in 2019. Among other things, this will help to support the design and development of a broader agri-tourism programme in the Pacific, which will include technical training, consumer education, rural business development and initiatives to increase employment in the sector.  WIBDI's reputation internationally largely stems from its success in supplying organic virgin coconut oil to the Body Shop, which, in 2018, began discussions to double its order.Climate change is one of the greatest challenges smallholder farmers face. It is leading to an increase in the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and undermining food security.To counter these threats, CTA projects in eastern and southern Africa are helping smallholder farmers become more resilient to climate change. They illustrate how climate-smart strategies -including access to accurate weather information, index-based insurance and the planting of drought-tolerant crop varieties -can not only help farmers cope with erratic weather patterns, but raise their productivity and income. CTA is also supporting similar projects across West Africa and the Caribbean.raditionally, when there are serious droughts, governments and aid agencies move in with lots of resources,\" says Thomas Were, who manages CTA's Climate, Livestock and Markets (CLI-MARK) project in northern Kenyan and southern Ethiopia. \"This approach is unsustainable. What we are trying to do is enhance the resilience of pastoralist communities.\"Launched in 2017, the 2-year CLI-MARK project has three main components. One of these, implemented by the International Institute for Rural Reconstruction (IIRR), is designed to link pastoralists to the individuals and organisations that buy livestock, and encourage the establishment of new enterprises. \"CLI-MARK's marketing component aims to reduce the influence of brokers and middlemen so that pastoralists get a better price,\" says Sabdiyo Dido Bashuna, CTA's Senior Technical Adviser for Value Chains and Agribusiness. The other components involve scaling up livestock insurance and providing pastoralists with realtime weather information. It is estimated that the project will help 100,000 pastoralists become more resilient to climate change. T An increase in the frequency and severity of droughts, coupled with unpredictable weather patterns, is threatening the survival of some 20 million livestock keepers in Eastern Africa. Recent droughts have eroded pastoralists' adaptive capacity to such an extent that almost every one results in a humanitarian crisis.If pastoralist communities are to flourish, they need to establish businesses which can continue to trade during difficult times. To this end, CLI-MARK has been improving the skills, knowledge and organisational capacity of 80 livestock-related enterprises associated with five markets in Kenya and five in Ethiopia. Most are managed by women and young people. The organisations which run the markets have also benefited from training, as well as learning visits to other markets, abattoirs and major livestock companies.In Ethiopia, CLI-MARK has forged close working relationships with local government departments, which helped the project identify livestock-related enterprises, most of which were poorly organised and operating on a very small scale. Two training sessions were attended by local government staff and five individuals from each of the 40 enterprises. \"CLI-MARK really helped us,\" says Garbole Jaldesa, secretary of a livestock buying enterprise which operates in Elwaye District. \"In the past, I didn't really know how to assess the price of an animal, but I do now. CLI-MARK also linked me to some lead companies. I know what their specifications are now and we are negotiating an agreement.\" \"We've noticed that there is much better cooperation between different local government departments than there was before,\" says Zerihun Lemma, IIRR country director in Ethiopia. There is now a Livestock Market Steering Committee for the five districts where the project operates, and the project also established a Livestock Marketing Forum, whose quarterly meetings are attended by government officials, CLI-MARK project staff, local enterprises and major livestock buyers.In partnership with the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), CLI-MARK is actively promoting index-based livestock insurance, which is described in greater detail on page 31. Instead of insurance agents having to visit the field to verify whether animals have died, or are about to perish, the index triggers payments when the amount of forage falls below a certain level. The pastoralists can then use the money to buy fodder -and hopefully keep their animals alive. The number of pastoralists taking advantage of the scheme has risen significantly with CTA support.The other key component of the project is an ICTbased weather information system. A Kenyan technology company, Amfratech, packages weather information provided by aWhere, a US-based organisation specialising in data management, to be used by both pastoralists and organisations involved in rangeland management. The service was first piloted in Kenya. Following its launch in November 2018, CTA partners IIRR and the Kenyan Livestock Marketing Council began a programme to promote the service. It is hoped that tens of thousands of pastoralists will eventually subscribe to the service. Realtime weather information will enable them to make crucial decisions about where and when to sell their livestock and how to plan their annual migrations.  CLI-MARK really helped us. In the past, I didn't really know how to assess the price of an animal, but I do now. CLI-MARK also linked me to some lead companies. I know what their specifications are now and we are negotiating an agreement.By the time CTA's regional flagship project for Southern Africa comes to an end in 2020, around 140,000 small-scale farmers in Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi will have adopted a range of climate-smart strategies to help them cope with drought and erratic weather patterns. About 75,000 farmers are benefiting from the bundle of climate-smart agricultural solutions at the end of the first year of implementation. After training, some 230 farmers in Grace's camp were registered with the project. Since then, she has kept in close touch with the farmers, holding training sessions at which she urges them to plant drought-resistance varieties, pay close attention T he 'Scaling up Climate Smart Agricultural Solutions for Cereal and Livestock Farmers' project consists of four main components. It is providing farmers with access to weather information and agricultural advice, which they receive on their mobile phones. The project also promotes the use of drought-tolerant seeds as well as encouraging farmers to buy index-based weather insurance. Farmers are also being encouraged to combine crops and livestock to increase the robustness of their farming systems, diversify their livelihood options, enhance the quality of their soils and help them cope with climatic shocks.to the SMS messages they receive and consider diversifying their crops and introducing livestock.The Zambian Open University (ZAOU), which manages the project in Zambia, organised twelve seed fairs, one in each project district, to foster greater awareness about drought-tolerant seeds.The fairs provided a forum for commercial seed companies, agrodealers, extension workers and over 800 farmers. \"We were very happy to be invited,\" says John Muzondiwa, technical sales representative with Pannar Seeds. \"Fairs like this are a great way for us to meet large numbers of farmers and talk to them about products like drought-tolerant varieties of maize.\"Regional projects like this require strong partnerships between organisations which bring their own comparative advantages to the table. In Zambia, ZAOU, MUSIKA Development Initiatives and Professional Insurance -a private-sector organisation -lead project activities. In Zimbabwe, the key players are the Zimbabwe Farmers Union (ZFU) and the telecommunications company, Econet Wireless, while in Malawi the National Smallholder Farmers Association is leading the work in collaboration with the Department of Climate Change and Meteorological Services and NICO General Insurance Company.During the first year of the project, some 75,000 smallholder farmers were digitally registered. Over 48,000 farmers began receiving weather and advisory services by text. 8,000 farmers received information about drought-tolerant seeds, and over 400 agro-dealers were trained in climate-smart agricultural practices.The success of the project owes much to the collaboration between the public and private sectors and generators of knowledge on climate-smart agriculture. \"It was tremendously important to involve both government and the private sector,\" reflects Kolawole Udubote, Country Team Leader and Dean of Agricultural Sciences at ZAOU. \"The government sees us as a valuable partner and this has given the project a high political profile.\"Development projects often falter once donor support ceases. \"We want to change this narrative,\" says Oluyede Ajayi, CTA's Senior Programme Coordinator, Agriculture and Climat Change. \"One of the best ways of doing that is to establish a solid investment case for partners who were there before the project and will be there afterwards.\" As private sector companies involved in the project have a financial interest in its success, there is a good chance that its influence will continue beyond its lifetime. Erratic and unpredictable weather and changes in the climate threaten the livelihoods and survival of tens of millions of smallholder farmers in Africa.When crops fail, or livestock die of hunger, the repercussions can be devastating. To give just one example, severe drought in 2017 led to cattle herders in northern Kenya losing over 70% of their livestock. In Ethiopia, over 5 million people required emergency food aid and almost 2 million people were displaced from their homes.reventing these catastrophes requires a range of solutions, some of which have been highlighted in the last two stories, such as the introduction of droughttolerant seeds, the creation of more robust value chains and access to expert advice and weather information. Another increasingly important element in terms of improving resilience to climate change is index-based insurance.Index-based livestock insurance was first piloted in Eastern Africa in northern Kenya in 2010. Two years later, a similar scheme was launched in Ethiopia. This is, briefly, how it works: ILRI analyses satellite imagery provided by NASA to establish when fodder levels have fallen so low that livestock are likely to die. Instead of insurance agents having to go out and verify whether animals have died, the index triggers immediate payments to policyholders.Since it was launched in 2017, the CLI-MARK project has been encouraging pastoralists in Kenya and Ethiopia to take out livestock insurance.Since it was launched in 2017, the CLI-MARK project (see page 27) has been encouraging pastoralists in Kenya and Ethiopia to take out livestock insurance. As a result, the number joining the schemes has significantly increased, in the case of Ethiopia from 707 pastoralists in 2016 to 2,942 in 2017. Key players in this story are the village insurance promoters and sales agents, who are benefiting from training sessions funded by CTA. \"CLI-MARK has been extremely important for us,\" says Getaneh Erena, Oromia Insurance Company's Senior Livestock Insurance Officer. \"The project joined us at a critical time when we were out of sponsors and needed support.\"In Kenya, CLI-MARK has worked closely with Takaful Insurance Company. One of the many people to benefit from insurance is Habiba Jattan, a pastoralist in Isiolo. In 2016, she insured 16 cattle and 20 goats, and received a pay-out of KSh150,000 (€1,500) when fodder levels fell below a predetermined level. Asked what she would do if there were several years of good weather and no pay-outs, she replies: \"I would still take out insurance, because I've had a very good experience with it.\" CTA's Southern Africa flagship climate-smart agriculture project (see page 29) is encouraging farmers to take out crop insurance. In Zimbabwe, the project has benefited from existing services provided to farmers by the ZFU and Econet Wireless. These organisations have created a remarkable product, known as the eco-farmer combo, for which farmers pay US$1 dollar per month. Known as the \"dollar that does miracles\", it is split three ways to cover funeral insurance, a range of ZFU services and weather-index insurance. In mid-2018, support from CTA enabled ZFU to hold 66 training sessions for its agents in 30 wards, focusing on the promotion of insurance. By July, over 10,725 Zimbabwean farmers had signed up for the eco-farmer combo.Another CTA project which is encouraging farmers to take out insurance is the Market-led User-owned ICT4Ag-enabled Information Service (MUIIS) in Uganda (see page 16). MUIIS's service bundle provides farmers with agronomic tips, weather alerts and index-based insurance, all delivered to their mobile phones. For many subscribers, insurance is a key component of the bundle. \"I know that if I lose some of my maize because of drought, like I did last year, I will now get compensation,\" says Robinah Nasjamma, a farmer in Zirobwe District. For her, as for a growing number of farmers, index-based insurance is becoming an important safety net in the struggle to cope with a changing climate.  In 2018, CTA launched a new project, VALUE4HER, which is designed to strengthen women's agribusiness enterprises in Southern, Eastern and Western Africa, as well as in the Caribbean. think it will make a real difference to the lives of large numbers of women, and help them move towards the business end of value chains where most of the profits are to be found,\" says Sabdiyo Dido Bashuna, CTA Senior Technical Adviser for Value Chains & Agribusiness. The 2-year project aims to help 100 large-scale women-led agribusinesses access high-value markets. These, in turn, will benefit around 10,000 medium-scale agribusinesses and 50,000 women.The project has three main components. The first two, which will be launched in 2019, are designed to help women-led agribusinesses access high-value agricultural markets. They will do this in two ways: by providing women with access to market intelligence and price information; and by providing women with the training and skills they need to improve their business performance. The third component aims to build women's capacity to manage and expand their businesses by improving their skills, knowledge and networks.One of the main activities for 2018 involved the design and development of a digital agribusiness intelligence portal for women agripreneurs in Africa. This aims to bridge the information gap that repeatedly disadvantages women in agricultural markets. To this end, a call for registration of women agribusinesses was made in East and Southern Africa. By early 2019, 350 women agripreneurs were registered and the portal was under construction. The agripreneurs will receive customised services ranging from market information and business intelligence to well-targeted training and self-development modules. Additionally, financiers and other business service providers will be able to reach women agripreneurs.In 2018, CTA and its South African lead partner -African Women Innovation and Entrepreneurship Forum (AWIEF) -hosted a global event that featured best practices in women entrepreneurship in general, and women agripreneurship in particular. They also launched the VALUE4HER Women Agripreneur of the Year Awards, which recognised and celebrated women who had excelled in different parts of the agricultural value chain. The awards ceremony took place in Cape Town, South Africa, at the 4th AWIEF Conference.The three winners included a wide range of women-led businesses of varying sizes and age groups. A Kenyan company, Exotic EPZ Ltd, works directly with smallholder farmers to maximise their yields and profits from macadamia nuts and three different tree oils. Elgin Free Range Chickens, established 20 years ago, is now one of the largest businesses of its kind in South Africa. Agrisolve in Ghana works with smallholder farmers to improve their access to inputs and technology, as well as guaranteed markets for their produce. These three winners -Exotic EPZ, Elgin Free Range Chickens, and Agrisolve -received trophies and certificates, as well as significant cash prizes, from CTA.Just as importantly, according to Irene Ochem, Executive Director of AWIEF, they and other entrants provide a tremendous example to others. \"The awards recognised women who had excelled and showed great innovation in their businesses,\" she says. \"We hope that this awards ceremony will motivate those already in the business to do better, inspire more women to get into agribusinesses and help change perceptions about women's ability to establish and develop successful businesses''.  experience capitalisation workshops held in East Africa in 2018 focused on public, private and producer partnerships. These included projects designed to increase awareness of post-harvest best practice for maize in Rwanda, improve market access for fruit and vegetable growers in Zanzibar, boost soybean production in Uganda and set up an agricultural growth corridor in Tanzania.\"The main aim of the project has been to validate the approach of experience capitalisation,\" says Jorge Chavez-Tafur, CTA Associate Programme Coordinator for Knowledge Management. \"We wanted to demonstrate that experience capitalisation is possible, that it is not expensive, and that you do not necessarily require an external consultant, nor a lot of time.\" D uring 2016 and 2017, CTA and its partners convened experience capitalisation workshops in the ACP regions where CTA works, as well as in Southeast Asia, India and Nepal, and Latin America. Two workshops were held in each region. During the first, those attending chose which experiences to focus on before carrying out a detailed analysis of the lessons learned. The second workshop was devoted to writing and presenting stories and preparing action plans for the future. In 2018, CTA and IFAD produced six experience capitalisation publications. For many workshop participants, this was their first opportunity to showcase their experiences to a wider public.Experiences, of course, refer to a great spectrum of activities. To give just one example, the  According to many of CTA's partners, the workshops have had a real impact. Take, for example, the experience of the Savannah Young Farmers Network in northern Ghana. Its executive director Moses Nganwani Tia was able to reflect on the network's flagship youth-in-agribusiness development initiative, Innovation Hub (iHub), when he attended CTA's experience capitalisation workshops in West Africa in 2017.In 2016, 10 farmers expressed an interest in working with iHub to establish a beekeeping industry in Ghana's Upper East region. The Timonde Bee Keepers Association set up 52 beehives with an annual honey production capacity of 450 kg, with support from a climate adaptation fund. According to Moses, the experience capitalisation workshop, and the lessons learned from examining iHub activities, led to significant expansion of the beekeeping industry. Some 377 women have now adopted beekeeping in six villages and UNDP, the World Bank and the Ministry of Environment, are now promoting beekeeping as an activity which can help communities become more resilient to climate change.One of the most interesting results is that CTA itself has become an enthusiastic adopter of the approach, and during 2018 a series of experience capitalisation workshops brought together CTA staff and partners. The processes have focused on the CTA thematic areas of youth, ICTs and digitalisation, climate-smart agriculture and gender.In October 2018, the project held a facilitator's meeting at IFAD's headquarters in Rome. This was attended by 28 facilitators, all of whom had completed their own capitalisation process during the past 2 years, and also supported others. Participants were able to reflect on the main issues which need to be considered before and during the capitalisation process. The workshop also discussed and validated a facilitators' guide which will be published in early 2019. \"I think the process of experience capitalisation has really taken off now, and many of those who have benefited from our workshops will continue to use it and promote it after our project ends in 2019,\" says Chavez-Tafur. We wanted to demonstrate that experience capitalisation is possible, that it is not expensive, and that you do not necessarily require an external consultant, nor a lot of time. ","tokenCount":"8551"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"648617fd5f60a349d5ee303c5aa627cf","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/4026a5a8-216f-4733-aa35-6eed0ceca294/retrieve","id":"1438036215"},"keywords":["Crop Yield","Nutrient Stock","Soil and Water Conservation","Landscape"],"sieverID":"ab7f0fc8-5c94-4f77-abe7-f844113ac2e4","pagecount":"44","content":"We acknowledge development agents in assisting data collection during the study. The authors gratefully acknowledge the CGIAR research program on Water, Land and Ecosystems (WLE) for financial support.Land degradation due to soil erosion and soil fertility depletion has been a major national agenda in Ethiopia because of its adverse impact on crop productivity, the environment, and its effect on food security and human wellbeing (Deressa et al. 2011;Kassie et al. 2008;Bewket 2007). Due to land degradation, vast areas of fertile lands have become unproductive (Haileslassie et al. 2006;Bewket and Teferi 2009;Kassie et al. 2009;Muluneh et al. 2017). Water erosion is the most important form of land degradation in Ethiopia (Haregeweyn et al. 2017;Badege 2001;Hurni 2000;Tekle 1999). Although estimates of the extent and rate of soil erosion lack consistency, several studies have revealed the severity of the problem in the country. Based on plot scale measurements, the highest rate of soil loss occurs from cultivated lands ranging from 42 t -1 ha -1 yr -1 (Hurni 1988) to 179 t ha -1 yr -1 (Shiferaw and Holden 1999). In addition, the negative nutrient balances of several studies indicate the severity of soil nutrient depletion in Ethiopia (Wolka et al. 2021;Lemma et al. 2017;Haileslassie et al. 2005;Stoorvogel and Smaling 1990). For example, Stoorvogel and Smaling (1990) and Haileslassie et al. (2005) indicated that the average national nutrient balances of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium were negative.To address the problem of land degradation and enhance soil health for intensification, government, donors, international aid agencies, and multi-lateral development bodies have invested millions of US dollars in land management practices (Adimassu et al. 2018;Andersson et al. 2011;Nedassa et al. 2011). Land management (LM) practices using the food-for-work approach begun related to the 1973/74 drought (Beshah 2003). The efforts were enhanced after the 1983/1984 droughts, when various national soil and water conservation efforts have been undertaken with the financial support of international donors and mass mobilization of rural communities (Adimassu et al. 2018;Beshah 2003). For the last 10 years, an integrated watershed management program has been widely used by governmental and non-governmental organizations to reduce land degradation, enhance ecosystem service and improve farmers' livelihood (Gumma et al. 2021;Gebregziabher et al. 2016;GIZ 2015). The program takes a holistic approach using several interventions mainly soil and water conservation practices at the watershed scale. The most important land management Land management is an important factor that affects ecosystem services provision of the land (Schulte et al.2014;Eppink et al. 2012;Van Oudenhoven at al, 2012). Understanding how land management improve ecosystem services help to create awareness of farmers and policy makers regarding the benefits of land management practices and enhance farmers' decisions on land investments ( Petz et al. 2014, Eppink et al. 2012).. In recent years, countries in the world adopted the concept of ecosystem services with the hope that it will improve the process of natural resource management and its outcomes (Bremer at al. 2016;Kline at al. 2013). Ecosystems are actively managed by humans to optimize the provision of food, and fiber and these ecosystem services from agriculture, classified as provisioning services by the recent Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, depend in turn upon a web of supporting and regulating services as inputs to production (Zhang et al 2007). Indicators are crucial for quantifying ecosystem service (van Oudenhoven 2015). An indicator is a measure or metric based on verifiable data that conveys information about more than itself (Almagro et al. 2016). A measure is a value that is quantified against a standard, whereas a metric is a set of data collected and used to underpin each indicator (Keesstra et al. 2018;Feld et al. 2009). Indicators can provide information to decision makers and land managers based upon which interventions can be identified, prioritized and executed (Muller et al. 2016;Haines-Young et al 2012). From land management perspective, these indicators include crop yield, soil fertility, soil showed that the influence of soil and stone bunds on provisioning, regulating and supporting ecosystem services is either positive, negative or neutral (Abera et al. 2019;Adimassu et al. 2017;Hailu et al. 2012;Mekuria et al. 2007). This indicates that site and context specific evaluation of land management practices regarding the benefits of land management practices on supporting and provisioning ecosystem services is essential. Hence, studies on whether or not land management practices improved supporting and provisioning services limited in the study areas. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess the benefits of selected land management practices on ecosystem services across four Agro-ecological locations of Ethiopia representing critically important crop areas for sustainable intensification of Ethiopia. The study was conducted between June 2018 and January 2019 in four watersheds of Ethiopia namely Alekit-wonz, Embahasti , Borodo and Jawe-gumburaThis study was conducted in four agricultural watersheds in Ethiopia; namely Emba-hasti, Alekit-wonz, Borodo and Jawe-gumbura (Fig. 1). These watersheds were selected due to their importance in representing the major Agro-ecological zones of the country where major crops are grown. Emba-hasti and Alekit-wonz watersheds are situated in Tigray and Amahra of Ethiopia, respectively. Borodo and Jawe-gumbura are located in the central and southern parts of the country-in Oromia and Southern Nations, Nationalities and People's (SNNP) regions, respectively. All watersheds are located in the highlands where the elevations for Emba-hasti, Alekit-wonz, Borodo and Jawe-gumbura are 2330-3440 m, 2770-3000 m, 2210-2730m and 2110-2800 m, respectively. Alekit-wonz, Jawe-gumbura, Borodo and Emba-hasti watersheds cover 4.6, 117, 5.3, and 11.2 square kilometers, respectively. practices. Hence, this research was conducted on stone bunds in Emba-hasti and Alekit-wonz watersheds, 118 and on soil bunds in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds. 119In the study watersheds, soil bunds occupied 1-1.5 m width of land for every soil/stone bund As a 120 result, 1.5 m width land can be taken up by the newly constructed soil and stone bunds. However, when the 121 The study watersheds belong to four different agro-ecological zones (AEZs) of Ethiopia (Table 1).According to MoANR (2005), Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti are located in cool moist (M4) and cold submoist (SH5) AEZs, respectively. Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds are located in Tepid-moist (M3) and Tepid sub-humid (SM3) AEZs, respectively.The annual rainfall trends of the study watersheds are presented in Fig. 2. Alekit-wonz watershed received the highest annual rainfall with the mean of 1500 mm (1994)(1995)(1996)(1997)(1998)(1999)(2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012) and standard deviation of 320 mm (Fig. 2). The lowest annual rainfall was recorded in Emba-hasti watershed with the annual average rainfall of 750 mm and standard deviation of 133 mm.The annual average rainfall of Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds were 1100 mm and 1200 mm with a standard deviation of 145 mm and 178 mm, respectively. The trend of annual rainfall decreased over the years, mainly in Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds. As shown in Fig. 2, annual rainfall in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds showed no trend over the years on record, whilst there is a suggestion in the other watersheds of decline. The most dominant crop grown in Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds is barley. However, wheat is the most important crop in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds.The type and characteristics of the land management practices varied across the four watersheds. However, soil and stone bunds are the most common and widely used land management practices in the study watersheds.In Emba-hasti and Alekit-wonz watersheds, the dominant land management practices were stone bunds. Stone bunds in Alekit-wonz were supported by tree planting such as Chamaecytisus palmensis (Fig. 3). In both Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, soil bunds were the dominant land management ditch behind the bunds (50 cm width) has filled with sediment, only 1 m width is occupied by soil and stone bunds. This has resulted in the reduction of quite high proportion of area under cultivation. Hence, crop yield (t ha -1 ) was calculated by taking into account the area occupied by the soil/stone bunds.Three treatments of land management were considered to collect soil samples from each watershed (Table 2). In Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, control treatments (plots without soil bunds) were used and compared with bunds of conserved plots of different ages (Table 2). In Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds, almost all cultivated lands were conserved with stone or soil bunds. In Borodo and Jawe-gumbra watersheds, treatments were replicated three times. In Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds, six farmers' fields were chosen from each watershed. Hence, these farmers were considered as replicates during analysis.In Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, wheat (Triticum aestivum) was the test crop whereas in Emba-hasti and Alekitwonz watersheds, barley (Hordeum vulgare) was the test crop. Wheat and barley were selected for this study because these are the dominant crops grown in the respective watersheds.Usually, the distances between two successive soil/stone bunds were highly variable due to the original slope of the land, soil depth, rainfall characteristics and the specification of the bunds (Desta et al., 2005). The average actual sampling distance from the bund at each relative distance is presented in Table 3.Two levels of spatial analysis were conducted in this research. The first is a variation within individual bunds (relative distance from the bund); and the second is spatial differences across the soil and stone bunds of different age. Therefore, the relative distance (Dr) concept was used to standardize the position of the sample to be taken (Vancampenhout et al. 2006;Dercon et al. 2003). Dr , where Dr is relative distance (dimensionless) along the slope, Li is the distance of the sample i to the lower soil/stone bund (m), and Lt is the total length between two successive soil/stone bunds (m). All samples were taken at equidistance and Dr in each plot were Dr= 0, Dr=0.4 and Dr=0.8 for lower (accumulation zone), middle (erosion zone) and upper (erosion zone) samples, respectively (Fig. 4). Soil samples were taken in June 2016 before the start of the main rainy season. In total, 240 soil samples (60 from each watershed) were taken from 0 to 30 cm depth. At each relative distance from the bunds, soil samples were collected using Edelmann auger at six sampling points and the samples were mixed thoroughly in a bucket to form one composite soil sample per sampling distance.Soil texture, total nitrogen, available phosphorus, and soil organic carbon were analyzed at Horticoop Soil and Plant Analytical Laboratory in Debrezeit of Ethiopia. Soil texture was determined using the pipette method. Soil organic carbon was determined using the Walkley and Black wet digestion method (Allison, 1965). Then the soil organic matter content (%) was obtained by multiplying soil organic carbon by 1.724 (Kalra and Maynard 1991). Total N was determined using the micro-Kjeldahl method (Bremner, 1965), whereas available P was measured by the Bray II method (Bray and Kurtz 1945). Bulk density was measured using the core method from undisturbed soil sample at the same position where soil samples for laboratory analysis were collected. Soil nutrient stocks, including soil organic carbon (SOC), total nitrogen (Ntot) and available phosphorus (Pav) in the top soil layer (0-30 cm) were calculated as follows: SOC stock (Mg ha -1 ) = (SOC (%) × 10 -2 ) × BD (Mg m -3 ) × Soil depth (m) × 10000 m 2 ha -1  Ntot stock (Mg ha -1 ) = (Ntot (%) × 10 -2 ) × BD (Mg m -3 ) × Soil depth (m) × 10000 m 2 ha -1  Pav stock (Mg ha -1 ) = Pav (ppm) × 10 -6 × BD (Mg m -3 ) ×Soil depth (m) × 10000 m 2 ha -1Yield data were collected for all plots at three positions along the slope of the land. For land management treated plots, the yield data was taken using a 1 m 2 quadrant at three positions from the bund (Fig. 4). Similarly, for non-treated (control) plots, yield data were taken parallel to the sampling points in treated plots using the same quadrantDescriptive statistics such as mean, standard deviation as well as mean comparisons were done using SPSS while summary and graphs were prepared using Excel. Since most data failed the normality test to run Plot level yield (g m -2 ) Fig. 5 depicts crop yield (g m -2 ) patterns of variability with reference to soil and stone bunds. In 3-year-old soil bunds of Borodo watershed, significantly (p<0.05) higher wheat yield was recorded in the accumulation zone as compared to middle and upper zones. Similarly, in Jawe-gumbura watershed, significantly (p<0.05) higher wheat yield was recorded at accumulation zone.In Alekit-wonz watershed, barley yield (g/m 2 ) at accumulation zone was significantly (p<0.05) higher compared with at middle and upper zones. Similarly, in Emba-hasti watershed, barley yield (g m -2 ) at Dr=0 was significantly higher compared with middle and upper zones. In general, the result shows that the crop yield (g m -2 ) in the accumulation zone was higher compared with middle and upper zones in all watersheds.The average grain yield at plot level (g m -2 ) of crops showed that higher average yield was recorded in older soil/stone bunds in all watersheds (Table 4). In Borodo watershed, the average grain yield (g m -2 ) from 5-year-old soil bunds was significantly (p<0.05) higher than the grain yield in 3-year-old soil bunds and in the control plots (p<0.05). The relative effects of 5 and 3-year-old soil bunds over the control were 33% and 17%, respectively. In Jawe-gumbura, wheat yields at 2 and 5-year-old soil bunds were significantly (p<0.05) higher than the control plots. In Jawe-gumbura, the relative effect of soil bunds over the control for 2 and 5-year-old soil bunds was 6%.bunds had no effect on grain yield of wheat. Rather, both 5 and 2-year-old soil bunds had a lower grain yield 216 compared with the control treatment with a relative effect of -9.3% and -8%, respectively. This is mainly 217 because the yield improvement due to soil bunds could not compensate the yield penalty caused by 218 occupation of soil bunds. Similar results were reported in high-rainfall areas in Ethiopia (e.g., Adimassu et 219 al. 2014;Kato et al. 2011). For example, three-year experiment in the central highlands of Ethiopia showed 220 that construction of soil bund reduced barley yield by 7% as compared to control treatment (Adimassu et  In Alekit-wonz watershed, the result shows that barley yield from 4-year-old stone bunds was significantly higher compared with 3-year-old stone bunds and control plots. A similar trend was recorded for Emba-hasti watersheds where barley yield from 25-year-old stone bund was significantly higher (p<0.05) than 10 and 15year-old stone bunds (Table 4).Table 5 describes the overall effect of soil bunds on total grain yield of crops when the area occupied by soil bunds was considered. When the area occupied by the soil bunds was considered, the trend of plot level grain yield is changed among the treatments (Table 5). In Alekit-wonz watershed, grain yield of barley in conserved plots increased with age of stone bunds. For example, this grain yield from 4-year-old stone bund was 33% and 14% higher compared to 2 and 3-year-old stone bunds, respectively. In Emba-hasti watershed, the barley yield was increased from 0.92 to 1.21 t ha -1 when the age of stone bunds increased from 10 to 25 years. A similar trend was recorded in the Emba-hasti watershed regarding the relative effect of stone bunds on barley yield (Table 8). Amdemariam et al. (2011) reported similar results that crop yield increased with increasing age of soil bunds in the northwestern parts of Ethiopia.In Borodo watershed, the result showed that the grain yield from 3-year-old soil bunds was not significantly different from the control treatment (no soil bunds). However, the grain yield from 5-year-old soil bunds was significantly (p<0.05) higher than the control and 3-year-old soil bunds. This implies that at least five years are required to compensate the area lost due to soil bunds. On the contrary, in Jawe-gumbura watershed, soil zone). In Alekit-wonz watershed, SOM content in the accumulation zone was ten and sixteen percent higher 241 than the erosion zones at middle and upper zones, respectively. Similarly, in Emba-hasti watershed, SOM 242 content (%) at accumulation zone was 18% and 16% higher than the SOM content at middle and upper 243 zones, respectively. Our finding is in line with the results elsewhere in the Bokole watershed of southern 244Ethiopia, where SOM contents in the accumulation zone were higher than in the erosion zone (Wolka et al. 245 10 2014). Similarly, extensive studies at Maybar, Andit Tid, And Dizi watersheds in Ethiopia revealed that graded fanya juu, graded bund and grass strip reduced total crop yield by up to 30% (Herweg and Ludi 1999).However, such generalizations are not possible. This is because the positive effects of soil/stone bunds were recorded mainly in moisture-deficit area in which soil/stone bunds can contribute to moisture conservation (Herweg and Ludi 1999;Vancampenhout et al. 2006). For example, at Hunde Lafto watershed of Ethiopia, level soil bund and level fanya juu increased crop yield by 4% and 12%, respectively (Herweg and Ludi 1999).Likewise, in the Tigray region of Ethiopia, level stone bunds increased crop yields compared to the control plots (Vancampenhout et al. 2006).The average SOM contents were 1.5%, 2.0%, 2.7% and 3.4% in Emba-hasti, Alekit-wonz, Borodo and Jawegumbura watersheds, respectively (Fig. 6). In general, this shows that SOM in Jawe-gumbura watershed was relatively higher than the other watersheds.Generally, the results showed that the highest SOM contents were recorded in the accumulation zones in all watersheds (Fig. 5). In the Emba-hasti, Alekit-wonz and Borodo watersheds, the SOM content at the accumulation zone was significantly (p<0.05) higher than upper zone (Fig. 6). This implies that there was higher organic matter accumulation above the soil and stone bunds as compared to the erosion zone (upper SOC stock from 4-year-old soil bunds was 16% higher than the control treatment (Table 6). Nevertheless, 267 the SOC stock from the 5-year-old soil bund was higher than the control treatment. 268 269 11 2011). However, on the contrary, SOM accumulation was not recorded in the accumulation zone compared with erosion zone in the northern parts of Ethiopia (Vancampenhout et al. 2006).The effect of age of soil and stone bunds on SOM content is presented in Fig. 7. The results show that the accumulation of SOM increased over the years in Emba-hasti watershed with the highest SOM content (1.9%) in 25-year-old stone bunds and the lowest in 10-year-old stone bunds. In Borodo watershed, SOM content in 5-year-old soil bund was significantly (p<0.05) higher than SOM content in the 3 and 4-year-old soil bunds. Similarly, in Alekit-wonz watershed, 5-year-old soil bunds had higher SOM compared to 2 and 3year-old stone bunds. In Jawe-gumbura watershed, 2 and 5-year-old soil bunds had higher SOM compared with control plots. Wolka et al. 2011) reported, on average, that 15% and 20% higher SOM in 6-year old soil bunds compared to four and one-year-old soil bunds, respectively. Moreover, a study in the Goromti watershed of western Ethiopia showed that a 5-year-old fanya juu terraces had up to 13% higher SOM compared to the control plots (Hailu et al., 2012). Moreover, SOM needs long time (e.g., 8 years) to build up (Abera et al.Soil Organic Carbon (SOC) stock in the first 30 cm depth ranged from 27 Mg ha -1 at Emba-hasti to 80 Mg ha -1 at Jawe-gumbura (Table 6). The average SOC stocks in the first 30 cm were 53, 33, 43 and 74 Mg ha -1 in Alekit-wonz, Emha-hasti, Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, respectively.In Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds, SOC stock increases with increasing age of stone bunds.Accordingly, the SOC stock in Alekit-wonz watershed of the 4-year old stone bunds was higher than the SOC stock from 2 and 3-year-old stone bunds. SOC stock from 25-year-old stone bund was higher than the SOC stock from 15 and 10-year-old stone bunds. However, in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, the The bulk density of soils ranged from 1.1 to 1.3 g cm -3 (Table 5). On average, plots in Alekit-wonz 292 watershed had a slightly lower bulk density compared with the plots in the other three watersheds. The bulk 293 density of the soil in all watersheds, except Alekit-wonz, was relatively high that probably impede 294 The most important indicators of supporting ecosystem services constituent physical and chemical properties of the soil. Physical properties of the soil include soil texture and soil bulk density. Soil chemical properties considered in this study were total nitrogen and available phosphorus. The effects of land management practices on these indicators in four watersheds are discussed below.The effects of soil and stone bunds on the distribution of sand, silt and clay in the four study watersheds are presented in Table 7. In Alekit-wonz watershed, significantly lower sand contents and higher clay contents were recorded in the accumulation zone from 2 and 3 year-old stone bunds (Table 4). In Emba-hasti watershed, only clay content was significantly higher (p<0.05) in the accumulation zone from 25 year-old stone bunds (Table 4). In both Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, no significant difference of sand, silt and clay contents were recorded among relative distance from the soil bunds. The fine texture of soils in the accumulation zone in Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds can be attributed to the sedimentation of soil particles transported from areas of erosion (middle and upper zones). This also implies that stone bunds are more effective in capturing the fine texture of the soil (clay content) than soil bunds. This result is in line with the findings in the Tigray Region of Ethiopia, where higher accumulation of clay was observed in the accumulation zone compared with erosion zones (Vagen et al. 1999).showed that Ntot content was up to 57% higher in the accumulation zone of stone bunds compared with the 315 erosion zone (Wolka et al. 2011). Similarly, Hailu et al. (2012) reported that fanya juu terrace in the Goromti 316 watershed of western Ethiopia had 41.2% higher total nitrogen compared with adjacent control plots. 317 Amdemariam et al. (2011) also reported that soil SOM content from a 9-year old soil bund was 56.6% higher 318 than the control treatment. These insignificant differences can be explained in two ways. Firstly, nitrogen is 319 highly dynamic and can be exposed to leaching in the form of Nitrate (Lemma et al. 2017)  (Lemma et al. 2017). Similarly, the results indicate that there were no significant differences of bulk density with increasing distance from the bund in all watersheds. In Borodo and Emba-hasti watersheds, bulk density in the accumulation zone was slightly higher than bulk densities at middle and upper zones. However, these differences were not statistically significant (Table 5). This implies that the effect of land management practices on bulk densities of the soil were not significant across the study watersheds. This result is in line with findings in two watershed of Ethiopia that the average bulk densities were 1.0 and 1.1 g cm -3 for conserved and non-conserved plots, respectively (Vagen et al. 1999). Like soil texture, the results show that age of land management practices had inconsistent and insignificant effects on soil bulk density in all watersheds (Table 8).Total nitrogen (Ntot) content of the soil varied across the watersheds (Fig. 8). The highest Ntot content was recorded in Alekit-wonz and the lowest was recorded in Borodo watershed. The average Ntot content for Alekitwonz, Borodo, Emba-hasti and Jawe-gumbura watersheds were 0.20%, 0.12%, 0.13% and 0.16%, respectively. In all watersheds, Ntot contents of the soil were inconsistent and not significantly different with distance from the bunds (Fig. 8). In each watershed, Ntot contents were almost similar at all positions. For example, 0.19% Ntot content was recorded at accumulation and erosion zones. Similarly, in Borodo, 0.12% Ntot content was recorded at both accumulation and middle zones (Fig. 8). The finding of this study regarding Ntot is not in line with other studies in the country. For example, a study in the southern parts of Ethiopia The effect of age of soil and stone bunds on Ntot content of the soil is presented in Fig. 9. In Embahasti watershed, a clear trend in Ntot content of the soil over time was not observed. The result shows that total nitrogen contents (Ntot ) content of the soil in 15-year-old stone bunds was higher than 10-year-old stone bunds.However, Ntot content of the soil in 25-year-old stone bunds was lower than 15-year-old stone bunds although not statistically significant. Generally, although the magnitude varied, Ntot content of the soil had an increasing trend over time , in Alekit-wonz and Borodo watersheds. In Alekit wonz. although the ages of soil bunds were not strongly associated with Ntot contents, Ntot increased with increasing age of the soil bunds. For example in Borodo, Ntot contents increased from 0.12% to 0.13% when age of soil bund increased from 0 to 5 years.Similarly in Jawe-gumbura watershed, Ntot from 2-year-old soil bunds was 0.15% whereas 0.16% for 5-yearold soil bunds. These results were demonstrated in other parts of Ethiopia (Amdemariam et al., 2011;Hailu et al., 2012;Wolka et al., 2011). For example, higher Ntot contents were recorded from five and ten-year old fanya juu terrace as compared to the control treatment (Hailu et al., 2012). Compared with the control treatment, significantly higher Ntot was recorded in 9-year old soil bunds in the Amhara region of Ethiopia (Amdemariam et al. 2011). Likewise, Wolka et al. (2011) also reported that 37% higher Ntot was recorded from 4-year old soil bunds compared with control treatments. The inconsistent association between Ntot and age of soil bunds is due to high mobility of nitrogen and the spatial variability of organic residue such as crop residue. ha -1 ) was recorded in the Alekit-wonz and Jawe-gumbura watersheds. The effect of age of soil and stone 365 bunds on Ntot stock is depicted in Table 6. In Alekit-wonz and Emba-hasti watersheds, Ntot stock increased 366 with increasing age of stone bunds. Accordingly, Ntot stock in Alekit-wonz watershed from 4-year old stone 367 bunds was 42% and 22% higher than the Ntot stock from 2 and 3-year-old stone bunds, respectively. Ntot 368 stock from a 25-year-old stone bund was higher than the total nitrogen stocks from 15 and 10-year-old stone 369 15 higher relative to middle and upper zones (Fig. 9). However, in Alekit-wonz watershed, Pav at accumulation zone was lower relative to middle and upper zones. Similarly, in Jawe-gumbura watershed, Pav in accumulation zone was lower realtive to middle and uppert zones.Like Ntot, the trends of Pav in relative to age of soil and stone bunds were inconsistent (Fig. 11). In Emba-hasti watershed, Pav in 15-year-old stone bunds was significantly (p<0.05) higher as compared to 10 and 25-year-old stone bunds. In Alekit-wonz watershed, Pav content in 2-year-old stone bunds was significantly lower compared with 3 and 4-year-old stone bunds. Similarly, in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, control plots had significantly lower Pav content compared with conserved plots (Fig. 11). This is mainly due to the fact that soil and stone bunds reduced sediment and runoff associated losses of Pav.A study in the central highland of Ethiopia showed that soil bunds reduced sediment and runoff associated losses of Pav by 54% and 32%, respectively (Halefom et al., 2021;Berihun et al., 2020;Adimassu et al., 2014). A study in the northern Ethiopia showed that Pav was 45% higher in the accumulation zone of bench terrace as compared to erosion zone (Vagen et al. 1999). Vancampenhout et al. (2006) reported higher Pav content in the accumulation zone compared with erosion zone, particularly in the limestone parent material. Also, 60% higher Pav was recorded in conserved watershed compared with adjacent non-conserved watershed in the northwestern parts of Ethiopia (Demelash and Stahr 2010).Soil nutrient stocks presented in Table 9 aggregates soil nutrient properties such as total nitrogen and available phosphorus. On average, total nitrogen stock in the top 30 cm depth ranged from 3.7 Mg ha -1 at Emba-hasti to 7.5 Mg ha -1 at Alekit-wonz watersheds (Table 6). A relatively higher total nitrogen stocks (Mg  Lemma et al. 2017;Vagen et al. 1999). However, 389 crop yield data had inconsistent correlation with sand, silt and clay contents of the soil (Table 9). 390 Accordingly, crop yield was negatively correlated with sand content in all watersheds except Jawe-gumbura 391 (Table 10). The correlations between yield and clay content were positive in Borodo and Alekit-wonz 392 watersheds, and negative in Jawe-gumbura and Emba-hasti watersheds (Table 9). The negative correlations 393 16 bunds. However, in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, the relation between Ntot stock and age of soil bunds was inconsistent (Tale 6) On average, available phosphorus (Pav) stock in the top 30 cm depth ranged from 0.02 Mg ha -1 at Emba-hasti to 0.20 Mg ha -1 at Alekit-wonz (Table 6). The average Pav stocks (Mg ha -1 ) in 0-30 cm were 0.17, 0.03, 0.06 and 0.04 Mg ha -1 in Alekit-wonz, Emha-hasti, Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, respectively.The result showed inconsistent result regarding the effect of age of soil and stone bunds on Pav stock (Table 6). Accordingly, Pav stock in Alekit-wonz watershed from 4-year old stone bunds (0.2 Mg ha-1) was 100% and 90% higher than the Pav stock from 3 and 2-year-old stone bunds, respectively. In Emba-hasti watershed, average Pav stock from 15-year-old stone bunds was 100% higher than the Pav stock from 25 and 10-year-old stone bunds. However, in Borodo and Jawe-gumbura watersheds, Pav stock from 5-year-old soil bunds was 40% and 17% higher than the Pav stock from 4-year old soil bunds and control plots, respectively.The correlations between crop yield (provisioning service) and soil properties (supporting service) in all watersheds are presented in Table 10. In all study watersheds, the crop yield (g/m 2 ) data show positively and significantly correlated with SOM, NTot, and Pav and negatively and significantly correlated with bulk density. between crop yield and bulk density might be because of the hampering effect of bulk density on root elongation and growth of crops (Lemma et al. 2017;Zelek et al. 2004;Vaz 2001).In general, the results of this study show that the highest accumulation of soil nutrient including soil organic carbon, total nitrogen and available phosphorus are recorded in accumulation zone of soil and stone bunds.Similarly, the highest crop yield was observed in the accumulated zone of soil and stone bunds. Moreover, the result also shows that stone bunds are more effective than soil bunds in capturing finer texture (clay) part of the soil. In addition to position, age of soil and stone bunds influenced the effect of land management on ecosystem services. Accordingly, the highest soil nutrient (soil organic carbon, total organic carbon, and available phosphors were the highest in older soil and stone bunds in all watersheds except in Borodo watershed. This shows that land management practices take longer time to enhance supporting ecosystem services. The correlation between crop yield and soil properties suggests that soil nutrient is the limiting factor for crop production. This implies that integrated soil fertility management practices should be an important component of land management to produce significant crop yield.Although land management practices enhanced regulating, supporting and provisioning ecosystem services, the results are inconsistent across the study watersheds. This implies that long-term studies at various agro-ecologies and farming systems are essential to generate reliable information regarding the linkage between land management practices and various ecosystem services. Investments in land Abera W, Tamene L, Tibebe D, Adimassu Z., Kassa H, Hailu H, Mekonnen K, Desta G, Sommer R., 439 Verchot L (2019). Characterizing and evaluating the impacts of national land restoration initiatives on 440 ecosystem services in Ethiopia. Land degradation and development. https://doi.org/10.1002/ldr.3424 441 18 protection or enhancement of one or more ecosystem services. The PES approaches are increasingly advocated as a means to link ecosystem protection and human well-being. The study showed that investment in land management practices enhanced provisioning, regulating and supporting ecosystem services. However, the study was conducted in four agricultural watersheds which represent few agro-ecology and farming systems of the country. This implies that national and international research organizations should establish long-term study at various agro-ecology and farming system of the country to fully understand the benefit of land management practices in relation to ecosystems services provision. Further studies are needed using latest techniques such as modelling, GIS (Geographic Information System) and Remote Sensing applications to quickly assess the effect of land management on ecosystem services Given the importance of land management in enhancing ecosystem services, investments in land management should be linked with payment for ecosystem services (PES) schemes. Farmers' capacity and motivation to invest in land management enhanced when they are benefited from payment for ecosystem services schemes. Hence, it is important to develop PES approach for land management investments. .         ","tokenCount":"5406"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"40f2dcd24c3b3fb70f4361886b5d1af0","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/cd78e8b0-91d9-4c4f-8442-8bf5548951d6/retrieve","id":"-26757061"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"8cb42115-1d90-40df-9747-70f33b8bed2b","pagecount":"51","content":"En el mes de julio se presentó en primer informe de avances técnicos marzo -junio referidos a la implementación del plan de trabajo 2018 para las acciones conjuntas entre CATIE y CCAFS. Este documento constituirá el segundo y último informe de avances correspondientes a las acciones del 01 julio al 31 de diciembre del 2018.Siguiendo el formado del primer informe, se presentan los avances para el periodo indicado anteriormente y se valorará el cumplimiento final para cada una de las acciones planificadas de acuerdo a los entregables previstos y la valoración general de cumplimiento para las cuatro líneas o ejes de trabajo definidos en el plan 2018: i), monitoreo en los tres TeSAC, ii) la implementación de la herramienta PICSA con organizaciones socias locales en ambos territorios, incluyendo el fortalecimiento y/o conformación de las Mesas Técnicas Agroclimáticas (MTA), iii) ajuste e implementación de la herramienta PICSA con familias productoras integrantes de las ECA+++ en los TeSAC de El Tuma -La Dalia, Nicaragua y Olopa, en Guatemala, durante los ciclos de primera y postrera o segunda, y iv) un eje denominado acciones generales que contempla 12 actividades vinculadas con la conformación de alianzas para el trabajo en los territorios, la sistematización en el uso y escalamiento de la herramienta PICSA con familias productoras y socios locales, y el desarrollo de propuestas para el escalamiento de las experiencias desarrolladas en los TESAC en Centroamérica.En el caso del TeSAC Olopa en Trifinio, las acciones del segundo semestre se desarrollaron luego de la afectación de una canícula prolongada que ocasiono la perdida de maíz en la primera temporada de lluvias, este fenómeno propicio varias reuniones de la MTA Chiquimula para analizar y proponer recomendaciones técnicas pertinentes para las familias productoras y tomadores de decisión. Fue un elemento integrador que posiciono a la MTA a nivel departamental. A nivel organizacional existieron cambios a nivel de tomadores de decisión de organizaciones afines al desarrollo de este plan de trabajo, ejemplo, CTPT, MAGA, Mancomunidad Copanch'orti, que debilitaron el trabajo de incidencia y escalonamiento que se venía trabajando.1. Implementación del sistema de monitoreo y evaluación en los TeSAC desarrollados por CCAFS-CATIE en Centroamérica.El monitoreo de hogares de los TeSAC en Centro América fue cumplido en base al plan de trabajo. La totalidad de las acciones o entregables previstos en esta línea de trabajo tubo fecha de cumplimiento finales de mayo del 2018. La mayoría de las acciones fueron reportadas en el primer informe de avance presentado a CCAFS en julio 2018. Un 95% de los 7 entregables comprometidos en los territorios, se cumplieron en tiempo y forma. Para el periodo julio -diciembre únicamente se completó la última versión de un blog divulgativo del proceso de monitoreo en los TeSAC cumplido a finales de agosto. Como se detalló en el primer informe de avances, el monitoreo se completó con 431 hogares en Centroamérica (146 El Tuma -La Dalia, Nicaragua; 143 en Olopa, Guatemala; y 141 hogares en Santa Rita, Honduras). Ver anexo 1. Quedo pendiente en 2018 la interpretación y redacción del informe final con los resultados del monitoreo, esto debido a que no se recibieron a tiempo los tablas de salida e insumos necesarios con los resultados del monitoreo, esta acción correspondía a CCAFS.2. Implementación de la metodología PICSA con integrantes de ECA +++ en Nicaragua.El plan 2018 contemplaba la preparación de 10 entregables. Su implementación estaba prevista desde finales de febrero, hasta finales de junio, y tenía como supuesto la posibilidad de trabajar estos talleres en forma paralela para personal técnico, y especialistas locales participantes de las Mesas Técnicas Agroclimáticas (MTA) y la aplicación de PICSA con familias integrantes de ECAs Agroclimáticas atendidas en los TeSAC para el ciclo de primera.Como se describe en el ejercicio de cumplimiento empleando la metodología del semáforo (anexo 1), el plan tuvo que modificarse para Nicaragua. Como se indicó en informe anterior en Nicaragua no se logró la participación del Instituto de Estudios Territoriales (INETER), para liderar los esfuerzos de una MTA para este territorio. La decisión con CCAFS fue validar la aplicación de la herramienta PICSA usando los boletines agroclimáticos divulgados por la plataforma del foro del clima en Centroamérica en el marco del Sistema de Integración Centroamericana.Ante la limitante indicada y dadas las condiciones socio políticas vividas en Nicaragua desde el mes de abril, los procesos elegidos para el cumplimiento de este eje de trabajo fueron invertidos. El proceso se inició según plan en febrero, pero por las razones indicadas solo se trabajaron las actividades 1.1.; y 1.2.; el resto de las acciones para responder al plan 2018 fue retomado de septiembre a noviembre del 2018.El entrenamiento a socios locales para el uso de la herramienta PICSA se hizo hasta finales de noviembre, después de concretar su validación y documentación para su uso con familias productoras integrantes de las ECAs como se describirá más adelante. Para el entrenamiento de actores clave se documentó cada sesión con familias y se preparó una guía metodológica sobre cómo se podría aplicar esta herramienta en el marco de la implementación de procesos de ECA Agroclimáticas. El proceso con familias se completó en septiembre del 2018 y se preparó un dosier metodológico que recoge esta experiencia. En el taller de entrenamiento participaron 8 personas (una mujer) entre personal técnico y promotores rurales que asistieron, de tres ONGs, dos organizaciones asociativas y 2 instituciones públicas con acciones en el TeSAC El Tuma -La Dalia.En general, se puede indicar que en este eje se cumplió con un 80% de los 10 entregables previstos en el plan 2018. En dos de ellos indicamos que no aplican en nuestra valoración dado que se previa la participación en un taller a realizarse en el CIAT Colombia y para esta actividad no se recibió ninguna invitación (actividad 3.1., anexo 1).Consistentes con el enfoque de ECAs agroclimáticas, multirubro y multitemáticas, entre julio y noviembre del 2018, se desarrollaron 7 sesiones colectivas de capacitación con cada uno de los dos grupos ECAs implementados el TeSAC. Como parte de ellas, se completó la validación de la herramienta PICSA, se capacitó a las familias integrantes en temas vinculados con la producción de patio y sus sistemas productivos priorizados. Abajo, en el cuadro 1, se describen estas acciones colectivas y las actividades de AT individual o en pequeños grupos realizados en Nicaragua.Cuadro 1. Sesiones grupales con los grupos ECA+++ activos en El Tuma -La Dalia para validar la herramienta PICSA y fortalecer las acciones multitema y multirubro. Grupo ECA Fechas Hombres Mujeres Total Sesión 3: Segundo evento PICSA Probabilidades, pronósticos estacionales, opciones de prácticas para adaptación, presupuestos participativos de prácticas y toma de decisiones (pasos C, D, E, F, G, y H, del manual) Grupo Aguas Amarillas -El Consuelo 17-07-2018 5 11 16Grupo Wasaka Abajo 18-07-2018 5 12 17Sesión 4: Tercer evento PICSA Uso de pronósticos estacionales, alertas tempranas y juste de planes (pasos I, J y K del manual) Grupo Aguas Amarillas -El Consuelo ECA: Wasaka Abajo -Siembra y manejo de semilleros de hortalizas.-Diseños y manejo de chiqueros y gallineros.-Reactivación de fosas o vertederos para clasificación de la basura doméstica, en orgánica e inorgánica. -Manejo sanitario en aves y cerdos (aplicación de desparasitantes y vitaminas) manejo de galeras. -Monitoreo de plagas y enfermedades en cacao y granos básicos.-Poda de formación, rehabilitación, mantenimiento en cacao.-Manejo sanitario en aves y cerdos (aplicación de desparasitantes y vitaminas) -Siembra y manejo de semilleros de hortalizas.-Diseños de chiqueros y gallineros -Reactivación de fosas o vertederos para clasificación de la basura doméstica, en orgánica e inorgánica. -Monitoreo de plagas y enfermedades en cacao y granos básicos -Poda de formación, rehabilitación, mantenimiento en cacao.-Control de aguas mieles y pulperos para la producción de café.-Diseño y construcción de galeras para aves, cerdos, ganado vacuno y siembra de pastos mejorados. -Aplicación de caldo sulfocálcico, bordelés , visosa, y biofertilizantes.-En cacao, la asesoría técnica se enfocó en manejo de podas de formación y mantenimiento, fertilización edáfica y manejo de zompopos, áfidos y ácaros, mediante la preparación y uso de caldo sulfocálcico y caldo visosa. -En el cultivo granos básicos, se brindó asistencia técnica para la producción de maíz y frijoles. En maíz se orientó el manejo malezas y el control de cogollero; en frijoles, aplicación de caldos sulfocálcico para manejo de requemo, uso de biofermentados, caldo visosa y caldo bordelés.-En el sistema ganadero, los temas de asistencia técnica fueron en: establecimiento de cercas vivas, manejo de malezas en potreros y manejo sanitario del ganado (desparasitación y vitaminación). -Siembra de pastos mejorados (parcelas demostrativas promovidas por CIAT Nicaragua, con cinco especies) -Preparación y uso de concentrado para ganado.-En la escuela de campo de Aguas Amarillas las familias están trabajando principalmente con sistemas agroforestales con café y cacao. La siembra granos básicos es solo para el autoconsumo, se ha implementado la aplicación de biofermentados y uso de fungicidas orgánicos. -La asesoría técnica en este periodo se concentró principalmente en el manejo de enfermedades fungosas como el mal de hilachas o pellejillo. Se sugirió a las familias la aplicación de ceniza o cal cocida a razón de un litro por bombada de 20 litros y la regulación de la sombra para bajar la incidencia de las enfermedades. -También, se brindó asistencia técnica sobre la aplicación de fertilizante edáfico al café para lograr un buen desarrollo del grano de café. -En cacao, se orientó la poda de formación y de mantenimiento, la regulación de sombra orientadas de norte a sur y eliminar el musgo de los árboles para estimular una mayor floración y producción.En este eje del plan, se habían comprometido alrededor de 15 entregables. A pesar de las dificultades vividas en el país en términos de movilidad y de seguridad en el campo, la alianza con Nitlapan/UCA como socio local garantizó la presencia de un técnico local y esto permitió un cumplimiento de más del 90% de las actividades y entregables previstos. Aquí la mayor limitación fue cumplir con los blogs divulgativos de cada actividad. Como CATIE, al menos para todas las sesiones PICSA siempre se prepararon las memorias correspondientes y se circularon a CCAFS.En Nicaragua no tenemos ninguna certeza sobre cómo podría evolucionar la aplicación de la herramienta PICSA en el trabajo con familias productoras del TeSAC. En taller de entrenamiento con técnicos y promotores rurales realizado en noviembre se discutió los temas de más interés. Sin embargo, también fue discutido cuales podrían ser las mayores limitantes y la mayoría coincidió en señalar la ausencia de las MTA y de INETER para lograr una mayor disponibilidad de información climática a nivel local. Abajo se describen los temas PICSA indicados por técnicos y promotores rurales como los más viables para replicar con familias:-Elaboración de calendario climático -Elaboración del calendario agroclimático (4 participantes) -Mapa de asignación de recursos (5 participantes) -Complementar el plan de finca promovido desde sus organizaciones con el mapa de asignación de recursos -Análisis de información climática (comportamiento de la precipitación durante los últimos años) -Análisis de datos recolectados en miniestaciones climáticas comunitarias -Análisis de vulnerabilidad (3 participantes) -Homologación de conceptos relacionados con el tema de CC) -Análisis de los efectos del pronóstico climático sobre las principales actividades agropecuarias de la comunidad e identificación y selección de posibles acciones como respuesta al pronóstico estacional -Análisis ¿Cómo afectó el comportamiento del clima las actividades productivas en la finca? -Interpretaciones de pronósticos estacionales y su uso en la planificación de la agricultura 3. Implementación de la metodología PICSA en Guatemala en el marco de la Mesa Técnica Agroclimática de ChiquimulaEl proceso de escalonamiento de la metodología PICSA continúo en el Departamento de Chiquimula, Guatemala, lugar a donde se encuentra ubicado el TeSAC Olopa. En el mes de agosto 2018 se realizó el taller de socialización de la metodología PICSA a 31 técnicos de instituciones públicas, privadas, ONGs, academia, que forman parte de la MTA Chiquimula. Dentro de este grupo se encontraban 12 extensionistas del ministerio de agricultura y ganadería, dos del ministerio de ambiente, 6 estudiantes de la carrera de gestión ambiental de CUNORI, entre otros. A cada participante se le entrego una copia impresa del manual PICSA, se realizó un sondeo de conocimientos al inicio del taller y luego se explicó la estructura del manual, cuales son los pasos a seguir y se realizaron ejercicios grupales para la aplicación de cada uno de ellos. Una ayuda memoria que recopila todo lo sucedido en ese taller ha sido compartida con CCAFS en su momento.Otro taller de socialización de la metodología PICSA tuvo lugar en el municipio de Jocotán, Chiquimula, el 30 de octubre 2018, en la sede de la Asociación Parroquia de Santiago Jocotán ONG, esto a solicitud del director de la asociación a integrantes de la MTA Chiquimula (CUNORI y CATIE), para apoyar un proceso de fortalecimiento de capacidades de 14 promotores rurales (7 mujeres y 7 hombres) de la asociación Santiago, que atienden diversas actividades en comunidades de la región Ch'orti, como el registro diario de información climática de estaciones meteorológicas instaladas en cada comunidad, capacitación y asistencia técnica en sistemas de agricultura familiar maíz-frijol y producción de patio principalmente. A cada participante se le entrego el manual PICSA impreso y al director de la asociación de manera digital para su reproducción y entrega a otros promotores. Dentro de los principales acuerdos: a) realizar un segundo taller a principios de diciembre para apoyar el análisis e interpretación de la información climática registrada por los participantes desde hace más de un año, debido que actualmente quien analiza la información es el equipo técnico de la asociación y no los productores rurales. b) La Asociación Santiago se incorporara a la MTA Chiquimula a partir del 2019, luego de una invitación girada por representantes de la mesa en ese taller (CUNORI y CATIE). Listado de participantes se puede observar en los anexos de este informe.El año 2018 fue muy importante en la consolidación del trabajo de la Mesa Técnica Agroclimática de Chiquimula. Dentro de los principales logros tenemos: a. fueron realizadas 6 reuniones (4 ordinarias y 2 extraordinarias), b. subir de 15 actores involucrados en la primera reunión del año en marzo, a 23 organizaciones representadas a partir de la tercera y cuarta reunión, c. 4 boletines agroclimáticos fueron elaborados en momentos estratégicos del año(antes de la primera temporada de lluvias a inicios de mayo, monitoreo de la canícula a mediados del mes de julio, antes de la segunda temporada de lluvias al inicio de agosto y antes del inicio de la temporada seca en el departamento de Chiquimula a finales de noviembre. d. el apoyo total e incondicional de INSIVUMEH desde el 14 de marzo a la fecha. e. El reconocimiento de la MTA como una red técnica en el tema agroclimático en el departamento de Chiquimula y el inicio de la incidencia en espacios de toma de decisión muy importantes como la Consejo Departamental de Desarrollo -CODEDE-y en una de las principales comisiones de esta como lo es la Comisión Departamental de Desarrollo Urbano y Rural -CODEDUR-en ambas instancias y desde el mes de agosto fue invitado un representante de la mesa para compartir boletines agroclimáticos, información climática del departamento, apoyo técnico en la redacción de estrategias departamentales para minimizar el impacto de la sequía entre otros aspectos. f. instaladas cuatro nuevas estaciones meteorológicas en puntos estratégicos a nivel departamental. g. En septiembre se propuso y consensuo una estructura organizativa de la MTA Chiquimula avalada por los participantes. Ver figura 2.Figura 2. Organigrama de la MTA Chiquimula, consensuado en la II Reunión extraordinaria el 06 de noviembre del 2018El acuerdo inicial a lo interno de la Mesa Técnica Agroclimática era tener un máximo de cuatro reuniones al año (al inicio del año, antes de la primera temporada de lluvias, antes de la segunda temporada de lluvias y al finalizar el año para analizar el cumplimiento de los pronósticos en la primera y segunda temporada de lluvias), sin embargo la misma dinámica e interés de analizar y conocer problemas recurrentes en el departamento de Chiquimula como la \"sequia\" o canícula prolongada, el fortalecimiento y funcionamiento organizacional de la mesa, llevaron a realizar dos reuniones extraordinarias durante el año.En el informe de avances marzo-junio 2018 se detalla información de lo sucedido hasta la III reunión ordinaria el 4 de mayo del mismo año. En este informe abordaremos información resumida de lo sucedido en la I y II reunión extraordinaria y IV y V reunión ordinaria de la MTA.La primera reunión extraordinaria \"Reflexiones Sobre Déficit Hídrico Primera Temporada de Lluvias 2018 en el Departamento de Chiquimula\"fue convocada para el 21 de julio por los coordinadores a solicitud e interés de la mayoría de actores representados en la mesa para analizar y discutir las repercusiones que pudieran tener en las familias rurales y la seguridad alimentaria de estas en el departamento, la ausencia de 30 días sin lluvia (a la fecha del taller) luego de que iniciara la primera temporada de lluvias el 21 de mayo. Fue un consenso dentro de la mesa elaborar luego de esta reunión un segundo boletín agroclimático dirigido a productores rurales pero principalmente a tomadores de decisión a nivel departamental para apoyar a reducir los impactos de las sequias. En esta reunión la participación de grupos de productores de diferentes comunidades y municipios del departamento fue importante para determinar y verificar el número de días sin lluvia y los cultivos en riesgo y como la situación impacta a la familia. La ayuda memoria de esta reunión fue socializada con CCAFS.La IV reunión de la MTA Chiquimula fue realizada el 7 de agosto, justo antes que iniciara la segunda temporada de lluvias en este territorio. En el mismo personal de INSIVUMEH por medio del meteorólogo Cesar George y Leonel Campos presentaron a toda la mesa las perspectivas climáticas para los meses de agosto a octubre surgidas en el foro del clima para centro américa. Luego de analizar la información climática se procedió en grupos de acuerdo a los principales rubros o temas de interés para los actores representados en la mesa (café, maíz, frijol, hortalizas, bosque, seguridad alimentaria, riesgos) a proponer recomendaciones técnicas y prácticas de adaptación para que sean implementadas o fortalecidas por parte de las familias rurales. La ayuda memoria y el tercer boletín agroclimático fueron compartidos en su momento a los actores de la mesa y CCAFS.La II Reunión extraordinaria de la MTA Chiquimula fue realizada el 06 de noviembre del 2018. Los objetivos que generaron esta reunión fueron el iniciar con la definición de un primer borrador del \"manual organizacional de la MTA\" y dentro de este definir un organigrama que permita definir roles y/o funciones de cada uno de los actores participantes. Se analizó con los 21 representantes que asistieron a la reunión, la importancia del manual organizacional para buscar la sostenibilidad de la mesa, incluyendo tener un documento formal que garantice la permanencia, funcionamiento y gestiones para lograr la sostenibilidad de la mesa en la figura 2 en la página anterior se presenta el organigrama consensuado en esta reunión. En la misma se propuso un borrador del plan de trabajo 2019 de la mesa que a diciembre 2018 faltaba completar. Mayores detalles de la reunión se encuentran en la ayuda memoria compartida con los actores de la mesa, personal CCAFS y CATIE en su oportunidad.La V reunión ordinaria de la MTA Chiquimula \"Validación de pronóstico de segunda temporada de lluvia -agosto, septiembre, octubre-, presentación de última perspectiva climática del año 2018 y generación del IV boletín agroclimático\" tuvo lugar el 30 de noviembre del 2018. En la misma participaron 19 representantes institucionales y por Skype se obtuvieron las perspectivas climáticas proporcionadas por medio de Rosario Gómez meteoróloga de INSIVUMEH, quien se encontraba en ese momento participando de último foro del clima para centro américa 2018 en ciudad de Panamá. Las perspectivas analizadas corresponden al periodo seco de diciembre 2018 a marzo 2019. En esta reunión se escuchó a los productores indicar que el pronóstico agosto-octubre se cumplió den un 75 a 80% y que las cosechas de frijol y maíz para esta temporada se encuentran en el mismo porcentaje de producción. Esta reunión dio insumos para elaborar el cuarto boletín agroclimático de la mesa en el año y con la cual se cerraron las actividades de la mesa. Más detalles de la reunión se pueden leer en la ayuda memoria y boletín agroclimático compartido con actores de la mesa, CCAFS y CATIE.Como parte del interés que ha generado la MTA Chiquimula a nivel nacional (Guatemala) y el proceso de escalonamiento de las acciones realizadas, el 22 de noviembre representantes de la mesa se reunieron con personeros del Proyecto Agricultura, Agua y Suelo de CRS Guatemala. Indicaron que CRS está interesado en conocer el accionar de la mesa e involucrarse dado a que ejecutan diferentes tipos de proyectos de adaptación al cambio climático, entre estos proyectos de emergencia de respuesta a sequía, en donde conocer información climática local es estratégico. CRS de igual manera realizaba un diagnostico post sequía en los departamentos de Jalapa, Progreso y Chiquimula e indaga sobre acciones a corto y mediano plazo que puedan promocionarse en el territorio. Un acuerdo de la reunión fue invitarles a las reuniones de la mesa durante el 2019.Durante el año 2018 en los meses de agosto, septiembre y noviembre en los departamentos de Chiquimula y Zacapa se desarrollaron tres congresos, dos de ellos relacionados a la agricultura climáticamente inteligente desarrollados por CUNORI-USAC-Facultad de Agronomía y el segundo por la Universidad Rafael Landívar -Facultad de Agronomía; el tercer evento fue el III Congreso Nacional de Cambio Climático de Guatemala realizado en Chiquimula y organizado por diferentes actores a nivel nacional, encabezado por el Ministerio de Ambiente y Recursos Naturales de Guatemala y la Mancomunidad Copanch'orti. En estos espacios fue compartida la experiencia de las Mesas Técnicas Agroclimáticas en A.L. y especialmente la experiencia de la MTA Chiquimula. Es importante mencionar que la charla sobre la MTA Chiquimula en el marco del congreso nacional de cambio climático fue muy relevante por el nivel de interés que mostro la experiencia entre los participantes.Las actividades de fortalecimiento de capacidades y experimentación con las familias integrantes de la ECA multitemas, multirubros con énfasis agroclimática en la comunidad La Prensa, en el TeSAC Olopa, continuaron durante los meses de julio a diciembre, este seguimiento se dio en el marco del convenio local CATIE-CCAFS con la Mancomunidad Copanch'orti -MCC-en 2018. Se realizaron una serie de talleres de capacitación, visitas de asistencia técnica y giras de intercambio comunitario que dieron cumplimiento a la curricula diseñada para la ECA.El seguimiento proporcionado por el facilitador de la ECA estuvo enfocado a la implementación de prácticas sostenibles adaptadas al clima en las unidades productivas de patio, finca y huerto comunitario de las familias integrantes de la ECA. Dando seguimiento principalmente a las prácticas en campo como, -Producción de hortalizas nativas e introducidas, chaya, yuca y gandul en huerto comunitario. -Cosecha de agua lluvia en huerto comunitario, -Seguimiento al establecimiento de especies leñosas como madrecacao, cedro y chacte en cercas vivas, manejo de sombra de café, sistema agroforestal kuxu rum. -Seguimiento a parcela semillera de frijol de 400mts 2 sembrada con la semilla frijol negro de la línea mejorada SEQ 342-89 cosechada en el mes de abril de la parcela de evaluación de siete variedades de frijol negro producidas por Zamorano, Honduras y proporcionadas por Bioversity International y CATIE en proyecto Prueba 3. La producción de esta semilla seria repartida en el mes de enero entre los integrantes de la ECA. -Seguimiento técnico a las parcelas de frijol de los integrantes de la ECA agroclimática que decidieron con base a las perspectivas climáticas de agosto-octubre, sembrar la variedad ICTA Ligero (variedad precoz). -Capacitación, instalación y seguimiento de 23 estufas ahorradoras de leña entregadas a igual cantidad de familias en la ECA de la Prensa Olopa, estufas donadas por la Oficina de Plan Trifinio Guatemala a CATIE. -Instalación y seguimiento al registro de información climática de siete estaciones meteorológicas de bajo costo instaladas con igual cantidad de familias, dos de ellas ubicadas en la comunidad de la Prensa, con familias de la ECA y 5 más en comunidades del TeSAC Olopa como Guayabo Tercer Caserío, Tuticopote El Bendito, Tituque Tishmuntique, Nochan y El Rodeo Valle Nuevo.Se realizaron tres talleres PICSA con la ECA de La Prensa en Olopa en el período abriljunio como parte del ciclo de primera y un taller más durante el mes de agosto, en total fueron cuatro talleres PICSA en el año. El objetivo principal fue implementar los pasos metodológicos A a la L sugeridos en la herramienta PICSA y en el manual. Participaron un promedio de 29 representantes de familias por evento integrantes de la escuela de campo e integrantes de grupos liderados por MAGA como los Centros de Aprendizaje de Desarrollo Rural -CADER-. Del total de participantes en los talleres PICSA solo el 3.4% estuvo presente en los cuatro talleres, el 41.3% en tres talleres, el 20.7% en dos talleres y 34.48% de las familias participo en un taller. Eso se explica por la condición de jornaleros que tienen la mayoría de familias integrantes de la ECA, quienes deben trabajar durante el día para llevar ingresos y comida a la casa, lo que imposibilita en algunas temporadas del año, tener un grupo de familias permanentes en las diferentes capacitaciones de una ECA. La facilitación de los talleres estuvo a cargo de personal CATIE en Trifinio, facilitador de la ECA y en tres eventos se contó con el apoyo de la pasante de PhD. Liliana Paz de Unicauca. Para cada uno de los talleres realizados se Foto 1. Instalación de estufas ahorradoras de leña con familias ECA La Prensa, TeSAC Olopa. Julio 2008 preparó una ayuda memoria. En el cuadro 1 se presenta información resumida de los talleres PICSA.Como lecciones aprendidas durante el desarrollo de la herramienta PICSA se pudo determinar el interés de las familias por conocer la información climática local, este proceso fue fortalecido cuando se instalaron las estaciones meteorológicas de bajo costo, las familias a cargo de las estaciones se apropiaron del proceso de registro de información climática y lo comunicaban abiertamente a sus vecinos dentro y fuera de la escuela de campo. Sin embargo, las limitaciones y condiciones de familias analfabetas y con cierto grado de desnutrición crónica impidieron que se familiarizaran con todos los pasos propuestos en PICSA. Los pronósticos es sumamente difícil de manejar y de hacer entender a este tipo de familias. Esta información se puede ampliar con las ayuda memoria compartidas para cada uno de los talleres realizados.Cuadro 2. Sesión/Taller 4: El pronóstico estacional e identificar y seleccionar posibles respuestas al pronóstico de la segunda temporada de lluvias en el TeSAC Olopa (paso H, I del Manual PICSA) La Prensa, Olopa, GT.13/08/2018 6 2 8Con la elaboración del 3er. Boletín agroclimático de la MTA Chiquimula después de la IV reunión de la MTA se procedió a realizar el taller No. 4 para dar a conocer pronostico estacional (agosto-octubre) e identificación de opciones al pronóstico estacional. La participación de las familias (8) en este taller fue débil, la mayoría se encontraba realizando labores de preparación de terrenos para establecer la siembra de segunda (normalmente frijol). Esto se corrigió con una reunión del facilitador con la ECA a nivel de huerto comunitario donde se dieron a conocer nuevamente las perspectivas climáticas. En este momento las familias identificaron que para evitar problemas de perdida de cosecha de frijol por el anuncio de la salida temprana de las temporadas de lluvia en el territorio (pronosticada para el 15 de octubre), tomaron la decisión de sembrar una variedad de frijol negro precoz (ICTA Ligero), variedad que adelanta su producción en por lo menos 18 días, comparadas con las variedades locales. La medida fue muy pertinente debido a que las 23 familias de la ECA cosecharon frijol y los vecinos de la comunidad con variedades locales sufrieron una reducción drástica en la producción por falta de agua en la etapa fenológica de llenado de vaina y maduración.En este eje de trabajo, se planificaron 12 actividades y 11 entregables en el POA 2018. La mayoría de ellos previstos para el segundo semestre del año, que coincide con el periodo que abarca este informe. A pesar del contexto adverso que se ha vivido en Nicaragua en los últimos 8 meses, se completaron alrededor del 75% de las acciones y entregables planificados. Se completó la negociación y la implementación de convenio con un socio local para las acciones con las ECAs; se completaron y se documentaron los eventos de evaluación 2017-2018 con familias integrantes de las ECAs; se preparó y se implementó un plan de contenidos para las acciones de capacitación colectiva, la validación de PICSA, y los planes de asistencia técnica para el 2018, el cual culminó con un evento de cierre con los grupos atendidos de manera conjunta con Nitlapan/UCA; Se completó un intercambio comunitario para compartir las experiencias de familias integrantes de ECAs Agroclimáticas 2017-2018 (en 2 comunidades del TeSAC), con 4 de las 5 comunidades restantes de este territorio; Se documentó toda la experiencia de validación de PICSA en las acciones con familias productoras del TeSAC y se preparó un dossier metodológico que se compartió y se capacitó a personal técnico y promotores rurales de 5 organizaciones que trabajan en este territorio para el posible escalamiento de esta herramienta; se instalaron 8 mini equipos y se capacitó a igual número de familias que habitan en las 7 comunidades del TeSAC para el monitoreo climático de precipitaciones y temperaturas máximas y mínimas; y se inició la inducción de un proceso para impulsar la creación de una MTA local con la participación de personal técnico que labora para instituciones u organizaciones que conforman el Comité de Manejo Colaborativo del Macizo de Peñas Blancas que incide y promueve la articulación de acciones con el enfoque de gestión territorial para los municipios de El Tuma -La Dalia, Rancho Grande y el Cuá (ver detalles en anexo 1).Hubo muy pocos avances en las acciones planificadas para el trabajo con gobiernos locales e instituciones públicas para compartir aprendizajes y resultados del trabajo realizado en el TeSAC en los últimos 3 años y la gestión de nuevos proyectos en conjunto con socios locales o nacionales.Se desarrolló una gira de intercambio entre productores de comunidades del TeSAC Olopa, Nochan, Guayabo Tercer Caserío, Tituque Tishmuntique, Tuticopote el Bendito a la ECA de La Prensa, Olopa. Participaron 12 familias quienes se trasladaron hasta La Prensa, donde fueron recibidas por las 23 familias integrantes de la ECA Agroclimática. Durante el proceso se hicieron 4 estaciones donde se realizaron los intercambios de conocimientos y aprendizajes. El objetivo fue mostrar el proceso de registro de información climática local, funcionamiento de las estufas ahorradoras de leña, la producción de alimentos en el huerto comunitario con cosecha de agua lluvia, conocer la experiencia en la producción de frijol negro al sembrar una variedad precoz para minimizar los efectos de la salida temprana de la temporada de lluvias y la experiencia del grupo evaluando y produciendo semilla de frijol de líneas o variedades mejoradas. La gira de intercambio comunitario se realizó el 15 de noviembre del 2018.En los párrafos anteriores se describieron los detalles de los talleres de capacitación que se dieron a técnicos, extensionistas, facilitadores y promotores rurales que forman parte de MAGA, MARN, ANACAFE, PMA, ACH, PROGRESAN SICA, CUNORI, ASOCIACION SANTIAGO DE JOCOTAN, con quienes se socializo, capacito y compartieron los manuales de la herramienta PICSA para que sea utilizada, específicamente en el análisis de información climática con familias rurales.Como resultado de varias reuniones sostenidas entre funcionarios de la Gerencia Técnica Trinacional del Plan Trifinio, FUNDE, ATRIDEST Guatemala y CATIE-CCAFS en Esquipulas Guatemala, surge el acuerdo de promover dentro del plan maestro de la CTPT una mesa técnica en agricultura climáticamente inteligente. Se tomaron acuerdos de impulsar dentro del plan maestro el tema de la \"Agricultura Familiar Adaptada al Clima\" término que sustituyo la iniciativa de promover agroecología pura dentro del plan. Un documento con los lineamientos generales para impulsar este tema fue elaborado por FUNDE con aportes de CATIE Trifinio. Estos lineamientos toman grandes estrategias centro americanas sobre las cuales se puede respaldar el impulso de esta iniciativa: a. Estrategia ASAC para Centro América y b. La ECADERT ambas impulsadas por la SECAC. El proceso de negociación e inclusión dentro del plan maestro se detuvo en los últimos meses del 2018 por los diferentes cambios políticos surgidos a lo interno de la CTPT, quedando pendiente su reactivación durante el 2019. Una copia del documento \"Lineamientos básicos para impulsar la AFAC\" se comparte en los anexos de este informe.Se instalaron siete estaciones meteorológicas de bajo costo en las comunidades del TeSAC Olopa con igual cantidad de familias. Dos de ellas están instaladas con dos familias integrantes de la ECA Agroclimática de la Prensa Olopa. A todas las familias se les capacito sobre el uso e interpretación de los datos del termómetro de máximas y mínimas, y el pluviómetro plástico. El formato de registro de la información climática fue proporcionado y el facilitador de la ECA estuvo revisando y comparando datos entre estaciones. Las estaciones se instalaron desde el mes de julio en la Prensa y en septiembre en las otras comunidades. En el cuadro 3 se puede observar el listado de personas donde se instalaron las estaciones y la comunidad del TeSAC Olopa. No hubieron avances con el gobierno local del TeSAC Olopa en revisar sus instrumentos de planificación y gestión para la incorporación de los aprendizajes desarrollados en las comunidades del TeSAC, la Mancomunidad Copanch'orti (socio local) y por medio de quien llegaríamos a incidir en este tema, sufrió cambios políticos importantes en su estructura organizativa que desestabilizaron los posibles procesos de incidencia a este nivel. Sin embargo, como se describió anteriormente se trató de incidir en el Plan Maestro de la Comisión Trinacional del Plan Trifinio por medio de la propuesta de impulsar la estrategia centro americana de agricultura sostenible adaptada al clima. Es un proceso que se puede retomar en 2019 ya con las nuevas autoridades de la comisión ejerciendo sus funciones.Durante el 2018 un contacto de CIAT-Agroclimas con un socio internacional y con fuertes vínculos con INSIVUMEH, abrió las puertas para que esta institución nacional escuchara los planes de la alianza CCAFS-CATIE para fortalecer una iniciativa local de información meteorológica en el departamento de Chiquimula y convertirla en una Mesa Técnica Agroclimática, de esa cuenta desde el 14 de marzo del 2018 el INSIVUMEH se sumó al esfuerzo de fortalecer la MTA de Chiquimula. Sin embargo, no se avanzó entre el personal de CIAT-CATIE-INSIVUMEH en la definición y firma de un convenio que garantizara la alianza y la permanencia del instituto meteorológico en la MTA, se sugiere que esta acción pueda concretarse en el 2019 para garantizar la continuidad e intercambios de información climática con INSIVUMEH.Pese a que no se cuenta con evidencia clara, en el interior de la MTA Chiquimula fue posible identificar el interés que algunos de los actores involucrados como ACH, PMA, MCC, Fundación Cofiño, ASORECH, retomarían información generada en la MTA como el funcionamiento de la mesa para instalar una similar en el departamento de Zacapa (MCC), hasta citar en sus planes operativos el depender de boletines agroclimáticos generados para promover varias medidas de adaptación con las familias rurales que estos atienden. Por otra parte, con el Sistema de Información Territorial Trinacional -SINTET-se realizaron acuerdos verbales para poder modificar el observatorio TCI dentro del portal y poder colocar la información generada en la MTA. La firma de acuerdos con estas plataformas no fue posible durante el año.Las oportunidades para hacer gestión conjunta con actores locales en la región Trifinio donde se encuentra ubicada el TeSAC Olopa fueron limitadas, en el territorio aún no se percibe en las principales plataformas y actores territoriales apertura para formular y gestionar conjuntamente fondos para el impulso de agricultura climáticamente inteligente, de esa cuenta no fue posible gestionar ninguna propuesta para obtener fondos que permitan fortalecer y escalonar los aprendizajes en el TeSAC.Entre las acciones a destacar para este periodo se pueden señalar las siguientes:-En agosto se entregó nuevamente semilla de frijol fortificada de la variedad SMR -100 a 170 familias de todas las comunidades del TeSAC, con ello se completó la entrega de más de 30 quintales de este tipo de semillas a 316 familias en total para los ciclos de primera (SMR-88 -146 familias) y para la postrera del 2018. Como resultado de esa iniciativa, el técnico del socio local reportaba el inicio de \"pase en cadena\" de al menos un 20% de las familias beneficiarias iniciales en el TeSAC como parte del compromiso adquirido al recibir estos materiales.-Como parte de las acciones de investigación en el TeSAC en conjunto con CIAT-Nicaragua se logró el establecimiento de parcelas de pastos mejoradas con 3 familias ganaderas del TeSAC y se completó el muestreo de suelos en 100 fincas del territorio en cultivos como café, cacao y ganadería.-Se instalaron y entregaron 23 estufas ahorradoras de leña -eco fogones-a igual cantidad de familias en la ECA agroclimática de la Prensa Olopa. La donación fue parte de la comisión Trifinio y complementados con fondos de la alianza CCAFS-CATIE 2018 en Trifinio. 15 estufas fueron entregadas por Trifinio y 8 con fondos del convenio CCAFS-CATIE 2018.-Se apoyó a personal de CIAT-CCAFS en un taller para la validación de una herramienta de análisis económico de prácticas ASAC con familias rurales. Respecto a este punto, dada la imposibilidad de organizar una MTA con el liderazgo de la institución pública que tiene el mandato sobre el manejo y divulgación de información climática, únicamente podemos reportar las posibilidades de escalamiento de esta iniciativa desde las expectativas y compromisos mencionados por el personal técnico y promotor de organizaciones que participaron en taller PICSA en noviembre. Abajo los temas de más interés para replica mencionados los participantes.-Elaboración de calendario climático -Elaboración del calendario agroclimático (4 participantes) -Mapa de asignación de recursos (5 participantes) -Complementar el plan de finca promovido desde sus organizaciones con el mapa de asignación de recursos -Análisis de información climática (comportamiento de la precipitación durante los últimos años) -Análisis de datos recolectados en mini estaciones climáticas comunitarias -Análisis de vulnerabilidad (3 participantes) -Homologación de conceptos relacionados con el tema de CC) -Análisis de los efectos del pronóstico climático sobre las principales actividades agropecuarias de la comunidad e identificación y selección de posibles acciones como respuesta al pronóstico estacional -Análisis ¿Cómo afectó el comportamiento del clima las actividades productivas en la finca? -Interpretaciones de pronósticos estacionales y su uso en la planificación de la agricultura (2 participantes)Apoyo socios locales julio -noviembre En taller de entrenamiento PICSA con técnicos y promotores se les entregó en físico y digital: manual PICSA; compendio de guías técnicas donde se recoge la experiencia de Nicaragua para aplicar esta herramienta (4 sesiones de trabajo) y dos sesiones introductorias (Homologación de conceptos y Análisis de vulnerabilidad); y literatura digital complementaria relacionada con estos temas.II. Implementación de la metodología PICSA en Guatemala en el marco de la Mesa Técnia Agroclimática de Chiquimula. Solo se desarrolló un taller de capacitación sobre la aplicación de la herramienta PICSA con familias. En ella se entregaron los materiales técnicos y la información metodológica para promover una mejor capacidad de adaptación de familias productoras mediante el enfoque de los TeSAC y el uso de la herramienta PICSA.Se desarrollaron talleres de capacitación en el uso de la herramienta PICSA a 31 técnicos vinculados a las organizaciones participantes en la MTA Chiquimula y 14 promotores de la Asociación Santiago de Jocotán a todos se les entregaron manuales PICSA impresos y la versión digital solicitada por los responsables de estas organizaciones para entregar a otros técnicos y promotores.Revisar instrumentos de planificación y gestión de los gobiernos locales para contribuir con el desarrollo local e identificar donde pueden incorporarse los aprendizajes y herramientas generados en los TeSAC; Compartir evidencias, metodologías y aprendizajes generados en los TeSAC con gobiernos municipales y discutir su posible utilización en sus planes estratégicos; Apoyar y documentar la integración de aprendizajes y herramientas desarrollados en los TeSAC en los planes estratégicos de los gobiernos municipales; Documento que reporte sobre la armonización y articulación de 5 acciones/estrategias de desarrollo municipal con los productos generados en los TeSAC noviembre, 15 N/A En el caso concreto de Nicaragua, los acontecimientos socio políticos que se viven desde el pasado mes de abril del 2018, lo hacen una misión imposible.Prácticamente desde la fecha indicada, para CATIE y probablemente para la mayoría de las organizaciones con similares roles y acciones, este tipo de acciones ya no han prosperado a nivel nacional.Esta acción no pudo ser desarrollada con el gobierno municipal de Olopa, la Mancomunidad Copanch'orti era el medio para llegar a incidir y fue un año inestable para ellos, la presidencia de la MCC estuvo paralizada prácticamente el primer semestre del año. Con la CTPT se inició un trabajo para incidir en su \"Plan Maestro\" junto a FUNDE, ATRIDEST GT, GTT y CCAFS-CATIE, se escribió un documento con lineamientos generales para darle vida a la estrategia ASAC dentro del plan Maestro. El proceso no se pudo completar en 2018 por los cambios de Secretario Ejecutivo y Gerente Técnico de la CTPT 7 Selección de comunidades y familias donde se instalarán las estaciones meteorológicas; Definir protocolos de observación y registro de información; Capacitación de familias y socios locales en el registro de información en campo; completar compra de equipos en los TeSAC Instalar y dar seguimiento a estaciones meteorológicas de bajo costo en hogares de los TeSAC El cambio climático agrava aún más las condiciones de vida en la región, ocasiona efectos negativos en la producción agropecuaria y en los bienes naturales en general, lo que afecta principalmente la vida de las comunidades rurales. El fenómeno El niño-niña ha golpeado la vida de algunas comunidades de la región, las sequías recurrentes impactan muy fuerte en algunas regiones del área Trifinio.Otros efectos observados del cambio climático incluyen: la reducción en la producción hidrológica, erosión de los suelos, deterioro de los ecosistemas con sus consecuencias en la biodiversidad, y el deterioro en los medios de vida en general de las poblaciones rurales de la región.La situación descrita, motiva la necesidad de desarrollar, con urgencia, acciones de adaptación de la agricultura familiar a condiciones climáticas adversas en la región. Ello requerirá de una estrecha armonización y coordinación de acciones orientadas a proteger los suelos y las fuentes hídricas, poner paro a la deforestación, proteger los ecosistemas y su biodiversidad de incluso, la actualización y/o diseño de políticas locales y nacionales.La institucionalidad y el tejido social y empresarial de la región Trifinio, realizaron el 1er Foro Trinacional: denominado \"Acciones para la adaptación al cambio climático en la región Trifinio\", los días 20 y 21 de julio de 2017. Esta actividad generó conclusiones importantes para la gestión sostenible de los sistemas agro-productivos y de los procesos de desarrollo del territorio en respuesta a los impactos negativos del cambio climático en la región. Entre las principales conclusiones de ese Foro se identifican las siguientes: 1) elaborar una política de adaptación frente al cambio climático; 2) fortalecer los espacios y mecanismos de articulación interinstitucional que permita ampliar y fortalecer los planes de acción frente al cambio climático; 3) fortalecer las acciones de gestión responsable y sostenible de los recursos naturales en la región; entre otras.Durante los días 15 y 16 de febrero de 2018 se realizó un encuentro sobre gestión ambiental, agroecología y recursos naturales, en el que participaron agricultores ecológicos, instituciones de apoyo técnico y unidades ambientales municipales. El encuentro se realizó en seguimiento a los acuerdos del 1er Foro Trinacional: \"Acciones para la adaptación al cambio climático en la región Trifinio\", realizado los días 20 y 21 de julio de 2017. El desarrollo del encuentro permitió conocer experiencias y prácticas de gestión ambiental relacionadas a la restauración y conservación de bosques, gestión de recursos hídricos, y de desarrollo de agricultura ecológica y orgánica, y otros temas de interés ambiental, a partir de lo cual, los participantes generaron conclusiones como las siguientes.▪ Fomentar acciones de organización, capacitación e intercambio de experiencias en temas de agricultura ecológica y gestión ambiental. ▪ Identificar opciones para generar oportunidades de fortalecimiento de servicios de asistencia técnica y financiera para potenciar la agricultura ecológica. ▪ Valoración de los servicios eco-sistémicos existentes en la región. ▪ Caracterización biofísica y socioeconómica de las zonas de recarga hídrica. ▪ Ampliar y fortalecer conocimientos por medio de visitas a experiencias de agroecología exitosas y gestión ambiental exitosas. ▪ Realizar cursos y talleres de capacitación y giras de conocimiento. ▪ Establecer y fortalecer mesas de promoción y gestión para la adaptación al cambio climático en la región.La Comisión Trinacional del Plan Trifinio acordó en su reunión de octubre de 2017, elaborar un plan estratégico que guie y oriente las acciones de desarrollo de la región Trifinio, denominado Plan Maestro. En este marco es de trascendental importancia integrar líneas de acción orientadas a promover de manera prioritaria, la Agricultura Familiar Adaptada al Clima, como medio para garantizar la Seguridad Alimentaria en la región.Instrumentos de política y estrategia en los que se podría enmarcar las acciones de agricultura familiar adaptada al clima y la seguridad alimentaria en el Trifinio.El plan de acción se basará en cuatro (4) instrumentos de política que se vinculan estrechamente con la agricultura familiar adaptada al clima Trifinio.El Plan Maestro (en proceso de formulación), será el instrumento de política que guiará las acciones de trabajo y desarrollo de la región Trifinio durante los próximos años. Por lo tanto, se debe buscar que este plan integre temas calves y estratégicos para la región, como lo son la agricultura familiar y la seguridad alimentaria, la gestión responsable y sostenible de los recursos naturales, (agua, suelo, bosques y biodiversidad). El Plan Maestro presenta una buena oportunidad para avanzar con mayor profundidad, en el desarrollo de acciones de promoción y desarrollo de la Agricultura Familiar Adaptada al Clima en la región.La Estrategia de Agricultura Sostenible Adaptada al Clima es un instrumento que busca promover e impulsar el desarrollo de sistemas agro productivos resilientes al cambio climático y está a disposición de los gobiernos y las organizaciones de agricultores para ser implementada en los países y territorios de Centroamérica. CCAFS y CATIE cuentan con experiencia en la implementación de la ASAC en algunas zonas del Trifinio, experiencia que puede ser implementada a mayor escala en toda la región.Es una estrategia adoptada por los Ministerios de Agricultura de Centroamérica; es en consecuencia, un instrumento oficial de los gobiernos de Centroamérica, cuya implementación ha delegada a la Secretaria Ejecutiva del Consejo Agropecuario Centroamericano (SECAC), del Sistema de Integración Centroamericana (SICA)La ASAC es un instrumento técnico-político que brinda un amplio marco para la promoción y desarrollo de la agricultura. Se constituye en un instrumento que brinda un amplio marco para desarrollar sistemas de agricultura sostenible en condiciones climáticas adversas.Por otra parte, una apreciada cantidad de instrumentos y experiencias en procesos de planificación en materia de ASAC, han sido puestos a prueba por el CCAFS y CATIE. La agroecología, la agricultura convencional, el uso y conservación de los recursos naturales (agua, suelo, bosques, biodiversidad), y la gestión de reducción de riesgo de desastres son parte integrante de la de la ASAC.La ECADERT integra líneas y estrategias que deben ser consideradas y servir de orientación para el diseño de las acciones de promoción de la agricultura familiar adaptada al clima en la región. Ente otras, la ECADERT reconoce la necesidad de promover los procesos de desarrollo territorial teniendo en consideración, orientaciones tales como las siguientes:▪ Desarrollo centrado en las personas ▪ Incluye la diversidad social y cultural ▪ Enfoque integral y sistémico del desarrollo de los territorios ▪ Los actores deben planificar y actuar con visión de futuro y de largo plazo ▪ Los gobiernos nacionales deben invertir en los territorios ▪ El desarrollo es posible mediante la actuación integrada/articulada de los gobiernos nacionales y locales ▪ Desarrollo de sistemas productivos amigables con el ambiente, protegiendo y conservando los recursos naturales ▪ Armonizar las políticas públicas nacionales con las apuestas de desarrollo de los territorios.Los ODS son la apuesta del sistema de Naciones Unidades y otras instituciones de cooperación para los próximos 30 años, por lo que los lineamientos para la promoción de la agricultura familia adaptada al clima y la seguridad alimentaria en la región Trifinio, deben integrar acciones orientadas a brindar una cooperación importante para el logro de dichos objetivos.Algunas orientaciones iniciales a considerar e integrar como parte de la estrategia de promoción de la agricultura familiar adaptada al clima y la seguridad alimentaria en el Trifinio ▪ La iniciativa de promover la agricultura familiar adaptada al clima y la seguridad alimentaria en el Trifinio debe hacerse en el marco de las acciones y proyección de la Comisión Trinacional del Trifinio.▪ Esta iniciativa parte y se proyecta a partir de las experiencias de agricultura sostenible que han desarrollado el CATIE por medio del Programa Agroambiental Mesoamericano (CATIE/MAP) el Programa Bosques y Agua, el Programa Trinacional de Café Especial Sostenible (PROTCAFE), el Programa de Investigación del CGIAR en Cambio Climático Agricultura y Seguridad Alimentaria (CCAFS-CATIE) y otras instituciones en la región relacionadas al tema, considerando las realidades sociales, territoriales, políticas, y ambientales existentes.▪ Es necesario inducir e involucrar a las organizaciones de agricultores, de mujeres de jóvenes, unidades ambientales municipales, juntas de agua, instituciones públicas nacionales y ONG, en el proceso de promoción de la iniciativa en la región.▪ Se debe hacer esfuerzo especial en la promoción y creación de condiciones de diálogo y entendimiento entre todas las instituciones que brindan apoyo técnico en materia de agricultura familiar adaptada al clima y construir un sistema integrado de cooperación y acción conjunta.▪ Es necesario tener en consideración que las organizaciones de base de agricultores tienen bajo nivel técnico, agro-productivo, y de gestión administrativa de sus unidades agro-productivas.▪ Será necesario sensibilizar a agricultores, técnicos y funcionarios públicos sobre la urgente necesidad de trascender de la agricultura convencional a una agricultura ecológica y sostenible. El gran reto es el cambio de paradigmas y esquemas que trasciendan de una agricultura de subsistencia a una agricultura más productiva y sostenible que rehabilite los suelos y garantice la seguridad alimentaria de las familias rurales de la región.▪ Integrar las instituciones públicas nacionales, gobiernos locales, organizaciones de cooperación, ONG y agricultores en una visión y estrategia de acción conjunta en búsqueda de lograr el desarrollo exitoso y sostenible de las acciones a desarrollar.▪ Incidir en las políticas públicas y la asignación de presupuestarios y técnicos que incentiven y faciliten la implementación y desarrollo de esta iniciativa en en la región Trifinio.Actividades iniciales a desarrollar (Septiembre-Diciembre de 2018)▪ Constituir un Grupo de Apoyo Técnico con participación de instituciones que tienen disponibilidad de participar y apoyar la promoción de la agricultura familiar adaptada al clima y la seguridad alimentaria en la región, el cual será coordinado por la Gerencia Técnica Trinacional del Plan Trifinio. ▪ Formular un marco conceptual sobre la necesidad de trascender de los sistemas actuales de agricultura familiar convencional, hacia la construcción y desarrollo de sistemas de agricultura familiar apartada al clima y de seguridad alimentaria en la región. ▪ Realizar un taller con el propósito de conocer las experiencias de agricultura sostenible desarrolladas en el Trifinio. En este taller se invitará a instituciones y agricultores protagonistas de las experiencias desarrolladas. ▪ Formular una propuesta de lineamientos básicos para la promoción de la agricultura familiar y la seguridad alimentaria con el propósito de aportar al diseño del Plan Maestro de Desarrollo del Trifinio. ▪ Organizar una reunión con funcionarios y técnicos de instituciones públicas, organismos intergubernamentales (FAO, IICA, FIDA) ONG, Universidades vinculadas al Trifinio y otras, para compartir las proyecciones de promoción de la agricultura familiar adaptada al clima y la seguridad alimentaria en el Trifinio. En esta reunión invitará a las entidades participantes, a conformar la Mesa de Agricultura Familiar y Seguridad Alimentaria de la región Trifinio. ","tokenCount":"8635"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"b1c1ed2bb867bd24714ce2d3f6a83c76","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/a3823365-8548-4c64-ad13-4dfca9e5e2de/retrieve","id":"1552225930"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"196fa164-65b3-4479-b4b2-281ebf0d26fa","pagecount":"4","content":"Farmers celebrating their cassava from a demonstration plot On-farm demonstrations in Ogun state, Nigeria under the IITA Cassava Weed Management Project have produced average yields of 27 tons per hectare surpassing the national average of about 8 tons/ha.The demos were conducted in 2016 in the three senatorial districts of Ogun states using an integrated weed control package developed by the IITA-CWMP.Presenting the results during the Joint Quarterly Review Meeting of the project in Abeokuta, Dr Patience Olorunmaiye, a scientist at the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta (FUNAAB), said the yield from the demonstration plots were impressive and a proof of concept that if farmers adopted improved weed management practices, they would be better off.The highest yield from the demonstration farms was 32 tons/ha with 96 percent of the demonstration farms recording more than 20 tons/ha. Prof Friday Ekeleme, Principal Investigator of the IITA-CWMP said the results clearly show that weeds were a major factor limiting the potential of cassava in Africa.In the last four years, the IITA-CWMP with funds from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation made a bold decision to unravel the puzzle of weeds menace in cassava.Working with a coalition of partners including the Federal University of Agriculture Abeokuta, University of Agriculture Makurdi, the National Root Crops Research Institute, and extension partners, the team set up trials in the three agroecological zones of the country including the humid forest, derived savannah and the southern guinea savannah. These trials led to the selection of safe and environmentally friendly herbicides with other agronomic practices that formed the package that was used in setting up the demos in Ogun and other states of Nigeria (Abia, Benue, and Oyo). Results from the other states are also being compiled for analysis.Prof. Ekeleme said the results from Ogun state was a thing of joy not only to the project team but also to the country at large. He said the results indicated that the project was achieving one of its major objectives, which is to double the national average yield of cassava, generate wealth, and reduce the burden of weeding in cassava farming systems.Grown by over 3 million people in Nigeria, cassava is a major staple contributing to food security and wealth of the nation. Although Nigeria is a major producer of the root crop accounting for over 54 million tons per annum, average yield per ha is low with weeds being fingered as a major block.Researchers say farmers cannot grow cassava more than they can weed-a situation that limits farm size and subject farmers to perpetual penury.Dr Alfred Dixon, a director with IITA and Project Leader for IITA-CWMP said the project would help Nigeria change the narrative of cassava production.He called on the government of Nigeria to partner IITA in scaling up the findings of the project to millions of cassava farmers for national development and poverty reduction.Improved weed control help farmers to record 27tons/ha from on-farm demonstration farms The training introduced participants to proper sampling procedures and handling of soil and plant samples. It emphasized the importance of recording sample mass data in the field and correct packaging before analysis. The latter being of importance to avoid contamination of samples, as it would compromise the integrity of data.The trainees were also introduced to equipment used for plant and soil analysis, especially equipment currently in use in the IITA-ACAI project research and experimental activities.In his remarks after the training, Dr. Hauser highlighted the need to have technicians and students well trained and equipped to take, handle, store, and prepare samples for analyses, with a keen emphasis on adhering to protocols. He noted that some students in the field do not use proper equipment and in some cases equipment used are not calibrated. A large portion of the training was interactive with practical demonstrations addressing the specific concerns, problems and challenges technicians and students encounter in the field and in laboratories. Several specific problems were addressed with hands-on exercises and data analyses to demonstrate the errors caused by deviating from the protocol procedures.In a feedback session, participants said their knowledge and skills in soil sampling had been significantly improved, citing the practical sessions as being particularly effective in helping them understand the processes.For Akinsumbo Olayinka, an MSc student at FUNAAB, the training session demystified the previously complex soil sampling procedures into a task he can now handle with confidence.\"The field sessions where we actually did what we had discussed about soil sampling and harvesting as well as labelling were to me very useful because it was practical, \" he said.The workshop is part of the IITA-ACAI's objective to build the capacity of NARS and partners in relevant skillsets that augment agronomy within host countries.A training manual authored by researchers working under the IITA-Cassava Weed Management Project has been well received by farmers with more than 440 farmers downloading the publication from the web in the last one month.The 29-page document details how weeds can be controlled in cassava using a combination of mechanical, cultural and environmentally friendly herbicides. The publication is a product of four-year work by researchers from IITA, Federal Universities of Agriculture Abeokuta, University of Agriculture Makurdi, and the National Root Crops Research Institute, Umudike.Dr. Alfred Dixon, Project Leader of the Cassava Weed Management Project said the simple style used in capturing the information in the publication made the manual a choice material for every practicing and would-be farmer.Godwin Atser, Communication and Knowledge Exchange Expert, who led the publication observed that the aim was to present research findings to the public in simple everyday language that would make farmers to adopt practices and recommendations in weed management.For farmer Olufemi Yerokun, the publication would go a long way as a standard reference for weed management in cassava production systems. Yet, farmer El Farouk commended the team for producing the publication, adding that \"even an amateur would benefit so much from the clarity and extensive research.The Executive Director for Dominican Center for Human Resources Development (DCHRD), Fr Fortunatus Okeke noted that with the publication, \"the question of the impact of IITA research results on rural and small farmers is enhanced by this master piece. \"The DCHRD has downloaded copies of the publication and is using them in training farmers on weed management.As part of the project's planned dissemination strategy, the IITA-CWMP is sharing the publication electronically including via platforms such as WhatsApp, LinkedIn, and Facebook. A limited quantity is also being printed and shared to farmers during farmers' field days and other farmer meetings. ","tokenCount":"1080"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"29c7cf51ed53023f119b6501600fe977","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/26197e9d-651c-4742-ab83-7a4e4977af7f/retrieve","id":"-2001324046"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"25219e60-adb5-4b82-aa7e-c37fe4614db7","pagecount":"40","content":"This report has been produced as part of a series of preliminary papers to guide the long-term research agenda of the Pathways to Resilience in Semi-arid Economies (PRISE) project. PRISE is a five-year, multi-country research project that generates new knowledge about how economic development in semi-arid regions can be made more equitable and resilient to climate change.Figure 1 Mara study area, showing the MMNR, the surrounding group ranches and conservancies Pastoralism is a production system adapted to arid and semi-arid lands.Pastoralists have longstanding traditions and strategies of using resources, characterised by mobility, flexibility, adaptability and reciprocity. These strategies allow them to cope with the variability in rangeland resources and climate that is inherent in these systems. Although pastoralism has evolved to manage climate variability through mobility and risk-spreading strategies, the climate in East Africa is becoming increasingly variable and unpredictable. Climate change is expected to increase the frequency and severity of extreme events and shocks, such as droughts and floods (Field et al., 2014). Predictions for Kenya and Tanzania suggest significant increases in temperature and precipitation by 2065 (Nassef et al., 2009). It is expected that climate change, alongside powerful external forces such as land appropriation and conversion, will modify the way people cope with variability in their resources. These climatic changes are likely to require pastoralists to develop new adaptation, risk management and coping strategies.Furthermore, the effects of climate change are likely to compound those of other transformations going on in pastoral systems, including poverty, human and livestock population growth, conflict, competition for land and rangeland fragmentation (Behnke, 2008;Galvin, 2009). Economic, policy and institutional drivers cause fragmentation, resulting in land-use change, habitat modification and land subdivision. Fragmentation restricts access to resources and increases vulnerability to stresses and shocks. Climate change and fragmentation will interact with one another, such that increasing fragmentation will restrict the flexibility and mobility of pastoralists in the wake of more frequent floods and droughts on the rangelands.It is argued, however, that, despite the challenges climate change pose to pastoralists, pastoralism is a land use already adapted to variability in rainfall, and thus offers better adaptation potential than other competing land uses (Nori and Davies, 2007). Pastoralists have longstanding traditional strategies and strong social institutions for using resources and responding to climate variability. They use mobility to track variable and unpredictable resources and are thus better able to respond to and cope with drought. Mobile pastoralists do better than sedentary ones during drought, and are less likely to lose stock (Little et al., 2008). Facilitating mobility will thus help ensure continued resilience of pastoral livelihoods in a future changed climate. Resilient livelihoods will be those best able to cope with the increased climatic shocks in these systems.Diversification into viable alternative livelihoods is another way to spread risk and is likely to become increasingly important as climate changes. As fragmentation constrains mobility and access to key resources, pastoralists have to increasingly rely on non-livestock sources of income for their livelihoods. Diversification of pastoral livelihoods is widely observed across pastoralists in East Africa (Homewood et al., 2009;Kristjanson et al., 2002;Little et al., 2001). Diversification into tourism can be a useful option in areas with high wildlife abundance and high tourism potential. Tourism can provide an important source of income for pastoralists adjacent to protected areas. The wildlife-rich savannahs of East Africa are well suited to ecotourism development, with high densities of easy-to-view charismatic wildlife. The majority of Kenya's wildlife is within its arid and semi-arid lands, so pastoral lands are vital habitats for tourism. Pastoralists thus play an important role in maintaining these landscapes, wildlife populations and hotspots of biodiversity (Homewood, 2008;Nelson, 2012;Reid, 2012).There are thus synergies, and a level of compatibility, in combining pastoralism and tourism. However, there can also be trade-offs: tourism interventions may alter how pastoralists are able to access rangeland resources; wildlife may eat and destroy crops and injure, kill or transmit diseases to livestock or people. Benefits from tourism may thus be unable to compensate for the opportunity costs of living with wildlife and the loss of established livelihood activities (Ferraro, 2002;Norton-Griffiths and Southey, 1995). Furthermore, the negatives may become more marked in the context of climate change if resilient and flexible livelihoods become more important.There is also little evidence that tourism has benefited pastoralists: tourism incomes accruing to pastoralists have typically been small and few pastoralists derive their main income from tourism (DeLuca, 2004;Homewood et al., 2009;Sachedina, 2008). Moreover, tourism revenues tend to be inequitably distributed, with the wealthier and better-placed individuals capturing most revenues (Homewood et al., 2009;Thompson and Homewood, 2002). Benefits also tend to be spread unevenly along age, gender, educational, race and ethnic lines (DeLuca 2004). Furthermore, tourism can be a risky livelihood alternative to pastoralism, because it is sensitive to political instability, economic downturns, insecurity and epidemics.In Kenya, tourism is one of the top earners of foreign exchange, generating $1.1billion 1 in income in 2015 (KES 87 billion) (KNBS, 2015).Tourism is also an important contributor to Kenya's national gross domestic product (GDP) (World Bank, 2011). Sixty-five percent of Kenya's large mammal wildlife lives outside of formally protected areas, and within community and privately owned pastoral rangelands (Western et al., 2009). It is these areas that are becoming the increasing focus of many new conservation and tourism development initiatives.A growing number of wildlife conservancies are being set up on community and private pastoral lands with a long history of mixed livestock and wildlife use (Kaelo, 2013). Conservancies aim to offer incomes from tourism to local people while securing a habitat for wildlife and tourism. These incomes can be especially important during drought times, and the potential of 1 Exchange rate of US$1=KES80, as used in the rest of the paper.conservancies as a drought coping and risk mitigation strategy has been argued (Osano et al., 2013). However, although the extra source of revenue represents an important supplementary income, restrictions on land use that new tourism uses apply can create trade-offs as traditional livelihood activities are curtailed. This can affect the ability of pastoralists to access sufficient resources and maintain resilient livelihoods.Using as a case study the Mara in Kenya, where a number of wildlife conservancies now exist, this paper seeks to explore these trade-offs to understand how conservation and tourism may be enhancing or restricting climate-resilient pastoral livelihoods. It looks at the ability of conservancies to serve as an alternative livelihood opportunity for pastoralists that mitigates risk and maintains resilience in a changing climate. Specifically, the paper asks:• What is the contribution of conservancies to pastoral livelihoods relative to other livelihood activities?• How have household livestock grazing strategies been altered as a result of restrictions on livestock grazing within conservancies?• What is the impact of conservancies on livestock density, distribution and composition?The research helps elucidate the mechanisms through which pastoralists are managing their livestock herds to cope with shrinking pastoral ranges and reduce their vulnerability to drought and climate change risks. Results can inform better future conservation and tourism investments aimed at maintaining and enhancing pastoral resilience, as well as promoting wildlife conservation.The Mara comprises the Maasai Mara National Reserve (MMNR) and surrounding conservancies and group ranches (Figure 1). The MMNR (1,530 km 2 ) is a nationally protected area situated on the international border between Kenya and Tanzania's Serengeti National Park. The MMNR (latitudes 1º00′-2º00′ S and longitudes 34º45′-36º00′ E) has the highest density of wildlife in Kenya, many of which spill out into and graze in neighbouring conservancies and group ranch lands during the wet season. As well as supporting a number of resident wildlife species, the Mara area provides dry season grazing and permanent water for the migratory wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus), zebra (Equus quagga) andThomson's gazelle (Gazella thomsoni) as they move north from the Serengeti (Stelfox et al., 1986).The Mara has two rainy seasons, with the short rains occurring during November to December and the long rains from March to June. Often, the short and long rains merge into one season, or the short rains may fail completely. Mean annual rainfall increases from the drier south-east (877 mm/year) to the wetter northwest (1,341 mm/year) (Ogutu et al., 2011). In recent decades the Mara has experienced recurrent droughts, with particularly severe rainfall deficits occurring in 1984, 1993, 1999-2000, 2005-2006and 2008-2009(Ogutu et al., 2008;;2011).As in other rangeland areas in Kenya, the Mara is undergoing a transformation in land ownership from communal to individual landholdings. Government policies encouraged the privatisation and commercialisation of pastoral lands, driven by economic incentives to intensify livestock production. Group ranches were established in the 1970s and 1980s, which gave private title to groups of families. The expectation was that these would provide tenure security and thus create incentives for the Maasai to invest in range and breed improvement and reduce the tendency to accumulate large numbers of perceived low-quality indigenous breed livestock (Kimani and Pickard, 1998). Dissatisfaction with corrupt group ranch committees, dilution of individual shareholding as population size increased and a desire for security of tenure led group ranch members to push for the subdivision of group ranches (Homewood et al., 2004;Mwangi, 2007a;Seno and Shaw, 2002;Thompson and Homewood, 2002). In the Mara, many group ranches are now subdivided, with individual land parcels allocated to male group ranch members. In many areas, this has been a long and contentious process, fraught with conflict, inequality and land-grabbing (Homewood et al., 2004;Mwangi 2007b;Thompson and Homewood, 2002;Thompson et al., 2009).The Mara has long been a leader in Kenya's tourism industry, and the MMNR is one of Kenya's top most visited protected areas. In 2011, the MMNR management plan estimated that predicted revenues accruing from the MMNR to the then two county councils responsible for its administration totalled more than $41 million annually (NCC and TMCC, 2011). However, despite this tourism potential, local communities have not always gained fair or substantial benefit (Norton-Griffiths et al., 2008;Thompson et al., 2009).Various attempts to distribute tourism revenues to local communities have been beset by problems of mismanagement, unaccountability and inequality (Thompson and Homewood, 2002;Thompson et al., 2009). A multi-site study in Maasailand (Homewood et al., 2009) shows that, although households in the Mara do receive the most from wildlife (approximately 20% of total annual household income) compared with similar sites in Kenya and Tanzania, even here it is the wealthiest households that capture the greatest portion of revenues (Homewood et al., 2012;Thompson et al., 2009).Since  Approximately 30 semi-structured interviews were carried out with community members (CIs), including conservancy members and nonmembers, and men and women, to gather information on how people perceived conservancies contributed to their livelihoods. Approximately 302 A household was defined as an olmarei (usually made up of a male household head, his wives, children and other dependants) -a common unit of analysis in previous households surveys among the Maasai in Kenya and Tanzania (BurnSilver and Mwangi, 2007;Coast, 2000;Thompson and Homewood, 2002) The Maasai have diversified into a number of other livelihood activities.Using the questionnaire, we asked each household what livelihood activities they were involved in during the year preceding the survey, and the income they had received from each. We grouped activities into the following categories: conservancies, livestock production, cultivation and off-farm activities (tourism-and nontourism-related), and calculated the mean annual household income from each activity (Table 1).We calculated total annual household income for each household as the gross aggregate household income from all sources. Mean incomes per household per year and per adult equivalent (AU) 3 per day were calculated for comparison among the different livelihood activities. We included only those households involved in an activity so as to make it possible to compare the real returns from each activity. However, we used mean annual incomes across all households in the sample (n=258) to investigate the proportion of total household income the different livelihood activities contributed. Finally, we compared the relative contribution of different livelihood activities for conservancy member versus non-member households.To investigate community members' perceptions of the importance of conservancies relative to other livelihood activities, we asked them to rank the three livelihood activities they perceived as the most important for their overall household welfare.3 AU is a system for expressing a group of people in terms of standard reference adult (RA) units, with respect to food or metabolic requirements. RA units were calculated according to the International Livestock Centre for Africa (ILCA) system whereby an adult male = 1RA; an adult female = 0.86RA; children 11-15 years = 0.96RA; 6-10 years = 0.85RA; and children 0-5 years = 0.52RA (ILCA, 1981;Sellen, 2003). Off-farm activities:Income from any other livelihood activity, including:Tourism-related sources -Jobs in tourism, income from curio and craft sales, rent fees from campsite or lodges.Non-tourism-related sources -Livestock trading, jobs such as teachers, health workers, income from a transport or vending shop business.Many of the activities unrelated to tourism will be indirectly related to the increased flow of people coming to the Mara as a result of tourism.To understand how conservancies affect livestock grazing, both inside and outside conservancies, we asked key informants about the grazing rules within conservancies and how grazing was managed. We also asked community members about their views on the way conservancies interacted with livestock grazing and how this affected their livelihoods. Discussions focused on the potential costs of conservancies for livestock grazing, such as in terms of lost grazing space or grazing fines, but also some of the benefits of conservancies for livestock, for example as important drought refuges.To understand how conservancies were valued for grazing, we asked landowners to rank the parcels of land they owned in terms of key livestock grazing attributes: 1) quality of grass, 2) quantity of grass, 3) proximity to salt licks, 4) access to water and 5) the tourism potential of the land. Chi-squared and t-tests were used to compare conservancy and non-conservancy land. Livestock and wildlife trends in the Mara are well documented, with many analyses using the DRSRS aerial survey data (Bhola et al., 2012;Broten and Said, 1995;Ogutu et al., 2011;Ottichilo et al., 2000). This analysis is the first attempt to look at livestock trends directly in relation to newly formed conservancy areas in Koyiaki. DRSRS population density estimates are based on transects subdivided into 5x5 km 2 sampling units, each of which was identified as falling inside or outside a conservancy in Koyiaki (Figure 2). Norton-Griffiths (1978) and Ogutu et al. (2011) give further details of the method used to count animals and estimate animal population size and its standard error. The Maasai in Koyiaki diversify into a number of livelihood activities. Table 2 shows the number of households involved in different activities in the year preceding the household survey, and the mean annual household income earned from each of these.The mean total annual household income was $4,334 for the year 2009-2010. The distribution of income among all households was highly skewed, with the mean heavily influenced by a few wealthy cases. The median of $3,048 is hence a better representation of household income. Source: Author.Figure 3 shows the contribution of different livelihood activities to total annual household income for all households. Conservancy payments contributed 14% of total annual income. Livestock production was the most important livelihood activity to Koyiaki households, contributing 56% of total annual income. Offfarm activities contributed 29%, split almost evenly between activities related (15%) or unrelated (14%) to tourism. Cultivation was negligible at 1%. We break down and explain each of these activities further below.  All households owned some livestock. The mean number of livestock (TLU) owned per household was 65; however, this varied considerably between households, from three to 390 TLU (Table 3). The number of TLU per AU also varied greatly, from 0.6 to 40, with a mean of nine TLU/AU. Thirtythree percent of the households owned less than five TLU/AU -the lowest estimate of the threshold value required to support a purely pastoral lifestyle as estimated from a range of studies exploring numbers of livestock per capita. 44 Estimates of the minimum number of livestock required to support pastoral livelihoods depend on factors such as terms of trade and vary considerably among studies. See Lamprey and Reid (2004) for a useful synthesis and a range of estimates. The majority of households (87%) were involved in at least one off-farm activity, with a mean of 1.8 activities (Table 4). The mean annual off-farm income was $1,444 when including all sources, and off-farm activities contributed 29% of total household income. Activities related to tourism brought in a similar level of income to the household compared with activities unrelated to tourism. When disaggregating households into conservancy member and nonmember households, we find conservancy payments contribute 21% of the total annual income of member households (Figure 4). Conservancies were ranked as the household's primary livelihood activity for welfare by only 2% of members, compared with livestockkeeping at 74% (Figure 5). However, conservancies were consistently ranked as the most important second or third livelihood activity by those involved. Though members do not perceive involvement in conservancies as their main livelihood activity, which remains overwhelmingly livestock-based, they do consider it an important supplement.  Grazing is usually permitted only during the day for ease of monitoring and to avoid conflict with predators.Grazing rules are monitored and enforced by conservancy rangers, and herd owners are fined if herds are caught grazing in the conservancy outside of the specified times and places. Herds are driven out of the conservancy to the ranger post or gate and impounded until the fine is paid. In some cases, herders or livestock owners caught grazing illegally in the conservancies have been imprisoned or given community service (KII 32;Naboisho, 2013).The commonest reason given for the strict grazing restrictions was the fact that tourism investors do not want cattle in the conservancies (KII 14,18,32). Where conservancies initially completely outlawed livestock grazing, some persuasion was required to convince the tourism investors to allow some level (KII 14).Conservancies are marketed and portrayed as exclusive, low-density tourism destinations that offer a private and authentic safari experience. For this reason, tourists do not expect or want to see cattle in the conservancies, and this is the argument the tourism investors gave (KII 32). Hence, grazing is carefully monitored within conservancies to avoid livestock or herders being seen by tourists. When cattle are allowed in, the herders must wear their traditional Maasai shukas. 5 This argument generally takes precedence over any threat that livestock grazing might cause to the environment. In fact, the benefits of cattle grazing in maintaining a rich assembly of wildlife in these areas are well recognised by conservancy managers (KII 14,19,32) and documented by several studies (Augustine et al., 2011;Muchiru et al., 2008). The restriction of grazing and reduction of space for livestock grazing in conservancies has been a contentious issue within the community, creating much conflict. Livestock owners complained that conservancies had seriously reduced the grazing areas available to them, and prevented access to areas they once relied on. Moreover, during dry times, this issue has become accentuated in the search for forage for livestock. Thus, many viewed the livestock grazing restrictions negatively, as imposing a big cost on their livelihoods: In these examples, the payment is compared with the value of livestock, with respondents feeling it fell short. This was a common comparison made by both men and women.Although it is likely that the payment was enough to buy a cow in some cases, and certainly a sheep, many perceived it as too low for this. In these cases, the restriction on livestock grazing in the conservancy influences how people view the conservancy and its payments, which they believe are not enough to compensate for not grazing in the conservancy.Women often tended to view the payment as small, since they do not have direct access to it. The payment is usually sent to their In these examples, although these respondents do not mention that they use the conservancy payment to buy livestock, they say they use it to provide for their livestock as well as their family. The payment also helps protect them from having to sell their livestock for cash needs, so therefore provides them with a useful and regular source of cash.Although few reported spending their conservancy payments on fines received because of grazing in the conservancy, fines were perceived as a big cost for many people interviewed. Many conservancy members commented that what they had to pay for a fine was a similar sum to that received per month from the conservancy. This was made worse by the fact that they were being caught and fined for grazing on their own land: In these examples, people talked about having to sell their livestock to pay the fine, which they were obviously unhappy about. Fines tend to increase during the dry season (Bedelian, 2014), as the ability of herds to find available forage decreases, and conservancies come under considerable pressure from livestock grazing (see below).As well as conservancies being viewed as detrimental to livestock owing to grazing restrictions and fines, livestock grazing within conservancies was also seen as a benefit to livestock. Many spoke about conservancies having good livestock grazing, and when they did get to graze in the conservancy it was a benefit. An important aspect of conservancies for livestock grazing was that the conservancy preserves the grass to be used during drought (CI 13,23) Thus, by preventing widespread livestock grazing, conservancies retain grass, which, when accessed, is a big benefit. This was seen as particularly important during drought times. Conservancies were perceived as valuable pieces of land for livestock grazing. Households valued conservancy land significantly higher than non-conservancy land in terms of all four key livestock grazing attributes: quality, quantity, water, salt lick and tourism (Table 5). When all five attributes were combined into a total score, conservancy land was rated significantly higher than non-conservancy land (t=9.826, df=365, p<0.001). Conservancies are thus considered important areas for livestock and to have higher value than non-conservancy areas.  Despite the grazing restrictions, many people still use the conservancies for grazing, both legally and illegally. Most households (87%) reported grazing inside conservancies, even outside of the agreed times, and about half of these households, consisting of both conservancy members and nonmembers, reported regularly grazing in conservancies. Conservancies were used for livestock grazing throughout the year, but this increased during the dry season (July to October) (Figure 6).  So what do livestock count data show us about how conservancies are affecting the density and composition of livestock, inside and outside of conservancies? Cattle densities are highly variable and show little discernible change in density over time, but with severe drops in density evident during wellknown drought periods in 1999-2000 and 2009 (Figure 8 on cattle). After a crash in cattle numbers following the 1999-2000 drought, cattle numbers began increasing slowly. For most of the monitoring period, the density is lower inside than outside the conservancies. However, this increase appears to be accelerating in recent years and following the setting-up of conservancies in 2006. Although the density of shoats is equally highly variable, it shows a more obvious trend over time (Figure 8 on shoats), notably a large and sustained increase from 1996 to 2014. Similar to cattle, fewer shoats were found inside than outside conservancies, but this trend is much more clearly apparent for shoats.Overall, livestock, including shoats, are still using the conservancies to quite a considerable extent. Therefore, despite conservancies trying to reduce livestock grazing, it is clear a great deal of grazing is still occurring inside them. Given the few years of available data since conservancies were set up, and the variability in livestock numbers, these trends should be interpreted cautiously. Conservancies are an important livelihood activity for those who participate, and can make a significant contribution to overall household income. During 2009-2010, conservancies contributed 21% of total household income for Koyiaki conservancy members. This was expected to increase to 27% the following year, as more conservancies became established. Conservancy payments were also found to be an important source of cash income, helping households avoid selling their livestock for cash needs. Since payments are guaranteed and fixed every month, this provides a reliable all-year-round source of income and can protect households from having to sell their animals during times of stress. Conservancy payments thus play an important role in buffering against droughts and reducing risk during climatic shocks when other sources of income may decline. Similarly, Osano et al. (2013) found conservation payments became particularly important during drought in two sites (the Mara and Kitengela) in Kenya in 2009, when income from livestock declined.However, the limitations placed on livestock mean conservancy payments come at the expense of livestock production. For livestock owners, there are thus opportunity costs and livelihood trade-offs attached to participating in conservancies. The opportunity costs of lost grazing are particularly pertinent given that livestock are overwhelmingly the most important activity for Koyiaki households; all households own livestock, livestock contribute the most to total household income (56%) and livestock are valued as the most important activity for household welfare. For those non-members who do not receive conservancy payments, the contribution of livestock is much higher -70% versus 48% for those who receive payment -and these households depend on livestock more than any other activity. This is the case even though milk consumption and livestock products such as skins and hides are not included in total livestock production income, therefore undervaluing the contribution of livestock. Estimates of livestock contribution could be as much as 300% higher if milk production, which contributes nearly three quarters of the total gross value of livestock's contribution to the agriculture sector, is taken into account (Behnke and Muthami, 2011).Since payments do not adequately compensate conservancy members for the restrictions they put on their other livelihood activities, members did not perceive conservancies as their main livelihood activity, but as an important supplementary livelihood source. This is a common finding from research assessing tourism's contribution to pastoral livelihoods; pastoralists rarely view tourism as a substitute for their usual livelihood activities, but rather as a possible way of supplementing them (DeLuca, 2004;Homewood et al., 2009). The fact that people conceptualised the payment amount against the value of a cow tends to show they value livestock more.Livestock thus remain central to the livelihoods of most rural Maasai, and represent their core economic and cultural strategy (Homewood et al., 2009). There are multiple and flexible ways that livestock are integrated into Maasai livelihoods: as a wealth store; as an investment yielding growth in herd numbers; as a food source (milk); and as producing animals for sale. There is also the cultural and social value attached to owning livestock, outside of its economic value.In comparison with conservancy payments, which are banked by the individual landowner and thus not as unquestioningly redistributed or shared among the family, livestock offer benefits to the whole household in both direct and indirect ways. Livestock income is more easily distributed in cash and in kind among various members of the family, including, for example, women, who typically accrue small but significant sums from sales of milk and hides. Even if not under their direct control or ownership, livestock are a source of subsistence, income and social status for women through control of livestock products (Njuki and Sanginga, 2013;Talle, 1988). Conservancy payments thus offer little comparative benefit and significant disadvantages to women, especially when considering the restrictions conservancies place on livestock. This can explain why people, and especially women, saw little value to the conservancy payments, and valued them lower than livestock. Although women are included in conservancy co-benefits such as community training and capacity-building, these activities do not compensate for the loss of livelihood activity because of the central contribution of livestock to family food systems, income and sociocultural well-being.Payments are also of limited value to the large portion of the community that are not conservancy members, and so do not receive conservancy payments. In addition to women and landless households, who by virtue of not owning land are ineligible to join conservancies, there are a number of conservancy nonmember households that live outside of conservancies. These nonmembers experience the cost of lost grazing space but do not receive any payment in return. They must also accommodate conservancy member livestock on their land.Although cultivation potentially offers the highest returns on land use (Norton-Griffiths and Said, 2010), this study found that few people cultivate, and fewer people gain much from it. Previous research has shown little uptake of cultivation in Koyiaki, owing to increased occurrence of droughts, wildlife damage and competing interests with tourism (Thompson et al., 2009).Cultivation might be used more as a tenure strategy; cultivation peaked before land titling, and reduced thereafter once land was secured (ibid.).As These arguments point to the mix of synergies and trade-offs involved in conservancies and pastoralism, and also the possible positive potentials.In the short term, then, conservancies may undermine pastoral mobility, but in the long term they are likely to enhance it.It is clear from the long-term trend data that shoats are rapidly increasing in number in the Mara, whereas cattle numbers show a much less marked upward trend. This evident switch to small stock is likely a response to widening variability in cattle numbers, which probably reflects their greater sensitivity to widening rainfall variability than shoats (Faye et al., 2012;Seo et al., 2009). Shoats have greater capacity to recover more rapidly from droughts. The switch to small stock can also be explained by the lower feed requirements and shorter gestation time of small stock, and the important role they play in rebuilding herds when recovering from drought (McPeak and Little, 2005). The switch to small stock is also a common strategy where mobility is increasingly curtailed (Dahl and Hjort, 1976), and is expected to increase with climate warming (Seo and Mendelsohn, 2008). The switch is also a trend mirrored in other pastoral areas (e.g. Ottichilo et al., 2000). The diversification of herds is thus an important strategy that pastoralists use to manage and cope with risk presented by a variable climate and to reduce their vulnerability to recurrent droughts. First, areas inside the conservancies have fewer livestock than those outside, and this was apparent even before conservancies were set up. These areas have generally had poorer access to water and market centres; some have been sites of previous tourism initiatives; and some have suffered from the presence of tsetse, which are all likely to have been important contributing factors preventing heavy settlement and livestock grazing (Bedelian, 2014).Second, livestock appear to be increasing more rapidly outside than inside conservancies, and this is more visible for shoats than for cattle. However, it is as yet not possible to definitively ascribe this to conservancies.Third, despite livestock grazing restrictions, conservancies are still heavily grazed by livestock, including shoats. This is supported by data from livestock owners. Thus, conservancies are still important grazing areas for livestock, and are regularly used either legally or illegally.The influence of conservancies on livestock remains unclear. However, the reduction in space for livestock use owing to conservancies is beyond doubt. Aware of this, conservancies are encouraging their members to reduce their herds. By setting up controlled grazing plans with specified stocking densities, and by promoting and introducing improved or exotic breeds to members to mix with their traditional breeds, conservancies aim to reduce pressure on conservancy land by reducing livestock numbers. The idea is that improved breeds, when crossed with local breeds, can be more productive, and can ultimately fetch a higher market price.The presumption is that this will then encourage landowners to own less livestock, but of a higher quality relative to their traditional breeds.Having fewer animals is expected to reduce the impact of livestock on the environment. However, although improved cattle breeds have higher market values, they have been found to be less resistant to droughts and floods than local breeds and require more veterinary and fodder inputs (Nkedianye et al., 2011). There is also no evidence that the adoption of more productive breeds necessarily translates into people keeping fewer animals (Marshall, 2014). Conservancy cattle management plans are influenced by commercial ranching models, and many are based on experience and expert opinion from ranchers and land managers in other mixed livestock and wildlife areas in Kenya. This implies a change to many of the long-term traditional and customary practices of livestock grazing and management in the area.This paper has pointed to some of the trade-offs involved in participating in conservancies. Nevertheless, given the extent of change in these systems, and the fact that land subdivision and fragmentation are altering the way the system has traditionally functioned, people increasingly need to and do engage in new livelihood activities (Galvin, 2009). Livestock numbers per capita are going down, also as a function of subdivision (Thornton et al., 2006), and there is some evidence that this is true of the Mara as well. This study found an average of nine TLU per AU in 2010, down from 13 in 2004 and 15 in 1998-2000 found by Thompson et al. (2009). Furthermore, in this study, 33% of households owned less than the estimated threshold value of livestock per capita required to support a purely pastoral lifestyle.Income from other sources and diversification are thus increasingly becoming an important activity and source of wealth (Homewood et al., 2009;Little, 2012;McPeak et al., 2012). As land is subdivided, and individually owned, mobility is curtailed, and people have to compensate for the potential loss of movement by engaging in new land uses and other ways of earning a living (Galvin, 2009). Indeed, pastoralists are changing, diversifying and modernising. Other areas of Kenya show an ongoing intensification of livestock, through cross-breeding traditional breeds with large breeds of greater market value (BurnSilver and Mwangi, 2007;Nkedianye et al., 2011). Many are investing in education, diversifying their incomes, taking up new opportunities and innovations and accessing and capitalising on new markets (Catley et al., 2012;Homewood et al., 2009). It is likely that adaptation to climate change will require more to pursue alternative livelihoods, and some to move out of pastoralism altogether into other livelihoods (McPeak et al., 2012).Cows Ó Matt Biddulph CC2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/legalcodeThis paper has explored the opportunities and conflicts that emerge for climate-resilient pastoral livelihoods for landowners who participate in wildlife conservancies in the Mara, Kenya. Results show that, though offering stable payments (based on a stable tourism in the Mara), conservancies cause trade-offs as livestock and other livelihood activities are restricted. This reduces the ability to access resources, remain mobile and maintain resilience. Also, because the income received from conservancy payments is not more than that received from livestock production, conservancies do not adequately compensate landowners for the restrictions placed on their other livelihood activities. Moreover, since conservancy payments are limited to those owning land inside a conservancy, a large portion of the community do not receive conservancy payments, but still experience the cost of lost livestock grazing space. This includes women and other groups not allocated land during subdivision.However, community members also recognised the benefits of conservancies for livestock grazing and pastoralism. Conservancies retain good quality and quantity of grass and are important livestock grazing areas if accessible during drought times. Conservancies also pool land and prevent further subdivision and fragmentation. Thus, given the extent of land tenure changes in the Mara, conservancies and other similar schemes that maintain open rangelands could offer a potentially optimistic outlook for these areas, provided livestock are accommodated for. Conservancy effects may therefore be mixed and dependent on the policies and practices of individual conservancies and of the landowners' continuing motivations to participate. These effects may also vary in the short and long term.Conservancies are not fully integrative, and, like other schemes in Maasailand (Homewood et al., 2012), they aim to replace livestock, rather than to fully integrate with livestock within the same landscape. Livestock support livelihoods and can contribute to protecting biodiversity; livestock landscapes thus need to be part of the conservation agenda. There is a need for better-thought-out integrative livestock grazing plans, for better integration of pastoralism and tourism within and beyond conservancies. These need to acknowledge the risk management benefits associated with livestock, transmission of diseases between wildlife and livestock and the cultural and social values attached to livestock by the whole family. These need to be taken into account beyond any simple economic appraisal of conservancies or similar livelihood activity.Pastoralists have always had traditional strategies to regulate the access and use of resources, and to cope with climatic variability. These include regulations on how many herds access a particular grazing area or when they move to dry season areas or access important resources, such as salt or water, ensuring there is adequate remaining for others. Conservancies could do well to draw on and mimic such traditional grazing strategies, developing their livestock grazing plans together with livestock keepers, including both conservancy members and non-members.The Mara is a unique case study; it is the highest wildlife-earning site in Maasailand (Homewood et al., 2009), and its impressive wildlife abundance and diversity make it one of the top most visited tourist attractions in Kenya. Being at the top end of tourism revenue potential means conservancies are able to offer relatively large payments on a wide scale in the Mara. It is not certain that similar schemes in other areas would be able to offer pastoralists as much. However, conservancies are growing in Kenya, and, although they vary in terms of their ownership and management arrangements, the Mara case study provides valuable lessons for what could potentially occur in other sites.• Carefully formulated livestock grazing plans are needed to allow for better integration of, and space for, livestock within and outside of conservancies. These should recognise the need to conserve good-quality rangeland for livestock, similar to how the conservancies expand and conserve habitat for wildlife. This should occur through a participatory process, not just with conservancy members but also with women, herders and other non-members who reside next to a conservancy.• It is important that grazing plans are holistic and encompass areas outside of conservancies.They should analyse their impact on the MMNR as well as focusing on land within the conservancy to avoid the problem of leakage and degradation to areas outside.• An increased focus on conservancies as areas managed for livestock as well as their current focus on tourism and wildlife conservation is needed. This should involve the identification of critical areas and periods where conflict between livestock and tourism is likely to increase and will need mitigation with appropriate strategies.• There is opportunity for better integration of livestock in conservancy marketing, so tourists are aware from the outset and expect to see livestock are integrated into conservancies.• Better inclusion of nonconservancy members in conservancy operations is necessary. This includes in livestock grazing plans, but also in conservancy management and in the distribution of conservancy payments.• Clear policy guidelines for the development of conservancies, adequate benefit-sharing, participatory processes and sustainable land use are required.","tokenCount":"6466"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"0938db8c25f4f3208acd37cc9478b010","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://repository.cimmyt.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/b2298867-f510-413c-90a7-691320177878/content","id":"-1413893738"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"73b8e77e-39d4-4395-88c9-ff8c991bb4ea","pagecount":"14","content":"Stemborers (Busseola fusca, Sesamia calamistis and Chilo partellus), the fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) and associated parasitoids constitute an interacting system in maize fields in Kenya. This work aims at developing and evaluating models that represent the evolution of those interactions by applying system thinking and system dynamics approaches with its archetypes [causal loop diagram (CLD), reinforcing (R) and balancing (B)] to analyse the population of these multi-species systems. The software Vensim PLE 8.0.9 was used to implement the models and carry out the simulations of single-and multi-species systems. The results showed that when a single pest species with its associated parasitoids interact with the host plant, the species was able to establish and sustain by cyclical relationship between populations of the pest and the associated parasitoids. However, in multi-pest species systems, dominance of S. frugiperda and C. partellus over B. fusca and S. calamistis was observed, but without extinction. However, there was a likelihood for B. fusca being displaced by C. partellus. Overall, the models predict the co-existence of fall armyworm with stemborer species as an additional pest of maize in Africa that need to be considered henceforth in designing IPM strategies in maize.Globally, maize Zea mays L. (Poaceae) production was estimated at 1.3 billion tons in 2018 1 . Maize is one of the most important cereal crops in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) 2 . In Kenya, maize is grown predominantly by smallholder farmers 3 and constitutes a vital source for household livelihoods 4 . The productivity of maize is affected by a wide array of biotic and abiotic stresses that reduce the quantity and quality of its yields. Insect pest pressure is among the major threats that constrain maize crop from reaching its maximum potential yields. A complex of lepidopteran stemborers and the recent invasive fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) are the primary pests of maize crop in many parts of the world, including Kenya, causing yield losses ranged from 30 to 70% 3,5 . These pests are responsible for significant losses of maize upon infestation. Evidence to date suggests that with climate change, these pests are continuing to spread to new areas [6][7][8] .In SSA, the noctuid stemborers Busseola fusca (Fuller) and Sesamia calamistis (Hampson) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), and the crambid stemborer Chilo partellus (Swinhoe) (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) are economically the most important lepidopteran pest species that severely limit maize productivity as a result of a continuous infestation of the crop throughout its growth stages 9,10 . In maize fields, these stemborers may occur as single species or as a community of mixed species 11,12 . Among these stemborers, C. partellus is exotic and invaded eastern Africa in the 1930s 9 . This species has competitively displaced B. fusca in the highlands of South Africa 13 . It has also displaced Chilo orichalcociliellus Strand (Lepidoptera: Crambidae) in the coastal region of Kenya 14 and might get an advantage over S. calamistis in the utilization of maize in the context of future climate change 6,15 . Recently, S. frugiperda invaded SSA, where it seriously limits maize yields 16,17 . Field observations indicated that it interacts strongly with maize stemborer systems 18 and might also displace them.Invasive insect herbivores have the prospective to significantly hamper with prevailing insect parasitoids species in invaded areas; this mechanism can occur in different ways: (1) interferences with the volatiles that attract the insect parastoids to unsuitable the host; if the plants can be infested by both the native and invader, the later produces volatiles that are less attractive to parasitoids 19 ; and (2) the parasitoids can attempt to parasitize the invasive insect, with low chance to complete their development. This is considered as a waste of time and energy that can negatively affect the fitness of the parasitoids 19,20 . These interferences can therefore have detrimental consequences on a pre-existing biological control process 21 .Although stemborer species and the fall armyworm have been considered a serious constraint to maize production, few studies have illustrated the interactions among these complexes of pest species. System dynamics,first developed by Forrester 21 , offers a useful method to understand and describe such interactions. That approach, that was originally developed for engineering and administration studies is increasingly been applied to other fields such agriculture, health, economic, and social science 21,22 . The method takes in consideration a set of elements that interact continuously as a component with structure, which undergoes changes 22,23 . The analysis of the system structure (model) by scenarios provides an understand the system behaviour with time. Using differential equations and the Routh-Hurwitz criteria, Mwalusepo et al. 24 studied the stability of insect species competing for resource. The study revealed that when a species feeds on a resource, the species will be able to establish and sustain a stable population that fluctuates based on the resource availability. However, in a competing context with many species feeding on a single resource, it is observed that the combinations of three parameters (halfsaturation, growth rate and mortality rate) determine which species has the upper edge on the resource. In another study, Neill 25 applied matrix model of the competition coefficients to study the community of species to reveal different patterns of interspecific interactions and estimate the maximum number of interacting species expected in a community. This work therefore aims at developing and evaluating models that represents the interactions of maize stemborer species and S. frugiperda populations and their associated parasitoids in a multi-species community in maize fields.The stemborers, B. fusca, S. calamistis and C. partellus are the most important pests of maize in Kenya 9 . The three stemborers frequently occur as single or mixed species communities 11,12 whose structure varies with agroecological zones. Busseola fusca is generally the dominant species in the highlands, while C. partellus dominates in the lowlands 6,26 , and S. calamistis occurs at all altitudes 27 . These stemborer species often occur as a mixed community of the three species in the mid-altitudinal regions 7,12 . Spodoptera frugiperda, since its first report in the western region of Kenya in 2017, has been confirmed throughout the different agro-ecological zones by the early cropping season in 2018 28 .Several studies have documented parasitoids associated with the three stemborers in the different agroecological zones [29][30][31] . In cultivated habitats in Kenya, the most common parasitoids of all three species are the larval parasitoids Cotesia flavipes Cameron and Cotesia sesamiae (Cameron) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) followed by the pupal parasitoids Xanthopimpla stemmator (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) and Pediobius furvus Gahan (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae), and the tachinid Siphona sp. (Diptera: Tachinidae) [29][30][31] . Since its invasion, research for development efforts has highlighted the effectiveness of several integrated pest management strategies for S. frugiperda, including new association of indigenous natural enemies with S. frugiperda such as the larval parasitoids Cotesia icipe Fernandez-Triana & Fiaboe (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), Charops sp. Holmgren (Hymenoptera: Ichneumonidae) , Coccigydium luteum Brullé (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), Palexorista zonata Curran (Diptera: Tachinidae); the egg-larval parasitoid Chelonus curvimaculatus Szépligeti (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) and the egg parasitoids Telenomus remus Dixon (Hymenoptera: Platygastridae) and Trichogramma chilonis Ishii (Hymenoptera: Trichogrammatidae) 28,32 .Busseola fusca and S. calamistis females deposit the eggs between the leaf sheath and the stem of plant as a protection strategy against the environment and the natural enemies, whereas C. partellus and S. frugiperda females deposit eggs directly on leaf surfaces 33,34 . Upon emergence, the young larvae are dispersed by ballooning while older larvae disperse by crawling, resulting in a redistribution of the insect infestations within and between plants in maize fields 35 . The stemborer larvae feed on young leaves until the third instar and later bore into maize stems. Spodoptera frugiperda larvae feed only on leaves during their whole development, especially the central leaves in the plant whorl 36,37 . In addition, in maize fields at tasseling stage, S. frugiperda larvae can be found feeding on the tassels and subsequently on the ear, silk, cob and even in stemborer's holes 36,38 . Therefore, S. frugiperda and stemborer larvae may interact by sharing the same niche at young developmental stages and even when the stemborer larvae migrate from the leaves to stems.The four pest species (three stemborers + S. frugiperda), in addition to their associated parasitoids and the maize plants that serve as the resource for the pests, constitute the system under study. Several cases are considered because these insects occur at different spatial distributions aross different agroecological zones. The analyses were subdivided in four cases: (1) a single pest species feeding on maize plants and its parasitoids, (2) two species competing on maize plants and their parasitoids, (3) three species competing on maize plants and their parasitoids, and (4) four pest species together on maize plants and their parasitoids.One pest species and its parasitoids and the resource (maize plants). For each pest species and its associated parasitoid populations, the outcomes of the models showed that both populations marginally increased at the beginning. After 4 months, the relationship became cyclical between a host (pest) and its associated parasitoids (Fig. 1A-D). As the population of parasitoids increased, the pest population decreased, which in turn caused parasitoids population to decrease. As parasitoids population decreased, the pest population was able to recover, and its population increased. Subsequently, the parasitoids population increased and the cycle began again. The three stemborer species had similar populations with a maiximum peak after 6 months of about 4900 individuals (Fig. 1A-C) while the maximum peak of S. frugiperda poplulation (Fig. 1D) was 17% less than those of stemborers. The peaks of the populations of parasitoids of the three stemborers species reach a level above 4500 individuals after 7 months while the population of parasitoids associated with S. frugiperda was below 4000 individuals during the same period (Fig. 1A-D).In a two species system, a strong unilateral competitive interaction was revealed in the C. partellus and B. fusca system (Fig. 2A) representing 81.18% and 18.82%, respectively of the total pest populations in the system. The population of B. fusca was largely outcompeted by C. partellus after 6 months and its population was drastically reduced in a two species system as compared to when it was the sole species in the system. In the system of either B. fusca and S. calamistis (Fig. 2B) or C. partellus and S. frugiperda (Fig. 2C), bilateral competitive interactions were strong, leading to the decline of both the species populations but without dominance. Although bilateral competitive interactions were revealed in other two multi-pest species systems, C. partellus was most prevalent to S. calamistis (Fig. 2D) representing 66.08% and 33.92%, respectively and S. frugiperda was most prevalent to B. fusca (Fig. 2E) and S. calamistis (Fig. 2F) after 6 months and represented 60.53% and 39.47%, respectively of the total pest populations in the system. In addition, the model showed that the populations of each pest species in two pest species systems (Fig. 2A-F) declined as compared to those in sole pest species systems (Fig. 1A-D). However, the average total pest populations (population size of each pest) in sole-pest species systems represented only 85.36% of total average pest populations in two-pest species systems (population size of any given combination of two pest species). In each combination, the associated parasitoid populations proportionally varied with their respective host population fluctuation as parasitoid population tracked the peaks of the pest population.In three species systems after 6 months, C. partellus and S. frugiperda co-exist representing 45.45% and 40.42% of the total pest populations in the system but competitively dominated B. fusca population that represented only 14.13% (Fig. 3A). However, in C. partellus + S. calamistis + S. frugiperda three species system, S. calamistis became dominant over S. frugiperda (Fig. 3B). They represented 44.80%, 31.43% and 23.77% , respectively of the total pest populations in the system. The system of the three stemborer species (Fig. 3C) showed the dominance of C. partellus (47.93%) followed by S. calamistis (31.70%) and B. fusca(20.37%), respectively. Spodoptera frugiperda was the dominant species followed by B. fusca and S. calamistis in three pest species system (Fig. 3D). In each system, the parasitoid population fluctuation evolved according to its host population fluctuation. Furthermore, the model showed that the population of each pest species in three pest species systems (Fig. 3A-D) declined as compared to those in two pest species systems (Fig. 2A-F). However, the average total pest populations in two-pest species systems represented only 70.07% of total average pest populations in three-pest species systems.In four pest species system, C. partellus was the dominant species (48.79%), followed by S. calamistis (28.34%), S. frugiperda (14.85%) and B. fusca (8.02%), respectively (Fig. 3E), with the same trend of their associated parasitoids (Fig. 3F). Comparing four pest species system populations to those in three pest species systems, the population of each pest species declined except that of C. partellus. The total average pest populations in threepest species systems represented only 89.88% of those in four pest species system. In this study, we modeled the dynamics and interactions of populations of three maize stemborer species and the fall armyworm, as well as their associated parasitoids, in either single or multi-species systems. The population dynamics of single pest species systems presented S-shaped growth with overshoot logistic form of the well-known Lotka-Volterra prey predator system 39,40 . The S-shaped form could be due to the negative feedback in the loop diagram that slowly limits the growth as the growth rate reaches the limit. However, the negative feedback contains time delays due to the variability of available resources (host plants) leading to intra-specific competitive interaction that affected the abundance of the pest. The time delay in the negative feedback causes the system to exceed the limit value and exhibit oscillation behavior around the limit value as previously reported by Sterman 41 . Furthermore, the presence of parasitoids influences the host population dynamics leading to a cyclical relationship between a host (pest) and its associated parasitoids as previously demonstrated by the Lotka-Volterra predator-prey model function 39,40 . For each of the three stemborer species systems, the associated parasitoids populations grew faster than their respective host populations. Din and Donchev 42 reported that in a host-parasite interaction, if a host population is a pest, then according to the Leslie-Gower model, a fast-growing parasite population with a growth rate larger than that of the host significantly reduces the host population. Therefore, the present model indicates a significant effect of parasitoid on stemborers population regulation. Despite high outbreaks reported for S. frugiperda, its population dynamics in our single-species system was actually the lowest which might be due to its high cannibalism rate reported in the literature 43,44 and also because the high outbreaks across SSA was reported during the first months of infestation when equilibrium was not yet established; whereas stemborers have been present for decades.Within stemborer species in multi-species systems (either in two or three species systems), C. partellus exhibited dominance whenever involved in a system. Several previous studies have reported the dominance of C. partellus over B. fusca and S. calamistis when they co-exist 15,19,24 . In two-species system with C. partellus and B. fuca, the model showed that C. partellus has displaced B. fusca population with time. Those competitive interactions may justify the spatial distribution of these stemborer species in Kenya. Previous studies have reported that B. fusca and S. calamistis co-exist in the highlands with dominance of B. fusca species, while C. partellus and S. calamistis co-habituate in the lowlands with dominance of C. partellus 6,25,26 . These three stemborer species were reported to occur as a mixed system in the mid-altitudinal regions with dominance of C. partellus 7,12 . Furthermore, studies in South Africa showed that C. partellus has expanded its distribution into highland region and has competitively displaced B. fusca population in that area 13 .On the other hand, the model demonstrated that bilateral competitive interactions were strong in B. fusca + S. calamistis and C. partellus + S. frugiperda two-species systems where both species populations fluctuate and dropped considerably. Those behaviours may be explained by the overlapped ecological niches of these pest species. The females of B. fusca and S. calamistis deposit the eggs between the leaf sheath and the stem of plant, whereas C. partellus and S. frugiperda deposit eggs directly on leaf surfaces 33,34 . Therefore, the interactions in those systems might start at neonate stage when the eggs hatched or even at egg stage by sharing the same ecological niches. Sokame et al. 35 have also demonstrated that the larvae of pest species in those respective systems shared the same behaviour in terms of ballooning and crawling. All those common life traits might lead them to strong competition. Zhou et al 45 have demonstrated that in the nature, species that are living together in the same or similar niches because they have one or several kinds of similar behaviours are highly competitive. The dominance of S. frugiperda species in the system of either B. fusca or S. calamistis in two species systems or with both species in three species system in the present model might be the intraguild predation preference of S. frugiperda to the detriment of cannibalism in interspecific systems which is reflected in competition coefficients of S. frugiperda in multi-species systems used in our study. Bentivenha et al. 46 demonstrated that S. frugiperda in multi-species system with Helicoverpa zea (Boddie) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), its cannibalism decreases to the detriment of intraguild predation of the other species.Overall, the outputs of the simulations indicated that C. partellus and S. frugiperda species were competitively superiors over B. fusca and S. calamistis. However, in three or four multi-species involving C. partellus with S. calamistis and S. frugiperda, S. calamistis took the advantage and dominated S. frugiperda. Chilo partellus and S. frugiperda are exotic species in Africa while B. fusca and S. calamistis are indigenous. Invasive insect pest species have the potential to rapidly establish and spread to new areas 47 . The organisms that arrive and establish themselves in a new range of hosts are positioned to have adverse effects on the surrounding fauna and also results in the extinction of other species 48 . They often affect native species populations and systems by competing for the same resource 49 . For example, the Asian adelgid, Pineus boemeri Annand, has been shown to be competitively superior and to displace a native congener, P. coloradensis (Gilette) in red pine (Pinus resinosa Aiton) plantation in Eastern USA, possibly through the reduction of host plant quality and forcing P. coloradensisto to less suitable sites 50 . The invasive fruit fly Bactrocera invadens Drew, Tsuruta & White (Diptera: Tephritidae), has displaced the indigenous mango fruit fly, Ceratitis cosyra Walker (Diptera: Tephritidae) 4 years after invasion in Kenya and become the dominant fruit fly pest of mango 51 . Temperature and resource pre-emption were demonstrated to be key factors contributing to the competitive success of the invasive fruit fly B. invadens over the indigenous mango fruit fly, C. cosyra in Kenya 52 . Fabre et al. 53 demonstrated a form of resource competition between native and exotic seed chalcids, Megastigmus spp. and displacement of the native species. Similarly, the African stemborer B. fusca seems to have been displaced from sorghum fields by the Asian invasive stemborer C. partellus 13 possibly due to deterrence of the native species by the invasions or due to differences in host plant phenology.The comparison of sole pest species systems with multi-pest species systems of the models showed that the population of each species declined in multi-pest species systems and more the number of pest species involved in the system increased more the population of each species declined. In contrary, the total number of pest populations in the systems increased with the number of pest species involved in the system. Therefore, the reduction of stemborer populations in maize fields with the arrival of S. frugiperda was even overtaken up by that latter. Those results indicate the overall pest abundance increasing in maize fields with the invasion of fall armyworm in maize stemborer systems with more infestations and damages, leading to the increasing of the smallholder incomes losses in maize production. However, the fact that no competition between parasitoid species was considered might have effect on the system dynamics model.In conclusion, the present models predict the co-existence of S. frugiperda with stemborer species in maize fields. Spodoptera frugiperda and C. partellus dominate over B. fusca and S. calamistis but without extinction, except that B. fusca seems to be displaced by C. partellus. Therefore, the invasion of S. frugiperda in maize fields in Africa constitutes an additional pest to maize crop that need to be considered within the context of integrated pest management strategy. However, the underpinning mechanisms surrounding the co-existence and possible displacement of other species warrant additional studies.Modelling and simulations assumptions. To develop the model, the following assumptions have been made:1. Data obtained under laboratory conditions were used to reproduce and simulate what may occur under field conditions. 2. The growth of insect pest species is limited by a single maize resource, and the parasitoids only depend on their host pests for survival. 3. During the non-cropping season, only 10% of the pest found in maize fields survived on alternative host plants and will give rise to a new pest population in maize field during the subsequent cropping season.4. A 3-month maize variety (Duma 43, Kenya Seed Company, Nairobi, Kenya) was considered to be used and grown from April to June and from October to December, periods corresponding to the yearly cropping seasons in Kenya. 5. Insect pests were recorded for the first time in the maize field 1 month after planting date. 6. Pest population growth is assumed to follow the Lotka-Volterra competition function 39 . 7. The parasitism level of a given pest species is recorded from the second generation of the pest, thus with an average of 2 months of delay after maize planting. 8. The parasitism level of all parasitoid species on a given host were lumped together and no competition between parasitoid species was taken into account. 9. Simulations were carried out assuming that each system was at the equilibrium state.Before the simulations, a multiple regression procedure was conducted using the R software version 3.5.1 (R Foundation for Statistical Computing, Vienna, Austria) with experimental data from Sokame 56 on density-dependent of species interaction in laboratory conditions to estimate the competition coefficients of each studied case of species combination as presented in Table 1.In addition, the parasitism level of all parasitoids species on a given host that were lumped together and other constants in Table 2 were used for the model simulations. Units and models' commodities were well checked prior to the simulations.The models were implemented and simulated using the Vensim PLE 8.0.9 platform (Ventana Systems, Harvard, USA), which consists of a graphical environment that permits users to draw the CLD, stocks and flows diagrams and carry out simulations 55 . The dynamics of pest and associated parasitoids populations were considered as stocks and the in/out flows were defined. The inflows were composed of pest or parasitoid population growth rates while the outflows were represented by decrease rates of the pests that have been parasitized or the parasitoids that have completed their life cycle.As mentioned in the assumptions section, all simulations were conducted at the equilibrium state of each system that is characterized by:(1) where Ki is the column vector of the total number of larvae survived, Ni is the column vector of the total number of survived larvae of a given species, and aijNj is the \"system matrix'' of the interaction coefficients.The absolute value of any (a) reflects the intensity of the interaction on a given species. The system matrix therefore characterizes the first order (linear) relationship of each species with each other in the system.under competitions were used in this study. All the models used have the generic formulation displayed in Eq. ( 2). Considering N(t) as a state variable to denote the insect population abundance at time t; the population growth for the ith species is defined with the Lotka-Volterra competition equations, which was later modified by MacArthur and Levins 54 as:where the N i is the species abundance, r i is the intrinsic rate of population natural increase, K i is the species carrying capacity (the maximum attainable population size), m is the number of pest species in the system, and a ij is the effect that an individual species characterized by jth can cause to another species characterized with ith. The translation of this generic mathematical expression was applied to formulate the equations used to simulate each case studied. The model expressions can be found in Supplementary Appendix.  (2)  29,30 Busseola fusca reference fractional parasitism rate* 0.25 Mailafiya et al. 29,30 Sesamia calamistis reference fractional parasitism rate* 0.28 Mailafiya et al. 29,30 Spodoperta frugiperda reference fractional parasitism rate* 0.22 Sisay et al. 28,32 Chilo partellus reference fraction growth rate 0.83 Kroschel et al. 58 Busseola fusca reference fraction growth rate 0.8 Kroschel et al. 58 Sesamia calamistis reference fraction growth rate 0.8 Kroschel et al. 58 Spodoptera frugiperda reference fraction growth rate 0. The methodology here is rooted in system thinking approach with its archetypes [causal loop diagram (CLD), reinforcing (R) and balancing (B)] by a mental and holistic conceptual framework used to map how the variables, issues and processes are influencing each other in the complex competitions and interactions among and between insect species and the impacts. Although these archetypes are qualitative in nature, they help to disclose and elucidate the fundamental feedback configurations that occur in maize fields when insect pests are competing for resource and associated parasitoids are hunting for hosts. The CLD obtained were converted into a dynamic modelling using stocks, flows, auxiliary links and clouds; which in turn were translated into coupled differential equations for simulations.One pest species and associated parasitoids and the resource (maize plants). The diagram of causalities represents the basic structure of the system of a given pest species with its associated parasitoids, where arrows show the cause-effect relations. A positive sign indicates direct proportionality of cause and effect, and the negative sign indicates a relation of inverse proportionality. The system is characterized by two negative feedbacks (Fig. 1, Loops B1 and B2) and one positive feedbacks (Fig. 1A, Loop R1) leading to three main relationships: a) as the resource (maize plants) increases, the growth of the pest increases to occupy the available resource resulting in the pest population increase; b) as host availability increases, the probability that the parasitoid encounters its host increases, resulting in higher parasitism, increased host mortality rate and decreased pest population; c) as host mortality rate increases, parasitoid growth rate increases, and parasitoid population increases.Figure 4B showed the stocks and flows diagram and auxiliary variables obtained from causal loop diagram displayed in Fig. 4A. The single pest species (PSi) and associated parasitoids are the stocks in the system, representing the population size of pest species and parasitoids, respectively, at a given point in time. The growth rates represented the inflows while the decrease rates represented the outflows of the diagram. The auxiliary as well as constant variables drive the behaviour of the system were connected using information arrows within them and to flows and stocks to represent the relations among variables in terms of equations.Two pest species and associated parasitoids and the resource (maize plants). In two multi-pest species system (Fig. 5A), the three previous relationships intervened for each species (Fig. 5A, Loops B1, B2, and R1 for species 1 and Loops B3, B4, and R2 for species 2). In addition, relationship (d: Loop R3, Fig. 5A) described inter-specific competition effect of involved pest species on each other. The stocks and flows diagram of each of the two species occurred with level of discrepancy between the carrying capacity (K) and the population size, which additionally is dependent on the intra and inter-specific competition and interations among and between these species (Fig. 5B). Three pest species and associated parasitoids and the resource (maize plants). In three multi-pest species system and associated parasitoids system (Fig. 6A), we have the three relationships (a, b and c) previously described for each species (Loops B1, B2, and R1 for species 1; Loops B3, B4, and R2 for species 2 and Loops B5, B6, and R3 for species 3). The relationship (e) represented the inter-specific competitive influence exercised by each of the three species on each other (Fig. 6A,B7). The stocks and flows diagram of individual species in the system occurred with a level of discrepancy between the carrying capacity (K) and the population size, which additionally is dependent on the intra-and inter-specific competition and interations among and between these species (Fig. 6B).Four pest species and associated parasitoids and the resource (maize plants). In four multi-pest species system (Fig. 7A), the relationships (a, b and c) existed for each of the four species (species 1: Loops B1, B2, and R1;  species 2: Loops B3, B4, and R2; species 3: Loops B5, B6, and R3 and species 4: Loops B7, B8, and R4). The relationships (f) represented by the Loops B9, B10, B11 and R5 showed interaction relationships between the four species. The stocks and flows diagram obtained from the system made by four species occurred with a level of discrepancy between the carrying capacity (K) and the population size of individual species, which additionally is dependent on the intra and inter-specific competition and interations among and between these species (Fig. 7B). ","tokenCount":"4899"}

data/part_3/0248052647.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"17114aa6aa054917459c24590852b485","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/ced83037-a5e9-421f-8779-91f143b599f9/retrieve","id":"871124534"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"b2e863a6-961b-4d53-bfe5-1af06c80e9a2","pagecount":"1","content":"Late blight (Phytophthora infestans Mont de Bary is one of the major biotic constraints to potato d ti i N l Th di i i il t ll d ith f i id lth h i ld l i19-21 Sept production in Nepal. The disease is primarily controlled with fungicides, although yield loss is common. Host plant resistance could reduce fungicide dependency and increase sustainability of production. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the efficacy of two mono-cyclic Gottingen,screening methods for foliage blight resistance and one method for tuber blight resistance by comparing results from these trials with resistance levels established in the field.Host plant resistance against Phytophthora infestans was evaluated in the field for twenty five Buddhi P. Sharma 1 Gregory A. Forbes 2Host plant resistance against Phytophthora infestans was evaluated in the field for twenty five potato genotypes in 2010 and 2011 at Khumaltar, Lalitpur, Nepal. This was used as a benchmark to evaluate other assays. A locally isolated strain of P. infestans 'LPR-1' was used to measure resistance on whole plants (screen house) detached leaves and tuber slices The to measure resistance on whole plants (screen house), detached leaves and tuber slices. The inoculum concentration was 3 x 10 3 sporangia/ml in all the assays. Inoculum was equally distributed over the entire foliage using plastic atomizer in field and screen house assays. There was a clear distinction between the most susceptible and most resistant varieties in all   .This appeared to be due to the increased susceptibility of some appeared to be due to the increased susceptibility of some varieties in the leaf test. The correlation was least (R=0.46) with the tuber slice test (Fig 10), but this may reflect genetic differences as different levels of resistance sometimes occur in differences as different levels of resistance sometimes occur in foliage and tubers.More than half of the genotypes had very low incidence (scale value <1) indicating that they were probably expressing race resolution of the single cycle assay. Some genotypes showing high level of resistance under field conditions were found most susceptible in tuber slice assay which also reflected genetic differences as foliage and tuber blight resistance are not always  ","tokenCount":"363"}

data/part_3/0301681785.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"05178d1c930273443c97abaead4da8fa","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/eaf87834-04d4-400f-a619-3d4ad734e671/retrieve","id":"150453777"},"keywords":["FISH","genome size","genotyping","musa","rDNA"],"sieverID":"3c173687-1a0a-4c9a-91f6-50cf09f9efa4","pagecount":"1","content":"Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) are one of the most important world trade commodities and are a staple food for millions of people in countries of the humid tropics. The production of bananas is, however, threatened by the rapid spread of various diseases and adverse environmental conditions. The Musa genetic diversity, which is of paramount importance for breeding of resistant cultivars, needs to be preserved and better characterised. The world's largest banana and plantain collection is managed by the Bioversity International Transit Centre (ITC) in Belgium and contains more than 1500 accessions maintained in vitro. The collection is being continuously expanded by new accessions representing various edible cultivars, improved materials and wild species from different parts of the world. Recently new germplasm was collected in Indonesia and successively introduced into the international Musa gene bank. The aim of this work was to characterise the genotype of these accessions in order to shed light on their genome structure and to confirm their taxonomic classification. A total of 21 wild Musa accessions were analysed and their nuclear genome size and the genomic distribution of ribosomal RNA genes were determined, showing a high degree of variability in both characters. Genotyping with a set of 19 microsatellite markers identified Musa species that are closely related to the studied accessions and provided data to aid in their classification. Sequence analysis of their internal transcribed spacers ITS1 and ITS2 suggested that some of the accessions are of interspecific hybrid origin and/or represent backcross progenies of interspecific hybrids.","tokenCount":"251"}

data/part_3/0328287255.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"923532e7920bb23955dc78b08db41d2c","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/9824d2a8-ba9d-4692-add6-9c7251db32d4/retrieve","id":"1526597839"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"42a71a81-c60c-475d-bb98-59e3a5dcb80a","pagecount":"32","content":"We would like to thank to Brenda Boonabaana, Ruth Meinzen-Dick and Emily Camille Myers for reviewing the report. The opinions expressed here belong to the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of A4NH, IFPRI, CGIAR, BMGF or the Assets Project Phase 2. All remaining errors are the responsibility of the authors.The growing importance of women's empowerment as an explicit or implicit objective in many agricultural development projects calls for a measure of women's empowerment that agricultural development projects can use to diagnose key areas of women's (and men's) disempowerment, design appropriate strategies to address deficiencies and monitor project outcomes related to women's empowerment. Kabeer (2001) defines empowerment as expansion of people's ability to make strategic life choices, particularly in contexts where this ability had been denied to them. Alsop et al. (2006) have also defined empowerment as the ability to make purposeful choices and translate choices into desired actions and outcomes given the opportunity structure within which one operates.Empowerment in agriculture is defined as one's ability to make decisions on matters related to agriculture as well as one's access to the materials and social resources needed to carry out those decisions (Alkire et al. 2013). Empowering women is essential for enabling their rights but also to achieve the broader development goals such as economic growth, poverty reduction, health, education and welfare. Particularly, economically empowering women is a win-win that benefits women, families and society as a whole (Golla et al. 2011;IFAD 2012). When women have access to land, water, education, training, extension and financial services and strong organizations/networks, they are able to harness the opportunities around them, thus benefitting themselves, their families and society (IFAD 2012). Owing to this recognition, many governments and development agencies, especially in the developing world, are making efforts to promote gender equality and women's empowerment in order to harness the above benefits.The United Nations (UN) Women, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) launched a Joint Programme (JP) in September of 2012 aimed at empowering resource-poor rural women through economic integration and food security initiatives. Access to financial services is one of the critical tools in poverty reduction and in tapping and unleashing the productive potential of poor women for inclusive economic growth. The United Nations Joint Programme \"Accelerating Progress towards the Economic Empowerment of Rural Women\" (UNJP-RWEE) strives to strengthen women's access to financial services in order to accelerate rural women's economic empowerment, coupled with other integrative interventions such as: improving rural women's and their households' food security and nutrition, development of individuals' capabilities and fulfilment of rights, fostering access to markets and agricultural inputs, promoting income-generating activities (IGA) in agriculture and strengthening women's participation in and benefit from community and rural institutions such as cooperatives and farmer's associations.Women's empowerment has often been assessed using quantitative measures with less attention given to the qualitative aspects. Given the context-specific nature of agricultural interventions, the existing survey-based Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index (WEAI) may not be suitable to measure women's empowerment in different projects. Furthermore, the local meaning of empowerment has not been fully understood by researchers to inform the criteria to measure women's empowerment in a given context. The FAO, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and International Water Management Institute have partnered with the International Food Policy Research Institute through the Gender, Agriculture, and Assets Project Phase 2 (GAAP2) to conduct a study aimed at assessing the extent to which the UNJP has been effective in achieving its goal of economically empowering rural women in Ethiopia, using both quantitative and qualitative approaches, and to understand the local meaning of empowerment. The findings will be used to validate the proposed project-level Women's Empowerment in Agriculture Index (pro-WEAI) domains and indicators. The results presented in this summary report are limited to the qualitative study conducted at two project sites in the Oromia region. The qualitative study was conducted using adapted methodologies previously developed for (i) the From Protection to Production program to evaluate the impact of cash transfers in sub-Saharan Africa and (ii) the GAAP2 qualitative protocols developed to measure women's empowerment within agricultural development projects. The qualitative study explored two key domains of empowerment in Golla's et al. (2011) framework of women's economic empowerment: (1) economic advancement and (2) power and agency, assessing the impact of the program design on the two domains, including the degree to which gender equality and women's empowerment were mainstreamed in program design and implementation. The report is organized as follows: first, we present the introduction to the study; secondly, we give a brief description of the UNJP; thirdly, we describe the methods; fourth, we present the overall findings from the study. This is followed by a synthesis of these findings in relation to the pro-WEAI variables being tested/validated, before concluding and providing recommendations.The UNJP titled, Accelerating Progress towards the Economic Empowerment of Rural Women, is a five-year global initiative implemented in Ethiopia, Guatemala, Kyrgyzstan, Liberia, Nepal, Niger and Rwanda. Each program country defined its specific program based on the local context. For Ethiopia, partnering UN agencies, in collaboration with government and other national stakeholders, designed the program. The main program objective is to enhance and secure rural women's livelihoods and rights in the context of the global and national development agenda. The program has four key outcome areas including: 1. improved food and nutrition security of rural women, 2. improved and sustained livelihood of rural women through income-generating interventions, 3. skill development and improved access to resources, 4. decision-making voices of women strengthened through enhancement of leadership and participation in rural institutions and establishment of a gender-responsive policy environment.The suggested selection criteria for women's savings and credit cooperatives (SACCOs) or self-help groups include women members who:• are resident in the targeted kebele 1 for at least two years;• can productively engage in IGAs;• do not have bad credit history and no current debt;• do not benefit from other interventions by other donors;• are willing to participate in all project activities;• are hardworking;• are willing to share their experience with other similar women (peers);• are experienced in business and IGA;• are well respected by community members and able to influence others;• are marginalized because of their disability, health status and other social conditions;• are willing to take responsibility for their debt and that of their group;• have some members with leadership quality;• have some members who can read and write;• have some members who have or are female household heads;• have experience in running off-farm and on-farm activities.1. A kebele is the smallest administrative unit of Ethiopia. The program's achievements to date include:• assessment of the existing situation and identification of appropriate technologies and IGA for beneficiaries using:• market assessment study• baseline study• feasibility study for technologies.• capacity development activities at all levels, i.e. woreda, kebele and beneficiary level training.• awareness creation through community conversations (using the community conversation manual) such as• enhanced access to productive resources for IGA including revolving funds through SACCOs (without collateral), agricultural inputs and technologies including seeds and technologies required for agriculture and other IGA and savings.In Ethiopia, the UNJP-RWEE operates in two regions, i.e. Oromia and Afar. The qualitative study was conducted in two woredas (districts), i.e. Adami Tulu and Yaya Gulele districts in the Oromia region, from 31 July 2017 to 12 August 2017.In each woreda, the UNJP team selected three kebeles for the study, two of which were action kebeles (project sites/ treatment villages), while one was a control kebele. In Adami Tulu woreda, the three kebeles were Abune Germama and Aneno Shesho (treatment villages) and Gulanta Boke (control village), while in Yaya Gulele woreda, Nono Chemerie and Iluna Dire were the treatment villages and Dede Tege was the control village. The action sites were selected based on the degree of market integration using distance from the main road as the proxy measure to sample one relatively remote and one relatively integrated community. The sites in Adami Tulu are more integrated, closer to the urban trading centres, while those in Yaya Gulele are remote. The control sites have similar socio-economic characteristics.Several data collection methods were applied including: group discussions with project female beneficiaries and indirect male beneficiaries, in-depth interviews with individual case studies (empowered and disempowered women and men) and key informant interviews (KIs) with project implementers (at woreda level) and kebele leaders in the three selected kebeles of each woreda. The group discussion participants, key informants and case studies were purposefully selected with the help of experts working on the project in each woreda. Female beneficiaries were selected purposefully based on: being a member of the cooperative supported by the project, direct project beneficiary and level of empowerment (empowered and disempowered). The male indirect beneficiaries were also selected based on level of empowerment and the fact that their spouses were project beneficiaries.Separate group discussions for women and men were conducted and after the group discussions, the research teams held a plenary session where women and men came together to discuss the emerging findings. The discussions were done in the local language, Oromifa. The KIs were held in mixed groups, including one group discussion with KIs at the woreda (project staff) and one group discussion with KIs at the kebele (kebele officials) within each woreda. A total of 187 women and 198 men participated in group discussions and case studies. Several participatory tools were used to facilitate the discussions with female beneficiaries and indirect male beneficiaries including: the understanding of empowerment tool (used only in the action sites), the livelihood matrix (capturing decision-making/control over income), access to and control over household and community resources tool and the seasonal calendar, gender division of labour, decision-making tool. The proportional piling technique was used to stimulate discussions on perceptions and preferences. The community profile tool was used to collect data from kebele KIs, while the project operations checklist was used to collect data from project staff. The life history checklist was used to capture histories of empowered and disempowered women and men, serving as case studies to provide in-depth and detailed understanding of empowerment pathways. The note takers documented the interviews and discussions in field notebooks. After data collection, the handwritten notes were checked for accuracy and expanded into complete narratives. All focus group discussions (FGDs) were audio recorded and the English translations were subsequently transcribed. Data collected from different sources were used to triangulate the findings.Data analysis started at the end of each day during debriefing sessions. First, each research team reviewed and summarized the discussion from each FGD, categorizing the findings into the subthemes of the three key research themes. A summary of each FGD in relation to each of the domains of empowerment was developed. Next, the findings of all FGDs conducted in each woreda were compiled into individual woreda reports. The third and final step was to look across reports, summaries and transcripts to establish the emerging themes, key findings specific to the empowerment domains and indicators across the thematic areas and illustrate this with quotes. During analysis, a variety of factors were taken into consideration including: factors intersecting with gender to shape life experiences, differences between and among women and men based on age/generation, social position within household/family, social identity, ethnicity, socio-economic status, geographical locations and others.This section summarizes the key emerging themes from the findings and discussions presented in the main report (Nigussie et al. 2017). Other emergent themes have been extracted and presented in addition to the pre-defined subthemes explored in the study.The key subthemes that the study explored under economic advancement were: sources of income and women's roles in income generation, time use in productive and reproductive work, access to credit and use of credit and other financial services and access to services and infrastructure.The main livelihood activities for community members in the study woredas are: 1) crop production, 2) vegetable production, 3) livestock rearing, 4) apiculture, 5) poultry production, 6) trading and 7) wage employment. Men and women in the two woredas participate in these IGAs at varying degrees and carry out different roles which influence the level of control over income from these sources. Overall, adult women mostly participate in rain-fed crop production, irrigated and non-irrigated vegetable production, fattening oxen and sheep and petty trading and apiculture, while young women carry out quarrying in groups, poultry production and casual labour (such as weeding and other employment opportunities within the communities). The most prioritized livelihood activities for adult men include rain-fed crop production, irrigated vegetable production, fattening (oxen, sheep and goat), and selling khat, while for the young men it includes quarrying, casual work, rain-fed crop production, irrigated vegetable cultivation and donkey cart renting. In Yaya Gulele, women rarely work as casual labourers, due to limited opportunities in the area. In Moreso, donkeys are income sources mostly in Adami Tulu woreda. Beneficiary women can make choices from the given livelihood options provided by the UNJP-RWEE. In former times, women had limited abilities to make choices and decisions because of limited knowledge. In the past, women only owned small livestock, like chicken. This is changing now due to the targeted interventions from the government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs)that sensitize women about their potential and support them with initial capital, which they invest into different IGAs, including larger livestock. One of the beneficiaries remarked: In all the kebeles, agricultural activities are mainly associated with men because men hold the plough and till the land. Yet women also participate in many of the agricultural activities. Men also consider themselves to be more knowledgeable about agriculture than women. However, this perception is contested by some women, as these women think they have almost equal knowledge as men about agricultural activities. Although all household members play a role in all of the agricultural activities, women's role in agricultural activities such as ploughing, planting, harvesting and transportation are less valued by men, demonstrated by men giving women's contribution lower scores. However, most of the women's groups gave women's contribution equal scores to men (3-3). Both men and women gave youth lower scores on most of the activities.Changing community perceptions about women working outside the home, their roles and rightsParticipation of women in IGAs outside the home (such as petty trade and wage employment) is a recent phenomenon. Overall, in all of the study sites, the current attitude of the communities towards women's participation in work outside of the home is positive, in contrast to historical attitudes. Women that work outside of the home are appreciated and encouraged by their communities. These women are perceived as striving to improve the livelihoods of their households. Women indicated that they are happy working outside of the house, although it is challenging due to the demanding triple responsibilities (domestic, productive and community responsibilities). The change in attitude is mainly driven by ongoing government effort to raise awareness about women's rights and support from development and multilateral organizations that raise awareness on gender equality and women's empowerment. The opportunity for women to work outside the home provides them with increased income, improved networks and access to information. The opportunities offered by the UNJP have enabled men and other community members to appreciate women's work and their ability to earn an income within and outside the home because women have been able to contribute to their own wellbeing and that of their families. This has helped women not only to be valued but also supported without too much of a backlash for no longer following the previously socially prescribed roles.Although there are changes in attitude within communities, there are men that perceive women working outside of the home as a threat, as revealed by one of the male indirect beneficiaries.According to the findings, the key factors that determine participation of women in work outside of the home include marital status, trust between spouses, level of responsibility and domestic workload, women's level of education or awareness about their rights, wealth status of family and availability of opportunities to work outside of the home. Married women consult their spouses and need to reach an agreement. In three of the group discussions, the men argued that women who engage in casual labour leave other activities behind and thus the money should belong to the household. Women who have relatively greater freedom of mobility such as the young unmarried, widowed and divorced are more likely to participate in work outside of the house.Participation of women in IGAs has created positive and negative shifts in the gendered division of labour. Previously, it was men who were solely involved in farm activities and all the domestic work was done by women. Nowadays, women participate equally with men in productive activities such as farming and trading to contribute to the economic status of the family, although participation of men in domestic activities is still very limited. Because of these changes, one can conclude that women are overburdened with triple roles (domestic, productive and communal roles) and that empowering women might not reduce the time poverty (workload) since most of the husbands do not share the domestic responsibilities and women are not in a position to hire labour in their homes. The workload on women could be translated into long working hours that could impair their health and leave them limited time for self-growth (networking, attending training, meetings and other activities) and to effectively engage in economic activities.In Yaya Gulele, while women participate equally with men in productive activities, the participation of men in domestic activities is limited to fetching water, collecting firewood and rarely babysitting or cooking food. This change in gendered division of labour, especially men sharing the domestic chores, is valued by the community. These changes are due to the various interventions by government and development partners focusing on changing attitudes of men and women towards gender division of labour. In Nono Chemerie kebele, a woman from the group discussion stressed the point by stating:I have a good relationship with my husband; he also supports me with the household work. For instance, he fetches water, collects firewood using a donkey, and cooks food when I'm busy. It is a privilege for me, because my mother did not have such help in the past. I think this is a result of increased understanding about the situation of women, which came through various trainings. (A 38-year-old empowered woman, Nono Chemerie kebele)In Adami Tulu, besides the UNJP, there are other credit and saving associations, cooperatives and unions such as: Biftu Batu Farmers' Union and Oromia Saving and Credit S.C. (WALQO, in its Afan Oromo abbreviation) that provide credit to men and women to increase their participation in IGAs. Women who generate a significant amount of income are models. In Yaya Gulele prior to the UNJP, within the treatment kebeles, there was Bakkalachi bari cooperative, which provides access to loans to women and energy-saving stoves. In the treatment kebeles, UNJP-RWEE provided women with access to loans in-cash and in-kind (improved seeds, e.g. wheat and teff) at a low interest rate and various training that enabled them to participate in a variety of IGAs. With loans, women are able to buy oxen for ploughing and/or for fattening, dairy animals, rent land for cultivation and start businesses. The saving habit of UNJP-RWEE beneficiaries has also improved, as the program encourages them to save ETB 20 per two weeks. The ability to save also strongly emerged as one of the indicators of an empowered and preferred woman by both men and women.The subthemes under this key thematic area were: control and decision-making over productive assets, control and decision-making over production and income generation, control and decision-making over cash expenditures, savings and transfers from the UNJP, control and decision-making over food and nutrition, perceptions of women's economic roles, empowerment, self-esteem and dignity, social networks and leadership and influence in the community.During the study, efforts were made to establish what joint decision-making really means. Joint decision-making entails two things: on one hand, it is a decision-making process in which women equally participate with men and agree on certain decisions; on the other hand, it refers to the situation in which both men and women participate in decisionmaking but either of them exercises more control and decision-making power because of the monetary value of the asset or traditional, gendered association with an asset or expression of superiority. Unlike five years ago, when men were the sole decision-makers, joint decision-making is becoming popular such that women feel empowered and results in increased harmony between spouses. Sole decision-making is where an individual decides by himself/herself with or without informing the counterpart.Women's autonomy limited to productive assets/resources of low valueAcross the study sites, control and decision-making power over productive assets/resources varies between men and women based on: mode of asset acquisition, gender division of labour, the monetary value of the asset and position in the household. First, women mostly acquire assets or resources from husbands and relatives upon marriage, while men acquire assets or resources from parents through inheritance or as a birth right. Secondly, unlike women, men are mostly responsible for productive work that provides them with the opportunity to have more control over most of the productive resources. Women exercise sole decision-making over small productive assets or resources (such as handcrafts, vegetables, chickens, smaller quantities of produce, household utensils and others) whose monetary value is low. Large productive assets whose monetary value is high (such as land, oxen, sheep and goats) are subject to joint decision-making, although men may exercise more power. One of the women stated:We have joint decision regarding agricultural activities and the ultimate decision is my husband's. I alone decide on some activities like selling chicken, eggs, small amount of crop harvest and buying of cloth for my children. There have been changes in how decisions are made in my household over the past five years because there is joint discussion on different issues including agricultural activities and the selling of big assets, which was minimal in the past. This change was made possible through the awareness raising given mostly by the government and sometimes by NGOs like RWEEJP. (A 30-year-old empowered woman, Abune Germama kebele)In Adami Tulu woreda, husbands are registered as land owners on the land certificate while wives with children are regarded as beneficiaries, which gives men more decision-making power. In Yaya Gulele woreda, the government has started issuing land certificates with both husband's and wife's names and photos so that men and women can have equal rights over land. Nono Chemerie kebele (which is a RWEE beneficiary kebele) is one of the pilot kebeles.Though men are the ultimate decision-makers regarding larger assets, they consult their spouses before making decisions and acting. Where disagreements occur, for instance, in polygamous families (where land must be shared between wives), the court of law helps women to claim rights over property. Upon divorce or separation, spouses share resources equally, except the horses (which belong to men). Upon the death of a husband, the wife will inherit half of the property, while the children inherit the remaining half. Exceptionally, only adult and young men have full access and control over horses.Women tend to exercise more control over assets such as livestock that they inherited or acquire from their parents or buy using loans from various sources (such as UNJP-RWEE) which is registered in their own names. This was approved of by both male indirect beneficiaries and female beneficiaries of the UNJP. Although culturally women cannot publicly claim individual ownership ('I cannot say that it is mine. I have to say that it is ours', stated one of the beneficiaries), they exercise more bargaining power over such resources and men cannot freely access or control them without women's consent. Such invisible control over assets by women causes under estimation of their power as it makes transformed conditions appear normal. Women have more bargaining power over what they claim is theirs and legal processes (court) also help women claim rights over such property.The degree of participation in decision-making over use of income from a specific IGA depends on the power to make decisions over productive activities, who earned the income, size of income, size of produce, access to market information, culture and household headship. Either of the spouses can have more control over the income from any IGAs in which they invested more time and energy compared to their spouse. Women tend to have more control and decision-making power over the income they earned from petty trading of handcrafts, poultry, dairy products, local brew etc. Local culture also determines who can have control over income from a specific source. For example, in the two study woredas, the culture decries any attempt by men to control income from poultry and dairy products. Men, on the other hand, have more control over income from wage employment and small businesses they operate such as barber, weaving and others. Taking the leadership position regarding lucrative farm activities gives men more control over income from this source such as cereal production. Even if there is unequal control over household income from various sources, the results show that there is increased participation of women in controlling and making decisions over income.Control over produce-women's autonomy limited to smaller quantities Since men claim to contribute more labour in production, they control large produce and income from large sales.A woman can sell crop produce of up to 25 kg without consulting her husband. He also does not enquire about the amount earned for he knows that she solely uses the income to buy household necessities. However, selling crop produce greater than 25 kg necessitates consultation and negotiation between the husband and wife. It is men who usually sell a large volume of harvest (>25 kg) for specific purposes such as buying fertilizer, improved seeds, paying back loans, buying items for children or others. Husbands sell the produce or livestock and consult their wives on how to invest the income. However, the ultimate decision-making power on such sales and expenditures resides with the man. Men and women consult each other on almost everything related to production and income generation. However, the final decision is still made by the man. Women sometimes accept men's ultimate decisions to avoid quarrels. In some cases, disagreements between husband and wife on certain decisions may involve third party mediation. Across all the study kebeles, there are mixed results about control over income from sale of vegetables, but there is an indication that the size of the field and amount of harvest influence control over this produce. The Australian sociologist Raewyn Connell named such advantages or privileges the 'patriarchal dividend' (Connell, 2002).Participation of women in groups as members and leaders is improved compared to the past. The UNJP-RWEE beneficiaries and the key informants indicated that all the members and leaders of the cooperatives where the UNJP-RWEE is hosted are women. Women are now participating in many of the community affairs. There is increased participation of women in meetings and their ability to speak in public is enhanced. The changes in women leadership and influence in the community relates mostly to interventions by the government and development partners such as the UNJP who have put in much effort to raise awareness on women's rights and unleashing their potential. The UNJP strengthened the existing women's cooperatives that provide women with the opportunity to acquire knowledge, exercise leadership and have influence within the community. Husbands of female beneficiaries realized the benefit of participation of women in such development programs, as members and leaders. Even though women are now increasingly participating in community leadership, the number of women who come forward and speak out is still limited. Both men and women in the treatment kebeles mentioned community leadership as one of the key indicators of women's empowerment or disempowerment.Through training offered by the government, NGOs and the UNJP, there is increased knowledge acquisition among women. Women use this knowledge to contribute to decisions at household and community levels. The UNJP has enabled the men to recognize and value the role and voice of women in the household and in the community. For instance, cattle can now be sold only with the agreement of both wife and husband. This joint decision-making has increased harmony within households. The court of law also protects women against domestic violence. However, in Gulanta Boke, the control site in Adami Tulu, the men's group argued that men are the presidents in the home and can decide to sell livestock even when the woman says no, which often triggers conflicts. One of the female beneficiaries commented:I now have a good relationship with my husband. He used to whip me with a strip of animal skin (shaabbee). Now everything is done through discussion and in agreement. I will take him to a court of law if he dares to touch me now. I'm no longer in a state of lack of knowledge. In the past, husbands thought that women should not give them orders. Now we decide together. There are changes over the past five years. My participation in decision-making has increased. Now knowledge has expanded. We watch television. We also listen to radio. Our children who are attending school also changed us. Knowledge regarding saving and trading activities has increased. There is no beating like in the past. We now discuss and settle our differences. (A 40-year-old beneficiary woman, Aneno Shesho kebele)Control over credit from UNJP, savings and remittancesThe results from the women's groups in Aneno Shesho kebele, the men's groups from Nono Chemerie kebele and the women's groups from Iluna Dire kebele indicated that women have more access to credit than men, which is mainly due to targeted interventions such as UNJP-RWEE that provide access to loans to women. Regarding loans from UNJP-RWEE, spouses have relatively equal control, where women are borrowers and men are guarantors. Overall, spouses have equal control over credit since servicing the loan lies on the shoulders of all household members. However, compared to adults, youth have less access to credit.Regarding control over savings, the results reveal mixed perceptions. The results from each woreda are split evenly between spouses with equal access to savings and women with more access to savings than men. Women tend to have more control over savings from their own effort, if the amount is small. In the case of significant amounts of savings, they consult with the spouses on how the money can be spent. In Adami Tulu woreda, men in the Abune Germama and control kebele indicated that they have more control over joint savings, while those in Aneno Shesho indicated that joint savings are equally controlled by spouses. However, women in Abune Germama and the control kebele think that women have more access to and control over joint savings, while those in Aneno Shesho think spouses have equal access to and control over savings. The youth in this woreda have less access to savings and have no control over savings. Similarly, in Yaya Gulele woreda, men in Nono Chemerie and women in Iluna Dire indicated that women have more access to and control over joint savings, while in the other group discussions men and women are considered to have equal access to and control over joint savings. Youths in these sites have less or no access to and control over savings. The UNJP-RWEE has increased women's understanding of the importance of saving and credit. The program has enhanced women's saving culture. Beneficiaries are expected to save ETB 20 every two weeks. In all the treatment kebeles, women are praised by the community for their saving skills. Women are perceived (by both men and women) as being good at saving money because they do not waste money on unnecessary things, unlike men who drink and chew khat with friends.The remittances are from household members who live and work outside of the woreda, i.e. in other parts of Ethiopia or outside of Ethiopia. Adult men and women have equal access to and control over remittances, while youth have less access to and control over this.Compared to the past, today there is a change in women's self-esteem and dignity, demonstrated by their increased participation in decisions related to selling high-value items such as cattle and surpluses, increased participation in meetings, enhanced ability to speak in public and increased participation in IGAs. The main actors of this change are the government and development partners who have been implementing targeted interventions towards: i) increasing awareness about women's rights and gender equality and ii) increasing access to various resources/opportunities to enhance women's self-esteem and dignity. With the UNJP-RWEE intervention, the beneficiaries: i) have developed the \"I can\" and \"we can\" attitude to participate in an IGA, ii) have the opportunity to move and work outside of the house, iii) have increased participation in decisions at home and in the community, iv) have increased opportunity to participate in meetings and speak in meetings, iv) have increased opportunity to share, learn and network and v) experience enhanced harmony within their homes (receive more respect from spouses), and vi) gained respect from community members. It is now possible to see women who till the land. Women now have their own money and husbands borrow from their wives. Women feel like they can do anything that other women and men cannot do. The project also increased the motivation of women for work. The project has helped women develop a positive image about themselves, develop confidence and be proactive. The 'I can' attitude creates an opportunity for continuity regarding women's participation in economic opportunities and empowerment. One of the empowered women declared with confidence:I participate in meetings equal as a man. In the beginning, the community said that I break the cultural rules because women are not allowed to participate in community meetings. And culturally a woman is not allowed to go to funerals to prepare the burial place. One day, I asked a member of idir if I can go with them to do that. Nobody accepted my idea and they laughed at me and some shouted in shock \"uuuuu\". Except this, I can do everything even activities men can't do. For example, putting fire in bee colonies; most of the men can't do this but I can do it. (A 41-year-old empowered woman, Abune Germama kebele)Male control over women's mobility Mobility of women is determined by various factors including age, marital status, household headship, distance from home, time of the day, cultural norms, wealth status and domestic responsibilities. For example, at a younger age, specifically before getting married, a woman's mobility is controlled by her parents, while after marriage it is controlled by her husband, allowing her to move freely to nearby places (within 3 km away from the village), e.g. local markets. A woman who does not have a husband is relatively free to move. A woman who goes wherever she wants at her own will is considered by the community as a social deviant and disobedient. However, compared to the past, women's freedom of mobility has increased immensely which is attributed to girls' access to education and various initiatives by the government and development partners to increase community awareness about women's rights, gender equity and empowerment. On the other hand, increased population growth and limited resources have made mobility of women a necessity rather than a choice. Women in poor households tend to work outside of the house more than those from wealthier households.The subthemes which were explored under this key thematic area were: gender-sensitive design of the UNJP and targeting and impact.At the woreda level, six focal persons from six different sector offices coordinate the program. The coordinators at woreda level are all men. In the case of Yaya Gulele woreda, at the kebele level, there are two women that facilitate implementation of the program activities and mediate communication between the beneficiaries and focal persons at the woreda level. However, in Adami Tulu woreda, there are no fieldworkers mediating between the women beneficiaries and the woreda focal persons.The direct beneficiaries of the program are women, while their spouses are indirect beneficiaries. The program targets already existing women cooperatives in the kebeles. Targeting women cooperatives increases the number of women reached and strengthens women's cooperatives. Targeting these cooperatives also provides opportunities for women to exercise active leadership, as these cooperatives are run by women, access services and influence the way services are delivered. However, due to limited resources, not all women in these cooperatives are beneficiaries of the UNJP-RWEE. Therefore, among the members of the cooperatives, women in the lower wealth category with good conduct, good saving records and good reputation in paying back loans were targeted. Women heads of households were given priority.With the loan (in-cash and in-kind) from UNJP-RWEE, beneficiaries have been able to i) generate more income by diversifying their livelihoods through activities such as fattening cattle or sheep and petty trade, ii) boost production by using inputs such as improved seeds of wheat and teff, iii) accumulate assets, e.g. chickens, oxen for ploughing, buying cows for milk, rent land for cultivation and iv) gain knowledge and information from various training (such as financial management, sanitation and hygiene, balanced diet, women's rights, literacy and others). This training has enabled women to participate in a variety of IGA, manage their homes well and make informed decisions. RWEE has strengthened women's relationships while working in groups. Beneficiaries in these woredas are able to buy and use mobile phones, due to the adult education program which has improved women's literacy levels. Project beneficiaries and indirect beneficiaries have noticed improvement in food security and nutrition. Unlike in the past when households ate 1-2 meals, now they eat more than two meals a day. There is improvement in eating a balanced diet as awareness about the importance of nutrition has increased. All the beneficiaries have toilets. In the past, people and cattle shared the same house but now, the space is separated. Some of the women currently participate in iqub (cash revolving groups) using proceeds from the UNJP to invest. Conversely, as women undertake activities that were traditionally for men, they also take on additional responsibilities, while men may be relieved of some of their tasks or are at least able to share the workload with the women. Overall, in the project sites, men's contribution to domestic chores has increased minimally, except in a few isolated cases.The amount of inputs (such as seed, bee hives) provided by the project is very small, compared to the number of beneficiaries who expressed interest in investing in specific enterprises. Women producing the same types of crops with the same technological package are asked to consolidate their plots, yet the plots of the beneficiaries are not continuously adjoining each other. The amount of credit given to the beneficiaries is not compatible with their business plans in most cases, causing change of plans, some of which force women to revert to traditional practices. The project does not release the required money at the time when the beneficiaries need it (opportune times). The project needs continuous monitoring and yet there are no logistics like motor bikes for staff to regularly visit the project sites and follow up on the activities. Furthermore, the loan repayment period is not commensurate to the time when farmers make money. Money is due to be repaid in October, which is not aligned with the harvest season, i.e. in December, when farmers have increased income.The study explored the local definition of empowerment, as defined by women and men, by asking both women and men to describe a woman who is \"strong\" or \"a model\" within or outside the community. Both men and women provided contextual definitions for the term empowerment. Cimina and Gahumsa were identified and used by both the research subjects and researchers as local terms (in Oromifa that mean being a strong or outstanding person. The characteristics of such individuals, as elicited by male and female group participants, have been grouped into broad categories.An empowered woman was defined by women and men based on different dimensions: a woman who has knowledge and is educated  ), has the ability to lead the community, ability to resolve conflicts in the home and community and treat community members fairly (LEADERSHIP), has good conduct, e.g. respect and does not drink alcohol (BEHAVIOUR), uses his time effectively (TIME), and uses family planning methods (REPRODUCTION). The ability to resolve conflicts in a home was mostly expressed by men and women in polygamous communities, in Adami Tulu woreda. Similarly, the ranking of the importance of the indicators varied across groups and sites.According to the results, the characteristics of an empowered man and woman were very much aligned with the proposed pro-WEAI domains and indicators of empowerment. Empowerment is defined based on the ideals of femininity and masculinity and ideals that make someone strong/able/capable, acceptable and respectable as a woman or man. However, time was not assessed in terms of workload or leisure (as proposed in pro-WEAI) but in terms of being able to plan and use time effectively and being hardworking. Possession of knowledge, particularly by women, was considered very empowering by both men and women (knowledge is power). The difference between the empowering domains and indicators for women and men is that mobility, knowledge and education, along with the ability to attend and speak in public meetings and proper administration of the home are more empowering to women than men. For men, accumulation of resources or wealth, working hard on the farm, knowledge of good technologies and proper family administration are key. Men tend to perceive women's empowerment in terms of economic advancement while women tend to perceive their empowerment in terms of knowledge and awareness about their rights and being able to take part in spheres that were previously denied to them.Considering the local definitions of empowerment, socio-cultural aspects stand out strongly and need to be part of the definition. Empowerment is strongly embedded within the cultural environment in which women and men thrive. Empowerment is not only about the ability to decide or make a choice but also about conduct, respect and trust within the household and community. The moral being of a man or woman is very important and valued by communities. If we focus on choice alone, then it focuses on individual independence, which is likely to westernize the African woman and disempower her. It fails to capture mutual interdependence. A woman has a relationship with her husband and society; individual choice lacks mutual interdependence. We are what we are because we are in a relationship with someone, a shift from individualism to 'jointness'.Proposed definition of women's empowerment in agriculture: the ability to have a voice, engage in decision-making on valuable assets or resources and influence decisions in situations where norms, culture and policy are not constraining.Based on the findings, it might be important to differentiate empowerment in relation to agricultural production and empowerment in relation to non-agricultural aspects (e.g. ability to educate children). The causal relationships need to be clearly discerned to delineate empowerment in agriculture and how it contributes to empowerment outside the agricultural domain.5.2 Is empowerment seen as a good thing or bad thing? By whom?Both men and women discussants perceived empowerment as positive. They indicated that the communities recognize and respect empowered women and men. The individuals in the community see empowered men and women as role models and want to be like them. The wives of empowered men are regarded with respect in the community. Men are also proud of their empowered wives.Although both men and women perceive women's empowerment as positive, some aspects of empowerment are perceived negatively by both men and women, for instance, mobility. Men are uncomfortable when women travel far from home due to fear of loss of control over women, especially when women are more exposed to information, knowledge and networks (threatened masculinity). Women prefer to work at home if they have an improved economic situation rather than to move or travel far to engage in activities such as wage employment or petty trade, particularly women in remote villages. Very empowered women who challenge stringent cultural norms are considered social deviants by the community and other women are afraid to follow their footsteps. Men consider women's knowledge about their rights as a disadvantage, particularly among the young girls as they become uncontrollable, e.g. when choosing partners to marry. Production* Input in production decisions* Important decisions on inputs for agricultural production, when to plough, plant and harvest are mostly made by men. The decision to sell and buy large animals, mainly oxen, cows and other livestock such as sheep/goats, is mostly made by men even though there is discussion between spouses.Although women are consulted, the ultimate decision and expenditure is made by men. Men are considered more knowledgeable. Input into highly recognized and valued decisions is more empowering to women. Therefore, if women's knowledge is enhanced, they can provide input into such decisions. There is need to explore influence from other household members, e.g. mother-and father-in-law.Autonomy in production* Women household heads entirely decide on production aspects as compared to women in men-headed households who have less sole decision-making power.Women in male-headed households exercise autonomy over agricultural activities that occur on small scale, smaller quantities of produce and products/activities of low value (i.e. the returns are small and do not arouse interest from men, e.g. milk, butter, eggs). Can this be considered empowering for women?Access to education levelAbility to apply new technologiesAccess to information and knowledge strongly stood out as an indicator of an empowered woman-knowledge is power. Information and knowledge can stand alone as an indicator, while possession of knowledge can be demonstrated through input into decisions and other aspects.Men have more access to agricultural information than women. Men accessed information mostly from the government bodies (development agents, woreda experts) and mobile phones. Men are more networked and are highly mobile.Resources* Use rights over land Land certificates that bear both the husband's and wife's names and photographs give both equal ownership and use rights (voiced in Nono Chemerie, one of the RWEE sites). We did not explore what happens to the certificate in situations where the husband has many wives.The value of land was not explored but it would be interesting to know the value of land that women and men use/own Ownership of assets* Big and highly valued assets/resources like agricultural land, livestock (oxen, cows, goats, sheep, donkeys, horses) and house are owned jointly by husband and wife and decisions tend to be joint. Men have more control over highly valued livestock (like oxen, cows and horses). Women have control over donkeys and the proceeds from hiring them out; donkeys are less valued by men. It is important to tease out the livestock species owned or controlled by men and women (rather than generalizing livestock), their value and mode of acquisition when assessing women's empowerment.It is crucial to understand the value (importance) of all productive assets including land.Assets under the woman's name increase her bargaining power.Do assets of low value empower women? If yes, how? It is important to understand the local meaning of \"ownership\" of assets and frame the discussions around that definition.The court plays a key role in helping women claim rights over resources especially during divorce or separation or marrying a new wife. Therefore, it is important to explore the political enabling environment in addition to cultural norms and how valued assets are shared.Resources* Access to and decisions on credit* .Both women and men have equal access to credit from financial institutions like WALQO and VisionFund. However, women have more access to and control over credit from RWEE which is given under their names.Access to credit from RWEE gives women more bargaining and invisible power. Therefore, it is important to understand who received the credit from other sources and how decisions over credit are made.Measuring women's access to credit alone is not enough. Delve into issues of control of credit, who manages the investment, size of investment and how credit is serviced. In the study sites, repayment of credit seemed to be a family's responsibility.Access to a financial account (control over savings and remittances)Book accounts in banks/micro-finance institutions are mostly opened under the names of men and the men have more control over these accounts.In case of joint savings, there are mixed perceptions about who has more control over joint savings. When women have large amounts of money, they consult with their husbands on how to use it. Access to a financial account may not be enough to measure women's empowerment. Explore control of the savings as well. Women in SACCOs have access to accounts within these institutions.Income* Control over use of income* Income from petty trade (like selling of arake and tella-local brew), hand craft, butter, cheese and eggs is entirely controlled by women, but these sources generate little income. Diversification of IGAs can be empowering if the quality and return from the activity are valuable.Sale of large crop quantities (e.g. greater than 25 kg of teff) and larger livestock is the sole responsibility of men. Decisions about income from selling large quantities of crop harvest and high-value livestock is jointly made by both men and women, although men control the expenditure.Control of income alone as a measure of women's empowerment may not be sufficient. Consider input into decisions over income from large and small sales.Diversification of income sources seems to be empowering to women and can be considered as a potential contributor to empowerment.Consider ability to decide to engage in non-farm/wage IGAs.Autonomy in use of income Women have autonomy in spending income from small sales or other petty income sources like daily wage employment. How can women utilize \"small\" amounts of income to empower themselves? Female household heads have more autonomy over income. Explore influence from other household members, e.g. mother-and father-in-law.Leadership* Group membership*Ability to speak out and be heardMembership in groups alone might not be enough to measure women's empowerment because most women who belong to groups do not speak out (particularly in mixed groups) and their concerns are not taken into consideration. However, being in a leadership position (at group or community level), able to speak out, able to attend meetings (with or without consultation of spouse) and controlling benefits from the membership are potential indicators of empowerment.Some of the women who were categorized as empowered and held leadership positions in a group (e.g. chairperson) had to seek permission from their husbands to attend group meetings. Workload is heavier for empowered women because they handle both domestic and other activities and, in most cases, their husbands do not help with domestic work and women do not have money to hire labour.According to the local definition of empowerment, an empowered woman should be able to manage her time well. But how can this be measured without causing increased workload and still be valued by community members?Physical mobilityThere is a set of mixed perceptions about mobility as an indicator of empowerment. What women wish for, however, is mobility because of empowerment and freedom of choice, which for men remains difficult to accept, for reasons related to preserving their power and their culturally assigned roles as heads of households and main decision-makers (hegemonic masculinity).Within the studied communities, mobility of women depends on the distance from home, time of the day, permission from their husband, age, marital status, wealth status, reason for mobility and religion; these need to be explored to understand the context within which mobility can be empowering.Mutual respectTrust of spouse is an important element as it aids mutual decision-making and mobility. Group membership is by consultation with a spouse because it requires money for membership. Harmony is a product of joint decisionmaking. Husbands may help wives with domestic chores when there is harmony.Self-efficacy Life satisfactionPositive image in society When the individual empowerment process occurs in a woman's or a man's life, they begin to believe that they can have more control over their lives; they understand their situation and begin to act to improve their lives and their environment, e.g. the 'I can' attitude developed by RWEE beneficiaries.Women who freely engage in discussions with their husbands, work hard to generate income, participate in community activities, accumulate assets and manage their homestead (educate children, feed children on balanced diet etc.) have relatively better life satisfaction, confidence and self-efficacy.Beneficiaries relatively have more awareness on gender-based violence as compared to non-beneficiaries. With increased sensitization, the group participants acknowledge that domestic violence is not appropriate. The court has a big role to play in curbing domestic violence and helping women claim their rights. Gender-based violence can be used to validate intrahousehold relationships. Nutrition is the domain of women although men also purchase food.Women are free to decide on household nutrition using the income from petty trading. Minimum power relations manifest here because men have low interest in this issue; men do not want to discuss food.Input into reproductive health decisions cannot be included under nutrition, as proposed.Input in decisions on child bearing and use of contraceptivesFor disempowered women, reproductive decisions seem to be mainly made by men although there seems to be some consultation. The attitude that God decides on the number of children also prevails among men and women.Frequent pregnancies constrain women from engaging effectively in agriculture and other empowering activities.Good conduct and acceptance (e.g. does not drink alcohol or chew khat)Trusted by othersTrust is key in empowering women. Most credit institutions still favour women because of trust. Trust is important for group membership as well.An empowered man is one who adheres to community norms, cultural aspects and government rules.Although self-conduct is key to the community, it is difficult to measure. However, it should be considered under institutional/structural factors.Women who are over empowered are perceived to be social deviants as they challenge most of the cultural norms.Deciding not to migrate Ability to control migration of household members (control over agricultural labour force)Ability to decide to migrate can be empowering or disempoweringThe project has great potential to curb migration of women and young girls; this is a potential measure of empowerment.Families that receive remittances tend to have improved livelihoods.5.4 Gender roles, social norms (including marriage practices) and implications for the project and women's empowerment• Culture restricts women to domestic roles and the triple role burden limits the extent to which women can fully realize their empowerment potential. This calls for interventions that save women's labour and encouraging men to support women in their productive and reproductive activities. Men need to recognize women as farmers and their contribution to agriculture, which will challenge the patriarchal dividend/men's privilege.• Women's access to assets is mainly through marriage and dependence on her husband, while men have family inheritance or birth rights. The deeply held discriminatory norms and practices place women and men, girls and boys at unequal starting points and ability to spiral up the empowerment ladder. Such norms shape men's and women's behaviour in the society and define their sphere of action, influence and control. However, as women achieve empowerment, a few positive changes have occurred in family decision-making processes, shifting towards a more equitable joint decision-making process.• Existing culture, where the bride is given assets (including livestock) to take with her to her new home, gives women greater bargaining power over those assets. Such initial capital is a stepping stone for women to invest in and quickly climb the ladder, when provided with external support, such as the UNJP credit scheme.• Disempowering marriage practices (such as abduction) were common in the study areas in the past but have drastically declined. Historically, girls did not have the chance to choose their partners, however, this is now changing. These changes present a good opportunity for the project to capitalize on helping women and girls to learn how to make choices.• The cultural marriage practice that demands the total submission of women to their husbands is changing because of the increased awareness of women as a result of various trainings provided by the government and NGOs.Women have started to work beyond the domestic sphere and yet their activities are limited to small businesses.Women can be supported to expand these businesses.• The norm that discourages women to claim individual ownership of assets masks assets that women own and their ability to exercise control over the assets. This was demonstrated in Adami Tulu, where married women claimed that they cannot say that 'this is mine' but say 'this is ours' even when the asset is acquired using women's own income, inherited or given to them by parents.• The work burden on women negatively affects the time and labour women can invest in targeted IGAs by UNJP-RWEE.5.5 Key findings from the qualitative research about the likely impact of the project on women's empowerment• We observed a sufficient level of local awareness about gender issues which provides other projects a good foundation upon which to transform constraining gender norms. Given the relative nature of the empowerment concept, enhancing women's local ideal qualities (social expectations of a strong woman) together with challenging the constraining norms and engaging men in the processes of empowering women serve to create a positive image for the project. Helping communities to appreciate the importance of women being in recognized positions in the social structure minimizes backlash against women. As the project builds on these local ideals (while constructively challenging the constraining norms), the treatment and control communities all perceive women's empowerment as a positive trait, except for a few aspects that men are not comfortable with.• Men and women indicated that the UNJP-RWEE program has been contributing to women's empowerment, as it provides them with opportunities to learn about their rights and responsibilities and provides them with starter capital. The knowledge acquired through training helps women manage their homes properly, manage their finances, be able to analyse investment options, participate in different IGAs, participate in meetings and speak in public. These opportunities enabled women to develop self-confidence.• While UNJP-RWEE provides women with farm technologies and other farm inputs, working on attitudinal change towards women is important. Women who apply agricultural technologies may not be recognized as empowered, since a 'farmer is a man (stet)' (as elaborated in section 4.1). Therefore, the project should strive to shift perceptions by helping communities to value and recognize women's contribution in agriculture through training or holding community conversations.• The qualitative study elicited the process through which women empower themselves through the credit scheme.The credit that women access in their own names gives them more bargaining power with their spouses and increases their ability to accumulate assets and improve their social status. The project approach is holistic, addressing the functional soft and hard skills which aid accumulation of other empowerment aspects.• It is difficult to attribute the project's contribution since there are other government and NGO interventions undertaking activities that empower women 5.6 Implications for quantitative methods• Empowerment has many emotional/feeling elements which should be elicited using qualitative methods. Qualitative methods provide flexibility in data collection and in further disaggregating components (domains and indicators) defined in the quantitative tool. Empowerment is also subject to various local meanings and conceptualizations that are difficult to quantify. For example, criteria like good conduct, patience, someone who thinks for the family etc. emerged as characteristics of an empowered woman by the community, yet difficult to measure and quantify. The community is also skewed towards the ideals of feminism and not necessarily empowerment. Such contextual aspects can help interpret the quantitative findings.• Quantitative methods can help to quantify the amount of income and savings that men and women decide on to be able to categorize it into large, medium and small incomes/savings. The average family savings need quantification.The frequency of food intake and varieties of food consumed by household members should be quantified. The number of women/men having accounts and/or taking credit and from where can complement qualitative findings.Quantitative data may be required on the number of migrants, amount of credit received, number of livestock and amount of crop sold by men and women. The qualitative data can be used to add meaning to the numbersexplaining the how and why.• Adding weights to empowerment indicators from the scientists' perspective is not justifiable. Prioritization of the indicators based on the perceptions of the community members, men and women, should form the basis for weighing the indicators. The strengths or importance of an indicator varies from community to community.• The pathway to women's empowerment involves negotiation between the ideals of femininity (as defined by the community) and individual desires, which may be in direct conflict with each other. Women negotiate their actions in the face of social norms either to conform or violate in order to make a choice and act upon their choices. Men benefit from patriarchal dividend/privileges which have been reproduced and maintained for generations; their masculinity is threatened when women attempt to encroach on their sphere of control. The dominant forms of masculinity restrict men's ability to recognize their role in supporting women's empowerment.• Empowerment is a matter of individual and group perceptions. It includes traits that are difficult to quantify but can be described and characterized according to local standards (e.g. knowledge, confidence, conduct, attitude or perception, intra-household relationships, freedom of mobility etc.). The socio-cultural context always informs the way societies understand project concepts like empowerment. Qualitative methods should complement quantitative methods to foster a meaningful understanding of empowerment either as a process of becoming or a state of being. Empowerment remains an elusive concept, challenging to standardize to the broader context.• The number and significance of the empowerment traits (as perceived by the resource persons) determine who will be considered empowered or disempowered. The important characteristics that define one as empowered need to be fleshed out together with community members.• While empowerment may bring about positive changes in women's lives, some of its effects may be negative. Measures need to be put in place to avoid unintended consequences.• Qualitative research requires appropriate selection of respondents, qualified and trained researchers, commitment and appropriate consent. Continuous data analysis exposes gaps that can be addressed while in the field.• • Conducting the study in treatment and control villages elicits findings which aid comparison across communities. Future studies can interrogate both project beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries within the same communities, in addition to the control site. This will help us understand the impact of the project beyond the target beneficiaries (scalability).• The enabling environment, e.g. the court of law, is very important in helping women claim their rights over assets/ resources. Therefore, in the effort to understand women's empowerment, understanding the structures and institutions within which women and men pursue their livelihoods provides a proper understanding of the enabling/ disabling environment.1.It is important to increase the amount of cash transfers from the project to improve results (in Adami Tulu woreda). The amount of loans that women are granted in Adami Tulu woreda is smaller than what they request for in their business plans. According to them, the loan size is only sufficient to do business as usual, but not to carry out activities in a more advanced manner (i.e. to increase investment and carry out the activity in a different/more efficacious way).According to the research team, the project should hire more female field assistants, who mediate between the beneficiaries and the woreda focal persons and between the donors and the beneficiaries, especially in Adami Tulu woreda. All the focal persons at the woreda sector offices are men and there are no field assistants that liaise between beneficiaries and the woreda. This will improve the quality of monitoring and the ability to take corrective measures.To secure men's support for the project, it is crucial for the project to work on enhancing women's ability to decide together with their husbands rather than focusing on promoting women's individual choices. Emphasis on joint decision-making aligns with the locally accepted behavioural norms and fosters progressive and culturally acceptable social transformations, although some of the women were happy to be able to decide alone.Strengthening the contextual understanding of the existing gender relations by carrying out gender analysis will aid identification of the root causes of gender inequalities in the two woredas, so that training is tailored towards addressing the identified issues. Such knowledge should be used to shift institutional structures that shape women's choice and voice and ultimately their lives and future. Additionally, gender analysis should be used to understand how gender inequalities and power inequalities intersect with other demographic characteristics such as age, wealth, marital status etc.To reduce women's increased workload, labour saving technologies that ease domestic and farm work for women should be introduced and promoted by the project. Child care services will enable women to attend meetings and pursue other livelihood activities outside the home.To ensure successful investments by project beneficiaries, money transfers should align with the local agricultural calendar, that is, before the sowing/planting season. Equally important, loan payment deadlines should be set after the harvest period, when previously invested funds have yielded returns. This will increase women's ability to repay the loans. The seasonal calendar can help project implementers to determine the appropriate time to set dates for different events.","tokenCount":"10848"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"2c811f95952df8ec9ef69ef5e1c62fa2","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/5a63fd69-3e37-473c-a4fa-7e087ca8dd51/retrieve","id":"672041073"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"5d819957-6378-4b61-a9d5-8297cbeec5a0","pagecount":"27","content":"Research on gender issues in climate adaptation and resilience on the one hand and investigations on gendered outcomes of social protection programs on the other hand have remained largely separate. This narrative review explores the gap between both bodies of gender research with a specific focus on the Sahel region. The Gender-Responsive Age-Sensitive Social Protection (GRASSP) framework is used to assess the (still limited) evidence on connections between gender, social protection, and climate change in six gender equality outcome areaseconomic security and empowerment, women's voice and agency, protection, health, education, and psychosocial well-being. Emerging linkages between both research strands include interactions between climate adaptation strategies and features of social protection programs. Also, the importance of addressing inequitable gender norms in social protection design as well as for climate resilience became evident in several GRASSP areas. Overall, engagement between both research communities needs to be strengthened, for instance through the research questions provided.Social protection has been widely acknowledged as an important tool for addressing poverty, inequality, and vulnerabilities among the poor (ILO, 2017;2021;Alatinga et al., 2020;Viberti, 2021;Carter et al., 2019). For instance, Fisher et al. (2017), in a study of the impact of cash transfers on the livelihoods of the poor in six African countries, found that a small but regular provision of cash improves strategic livelihood choices and stimulates productivity. Social protection is policies and programs designed to reduce and prevent poverty, vulnerability, and social exclusion for all, throughout the lifecycle, with particular emphasis on vulnerable groups (Bachelet & ILO, 2012). It uses different intervention instruments such as social assistance programs (e.g., cash transfers), contributory social insurance, microinsurance schemes, social health protection, and labor market interventions to help vulnerable groups such as children and families, pregnant women, the unemployed, the sick, the aged, and people with disabilities. Its aim is to support individuals, households, and communities in managing risks by providing financial assistance (Atkins et al., 2022;Aleksandrova & Costella, 2021). To underscore its significance, social protection was designated as a human right in 1948 (UN, 1948) and is a key goal of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (1.3), the African Union, and the International Labour Organization.Risks, whether natural or human-made, affect individuals, communities, and regions mostly in an unpredictable manner that deepens poverty. In recent years, there has been growing recognition among policymakers that building resilience among vulnerable groups to the adverse effects of climate change in developing countries will necessitate strong and effective social protection policies and mechanisms (Aleksandrova, 2019). Concomitantly, there has been a rising call for social protection programs to promote gender-responsive and gendertransformative approaches that differentiate the needs of women and girls, alongside those of men and boys, to tackle the root causes of gender inequality, including discriminatory gender norms and practices (Gavrilovic et al., 2022;Cookson et al., 2023;Cole et al., 2023). Evidence in the literature points out that most social protection interventions are implemented as gender-blind or treat gender as an afterthought.For instance, the scoping review by Cookson et al. (2023) reveals that the vast majority (about 90%) of the literature on social protection programs only passingly refers to gender without any measured or deliberate attempt at integration. Integrating gender and climate change considerations into social protection programs necessitates a transformation in program design, implementation, and evaluation. It requires efforts across scales, layers of actors, and a political process that considers context. This review aims to contribute toward an understanding of the potential of social protection programs to produce gender equality outcomes in the face of climate shocks and stress in the context of the Sahel region.Over the past two decades, two bodies of literature have emerged: (1) exploring gender issues in social protection and (2) on interactions between gender and climate change. Both bodies emphasize the need to reduce vulnerabilities among marginalized groups, especially women and girls, either through the introduction of social protection design features or by enhancing their resilience to climate change challenges. While these bodies of literature have overlapping concerns, more cross-fertilization is demanded, especially where social protection programs consider climate adaptation (Béné et al., 2018;Tenzing, 2020).A more holistic perspective of the underlying causes of vulnerabilities can lead to transformative change (Tenzing, 2020).Based on the foregoing, this paper addresses the following two questions:1. What insights can be gained from and what are the potential linkages between two loosely connected bodies of gender research, namely evaluations of social protection programs (mainly cash transfers implemented to alleviate poverty and food crisis) on the one hand, and studies of climate adaptation and resilience on the other hand?2. Focusing on the Sahel region, how do climate adaptation strategies and social protection measures interact at the household and community levels? And given the only emerging connections between both literature bodies, what questions could be asked for the Sahel context to better understand interactions between adaptation and protection through future research?The next section of the review outlines the methodology, including the conceptual framework. In Section 3, we address research question 1, while Section 4 deals with the second research question. We end the paper with a conclusion and proposal on a way forward with future research and development efforts on social protection, gender, and climate resilience.This paper is based on a semi-systematic or narrative review approach (Synder, 2019). It seeks to detect themes and gaps in two separate bodies of literature (gender and social protection; gender and climate change), synthesizes existing literature, and develops questions for further research. For the second research question, a focus on the Sahel region is established. This is in preparation of a qualitative study to be conducted in Mali with the aim of generating evidence and knowledge on how social protection programs can influence women's capacities to build climate resilience and reduce gender inequality. The Sahel, a semi-arid region in the southern part of the Sahara Desert, is one of the world's climate hotspots and poorest regions and is particularly vulnerable to natural and environmental variabilities (Sartori & Fattibene, 2019). In the region, women belong to the most vulnerable groups because of their heavy reliance on agriculture as a source of livelihood. They contribute 40% of agricultural production, 80% of agricultural processing, and 70% of agricultural distribution labor (Allen et al., 2018).Based on the research questions, we conducted two types of searches: (1) an open search for grey literature and (2) a separate search of Scopus and Google Scholar for peer-reviewed journal articles. In Scopus, we limited our search to the social sciences, environmental sciences, agricultural and biological sciences, and the multidisciplinary category. The following combinations of key search terms were used for the sub-Saharan region: social protection+gender combined with a variety of terms related to climate change (climat*, risk, shock, degradation, disaster, resilien*, drought); social protection+gender combined with a variety of specific social protection types (cash transfer safety net, in-kind transfer, public work, social insurance).We also employed the following search terms: social protection+gender in combination with each of the Sahel G5 countries (Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania, and Niger.); and climate change+gender together with each of the Sahel G5 countries. All searches were repeated replacing gender with women.The Scopus and Google Scholar search produced 231 peer-reviewed articles that we scanned for the following eligibility criteria: regional focus on one or several of the G5 Sahel countries, reference to agricultural contexts (at the most basic a rural-urban continuum and link to agriculture as part of the livelihoods portfolio), and a reasonable focus on gender or equity analysis. We were left with 24 articles, out of which 17 dealt with gender and climate adaptation and resilience and 7 with the gendered outcomes of social protection programs. We kept several other articles for additional information, such as those on migration or other adaptation strategies, though the authors did not frame their results in terms of climate change or social protection. Also, we added peer-reviewed articles that allowed us to understand particular conditions in the focus region as related to the areas of the Gender-Responsive Age-Sensitive Social Protection (GRASSP) conceptual framework (Section 2.2). The limited body of peer-reviewed articles that was generated through the search for the Sahel region is an interesting finding and confirms Tenzing's (2020) claim of a limited evidence base. In Section 3, we present insights from both the grey and peer-reviewed literature (but indicate which type of search they stem from).We slightly adapted the GRASSP conceptual framework (UNICEF Office of Research-Innocenti, 2020) to fit the focus of our investigation (Figure 1). The original framework conceptualizes structural drivers of the vulnerabilities of women and girls, such as discriminatory gender norms, gender-blind laws, or aspects related to social identity or age. Through gender inequality pathways, these drivers generate negative effects on six domains: economic security, health, education, psychosocial well-being, protection and safety, and voice and agency. As a result, women's and girls' strength and resilience diminishes. Social protection programs (or systems) that adhere to genderresponsive design and implementation may contribute toward three outcomes: (1) equal access to benefits, (2) adequate response to gender-specific needs, and (3) enhancing empowerment of women and girls. These outcomes would improve the six domains, leading to greater gender equality. Context-specific moderators may promote or stall progress toward the achievement of long-term impacts as formulated in SDG 1 and SDG 5 (UNICEF Office of Research-Innocenti, 2020).For the investigation of social protection in combination with climate resilience, we decided to broaden the drivers of inequality in the GRASSP framework to include climate change. Also, adaptation strategies can be assumed to act as moderators of gender equality outcomes-an aspect not mentioned in the original framework. These amendments are based on research showing that gender inequalities take shape in differential vulnerabilities to impacts of climate change (Andrijevic et al., 2020). At the same time, however, environmental changes may also challenge social structures and result in more or less emancipatory adaptation (Djoudi et al., 2016).We employed the qualitative data analysis software Atlas.ti Web and Desktop (Version 23.3) for a qualitative content analysis of the literature base. To facilitate the coding process, the initial coding frame relied on the six domains (or areas) of the GRASSP conceptualization.The frame was then adapted to the details and complexities that emerged from the data. For instance, sub-codes were established to demarcate adaptation strategies in the economic domain or to distinguish between voice and agency at the household and community levels. For program design-the middle part of the GRASSP framework-we set up separate codes. Long-term impacts The framework has four dimensions: intersecting categories (such as social categories included in vulnerability analysis), multilevel analysis (with the inclusion of dynamics across various levels of society), power (framing of power as well as power production, reproduction, and active resistance), and emancipation patterns, agency, and resistance. The study reveals that gender was addressed more frequently in issues relating to climate adaptation and less frequently in studies on mitigation. In addition, most of the studies are based on differences in men's and women's perceptions of climate issues, with only a few studies focusing on the implications of climate vulnerability on individuals or households. Djoudi et al. (2016) found few studies that involved a thorough analysis of gender and power relations in climate change issues. The authors argue that a critical intersectional assessment could promote agency and emancipatory pathways in the adaptation process.To investigate how climate mitigation and adaptation responses shape progress toward the SDGs, Devonald et al. ( 2022) apply the capability approach to climate action on qualitative data from the Gender and Adolescence -Global Evidence longitudinal study from three diverse regions of Ethiopia. The findings confirm that while climate actions are increasingly becoming gender-responsive, less attention is paid to the age-specific vulnerabilities of adolescents-girls in particular. The findings indicate that climate change impacts threaten adolescent capabilities especially girls, and subsequently reduces access to opportunities in a just society. This situation is compounded by gender norms that result in adolescent girls being left behind by climate policies. In summary, this section shows that a series of studies have examined the link between gender and climate change at different levels. Dominant among these studies are those that analyze gender from a traditional binary, non-intersectional perspective.In a discussion of policy responses to the Covid-19 pandemic, Gavrilovic et al. (2022) state that government social protection measures do not sufficiently include gender considerations. Looking ahead, they not only recommend more investments into genderresponsive social protection but also into evidence on how such measures can reduce poverty and enhance gender equality. This call comes after more than a decade of evaluation of social protection programs (2022) find indications of higher impacts of social protection programs on women and girls compared with men and boys (possibly due to the lower baseline scores of women and girls). Also, they see a tendency among women to share and invest in social protection benefits, though families do not often support women's engagement in such programs. Adverse or unintended consequences are linked to design and implementationfeatures, but more research on this is needed. Finally, programs that have explicit targets (such as gender norms) achieve higher effects compared with those with broad objectives.Using the GRASSP framework, Perera et al. (2022) also review six gender equality outcome areas: (1) economic security and empowerment, (2) improved health, (3) enhanced education, (4) improved psychosocial wellbeing, (5) increased protection, and (6) enhanced voice and agency. For all six areas, they describe mainly positive outcomes, except for psychosocial well-being and voice and agency, where the evidence is limited.Comparing these higher-level results to qualitative studies can bring more nuances to the picture. In an earlier study, Fisher et al. (2017) asked men and women participating in cash transfer programs in six sub-Saharan African countries how they evaluate the livelihood outcomes. Respondents attested to a variety of positive outcomes at the household and community levels, such as improved diets, greater investments in own-farm production, or more engagement with social and economic networks. However, these improvements were seen as marginal and easily reversible. For gender relations, Fisher et al. (2017, 18) found a \"lack of cash transfer impact upon existing patriarchal norms regarding women's labor, their role in economic decision-making at household level, and their ability to invest in productive assets.\" In an earlier evaluation, Holmes et al. (2011) similarly describe that income transfers to women do not improve their voice and agency at both the household and community levels. To address this problem, Asaki and Hayes (2011) propose that social protection efforts of government and development agencies should include women's grassroots organizations as equal stakeholders in setting and pursuing the agenda. In this manner, women could be recast from \"beneficiaries\" to active agents of change.Apart from the GRASSP framework, Sabates-Wheeler and Devereux's ( 2008) definition of social protection mechanisms have influenced genderfocused social protection conceptualizations and evaluations. The authors define four categories of social protection instruments: (1) protective (relief from deprivation), ( 2) preventive (prevent deprivation), (3) promotive (enhance incomes and capabilities), and (4) transformative measures (address concerns of social justice and exclusion). The last category needs to include measures to make gender relations more balanced, the authors write. Their analysis reveals how the program perpetuated the notion of women as \"natural caregivers\" and how women (to a limited extent) managed to resist and negotiate the assigned role. Moving away from the separate evidence bases for climate adaptation and gender and also social protection and gender, as well as the thematic trends and gaps that both pairs contain, we now direct our attention to whether and how these two bodies of literature and their debates are interlinked.Looking at the articles extracted through our search methodology, links between the two thematic bodies of literature appear to be at an emerging state. Tenzing (2020)   (Aleksandrova, 2019). More evidence is also needed on how different framings of transformation play out during implementation and how the perspectives, voices, and interests of participants are considered (or neglected) (Tenzing, 2020). In this section, we explore the second question raised in this review paper with a specific focus on the Sahel region: How do climate adaptation strategies and social protection measures interact at the household and community levels? Given the only emerging connections between both literature bodies, what questions could be asked to better understand interactions between adaptation and protection through future research? To achieve this, we conducted a review of grey and peer-reviewed literature on gender, social protection, and climate adaptation and resilience in the Sahel region. We examine the pathways through which social protection programs and climate adaptation and resilience measures in the Sahel region are fostering (or could foster) gender equality outcomes using the gender equality domains in the GRASSP framework: economic security and empowerment, health, education, psychosocial well-being, protection and safety, and voice and agency.The economic security and empowerment outcome of the GRASSP framework examines the potential of social protection programs to promote gender equality in relation to women's and girls' work, including care and domestic work burdens, financial authority, income security and resilience, and access to credits and markets.In the Sahel region, men and women adopt different adaptation strategies to build economic resilience and stability in the face of an increasing climate crisis. These include participation in collective action, engagement in trade and craft, participation in development projects, education, migration, and the adoption of new agricultural technologies.For women, collective action through women-led collaborative efforts can be a powerful tool for mitigating the effects of climate change (Koenig, 2021;Dickin et al., 2021;Wood et al., 2021). Through collective action, women can mobilize funds, offer loans to members, and also mobilize to help each other in domestic and childcare work. Collective action also strengthens women's collective voice and decisionmaking power to make an impact and challenge biased norms and inequalities in their communities (Koenig, 2021;Diendéré & Ouédraogo, 2023). According to Diendéré and Ouédraogo (2023), membership in a women's farming group increases the likelihood that a woman will use improved seeds or adopt soil and water conservation practices.In a study examining the coping and adaptation strategies in the northern part of Lake Faguibine, Mali, Brockhaus et al. (2013) found that an important adaptation strategy is the diversification into other income-generating activities such as craftmanship and trade. However, gender differences exist in craftsmanship: young men work as craftsmen, mainly in housing construction, while both (men and women) engage in the production and selling of handicrafts.Similarly, men and women in the area practice trade, especially petty trading of convenience goods as well as animal trade. Lack of transportation restricts large-scale trade for both men and women (Brockhaus et al., 2013).The opportunities to work in the increasing number of development projects in many communities in the Sahel region provide an important economic adaptation strategy in response to climate change challenges. They provide extra earnings that households and individuals can use to enhance their livelihoods (de Sardan & Hamani, 2018; Nielsen & Reenberg, 2010). In a study undertaken in villages in Burkina Faso, Nielsen and Reenberg (2010) found that income earning opportunities for women combined with the gender equality discourse dominant among the projects contributed to a shift in gender power relations. It manifested itself in changed processes of decisionmaking within households and the increased agency of income-earning women.Long-term investments into children's education constitute another adaptation strategy preferred especially by women (Brockhaus, 2013). It is situated in the belief that children's improved opportunities for future wage work could in the long run reduce households' dependence on natural resources. This strategy is elaborated on in more depth in Section 4.5.Labor migration has been a major adaptation strategy for both young and adult men (Brockhaus et al., 2013) but is also common among young girls (Hertrich & Lesclingand, 2013). Although men's migration is often encouraged and supported by norms that underlie men's supposed breadwinner status in the household, women's and girls' migration is viewed as potentially threatening their respectability. In spite of this, women migrate into gold mining or urban centers in Mali (Hertrich & Lesclingand, 2013;Brottem & Ba, 2019). Among gold-mining migrants, 47% of the men planned to invest in agriculture and livestock compared with only 11% of women. This reflects women's constraints in access to and control of productive resources and their wish to leave agriculture (Brottem & Ba, 2019).Technology adoption is another important adaptation strategy practiced among men and women farmers. In Diarra et al.'s ( 2021) study in the Cinzana community in the Segou region of Mali, the choice of adaptation strategies differed significantly between men and women despite similar perceptions of climate change. Women farmers were found to be low adopters of adaptation strategies, as well as soil conservation practices, needed to tackle climate change challenges. Their lack of important resources, such as access to extension training, adequate land size, and financial resources, was mentioned as an explanation for low adoption.How these adaptation strategies interact with social protection programs in the Sahel remains, for the most part, unclear. On migration, Hidrobo et al. (2022) find that the effect of cash transfers on migration differs by gender. The authors observe a higher likelihood of rural-rural migration of men upon the receipt of the cash transfer and a reduction in women's migration after the receipt of the cash transfer. This is because men mainly migrate for employment reasons, while women engage in rural-rural migration for marriage and ruralurban migration for employment. When intersected with household economic status and type of work, it was found that in poorer households, rural-rural migration of women increases, while for men a cash transfer has a more significant impact on rural-rural migration among casual workers than agricultural workers. Men's migration is supported by existing social and gender norms that recognize this move as pivotal for household livelihoods and asset accumulation. These norms frown upon women's migration, except in situations of separation and divorce, and particularly condemn premarital migration for young women. Elders believe that adolescent migration among young girls opens the door to premarital sex and premarital pregnancies, both of which are strongly condemned (Hidrobo et al., 2022).Regarding assets and resources, findings from Hidrobo et al. ( 2022) and Heath et al. (2020) show that cash transfer leads to significant improvements in household assets in both polygamous and monogamous households. Whether these improvements could create a link between cash transfer and technology adoption for climate resilience remains open. On a continental Africa scale, Correa et al. (2023) state that access to social protection programs can enable rural households to invest in productivity-and resilienceenhancing technologies that previously were beyond their economic means. Turning to time for agricultural labor, women respondents of Scott et al.'s (2017) study in Niger held contradictory views on the impact of cash transfers on their activities. Some expressed that it caused shifts in income-generating activities and household organization, resulting in more time to work on their own fields. Prior to the cash transfers, they had worked less in their own fields and more in other people's fields to earn money. Other women reported that the cash transfers did not influence any of their activities. Further investigations on how social protection programs could affect women's time poverty for agricultural labor and their resilience to climate change could yield interesting insights.On a more general level, the influence of social protection programs on the pathway to women's economic security and empowerment is strongly related to household decision-making. Heath et al. (2020) found that the Jigisémèjiri social protection program did not have any significant economic effect on women. In most beneficiary households, male heads maintained authority over the use of cash, with little input into decision-making by women. This situation was observed across different household types (monogamous and polygamous) and is further discussed in the following section.This section examines the GRASSP gender equality outcome \"women's voice and agency\" as women's capacities for decision-making, autonomy, and selfefficacy, as well as political and community participation.During climate crises, women's vulnerabilities worsen.Their general adaptive capacity is affected by their lack of voice and agency at the household and community levels. Dickin et al. (2021) state that the differences in household and community decision-making and control over assets play important roles in adaptation planning for men and women. For instance, men's higher agency gives them better access to opportunities and resources to secure water for livestock when needed. In contrast, women struggle to obtain enough water for domestic as well as productive tasks during the dry season. Different social factors, including age and gender, influence the pathways of people to resilience. In a study in Mali, Wood et al. (2021), for instance, argue that young women do most of the daily household chores but remain particularly vulnerable to climatelinked threats because of their exclusion from decisionmaking. Elderly women, who oversee young women's labor and have more agency, inhabit a different climatelinked reality.The analysis hints at two potentially contradictory effects of social protection programs, especially cash transfer. At the community level, they can have a positive influence on women's collective and group agency (Scott et al., 2017). At the household level, there may be no effect (Heath et al., 2020;Lees et al., 2021). Regarding collective and group agency, there is evidence to support the positive influence of cash transfers on social relations and organization as well as community engagement (Scott et al., 2017). Participants report cases of sharing and gifting with family and other members of the community who did not receive distributions to facilitate mutual relationships. These activities reinforce traditional social and cultural norms of cooperation, sharing, and solidarity (de Sardan & Harmani, 2018). At the household level, evidence shows that if male heads of households are targeted as the recipients of the cash transfer, social protection programs will have little contribution on women's agency to challenge gender norms (Lees et al., 2021). Payments to women in households headed by men may not lead to different results, as a book chapter by de Sardan and Harmani (2018) shows.In an investigation of 10 cash transfer operations carried out by 14 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in Niger, de Sardan and Harmani (2018) depict how targeting processes are negotiated at both community and household levels. Targeting is the most complex and problem-fraught stage, and so attracts a lot of suspicion, especially when it comes to the social targeting of households in chosen communities, the authors write. While NGOs may expect general village assemblies to be democratic and fair institutions in support of targeting, local hierarchies or concerns over community divisions influence the process. Men household heads and male authorities who play a decisive role in the selection favor their own networks.Complaint committees that community members can turn to consist of men only, making it difficult for women to approach them. For the cash transfer operations investigated, the final lists of \"beneficiary\" households contained women's names. In polygamous households, men designated which wife would appear on the list. Women are targeted because \"in the eyes of the cash transfer professionals, they offer a better guarantee that the sums received will be used for the benefit of the entire family, particularly the children\" (de Sardan & Hamani 2018, 308). The authors criticize this as a maternalistic ideology underlying cash transfer design. While community members do not openly oppose the rule that women should be selected, they quietly transform it after cash distribution: in most cases, women hand over the money to their husbands, reestablishing the norm that men should manage income and provide food (de Sardan & Hamadi, 2018).Other studies in Niger confirm these findings. Scott et al. (2017) call it one of their most important research findings-that men managed the funds their wives had received. In their endline survey, Fenn et al.(2014) found that women's decision-making on the cash transfer money had significantly declined, since men had returned earlier from migration to control the spending. In contrast, evaluators of cash transfer programs that distribute money to men (such as the Mali Jigisémèjiri program) wonder if targeting women would have led to different results. Payments to men may have increased their power position and control of their wives, Lees et al. (2021) assume. Although the reinforcement of inequitable gender norms in combination with additional resources led to a reduction in intimate partner violence (IPV), especially in polygamous households, there were no empowerment improvements for women (Heath et al., 2020). Should women be targeted for empowerment objectives, a potential for violent backlash must be considered (de Sardan & Hamadi, 2018;Lees et al., 2021). As a consequence, gender-transformative components, such as those mentioned in Bossuroy et al. (2022), must accompany cash transfer programs to achieve positive outcomes in the GRASSP area of voice and agency. Additional components could include aspects of climate-resilient farming, such as in the gendertransformative Dimitra Clubs studied by Adisa (2020).Considered as a whole, complex linkages exist between social protection programs and their design and women's voice and agency. However, investigations that extend these linkages to women's and girls' climate resilience were not found. This constitutes an important gap for further research.The GRASSP framework also emphasizes the need for social protection programs to protect women's rights and dignity in terms of their freedom from violence, condemnation of child marriage, eradication of female genital mutilation, and greater mobility.As the climate crisis worsens, Masson et al. (2019) emphasize that everyday violence affects the resilience capacities of people affected. This may result in famine, abandonment, and sexual exploitation. For girls and women, involvement in exploitative sexual relations (including forced marriages and child marriages) may constitute an economic survival strategy. The authors also highlight a link between participation in household decision-making and violence and conclude that domestic violence discourages women from engaging in negotiations with their husbands on important topics. In a study by Dickin et al. (2021), women participants suffering from climate-related water shortages reported domestic violence because of intrahousehold water use. In some cases, conflicts emerged when male household members did not have water for showers or intentionally wasted water. Inequalities in access to resources and biased gender norms worsen violence against women and affect their adaptive and coping capacities to climate change challenges.Social protection studies in Mali reveal that sexual violence and controlling behaviors against women are linked to concepts of masculinity. Masculinity is tied to men's status as household heads and to their right to assert power, especially in financial and sexual matters. The investigated cash transfer program reduced IPV, physical violence, and emotional violence as well as controlling behaviors, especially in polygamous households (Heath et al., 2020). The additional cash increased men's sense of personal well-being, selfesteem, and status in the community (Lees et al., 2021;Heath et al., 2020). However, inequitable norms underlying violence were not addressed. To better understand interactions between cash transfer and IPV in social protection programs, Peterman and Roy (2021) suggest five priority research foci. These include design and operational features, complementary programming, pathways to impact, and contextual factors. For adaptive social protection, links with climate resilience would have to be embedded into their research agenda.Male-dominated decision-making impacts women and children's health and climate resilience on a broad scale. In a study by Masson et al. (2019), participants of a discussion group in Chad describe men as restricting their wives and children's hospital visits. Husbands fear that the sick or unhappy condition of their family members could shed an unfavorable light on them as incapable providers. Masson et al. (2019, 252) conclude the following: \"The influence of these social norms on men's attitudes undermines women and girls' health and well-being, their human capital and therefore their absorptive capacities to deal with crises.\" At the same time, husbands and relatives often discourage women's efforts to take up income-earning opportunities based on norms that do not foresee such gender roles. Women's lack of resources increases the risk of violence, particularly sexual exploitation, again weaking their health and resilience (Masson et al., 2019). Taking a closer look at decision-making, Dwyer et al. ( 2022) describe three pathways for healthcare decisions in the households they studied in Niger: sole decision-making by men, male decision-making based on suggestions offered by the wife, and joint decision-making of husband and wife. Participants highlighted women's active role in identifying health issues and in seeking conversations. However, men's authority remained central, especially where resources under their control were necessary to solve health problems.Gender norms may also govern household consumption hierarchies. In Burkina Faso, Turner et al. ( 2021) investigated household eating groups (those who eat from a common bowl at mealtime) and found differences in consumption by gender, age, and the seniority of key group members. As a tendency, eating groups composed of women and children consumed less than groups composed of men. In the communities Djoudi and Brockhaus (2011) studied in Northern Mali, they found a distribution of household meals in which men ate first followed by children and the elderly. Women, who were the last to obtain food, suffered most from hunger and poor nutrition, especially during drought, while at the same time managing high workloads. To alleviate women's situation, the authors recommend improved nutrition and labor-saving technologies. However, certain laborsaving technologies may come with additional health risks. For instance, in Koenig's (2021)   Scott et al. (2017) found that the nutrition information sessions delivered with a UCT program were effective because they at least partially led to improved food security and diet quality outcomes. Participants indicated that food purchases and healthcare were the two most important purposes the funds were applied to. Similarly, a qualitative study of the Jigisémèjiri cash transfer program in Mali (which was accompanied by training activities on nutrition, health, and education) states that cash was used to cover health expenses and thus alleviated household tensions (Lees et al., 2021). In contrast, a grey evaluation report of the Food and Agriculture Organization's Cash+ program in Mali sees no significant changes in the purchase of most food items in program households and even negative impacts in terms of diversifying women's food consumption. The authors relate the result to potentially insufficient nutrition education (Dao et al., 2021) leaving open whether gender norms and related intrahousehold power relations could have shaped food purchases and consumption hierarchies. Scott et al. (2017) and Lees et al. (2021) observe that although cash transfer funds addressed health needs to a certain extent, women had little control over the additional resources. Husbands as household heads generally managed the expenditures. Restrictive norms may not only be seen as potentially undermining women's and girls' health and climate resilience but also as weaking social protection efforts to improve their situation. This constitutes an important link between the GRASSP areas of health and voice and agency.Turning to education, the Mali Jigisémèjiri cash transfer program offered training on education with a focus on girls' schooling. The endline report of the program reveals that participants spent the largest part of the last cash transfer on food consumption, health, and livestock (approximately 80%), education being only one among all other expenses that jointly made up the remaining 20% (Hidrobo et al. 2022). Low educational expenses could be due to gender-differential priorities of household adults and the need to juggle a variety of immediate needs, a climate resilience study in Northern Mali shows (Djoudi and Brockhaus, 2011;Brockhaus et al., 2013). In participatory workshops in two communities, men tended to prefer investments in livestock, migration and irrigated agriculture as strategies to deal with repetitive droughts (strategies of adult and young men slightly differing). In contrast, women envisioned better education for their sons and daughters as an avenue toward wage work and reduced dependency on natural resources. They ranked children's school education as their top strategy. At the same time, conflicts were described between plans for long-term investments in education and short-term needs such as access to food. Men's decisions for migration resulted in children's periodic or complete drop out from school because lost person power had to be replaced in the household (Djoudi and Brockhaus, 2011;Brockhaus et al., 2013). Additionally, gendered domestic duties demand long hours in search for firewood or water, especially from girls, which affects their time spent in school (Antwi, 2022;Dickin et al., 2021). Whether differential priorities for adaptation strategies (inclusive of education) may cause marital disputes on the use of cash transfers is (to our knowledge) a question not yet clearly dealt with in research. In their investigation of the Mali Jigisémèjiri cash transfer program, Heath et al. (2020) see child education as one of eleven areas for disputes between spouses. The companion study by Lees et al. (2021) states that the cash reduced stress on the part of men, who employed the increased resources to take care of their children's needs, among them payments for schooling.Results from a non-social protection study on adolescent migration lend further nuances to the question of gendered preferences for education. In Southeast Mali, as Hertrich and Lesclingand (2013) write, opportunities for formal education for a long time remained low. As a consequence, adolescent girls embarked on labor migration as an alternative means to acquire knowledge and skills. Expectations in terms of learning were framed around language acquisition and exposure to urban environments. Although mothers did not openly speak up against the public discourse that rejects girls' migration, they financially and psychologically supported their daughters' plans (often without letting their husbands know). The authors state that girls who had migrated to cities got married at an older age than their counterparts in the villages.Early marriage and childbearing often expose girls to violence and not only have a detrimental effect on their capacity to further their education but also undermine their resilience to climate risks, as Masson et al. (2019) show for Chad. At this point, interactions between the two GRASSP areas of education and protection (from violence and early marriage) become visible.How the Mali Jigisémèjiri cash transfer program influenced the migration patterns of participating women and men was examined by Hidrobo et al. (2022). They found that men were more likely to engage in rural-rural migration upon cash receipt, whereas women's rural-urban migration decreased. The exact mechanisms behind these patterns remain unclear as well as the question whether changes affected education. Where women or girls do not permanently migrate and continue to rely on agriculture, education is still an asset. In Diendéré and Ouédraogo's (2023) study of farming and climate change in Burkina Faso, educated women were more likely to adopt agricultural practices that facilitate climate change adaptation than less educated women. This was explained by educated women's better communication with agricultural extension services.The GRASSP area of psychosocial well-being deals with mental health, life satisfaction, self-esteem, aspirations and expectations, and stress and resilience.Although cutting across other domains, some specific results emerged for this area from the climate change and social protection literature. Well-being was observed where research participants were able to maintain a certain lifestyle or identity in spite of larger transformations. Koenig (2021, 232) writes: \"People appreciated how labor-saving technologies allowed them to keep things they valued. These included their large extended households and their identity as agriculturalists, even as they faced land shortages and climate change.\" Investigating communities that formerly depended on a larger lake in Northern Mali that dried out since the mid-1970s and partly turned into a forest, Brockhaus et al. (2013) and Djoudi et al. (2013) notice trauma and psychological barriers to accept the ecosystem transformation. Barriers are most prevalent among older men. They at times prevent the development of new adaptation strategies. Other sources reveal how migration as an adaptation strategy may lead to ambivalent outcomes in terms of status and well-being. Adolescent migration increases boys' and girls' social status when they return to their rural home areas (Hertrich & Lesclingand, 2013). In contrast, adult men's labor migration from Vinke et al.'s (2022) study village in Burkina Faso was in most cases less successful in achieving the self-set goal of earning additional income to make up for poor harvests. Unsuccessful men reported exhaustion, shame, and resignation, while wives expressed disappointment and frustration at carrying agricultural and domestic burdens for longer periods alone without financial gain. Notions of masculinity and household provisioning are closely tied to men's well-being, as shown in evaluations of the Mali Jigisémèjiri cash transfer program. Cash transfers were given to men and improved their wellbeing and perception of being capable to fulfill their role as head. Improvements were larger in polygamous households, where there were on average more marital disputes, higher levels of violence against women and children, and lower relationship quality and trust than in monogamous households. Women's well-being equally increased through fewer disputes and reduced IPV. However, as the researchers remark, the payment setup also reinforced inequitable norms and circumnavigated avenues toward women's empowerment. In addition, well-being results may not have been sustainableafter the program ended (Heath et al., 2020;Lees et al., 2021).A randomized evaluation of how psychosocial components can be integrated into cash transfer programs and how effective they are is offered by Bossuroy et al. (2022)  Using a narrative review of literature, this review paper provides insights into two research questions. First, what are the existing linkages and interactions of the three important concepts of gender, climate adaptation and resilience, and social protection? Second, how do social protection programs (especially cash transfer) promote gender equality outcomes at the household and community levels in the context of the Sahel? The paper also put forward questions that can guide future research in the Sahel context so as to provide a better understanding of the interactions of the three concepts.Our review shows evidence of studies that address gender issues in climate mitigation and adaptation context and the impacts on vulnerable groups.Regarding social protection, we find that most of the literature focuses on gender equality outcomes and design and implementation features of social protection programs. While the linkage between climate adaptation and social protection is still in an emerging state, there is a growing trend of literature that focuses on the framing of transformative elements.Our study also reveals research gaps bordering issues such as the dearth of reliable sex-disaggregated data, poor empirical evidence on interventions that address gender-based violence in the context of climate-induced disasters, non-application of gender transformative measures, and the prevalence of studies that failed to address the root causes of vulnerability.With regards to the second research question, we find that gender and social norms, intersecting with other social and economic factors, influence the adaptive capacities of men and women in the actualization of gender equality outcomes. These limit the capacity of social protection programs to contribute to gender equality outcomes. Hence, cash transfers may worsen the existing inequalities if the entrenched gender inequalities are not addressed. Inequitable norms will worsen women's and girls' vulnerability to shocks and their resilience capacities in responding to climate shocks and stresses.A way forward is that studies aiming to tackle gender inequalities and climate change challenges through social protection programs in climate hotspots like the Sahel should address the underlying causes of inequalities and constraints using a gendertransformative approach. The interplay and interconnections of gender, climate change challenges, and social protection are important in addressing gender inequalities in the face of increasing climate shocks and stresses in the Sahel region. Genderblind strategies and approaches in social protection and climate change-focused programs will have a disproportionately negative effect on women and limit their capacities for climate resilience. With the significant potential of social protection programs, national governments and nongovernmental and donor agencies need to direct intentional efforts at integrating transformative approaches to address the underlying causes of gender inequalities.","tokenCount":"7204"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"40478764cac12eeeb0ae7686d9098d46","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/fc6fae4d-fae3-4c9d-bb11-291dea7f0e9d/retrieve","id":"108474536"},"keywords":["Fertilizer response","landscape position","wheat"],"sieverID":"41dfc2b4-a8aa-44c3-b408-4f0894005f54","pagecount":"13","content":"Improving fertilizer use efficiency has remained a challenge, particularly for small-scale farming in undulating 'abnormal' landscapes of East Africa. Milne's 1930s concept on 'Catena' was considered as a breakthrough in understanding soil variability and its implication on productivity in East African highlands. However, there is limited information on how the 'Catena' features could be used for fine tuning fertilizer recommendations. We initiated multiple on-farm replicated experiments in three wheat-growing districts (Endamohoni, Lemo and Worreilu) in the Ethiopian highlands in 2014, 2015 and 2016 to assess landscape positions affecting crop-nutrient responses, identify yield limiting nutrients across the 'Catena' (N, P, K, S and Zn) and quantify effects of landscape positions on resources use efficiency. We clustered farmlands across the 'Catena' (Hillslopes, Midslopes and Footslopes) based on land scape positions in the respective locations. Wheat yield was more strongly and significantly affected by landscape positions (P < 0.001) than by nutrient sources or rates. The crop response to fertilizers was 50 to 300% higher in foot slopes than in hillslopes, depending on locations and inputs levels. With increasing slope, there was a decrease in a crop fertilizer response due to a significant decrease in soil organic carbon, clay content and soil water content, with r 2 of 0.95, 0.86 and 0.96, respectively. The difference in the crop response between landscape positions was significantly higher (P < 0.05) with higher rates of nutrient applications (>N92 P46) while differences between landscape positions diminish at lower rates. Yield benefits due to application of K was significant only in the dry years (P < 0.05), while there was hardly any yield benefit from the application of zinc and sulfur. The crop nitrogen recovery fraction and crop water productivity decreased with an increasing slope regardless of nutrient combinations. The results indicated that the landscape position could be considered as a proxy indicator for targeted fertilizer application, particularly in farms with undulating topographic features. Hillslopes are better served by the application of organic fertilizers along with conservation measures as applying higher rates of mineral fertilizer in hillslopes would rather increase the risk of downstream nutrient movement.Crop yield variability within and between farms attracted research attention in Sub-Saharan Africa in the last decades (Phiri et al., 1999;Vanlauwe and Giller, 2006;Wolde et al., 2007;Zingore et al., 2007;Moges and Holden, 2008;Tittonell et al., 2008;Tittonell and Giller, 2013;Vanlauwe et al., 2015;Kihara et al., 2016). In fact, the attempt to understand soil variability and its potential effect on crop productivity has been ongoing since the time of Dokuchaev in the early 1900, who divided soils as normal, transitional and abnormal based on topography-related patterns (cited from Krupenikov, 1993). However, soils with undulating landscapes or imperfectly developed profiles were treated as exceptions to the more common, generalized trends of 'normal' soils in the US or Russia (Miller et al., 2008).The development of the 'Catena' concept, introduced by Geoffrey Milne , was a breakthrough in recognizing topographic differential and its implication on soil types and vegetation patterns. The concept came to light while attempting to develop soil maps for 'abnormal' East African soils, whereby topographic variability dictates soil types and associated soil cover patterns (Milne, 1935). Milne (1935) identified the process of erosion-deposition and changes in parent material at the surface corresponding with topography, which was used for mapping soil complexes with repeating internal patterns. The effect of topography on hydrologic flows resulting in variable soil properties was also recognized (Dahlgren et al., 1997).The topography of the East African agricultural landscapes comprising high elevation hillslopes, midslopes and foot slopes, which are appearing within short distances, requires differing agronomic management and various levels of inputs. The effect of the landscape position on soil nutrient status has been reported in Vietnam (Wezel et al., 2002), Malawi (Phiri et al., 1999), northern Ethiopia (Wolde et al., 2007) and southern Ethiopia (Amede and Taboge, 2007;Moges and Holden, 2008). Soils can be more gravelly and thinner with rock outcrops close to hill tops, with more fertile soils in mid-slope positions and fertile, alluvial soils in the valleys. Given erosion risks, farmers' decisions in terms of input application and management are also in favor of footslopes and midslopes.Landscape variability also creates soil fertility variability between farms and within farms in terms of soil nutrient status (Wezel et al., 2002;Balasundram et al., 2006;Wolde et al., 2007;Moges and Holden, 2008), soil organic matter (Gebrelibanos and Assen, 2013), soil water holding capacity (Wang et al., 2012) and agronomic management requirements (Tittonell et al., 2008). The variability is increased further by soil erosion (Hurni et al., 2015), which commonly degrades the hillslopes and midslopes and depositing it on the footslopes (Balasundram et al., 2006;Moges and Holden, 2008).Three different crop response categories to fertilizer application have been identified, namely responsive, fertile non-responsive and degraded non-responsive to indicate yield variability in small scale farming (Tittonell et al., 2008;Tittonell and Giller, 2013;Kihara et al., 2016). In non-responsive soils, higher rates of fertilizer application did not necessarily guarantee higher crop yield (Kihara et al., 2016;Vanlauwe et al., 2015;Tittonell et al., 2008;Fu et al., 2004;Wang et al., 2012). There is evidence that marginal soils produce low yields compared to moderately fertile soils, even after application of higher rates of fertilizers (Vanlauwe et al., 2015;Agegnehu and Amede, 2017;Tamene et al., 2017). However, there is limited understanding of why there was a positive response in some farms while there was limited crop response in the others within the same locality. Even in occasions when farmers did apply higher rates of mineral fertilizers, they rarely got positive crop response and economic incentives (Spielman et al., 2013;Tamene et al., 2017). A low crop response to application of fertilizers could be partly due to the mosaic of farms and landscapes and the failure in identifying the right type and the amount of nutrient required for a specific landscape niche (Phiri et al., 1999;Thelemann et al., 2010). Moreover, fertilizer recommendations have rarely considered the ability of resource constrained smallholder farmers to invest in expensive and often hard to obtain inorganic fertilizers.Generally, there is limited information on how landscape positions could be used for fine tuning fertilizer recommendations. In this study, we used wheat as a test crop, which was becoming an increasingly important crop, to understand the factors affecting the crop response to combination of fertilizers in the undulating setting of 'abnormal' soils of the Ethiopian highlands across the catena. The major objectives of the research were to (1) quantify effects of landscape positions on crop-nutrient responses, and resources use efficiency (nutrient recovery fraction and crop water productivity (CWP)) and (2) identify wheat yield limiting nutrients (N, P, K, S and Zn) across the catena.Ethiopia is administratively divided into regional states and chartered cities, Zones, Woreda (districts) and Kebele (wards), with Kebele being the smallest administrative unit. The experiments were conducted in three wheat growing kebels in Ethiopia, namely upper Gana, Tsibet and Yewol kebeles in Lemo, Endamohoni and Worreilu districts, respectively (Fig. 1). Endamohoni and Worreilu represent undulating, hilly wheat belts, while Lemo represents relatively flat wheat growing belts.Upper Gana Kebele is found in Lemo Woreda in the Southern Nations Regional State, 12-15 km North West of Hosaena town. The experimental farms are located at a geographical coordinate of 7.54300-7.59100°N latitude and 37.74500-37.77600°E longitude at altitudinal ranges of 2140-2290 m above sea level. The predominant soil feature in the area is deep Nitisols with 5-10 cm top black colored soil at flatter landscapes and Luvisols with bleached top soil having medium to poor productivity at rolling and undulating landscapes. Lemo has a bimodal rainfall pattern, with an annual average rainfall of 1079.3 mm (Fig. 2). The mean annual maximum and minimum temperature is 23 and 18°C, respectively. The growing period in Lemo starts early March and continue to the end of September, with a short dry spell in June. Lemo is a relatively flat landscape (Fig. 1) with 53, 46 and 1% of the landscape lies with a slope of <5, 5-30 and >30%, respectively.Tsibet Kebele is located in Endamohoni District, Tigray Region 10-12 km north of Maichew town where the experimental farms were found at a geographical coordinate of 12.83500-12.84700°N latitude and 39.50900-39.53200°E longitude and at altitudinal ranges of 2975-3089 masl. The dominant soil types include Leptosols dominating the hillslopes and deep alluvial Vertisols in valley bottoms. The general slope range on which the farmlands occur varies between 0 and 30%, but could also be found on >30% slope range too. The annual average rainfall of Endamohoni is 681 mm and mean annual maximum and minimum temperature is 25 and 16°C, respectively. The rainfall characteristic of Endamohoni is also bimodal with July, August and September designating the main rainy seasons, and August is the month receiving the highest rainfall (Fig. 2). Endamohoni is characterized by undulating landscapes (Fig. 1) with 23, 67 and 10% of the landscape lies with a slope of <5, 5-30 and >30%, respectively.Yewol in Worreilu district is located in the Amhara region, about 60 km from Dessie town, 460 km north of Addis Ababa. It is located between 10.082 -10.087 N latitude and 39.041 -39.047 E longitude. Worreilu has an average altitude of 2730 m above sea level. Similarly, the dominant soil types include Leptosols dominating the hillslopes and Vertisols in valley bottoms. It is a cool highland with the maximum and minimum temperature of 23 and 9°C, respectively with a bimodal rainfall of about 700 mm per year, with most of the rain falling between July and September (Fig. 2). It has also undulating landscapes with various slope and landscape positions (Fig. 1).Two complementary experiments were conducted for 3 consecutive years (2014, 2015 and 2016) to evaluate effects of three landscape positions on crop-nutrient responses and to identify the most limiting nutrient (N, P, K, S and Zn) in the respective landscapes.Tilahun Amede et al.On-farm experiments were conducted in 2014 and 2015 cropping seasons by identifying volunteer farmers residing in various landscape positions. Through discussions with farmers, information about the history of the farm and management were documented and representative, low input farms were selected. The average fertilizer application in these locations is reported to be very low and only 10-20% of the farmers are using mineral fertilizers (Haregeweyn et al., 2008). This combined with on-site observations enabled suitable on-farm sites to be selected. Farms around homesteads and gully-affected farms were excluded from the experiment to minimize variability within the landscape position.The landscapes were divided into various zones following Catena sequences (footslopes, midslopes and hillslopes) with slope ranges of 0-5; 5-15 and >15%, respectively. The experiments were conducted in two locations (Lemo and Endamohoni) with 45 farmers' fields per location. We have applied the same treatments in the same plots in 2014 and 2015. The 45 fields include three differing landscape positions and 15 farmers' replications per landscape position. However, only 12 farms per landscape position were considered for analysis. The analysis excluded three fields extensively damaged by animals (footslopes) or destroyed by severe erosion (hillslopes). Each farm had five and six treatment plots in 2014 and 2015, respectively (Table 1). Each plot had a plot size of 25 m 2 (5 × 5 m 2 ) per treatment. Fertilizer treatments were designed based on an earlier study on wheat responses to different rates in the Ethiopian highlands (Habtegebrial and Singh, 2009). The different nutrient combinations (N, P, K, S and Zn) (Table 1) were applied in the form of urea, diammonium phosphate (DAP), potassium nitrate, potassium sulfate and zinc sulfate. Half of urea and full DAP were applied as a basal application in the planting rows during sowing. The remaining urea, along with potassium nitrate, potassium sulfate and zinc sulfate was side dressed 45 days after planting.In both locations, land was tilled three times by a pair of oxen before planting to minimize weed infestations. Planting was done by hand, making rows using a traditional hoe. The planting and harvesting dates, types of treatments and fertilizer rates are presented in Table 1. We used the same nationally released, widely adopted wheat variety, Hidasse, in all locations. Hand weeding was done three times during the cropping season starting from the 3rd week, mainly 43-44 days after planting. The seeding rate was 125 kg ha −1 across locations and treatments. Grain and biomass yield from each plot was determined by harvesting the central 20 rows, from a plot area of 12 m 2 (4 × 3 m 2 ). Threshing was done manually. Grain yield was measured after drying to 13% moisture content.Based on the results of 2014 and 2015 researcher managed follow-up, replicated experiments were conducted in 2016 in Endamohoni, Lemo and Worreilu to establish nutrient rates per landscape positions. There were four replications per treatment under each of the three landscape positions (hillslopes, midslopes and footslopes), and differing nutrient rates. The experimental design was a randomized complete block, comprising a factorial of four variables. The differing treatments of N, P, K and S are presented in Table 1. Potassium and sulfur had not been used in these landscapes in the past. The agronomic management, weeding, seed rates, timing and modes of application of all nutrients, size of harvested rows, harvesting methods and threshing followed similar procedures like that of Experiment 1.   Tilahun Amede et al.Composite soil samples were collected from each landscape at six representative spots (one composite sample per representative farm), following the landscape strata. Soil samples were taken before planting to 25 cm soil depth using a standard auger. The upper litter materials were removed. Samples were oven dried, ground and passed through a 2 mm sieve for laboratory analysis.Mehlich-3 extraction was used for all essential elements for soil samples (nitrate nitrogen, ammonium nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, sulfur, calcium, magnesium, sodium, copper, zinc, boron and aluminum), analyzed using multi-elemental ICP (inductively coupled plasma) in three replicates (Mehlich, 1984). In addition, total nitrogen (Kjeldahl method) (Bremner, 1960), soil texture (Boycous Hydrometer Method), soil pH (pH meter 1:2 soil water ratio), electrical conductivity and organic carbon (Walkley and Black, 1934) were determined. Organic matter was calculated by multiplying organic carbon by 1.724. Additional data on the soil carbon, clay content and soil water capacity of the target districts were extracted from the database of Soil Information Services (Hengl et al,. 2015). Using GIS spatial analysis tools, data of soil properties was extracted from each grid (250 × 250 m 2 ) within the study sites. The corresponding slope data for each grid were also extracted from the digital elevation model (DEM) of each site.Nitrogen recovery fraction (NFR) was done following Moll et al. (1982).where Ntf (kg ha −1 ) = total above-ground N content at maturity of fertilized treatment, Ntc (kg ha −1 ) = total above-ground N content at maturity of control treatment, Ns (kg ha −1 ) = N supplied. We estimated CWP using the water accounting principle (Molden et al., 2007), as follows:Kg DM(grain) + Kg DM (stover) Water Usedwhere: KgDM = weight of produce (in kilograms) Water Used = crop water use to grow the crop (ET) (m 3 ). To calculate ET we used the reference evapotranspiration (ET0, mm day −1 ) and crop coefficient (K c ) (FAO, 1998). The Penman-Monteith method was used to estimate ET0 and applied Angstrom's coefficients of 0.25 and 0.5 as presented in LocClim, version 1.06 (FAO, 2005). We used climatic data from the respective closet met stations, within 20 km radius. We used literature values for wheat crop coefficient to relate crop ET to ET0 and calculated ET (m day −1 ) from land use ß (m 2 ) as given below:We assumed a composition of 50% grasses and legumes on grazing lands and applied mean K c values of known grasses growing in the study areas. The length of growing period was also estimated using LocClim (FAO, 2005) validated by key informants.After checking the normality of the data using the normality test and scatter plot, the effects of fertilizer types, rates and landscape positions on crop yield, the data was analyzed using the SAS (9.0 version) ANOVA PROC-GLM procedure. Using PROC-CORR Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems procedures, we have estimated relationships between the various crop, soil and landscape parameters, including slope, soil water content, soil organic matter, grain yield and biomass yield. Whenever treatment effects were significant, means were compared using Duncan's multiple range test (0.05). All graphs were designed using SigmPlot 12.0 procedures. The coefficient of variation (CV) was used to assess the spatial variability of soil parameters within landscape using SigmaPlot procedures.The crop response was calculated as the yield differences between high and low NP fertilizer rates within the same landscape position and location.The landscape features were highly variable (Fig. 1). There was a significant difference (P < 0.05) in CEC, pH, organic matter, N, P, K and Zn between landscape positions, regardless of locations (Table 2). Soils in the footslopes and midslopes had larger amounts of organic matter, N, K, P and Zn compared to hillslopes. The difference in soil characteristics between the landscape positions was more apparent in Endamohoni than in Lemo or Worreilu sites. Lemo soils, which were predominantly Nitosols, had significantly higher soil organic matter (4.8-5.5%) than Endamohoni or Worreilu soils regardless of landscape positions. Soil N content was generally low, though Lemo had significantly higher nitrogen content than soils in Worreilu or Endamohoni.On the other hand, CEC and exchangeable cations in Lemo were by 50% lower than the other two sites (Table 2). Moreover, soil K in Worreilu was the lowest, including in foot slopes, and by international standards close to the critical level (Hackmann, 2006).There was a significant correlation between slope and clay content (Fig. 3a), slope and organic carbon (Fig. 3b) and slope and soil water content (Fig. 3c). A decrease of 10°of slope led to about 0.5% decrease in soil carbon content. The clay content of the soils was also affected by the slope, with clay content decreasing with increasing slope, with r 2 values of 0.86 and 0.60 in Endamohoni and Lemo, respectively. There was an increasing crop response with increasing organic matter content up to OM content of 4% but the further increase did not guarantee yield benefits (data not presented).The yield was significantly increased (P < 0.01) by application of NP nutrients, regardless of locations. Yield reduction due to low NP application was the highest in Endamohoni, with 53.4% and the lowest in Lemo with 37.4% (Fig. 4). The yield benefits of applying K was significant only in the dry years of 2015 in Endamohoni (P < 0.05), while the yield benefit of application zinc and sulfur fertilizers was not observed in both locations (Fig. 4). The variability (CV) in crop yield within location ranged from 24% in Lemo to 53% in Endamohoni. There was a statistically significant yield difference between locations (P < 0.001) and treatments (P < 0.001), though there was no significant interaction between locations and treatments. Yield differences between years were significant (P < 0.05). The year 2015 was a dry year (Fig. 2) with significant yield reduction in Endamohoni compared to 2014, with the highest reduction observed in the Footslopes (Fig. 4). Yield in Lemo was not affected by the reduced rainfall as there was still enough rain during the critical growth stages.The landscape position was the most dominant factor dictating crop fertilizer responses (P < 0001). The productivity in the hillslopes was significantly less (P < 0.001) than both mid slopes and foot slopes. The yield advantages of application of fertilizers were significantly higher (P < 0.001) in midslopes and footslopes than hillslopes, regardless of locations (Fig. 4). Yield in footslopes was mostly double compared to hillslopes and reached up to 3 times, as observed in Endamohoni (Fig. 4). The influence of landscape positions was significant even in the control plots (Figs. 4  and 6). This differential yield could be partly explained by the strong correlation between slope and factors that determine soil water supply (Fig. 3).Similarly, yield was significantly increased by increasingly higher application rates of NP nutrients (Fig. 6). There was also a significant yield difference (P < 0.001) between landscapes, locations and nutrient types and rates (Table 3). Landscape positions have significantly affected yield response to differing NP (P < 0.001) and K (P < 0.05) application rates. A significantly larger yield increase was obtained by the application of NP 138/69 followed by NP 92/46 kg ha −1 across locations (P < 0.05), regardless of the landscape position (Fig. 6). The application of sulfur did not also increase grain yield in Endamohoni and Lemo (Fig. 4) but in the Worreilu location, particularly in the footslopes and when applied with N92P46 (Fig. 6).In 2016, yield in Lemo was significantly higher than in the previous years, particularly in footslope farms, potentially due to an extended and good rainfall distribution. The yield in Worreilu was significantly lower than in Lemo (P < 0.05), with the highest difference between the two locations being observed in control plots. The yield difference among the various landscape positions was highly pronounced at higher fertilizer NP application rates in both Lemo and Worreilu (Fig. 6), indicating that crop responses to fertilizer application could be more affected by landscaperelated factors at higher NP rates than at lower rates. However, the response in footslopes of Worreilu was lower than in Lemo due to waterlogging effects of vertislols.In general, the yield difference between the highest and lowest yielding farms was higher in Endamohoni than in Lemo or Worreilu partly due to its highly variable landscapes. On the other hand, yield variability due to seasons was the highest in Lemo, where the highest rates of fertilizer application yielded about 10 and 3.9 t ha −1 in 2016 and 2014, respectively (Figs. 4  and 6).NRF for the year 2015 varied from 5 to 50% depending on nutrient types, combinations and landscape positions. It was significantly correlated with grain yield (P < 0.0001) whereby NRF increased with increasing crop yield (data not presented). There was also a significant difference in NRF between the different sites and landscape positions. NRF was significantly higher in Endamohoni than in Lemo, and within Endamohoni the highest NRF was recorded in footslopes treated with N, P, K, S and Zn followed by N, P, K and S treatments (Fig. 7). On the other hand, treatments with low NP application had significantly higher NRF than well fertilized plots across locations. However, there was no significant difference in NRF between the different landscape 6 Tilahun Amede et al. Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems positions in Lemo in 2015, though the trend has changed in the relatively wet year of 2016 (data not presented).CWP varied with locations, nutrient types and landscape positions (Fig. 8). The CWP was significantly higher in the footslopes than other landscape positions (P < 0.001), regardless of locations, with the largest difference recorded in Endamohoni. CWP estimations showed that Endamohoni got higher CWP values than Lemo given higher grain yield under lower rainfall amounts. Treatments with lower rates of fertilization application got the lowest CWP across sites and treatments. Generally, water productivity increased with an increasing fertilizer rate and it followed an opposite trend to nutrient use efficiency. In general, footslopes produced higher yield per unit of water used.The undulating landscapes of East African highlands demonstrate variable crop responses to application of fertilizers. Our results showed that the crop fertilizer response was predominantly dictated by landscape positions. Yield differences between landscape positions within the same locality ranged between 0.9 and 5.5 t ha −1 , depending on locations and input levels (Fig. 4). Landscape positions had also significantly stronger influence on crop yield than did fertilizer treatments (P < 0.01). This could be associated with differential soil formation processes (Milne, 1935;Dahlgren et al., 1997). The possible changes in soil types across the catena (Milne, 1935;Dahlgren et al., 1997;Balasundram et al., 2006), which alter the soil nutrient complex, altered crop influence to application of various combinations of fertilizers as observed in Figures 4 and 6. About 90% of the soils in the hillslopes of Ethiopian highlands are Leptsols (Elias, 2016), which are characterized by stony and very shallow topsoils, with poor nutrient status and low soil water holding capacity. This partly explains low crop response to nutrient applications. In agreement with our findings, Dahlgren et al. (1997) reported that slope gradient was a potential determinant in generating differences in soil fertility by potentially affecting soil nutrient availability and plant water availability throughout the cropping season. Moreover, soil organic carbon (SOC) decreased with increasing slope (Figs. 3b and 3c), which further affect the soil water holding capacity (Hudson, 1994), nutrient availability (Dahlgren et al., 1997) and erodibility of soils by water. The low crop response to fertilizer application in the hillslope could also be partly explained by depleted organic matter and shallow soils (Moges and Holden, 2008) and lower clay content (Fig. 3), which led to reduced soil water content, and lower CWP (Fig. 8).On the other hand, stronger crop yield in the footslopes could be due to deeper topsoils, higher clay content and higher SOC (Table 2, Fig. 3) leading to increased water infiltration and more stored water after rainfall. The strong relationship between crop response and soils organic matter content reveals the opportunity for improved management of SOC for enhancing nutrient use efficiency. However, SOC alone should not necessarily be considered as a defining factor for crop fertilizer responses (Kihara et al., 2016), as Lemo with the highest SOC (Table 2) was not necessarily the most responsive site to nutrient application. Moreover, the yield advantage of footslopes could diminish in very wet years or poorly drained valley bottoms due to water logging induced nutrient leaching and denitrification.  We also recognize the fact that there is evidence showing yield variability within a landscape (Wezel et al., 2002;Basso et al., 2009;Mckenzi, 2012) or a farm (Tittonell et al., 2008;Tittonell and Giller, 2013). The variability within a landscape could be predominantly ascribed to slope, whereby a farm in plateau of hillsides could share similar soil characteristics like that of footslopes, except that it may not receive sediment load from upstream. The variability within landscapes could also be created by farmers' management practices (Tittonell et al., 2005;Zingore et al., 2007;Vanlauwe et al., 2015). In our sites, some farms within the same landscape position were recently terraced while others not (e.g., Endamohoni); some farms received more manure and crop residue than others (e.g., Lemo), which would create variability within a segment of a landscape.Landscape heterogeneity affected resource use efficiencies across the sites, possibly through effects on the efficiency of resource capture (Tittonell et al., 2008). The significantly high (P < 0.05) variability in NRF (Fig. 7) and CWP (Fig. 8) across the landscape positions also suggested the need for implementing a spatially tailored crop management plan (Basso et al., 2009) which at the same time may reduce downstream water pollution. In general, in undulating, mountainous landscapes, where soil erosion was a dominant driver of change (Hurni et al., 2015;Vanlauwe et al., 2015), the importance of landscape variability cannot be understated (Milne 1935;Balasundram et al., 2006;Miller et al., 2008;Thelemann et al., 2010). These causes of variability deserve a follow-up and thorough investigation.Crop yield in the fertilized plots was higher than control plots (Fig. 5) regardless of year or location. However within location, yield variability could not be solely explained by soil nutrient deficiency as application of higher rates of combination of nutrients failed to bring about proportional yield increment in hillside farms. In agreement with our findings, Tittonell et al. (2008) reported that given the prevalence of various yield limiting factors in the various agroecologies and farm types, variable crop performance within and across farms in Kenya was not ascribed solely to soil nutrient status. It implied that in nutrient deficient soils, the potential benefits from adding nutrients could be hampered by soil water deficit and geomorphological traits. A similar finding was also reported in maize-based systems (Phiri et al., 1999).The nutrient response curves (Fig. 6) showed that the difference in the crop response between landscape positions was significantly strong (P < 0.05) with higher rates of nutrient applications (N92P46 and higher). This implied that at lower rates of NP application, the difference between landscape positions would diminish (Fig. 6). The results also indicated that fertilizer-induced yield difference between farms was pronounced in years of optimum rainfall (Lemo 2014 and 2016) and higher NP rates (Fig. 6), indicating both soil water scarcity and nutrient deficiency of the respective locations. In one location (Endamohoni), there was a significant yield increment due to K application in the drought year (2015). In another (Worreilu) there was no crop response to K application (Fig. 6b) despite low levels of soil K (Table 2). The positive yield response to K in Endamohoni could be explained by the potentially positive effects of potassium in maintaining plant water potential (Amede et al., 1999;Jakli et al., 2016). The yield benefit of potassium in Ethiopian highlands has also been demonstrated in potato and other tuber crops (Wassie and Mamo, 2013). Although there were conflicting claims and promotion for application of sulfur fertilizers in the wheat-belt Ethiopian highlands, there was limited evidence to suggest S was limiting for wheat, except in the Vertisols of Worreilu. Addition of micronutrients, including zinc, has also been known to improve wheat yield and nutritional quality of grains elsewhere (Cakmak, 2008). However, there was no evidence of Zn responses (Fig. 4). This is to be expected from nutrient deficient soils, as agronomic yield benefits from other nutrients are rarely achieved before the demand for major macronutrients is satisfied (Marschner, 1995). However, there could be human nutritional benefits in terms of higher grain zinc content due to zinc applications (data not presented). The poor, low responsive soils, which are predominantly in hillslopes, are the most challenging and require specific management (Tittonell and Giller, 2013;Agegnehu and Amede, 2017) since applying fertilizers to address those limitations is ineffective in the short-term (Kihara et al., 2016). This has a crucial implication on the land management policy in relation to crop choice, types and amounts of fertilizers and management practices. Therefore, farmers should be assisted in developing strategies that capitalize on the potential of the specific landscape position in which they operate to optimize economic profitability, environmental health and ecosystem functions.As indicated in Fig. 4, the standard error within the landscape position was also very low with CV below 2% leading to conclusion that this zone could be considered as a target for employing similar management options. This study is in agreement with earlier studies and suggests that management zones along with the conventional grid-based soil sampling could be used to develop plausible fertilizer recommendations (Khosla and Alley, 1999;Fleming et al., 2000). Those spatially similar areas within landscapes could be used for crop performance evaluations (Bleas et al., 2016). The process of describing and analyzing landscape terrain features, such as hillslope length and gradient, water retention and flow patterns and soil properties have become more accurate and precise to suggest recommendations than conventional approaches (Thelemann et al., 2010).We found very strong differences in crop response to mineral fertilizers among landscape positions.The implication of this research is that yield potential is lower in such hillslope soils, regardless of season and therefore nutrient   recommendations should consider this context. Application of manure, crop residues, green manures and other alternative sources could help to improve soil quality and allow crop to grow better and respond more to applied nutrients. On the other hand, the footslopes will keep producing relatively higher yield with application of optimum fertilizer rates. In these poorly managed landscapes, the landscape position could be a proxy indicator of soil fertility status (Dahlgren et al., 1997;Mckenzi, 2012;Gebrelibanos and Assan, 2013). However, we recognize that these recommendations should consider farmers' yield objectives. We also suggest further research to validate this work in other nutrient-demanding cropping systems (e.g., maize-based systems, sorghum-based systems). The key policy challenge is knowing whether the actual demand in these types of variable landscapes is hindered by low fertilizer use efficiency, market failures or the fact that the profitability of fertilizer use is just too low to justify its use (Tamene et al., 2017). Our findings have confirmed the latter that there is very limited incentive for farmers to invest in inputs in sloping and undulating fields given the very low crop response and associated low profitability.","tokenCount":"5379"}

data/part_3/0352518800.json

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"f52d8bdeb16eac8ba62cf2f6d7fc135d","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/01b070e1-f781-4586-8703-5d3d82edca6c/retrieve","id":"1025691188"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"c4b73027-e05a-472c-9c8f-0d38484e4e89","pagecount":"22","content":"Agriculture in Uganda is mainly rain fed and based on subsistence farming; challenging the sustainability and food security of farmers, and making the sector highly vulnerable to weather variability, climate hazards (particularly droughts) and climate change.• Crop diversification, small-scale irrigation, permanent planting basins, green manuring, conservation agriculture (rotations, intercropping, mulching and reduced tillage) and agroforestry are among the most common climatesmart practices being promoted in the country to improve productivity, food availability and resilience to climate hazards.• In livestock production, climate-smart agriculture (CSA) practices that have been promoted include silvopastoral systems, adoption of improved breeds, improved feeding regimes, grazing land management and integration of biogas. Since, livestock production encompasses the highest contributor of agricultural greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions in Uganda, these and other livestock based practices present good opportunities to reduce agricultural emissions in the country.• Efforts to identify and implement system-level CSA The climate-smart agriculture (CSA) concept reflects an ambition to improve the integration of agriculture development and climate responsiveness. It aims to achieve food security and broader development goals under a changing climate and increasing food demand. CSA initiatives sustainably increase productivity, enhance resilience, and reduce/remove greenhouse gases (GHGs), and require planning to address trade-offs and synergies between these three pillars: productivity, adaptation, and mitigation [1].The priorities of different countries and stakeholders are reflected to achieve more efficient, effective, and equitable food systems Climate-Smart Agriculture in Uganda that address challenges in environmental, social, and economic dimensions across productive landscapes. While the concept is new, and still evolving, many of the practices that make up CSA already exist worldwide and are used by farmers to cope with various production risks [2]. Mainstreaming CSA requires critical stocktaking of ongoing and promising practices for the future, and of institutional and financial enablers for CSA adoption. This country profile provides a snapshot of a developing baseline created to initiate discussion, both within countries and globally, about entry points for investing in CSA at scale. and floods) and capacity building of extension actors on understanding and disseminating climate information.• Uganda has made progress on integrating climate change into national development plans, as well agricultural policies and programmes. This has included the development of a National CSA Framework Programme, the launching of the agriculture sector National Adaptation Plan process, and the formulation of a national Climate Change Policy. National and international finance (public and private) as well as technical support will be crucial in ensuring that these plans and policies achieve their desired objectives.• Although there are numerous examples of national and project finance for agricultural climate change adaptation and mitigation efforts, financial services and risk transfer mechanisms are limiting at farmer level, presenting a significant barrier for CSA adoption. Initiatives such as crop and livestock index-based insurance have been introduced aimed at offsetting losses due to climate-related conditions, and more could be done to scale up access.• There are numerous organisations undertaking climatesmart agriculture related projects and programmes in the country, and the importance of coordination of these actors through various platforms such as the National Climate-Smart Agriculture Task Force and the Climate Change Department has been recognised. Continued financial and operational support to CSA coordination will be crucial to ensure complementarity and sustainability of the work of various actors.People, agriculture and livelihoods in Uganda [7, 8, 9, 10, 15, 16, 17]   National contextAgriculture is the main economic sector, accounting for 27% of gross domestic product (GDP) and employing 73% of the labor force [3]. Since the 1980s, agriculture share to GDP on average has experienced a slow but almost steady decline from 53.7% in 1982 to 23.7% in 2015 due to growth in the industrial and service sectors [4,5]. Despite this decline, agriculture remains the key source of exports contributing 46% of total exports. The country has also made significant progress in relation to women's engagement in the agricultural sector in the five domains of empowerment (5DE): agricultural production, resources, income, leadership and time [6]. This is evidenced by the steady decline in the female share of youth illiterate in the population from 58% in 2010 to 52% in 2015 [7]. Despite their critical and potentially transformative role in agricultural growth, Ugandan women are relatively disadvantaged with regards to land ownership and labor market participation [8]. Women constitute only 16.3% of the total agricultural landholders [9].Economic relevance of agriculture in Uganda [7, 10, 11]   People, agriculture, and livelihoodsUganda still faces considerable challenges in meeting its poverty eradication objective of reducing absolute poverty to less than 10% of the population by 2017 [12]. The proportion of the national population living below the poverty line dropped from 56% in 1992 to about 24.5% in 2013 (7.5 million) [13]. The rural areas account for 85% of the population and 94.4% of the poor, while the urban areas account for 15% of the population but only 5.6% of the poor. In Uganda, agriculture supports the livelihoods of 73% of the households and provides employment for about 33.8% of the economically active population, and over 80% of the poorest of the population [14]. The country's agriculture is characterized by smallholder farming with hand hoe as the major production tool and with landholdings averaging two hectares [6].Land use in Uganda [7, 10]   Production systems key for food security in Uganda [7]   Land useUganda has a total area of 241,550,000 ha. Agricultural land occupied 11,962,000 ha (60%) of the total area in 1994 and increased significantly to 14,415,000 ha (72%) in 2013 at an annual growth rate of 0.3% [3]. Arable land increased from 0.54% annual growth in 2000 to 2.36% in 2012, while permanent cropland area decreased from an annual growth rate of 1.69% to 0.72%. Notably in the last decade, agricultural land has steadily increased at a rate of 1% per annum, and if this rate continues agricultural land will account for 90% of Uganda's land by 2040 [24]. Natural forest cover has declined drastically from 54% in the 1950s to 20% of the total area, while grassland has increased by 28.18% during 1996-2013 [18]. About 41% of the country's total area is experiencing degradation, of which 12% is in a severe state of degradation [19].The most common form of land degradation is soil erosion, found on around 85% of degraded land [18]. Areas severely affected by soil erosion (85-90%) include the highlands of Kabale and Kisoro, while the badly affected ones (75-80%) include Mbale, Rakai and the cattle corridor districts. Forest cover loss of about 25 million tons of wood consumed annually translates into 50% degradation of all tropical high forests on private land and 15% in forest reserves [7].Agricultural production in Uganda is primarily based on smallscale subsistence farming (4.0 million households), comprising a system of mixed agriculture with perennial and annual crops, as well as grazing throughout most of the districts across ten agroecological zones (AEZs). The AEZs include: the North-eastern dry lands with an average annual rainfall of 745 mm (where beans, field peas, groundnuts, passion fruits, simsim and sorghum are grown); the North-eastern savannah grasslands receiving 1197 mm (cocoa, millet, tobacco, bee keeping); the North-western Savannah grasslands receiving a range of 1340 mm -1371mm (coffee, Irish potatoes, rice); the Para-savannahs receiving 1259 mm (cassava fishing, sorghum, peas, tobacco, livestock); the Kyoga plains receiving 1215 mm -1328 mm of rainfall (sweet potatoes, dairy); the Western savannah grasslands (banana, maize, goats); and the Lake Victoria Crescent, South-western farmlands, Highland ranges, and Pastoral rangelands with rainfall below 1000 mm and characterized by short grassland with nomadic extensive pastoralism (pastoral livestock). However, these systems are dynamic due to climate-related hazards, high population growth rates of 3.2% per annum, as well as external political and economic factors [3,46].In these zones, agriculture is mainly rainfed; irrigated agriculture comprises only 0.1% of total cultivated land. The main crops are cereals (maize, sorghum, millet, rice) on over 1.7 million ha for the two cropping cycles, or almost 32% of the area cropped in 2008-2009 [20], root crops (25%), bananas (17%), as well as pulses, oil seeds, coffee, vegetables and fruits. Export crops include coffee, tea, tobacco, cotton cut flowers and cocoa. Livestock also is a key component of the primary sector with over 26 million heads in 2014 [3], not including poultry. Food crop production dominates the agriculture sector, contributing over 55% of the agricultural GDP, while cash crops contribute 17% and livestock 15% [21]. Despite the dominance of food crop production, only one-third is marketed with exports being less than 7% of food production. Imported food are mainly wheat and rice, accounting for less than 5% of total food requirements [2].Food security and health in Uganda [7, 9, 10, 16, 25, 26, 27, 28]   Food security and nutrition Agriculture input use in Uganda [7, 10, 22]   Uganda Greenhouse gas emissions in Uganda [7, 31]   Agricultural greenhouse gas emissions Uganda has one of the lowest GHG emissions per capita in the world, estimated at 1.39 tons carbon dioxide equivalent, far below the global average of approximately 7.99 tons of carbon dioxide equivalent; yet the country is most vulnerable to global warming and climate change impacts. Uganda's contribution to world's total GHG emissions is estimated at 0.099%. Between 1990 and 2012, Uganda's GHG emissions grew 50% with average annual change of 4% from the agricultural sector [29]. The total national GHG emissions including land-use change and forestry is about 48.38 Mt CO2e, which is 58.7% of the 82.4 Mt CO2e regional GHG emissions [30]. The agricultural sector has the highest emissions, contributing about 46.25% (22.38 Mt CO2e) to the country's total GHG emissions [30]. The four main sources of GHG emissions from the agricultural sector include enteric fermentation at 42.8%, manure left on the pasture 31.1%, burning savanna 12.9% and cultivation of organic soils at 4.8% [3]. In spite of these low emissions rates, the country is highly committed, through its' Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), to contribute to global efforts to reduce GHG emissions. As a mitigation strategy, Uganda has then focused on implementing of a series of policies and measures in the agriculture, energy supply, forestry and wetland sectors. For instance, strategies to reduce emissions include protecting the existing forests and implementing the agro-forestry plan countrywide. Similarly from pastoralism, methane emissions have been reduced by improving pastoral livestock keeping practices, such as the use of improved breeds and feeding regimes.Challenges for the agricultural sectorThe underdevelopment of the agricultural sector has been identified in Uganda Vision 2040, among major bottlenecks constraining the country's development. Despite efforts to increase agricultural productivity, the sector is characterized by low yields. This is partly a result of poor agricultural technology development. For instance, despite soil fertility being a key ingredient for improved agricultural production, the national fertilizer application rate is low at an average of 1 kg /ha/year, compared to 5kg/ha in Tanzania and 30 kg/ha in Kenya, and far less than the world average of 100kg/ha. Also the use of improved seeds stands at 6.3% of farmers, while agro-chemicals are at a meager 3.4% [32].In Uganda, the challenge of poorly functioning pest, vector and disease control is a major cause of losses in the agriculture sector.For instance, the 2008 Livestock Census revealed that each Ugandan livestock farmer may be losing a startling USD 155 a year due to disease. In the crop sub-sector for instance, coffee wilt disease, which started in 1993, has destroyed about 56% or 160 million of the old Robusta trees, equivalent to some 1.5 million bags or about USD 170 million [21]. This inability to control endemic disease outbreaks means that Uganda fails to meet international trade standards and so loses many market opportunities.Widespread degradation of land resources is another challenge in Uganda. In 1991, studies estimated that soil erosion accounted for over 80% of the annual cost of environmental degradation equivalent to USD 300 million per year [18]. In 2003, the annual cost of soil nutrient loss due primarily to erosion was estimated at about USD 625 million per year. Productivity losses per year for maize from soil erosion have been estimated in some places as high as 190 kg/ha [21]. The degradation of land resources, while having a large impact on agricultural production and productivity, also reduces the ability to sequester carbon and contribute to mitigation of agriculture and land use related greenhouse gas emissions.Uganda is faced with market and value addition constraints for agricultural products. For instance, the proportion of Uganda's agricultural commodities and products processed is less than 5% of products produced [21]. The sector also has poorly functioning regulatory services, inputs market and distribution systems. For instance, the quality of seed in the market may be unknown as quality cannot be determined through visual inspection.The sector is also faced with constraints related to the enabling environment for improving agricultural production and productivity, such as an uncertain policy environment, poor agricultural technology delivery and adoption, lack of capacity for policymaking and planning, lack of capacity for climate change analysis and decision making and low productivity of sector personnel. Given the heavy dependence on agriculture, the effects of climate change could clearly put millions of people at greater risk of poverty and hunger.The sector is also faced with institutional development constraints, such as a weak institutional framework and lack of capacity to implement the sector development plans, geographically fractured state of the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) and its agencies, and low productivity of sector personnel to ensure efficient and effective delivery of sector goals and objectives.Uganda experiences relatively humid conditions and moderate temperatures throughout the year, with mean daily temperaturesProjected changes in temperature and precipitation in Uganda by 2050 [40, 41, 42]   Average temperature (°C)of 28 °C [33,34]. The long-term mean near-surface temperature is around 21 °C, with the average monthly temperatures ranging from a minimum of 15 °C in July to a maximum of 30 °C in February. The highest temperatures are observed in the North, especially in the North-East, while lower temperatures occur in the South. A significant warming has been measured in Uganda for instance, the Uganda's National Adaptation Programme of Action (NAPA) cites an average temperature increase of 0.28 °C per decade in the country between 1960 and 2010, being January and February the most affected by this warming trend, averaging an increase of 0.37 °C per decade. The frequency of hot days in the country has increased significantly, while the frequency of cold days has decreased [35,36].The annual rainfall totals vary from 500 mm to 2800 mm; mean annual rainfall ranges between less than 900 mm in the driest districts to an average of above 1,200 mm per year in the wettest districts located within the Lake Victoria Basin, eastern and the north-western parts of Uganda (37,38). This climate is bimodal in the south to central parts of Uganda, exhibiting two rainy seasons (March-June and October-January), with the exception of the northern-easterly region, which experiences one long rainy season [37]. Floods and droughts are the most frequent climate hazards. For instance, the cattle corridor, which is located in the dry-land region, is prone to drought, while the northern region is especially vulnerable to both floods and droughts [39]. While trends are uncertain and data remain limited, the main climate change impacts expected to affect agriculture in Uganda in the future include higher temperatures, more erratic and heavy rainfall, changes in the timing and distribution of rainfall, and an increase in the frequency and duration of droughts. For instance, the FAO Crop Water Assessment (FAO-CROPWAT) indicated up to 46% reductions in optimal banana yields due to soil moisture deficits within banana plantations. A range of CSA technologies are being promoted and implemented across farmer typologies and agro-ecological zones in Uganda.Notable practices include integrated soil fertility management, agro-forestry, crop diversification, conservation agriculture (crop rotation, mulching, use of green cover crops and minimum tillage), intercropping coffee-banana and legumes with other crops, seasonally adapted planting times and effective field water management in rice production. Under livestock management, the existing practices include; improved silvopastoral systems (i.e. converting degraded extensive, treeless pastures into a richer and more productive environment, where trees and shrubs are planted interspersed among fodder crops such as grasses and leguminous herbs), rotational grazing and forage conservation (silage). Use of livestock dung for household biogas production has also been promoted and practiced, particularly in intensive livestock areas with benefits not only for climate change mitigation, forest conservation and energy provision but also in terms of reducing the workload and improving the health of women and children.The bio-slurry removed from the digester can also be used as organic fertilizer to improve crop productivity. The predominant users of CSA practices are small-scale farmers whose primary goal is to increase crop productivity. This corroborates with evidence indicating that resource-poor farmers are risk evaders by nature, who habitually seek for solutions to problems through innovation.Off-farm CSA related services include crop weather index based insurance, using automated weather stations to monitor specific parameters and triggers. Strengthening climate information and early warning systems has also been a focus of various actors and has been highlighted in various national documents such as Uganda's NAPA of 2007.In this context, CSA is not a novel approach per se, but rather a compendium of indigenous solutions developed over time by smallholders to sustainably maximize crop production amidst diminishing farm size, pest and disease pressure and soil fertility decline. Nevertheless, adoption of many CSA practices remains generally low (30%) because of policy gaps. Other constraints to CSA adoption include limited extension services, inadequate knowledge, inadequate technology, labor and capital, inaccessible input markets and declining farm size.The following graphics present a selection of CSA practices with high climate smartness scores according to expert evaluations. The average climate smartness score is calculated based on the individual scores of the practices on eight climate smartness dimensions that relate to the CSA pillars: yield (productivity); income, water, soil, risks (adaptation); energy, carbon and nitrogen (mitigation). A practice can have a negative / positive / zero impact on a selected CSA indicator, with 10 (+/-) indicating a 100% change (positive/ negative) and 0 indicating no change. Practices in the graphics have been selected for each production system key for food security identified in the study. A detailed explanation of the methodology and a more comprehensive list of practices analyzed for Uganda can be found in Annexes 3 and 4, respectively.Farmers' level of adoption of practices with high climate smartness has been generally low as most farmers still depend on the traditional subsistence farming systems [21]. However, the Uganda Vision 2040 (2013) recognizes the critical issues addressed by CSA technologies, which are aimed at boosting resilience to harsh climatic conditions. Investment in research towards improved pestand disease-free seeds and varieties has been promoted by both government agencies such as the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) and international organizations such as the International Institute of Tropical Agricultural (IITA) [43].Selected CSA practices and technologies for production systems key for food security in UgandaCase study: Inclusive stakeholder planning through learning alliancesThe Policy Action for Climate Change Adaptation (PACCA) project aims to provide a deeper understanding of how to approach CSA interventions at a systemic rather than at a plot level. Working closely with both local and national stakeholders, IITA and other partners on the PACCA project developed a framework for vertically and horizontally integrating CSA interventions through inclusive stakeholder engagements. Learning alliances (LAs) are multistakeholder spaces established at national and district levels, with the aim of promoting science-policy dialogue, climate change capacity enhancement, and building synergies to develop solutions to problems that cannot be solved individually.LAs encourage consolidated efforts to tackle climate-change-related issues that no single institution would accomplish on its own. For example, civil society organizations within the LA supported the scenario-guided review of the Agriculture Sector Strategic Plan, which was important for mainstreaming climate change in the plan.  Development partners provide funding of various projects that, on one hand, influence economic and social development and, on the other hand, also address climate change. A wide range of projects across the country focus on enhancing the livelihoods of smallholder farmers and, because of the strong linkages between CSA and food security, many of these initiatives encompass climate risk management practices to some degree. For instance, the USAID Feed the Future \"Enhancing Climate Resilience for Agricultural Livelihoods\" Project, working with farmers to develop site-specific climate-smart adaptation practices for banana, coffee, maize, bean systems in both high and low land areas.Faith-based organizations are also involved in CSA promotion, for example through the Farming Gods Way and Islamic Farming principles that mostly promote conservation agriculture. is expected to respond to this call by making explicit financial provisions in budget allocation of departments and ministries. At the same time, there is still need for greater capacity building of all institutions (government, international, private and civil society) on climate change adaptation and mitigation and how to integrate this into their daily work.Farmer' organizations such as the Uganda National Farmers Federation (UNFFe) and various smallholder coffee cooperatives are also involved in CSA promotion mostly through advocating for agroforestry, irrigation and intercropping. Private sector organisations such as Rural Enterprise Development Services (REDS) are involved in supporting farmers to implement conservation agriculture, although this work is also donor funded.The following graphic highlights key institutions whose main activities relate to one, two or three CSA pillars (adaptation, productivity and mitigation). More information on the methodology and results from interviews, surveys and expert consultations is available in Annexes 5 and 6.Having ratified the UNFCCC and the Kyoto Protocol agreements, Uganda's approach to climate change is highly linked to its international engagement with climate change politics. Uganda While not explicitly including agriculture among the mitigation focus areas, many of the priority actions for agricultural adaptation will also have mitigation co-benefits. Uganda has also launched a process for developing its National Adaptation Plan (NAP), and this was followed in 2016 by the launch of an FAO and UNDP project to support eight developing countries (including Uganda) to integrate agriculture into their National Adaptation Plans. The project is funded through the International Climate Initiative (ICI) and aims to increase collaboration between agriculture, environment, planning and finance ministries as well as developing national capacity for mainstreaming climate into planning and budgeting, improving economic valuation and conducting impact assessment of agricultural adaptation initiatives.Uganda has also made efforts to domesticate other international instruments and agreements related to climate, agriculture and the environment such as the United Nations Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD); and the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). The CBD having been domesticated through formulation of a National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAPII, 2015-2025) which highlights the need to address climate change as a key emerging issue.Although not specifically targeting climate change issues, some of the countries environment and forestry related legislation can be said to have indirectly addressed climate change issues. Such legislation included the following:• The National Forest Policy (NFP) of 2001 whose goal was to achieve \"an integrated forest sector that achieves sustainable increases in the economic, social and environmental benefits from forests and trees by all the people of Uganda, especially the poor and vulnerable related legislation.• The National Environment Management Policy (1994, and currently under review) whose overall goal is \"sustainable development which maintains and promotes environmental quality and resource productivity for socio-economic transformation\" and includes activities related to payment for ecosystem services (PES), sustainable land management (SLM) and specifically mentions climate-smart agriculture as a key area of focus. Regionally, being part of the East African Community, Uganda is subject to the East African Community Climate Change Policy (EACCCP), which aims to strengthen meteorological services and improve early-warning systems; increase preparedness for disaster risk management; and scale up efficient use of water and energy resources, irrigation, crop and livestock production among others.Climate change in Uganda is a fundamentally multi-sectoral issue, hence a proactive approach in mainstreaming climate change into its development policies and strategies has been taken. Financing CSA The graphic highlights existing and potential financing opportunities for CSA in Uganda. The methodology and a more detailed list of funds can be found in Annex 7.In Uganda, climate change impacts are expected to be felt greatly on the agriculture sector, which is a key sector of the economy as well as a key livelihood and employment source for the majority of the country's people. In line with this The Government of Uganda has developed various initiatives to address climate change in the agriculture including through mainstreaming of climate change into agricultural policies and programmes as well as in national development plans. More needs to be done to monitor the impact of such initiatives on the long term resilience and productivity of the agriculture sector as well as on its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions reductions.CSA actions are context-specific and depend on local priorities. In Uganda, system-level CSA practices such as agroforestry, water harvesting, conservation agriculture or silvo-pastoralism have the potential to increase whole farm performance, while at the same time improving livelihoods and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Integration of practices such as biogas into such systems can provide added benefits and advantages in terms of use of bio slurry as fertiliser, provision of household energy and reduction in methane emissions. In order to make informed CSA investment decisions, effective targeting and prioritization for these CSA practices needs to be undertaken, and implementation supported by robust agro-advisory services and a private sector that is aware of the costs and benefits of investment in identified priority areas. Although private sector is an important stakeholder for scaling up CSA, more needs to be done to involve private sector organisations in the design, implementation and support of CSA programmes particularly through micro insurance and microfinance as well development of CSA-related input and output markets.The long term success of current efforts to promote CSA will largely depend on the availability and sustainability of financing. Numerous funding opportunities exist, however much of the funding has been for short periods (two to five years). Long term funding instruments are needed from national to local levels to allow participating farmers to grasp the concepts fully and realize the benefits of these interventions, thus catalyzing further uptake and investment by other farmers and stakeholders.While efforts have been made to improve coordination of organizations working on agricultural climate change adaptation in the country, there is still need to strengthen the financial and operational capacity of institutions such as the Climate Change Department of MWE and the Climate-Smart Agriculture Task Force so they can perform their coordination function adequately. Improvement of institutional coordination is still needed for interministerial and local governments, and to enhance partnerships with private sector, civil society organizations and development agencies.Improving and gearing the national agricultural extension system and ensuring its staff have adequate capacity on issues of climate change and in particular climate-smart agriculture, will be a key action area. Along with this, ensuring adequate and timely access to weather and climate information for smallholder farmers will be crucial and this will also require good linkages between the Uganda National Meteorological Authority (UNMA) and various extension service providers (government, private and civil society).","tokenCount":"4499"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"83a5ea11e80835ec3330cff2d675fbbe","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/09ae4a2b-fd51-43d8-b3c7-4b93b6b552ef/retrieve","id":"86919924"},"keywords":["children rights","youth, birth registration","legislation"],"sieverID":"c6392559-dbe9-4fc7-93e6-6222cd88c999","pagecount":"5","content":"To improve the rights of unregistered children and young people in Sierra Leone, Plan International has developed a birth registration tool to enable age and identity verification for this vulnerable group. Today, the young participants of the project are accessing their age-appropriate privileges, such as being able to attend school and getting to vote.stakeholder mobilisation, raising awareness and birth information registration. As a 'tool', it is not considered an end in itself but as a means to achieving several ends (education, health, child protection, etc.).In general, a UBR initiative includes: 1. A national workshop to plan and develop consistent messages for increasing awareness, mobilisation and advocacy. 2. Organising and holding a pre-consultative meeting aimed at increasing the buy-in of the local and the national government, and of the target communities. 3. Holding preparatory consultative sustainability meetings aimed at transferring skills and increasing community ownership. 4. Engagement with the public and interactive media. 5. Organising awareness sessions and mass registration campaigns.Experience has shown that UBR serves as a cost effective and applicable tool for the attainment of child-focused development. It is also a suitable approach for building the foundations of long-term development interventions. In addition, UBR can contribute as a planning instrument during emergencies such as the outbreak of diseases like Ebola. It is also perhaps one of the few tools that possesses and promotes many of the coveted features of development:I n Sierra Leone, nearly 40% of births go unregistered, which exposes children later in life to challenges concerning attainment of their basic human rights and denial of their age-appropriate privileges and services. With this in mind and with the support of the Government of Sierra Leone and other nongovernmental organizations, Plan International has designed and implemented the project 'Promoting birth registration for children's' development and protection', geared towards addressing the vulnerability of unregistered children and young people in Sierra Leone and also in Liberia, two Mano River Union countries. The extent of the project's success has been monitored via facilitators to obtain information from the communities in which the project is working.The study focused on obtaining opinions, views and facts from the target communities on universal birth registration (UBR) as a tool to solve problems affecting children. The research team attempted to obtain such information objectively and without bias, given the project's purpose of influencing change through evidence.UBR involves the identification of a specific geographic area within which activities are conducted to ensure all children have been registered and issued birth certificates. UBR activities range from Plan International carried out a thorough study of the tool and of its implementation. This ran from April 2012 to February 2017, and was therefore halted during the Ebola outbreak of 2014-2015. The main stakeholders involved, whose views have been reflected in this work, included the Government of Sierra Leone, the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF), Plan International, Plan Sierra Leone, many different civil society organizations, and also our implementing partners and other development agencies. Plan International's project manager and staff running the UBR were also interviewed, as well as staff from the birth and death department in Freetown. And additional information was also collected from the National Births and Deaths Registration Office.In short, the whole process considered:(a) A national workshop to plan and develop consistent messages for awareness, mobilisation and advocacy purposes. Plan International facilitated a two-day workshop to develop consistent messaging in partnership with the communication department of the Ministry of Health and Sanitation, the National Office of Births and Deaths, UNICEF, the National Registration Secretariat and the National Electoral Commission. Representatives of the National Commission for Human Rights, the Commission for Disability, the Office of National Security, the National Commission for Democracy, Children's Commission, traditional leaders, religious leaders and CSOs were also in attendance. Discussions at the meeting focused on the importance of birth registration, the problems associated with unregistered births, the procedures to be followed• Cross-cutting applicability: the tool can be used to target interventions in different development sectors (such as health, education, governance and human rights), and its benefits can solve problems across sectors and sub sectors.• Ease of applicability: it is easy to set up systems and structures for UBR, as long as there is an existing government structure in place for birth registration and stakeholder buy-in. Because of its simplicity (whether paper-based or biometric), an area with a population of up to 7 million can be targeted with birth registration activities within a week.• Quick wins: when UBR is employed, quick results can be realised, especially in protecting children from harm and providing appropriate services to them.• Big results: high impact in relation to protection and rights assurance solutions are likely. Registration of 95-100% of births within populations is likely when using the tool. In the external evaluation of different cases, registration increase of between 40 and 95% has been recorded.• Targeted interventions: the desire of development and humanitarian actors to correctly identify the status of target beneficiaries to correctly plan for and allocate resources (for example, in terms of enrolment in scholls), is easily enhanced through correct birth registration data. The benefits of correct planning and resource and intervention mapping cannot be overemphasised where projects with limited resources are concerned.• Collaborative action and working together: because the process of UBR involves many different activities, it encourages collaborative action and crediting of teams rather than a single entity or actor.Plan Sierra Leone, the local councils and other stakeholders identified the situation of unregistered births as:• A major impediment to successful implementation of child-focused age-appropriate interventions and provision of services in Sierra Leone;• A principal barrier to the success of improved access to justice by victims of abuse in various sectors and subsectors including sexual and gender based violence (SGBV), child battery, child neglect, child exploitation, and child labour;• A cause for outright denial of social and civic rights of individuals seeking to exercise such; important role in community mobilisation.As the most commonly accessed media channel, radio was the most important outlet for information dissemination. Plan Sierra Leone entered into an agreement with six national radio stations and four community radio stations to broadcast shows (one per month for six months in each district), which focused on the key issues of birth registration. Each show was broadcast at peak hours and lasted for 2 hours, allowing one hour for a panel discussion and one hour for questions and answers by text/phone-in.The panellists comprised of representatives from, for example, DHMT, the District Registrar from the National Office of Births and Deaths, religious and traditional leaders, and Plan Sierra Leone staff.Last, we also ran thirty-six awareness campaigns in Kailahun, Port Loko and Western Area (12 in each district). In some initiatives, comedians paraded through the streets of the target districts putting on live performances and encouraging parents to register their children for free.Our study considered different criteria to measure the success of the tool's implementation process:• Adoption: Some partners and agencies said limited funding restricted their ability to implement the project. Others said it was the responsibility of the government to provide UBR, which is why they didn't make it a priority.• Effectiveness: Project participants stated that although effective, the tool was unable to reach all unregistered children due to mistakes preventing all those involved from achieving their aims for child registration and the linkages to the newly established civil registration system.(b) Pre-implementation consultative meetings. These activities focused on establishing and strengthening links with existing influential community stakeholders, including traditional and religious leaders, women, youth and child representatives, and community chiefs to ensure successful implementation of the UBR activity, as well as mobilisation of community at large.(c) Preparatory consultative sustainability meetings. Three consultative meetings were held -one in Port Loko, one in the Western Area and one in Kailahun. A total of 120 participants attended these meetings; 40 participants from each district. Participants included representatives from the National Office of Births and Deaths, the District Health Management Team (DHMT), paramount chiefs, tribal heads, religious leaders, city mayors, women, youth and child organisation representatives, and community based organisations. In light of the Ebola emergency, the meetings discussed the following topics:• Linkages between birth registration and the spread of disease outbreaks: faster tracing of family ties could reduce or delay the spread of disease to relatives and community members;• The importance of avoiding a break in registration activities in the eventuality of disease outbreak;• The importance of encouraging community members to access health facilities and to trust front line health personnel.There was also a large sensitization effort (April -June 2017), where interactive media played anCollaborative action can promote adoption among parties with similar interests, which is why as many stakeholders as possible were included.(such as those related to the project design and to the limited availability of resources).• Increased access to services: With proof of age through using the tool, child participants have been able to vote, attend school and avoid early marriages. They have also been able access/receive age-targeted nutrition therapy, immunisations, counselling and appropriate treatment in court.• Time-effectiveness: The time efficacy of UBR can be undermined if the paper-based certificate lacks a photograph. The process of proving legitimacy of the document can then be time consuming.• Cost effectiveness: According to the births and deaths department, it costs less than US$1 to register a child. However, due to systemic problems within government structures, evaluators of the project reported the cost at just under US$4 for each child registered.• Project reach: Stakeholders interviewed reported that the UBR recorded about 400,000 people and that 87 percent of the communities in the target area were reached, and that the awareness campaigns greatly contributed to this.• Necessity in the context: The workers at the birth and death department, as well as other project partners, have said that the tool was more than necessary in the context of the country. Districts not served during the project now have comparatively fewer unregistered children.In general terms, we've seen that collaborative action can promote adoption among parties with similar interests, this is why during the consultative meetings, as many stakeholders as possible were included to ensure the decisions were equally owned. But it is also important to mention that, when planning a mass activity which involves many people, like this one, provisions should be made for cases where disasters restrict the movement of people.We have also seen that, however result-oriented a tool, universal application cannot easily be guaranteed in a context of weak systems. Therefore, whilst we aimed for 100% registration, underlying factors such as poor systems prevented our attainment of full registration.The births and deaths department recommends that NGOs and development actors prioritise birth registration at the start of a child's life in order to obtain accurate birth information, which becomes less accurate for children registered over the age of five. UBR should be encouraged by NGOs and mandated by governments. In areas suspected to have lower than 60% birth registration rates, mass awareness campaigns should be undertaken. Plan International should insist on the practice of UBR as a mainstream activity of every country office, especially in the countries where it works.","tokenCount":"1845"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"55eec3417292b0613142fca0c2782e95","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/c753070a-c826-4712-8c3e-108eb17fef9f/retrieve","id":"182380175"},"keywords":["Colombo","Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on Digital Innovation. 24p E-flows","HABFLO","SoNAR","LiDAR","hydraulic modelling","habitat assessment Flagship Digital Twin Work package System Monitoring Partners GroundTruth","International Water Management Institute (IWMI)"],"sieverID":"89cf32eb-bcf2-4b41-ab6e-f47cc07db93f","pagecount":"24","content":"Environmental flows (E-flows) are crucial for maintaining healthy river ecosystems as an essential part of water resources management, but traditional E-flow assessments that include modelling of hydraulic habitats, often rely on limited, single cross-section data. This study presents a novel approach integrating Sound Navigation and Ranging (SoNAR) and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data collected using an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) to create a high-resolution Digital Terrain Model (DTM) and was carried out for a section of the Olifants River in Southern Africa. The integrated DTM enabled detailed 2-Dimensional (2D) hydraulic modelling using Hydraulic Engineering Centre River Analysis System (HEC-RAS), with the resulting depth and velocity outputs used to visualise the HABitat FLOw (HABFLO) fish and invertebrate habitat classes across the entire reach that was modelled. Additionally, a habitat distribution calculator was developed to determine habitat distributions based on river flows. The longitudinal analysis of habitat distributions for a section of the river revealed variations in habitat class distributions that a single cross-section-based analysis would not highlight, thus providing a more comprehensive understanding of habitat dynamics under varying flow conditions. The successful merging of SoNAR and LiDAR data demonstrates the power of combining UAV-derived remote sensing techniques for characterisation of riverine features. This workflow has the potential to further enhance E-flow assessments, aiding in the development of ecologically sound water management strategies. However, future work should include in-field validation of modelled habitat distributions and the expansion of the methodology to larger areas.Rivers are globally exploited for various purposes such as carrying additional increased flows through interbasin transfers, unstainable extractions, assimilation of pollution, etc, often without considering the water needs of the ecosystems themselves (Rai and Jain 2022). For sustainable water resource management, it is crucial to identify a balance between water requirements and the health of the river system for a catchment. E-flows are an important tool to achieve this balance (Rai and Jain 2022). E-flows are defined as water that is intentionally retained in or added to rivers to manage the health of the river; and the specific purpose of E-flows can range from maintaining healthy ecosystems to supporting endangered fish populations (King et al. 2008). Arthington et al. (2018) revised the definition of E-flows to embrace flowing, standing and groundwater dependent ecosystems as well as aquatic systems that alternate between states. The revised E-flow definition is as follows: \"Environmental flows describe the quantity, timing, and quality of freshwater flows and levels necessary to sustain aquatic ecosystems, which in turn, support human cultures, economies, sustainable livelihoods, and well-being.\" Determination of the flow regime that provides for optimal E-flows is an evolving science, with one approach being to model the hydraulic habit as a basis on which to determine the needs of the ecosystem. E-flows are also beneficial for many interconnected components of a river system, including the waterways, nearby wetlands, groundwater, and plants and animals that rely on the entire river network (King et al. 2008). Therefore, E-flow frameworks should be holistic and consider how water flow and other factors interact to impact both the environment and society over entire regions (O'Brien et al. 2018).The current state of practice that is generally used for E-flow assessments in Southern Africa includes the use of single cross-sectional data with habitat distribution models to inform E-flow assessments. In this document an innovative approach is developed to determine habitat distributions using hydraulic modelling and remotely sensed topobathymetric data.There are a variety of methods relating to the quantification of E-Flows and the majority of the methods can be grouped into the following categories: (a) hydrological (Cavendish and Duncan 1986;Milhous et al. 1989), (b) hydraulic rating (Waters 1976;Tharme 1996), (c) habitat simulation (Loar et al. 1986;Dunbar et al. 1997), and (d) holistic methods (Tharme 1996;Arthington 1998).The hydrological approaches for E-flow methodologies generally use historical hydrological data to provide recommendations for E-flows and are generally estimated as a fixed proportion of flow/minimum flow (Cavendish and Duncan 1986;Milhous et al. 1989). A limitation of this approach is that the method is simplistic and does not account for the variability of hydrological processes (King et al. 2008). The hydraulic methods for E-flow assessments generally quantify the relationship between flow and instream resources such as habitats (Tharme 1996). A limiting assumption of this approach is that one hydraulic variable or a group of variables can be used to adequately represent the flow requirements of a particular species (King et al. 2008).The habitat simulation methodologies assess E-Flows using the relationship between flow and biotic response and are sometimes called habitat rating or habitat modelling methods (Loar et al. 1986;Dunbar et al. 1997;King et al. 2008). In these methods, flow (discharge) and changes in microhabitats are modelled using at least one hydraulic variable (Tharme 1996). These variables generally include velocity, depth, or substrate composition.The holistic method was developed in South Africa in the 1990s and the basic premise of the approach is to examine a hydrograph and use expert judgement and available data to determine a flow regime to maintain a river ecosystem in a desired state (King et al. 2008).The outputs from habitat models are generally habitatdischarge curves which can be used to estimate the optimum discharge for target biota (King et al. 2008). It is important to highlight that an aim of E-Flow assessments is to maintain a healthy river, however, it is often difficult to select an appropriate species prior to making a recommendation, and generally very little information pertaining to riverine biota is available in many countries (Richardson 1986;Gan and McMahon 1990). The majority of the methods for simulating habitats assume that it is sufficient to model the reaction of biological responses to discharge using hydraulic variables (Mathur et al. 1985;Shirvell 1986). This level of modelling may not be adequate, and the assumption is limited because these models focus on how the changes in flow affect factors such as water depth and velocity, without accounting for the broader effects on the entire ecosystem. Moreover, when performing ecological studies, the hydraulic data must be interpreted in a manner that is meaningful to ecologists. Many South African studies have specified habitat in terms of habitat classes linked to a range of velocities, depths, and other nonflow-dependent characteristics (Hirschowitz et al. 2007). Poff et al. (1997) proposed that understanding the natural flow regime of a river should be a central goal in efforts to conserve and restore rivers. Therefore, it is important to account for Eflows and E-flows must evolve with human activities to successfully deal with new challenges (Poff and Matthews 2013). Although the techniques and procedures used to advise on E-flows are relatively young (approximately 50 years), there are various different methods for E-flow assessments used globally (King et al. 2008). Hirschowitz et al. (2007) developed the HABitat FLOw (HABFLO) simulation software to provide a working model to automate the prediction of the abundance and composition of fish and macro-invertebrate habitat types. The HABFLO model is used to predict the frequency distribution of hydraulic parameters, viz. depth, and velocity. In practice however, Eflow assessments have relied on measurements taken directly in the river, but these on-site measurements lack sufficient detail to represent the entire river, and the cross section data collected during these surveys might not be easily accessible to everyone who needs it (Singh 2023).Habitat simulation models such as HABFLO follow an instream flow incremental methodology where physical habitat characteristics (depth, velocity, substrate) at a specific point in a river are linked to the suitability of that habitat for target species and life stages (Stalnaker et al. 1995). Traditionally, when performing habitat modelling with the HABFLO model, the model is run based on one or more cross-sections for the site/river. The location of the selected cross sections is generally dependent on conditions at the site when the survey is being conducted. However, the location and number of cross-sections used for the modelling are important when determining the representation and reliability of hydraulic modelling and subsequently the habitat simulations (Bovee and Milhous 1978). Due to limitations associated with obtaining cross section data for 1d modelling and detailed topobathymetric data for 2D modelling, remote sensing techniques for data collection in E-flow assessments are gaining popularity (Singh 2023).Stream temperature can cause fish migration and impact fish spawning patterns (Jonsson and Jonsson 2010). Tsang et al. (2021) investigated how climate change will affect fish communities in rivers and they acknowledged that climate change will alter water temperature and flow which will likely change the locations where fish can live in the future. Zhao et al. (2018) found that water flow and temperature affect how quickly pollutants break down in a river and proposed a new method to link fish tolerance to water pollution levels to determine E-flows.The specific aim of this report is to assess the applicability of utilising a Digital Terrain Model (DTM) obtained using data collected with an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) with Sonar and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) sensors to perform 2-Dimensional (2D) hydraulic and habitat modelling based on the HABFLO habitat classes for a section of the Olifants River in Southern Africa.The aim of this report is to use a UAV-derived DTM to perform 2D hydraulic and habitat modelling over a river reach. The following specific objectives are required to achieve this aim: e. Assess the performance of the developed method compared to the traditional HABFLO model using a single cross-section; and f. Develop a sensor platform to collect water quality data using a UAV and use water temperature data with a habitat simulation model.A method was developed to visualise different habitat classes along an entire reach of a river. The process of developing this method has been divided into two phases:Phase 1: Development of a 2-dimensional hydraulic model of a river reach (using HEC-RAS 2D).Phase 2: Development of a 2-dimensional visualisation tool for the distribution of HABFLO habitat classes along the river reach using the results from the HEC-RAS model.The two phases are described (with examples) in further detail in the following sections.In this report, the visualisation of habitat classes for fish and invertebrates, based on depth and velocity raster layers generated from a HEC-RAS model (HEC 2024), was done using an adapted methodology based on the Weighted Usable Area (WUA) concept used in hydraulic models such as River2d and PHABSIM (Steffler and Blackburn 2002;Gard 2009;Roh et al. 2011). To determine fish habitat classes, both the depth and velocity result layers are required, and for invertebrate habitat classes, the velocity layer and substrate type of the reach are required (Hirschowitz et al. 2007).A Channel Index (CI) is defined over the mesh of the area being modelled to evaluate the CI suitability (substrate, cover, etc.) for certain habitats (Steffler and Blackburn 2002), and the WUA is calculated using the habitat Suitability (SI) curve and the CI (Steffler and Blackburn 2002). It is acknowledged that generally an SI curve for depth, velocity, and CI for different species at different growth stages is required, but in this report, the HABFLO depth-velocity (for fish) and sediment-velocity (for invertebrates) classes from Hirschowitz et al. (2007) were used for consistency and comparability with the HABFLO model.The WUA is a suitability index that accounts for the suitability of the entire river reach for a discharge value (Steffler and Blackburn 2002). The WUA should be evaluated at different flows for different species and different life cycles. It is noted that prior to the calculation of the WUA, a steady or transient state solution is required for River2D or PHABSIM (Steffler and Blackburn 2002;Gard 2009;Roh et al. 2011). The WUA is generally calculated using the product, geometric mean or minimum methods using the SI and CI as inputs (Steffler and Blackburn 2002).The data required to achieve the aim and objectives of this study were collected during a site-visit that was undertaken to conduct a topobathymetric survey of the Olifants river downstream of the Balule Bridge as shown in Figure 1 below. When using a UAV for data collection, it is important to highlight that the quantity of data collected depends on a multitude of factors, including but not limited to, weather, safety, landowner permissions, electricity supply, etc.The aim of the surveys was to collect data to generate a DTM together with Red, Green, Blue (RGB) Orthomosaic and multispectral imagery. LiDAR data were collected using a Zenmuse LiDAR module (DJI 2024) with an RGB camera, and the multispectral imagery was collected using a Laquinta sensor (Laquinta 2024). An easily accessible low cost and over the counter Ping echosounder and altimeter (Robotics 2024) was used with the UAV to obtain below water depths for the Olifants river with the aim of generating a complete terrestrial and riverbed profile for a portion of the river, as the LiDAR beams do not penetrate water. The Bluerobotics Ping echosounder and an ultrasonic sensor were attached to a flotation device designed by GroundTruth, which was pulled over the water surface using a DJI Matrice (M300) drone (see Figure 2). The data that were collected and the equipment used to collect the data are provided in Table 1. Simultaneously, a research team from the University of Mpumalanga used a SonTek Acoustic Doppler to collect bathymetric data on the same river reach. In addition, a cross sectional survey of the Olifants River was performed using a Total Station survey instrument.The SoNAR devices measure depth relative to the position of the device and the DTM generated by the LiDAR provides points with an altitude above sea level. Therefore, the Global Positioning System (GPS) points associated with the elevation data from the LiDAR survey and the depths from the SoNAR device were linked. The depth below the water surface was then estimated by subtracting the depth from the SoNAR device from the elevation from the LiDAR data. Thereafter, an interpolation procedure was performed to generate an underwater profile of the riverbed. A 25cm resolution DTM was thereafter derived using the information collected by all three surveying techniques. Where the initial resolution was greater from the SonTek and SoNAR devices, these points were interpolated to conserve the final resolution of the LiDAR data. The DTMs were compared to identify the highest level and most accurate representation of the riverbed.In addition, an MF pro and a Global Water flow probe were used to collect depth and flow velocities for points along the Olifants river. The discharge measured by the MF Pro was subsequently verified using the depth data collected from the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS) gauging Weir (B7H026). During the site-visit, a cross-sectional survey was taken across the width of river using a total station. This information was used to verify the elevations of the processed DTM.The data that were collected were used to set-up and run the HABFLO model and the SoNAR and LiDAR data were merged to generate a DTM of the riverbed and floodplain. The DTM was used for the HEC-RAS 2D hydraulic modelling and the results from the hydraulic modelling were then used to visualise the HABFLO fish and invertebrate classes for the section of the Olifants river that was modelled.In addition to the data collected for Phase 1 and 2, additional water characteristics data were collected for the Lions River in KwaZulu-Natal. The results that were obtained are presented and discussed in the following sections.The HEC-RAS software has been developed by the U.S. For any 2D surface flow model, a DTM of the terrain to be assessed is required. For this particular model, GroundTruth carried out an independent UAV (drone) based LiDAR survey of the focused reach of river to be modelled. This survey provided detail on the river floodplains, sandbars, rock ledges, and vegetation, to provide elevation detail and high-resolution RGB imagery for holistic visual information that is not always gathered during a site visit. Additional details regarding the collection of data are provided in the Data Collection section.A hydraulic roughness layer or Manning's roughness coefficient (n) layer is required for a 2D HEC-RAS model. This layer is used to describe the hydraulic resistance to the flow of water over different surfaces and is essential to calculate river velocities (HEC 2024). The initial land cover descriptions, which were based off the RGB imagery and general site knowledge from the field work, with the corresponding Manning's n values (Chow 1959) were developed and have been provided in Table 2 below. These were subsequently refined during the calibration process following the initial model run.  A Courant Number of 1 implies that a particle of water will move from one cell centre to the next cell centre in an amount of time equal to the computation interval. For C > 1, there is a risk of numerical diffusion errors, and large diffusion errors lead to instability in the model and inaccurate results (Kleinschmidt 2023).To manage these instabilities, a larger grid size is generally used for the Geometry File and refined for areas with higher variations in the terrain. The refinements are done using break lines and refinement regions. Since, by default, HEC-RAS creates a structured 2D grid and the results are averaged throughout each cell area as mentioned above, these geometry editor functions within HEC-RAS allow the user to restructure the grid to accurately represent the averaged depths and velocities over the terrain. For example, should a large cell size cover the entire cross-section of a levee (Figure 3, top), the averaged results on one side of the levee will be represented throughout the cell, and thus the model will show flow accumulating on the opposite side of the levee, whereas in reality, this may not occur. Therefore, the inclusion of a break line will manipulate and restructure the cell to lie perpendicular to the levee (Figure 3, bottom) to avoid \"jumps\" in flow and more accurately represent the hydraulic connectivity between cells.In HEC-RAS there are five boundary types: flow time series, stage time series, normal depth, rating curve, and precipitation. For this model, a flow time series was used as the inlet flow, and a normal depth was used as the outlet.In this report, the results from the HEC-RAS modelling were used to determine habitat distributions over a reach. Therefore, it was decided that the most efficient way of modelling flow through the HEC-RAS model would be to undertake one simulation with flow increasing with time. Therefore, instead \uD835\uDC36 = \uD835\uDC49 ∆\uD835\uDC47 ∆\uD835\uDC4B of using a steady flow hydrograph which represents one flow and thus will require multiple model simulations for the habitat distribution results, a straight-line hydrograph was inserted into the model (see Figure 4). This hydrograph will relay to the model that the flow entering the system increases incrementally over a prescribed time step. This, however, represents a constant change in flow through the reach of river from the inlet to the outlet until the run is complete. As the habitat distribution study requires the hydraulic characteristics of one specific flow through the entire reach, this would not provide the required results (i.e. at any specific time, the flow rate entering the system would differ from that exiting the system). To develop a more singular representation of flow through the system at any given time, an incremental time step was used to represent the time it would take both low flows and high flows to travel down the river reach. Thereafter, constant flow was entered between the incremental time step until the inlet flow was equal to the outlet flow. The flow was increased incrementally each time the inlet and outlet flow were equal. This then developed a stepped hydrograph (see Figure 5) to ensure that the flow exiting the system matched the flow entering the system before the flow was increased. The energy slope associated with the flow boundary is also required when using HEC-RAS. Therefore, the longitudinal water surface slope that was measured on-site was used and verified using the LiDAR data. The outlet boundary condition for the site was taken as a normal depth condition. A normal depth condition implies that the flow will exit the model based on the hydraulic gradient generated through the water surface elevation and the user-defined energy gradient.The model was run using an unsteady flow analysis tool which uses the Conservation of Mass Principal and the Shallow Water Equation or Momentum Conservation Equation, which is then simplified to a Diffusion Wave Equation (Kleinschmidt 2023). The 2D area created in HEC-RAS applies the conservation of mass principal where volume is neither lost nor destroyed and therefore the volume entering each 2D cell equals the volume leaving and storage maintained (Kleinschmidt 2023). The computation then uses the Momentum Conservation Equation which relates changes in velocity to internal and external forces on the fluid caused by hydrostatic pressure, turbulence, and friction. These equations are then vertically averaged throughout each cell to yield 2D Shallow Water Equations. When first applying the model, HEC-RAS makes the following default assumptions: (a) HEC-RAS assumes a low turbulent flow, therefore the eddy viscosity function is not turned on, and (b) there is no acceleration in the system, therefore the Momentum Conservation Equation is reduced to the Diffusion Wave Approximation Equation which HEC-RAS uses by default (Kleinschmidt 2023).Based on the complexity of the river reach and the purpose of the study, it has been assumed that flow acceleration, eddy viscosity, and more detailed flow characteristics are required for E-Flow determination. Therefore, the simulation was first done with the default Diffusion Wave Equation, and thereafter, once the model was finalised, the Full Momentum Equation (Shallow Water Equation) was used and compared.When setting up the unsteady flow analysis, the following computation settings are required:• computation interval;• mapping output interval;• hydrograph output interval; and• detailed output interval.As mentioned in the geometry data section, the computation interval determines the stability of the model, therefore, the computation interval was initially set to 1 second and thereafter reduced until both the volumetric errors and courant numbers were acceptable. The mapping output interval was set to 1 hour because the stepped hydrograph was developed using 1-hour increments. This was done because the result layers required for determining the habitat distribution (documented below) is a singular raster file where the flow entering the system has reached a state of equilibrium (or steady state) to the flow exiting the system. The flow detail until the equilibrium state has been reached is irrelevant to the E-Flow results. Hence, both the output hydrograph intervals were also set to 1 hour. An initial condition was set prior to the flow simulation using an initial time of 4 hours, as this was the estimated time for the lowest flow to reach the end of the system. Therefore, prior to the simulation of the provided unsteady flow, the simulation was set to run for 4 hours of the hydrograph to allow for an initial wetted condition in the reach of river. This was done to avoid an unrealistic case of flow entering a dry/empty system. Subsequently, as mentioned above, the equation was changed from a Diffusion Wave equation to the Full Momentum equation for the final run.The Diffusion Wave model ran for 29 minutes, without error, and the simulation only generated an overall volume accounting error of 0.000010% and a maximum courant number of 0.76 (lower than 1 as required for the Diffusion Wave equation). The Full Momentum model ran for 1 hour, 37 minutes, without error, and the simulation generated an overall volume accounting error of 0.000370% with a maximum courant number of 0.52 (lower than 2 as required for a Full Momentum equation). This indicates that little to no instability occurred during the simulation and the equation results are relatively high in accuracy. The overall representative accuracy however is dependent on the user inputs such as the terrain data, roughness co-efficient and the geometry data.The comparisons between the Diffusion Wave and Full Momentum equation simulations showed very little difference in flow characteristics. There were certain areas around islands that showed slight changes in particle tracing (i.e., eddying), however, in terms of depth and velocity, there were no significant differences. This indicates that the Diffusion Wave equation method is sufficient in accurately representing flow characteristics for habitat distribution classification, which is more feasible than running the Full Momentum method based on faster simulation times and volume accounting errors.Once the model had completed its run, the simulated results are displayed on RASmapper, which, by default display the flow depth, velocity, and water surface elevation (Figure 6, Figure 7, and Figure 8 respectively). RASmapper also allows the user to animate a dynamic representation of the flow through the reach of river over the simulation time at increments specified by the mapping output interval. As a result, the user can visually observe one of the above three result layers at any specific time throughout the hydrograph and observe the flow characteristics such as hydraulic conductivity, water surface gradients, etc. The user can then export these results as a Tagged Image File Format (TIFF) or a shapefile to use in Geographic Information System (GIS) software. The user may also generate additional standard result layers such as shear stress, energy, arrival time, stream power, etc. as well as calculate new result layers using the RASter Calculator to develop comparisons, or in the case of this report, the relationship between depth and velocity ranges.During the site visit where surveys were undertaken to establish the terrain data as mentioned above, additional data were collected at points along the river reach to develop a good indication of the depth and velocity values for the specific flow rate during the time of the survey. The MF Pro was used to measure the flow rates, however, as an additional check, the depth at the gauging weir directly upstream of the study site (weir B7H026) was measured and converted to a flow rate using the rating table obtained from the DWS. This provided an accurate estimation on the observed flows during the time of the survey. The rating table indicated that the flow during the time of the survey was between 4.208 m³/s and 4.476 m³/s as the flow depth measured at the weir was approximately between 0.24 m and 0.25 m (see Figure 9). The MF Pro measured an averaged flow of 4.528 m³/s across the cross section surveyed. This indicates a strong correlation between the MF Pro measurements and the gauging weir, and therefore, the measured flow in the modelling was taken as 4.5m³/s. At this flow, the modelled depth and velocities were compared to the point data collected during the survey to ensure that the model was representative of the river. The results of which have been described below.Several iterations were done using the geometry and the Manning's n layer to obtain the most accurate and realistic representation of the observed data. The accuracy of the results was computed following the final model run. This was done by selecting the measured flow as mentioned above and comparing the corresponding depths and velocities between the simulated results and the on-site observed data. Where the DTM evidently matched the terrain on site (this was determined based on the channel profile and what could be seen through imagery), the differences between the depths and velocities were on average between 0.02 m and 0.2 m/s respectively. Based on the HABFLO ranges, these differences are small enough not to have a large effect on the habitat class determination. These correlations made up 40% of points collected. The other 60% of the points collected differed substantially, with the greatest difference = 0.44 m. This difference could result in an inaccurate representation of habitat class classification and distribution over the river reach. When investigated, it is concluded that the inaccurate points were mostly due to inaccurate bathymetric data. Along the measured cross-section, the points which correlated well lay on the cross-section where the DTM matched the manual survey. However, where the DTM differs from the manual survey, the depth and velocity results are inaccurate. The comparison between the DTM and manual survey can be seen in Figure 10 below. For results that differed from the observed data and were not close to the cross-section, it was seen on the imagery that the bathymetric survey did not pick up certain features such as sediment plumes or inundations. As shown in Figure 11  These outcomes indicate that with accurate bathymetric data and real-time site data, a 2D HEC-RAS model can accurately represent the flow characteristics (depth and velocity in particular) of a reach of river. The feasibility of collecting accurate bathymetric data, however, will determine the feasibility of carrying out the approach described in this report. This will depend on the cost of the equipment required, the man-hours and effort required to obtain the data, and the overall scale of the project and available budget. Table 3 below represents a feasibility matrix of the above factors for three survey options, namely, Green LiDAR; SoNAR/ Acoustic Doppler etc.; and manual surveys using Real Time Kinetic (RTK) systems/Total stations etc.Although it has been acknowledged that the application of the SoNAR bathymetric survey provided limitations to the accuracy of the HEC-RAS results, for the purpose of the continuation of the study, these results were used to develop the proof of concept that a suitable and feasible system can be developed for modelling habitat distributions over a reach of river using a 2D-hydraulic model (on the basis that feasible detailed bathymetric data can be obtained). The following sections provide the approaches used to develop HABFLO habitat distributions of the river reach using HEC-RAS result layers as an input to the process.In this section of the report, an overview of the process used to create a visual representation of fish habitat classes and the results from the HEC-RAS 2D model for the reach is described.Two approaches, i.e. GIS and hydraulic modelling, were applied. The background, limitations and results for each approach are detailed below.An adaptation of the WUA method was generated to utilise the outputs from HABFLO (Hirschowitz et al. 2007) and HEC-RAS (HEC 2024) in Quantum GIS (QGIS 2024) using the steps detailed below:1. Load the velocity and depth raster files for a specific river flow rate (Q) into QGIS and filter out any \"No Data\" cells.2. A new raster was created to identify the overlaps within the HABFLO-specified depth and velocity ranges shown in Table 4.3. The output of the raster calculator is a binary raster with values of 0 (no overlap) and 1 (overlap). Therefore, the outputs were reclassified to represent each HABFLO class. Thereafter, all seven layers that represented each of the seven HABFLO fish habitat classes shown in Table 4 were merged.4. The percentage distribution of the different classes for the reach was subsequently calculated as shown in Table 5.   (Hirschowitz et al. 2007)A limitation of this approach is that the overlap between the fish habitat classes could not be accounted for dynamically in a GIS environment. Therefore, the HABFLO classes were separated based on velocity. As an example, the percentage distribution of HABFLO classes is shown in Table 5. As noted previously, a limitation of this approach is that the overlap between classes is not dynamically accounted for. Therefore, the method was subsequently refined to adopt a more dynamic approach. The methodology and results from the refined approach are provided in the next section.The GIS approach described in the previous section was refined to be carried out using HEC-RAS to generate the output for a range of different river discharge/flow rate (Q) values for each depth and velocity pixel of the river reach as described in the HEC-RAS 2D section above. A Visual Basic script was written for the Fish habitat classes and applied using the RASter calculator tool within HEC-RAS to assign a HABFLO class to each pixel for the reach using the specific depth and velocity of each pixel for an entire hydrograph (i.e. for different Q values at different time steps). This calculated result layer is shown in Figure 12 below.  The HABFLO outputs calculated from HEC-RAS were then used to determine the percentage distribution of each HABFLO class for the reach using the following steps:1. A range of Q values was selected based on the data collected during the site visit and the information obtained from the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS 2023) gauging weir at the site (see HEC-RAS Result Outcomes section).2. The 'No Data' cells were filtered out from the raster files.3. Thereafter, the percentage distribution of each HABFLO class for each selected Q value was estimated. The distributions generated in this step are termed the 'observed' case in this document. The selected flow rates, 0.5, 2.5, 4.5, 6.5, and 8.5 m 3 s -1 , and associated distribution layers were exported from HEC-RAS and used to create regression models as highlighted above (Step 3). The HEC-RAS-derived distributions of HABFLO classes for these chosen flow rates have been provided in Table 6.Flow rates of 11 and 12.5 m 3 s -1 were then entered into the regression model to simulate the HABFLO distribution at this discharge (Step 5). These simulated distributions have been provided in Table 7 below. The simulated values for these two flow rates were then compared to the actually modelled distributions from HEC-RAS and the average absolute error between the modelled and simulated values were 4 % and 6 % respectively.It is interesting to note that the regression models were developed using Q values of 0.5, 2.5, 4.5, 6.5, and 8.5 m 3 s -1 , but the models performed well (Errors < 10 % and R 2 > 0.8) in terms of estimating the distribution for a reach for Q values of 11 and 12.5 m 3 s -1 as shown in Figure 13. A statistical comparison between the modelled and simulated values for all the discharge values is provided in Table 8.  8, the correlation between the modelled and simulated values is good (R 2 and NSE ≈ 1) and the error between the modelled and simulated data are low (MAE and RMSE ≈ 0). Therefore, the method presented above may be used to generate distributions of HABFLO fish-habitat classes for an entire reach using any discharge value.A comparison between the results generated from the traditional 1D HABFLO model based on the cross-section measured on-site, and the hydraulic modelling method presented in this section is provided in Table 9, below. The comparison between the visualisation of these results has also been shown in Figure 14. It should be noted that the accuracy of the results for this comparison is based on the confidence of the results in the generation of the DTM and the hydraulic modelling as described in the sections above.Nonetheless, when the results obtained (from HABFLO and the hydraulic modelling approach to estimate habitat distributions) were compared to the HEC-RAS model within the areas which correlate well to the observed data, it can be concluded that, for the Olifants River, the 1D HABFLO model does not account for certain habitat classes which are clearly apparent in the 2D model over the reach of the river for certain depths of flow. It has also been found that the percentage distribution of a specific habitat class may be low along the 1D channel profile, and high within the surrounding areas of the reach, or vice versa. This is due to large variations in the channel as observed in the Olifants river. In a case such as this, these results may affect an E-Flow determination study when considering fish species, invertebrates, geomorphology, riparian vegetation, etc., whilst a more holistic understanding of the habitat distributions over a river reach may provide a higher confidence level for the specialists involved in the E-Flow decision making.Overall, it was evident that the habitat distributions estimated using both the methods correlate well for low flows. This can be attributed to the possible similarities in channel characteristics at a low flow depth. Therefore, for a uniform channel, one may find that 1D modelling using HABFLO may be sufficient in representing habitat distributions for E-Flow determination. However, as the flow increases, and the more complex river features (sandbars, rock ledges, islands, etc.) become activated within the flow area, the habitat distributions begin to differ significantly between the 1D and 2D hydraulic modelling results, thus concluding that 1D modelling may not be representative for a non-uniform river reach. Additional to this, in a complex river system such as the Olifants, the 2D hydraulic model provides further insight into fish migration opportunities for breeding patterns.In the next section, the GIS and hydraulic based methodology was applied to generate a visual representation of invertebrate habitat classes for the same river reach.Q (m 3 .s- In this section of the report, an overview of the process followed to create a visual representation of invertebrate habitat classes over the reach is described. The results are based on a GIS and Hydraulic based approach to determine the habitat suitability of a reach for varying flow conditions as detailed below.The invertebrate habitat classes from HABFLO (Hirschowitz et al. 2007) provided in Table 10 were visualised using the velocity raster layers for different Q values generated using HEC-RAS (HEC 2024) in QGIS (QGIS 2024) using the steps detailed below:1. A range of discharge values was selected based on the data collected during the site visit and the information obtained from the Department of Water and Sanitation (DWS 2023) gauging weir at the site. 2. Load the velocity raster files (for different discharges) into QGIS and filter out any \"No Data\" cells.3. The sandbars from the imagery were classified as fine sediments and all other areas of the reach were classified as coarse sediments.4. The sediment layers were classified as follows; fine sediment cells were assigned a value of 1 and coarse sediment cells were assigned a value of 2.5. A new raster was created to identify the overlaps between the fine and coarse sediment layer and the HABFLO velocity ranges for invertebrates shown in Table 6.6. The percentage distribution of the different classes for the reach was subsequently calculated. 9. A distribution calculation tool was created based on the regression equations for the different HABFLO habitat classes. Therefore, if any reasonable Q value is inserted into the calculator, a distribution (%) of each invertebrate habitat class for the reach is calculated.10. The error between the outputs mentioned in Step 5 were compared using the average absolute error, NSE (Nash and Sutcliffe 1970), correlation coefficient (R 2 ) (Schulze et al. 1995), MAE and the RMSE (Legates and McGabe 1999;Ritter and Munoz-Carpena 2013;Lal et al. 2016).Table 10. HABFLO invertebrate habitat classes (Hirschowitz et al, 2007) A limitation when performing the mapping of the invertebrate habitat classes is that the level of spatial information for the sediments was not detailed in this report. Therefore, the distribution of the HABFLO invertebrate classes for the different discharges may not be representative of physical reality. However, this was performed as a proof-of-concept study to determine the distribution of invertebrate habitat classes across a reach using the outputs from HEC-RAS. This was done to verify whether the methodology can be applied for future E-Flow studies should detailed sediment information be available. In Table 11, the modelled results that were generated using discharges of 0.5, 2.5, 4.5, 6.5 and 8.5 m 3 s -1 are provided. Similar to the Fish Habitat Classes above, regression models were fitted to the discharge and distribution data for each HABFLO invertebrate class. Thereafter, habitat distributions were simulated for discharges of 11 and 12.5 m 3 s -1 as presented in Table 12. The HEC-RAS distribution results were then compared for these flows and the average absolute error between the modelled and simulated values were 4 and 6 % respectively.The regression models were not developed with discharges of 11 and 12.5 m 3 s -1 , but the model performed well (Errors < 10 % and R 2 > 0.8) when tested using these discharge values as shown in Figure 15.  A statistical comparison between the modelled and simulated values for all the discharge values is provided in Table 13.Table 13. Performance of the model that was developedAn NSE and R 2 of one and a RMSE close to zero generally indicate good model performance. As shown in Table 13, the correlation between the modelled and simulated values is good (R 2 and NSE ≈ 1) and the error between the modelled and simulated data are low (MAE and RMSE < 0.1). Therefore, the method presented above may be used to generate distributions of HABFLO invertebrate habitat classes for an entire reach using a discharge value. A comparison between the results generated from the traditional HABFLO based on a crosssection and the method presented has not be shown for the invertebrate habitat classes due to the sediment layer being an assumed distribution of fine and course sediment.The HABFLO model accounts for variation in water flow depth and velocity along a cross section, however, there are other factors such as temperature that could also impact habitat suitability. Zhao et al. ( 2018) stated that both water quality and quantity should be considered when performing e-flow assessments and found that water velocity and temperature influenced the pollution degradation rate in rivers. Tsang et al. (2021) found that temperature changes due to climate changeCorrelation coefficient (R 2 ) 0.871Mean Absolute Error (MAE) 0.031 Nash Sutcliffe Efficiency (NSE) model coefficient 0.838Root Mean Square Error (RMSE) 0.057 will impact and change stream classes for different habitats. Therefore, for this project, a device was constructed and used to collect temperature and river characteristics data using a UAV as described in the next section.The development of a UAV-towed sensing system Traditional point-sampling methods limit comprehensive assessments of river health over large spatial areas. This challenge was addressed by GroundTruth by developing a drone-towed sensor platform for spatially extensive water quality data collection. The aim of developing the unit was to improve the data collection process and to further develop the linkages between river flow regimes and water quality parameters. This data could ultimately benefit E-flow assessments.The sensor platform that was built was equipped with the following devices:• Three temperature sensors to capture thermal variations at multiple depths and across the width of the river.• A temperature-calibrated Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) sensor to monitor total dissolved solids, providing insights into potential pollution sources.• A SoNAR device to map variations in the riverbed profile.• A turbidity sensor to measure water clarity, indicating areas of high sediment load.• A GPS module for precise geotagging of all sensor readings.The data logging occurred at 2-second intervals, ensuring the capture of changes within the river environment. All the sensors and microcontrollers required to process the collected data were mounted on a specially built boat that was manoeuvred using a UAV as shown in Figure 16. The UAVbased approach enabled a safe and efficient survey of a river segment. This highlights the potential for expansion in terms of data collection capabilities compared to traditional point sampling methods. The boat also allows for LiDAR and below Table 12. Simulated distribution of HABFLO invertebrate habitat classes across the reach water surveys to be done by a single pilot with one UAV.The entire system was developed and programmed by the GroundTruth team, and the system was tested in KwaZulu-Natal. The resulting dataset offers unique insight into riverine characteristics for a segment of the Lions River in KwaZulu-Natal. As shown in Figure 17, the temperature varied along the river reach and temperature variations can reveal zones of groundwater influx or thermal stratification of the water column. As shown in Figure 18, the TDS fluctuations may correlate with land-use practices within the catchment and the SoNAR data that were collected are vital for complementing hydraulic and riverbed morphology studies. The mapping of turbidity, as shown in Figure 19 can be linked to sediment transport dynamics.This multi-parameter water quality data can potentially be integrated with E-flow assessments and has the potential to identify areas where flow alterations cause significant changes in water quality and quantify the water quality degradation. This knowledge can be vital for targeted and effective catchment and E-flow management strategies.The temperature data that were collected in this study were subsequently used with the HABFUZZ model and the results were compared to the results obtained from the HABFLO model as detailed in the next section. Green LiDAR bathymetry is a further innovative river bathymetry technology. Green LiDAR technology is a laser based bathymetric scanning system that's uses two lasers in the light range: infrared and green. An infrared pulse reflects off the surface of water or land, while a green pulse penetrates the water and reflects off the bottom of a water-body and off the land (Quadros et al. 2008).Singh ( 2023) reviewed a variety of optical and acoustic sensors to undertake remotely sensed bathymetric surveys. Based on the findings of the literature review and with the objective to select a robust approach that performs well in multiple environments, perform repeatable measurements and to conduct surveys in difficult to access river reaches, the green LiDAR optical approach was chosen for use.The green LiDAR payloads are compatible with many commercial UAV's which facilitates topobathymetric measurements in non-navigable areas. The findings of the green LiDAR trial highlighted that the UAV-based green LiDAR was able to detect depths of up to 85 m and 2 Secchi Depths under ideal conditions and provides high resolution and accuracies. Given these characteristics the system can be viewed as a cost-effective solution over large land and coastal zones making it an attractive tool for the creation of a digital twin. The primary limitation of the approach is the decreased performance in turbid areas and areas with riffles. An example of a generated DTM generated using a Green LiDAR session is shown in Figure 20. Green LiDAR pulses are able to penetrate water and as such Figure 21 shows cross sections of DTMs generated with and without elevation points that penetrated the surface of the water body to showcase the detail and value that using a Green LiDAR system provides. The HABFUZZ model uses fuzzy inference processes and Bayesian joint probability inference methods to calculate the instream habitat suitability based on flow velocity, water depth, substrate type and temperature of a hydraulically simulated river reach (Theodoropoulos et al. 2016). HABFUZZ introduces the power of fuzzy logic to model habitat preferences across a broader spatial scale, and fuzzy logic is useful to account for the inherent uncertainties and variations found in ecological systems. The conventional models such as HABFLO rely on definitive boundaries (e.g., a fish species only exists above a specific depth), however fuzzy logic uses membership functions to represent degrees of suitability. This is done in HABFUZZ by assigning fuzzy membership values to different habitat variables. These membership functions are often derived from expert knowledge or field observations. HABFUZZ then combines these fuzzy values across multiple variables, creating a composite measure of habitat suitability for each point within the modelled section of a river.In addition to the use of fuzzy logic, HABFUZZ also accounts for the temperature of water in the reach being modelled.Temperature is one of the drivers of aquatic ecosystems, because it influences fish metabolism, growth rates, spawning, and the overall distribution of species. Changes in flow can significantly alter water temperature regimes, impacting habitat suitability. Therefore, it may be important to include water temperature when performing habitat suitability modelling. For this study, temperature data were collected using temperature sensors mounted to a boat that was towed using a UAV.For this comparison, the HABFUZZ model was trained using five combinations of flow velocity and water depth and eight classes of substrates. It was assumed that the habitat suitability was best for the lowest flow velocities (0.05 to 0.1 ms -1 ) and water depths (0.1 to 0.15 m) and water temperatures of 15 ○ C. Five different habitat suitability classes (from bad to high) were defined for the habitat suitability classes as shown in Table 14. These rules can be changed for any specific organism being investigated.For the cross section where data were collected, the K values from HABFUZZ were between 0 and 0.2 as shown in Table 15 indicating that the habitat suitability would not be ideal for an organism that prefers slow moving shallow waters. These results correlate with the HABFLO results where majority of the fish and invertebrate habitat distributions were not in the slow/shallow segment of the total distribution.The habitat suitability values from HABFUZZ can be used to produce a continuous map of habitat suitability values across a river reach. This spatial representation of habitat suitability can potentially reveal more information on how varying flow scenarios might alter the suitability of a river for different habitat classes. This spatial perspective can also help to identify areas most sensitive to flow alterations and subsequently guide the design of flow releases to optimise habitat availability for target species throughout their life stages.In the next section, the assumptions, limitations, and recommendations based on the study are provided. In this section of the report, a list of assumptions, limitations and recommendations are provided to guide further research in this field of study.• The results presented in this report are only for the segment of the Olifants river where data were available. However, irrespective of the area modelled, it is envisaged that the methodology can be replicated for other river reaches provided that adequate data are available. Therefore, if more data are collected and processed more efficiently (for example, with a green LiDAR sensor) at any other site, the methodology can be easily replicated using the steps documented in this report.• The depth and velocity classes from HABFLO were used in this report but it is acknowledged that different depth and velocity classes or suitability curves could be used for habitat modelling. • The DTM used for the hydraulic modelling was the most accurate representation of reality that could be derived using the data available at the time of the study. It is acknowledged that the accuracy of the outputs from the hydraulic model will vary based on the level of accuracy of the DTM. Therefore, the level of accuracy of the habitat distributions is dependent on the accuracy of the DTM and the depth and velocity outputs generated from the hydraulic model.• A limitation of this study is that the DTM used for the HEC-RAS model was developed using LiDAR data and SoNAR data which were stitched together. The application of the SoNAR device did not cover the entire surface area of the riverbed due to time constraints and did not collect data at a range of angles other than vertically downwards. Therefore, detail around sandbars, crevices, rocky ledges, and accumulated sediment plumes were not collected and thus detailed bathymetric data was not collected to develop an accurate hydraulic model. Should this process be used in future, it is believed that with more precise application the developed methodology will provide accurate results and can be used to develop an accurate digital twin of a river and floodplain.• An additional limitation is that there are uncertainties when using the distribution model to determine the distributions of HABFLO classes out of the range of discharges used to develop the distribution curve. For this report, a limited number of Q values were used for the reach. The performance of the model can therefore be improved if additional Q values are used based on the requirements of the user and the study.• Assumptions were made regarding the type of sediments found across the reach because no detailed sediment mapping was conducted during the site visit. However, the methodology to estimate the distribution of invertebrate habitat classes show that the method can be beneficial if detailed on-site sediment data are collected and mapped for a river reach.The results presented in this report highlight the successful integration of SoNAR and LiDAR datasets to generate a highresolution DTM of a length of river. The successful integration of SoNAR and LiDAR data demonstrates the value of combining complementary UAV derived remote sensing techniques for a comprehensive characterisation of riverine habitats. This approach offers greater detail and spatial coverage than either method (SoNAR or LiDAR) alone. The generation of a DTM with an underwater river profile should theoretically enable more nuanced hydraulic modelling in HEC-RAS. However, as highlighted previously, the accuracy from HEC-RAS is dependent on the accuracy of the DTM, which relates to the accuracy of the survey application. Nevertheless, the derived depth and velocity outputs from the HEC-RAS model provided the basis for a longitudinal visualisation of the HABFLO fish and invertebrate habitat classes.In this study, the analysis of habitat distributions was extended to an entire river reach. This addresses a common limitation of traditional habitat assessments that are done for a single cross section. The results obtained revealed variations in habitat class distribution that would be undetectable using a single cross-section approach. The longitudinal perspective/ visualisation can prove to be crucial for understanding habitat availability and connectivity within the river system. The spatially explicit representation of habitat classes as a function of flow enables a more realistic assessment of the potential of the river to support diverse species and life stages for different flows and it can highlight areas of particular importance for conservation or restoration efforts.It is recommended that field sampling of fish and invertebrate populations be performed to validate the modelled habitat class distribution, thereby strengthening the results obtained in the study. In addition, the incorporation of a range of flow scenarios can be used to explain how habitat class availability changes throughout the year which could potentially aid in the development of seasonally adjusted E-flow recommendations.It is further recommended that the methodology be applied to larger river reaches or entire catchments.Overall, it is concluded that the use of a 2D hydraulic model is effective in modelling habitat classes for E-Flows for a specific reach of river compared to a single cross-section. When comparing the results for the entire reach to a 1D model, it was evident that the habitat distribution at a single cross-section is not representative of an entire reach of river. However, the feasibility of such a model is dependent on the feasibility of the data collection to develop a 2D model. This may not yet be feasible in terms of collecting high-resolution bathymetric data required for a long reach of river for a small-scale project. However, if a study were to focus on smaller segments of a reach, it would be feasible to collect sufficient data in terms of time and cost.As represented in Table 3 of this report, it can be concluded that the traditional 1D cross-section approach would be the least costly in terms of equipment, however, this approach is human and time-based resource intensive depending on the level of detail required. As shown in the results, the information obtained from a 1D cross-section will also not provide a detailed representation of a river reach with more complex flow characteristics. The integrated approach of using a SoNAR device, or similar, with a UAV (as done for this study) will require larger equipment costs, yet fewer resources.The time required to apply the survey accurately may be more than that to undertake a single cross-section, however, the level of detail obtained over the study area is greater and may be used in a 2D-hydraulic model for a more accurate representation of the river reach.Furthermore, this report presents a novel workflow for linking advanced remote sensing techniques with 2D hydraulic and habitat modelling. The upscaling from a single cross-section to a reach-level analysis provides valuable insights into the dynamic nature of riverine habitats and their response to varying flow conditions. The resulting visualisations can potentially be used to effectively communicate the ecological implications of E-flow recommendations to both scientists and stakeholders. These spatial representations can be incorporated into a digital twin which can lead to more informed decision making.The results obtained from the sensor platform demonstrates the potential of low-cost, adaptable sensor platforms for water resource monitoring. Further refinement could include realtime data transmission and an expanded suite of sensors with further testing. The scalability and ease-of-use of this approach shows promise for citizen science initiatives which can empower communities with data to advocate for the health of their local rivers. Furthermore, the applicability and performance of a green LiDAR technology is very promising in practice being able to perform well in multiple environments, perform repeatable measurements and to conduct surveys in difficult to access river reaches. The system can be viewed as a cost-effective solution over large land and coastal zones making it an attractive tool for the creation of a digital twin.HABFLO is advantageous over HABFUZZ because the model is simple to use and there is detailed literature available to guide users of the model, but the model does not have the capability to determine habitat suitability for an entire river reach. However, HABFUZZ, can be used to determine habitat suitability for an entire river reach and can be setup using data collected with a UAV as shown in this report. Therefore, based on the results obtained in this study, it is recommended that both HABFUZZ and HABFLO be used in conjunction with each other if training and temperature data are available for HABFUZZ.This publication has been prepared as an output of the CGIAR Initiative on Digital Innovation, which researches pathways to accelerate the transformation towards sustainable and inclusive agrifood systems by generating research-based evidence and innovative digital solutions. This publication has not been independently peer reviewed. Responsibility for editing, proofreading, and layout, opinions expressed, and any possible errors lies with the authors and not the institutions involved. The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on maps do not imply official endorsement or acceptance by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI), CGIAR, our partner institutions, or donors. In line with principles defined in the CGIAR Open and FAIR Data Assets Policy, this publication is available under a CC BY 4.0 license. © The copyright of this publication is held by IWMI. We thank all funders who supported this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund.Waters BF. 1976. A methodology for evaluating the effects of different streamflows on salmonid habitat. Proceedings of the symposium and specialty conference on instream flow needs, 254.Zhao C, Yang S, Liu J, Liu C, Hao F, Wang Z, Zhang H, Song J, Mitrovic SM and Lim RP. 2018. Linking fish tolerance to water quality criteria for the assessment of environmental flows: A practical method for streamflow regulation and pollution control. Water Research 141: 96-108.","tokenCount":"9736"}

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Biến đổi khí hậu có thể do các quá trình tự nhiên bên trong hoặc các tác động bên ngoài, hoặc do hoạt động của con người làm thay đổi thành phần của khí quyển hay trong khai thác sử dụng đất (Bộ Tài nguyên Môi trường, 2014).Khí nhà kính là các khí có trong khí quyển, gồm cả trong tự nhiên và sinh ra do hoạt động của con người, hấp thụ và phát xạ bức xạ nhiệt.-Khí CH 4 là kết quả của quá trình phân giải yếm khí các bon trong đất trong điều kiện hệ sinh thái rễ lúa ngập nước yếm khí; -Khí N 2 O là sản phẩm trung gian được sinh ra khi đạm trong đất bị chuyển hoá qua 2 quá trình nitrat hoá và phản nitrat hoá. Tiềm năng gây ấm toàn cầu là sự đo lường khả năng của một khí gây hiệu ứng nhà kính hấp thụ nhiệt và làm ấm không khí trong một thời gian nhất định.Bảo đảm chất lượng là một hệ thống tích hợp các hoạt động quản lý và kỹ thuật trong một tổ chức nhằm bảo đảm cho hoạt động đo phát thải KNK trong canh tác lúa nước đạt được chất lượng đã quy định.Kiểm soát chất lượng là việc thực hiện các biện pháp đánh giá, theo dõi thường xuyên và kịp thời điều chỉnh để đạt được độ chính xác và độ tập trung của các phép đo theo yêu cầu của các tiêu chuẩn chất lượng nhằm bảo đảm cho hoạt động đo phát thải KNK trong canh tác lúa nước đạt được chất lượng đã quy định.(thiết kế chi tiết ở phụ lục 1)-Hình dạng: tùy vào vật liệu sẵn có và mật độ gieo cấy (sạ) mà có thể thiết kế hộp lấy mẫu khí theo dạng hình trụ, hình hộp vuông hay hình hộp chữ nhật cho phù hợp; -Kích thước: thể tích tối thiểu chứa khoảng 125 lít, chiều cao hộp lấy mẫu phải cao hơn 10 cm so với chiều cao tối đa của cây lúa; -Vật liệu, cấu tạo: có thể bằng kính, nhựa, nhựa tráng nhôm, mica.-Hình dạng: tùy vật liệu sẵn có và mật độ gieo cấy (sạ) mà có thể thiết kế chân đế hình trụ, hình hộp vuông hoặc hình hộp chữ nhật; -Kích thước: thể tích tối thiểu 36 lít; -Vật liệu: inox, nhôm hoặc nhựa; -Cấu tạo: hai mặt bên chân đế có đặt ống lưu thông nước (đường kính 0,2 -0,3 cm đặt cách mặt đất khoảng 1 -2 cm) giữa bên trong và bên ngoài chân đế (bình thường để mở đến khi lấy mẫu chúng được đóng lại bằng 2 nút cao su). Phía trên của chân đế có tạo rãnh chứa nước để đặt hộp lấy khí (kích thước rãnh: rộng ´ sâu: 4 cm ´ 4 cm). Trong quá trình đo, rãnh luôn chứa nước để khi đặt hộp lấy khí lên, nước sẽ ngăn không cho không khí lưu thông đi vào và ra, tạo nên 1 hộp kín.Phía trong hộp lấy mẫu khí:1 nhiệt kế dùng để đo nhiệt độ trong hộp lấy mẫu khí ở mỗi lần lấy mẫu; 2 quạt gió: để trộn đều không khí trong hộp lấy mẫu khí trong suốt quá trình lấy mẫu.-Ắc quy hoặc pin nối với quạt gió: nếu là pin cần dùng 8 cục (loại 1,5V) và phải thay sau 2 lần lấy mẫu khí, nếu dùng bình ắc quy (12V) thì cần sạc pin sau 4 lần lấy mẫu khí; -Bộ phận điều áp gồm: ống nhựa có đường kính 0,2 mm, chiều dài 720 cm (đoạn ống bên trong hộp lấy mẫu dài 50 cm, đoạn ống bên ngoài hộp lấy mẫu dài 670 cm) và van điều áp để điều chỉnh cân bằng áp suất trong và ngoài hộp lấy mẫu khí; -Ống lấy mẫu khí có đường kính 4,8 mm, chiều dài 80 cm (đoạn ống bên trong hộp lấy mẫu dài 50 cm, đoạn ống bên ngoài hộp lấy mẫu dài 30 cm) được gắn với van 3 chiều và nối với xi lanh hút mẫu; -Van 3 chiều; -Xi lanh lấy mẫu loại 50 ml, đầu gắn kim tiêm loại nhỏ 2,5 µm; -Lọ đựng mẫu khí: lọ đựng mẫu chuyên dùng kín, có nút đậy bằng cao su, thể tích 3 -60 ml (tùy theo máy GC được trang bị thiết bị lấy mẫu tự động hay bơm mẫu bằng tay) lọ được hút chân không (sử dụng một lần); -Đồng hồ (thiết bị đo đếm thời gian) dùng để xác định thời gian khi lấy mẫu khí. -Chuẩn bị tài liệu: phiếu điều tra và sổ ghi chép hiện trường.-Lập danh sách cán bộ quan trắc, phân tích: Lựa chọn người có trình độ kỹ thuật phù hợp; Phân công trách nhiệm cho từng người.-Thời gian và tần suất lấy mẫu: Dựa trên cơ chế phát thải CH 4 và N 2 O mà ta có thể xây dựng kế hoạch lấy mẫu khí cùng lúc hay tách rời đảm bảo kết quả phân tích đại diện, chính xác và tiết kiệm.+ Cơ chế phát thải CH 4 : Khí CH 4 phát thải vào khí quyển thông qua 3 con đường (Schütz, et al., 1989): (i) thông qua các mô khí bên trong thân cây lúa từ đó phát tán qua lóng và phiến lá lúa (chiếm 90% tổng lượng CH 4 phát thải từ ruộng lúa), (ii) phát thải CH 4 từ đất qua tầng nước mặt ruộng và bay vào không khí thông qua cơ chế khuếch tán gradient nồng độ (chiếm 9% tổng lượng CH 4 phát thải từ ruộng lúa) và (iii) thông qua sủi bọt khí trong tầng nước mặt trên ruộng lúa (chiếm 1% tổng lượng CH 4 phát thải từ ruộng lúa). Wang et al. (1997) chỉ ra rằng, phát thải CH 4 chủ yếu là thông qua lá lúa, đặc biệt vào giai đoạn đầu sinh trưởng cây lúa khi mà thân và lóng cây lúa còn nhỏ. Khoảng 50% lượng CH 4 phát thải thông qua phiến lá lúa vào trước giai đoạn vươn lóng. Phát thải CH 4 thường tập trung vào giai đoạn lúa bắt đầu đẻ nhánh cho đến khi lúa trỗ do giai đoạn này quá trình phân hủy các hợp chất hữu cơ trong đất diễn ra mạnh cùng với sự phát triển mạnh của cây lúa. Trong khi đó giai đoạn từ lúa chín sữa cho tới khi thu hoạch phát thải CH 4 sẽ giảm mạnh và đạt thấp nhất vào thời điểm thu hoạch, vì giai đoạn này người dân thường tiến hành rút nước phơi ruộng để chuẩn bị Bên cạnh đó, kế hoạch lấy mẫu còn dựa trên giai đoạn sinh trưởng, chế độ tưới, chế độ bón phân và chế độ quản lý phế phụ phẩm trên đồng ruộng để quyết định thời gian và số lần lấy mẫu/ vụ cho phù hợp. Dựa trên kinh nghiệm thực tế, chúng tôi khuyến cáo tổng số lần lấy mẫu trên vụ không nên dưới 8 -10 lần/vụ, để đảm bảo độ tin cậy và tính chính xác trong tính toán tổng lượng phát thải KNK.-Thời gian lấy mẫu trong ngày tốt nhất là 8h00 -10h00, trong mỗi lần lấy mẫu, cho mỗi một công thức thí nghiệm, 4 mẫu liên tục sẽ được lấy tại các thời điểm to, t1 (10 phút), t2 (20 phút), t3 (30 phút), thời gian lấy mẫu cách nhau 10 phút;-Các chỉ tiêu quan trắc: Khí CH 4 và N 2 O; -Các thông số bắt buộc theo dõi để tính toán: Mực nước tại ruộng, nhiệt độ bên trong hộp lấy mẫu khí; -Các thông số có thể thu thập thêm nếu cần: pH, Eh, OC (các bon hữu cơ trong đất), Amoni (NH 4 +), Nitơrat (NO-3), độ ẩm đất, nhiệt độ đất.-Hộp lấy mẫu khí: chất lượng ắc quy, quạt đảo trộn không khí, van điều áp và dây dẫn lấy khí, độ kín của hộp (keo dính tại các chỗ ghép nối) ; -Chân đế: kiểm tra độ kín (keo dính tại các chỗ ghép nối), độ thăng bằng và độ sâu trong đất (10 cm), đóng nút cao su tại ống thông nước ở hai bên sườn của chân đế; -Kiểm tra số lượng, chất lượng, ký hiệu lọ đựng mẫu khí, sổ ghi chép tại hiện trường (biểu mẫu B 1 , chi tiết tại Phụ lục 2); -Kiểm tra thùng đựng mẫu hiện trường nhằm đảm bảo quy trình bảo quản mẫu phù hợp với các thông số quan trắc theo quy định. Các yếu tố ảnh hưởng đến quá trình lấy mẫu (tầng đất, nhiệt độ, áp suất, độ ẩm và vị trí đặt thiết bị lấy mẫu: xem chi tiết ở phụ lục 3).Sau khi lấy mẫu xong, sắp xếp lọ mẫu theo lô. Sau đó mẫu được sắp xếp vào hộp chuyên dùng có vách ngăn để tránh va đập giữa các lọ mẫu trong quá trình vận chuyển. Chuyển mẫu về phòng phân tích trong vòng 72h.Trong quá trình chờ phân tích mẫu được bảo quản ở nhiệt độ phòng (25 o C), ẩm độ 70 -80%. Mẫu nên được phân tích sớm trong vòng 15 ngày sẽ cho kết quả chính xác, không lưu mẫu quá 30 ngày.Phòng thí nghiệm phải lập kế hoạch kiểm tra, bảo trì, bảo dưỡng và hiệu chuẩn các thiết bị theo định kỳ.Trang thiết bị của phòng th�� nghiệm được hiệu chuẩn trước khi sử dụng.Phải kiểm soát yếu tố nhiệt độ giá trị 25 o C và độ ẩm 70 -80% trong phòng. Đảm bảo sự ổn định trong suốt quá trình chạy máy không ảnh hưởng đến kết quả hoặc ảnh hưởng bất lợi đến chất lượng của các phép đo.a) Có văn bản quy định cụ thể về trách nhiệm, quyền hạn của các cán bộ phòng thí nghiệm do người có thẩm quyền quản lý, phụ trách phòng thí nghiệm ký, ban hành. b) Cán bộ quản lý phòng thí nghiệm phải có trình độ đại học trở lên, với chuyên ngành phù hợp. Cán bộ kỹ thuật có trình độ chuyên môn cần thiết để hoàn thành nhiệm vụ được giao. c) Nhân viên chỉ được giao chính thức thực hiện thử nghiệm khi lãnh đạo phòng thí nghiệm đánh giá là đạt được độ chính xác theo yêu cầu theo các tiêu chí nội bộ.kiểm soát chất lượng phòng thí nghiệm (QA/QC)Phòng thí nghiệm phải thiết lập và duy trì hệ thống quản lý chất lượng phù hợp với phạm vi hoạt động, bảo đảm tính khách quan và chính xác của các kết quả thử nghiệm.Quản lý mẫu phân tích: Áp dụng các quy trình quản lý mẫu thích hợp với từng thông số cụ thể. Tuân thủ các hướng dẫn kèm theo mẫu; phòng, tránh các tác động có thể làm biết đổi chất lượng mẫu trong suốt quá trình lưu giữ, xử lý, chuẩn bị và tiến hành phân tích. Kiểm soát tài liệu, hồ sơ phòng thí nghiệm: Phòng thí nghiệm phải thực hiện phân loại, thống kê, lưu trữ, quản lý và kiểm soát các tài liệu, hồ sơ thuộc hệ thống quản lý chất lượng của phòng theo yêu cầu chung của phòng thử nghiệm theo ISO/IEC 17025:2010. Riêng đối với kết quả phân tích khí nhà kính cần phải được lưu giữ riêng, các đường chuẩn, sắc đồ của các đợt phân tích cần phải được thống kê và định kỳ đánh giá nhằm xác định mức độ ổn định của thiết bị. Từng kết quả phân tích mẫu cần phải lưu hồ sơ chi tiết quá trình thực hiện.Phòng thí nghiệm phải sử dụng mẫu QC, bao gồm: mẫu trắng thiết bị; mẫu chuẩn đối chứng; mẫu lặp; mẫu kiểm tra, hóa chất chuẩn hiệu chỉnh máy.Số lượng mẫu QC tối thiểu cần thực hiện trong mỗi lần phân tích mẫu phải đủ để kiểm tra sự nhiễm bẩn của dụng cụ, hóa chất... và độ chính xác của các kết quả phân tích. -Cột (MC-5) ---Porapak Q 3.2MM*2.0MM*2M (Max. Temp. 250°C).Lấy các kết quả đối với hệ số đáp ứng K và hàm lượng cX của thành phần cần xác định là trung bình các giá trị của vài phép xác định (ít nhất là ba phép xác định) được tiến hành trên cùng mẫu thử. Các giá trị được sử dụng để tính không được khác nhau nhiều quá (thường trong phạm vi ± 2,5 %) so với giá trị trung bình. Sự sai khác và số lần đo được quy định tùy theo các phương pháp khác nhau hoặc thay đổi theo quy định của từng tiêu chuẩn khác nhau.Lưu ý: Đối với mỗi phòng phân tích có thể sử dụng model và hiệu máy khác nhau nên có thể sử dụng hệ thống cột theo yêu cầu của từng loại máy, do đó yêu cầu khi báo cáo kết quả phải nêu được loại cột sử dụng nếu không kết quả sẽ không được công nhận (Xem chi tiết cách vận hành máy GC cụ thể ở phụ lục 4).Báo cáo kết quả quá trình phân tích gồm các thông tin sau: a) Kiểu loại thiết bị, dụng cụ được sử dụng; b) Các đặc tính của cột (vật liệu, chiều dài, kích thước trong, pha tĩnh, chất nền và tỉ lệ của pha tĩnh với chất nền, phép đo của chất nền, nhiệt độ của cột hoặc nhiệt độ chương trình); c) Các đặc tính của hệ thống bơm (kiểu loại và nhiệt độ); d) Các đặc tính của đầu dò (kiểu loại và nhiệt độ); e) Tốc độ khí mang; f) Các đặc tính của bộ ghi (chiều cao tín hiệu tối đa, tốc độ ghi, thời gian phản ứng toàn thang đo); g) Phép nhận biết mẫu; h) Kết quả phân tích mẫu.Xử lý số liệu: Số liệu được xử lý dựa trên các phần mềm xử lý số liệu hiện hành. Cần kiểm tra tổng hợp về tính hợp lý của số liệu phân tích dựa trên các kết quả ghi chép hiện trường, kết quả phân tích các số liệu liên quan.Kiểm tra số liệu: Kiểm tra tổng hợp về tính hợp lý của số liệu quan trắc và phân tích môi trường qua bảng ghi kết quả phân tích, bảng số liệu đã xử lý. Thông thường việc kiểm tra dựa trên số liệu của mẫu chuẩn, mẫu trắng, mẫu so sánh và theo phương pháp chuyên gia.Cường độ phát thải khí CH 4 hoặc N 2 O (mg/m2/giờ) được tính toán bằng cách sử dụng phương trình sau đây của Smith và Conen (2004) (Chi tiết tính toán tại Phụ lục 5):Trong đó:-∆C là sự thay đổi nồng độ khí CH 4 hoặc N 2 O trong khoảng thời gian ∆t; -v và A là thể tích hộp lấy mẫu khí và diện tích đáy của hộp đo khí;  Kết quả quan trắc, phân tích và thảo luận (nêu phương pháp đo, phương pháp tính toán, phân tích, sử dụng phương pháp thống kê (thống kê miêu tả và thống kê phân tích) để bình luận và đánh giá số liệu, thông tin thu thập được. Việc đánh giá cần dựa trên các ngưỡng cho phép của TCVN hoặc các Tiêu chuẩn quốc tế khác có trích dẫn. Đối với các quy chuẩn, tiêu chuẩn thì phải áp dụng văn bản mới nhất.  Nhiệt độ khác nhau có thể ảnh hưởng đến hoạt động của các sinh vật, ảnh hưởng đến phương pháp tính, ảnh hưởng đến quá trình hấp phụ và hòa tan của các khí tan trong môi trường đất. Tốt nhất là nhiệt độ bên trong thiết bị lấy mẫu gần với nhiệt độ bên ngoài môi trường.Trong quá trình thu mẫu nên ghi chép đầy đủ nhiệt độ của môi trường bên ngoài và môi trường bên trong thùng chứa khí.Các thiết bị lấy mẫu khí kín sẽ giảm được tác động của áp suất.Gió thổi ngang có thể ảnh hưởng đến chế độ ra vào của không khí trong đất. Do vậy, nên chế tạo các thiết bị lấy mẫu kín hoàn toàn.Độ ẩm thiết bị lấy mẫu đặt phía trên mặt đất sẽ ảnh hưởng đến nồng độ khí vết do làm tăng khả năng hòa tan của các khí vào trong hơi nước. Hơi nước có thể làm giảm nồng độ của các khí khác do hiện tượng pha loãng.Các phân tử khí khuếch tán nhanh lên phía trên của thùng chứa khí do vậy hỗn hợp khí khá đồng đều ở trong thùng chứa. Tuy nhiên, kết quả sẽ bị ảnh hưởng nếu có nhiều thực vật bên trong thiết bị lấy mẫu hoặc tỉ lệ giữa thể tích và diện tích bề mặt của thiết bị quá lớn.Việc trộn đều các khí ở phần bên trên của thiết bị là cần thiết, giải pháp tốt nhất là sử dụng các vòi nhỏ để bên trong thiết bị để lấy mẫu. Các vòi nhỏ ở bên trong có thể là vòi đơn (đặt ở phía trên cùng) hoặc nhiều vòi với chất liệu teflon có đường kính rất nhỏ có thể chấp nhận được (ví dụ: 1/16 inch). Hoặc dùng quạt để đảo khí trước khi đo.Trong hệ thống canh tác, đặt thiết bị lấy mẫu rất quan trọng nó phản ánh mang tính đại diện cho hệ thống.Vị trí lấy mẫu cố định tại các điểm thí nghiệm.Đối với từng hoạt động sẽ có các chương trình QA/QC tương ứng, nhưng trước khi thực hiện các hoạt động hiện trường cần xác định rõ những nội dung và các thông tin chung sau:-Xác định tên, ký mã hiệu và mục tiêu chung của quá trình thu mẫu.-Lấy đúng mẫu theo nội dung của chương trình.-Chứng minh được quá trình kiểm soát sai số là phù hợp.-Phát hiện được những sai sót, thay đổi trong việc lấy mẫu để truy tìm nguồn gốc sai số lấy mẫu khi cần thiết.","tokenCount":"3122"}

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Table 2: Macro-, meso-, and micro-level frameworks and tools for food and nutrition policy domain Table 3: Macro-level tools for food and nutrition policy domain Table 4: Multi-level frameworks and tools for the food and nutrition policy domain Table 5: Macro-level frameworks and tools for analyzing land and water policy domain Table 6: Micro-, meso-, macro-, and multi-level frameworks for political economy and policy analysis in the climate and ecology domain Case study 1: Sustainable diets framework for policy analysis in NepalCase study 2: The Kaleidoscope Model of policy change -food security applications in ZambiaCase study 3: Participatory power mapping in California Village, Chiapas, MexicoCase study 4: Assessing biodiversity policy integration in PeruCase study 5: Policy windows for the environment -tips for improving the scientific knowledge acceptanceAgri-food systems face multiple challenges. They must deal with prevailing structural weaknesses, partly deepened by the disruptions from the COVID-19 pandemic, civil conflicts, and climate change. Addressing structural weaknesses -such as inequitable access to healthy and nutritious food for all, loss of livelihoods and incomes, and increasing environmental shocks -requires not only technological, but also institutional innovations, as well as economic and policy responses. While development interventions often focus on technological innovations, they lack attention to the enabling policy environment and the political economy drivers necessary to achieve policy, economic, and social impact at the national level. In addition, solutions often fail to analyze the broader enabling environment in which policies are designed and implemented at the national level. A comprehensive understanding of the policy environment coupled with appropriate technological and institutional solutions can influence the success or failure of development interventions.However, political economy and policy analysis considerations are inadequately explored in the quest to transform food systems. Identifying the right policies and overcoming barriers to the implementation of development interventions fundamentally requires an understanding of the political economy and policy processes that shape policymaking. Despite numerous emerging approaches and frameworks for conducting political economy and policy analysis, practitioners and researchers working across food, land, and water systems lack a consolidated knowledge base. This Political Economy and Policy Analysis (PEPA) sourcebook aims to fill that knowledge gap.This PEPA Sourcebook brings together a collection of frameworks, analytical tools, and methods for analyzing contested questions about transforming agri-food systems across multiple domains, including food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology. Food system policy research and development asks what works where, why, and how? This question fuels other important questions and debates related to prevailing structural weaknesses in agri-food systems. What role should governments play in agricultural transformation?Are input subsidy programs an effective strategy to increase agricultural productivity? What are the merits of agroecology versus sustainable agricultural intensification or blended sustainability? Do small-scale farms have development potential or is supporting them 'romantic populism?\" What social protection programs work best to solve food and nutrition security challenges? Are biotech crops part of the solution to solving food and nutrition security challenges in developing economies? What institutional innovations are \"best-fit\" for managing shared natural resources to avoid conflict and foster inclusion? Key agri-food system stakeholders disagree on how to answer these questions due to differences in ideas, beliefs, interests, resources, policy processes, developmental phase, influence networks, and political structures. These differences shape a policy environment characterized by the formation of stakeholder coalitions, fragmented policy instruments, and development programs that fail to provide adequate solutions to prevailing structural weaknesses in agrifood systems.The PEPA Sourcebook aims to bridge the knowledge gap by providing a consolidated collection of frameworks, analytical tools, and related case studies for examining the political economy, policies, and policy processes of agri-food system transformation. The PEPA Sourcebook provides guidance for answering contested questions related to agri-food system transformation, understanding policy environments and processes, and setting policy agendas. The Sourcebook guides development practitioners in building coalitions and discourses, and in influencing policy environments. The frameworks and policy analysis tools are relevant for evaluating and characterizing national policies and strategies. They address specific issues related to agri-food systems, focusing on the sub-topics of food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology. The PEPA Sourcebook is designed to enable researchers, policymakers, and development practitioners to explore and answer political economy research questions, better understand policy environments, and link evidencebased policies to impact. The PEPA Sourcebook organizes political economy and policy analysis resources at diverse levels: macro (country or region), meso (sector), micro (problem-focused), and multiple (crosscutting) levels. The Sourcebook supports development practitioners' efforts to understand and explain political interests, ideas, beliefs, networks, coalitions, influence, and power dynamics. The Sourcebook can help practitioners identify policy winners and losers and visualize the impacts of development strategies.Collectively, the Sourcebook provides useful approaches to answering key questions relevant to inclusive agri-food system transformation, such as: (1) Who are the influential actors driving policy processes and programs? (2) What ideas, beliefs, and narratives shape crises and policy responses? (3) What are the \"windows of opportunity\" for reform and policy change? (4) What factors drive the effectiveness of policy implementation following reforms? and (5) How do gender and equity considerations shape policy development and implementation? This PEPA Sourcebook provides researchers, development practitioners, the donor community, and policymakers with knowledge resources for examining and managing policy processes. The Sourcebook helps practitioners negotiate the science-policy interface to explore solutions that work towards achieving the sustainable development goals (SDGs) by addressing structural weaknesses in the policy environment, weaknesses that often derail efforts to transform food, land, and water systems and achieve the SDGs.Agri-food system the political economy and policy processes that shape policymaking and stakeholder actions. Although there is a plethora of emerging approaches and frameworks, practitioners and researchers lack a consolidated sourcebook that organizes knowledge on political economy and policy analysis. This sourcebook aims to fill that knowledge gap.This Political Economy and Policy Analysis (PEPA) Sourcebook brings together a collection of frameworks, analytical tools, and methods for examining contested issues critical for transforming agri-food systems in the areas of food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology. In doing so, the Sourcebook can help researchers and practitioners address questions such as: What ideas, beliefs and narratives shape crisis situations and policy responses? What \"windows of opportunity\" exist to influence reform and policy change?What factors drive the effectiveness of policy implementation following reform decisions? How do gender and equity considerations shape policy processes, agenda setting, and implementation? Notwithstanding the importance of both global dynamics and subnational factors that influence agri-food systems, this PEPA Sourcebook explicitly focuses on the national level where most policies and strategies are developed and the level of analysis to which most political economy and policy analysis frameworks are directed.The dominant approach in international development generates insights about development interventionsand their impacts through the use of rigorous quantitative economics (Mockshell & Birner, 2015). The ethos of such an analysis is to provide decision-makers with relevant evidence on how well a development program is working or is not working (Bourguignon & Pereira da Silva, 2003). In some cases, ex-ante quantitative assessment approaches are also used to generate information before development programs are implemented (Bourguignon & Pereira da Silva, 2003). However, determining what works where, why, and how in the policy environment requires going beyond strictly quantitative evidence (Birner & Resnick, 2010, Mockshell & Birner, 2020, Harrigan, 2003, Jayne et al., 2002, Resnick et al., 2018).Political economy and policy analysis (PEPA) has gained popularity in recent years. Development actors have recognized that interventions often fail due to lack of political will or institutional weaknesses, even when quantitative and technical analysis predicted their success (Whaites et al., 2023, DFID, 2009). PEPA examines the interaction between policies and economic processes and related outcomes due to policy choices and institutions. PEPA is necessary to examine often-neglected topics, such as power dynamics, conflicting interests, coalitions and networks, \"rules of the game,\" and stakeholder policy aspirations (Resnick et al., 2018). PEPA aims to understand policy champions, power relations, policy risks, and informal and formal policy processes. Whether formal or informal, politics is an important factor in determining how power or scarce resources are distributed among groups or individuals in a society (DFID, 2009;Haider & Rao, 2010). Political processes are dynamic and occur at the institutional, community, country, and regional levels. They can enable or derail a transformation or change process for food, land, and water systems. Thus, political economy analysis helps to identify policy contexts and achievable political strategies, revealing expectations and risks associated with specific national policies and strategies (Haider & Rao, 2010). PEPA is also useful in analyzing how decisions are made in policy environments. Development practitioners can develop successful outcomes by understanding the dynamic interactions between natural resources, socioeconomic factors, institutions and stakeholders (DFAT, 2016).PEPA, therefore, enables practitioners and researchers to identify difficulties that arise from institutional barriers, problems, and a lack of political will, which must be overcome at some point in the project lifecycle (Whaites, 2017;de Schutter, 2019)  ,3 (World Bank 2007, 2016). However, agri-food systems analysis requires a tailored knowledge base to assess policy trade-offs across food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology policy domains. PEPA for agri-food systems also needs to address criticisms that it remains highly fragmented, lacks external validity, cannot be replicated, and produces inadequate measurements (Resnick et al., 2018).Robust cross-cutting PEPA frameworks and tools are needed to analyze policy change at the macro, meso, and micro levels. Recognizing this knowledge gap, this PEPA Sourcebook aims to provide a compendium of frameworks, analytical tools, and example case studies for conducting a political economy and policy analysis of food, land, and water systems in low-and middle-income countries.In search of new pathways for successful development interventions, assessments have explored the topic of PEPA within agri-food systems across a broad range of topics: policy, governance, agriculture (Lyu et al., 2021), food, water, land, and natural resources (Buur et al., 2017), and nutrition (Harris, 2019;Trevena et al., 2021). However, not all challenges faced by multi-sectoral programs are typically covered by narrowly focused, single-issue frameworks and tools targeting specific sectors and development programs.More robust, systematic, and holistic PEPA frameworks are needed to understand the complexity of the policymaking process (Resnick et al., 2018). Sustainable food systems are complex and involve many crosscutting issues, motivating a call for more integrated PEPA methods and analytical tools (Duncan et al., 2019).The application of PEPA also helps provide evidence to inform national policies, strategies, and ' everyday political' 4 decisions. PEPA can harness synergies while transforming food and nutrition, land and water, climate change and ecology systems (Whaites, 2017).This PEPA Sourcebook is an essential guide that provides frameworks and analytical tools for analyzing how policy change occurs at broad geographic scales (macro-scale), by livelihood sectors (meso-scale), organized around specific problems (micro-scale), and arranged across levels (multipurpose) (de Schutter, 2019). Further, the PEPA Sourcebook aims to provide a compendium that makes sense of the crowded field of approaches, frameworks, and tools by identifying where there are commonalities and differences. Chapter 2 of this guide summarizes how PEPA intersects with food, land, and water systems. Chapter 3 highlights the systematic literature review methodology for PEPA tools and frameworks. The specific frameworks, tools, and related case studies for agri-food policy domains are presented in Chapter 4. The step-by-step approach for conducting PEPA is presented in Chapter 5. Chapter 6 provides an outlook for PEPA in food, land, and water systems research.2 The role of Political Economy Analysis in Development Policy Operations (World Bank, 2016).3 Tools for Institutional, Political, and Social Analysis (TIPS) of policy Reform: A sourcebook for Development Practitioners (World Bank, 2007).4 This is smart political thinking and working: continually engaging with the political environment to help a program navigate through obstacles while keeping the realities of the context in mind (Whaites, 2017).PEPA has been key in evaluating various governmental and sectoral policies, their actors, power dynamics, and institutional frameworks. Food systems comprise the actors and interactions along the entire food value chain. Stakeholders and actors include input suppliers, commodity producers, transporters, processors, retailers, wholesalers, and consumers, as well as those working in food disposal (IFPRI, 2022). Food systems involve the creation of enabling policy environments and cultural norms around food. They affect human and environmental health at the level of individuals, communities, nations, and the whole planet (Downs et al., 2017).An ideal food system should emphasize nutrition, health, and food safety. It should maximize production and efficiency to ensure affordable food production while integrating sustainability, climate awareness, and social inclusion (IFPRI, 2022). Considering the SDGs, food systems are supposed to be more sustainable and resilient in striving to meet the food and nutrition demands of the growing human population (Downs et al., 2017).PEPA has been instrumental in examining the effectiveness of various governmental and sectoral policies and the relationship between actors, power dynamics, and institutional frameworks (de Schutter, 2019). As such, the political economy of sustainable food systems is depicted to encompass various themes: diversity and innovation (Duncan et al., 2019), the food and health nexus (Rocha & Harris, 2019), and the politics of consumption, food sovereignty, and agroecology (Gliessman et al., 2019). Other related topics in food systems debates include food accessibility, ultra-processed foods, disparities between smallholder and commercial farmers, genetically modified organisms, livestock-versus plant-based diets, organic farming, and agricultural intensification (Steinfeld et al., 2019). A model food system is envisioned as nutritional, healthy, safety-driven, productive, effective, affordable, environmentally sustainable, climate-smart, and integrative (IFPRI, 2022).Achieving this vision demands concerted investments in agricultural research, along with policy reforms that leverage technological and institutional innovations, paving the way for evidence-based development.The land system comprises the terrestrial component of the Earth system, including all processes and activities related to the human use of land. The system includes socioeconomic and technological aspects of land management and the social and environmental effects of land use (Verburg et al., 2015). Changes to land systems have profound effects on the local environment and human well-being and play a significant role in global environmental change. Land is useful in providing food, fuel, fiber, and many other ecosystem services to society. It is also responsible for supporting production functions, regulating natural hazards, and providing cultural services (Akram-Lodhi, 2012).This PEPA Sourcebook is useful in examining land, its access and development, land-use change, and landgrabbing discourses that are critical in agri-food policymaking. Like the rest of the world, land in the GlobalSouth is either privately, communally, or state-owned. Different land use practices modify the quantity and quality of ecosystem services with implications on food and nutrition security. Shifts in the land system directly result from human decisions and actions, made by a range of actors or due to national land use planning and global trade agreements (Anderson & Leach, 2019). Yet, the post-colonial era has witnessed different shifts and transformations in land ownership in the Global South, creating avenues for multinational companies to own land, exacerbating land-grabbing (Kumeh & Omulo, 2019). Most importantly, the aggregate impact of local changes in land systems attracts far-reaching consequences on ecosystem services and human well-being (Verburg et al., 2015). Key issues related to land' s role in agri-food policymaking include how land is accessed and developed, land-use change, land for biofuel and energy instead of food, and land-grabbing.This PEPA Sourcebook can help stakeholders sustainably manage natural fresh water resources, protect the hydrosphere, and meet the agri-food system's current and future demands. Water conservation refers to the preservation, control, and development of water resources -both surface and groundwater -and the reduction of contamination (OECD, 1997). Water conservation also entails assessing an action, behavioral change, improved design, or process implemented to minimize water loss, waste, or use (Kumari et al., 2021).Considering the increasing global demand driven by human population growth and climate change, actions aimed at producing food with less water, particularly in irrigated agriculture, are vital. Similarly, actions that build farmer resilience against floods and droughts and that use environmentally-friendly water technologies are indispensable (FAO, 2022). In this sourcebook, water conservation encompasses all the policies, strategies, and activities employed by governments and development actors. The resources cited in this sourcebook can help stakeholders sustainably manage natural fresh water resources, protect the hydrosphere, and meet the agri-food system' s current and future demands.Life on Earth is profoundly affected by weather and climate. Weather and climate are essential to human health, food production, and well-being (Baede et al., 2001). External forces can cause climate variability and changes at the global, continental, regional, and country scales. A climate system is an interactive system consisting of the atmosphere, hydrosphere, cryosphere, land surface, and biosphere, which are often influenced by various external factors, especially solar radiation (Baede et al., 2001). Human activities, such as the emission of greenhouse gases or land-use change, are driving climate change and its impacts on the agri-food system.Systems ecology is a holistic, interdisciplinary field of ecology focused on studying ecosystems by applying general systems theory to ecology. A central concept of systems ecology is that ecosystems are complex systems with emergent properties. Systems ecology aims to understand how human activities interact with biological and ecological systems (Patten, 2013). Recent studies show the benefits of environmental protection, conservation, and preservation. These efforts are widely acknowledged for promoting long-term sustainability. Consequently, the ecological challenge for agri-food systems calls for a shift to descriptive empirical ecology. Problems are becoming too complex to resolve without expanding the basic knowledge of environmentalism to a wider ecological science that considers complex systems (Patten, 2013).This PEPA Sourcebook provides a guide to analysis resources by following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA 2020) statement (Page et al., 2021). Though developed to evaluate health intervention studies, PRISMA provides a rigorous approach to a systematic review in other domains, including agriculture (Supriya & Mamilla, 2022). The PRISMA 2020 statement is a 27-item checklist relevant for mixed-methods systematic reviews, including quantitative and qualitative studies (Page et al., 2021). PRISMA 2020 helped focus this survey of knowledge resources on studies featuring analytical tools and frameworks in agri-food systems -the food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology domainshighlighting applicable policies and strategies.Table 1 outlines the eligibility criteria for determining whether sources should be included in or excluded from this Sourcebook. We included original articles written in English, focusing on analytical tools and frameworks used in agri-food systems across food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology domains. We included articles written in the last two decades across all geographical locations. We searched the following electronic databases to find relevant agri-food systems literature: Scopus, CABI, AgEcon, BASE, Google Scholar, SSRN, and Google. The searches were conducted between August 10-30th, 2022. The search strategy used for all databases is detailed below. During the reference-checking step, we evaluated the abstract and full text of the identified studies to assess their eligibility for inclusion in the review.The search strategy for each database used keywords, starting with a broad search using \"agri-food\" and \"food systems\", and \"agriculture\". The search was then narrowed to \"nutrition\", \"water\", \"land\", \"climate\", and \"ecology\" terms in cases where more information was needed. The initial searches for each database based on keywords and query strings are outlined in Annex B.To select studies, the authors used an excel sheet to tabulate all the selected manuscripts from the databases.After removing ineligible and duplicate articles, we further reviewed the title and abstracts of the remaining articles to eliminate those that did not meet the review criteria. The full texts of the remaining manuscripts were then cross-examined by two reviewers separately to determine which articles met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. In the event of a conflicting judgment, the two reviewers discussed further before deciding to either include or exclude the paper from the review.Metadata on all the assembled PEPA resources were extracted to complete the selection process. This information included relevant data on study characteristics, such as the methodology used, qualitative versus quantitative approaches employed, study location, and the scope of the study (macro, meso, micro or multi-levels). This metadata also recorded the type of resource that was documented, such as analytical tools, concepts, or frameworks, as well as keywords and journal or publication names. The authors' names and publication titles were also recorded to avoid any overlap or redundancy.After reading the title, abstracts, or keywords for all the assembled articles from six database sources, we identified 1,232 articles eligible for review. Of these, 112 were duplicates and 942 were ineligible. These latter studies were judged to be outside the scope of the review. A further 164 articles were screened, of which 125 were excluded based on differences in the topic or subject area, document type, and language. Of the remaining 39 articles, 4 could not be retrieved and 16 additional articles were eliminated based on duplication or lack of relevance. Fifteen additional articles were added from grey literature and citation searching. A total of 37 articles from 22 journals, 6 institutions, and 32 countries worldwide (Figure 1) were selected for the systematic review (Figure 2).Not included The PEPA frameworks and tools for national policies and strategies focus on three policy domains relevant to agri-food systems: food and nutrition systems, land and water systems, and climate and ecology systems (Figure 3). These three domains are synthesized for macro-, meso-, micro-, and multi-level analysis applications. Each policy domain includes relevant, practical frameworks and tools, and key research methodologies that can be used at different analysis levels based on a systematic review of the literature (Annex A and C). However, the outlined frameworks and analytical tools can be applied across the three domains and at different levels depending on the research question, scope, or problem addressed.Policy DomainFrameworks ToolsFrameworks Tools  The frameworks and tools in the food and nutrition policy domain operate at several levels as described below (Figure 4). At the most basic level, the tools and frameworks can be thought of as those focusing narrowly on a particular problem. That problem is nested within a broader sector, with corresponding tools and frameworks for analysis. The sectoral analysis falls within broader country level political economy and policy frameworks.Finally, macroscale frameworks in tools integrate issues that operate at multiple levels. Macro-level PEPA frameworks and tools (Table 2) are focused on the national level. These frameworks and tools can help show the significance of the historical context, political climate, political or institutional culture, and prevailing national economic and social conditions (Holland, 2007). In addition to the overarching macro-level frameworks listed in Table 2, researchers often need specific tools for use in the macro-level political economy analysis. Table 3 details the tools that can be incorporated into many macro-level analysis frameworks, individually or in combination.Meso-level frameworks and tools (Table 2) focus on levels between the macro (national) and micro (individual/ local) or the interactions between macro and micro levels. Meso-level analysis may also be focused on process, including the rules and incentives that govern the implementation of policy reform, which may be influenced by economics, organizational culture, or social norms (Holland, 2007).Micro-level frameworks and tools are focused on the individual or local level (Table 2). They can help identify winners and losers of policy reforms and can help illuminate local dynamics.Multiple Stream Approach (MSA), also known as Kingdon' s Theory of Agenda Setting (Thow et al., 2021) Diagnostic framework: Looks at factors that influence or promote policy change; conceptualizes policy change as resulting from the interplay between 1) the policy problem, 2) existing policy, and 3) political and institutional context.Analyzing economic decisions related to nutrition and health.Political, Economic, Social, and Technological (PEST) External Drivers of the Food System (Trevena et al., 2021) Analytical framework: Looks at the food system considering 1) Political-legal drivers, i.e., government stability, the role of stakeholder groups, and ideologies; 2) Economic drivers;3) Social drivers, e.g., culture and demographic factors; 4) Technological drivers, e.g., availability and adoption of technologies.Analyzing the impact of nutrition policies on the agri-food system.Porter' s Five Forces (PFF) for the Competitive Drivers Framework (Porter, 1979;Porter 2008;Trevena et al., 2021) Based on the concept of ' competitive rivalry': Rivalry is assessed in terms of the bargaining power of buyers and suppliers and the threat of entrants and substitutes.Raising awareness of the existing competitive rivalry forces to minimize vulnerability within a given system in various agri-food system domains.Public Understanding the political economy of food systems and contested public health policies.Power Cube Framework (PCF) (Gaventa, 2005;Gaventa, 2006;Harris, 2019) Analytical framework: Used to identify different forms of power, i.e., visible, hidden, and invisible powers, and then outline where and how power is exercised, as well as scales of power.Building awareness of what drives various processes in agri-food system domains and identifying entry points for action.Sustainable Diets Framework for Policy Analysis (SDF) (Downs et al., 2017) Analytical framework: Looks for similarities in various policy instruments. The analysis is based on five domains: 1) Nutrition and health; 2) Agriculture and food security; 3) Environment and ecosystems; 4) Markets, trade, and value chains for economic growth; 5) Sociocultural and political factors.Studying key agriculture, nutrition, and environmental policies.Diagnostic Framework for Food Systems Governance (DFFSG) (Termeer et al., 2018) Diagnostic framework: Looks at the strengths and weaknesses of local or regional food system governance based on five principles: Policy Framing Analysis (PFA) (Daviter, 2011;Sakamoto et al., 2007) Analytical framework: Analyzes agricultural policy initiatives of various governments or organizations by identifying the similarities and comparing the differences of the policy frames found in the agricultural policy documents.Comparing agricultural policies of different governments or groups.Aiding identification of key rationales for policy change, and policy instruments that hamper the desired outcomes.Framework for Analyzing Policy Approaches (FAPA) (Jahrl et al., 2021) Analytical framework that seeks to find the best combination of the below three elements given the food system and sustainability goals: 1) Multi-or mono-functional frames;2) Levels of institutionalization; 3) Policy-society relationship.Helping users understand governance mechanisms in agrifood system sub-domains.Framework for Recognizing Diversity Beyond Capitalism (FRDBC) (Koretskaya and Feola, 2020) Analytical framework: Contains the following dimensions: 1) Ontology: Space, time, human nature, the logic of relation; 2) Economic relations: Enterprise, labor, economic transactions, property, and finance; 3) Relation with the State: Participation in regulation and legitimation; 4) Knowledge.Identifying capitalist, alternative capitalist, and non-capitalist configurations in businesses, co-ops, associations, and other socioeconomic entities within food systems. Analyzing interactions of different economic models within food systems.Policy Tool Typology (PTT) (Saviolidis et al., 2020) Based on the idea that policy tools are avenues for policy implementation, categorizing tools can help illuminate proposed policy solutions. Categorizes policy tools into different types: 1) Strategic; 2) Governance; 3) Knowledgebased; 4) Market-based; 5) Direct activity regulation.Categorizing policy tools by type.Helps users match types of policy tools to policy solutions under consideration.Agent Belief Desire Intention Model (BDI) (Liu et al., 2021) Analyzes farmers and their technology adoption process to understand farmer decision-making. This information is used to model the impact of different policies and policy tools on farmer technology adoption.Seeing how farmer decisionmaking and technology adoption is influenced by the policy tools used.In Nepal, the Sustainable Diets Framework was used to identify gaps in current food policy and find areas of synergy between different policy instruments and documents (Downs et al., 2017). The analysis focused on three national policies: The Agriculture Development Strategy (ADS), National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (NBSAP), and Multi-Sectoral Nutrition Plan (MSNP). These three policies were analyzed within the five major domains of the Sustainable Diets Framework: food security and agriculture; environment and ecosystems; markets, trade, and value chains; sociocultural factors; and political factors.Results of the Sustainable Diets Framework analysis showed that although Nepal has successfully reduced the national poverty rate, many still suffer from malnutrition and food insecurity. In addition, the framework found that although the three national policies analyzed have many areas of overlap, there is little coordination between them. By applying the framework to nutrition and agricultural policies, a lack of alignment between production and consumption processes can be identified and addressed. Addressing where food system component work against each other is useful for policymakers in achieving policy coherence (Downs et al., 2017).Narrative Policy Analysis (NPA) (Roe, 1994;Mockshell & Birner, 2020) Analytical tool: Looks at stories told by different actors to analyze policy issues. Four main steps: 1) Identify narratives dominating the issue in question; 2) Identify ' counter stories' and 'non-stories' about the issue; 3) Create a meta-narrative including dominant and counter stories; and 4) Examine if and how the meta-narrative realigns the policy issues in a manner responsive to decision-makers.Showing how narratives have power in agricultural policy, aiding the reframing of polarizing issues, and helping people understand them in new ways.Discourse Analysis (DA) (Hajer, 2006;van Dijk, 1996;Mockshell & Birner, 2015) Looks at how different actors in policy debates positively assess their own beliefs and negatively assess the beliefs of those who disagree with them.Uses storylines with a clear beginning, middle, and end, as well as metaphors.Examining various discourses and identifying the underlying policy beliefs of different actors.Process Net-Map (PNM) (Schiffer, 2007, Ilukor et al., 2015;Duncan et al., 2019) Participatory mapping tool: Analyzes steps of a process to identify stakeholders and their influence and visualize social networks. Four steps: 1) Asking the interviewee to describe the given process step-by-step; 2) Building influence towers;3) Identifying obstacles to implementation; and 4) Creating a digital process map A tool for understanding how processes are implemented, diagramming how processes are carried out compared to established procedures; identifying how power dynamics and overlapping responsibilities can impact participatory processes; identifying where interventions can be made to reduce corruption and maintain control in process pathways.Policy and development processes are complex, involving macro-, meso-, and micro-level dynamics and interactions between these levels. As a result, it can be helpful to have tools and frameworks designed to analyze food and nutrition systems at multiple levels of scale. Table 4 summarizes these frameworks and tools. Analyzing policies and multiple levels (macro to micro).Political Settlement Analysis (PSA) (Kjaer, 2015;Amaza et al., 2021;Chinsinga and Matita, 2021) Focuses on underlying power arrangements in institutions; assesses political will to determine feasible policies. Involves the following steps: 1) Systematically mapping all key actors involved; 2) Identifying their interests and recognizing their forms of power -political, economic, social, and ideological; 3) Understanding stakeholder relationships; and 4) Appreciating the issues, narratives, and ideas shaping how and why stakeholders interact with each other.Assessing political will and helping understand the reasons policies succeed or fail.Power Mapping (PM) (Guevara- Influence Mapping (MSIM) (Sova et al., 2017) Power mapping tool: Scores influence levels of actors involved in or affected by policy processes at the macro, meso, and micro levels. The actor group' s closeness determines influence scores to the policy object.Visualizing the influence levels of different groups in a policy process.Case study 2: The Kaleidoscope Model of policy change -food security applications in Zambia Resnick et al. (2018) developed the Kaleidoscope Model (KM) framework by analyzing policy processes related to food security in Zambia. This work aimed to further understand the importance of the policy environment in shaping development outcomes and in creating lasting impacts on food security in Zambia.The Kaleidoscope Model comprises five policy cycle stages: agenda setting, design, adoption, implementation, and evaluation/reform. The approach uses a set of 16 operational hypotheses to determine the circumstances in which policies are developed and implemented. In Zambia, this framework was used to evaluate eight policy reforms related to food security policies, related to agricultural input subsidies and vitamin A fortification.Most of the Kaleidoscope Model's core variables remained relevant for the two policies examined, while a small number appeared to lose applicability at times. This information can help practitioners and researchers assess when and where investment in policy reforms is most likely to have an impact (Resnick et al., 2018).\"In an era of growing pressure on donor resources and government budgets, the Kaleidoscope Model offers a practical framework through which practitioners and researchers can assess when and where investments in policy reforms are most feasible given a country's underlying political, economic, and institutional characteristics\" (Resnick et al., 2018, p. 101).Adapted This domain focuses on sustainable water and land management governance and how politics and power determine policymaking in the land and water sectors. It includes analyses that apply PEPA to address various land and water system issues and help unravel how stakeholders use their influence in the land and water sphere. This section offers macro-and meso-level tools and a meso-level framework (Figure 5, Table 5). Institutional Analysis and Development (Ostrom et al., 1994;Ostrom and Polski, 1999;Fan et al., 2019) Investigates how institutions are formed and how they influence behavior. Triangular Model of Relations (Buur et al., 2017) Examines the relationship between local populations, investors, and ruling elites related to large-scale land and natural resource investments. Helps analyze the exchange of benefits, resources, and rights within these relationships.Attempts to analyze the following: 1) Reciprocal exchange deals between local populations and investors; 2) Compatible interests between ruling elites and investors; and 3) Productive social relations between ruling elites and local populations.Helping policymakers and researchers investigate and target large-scale investment in land management. Helping them find an optimum scenario where local populations, elites, and investors gain without affecting each other' s interests.Legal Assessment Tool (LAT) (Kenney and Campos, 2016) Analyzes the legal context of countries through 30 legal indicators to explore gender-equality in land tenure; allows for quick, focused consultancy on legal matters for policymakers.LAT takes the following steps: 1) Analyze gender indicators and chosen categories across gender-related land issues;2) Identify the current and historical institutional reforms related to land issues with a gender impact; 3) Identify the current stage of the public policy process; and 4) Support planning after considering reform gaps.Planning and designing public policies in the land domain.Identifying the areas where women are at a significant disadvantage and where legal reform is needed.Guevara-Hernandez et al. ( 2010) conducted a participatory power mapping exercise with indigenous cattle keepers in California Village, Chiapas, Mexico. This study aimed to examine local power, its implication for village dynamics, and how people involved in local development understood and exercised power.The study employed an action research approach as the principal framework for creating social order in the village. The approach builds on local customary law, referred to locally as 'usos y costumbres' (U&C), which are principles and practices evolved from the bottom-up within a community. Customary law was used to understand how village development-focused groups and committees engaged in collective action and made decisions. Participatory power mapping was useful within this context because it provided a tool that residents could use to show their understanding of their community and community relationships.Participatory Power Mapping and the U&C framework showed that both village residents and outsiders must adhere to local values and norms to participate in development interventions and decision-making. This finding is interesting because power in Mexico is exercised based on a top-down model at a national level, especially for deploying state and federal resources to rural villages. However, at the local level, power is only seen as legitimate if actors follow local norms. When top-down local power structures fail to provide space for U&C modes of decision-making, tension often builds up within local systems and may result in protests or officially censured activities, such as the land occupation that gave birth to California Village.\"New research approaches towards community self-assessment can clarify how actors shape and re-shape local power structures through daily routines, contributing to a better understanding of community development from a productive perspective\", (Guevara-Hernández et al., 2010, p. 6).Informal sytem of power \"Customs and practices\" 18 external actors -government institutions 6 Internal actors and recognized decision makers 4 internal actors but no recognizedAdapted from Guevara-Hernández et. al. (2010) Climate and ecology domain: The climate and ecology policy domain includes political economy analysis focused on climate and environmental ecology issues and how these issues influence policymaking processes in various countries and sectors (Figure 6). The challenges related to the climate and ecology domain are discussed across the multi, macro, meso, and micro levels of analysis to pinpoint crucial frameworks and tools applicable to developmental initiatives and scientific research (Table 6). Policy Translation (PT) (Milhorance et al., 2022) Focuses on policy actors, policymaking processes, policy instruments, contextual shifts, and cost-benefit analysis.Four steps: 1) Define the context of the policy; 2) Analyze policy proposals; 3) Analyze relevant actors, resources, and opportunities, including integrated policy approaches; 4) Analyze institutional policy instruments available for translating policy.Analyzing climate change policy.Examines knowledge transfers between actors; delineates and visualizes power struggles in the policy translation process.Policy Network Analysis (PNA) (Ndeinoma et al., 2018) Analytical framework: Identifies links and patterns between actors in a governance structure by mapping policy actors, identifying the structure of government bodies or institutions, and then measuring the power balance in decisionmaking. Focuses on power relations, resource mobilization, organization behavior, the policymaking process, and interest.Developing new strategies through different stakeholder groups to effectively deal with policy issues.Multiple Streams Framework (MSF) (Hernandez and Bolwig, 2021) Diagnostic framework: Considers policymaking as a series of steps: 1) agenda-setting, 2) alternative specification, 3) authoritative selection among specified alternatives and 4) implementation. Focuses on the first two processes to explain why certain issues become relevant on the agenda, and why some proposals for addressing such issues are preferred over others.Analyzing climate policy integration (climate streaming) to enhance the public policy-making process and operationalization Biodiversity Policy Integration (BPI) (Zinngrebe, 2018)Analytical framework: Examines how knowledge is transferred between different actors to put biodiversity targets in agendas. Considers the following: 1) Inclusion -the extent to which political sectors express the objective of biodiversity conservation; 2) Operationalization -identifying appropriate policy instruments; 3) Coherence -measuring the extent to which different objectives and policy instruments complement each other; 4) Capacity -identifying institutional capacity and available resources; 5) Weighing -defining priorities related to biodiversity objectives.Connecting biodiversity development strategies with national policy efforts in high-biodiversity areas.Driver-Strategy-Outcome Framework (DSOF) (Islam et al., 2021) Analytical framework: Derived from social-ecological systems thinking and sustainable livelihood, resilience, and vulnerability assume that in an agrarian society, different chains embrace wealth-based economic structures. The framework is based on the following concepts which form the hypothesis for analysis: 1) Strategies -adjusting or improving a given technology or activity; 2) Drivers -institutional, climatic, or geographic; 3) Outcome -adaptation; 4) Wealth structure -land ownership Useful in studying farmers' adaptation strategies, drivers, and outcomes of various technologies especially, those linked to climate change adaptation Kingdon' s Window of Opportunity (KWO) (Rose et al., 2020) Identifies communication bridges between policymakers and researchers; supports having adequate resources to respond to opportunities when they arise; understands the scientific debate around the issue and connects with policymakers to bring the scientific debate to the national agenda.Identifying upcoming windows of opportunity in specific areas.Framework (SESF) (Vallejo-Rojas, 2016;Amblar, 2021) Focused on biophysical systems and how they impact natural resource management. Applied through the following: 1) Identifying social, economic, environmental, and political context; 2) Measuring the size of the resource system and associated costs; 3) Identifying key players within the systems.Identifying optimal conditions for cooperation applied to water pollution, water quality, and hydro systems.In a recent policy assessment of Peru, Zinngrebe (2018) aimed to understand both the political dimensions of biodiversity loss and how concerned actors can use policy to protect biodiversity and mitigate the negative impacts of biodiversity loss.Mainstreaming biodiversity protection across various political sectors and levels is considered a \"best practice\" for conserving global biodiversity. To fully understand the situation in Peru, the study used the Biodiversity Policy Integration (BPI) framework in several national-level political sectors, including agriculture, the economy, energy, and others. The analysis was based on political strategy plans, legal documents, and qualitative interviews with stakeholders.BPI analysis found that various sectors were generally committed to biodiversity conservation.The study identified three key components essential for improving BPI: framing sector-specific targets, favorable actor constellations, and adaptive institutional learning arrangements. Furthermore, sectoral support was deemed critical to generating ownership of biodiversity objectives in sector policy development and to facilitating institutional learning (Zinngrebe, 2018). Case study 5: Policy windows for the environment -tips for improving scientific knowledge acceptance Rose et al. (2020) sought to determine whether the responses of scientists, NGO staff, conservation policymakers, and others could be used to influence environmental policy. The study found four strategies environmentalists can use to respond to opportunities for creating successful policies.This framework found that it is possible to achieve conservation objectives if stakeholders: 1) know the emergent opportunities, 2) respond quickly to them, 3) frame their research in line with appropriate windows, and 4) persevere to guide policy processes through development to successful implementation. The Policy Windows framework has been instrumental in exploring soft power from new academic perspectives and in considering how a crisis may prove useful to scientists. This framework provides evidence that is relevant to achieve real policy change, actors must establish political alliances, build coalitions, and gain credibility with decision-makers (Rose et al., 2020). The PEPA Sourcebook provides an easily accessible compendium of political economy and policy analysis frameworks, analytical tools, and related case studies relevant to examining agri-food systems. As illustrated by Figure 7, PEPA follows an incremental and iterative approach to: (1) identify the main problem and the specific policy domain, (2) examine the scope of the problem and what specific questions it raises, (3) determine the frameworks and analytical tools needed to develop a structured method to analyze the problem, (4) gather data to examine why the problem persists, (5) synthesize the evidence to inform policymaking and policy processes, with the goal of attaining policy change, and ( 6) package evidence to engage stakeholder and policymakers. This, in turn, may lead to renewed problem identification and repetition of the process for improved policymaking.The PEPA Sourcebook provides an easily accessible compendium of political economy and policy analysis frameworks, analytical tools, and related case studies relevant to examining agri-food systems. As illustrated by Figure 7, PEPA follows an incremental and iterative approach to (1) identify the main problem and the specific policy domain, (2) examine the scope of the problem and what specific questions it raises, (3) determine the frameworks and analytical tools needed to develop a structured method to analyze the problem, (4) gather data to examine why the problem persists, (5) synthesize the evidence to inform policymaking and policy processes, with the goal of attaining policy change, (6) package evidence to engage stakeholder and policymakers. This, in turn, may lead to renewed problem identification and repetition of the process for improved Identifying a policy problemExaming specific questions related to the policy problemGathering data to examine the problemDetermining frameworks and analytical tools for the questionsSynthesizing evidence to inform policy design and policy changePackaging evidence for policymakers and policy engagementsStep 1: Identify the main problem and the specific policy domainIn the context of food systems, the main policy domains include food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology. Considering the complexity of policy-making and development interventions, any analysis Source: Authors requires identifying relevant policy domains and determining the specific problem(s) of interest in that domain.For example, a policy problem can examine the concerns of increasing consumer access to affordable ultraprocessed foods and the health-related implications in a country. This macro-level, national analysis topic is within the food and nutrition policy domain (Figure 3 and 4).Step 2: Examine the underlying specific questions for the problem Relevant problem-specific questions and related stakeholders are identified after establishing the policy domain and scope. In the case of the ultra-processed food environments policy domain, examples of the specific question include: (1) Why is finding solutions to combat the increasing access to affordable ultraprocessed foods so controversial and what strategies are necessary for policy change? (2) Are taxes or regulations a better policy approach for reducing the overconsumption of ultra-processed foods? (3) Is the policy environment enabling or hindering access to affordable ultra-processed foods? To answer these questions, a critical assessment using PEPA can reveal conflicts, power dynamics, coalitions, beliefs, and policy processes necessary for development interventions to catalyze desired changes in the food and nutrition policy domain (see Mockshell & Ritter, 2023).Step 3: Determining frameworks and analytical toolsThe conceptual framework provides the basic elements for examining specific questions, while the analytical tool is a mechanism or instrument for examining the questions and elements of the conceptual framework. Based on the key questions of interest, this step identifies the frameworks and analytical tools relevant to answering the questions of interest identified in Step 2. For example, researchers, development practitioners, and policymakers are interested in identifying coalitions and policy views in the ultra-processed food environment. As already highlighted in Figure 3, this area of interest takes shape within the food and nutrition policy domain at the national level of analysis. Thus, policy frameworks require macro-level analysis and a related analytical tool. The Advocacy Coalition Framework (ACF) with the discourse analysis approach matches the topic of examining coalitions and policy views in the ultra-processed food environment at the macro-level (Figure 4 and Table 2). Next, if the interests are in examining the power dynamics, informal power, and power interactions in the ultra-processed food environment, then the Power Cube Framework (PCF) can be combined with a Process Net-Map for analysis. In the case of examining question-related taxes or regulations as the preferred policy approach for reducing the overconsumption of ultra-processed foods, the Kaleidoscope Framework for Policy Change approach provides a basis for analysis. This approach develops a set of indicators for identifying the drivers of policy change, the conditions under which policies emerge, and the effectiveness of policy implementation (Figure 4 and Table 2).Step 4: Gathering data to examine why the problem persistsRelevant data is the foundation for answering and examining the policy problem and specific questions of interest. This step focuses on gathering data to answer the questions of interest. The ultra-processed food environment case study considered several frameworks, such as the ACF. These frameworks should consider stakeholder landscapes, networks, discourse, beliefs, ideas, narratives, and influence levels. These considerations provide the basis for determining the analytical methods, such as quantitative, qualitative, or mixed methods. They also help determine data types and sources, such as primary, secondary, or mixed data from different providers. The data-gathering step also informs the selection of survey tools, such as process and network mapping, semi-structured interviews, key informant interviews, and others. Determining narratives of ultra-processed food environments will require conducting in-depth interviews with stakeholders involved in this policy domain. In the case of examining the policy-enabling environment for ultra-processed foods, the indicators from the Kaleidoscope Framework for Policy Change can provide information for developing survey tools (e.g., using multiple choice or Likert scale responses) to elicit information from participants on the key indicators.Step 5: Synthesizing evidence to inform policy design and policy changeThis step structures the raw data to generate relevant insights for stakeholders. The ultra-processed foodscase study has two central and underlying questions. Why are finding solutions to combat the increasing access to affordable ultra-processed foods so controversial? What strategies are necessary for policy change? The insights will cover areas such as: (1) the stakeholder landscape in the ultra-processed food environment, (2) potential coalitions in favor of ultra-processed foods, those in a neutral position on the topic, and stakeholders opposed to ultra-processed food, and (3) contested discourses and divergent ideas on potential policy solutions. Policy analysts should seek additional insights on the influential actors, type of influence, opposition to change, and entry points for influencing policy. The insights should provide a way to understand the drivers and conditions for policy change and to move toward policy implementation. The potential risks, winners, and losers of the policy change can also be uncovered. Without identifying and addressing the interests and ideas of the actors during the policy development cycle, policy reforms may be limited in scope or fail to reach their intended impact. Such risks need to be incorporated into a recommendation for policy change coupled with evidence on how to overcome potential policy risks.Step 6: Packaging evidence for policymakers and policy engagements This last step involves synthesizing the relevant insights into formats for communication, dialogue, and engagement with key stakeholders and decision-makers to contribute to policy change. The evidence package may include reports, policy briefs, opinion articles, presentations, peer-reviewed articles, info-graphics, and other mediums. This final step is critical. The informal and formal communication mediums should be adapted to policymakers according to their policy domains and context.The PEPA Sourcebook provides a step-by-step approach for conducting political economy and policy analysis across food, land, and water systems. This sourcebook contributes to PEPA by (1) identifying and organizing a collection of frameworks, analytical tools, and case studies using a systematic literature review approach (Annex A and B, Tables 1-6, and case study boxes), ( 2) mapping frameworks and tools to food and nutrition, land and water, climate and ecology domains, (Figures 3-6), and (3) disaggregating frameworks and tools by the level of analysis (macro -, meso -, micro -, and multi-levels) (Figures 3-6). These contributions fill an existing knowledge gap and make this PEPA Sourcebook unique for agri-food systems analysis. The PEPA Sourcebook by no means covers all frameworks, tools, and case studies, but it does provide a timely starting point, relevant to development practitioners, the donor community, researchers, and policymakers working in agri-food systems.  Resnick, 2010;de Schutter, 2019;McMichael, 2021). As Béné (2022) emphasizes in his call for food system transformation, changes in the agri-food industry require a thorough understanding of the contexts of local and international politics, economics, power dynamics, and stakeholder views. Coherent policies must be tailored to meet national and cultural needs. To gain this understanding, policymakers and development practitioners need innovative and workable tools and frameworks that can identify optimal ways to address agri-food system challenges. Evidence in the literature, however, reveals that there are limited explanatory frameworks that can adequately diagnose the challenges associated with agri-food systems (de Schutter, 2019). Frameworks and analytical tools from the political science, management, public policy, and political economy fields remain highly fragmented. Consequently, critiques proliferate regarding the lack of external validity, inability to replicate studies, lack of consistent indicators and vague measurements (Resnick et al., 2018;Fanzo et al., 2021). The PEPA Sourcebook provides frameworks and tools to enable practitioners and researchers to analyze multiple sectors of the agri-food system.The PEPA approach centers on power relations, thus requiring consideration of politics and economics.The political economy approach to agri-food systems takes a step beyond classical economic approaches by placing power, ideas, coalitions, and politics at the center of policy analysis (de Schutter, 2019). In general, most power resides with politicians and private sector actors, who often provide accountability and balance in the political influence discourse. Positive change across food, land, climate, and water systems requires a clear understanding of politics and economics and the dynamics between them.PEPA is useful for analyzing progress toward and barriers to achieving the SDGs. PEPA tools and frameworks can be used to study progress and narratives towards the SDGs related to agri-food systems, specifically the goals related to zero hunger (SDG 2), climate action (SDG 13), water (SDG 14),and land (SDG 15). This sourcebook also aligns with the new roadmap for impact outlined by the CGIAR' s five impact areas: (1) nutrition, health, and food security; (2) poverty reduction, livelihoods, and jobs; (3) environmental health and biodiversity; (4) gender equity, youth, and social inclusion; and (5) climate adaptation and mitigation (CGIAR n.d.).PEPA can be valuable in analyzing gendered power dynamics, yet more work remains in incorporating gender analysis into PEPA tools. The gender dimension of agri-food systems can be key to understanding the drivers and outcomes of policy changes in PEPA contexts. The dynamics of power relations in food, water, and land systems affect women, youth, and men differently. Park & Julia (2014) argue that men's and women's equal access to land and participation in agricultural groups, organizations, and cooperatives is crucial for ensuring food security. Evidence from the literature indicates that PEPA lacks consideration of gender issues, particularly in the policy domains related to food, nutrition, and the environment. However, PEPA's focus on power relations means that it can be useful as a tool for analyzing gender and power, both at the policy level and in formal and informal institutions (Haines & O'Neil, 2018). For example, the PEPA of Malawi's mining sector revealed the lack of policies enhancing and supporting the role of women in mining. The government' s broader mining policies ignored gender (Browne, 2014). Further work is needed to more fully include gender and youth considerations in PEPA. Such work should consider the interaction between gender and policy processes from the national to household decision-making levels.Mapping and Kingdon's Window of Opportunity and Legal Assessment Tool. Gender mapping tools, stakeholder analysis frameworks, and the frameworks and tools outlined in this Sourcebook can be used in gender analysis. For example, multi-level stakeholder influence mapping and power mapping can help map the influence of women or women' s associations on the agri-food system. At the same time, Kingdon' s window of opportunity could be useful in achieving a gender-supportive policy change related to gender equity and interests. Gender mapping can also help illuminate various value chain structures, providing analyses of gender relations and roles across the value chain. Me-Nsope & Larkins (2016) mentioned that these tools allow for a clear classification of gender issues along the value chain, especially those issues related to gender inequalities in agriculture. A classification of inequalities can facilitate the development of innovative solutions to gender-based issues. PEPA tools can assist practitioners in understanding human behavior and decision-making, which is useful in exploring the gender dimension of various topics. For example, these tools can reveal how land is managed in terms of relationships or dynamics around women' s decision-making power.In the context of gender-equitable land tenure policies, the legal assessment tool can help visualize the legal intricacies surrounding land access, identify gender inequalities, and target areas that require legal reforms.PEPA can also assist in evaluating the risks associated with policy reforms in various domains. Power struggles between the central government and various interest groups can limit the impact of policy reforms on food, land, and water systems. PEPA can highlight power dynamics, influential actors, and the winners and losers of policy reforms. The insights gained can be used to improve policy design and planning. Discursive power is useful for framing problems, providing solutions, lobbying policymakers, securing research evidence, and developing alternatives (McNeill, 2019).The PEPA Sourcebook contributes to the study of sustainable agri-food systems by providing a framework for integrating relevant national policies and strategies. The Sourcebook provides new insights for researchers, practitioners, and government agencies engaged in collaborative efforts to transform dominant foodscapes. Through a holistic agri-food systems approach, PEPA considers subsector elements, activities, and outcomes. There is a need for national policies and strategies to be oriented toward practical and clearly defined regulations and guidelines for governing the agri-food sector.PEPA approaches to trade-offs between the system domains discussed in this sourcebook -food and nutrition, land and water, and climate and ecology -are limited and need to be explored further. Further PEPA research can provide development practitioners, the donor community, and policy analysts with an accurate understanding of political will at the start of a project. These insights enable them to focus on areas where change is possible and to schedule interventions at appropriate times in the program development cycle. This often-ignored context-specific knowledge is necessary for understanding the drivers of change, or lack of change, as well as risks to development programs. The goal is for development practitioners and researchers to apply the frameworks to answer political economy and policy-related questions.(ab:(\"political economy\" or \"political economy analysis\" or \"Political Economy Framework\" or \"Politics\" or \"Policies\"or \"Political Economy Analysis Tools\") AND ab:( \"food\" or \"food system\" or \"agriculture\" or \"food security\" or \"food availability\" or \"food accessibility\" or \"food affordability\" or \"food utilization\") AND (\"land\" or \"land systems\" or \"land use\" or \"land development\" or \"land access\" or \"land grabbing\" or \"land governance\" or \"land acquisition\") AND (\"water\" or \"water systems\" or \"water governance\" or \"water development\" or \"irrigation\") AND yr: [2002[ TO 2022]]) AND ( ((item-type:((\"Annual report\" OR \"Annual report section\" OR \"Book\" OR \"Book Chapter\" OR \"Bulletin\"OR \"Bulletin article\" OR \"Conference paper\" OR \"Conference proceedings\" OR \"Correspondence\" OR \"Editorial\"OR \"Journal article\" OR \"Journal issue\" OR \"Standard\" OR \"Thesis\") )) (sc:((\"X0\" OR \"ZD\" OR \"FT\" OR \"FR\" OR \"FA\" OR \"GF\" OR \"GC\" OR \"GD\" OR \"GE\" OR \"GG\" OR \"GH\") )) (language:((\"English\") )) ))ii) SCOPUS (TITLE-ABS-KEY (\"political economy\" OR \"political economy analysis\" OR \"Political Economy Framework\" OR \"Political Economy Analysis Tools\" OR \"policy landscape\" OR \"Policy making\" OR \"policy process*\" OR \"policy design\" OR \"agricultural policy making\" OR \"policy change\" OR \"agrarian political economy\") AND TITLE-ABS-KEY (\"agricult*\" OR \"agrifood system*\" OR \"food system\" OR \"agricultural system*\") AND TITLE-ABS-KEY (\"food*\" OR \"water\" OR \"land\" OR \"food system\" OR \"agricult*\" OR \"food security\" OR \"food availability\" OR \"availability of food\" OR \"food accessibility\" OR \"accessibility of food\" OR \"food affordability\" OR \"affordability of food\" OR \"food utilization\" OR \"utilization of food\") AND TITLE-ABS-KEY (\"analysis tool*\" OR \"policy tool*\" OR \"policy analysis tool*\" OR \"analytical framework*\" OR \"policy analysis framework*\") ) ","tokenCount":"9501"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"fef25c81558238830c5ff84b4f29f39b","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/ac1f17ed-7b96-477b-9108-82b45f33413e/retrieve","id":"489697681"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"f5fef271-ed85-47a0-837a-b99ca06d564c","pagecount":"56","content":"Antes que todo expresamos nuestro agradecimiento a todas las personas e instituciones que de una u otra manera han contribuido con la elaboración del Catálogo de Cacaos de Honduras. La idea de desarrollar un catálogo de cacaos en Honduras se hizo realidad gracias al proyecto MOCCA (Maximizando Oportunidades en Cafe y Cacao en las Americas), financiado por el Departamento de Agricultura de los Estados Unidos (USDA) a través de su Programa de Alimentos para el Progreso (Food for Progress Program), que busca mejorar la productividad agrícola y expandir el comercio de productos agrícolas. Otros financiadores de MOCCA son las empresas J.M. Smucker Company, JDE, Peets, Keurig-Dr. Pepper, Nespresso, Olam y Kellogg´s. El componente cacao dentro del proyecto MOCCA fue liderado por Lutheran World Relief donde Carolina Aguilar y Luis Orozco han sido indispensables para que el catalogo se haga realidad. El diseño y la edicion del catalogo fue financiado por la iniciativa Nature-positive solutions del OneCGIAR.El principal objetivo de este catálogo es dar a conocer la diversidad de cacaos que existen en colecciones en Honduras para promover tanto su uso como su conservación. La Fundación Hondureña de Investigación Agrícola (FHIA) lidera la investigación de cacao en el país y mantiene un banco de germoplasma de más de cuarenta clones seleccionadas y debidamente caracterizadas a nivel morfologico, agronomico y genético. A lo largo de los anos la FHIA ha distribuido dichos clones a diversos actores del gremio para promover su disponibilidad a los agricultores. El presente catálogo muestra algunas de las colecciones resultantes mantenidas por cooperativas y asociaciones de productores en el país, y es nuestra expectativa que el catálogo seguirá creciendo en número de genotipos y colecciones. Cada colección es presentada como un capitulo con una descripcion corta de como se estableció, quienes eran los protagonistas mas importantes detras de su establecimiento, y como se puede entrar en contacto para tener acceso al material genético o granos de cacao de genotipos de interés.En este sentido el catálogo pretende servir de vitrina para que cada colección presente sus materiales más recomendados o prometedores en cuanto a características productivas, resistencia a plagas y enfermedades, compatibilidad sexual, afinidad genética y calidad sensorial de la pulpa y el licor de cada genotipo. Sin embargo, dado que las características agronómicas y sensoriales de la pulpa que acompañan cada genotipo fueron colectado mediante muestreo propio y/o proporcionados por los encargados de cada colección, las fichas reflejan la información que hemos podido recopilar hasta el momento, y la expectativa es que la calidad de dicha información seguirá mejorado a futuro. De otro lado, no se ha podido incluir datos de caracterizacion genética y sensorial de licor de los genotipos, pero se espera ir completando esta información a futuro en estrecha colaboración con los encargados de las colecciones.A continuación, se presenta un total de 33 descriptores que permitirán identificar los diferentes clones por sus características morfológicas y su identidad genética. Así mismo, brindarán información sobre su comportamiento en campo (productividad, compatibilidad genética y reacción a enfermedades) y atributos para la industria (sabores de la pulpa fresca y el licor).En esta subsección se indica el nombre (usualmente un código alfanumérico) del clon, así como si pertenece a alguna variedad específica. Se indica también el lugar en donde fue colectado, así como su colector, o agricultor conservador si la colecta se realizó en la finca de un productor. Por otro lado, si el clon fue obtenido a través del mejoramiento genético, se indicará el nombre de su obtentor.Este tipo de descriptores permiten verificar la identidad de un clon a través de distintos atributos en flores, mazorcas y semillas. A continuación, se presenta la lista de descriptores morfológicos, así como los posibles valores que puede tomar y la fuente bibliográfica del que fue tomado o adaptado. En esta subsección, de ser pertinente, se indica algún rasgo característico que no se haya incluido en los descriptores anteriores, como arquitectura de la planta o alguna característica de las hojas.La evaluación en campo del comportamiento de los materiales identificados es fundamental para su uso, ya sea de forma directa, es decir para instalación de plantaciones nuevas, o en procesos de renovación y rehabilitación; o para su uso en programas de mejoramiento genético. A continuación, se presentan descriptores de productividad, de compatibilidad genética y de respuesta a enfermedades y limitantes abióticas.ii. Número de semillas/fruto iii. Índice de semilla (Loor, 2016)Es el promedio del peso (g) de 100 almendras fermentadas y secas iv. Índice de mazorca (Loor, 2016)Se obtiene al multiplicar el número de mazorcas de un árbol por 1000 y dividirlo entre el peso seco (g) de las almendrasEn esta subsección se presentan rendimientos reales, indicando la metodología y las condiciones en las que se evaluaron. En caso no se tengan datos reales, se presenta un rango estimado según lo propuesto por García (2010).En primer lugar, se presenta información de autocompatibilidad o autoincompatibilidad. Así también, se presentan datos de intercompatibilidad con otros clones de la misma colección.Los datos de compatibilidad fueron obtenidosde de las publicaciones Catálogo de clones de cacao seleccionados por el CATIE para siembras comerciales (Phillips-More et al. 2012) y Catálogo de cultivares de cacao (Theobroma cacao L.) evalkuados y seleccionados por la FHIA (López et al., 2017). Se presenta información del comportamiento del clon en condiciones de estrés abiótico: altas temperatura y déficit hídrico. Así también, se indica el grado de acumulación de cadmio en sus tejidos, cuando crece en suelos con alto contenido de este metal.IV. Perfil sensorial -¿Qué sabores presenta?Se presenta la intensidad de los sabores básicos y específicos (dulzor, acidez, astringencia, amargor, sabor frutal y sabor floral) provenientes del análisis sensorial de la pulpa fresca (mucílago) de cacao. La escala usada va de 1 a 5, según lo indicado por García (2010), siendo:   ¿Cual es su afinidad genética?Copracajul CARTIE-R6   La cooperativa promueve la producción de cacao y otros cultivos de alto valor en sistemas agroforestales, amigables con el ambiente, lo cual está en concordancia con sus planes de aprovechar el potencial ecoturistico de esta comunidad e iniciar la reforestación de esta zona.Aurelio Rivera Teléfono: 9864-8854Coavel UF-667   Los clones principales son UF-613, UF-667, TSH-565, ICS-39 que representan materiales que han sido investigados y recomendados por la calidad tanto en rendimiento y resistencia a enfermedades. Un importante logro de la asociación es el establecimiento de arreglo policlonal logrando mayor productividad.En el 2021, la ASOPROPIB es una organización de éxito, cuenta con 217 productores certificados orgánicos y en procesos de certificación. La participación de la mujer como miembro directivo de la ASOPROPIB fortalece la gobernanza del sector cacaotero. APACH es una asociación con 27 años de existencia y está conformada por 83 productores cacaoteros orgánicos certificados por Comercio Justo. Para garantizar la calidad han venido trabajando la parte genética, asistencia técnica, y el manejo postcosecha con uno de los mejores fermentadores, lo que los ha permitido ganar los permios a la calidad.La colección de cacao de la asociación está ubicada en el Ocotillo Occidental, Choloma (coordenadas: 15°39'31.7\"N 87°59'24.6\"W). Su establecimiento arranco en 2009-2010 con la colecta de materiales en finca Patricia Omoa, Cortes, por parte de técnicos del PCC, de APACH y María Sosa.La colección recibió apoyo de varias instituciones y proyectos. El proyecto PCC dio inicio a la siembra del jardín clonal en terreno de la asociación. El proyecto PROCACAHO, implementado por la Federación Nacional de Productores de Cacao de Honduras (FENAPROCACAHO) con el financiamiento de la Agencia Suiza para el Desarrollo y la Cooperación (COSUDE), APACH dio apoyo a los productores y a las fincas, y promocionó los viveros certificados e incentivos a la calidad del beneficiado. El proyecto MOCCA apoyó a los productores por medio de facilitadores de campo, y equipo e insumos para los viveros.La selección de clones fue orientada hacia los materiales que más producen, estén adaptados a la zona y tengan más resistencia a enfermedades. Ya se tienen identificado clones que producen los 12 meses del año, con dos picos de produccion alta, y presentan mejor calidad al momento del beneficiado. Los clones de la colección están siendo usado en la renovación de plantación para hacer una distribución uniforme de los clones ya que hay plantas perdidas en algunos surcos.Los socios de APACH trabajan para mantener la calidad de su cacao orgánico cultivado en sistemas agroforestales (SAF) que les ha hecho merecedores de estar entre los mejores cacaos finos y de aroma de Honduras en los certámenes nacionales de los Premios a la Calidad del Cacao Hondureño.  Jose Daniel Bejarano Tel: 9796-9066 o a través de la página de Facebook de la cooperativa ¿Cómo lo identificamos?  ¿Cual es su afinidad genética? semilla) mediante un recambio de copa. La colección recibió apoyo de diferentes instituciones y proyectos como la FHIA, APROCACAHO, COSUDE, HELVETAS, MOCCA, PROCACAHO y CHOCOLATS HALBA.La motivación para establecer la colección fue el interés para mejorar la producción de cacao, su resistencia a enfermedades, la búsqueda de variedades finos y una mejor propagación de materiales. En la experiencia local el clon TSH 565 tiene un perfil sensorial muy bueno y tiene buena productividad mientras que ICS 95 es un clon precoz productivo.Jose Rosendo Diaz Melgar Correo: [email protected] APROCAGUAL La Asociación de productores agropecuarios de Guaymas limitada (APROCAGUAL) fue fundada en marzo del 2016 con una membresía de 70 socios. Su comercialización actualmente es cacao convencional en grano. La colección de cacao de APROPAGUAL esta ubicada en la finca Diaz, Aldea la 36 Guaymas, municipio El Negrito, departamento Yoro (coordenadas: 15.54N, -87.68O). Su establecimiento inició en el año 2016, por el ingeniero Roger Mejia de ASEPRA y Jose Rosendo Diaz de APROCAGUAL. Con el apoyo de Asesoría y Servicios en Producción Agroindustrial (ASEPRA) se inició la propagación de los clones en la finca de Jose Diaz (Plantación de 35 años aproximadamente y propagada por La colección de cacao de la cooperativa de productores agrícolas Serso San Viator Limitada (COPROASERSO) esta ubicada en el guanacaste, Jutiapa, Atlántida (coordenadas: 15.75N, -86.48O). Su establecimiento fue iniciado en el año 2008 a partir de clones obtenidos de la FHIA, con la participación de Aroldo Dubon de la FHIA, Victor Cámara de SERSO-Honduras, Rony Vayde y Roberto Maclin de COPROASERSO. FHIA y SERSO participaron en el establecimiento de las parcelas demostrativas y el jardín clonal, mientras que FUNDER, PROCACAHO, MOCCA, SOCODEVI, PROLENCA, ACICAFOC, participaron en el establecimiento de viveros y la propagación de los clones en la zona.La motivación para establecer la colección era el interés de volver el cacao un producto de alto valor, y la necesidad de tener plantas más productivas, resistentes a enfermedades y mayor vida útil y productiva. Los mejores rendimientos se han obtenido con los siguientes clones autocompatibles y resistentes a enfermedades. ICS-95, ICS-1, ICS-6, ICS-39, EET-613. Cada año se establecen viveros con estos clones para su propagación y venta.Manuel Nuñez Tel: 9929-0305 o página de Facebook.","tokenCount":"1791"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"dcc44f8bcb983f777a4efd637bb94fc3","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/d316fca2-4170-4606-9bc7-7c85bf24c39e/retrieve","id":"-2103265763"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"04ac2333-1447-4121-8d2f-56d7f87fa2b5","pagecount":"34","content":"Over the past decade, the world has faced severe public health threats including zoonotic diseases, food insecurity, antimicrobial resistance and other emerging pandemic threats. This has been attributed to factors such as climate change, globalization, agricultural intensification, increased human population, leading to pressure on land resources, increased global trade and travel and increased use of antimicrobials in animal production and food preservation. One Health, an integrated, unifying approach that aims to sustainably balance and optimize the health of people, animals and ecosystems has been identified as an effective way to fight these threats at the human-animal-environment interface. One Health education creates a workforce, equipped with knowledge, skills and positive attitude to prevent, detect and respond to infectious disease threats, capable of fostering cross sectoral and interdisciplinary collaboration.The Capacitating One Health in eastern and southern Africa (COHESA) project aims to support the creation of a One Health workforce by integrating One Health core and technical competencies into the existing curricula (preservice education) to produce professionals that can effectively and efficiently respond to challenges that require a One Health approach.This document provides guidelines on integrating One Health competencies into Higher Education Institutes in Ethiopia (HEIs). Specifically, it offers guidelines and strategies for i) mainstreaming One Health concepts in the education curricula as a course; ii) integrating selected One Health competencies into course content, chapters or units; iii) strengthening One Health student clubs in HEIs; iv) designing tailormade summer schools for preservice and inservice professionals; and (v) implementing short courses on zoonoses, emerging diseases and emerging health related problems as well as systems' approaches for effective managing emerging challenges using the One Health approach.1 IntroductionOver the past decade, the world has faced severe public health threats including zoonotic diseases, food insecurity, antimicrobial resistance and other emerging pandemic threats. This has been attributed to factors such as climate change, globalization, agricultural intensification, increased human populations leading to pressure on land resources, increased global trade and travel and increased use of antimicrobial substances in animal production and food preservation (Rahman et al. 2020). The One Health approach mobilizes multiple sectors, disciplines and communities at varying levels to address threats to human, animal and ecosystem health, while addressing the collective need for clean water, energy and air, safe and nutritious food, taking action on climate change and contributing to sustainable development. The approach is therefore considered an effective way to fight the above threats at the human-animal-environment interface. It has also been adopted as a core method to strengthen the world's ability to prevent, detect and respond to infectious diseases threats by the Global Health Security Agenda (GHSA) (Bakiika et al. 2023). The One Health approach is also considered to be critical for achieving several of the United Nations' 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), as health is both a prerequisite and an indicator of sustainable development.The One Health concept is vital because it addresses the complex and interrelated health challenges our world faces. With the increase in global travel, urbanization and environmental changes, zoonotic diseases, antimicrobial resistance and other related challenges can spread more quickly and easily among humans, animals and ecosystems like, leading to new and potentially devastating health threats. The One Health holistic approach helps to prevent, detect and respond to these threats more effectively by considering all the factors involved. This approach can lead to better health for people, animals and the environment, mitigate the impact of diseases and contribute to sustainable development. The One Health approach plays the following roles:1. Disease control: several infectious diseases can be transmitted between animals and humans (zoonoses), highlighting the need for holistic approaches that consider disease in humans and animals.2. Environmental conservation: human activities, such as deforestation and pollution, can impact both animal and human health. By considering environmental factors, the One Health approach promotes sustainable practices that benefit all species.3. Addressing antimicrobial resistance, which arises from the misuse of antibiotics. One Health promotes responsible use of antibiotics in humans, animals and the environment.4. The One Health approach promotes early detection, surveillance and response to emerging infectious diseases resulting from rapid urbanization, globalization and climate change.5. Climate change and Health: climate change affects the health of ecosystems and results in increased spread of diseases. Integrating climate science into the One Health approach promotes better understanding of how changing weather patterns influence zoonotic disease dynamics and environmental health, leading to more effective adaptation and mitigation strategies.6. Food safety: ensuring food safety involves managing risks from farm to table. One Health approaches recognize the interconnections between the health of soil, plants, animals and people, addressing factors like pesticide use, microbial contamination and food handling practices to prevent foodborne illnesses and promote public health.The COHESA project aims to generate an inclusive research and innovation ecosystem, facilitating rapid uptake, adapting and adopting solutions to issues that can be dealt with using a One Health approach. In 2023, COHESA engaged the Inter-University Council for East Africa (IUCEA 2023) to establish benchmarks for One Health curricula. These benchmarks made recommendations for including One Health in Masters' programs in East Africa. However, Ethiopia is not a member of IUCEA, therefore COHESA has encouraged alternative pathways for harmonizing One Health education in HEIs in the country.The need for this guide arose from discussions among national One Health stakeholders during a net mapping exercise where deliberations and debates were held on integrating One Health into education and research. At the end of the exercise, a technical working group was established to guide the integration process. With guidance and technical contribution from the COHESA project lead in Ethiopia (Addis Ababa University), the subteam composed of multiple universities drafted this guide to facilitate integrating One Health approaches and principles into courses of higher educational institutions (HEIs) thereby producing a cadre of One Health ambassadors in Ethiopia.This document was informed by several activities including: 1) Cross sectional survey to assess current status of integration of One Health in HEIs 2) Literature review to identify One Health competencies 3) Mapping of competencies to existing curricula 4) Desk review of international experience in integrating One Health in curricula.Based on the findings, the team made recommendations to integrate One Health into HEIs. The recommendations are in varying states of implementation across the represented institutions and form the basis of the recommendations in this guide.2 Integrating One Health into HEIs in Ethiopia: Current status At the onset of the COHESA project, a cross sectional survey was conducted involving 120 individuals working with institutions of higher learning, government and NGOs sectors in Ethiopia, to assess the current status of One Health in higher education. The online survey was conducted from 10 to 20 September 2023, using a Google survey tool (Google Forms), attached as Annex 1. In addition, key experts, department heads and the Africa One Health University Network (AFROHUN 2021) formerly One Health Central and Eastern Africa (OHCEA) thematic and activity leads were consulted to understand the status of One Health integration into university curricula in Ethiopia.The survey revealed that One Health had been implemented in Ethiopia's HEIs using a variety of approaches, including:1. One Health as an academic program Some universities have in the past established One Health Clubs (OHCs) with the aim of deepening understanding of One Health as an approach and principle. In a few cases, the clubs have been expanded to include high school students. Figure 1 shows the status of OHCs in HEIs in Ethiopia. The clubs were also established to support engagement between students and professionals in the planning and implementing One Health activities, projects and opportunities. Nonetheless, this was inconsistent and not standardized in its approaches. There were no clearly defined deliverables.OHCs within universities and high schools are an important mechanism to roll out different initiatives aimed at deepening One Health as an approach and principle.To improve the organization and function of OHCs, below we offer guidance to universities that intend to develop or revitalize such clubs to support integrating One Health into HEIs:▪ Provide an extracurricular environment for, community engagement outreach activities and practical team based learning exercises such as case competitions ▪ Provide students the knowledge and applied skills to work across disciplines on complex One Health challenges ▪ Promote experiential learning and breakdown disciplinary silos among students and to prepare them as One Health champions in their future education and workplace settings. Although One Health activities were implemented in different modalities by various institutions/initiatives, there has been misunderstanding in One Health concepts and principles and there was lack of institutionalization and sustainability.• Misunderstanding of One Health concepts and principles: One Health has been considered as discipline and few undergraduate, MSc and PhD programs were launched in some universities which are against the principle of One Health that recognizes One Health as an approach that promotes integrating various disciplines to addresses complex challenges at human, animal and environmental interface.• Sustainability challenges: Most of the One Health activities were not aligned with the existing systems and dependent on projects. Hence, most of the activities were discontinued when projects were phased-out. (e.g. Field based experiential learning/demonstration sites at Jimma and Mekele universities).Competencies are the core knowledge, attitudes and skills required of professionals to undertake their respective roles. The fundamental knowledge, skills and abilities required to handle complex health challenges at the intersection of environmental, animal and human health are reflected in One Health's core competences (Laing et al. 2023). These competencies are designed to foster collaboration, understanding and effective action across disciplines. These competencies form the foundation for professionals and practitioners to effectively address complex health challenges at the interface of human, animal and environmental health, contributing to the advancement of One Health initiatives and the overall wellbeing of populations and ecosystems. These updated One Health competencies were proposed by the Network for Ecohealth and One Health (NEOH). NEOH proposed updated One Health core competencies to reflect the evolving narratives in One Health, from the former anthropocentric view of disease avoidance at the human-animal-environment interface, to a more holistic approach that strives to sustainably balance the health of people, animals, plants and ecosystems. It has nine core competencies falling across three broader categories of skills, values and attitudes and knowledge and awareness (Laing et al. 2023 To integrate One Health competencies into Masters' programs, a curriculum review was undertaken to identify the most appropriate courses in each program. Accordingly, it was recommended that competency 3 (systems understanding), 6 (collective learning and reflective practice), 7 (One Health concepts and principles), 8 (theoretical and methodological pluralism) and 9 (harnessing uncertainty, paradox and limited knowledge) be integrated into identified taught courses. In addition, it was recommended that competency 1 (effective communication), 2 (collaborative and resilient working), 4 (transdisciplinarity), 5 (social, cultural and gender equity and inclusiveness), 6 (collective learning and reflective practice), 8 (theoretical and methodological pluralism), 9 (harnessing uncertainty, paradox and limited knowledge) be incorporated into CBE courses. These recommendations are summarized in Table 2. Each program's curriculum was assessed to determine whether the above mentioned One Health competencies were already included. It was found that most of the competencies were not included in PhD curricula. Consequently, integrating the competencies into suitable courses within these programs was recommended. Specifically, the following were recommended for integration: competency 6 (collective learning and reflective practice), 7 (One Health concepts and principles), 8 (theoretical and methodological pluralism) and 9 (harnessing uncertainty, paradox and limited knowledge) into identified taught courses. In addition we recommend that competency 1 (effective communication), 2 (collaborative and resilient working), 3 (systems understanding), 4 (transdisciplinarity), 5 (social, cultural and gender equity and inclusiveness), 6 (collective learning and reflective practice), 8 (theoretical and methodological pluralism), 9 (harnessing uncertainty, paradox and limited knowledge) be incorporated into CBE courses. These recommendations are summarized in Table 3. • Theoretical and methodological pluralism • Transdisciplinarity course, it is suggested for including as a separate chapter preferably at the beginning or as an introductory chapter to the subject matter to give a broader overview. In the meantime, concepts can be incorporated into relevant chapters of the course to highlight the interaction between human, animal and the environment.In addition to integrating One Health approaches and principles into existing curricula and syllabi, additional activities were proposed for adoption by the universities. These additional activities may deepen the understanding of One Health and its role and help to institutionalize One Health initiatives at the respective universities. Since universities in Ethiopia have different programs and experiences, implementing One Health may take different forms and different paces. Most universities already have some initiatives within the rules of One Health which may be complemented by the proposed initiatives:A one-day orientation could be held with the university management to sensitize them to the importance of One Health and the need for curriculum change. Suggested participants include heads of academic programs identified for One Health integration; postgraduate program directors/coordinators; CBE program directors/coordinators; student union management. The format can vary and could include a panel discussion on major One Health issues relevant to HEIs including the One Health concept, the need to produce One Health ambassadors for the future health and wellbeing of ecosystems; and integrating One Health approaches and principles into university education. We propose to pilot this approach in 9 universities including: Addis Ababa, Gondar, Haramaya, Hawassa, Jimma, Mekelle, Bule Hora, Jigjiga and Wello universities. Selecting these universities was based on steps made in integrating One Health and therefore they can serve as ambassadors to other universities in Ethiopia.Training/orienting on One Health to be provided to all instructors of courses selected for One Health integration as well as academic quality directors/coordinators of colleges. Major components of discussion/training could include the One Health concept, One Health competencies, the need to integrate One Health into courses or university education, group discussion on One Health integration into courses (e.g. with instructors of same/similar course in one group) and group discussion on the way forward. We propose to pilot this approach in 9 universities.The students' OHCs promote experiential learning and break down disciplinary silos among students and to prepare them as One Health champions in their future education and workplace settings. The clubs will be linked to secondary school OHCs for experience sharing. The proposed activities of the club include:• Developing guidelines on OHC formation, implementation and management • One Health day celebrations with activities like debates on innovative One Health activities • Developing students' skills and competences in One Health leadership, community engagement, analysis and communication.• Public awareness creation campaigns on One Health, emerging pandemics, food safety and AMR at least once in a year • Trainings to build student's competencies on One Health approaches and principles • Outreach activities to undertake One Health activities• Getting a mentor from within the university to guide and support the club It is proposed that Jimma university leads in organizing the 2024 One Health summer school supported by COHESA. The overall goal of the planned summer school is to provide knowledge, skills and competencies on One Health and its approaches and principles that support prevention and management of complex global challenges to human, animal and environmental health. The summer school will have two components, namely: (1) One Health approaches and principles in teaching and research; and (2) Infectious diseases surveillance, risk assessment and management. One Health concepts, approaches and competencies particularly on soft skills will be aligned with disease surveillance, risk assessment, prevention and control, partnership and collaboration with practical illustrations.The summer school will include lectures, practical sessions and three days field attachment. Participants will be attached to a One Health demonstration site/community outreach for two to three days to provide an opportunity for them to work together to identify community problems at the human, animal and environment interface with suggested solutions that the university may take up to pursue as part of its routine program. The course will be designed to empower key course instructors in human, animal, environmental fields as well as engineering and social sciences drawn from senior universities in Ethiopia. We aim to work through department heads and/or deans of different programs of the senior universities to identity the right participants who will not only align lessons to their courses and/or researches but also serve as contact persons to integrate One Health in teaching and research activities of their respective universities. The summer school is expected to produce 30 One Health advocates at different universities and research institutions. The summer school will take place for two weeks between July and September 2024.Since Jimma university has an established One Health centre of excellence, in the long-term, the university plans to sustain the summer program with support from governmental and non-governmental organizations with the eventual goal of commercializing the program.Universities can integrate One Heath into their course by developing short courses. The following are examples of short courses that could be developed:Objectives: Understand the role of biodiversity conservation on ecosystem services and preventing zoonotic diseases spillover Content:• Biodiversity conservation and ecosystem services Background and goal of the survey COHESA aims to generate an inclusive research and innovation ecosystem, facilitating rapid uptake, adaption and adoption of solutions to issues that can be dealt with using a One Health (OH) approach, with the One Health concept embedded across society in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA), working for healthy humans, animals and environment. Addis Ababa University as a multiplier of the COHESA project aims to assess the level of integration of One Health in HEIs in Ethiopia. Cognizant of your role in the higher education system, you are identified to provide information on the need and current status of One Health integration into your respective institutions. Please rest assured that your response will be used only for the intended purpose. We sincerely appreciate your contribution  a) ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------b) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------c) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------d) ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------e) -----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------11. If there is a field demonstration site/attachment: a) Number of demonstration sites -------------------------------------------------------------------b)Main One Health activities ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------12. What are the challenges encountered during integrating One Health in education system? a) Program(s)----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------b) Course(s)-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------17. Which One Health competencies will be integrated into this course(s)-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------18. What contribution does a department make to integrating One Health to the curriculum?  --------------------------------------------------------","tokenCount":"2999"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"8b07b246717a26fd3d152c9834fa50bf","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/c4ad02e7-403d-41b9-9d2c-6ba1255e2762/retrieve","id":"1169000668"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"510a8b77-fd11-4ae6-9c1c-9bf3f0a21d5b","pagecount":"104","content":"CIP publications contribute with important development information to the public arena. Readers are encouraged to quote or reproduce material from them in their own publications. As copyright holder CIP requests acknowledgement and a copy of the publication where the citation or material appears. Please send a copy to the Communication and Public Awareness Department at the address below.We acknowledge the support of the CGIAR Research Programs on Roots,Tubers and Bananas (RTB) and on Policy and Institution and Market (PIM) respectively, which have enabled south-south learning between colleagues based in Africa and Latin America, and among field practitioners engaged in integrating gender into value chain approaches, tools and interventions.We also value the support of the OFSP-AIS program, funded by ASARECA, through which, in 2012/2013, we began the effort of integrating gender into the Participatory Market Chain Approach (PMCA) in East Africa (Kenya,Tanzania, and Uganda). A similar undertaking by colleagues from Latin America started in April 2013, during an OFSP-AIS gender in business planning workshop, where CIP's researchers participated and initiated an intense collaboration to develop additional tools for mainstreaming gender in the PMCA, and to test and validate them in the Andean countries.The impetus for publishing this prototype guide came one year later, in April 2014 in Entebbe, when RTB and PIM co-funded a workshop to review CGIAR efforts of mainstreaming gender in value chains. At this workshop, CIP researchers discussed and approved the PMCA gender tools with key inputs and reflections from colleagues from Bioversity, CIAT and IITA.A special thank goes to CIP researchers, Margaret McEwan and Sarah Mayanja, for the valuable contribution to develop and adapt the first version of the gender responsive tools for PMCA.We would like to thanks Gordon Prain, Leader of CIP Centre of Excellence for Social and Health Sciences and Innovation Systems, and Andre Devaux, CIP Latin American and Caribbean Director, for their support and commitment to the gender and value chain agenda.We owe a special thanks to Graham Thiele, Leader of the RTB Program, for the important feedbacks and theoretical reflections provided during the workshop held in Uganda in 2014, and afterwards.We can't fail to acknowledge contributions from Thomas Bernet from FiBL (but previously with CIP) for his support contributions during the process. Also, a special thanks goes to Netsayi Mudege, the Gender Research Coordinator at CIP, for the inputs and the supervision in the approach used for mainstreaming gender in the PMCA.The Prototype guide for integrating gender into the Participatory Market Chain Approach seeks to build understanding on gender issues into value chain interventions and to create the capacities of PMCA's facilitators in applying gender analysis and developing gender-sensitive strategies to promote equitable opportunities for men and women to access to and benefit from the PMCA intervention.This guide is a prototype document developed from lessons learned during field research and exchanges between CIP researchers and PMCA practitioners from East Africa and the Andes.To develop a gender-sensitive PMCA, gender components were integrated into the PMCA's methodology in the form of specific tools that accompany the PMCA's phases of analysis and intervention.Two types of gender tools are presented in the guide: new gender tools nested into critical points of PMCA and a review of existing PMCA tools that have been made gender-sensitive.The gender tools are meant to help users to consider critical gender issues, such as: an improved understanding of men's and women's division of roles and power positions in the value chain, a better identification of specific gender needs, an in-depth analysis of the opportunities and risks for men and women when new businesses are created, and the need of promoting gender-equitable market-driven solutions. Learning and capacity development of trainees are achieved through a sequence of training workshops developed along the three phases of PMCA and their skills are reinforced by backstopping activities.The underlying concept is that value chain development interventions such as PMCA, when designed with gender-equitable principles, can foster both competitiveness and enhance poverty-reduction goals.It is expected that PMCA facilitators who have been introduced to the gender analysis and gender tools presented in this guide will be able to design more gender-responsive, efficient and inclusive value chain interventions.Introduction: gender-sensitive training on PMCA application C h a p t e r IThe Participatory Market Chain Approach (PMCA) is a pro-poor value chain (VC) methodology aiming at stimulating market chain innovations that promote win-win relationships between market actors and smallholder farmers in order to facilitate their participation into the value chain. It was developed in 2005 by the International Potato Center (CIP) with the experience gained in the Andes.This methodology has been applied to several VCs during the last ten years including East Africa and Asia, and has proved to be a powerful approach to fostering market-driven innovations and facilitating smallholder inclusion.Two methodological support tools related to the PMCA approach have been developed:The PMCA User's Guide (2012), which supports PMCA implementations guided by facilitators and the institution leading the process (available in English and Spanish);  A Trainer's Guide, which provides strategic guidance to trainers who are building capacity of PMCA facilitators (available only in Spanish) Both guides have been applied and validated in the Andes, East Africa and South West Asia. Based on the applications of the PMCA in East Africa (between 2011 and 2013), CIP researchers and partners identified a major methodological gap in considering gender issues among VC actors, and therefore the need to make the methodology more gender sensitive. Indeed, the existing guides lack an adequate focus, as well as practical instruments on how to analyze and address constraints faced by different value chain actors (men, women, young men, young women), which, in turn, limit the PMCA's effectiveness to ensure more equitable access to opportunities and benefits Chapter I Introduction: gender-sensitive training on PMCA application C h a p t e r I generated along the chain.These limitations would consequently impair the goal of helping reduce gender inequalities of the beneficiaries of the intervention and they would potentially affect value chain performance.To address this gap, CIP colleagues in Africa and Latin America have developed, tested and/or adapted several gender-analytical tools to complement the PMCA methodology and make it gender responsive.This experience gave rise to an ongoing South-South knowledge sharing and learning process between Africa and Latin America regions related to methods and tools that aim at improving the link between smallholders and markets.The process has been supported by the CGIAR Research Program (CRP) on Roots Tubers and Bananas (RTB) and the CRP on Policy Institutions and Markets (PIM). Based on this experience and on the previous guides, this document proposes a systematic strategy to incorporate gender tools into the PMCA and to assist trainers in the development of PMCA facilitators' capacities for the application of the gender tools.A number of arguments have been put forward to emphasize the importance of a gender perspective and of gender-sensitive analytical tools for value chain analysis, such as:(i) Social justice: human rights translate differently for men and women. (ii) Poverty reduction: fighting poverty is hard if you are gender blind. (iii) Economic consideration: gender inequity is a missed business opportunity (KIT, AgriProfocus & IIRR, 2013).Chakrabati (2013) argues from a broader perspective that: \"Only when gender equality is assured, economies can make use of society's potential talent as well as encourage innovations that create wealth\". Consequently, the current guide stresses the importance of applying a gender perspective, supported by specific gender tools, to PMCA implementations and trainings.What are the expected changes introduced by this guide?It is expected that PMCA facilitators, who have been introduced to gender analysis and planning tools presented in this guide will have skills to design more genderresponsive, efficient and inclusive value chain interventions that meet both men's and women's needs and interests 1 , and to adjust the methodology according to the specificities of the context and of the value chain's actors involved.This document is a prototype guide for integrating gender into PMCA; it is complementary to the existing PMCA User's and Trainer's Guides. It reflects the structure of the existing Trainer's Guide (Spanish version) and presents a sequence of four training workshops for PMCA capacity building where, gender analysis and tools are introduced in each phase of PMCA. This guide intends to be a support document for PMCA trainers as well as for PMCA facilitators during the implementation. It provides gender tools and new insights from field practice.The guide will be validated through field applications in different contexts, and the tools will undergo a series of field trials during 2016-2017 in Africa and Latin America.Introduce key concepts on gender and value chain: why, how and when to introduce gender in VC analysis and intervention.Introduce and integrate gender analysis and perspective into the PMCA capacitybuilding process, specifically considering the PMCA training workshops described in the previous PMCA Trainer's Guide and outlined in this guide.Describe how to incorporate gender concerns throughout the three phases of PMCA, by using gender analysis, planning and evaluation tools or existing PMCA tools with a gender lens, and provide illustrative examples of how to use those tools.Identify check points of each PMCA phase for helping trainers in their backstopping activities, ensuring that gender concerns are effectively incorporated. Provide a detailed full conceptual and illustrative description of the PMCA methodology and training process, which is described in the PMCA User's Guide and in the Spanish version of the PMCA Trainer's Guide.Prescribe which, among the different gender tools proposed, are the most appropriate for particular VC settings.Provide a detailed description of the pros and cons of various gender tools.Create full expertise in gender analysis and planning.The objective of this guide is to help PMCA trainers effectively teach PMCA facilitators how to incorporate a gender perspective and use specific gender tools during a PMCA application.The gender capacity-building process follows the sequence of workshops and backstopping activities as requested in the PMCA training process.Trainers should work to achieve results at three levels: knowledge, skills and attitudes, as shown in the following scheme. What are the PMCA phases and the corresponding gender tools to be used?The PMCA methodology comprises three phases: Phase 1. Rapid market chain assessment and identification of innovation opportunities. In this phase a Research and Development (R&D) organization (such as NGO, research institution, etc.) initiates the PMCA process by selecting the market chain to work on, identifying potential partners and carrying out exploratory market chain appraisal. Phase 1 ends with a final public event, where market chain actors (farmers, traders, processors, and market agents), meet the PMCA leading institution that presents the results of the market chain appraisal and shares actors´ different expectations, constraints and capabilities, and facilitates discussion on possible innovations.Phase 2. Analysis, selection and prototype development of identified opportunities. During phase 2, the R&D organization establishes thematic groups, which focus on a particular innovation opportunity in the commodity value chain and facilitates meetings.These meetings are designed to: i) foster mutual trust and knowledge-sharing among participants, ii) to deepen the analysis of the potential market chain innovations, and iii) to pilot the development of the selected innovation (business plan and prototype development). Likewise the first phase, this second also ends with a final event where each thematic group presents their progress, common objectives and the activities realized to fully develop market chain innovations. During this phase, the group and the facilitator will meet and engage with other actors in the process of innovation.Phase 3. Launch of innovation. In this last phase the market chain actors collaborate for practical innovation processes with the support of the R&D organization.This phase focuses on the activities needed to launch specific innovations and may take from three to six months. It closes with a large final event in which the innovations are launched to a wider group including donors, politicians and investors.In each of these phases, the PMCA implies the application of specific tools for analysis and for decision-making purposes.This gender guide proposes the inclusion of a gender perspective through two approaches: By introducing gender analysis, planning and evaluation tools.By incorporating a gender focus to the existing PMCA tools.The following table presents new or existing PMCA tools, classified by their level of gender and the corresponding phase of PMCA where they should be used.Phase 2 Note: the level of gender-responsiveness in all tools has been categorized according to three levels: none, some and significant.The impact filter tool was already present in the User's guide but had no gender focus in it.The gender tools for PMCA:Five gender tools for analysis and planning are introduced in this guide.These tools will be introduced throughout the PMCA training workshops presented in the next chapter.The tools are:Tool 1: Gender-Sensitive Impact FilterThe Impact Filter tool is part of the PMCA User Guide (tool1 of User's guide) and has been revised to incorporate a gender perspective.The Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter is used in PMCA Phase 1 and provides a rapid qualitative evaluation of the expected impacts that different market opportunities are likely to have on poverty, society and environment.The Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter tool looks at possible impacts of market opportunities on: i) potential to involve women in market chain activities and in decision-making and ii) potential effect on women's and men's incomegenerating opportunities, access to resources, and capacity building.This tool will help to focus on those potential innovations that are most likely to produce the desired development impacts, including on women's economic empowerment, while not exerting a negative impact on the most vulnerable actors.This tool consists of a survey questionnaire that aims at collecting and analyzing the perspective of public and private institutions and stakeholders that influences or supports the PMCA intervention.The analysis focuses on understanding both: i) the gender awareness and knowledge of the gender context (gender norms and rules) ii)the gender responsiveness of the institutions (i.e. whether they have built-in mechanisms to ensure gender balance within the organization and to carry out interventions aimed at improving gender equality). After conducting the interviews, the PMCA facilitator can decide whether the interviewed organization can be a potential partner in ensuring that identified gender-based constraints are addressed and to what extent it may need some capacity building in gender mainstreaming.This tool is used at the beginning of PMCA Phase 1, along with the Qualitative Assessment of Market Chain (see Trainer's Guide), and it provides useful information on the market chain context to feed into the Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping (tool3).This tool enables users to capture information on the roles and the power position of male and female actors along the market chain and reveals existing gender issues that may impede market chain development.The Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping gives insights on what actions or strategies can support the development of genderresponsive innovations. It is used during Phase 1, prior to the first event, within the R&D organization facilitating the PMCA. Linked to the use of the Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter (tool1), it fosters reflections on gender issues along the chain in a systemic way.The tool can also be used during the Final Event of phase 1, together with the invited actors, to analyze and discuss more explicitly the gender constraints into the identified (commercial) innovations.This tool is complementary to the Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping tool (tool3), and allows a deeper understanding and identification of gender-based constraints and strategies to address them. It provides insights into gender roles and activities along the different nodes of the value chain, while also identifying the constraints faced by these actors in accessing resources and services needed to carry out their activities. Moreover it facilitates an analysis of the identified gender-based constraints by looking at their consequences, both for the actors and for the sector as a whole, making it possible to prioritize the most crucial constraints to be addressed.This tool is best used in phase 2, after that a market opportunity has been selected by the thematic group. It can be first used by facilitators and then validated in a participatory way with thematic group members. Information collected through the Gender-Based Constraint Analysis and Planning tool can be useful to be integrated into the Business Plan (tool7 User's Guide)The Gender Risk-Benefit Analysis is a useful participatory assessment tool to quickly evaluate the effect that implementing a business opportunity has on female and male chain actors considering relevant dimensions such as amount of work, income, social position and/or market position.The tool helps to ensure that business opportunities do not exert a negative effect on either female or male chain actors. It is used during Phase 2 and 3 with thematic groups.Sharing the theoretical and practical knowledge needed to enable new PMCA facilitators to use the methodology in a new context can be a difficult task. Besides deep methodological insights, in many cases attitude changes are needed from the facilitators in order to interact with the variety of market chain actors involved in a the intervention. At the same time, new insights need to be converted into practical skills for facilitating the PMCA process and applying the different tools. These challenges become more complex when a PMCA trainer is not available in the location where the PMCA is being applied, and that some training and backstopping need to be provided through emails, skype or telephone in addition to face-to-face meeting.This implies that the PMCA trainer must be flexible enough to adapt the training modules to a new context, considering the characteristics of the value chains in which the PMCA is applied, as well as the level of knowledge and experience of the facilitators and their training needs.The capacity-building strategy for PMCA aims to respond to this complexity through the use of four sequenced training workshops and corresponding backstopping activities integrated into the three structured phases of a PMCA application. Linking the PMCA capacity-building process with implementation of the method will allow the PMCA facilitators to gain relevant capacities stepwise, when they implement the method and to benefit from an iterative process that allows them to put into practice what they have learned, and bring back experiences in the next workshop. The PMCA capacity-building strategy involves both: In general, the training workshops aim at broadening the theoretical and practical knowledge related to the PMCA. Figure 1 illustrates the sequences of the workshops and their main objectives to build the capacities needed to implement a PMCA. On the other hand, complementary backstopping activities aim at providing practical assistance to improve the work and address challenges faced by the facilitators during PMCA applications. Figure 2 shows the suggested time frame for the capacity-building activities.  Note before starting: how to use the different PMCA Manuals to complement information needed for training.When developing the workshop, the PMCA trainer will use this prototype guide to design the structure of the workshop, both session contents and agenda, and to introduce the gender analysis and tools. He/she will use the existing Trainer Guide for the general development of the training session and content, and she/he will make reference to the User's Guide when presenting tools already developed in that document.One or more R&D organizations and potential PMCA facilitators involved in supporting the value chain development are interested in getting to know the PMCA, having in mind that the method, its concepts and tools might be useful for them.Different R&D actors and especially technical staff of the organization(s) that will lead the PMCA application. Other actors might want to join the workshop, including donors and policy makers.By the end of the training, trainees will be able to: 1 Understand the basic goals and principles of the PMCA, and their roles as PMCA facilitators. 2Assess the potential value of the PMCA for their organizations and the value chains they want to work on. 3Understand the importance of integrating gender in value chain analysis; knowledge and practice of gender tool for phase1. 4Better understand how to approach market chain actors by using a structured process that aims at creating trust and tangible innovations.Participants:Workshop Objectives: For practical reasons, it is possible that the trainer and facilitator(s) meet together for backstopping the activities related to the final event (check points (d) to (i)) just before the final event 1.This would permit the PMCA trainer to be physically available and also to participate in the final event and to better understand the context where PMCA is applied. The training workshop for phase 2 could be done immediately after the final event of phase 1 to optimize the logistic of capacity building activities.Introduction to the workshop, including presentation of participants and trainers.Presentation and discussion of PMCA theory and practice (use of case studies).Presentation and discussion of gender in value chains (use skits on gender roles and their implications, and presentation on rationale for incorporating gender into value chain intervention and PMCA, see annex 6).Assignment 1 -group work: SWOT analysis of specific market chains and evaluation of PMCA (User's Guide pg.38).Presentation of the suggested tools of PMCA Phase 1: Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter (tool1), Gender Organizational Assessment of Partner Organization (tool 2), Qualitative Market Survey (see Trainer's Guide), Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping (tool 3).Preparation of field visit, for testing the qualitative interviews that will be used in the Qualitative Market Survey (see Trainer's Guide). Final discussion: challenges when using PMCA, next steps, workshop evaluation.Session 8:Session 9:Note: Given the time constraints of R&D organization and staff participating to training, the workshop is designed such that key people participate at least during the first morning, when the method is presented and in the final session, when participants share their conclusions about PMCA and the steps they've planned to move on with implementation. It may be necessary to bring in expertise for gender in value chains sessions, if the PMCA trainer(s) do not have the skills.Workshop 1 -Agenda The SWOT Analysis is a qualitative evaluation tool that can be used to assess products, projects, persons, methods, etc.This evaluation method is based on the perception of the evaluators regarding the following four aspects: For each issue a card (white color) is written that summarizes the idea, which is then placed on the wall according to the figure shown above.To discuss what advantages and disadvantages PMCA seems to have when potentially used in the assessed subsector.Green cards are added to the prepared SWOT matrix indicating where and how PMCA might help to capitalize on strengths and opportunities, respectively, to remove bottlenecks and threats.Yellow cards are added to the prepared SWOT matrix indicating where and how PMCA would not be of help to improve the situation Devaux A., Barone S.,Velasco C., Amaya N., Bernet T.PMCA Facilitators, actors who know the sector well, thematic groups When:Phases 1 & 2 Preparation: 1/2 day Category:Qualitative analysis/ group work Duration:1 dayThe Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter tool provides a rapid qualitative evaluation of the expected impacts that different market opportunities are likely to have on poverty, social and environmental objectives.This tool is already part of the PMCA User Guide (tool 1 of the Users' Guide) and has been revised to make it gender sensitive. It is therefore not a new tool, but a revised Impact Filter tool.This tool enables R&D organizations to plan and guide interventions more effectively by providing inputs to inform the selection of market opportunities with the most beneficial impact possible.It explicitly takes into account the following dimensions of impact: Economic: poverty reduction, income risk and women's economic empowerment. Social: empowerment of poor/most vulnerable actors (e.g. women, and youth). Environmental-natural: resource management.It is a rapid, ex-ante qualitative assessment tool that can be applied as a participatory process. InBrief description:Purpose:Tool 1: Gender-Sensitive Impact FilterTool 1 C h a p t e r I I this case, actors with different professional backgrounds and experiences would jointly evaluate the potential impacts of different market opportunities.When used as part of the PMCA methodology, the Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter allows the R&D organization to make strategic decisions. It provides the organization with information to compare different market opportunities in terms of the potential impacts with regard to the different impact dimensions. It is important to consider those dimensions with a gender lens, given that both women and men play important roles within value chains but do not have equal access to resources and benefits. It is also essential to understand these different roles and address those inequalities in order to achieve overall project objectives and avoid perpetuating discrimination.In the context of the PMCA, this tool is used at the end of Phase 1, once the different market opportunities have been identified, to help define the thematic groups; or in Phase 2 as part of the thematic group discussions.This tool will help focus on those potential innovations that are most likely to produce the desired development impacts and not exert any negative impact on the most vulnerable development actors, including women.The first step is to characterize the different market opportunities identified according to selected common qualitative criteria (e.g. market size; target population, by sex; production zones, etc.).Then, with this information a matrix is prepared (see Table 1/tool1).StepTo compare the expected impacts of the selected market opportunities in detail, a more complete chart is developed by R&D organizations (see Table 2/ tool1). First, the development objectives of the project should be identified with a gender perspective: these are usually defined in project documents and consider normally economic, social and environmental impacts.When the gender dimension is not included, it will be important to consider gender balance and gender equity as intrinsic goals in all the development objectives. The finer grained analysis of impacts is conducted by defining sub-criteria to each of the three general objectives or impact dimensions (economic, social, and environmental). Impacts with regard to gender equality and women's economic empowerment should be included in all the three dimensions (see Table 2/tool1).To ensure that each overall objective and its subcriteria are assigned to the correct level of importance, the criteria are weighted by PMCA facilitators and implementers in two steps (see ) should be weighted.Then, each sub-criterion is weighted.The relative importance of each subcriterion is defined by assigning a percentage representing its respective importance or \"weight\" (the total should add up to 100%).To determine which market opportunity would contribute best to the development objectives, each market opportunity is evaluated per sub-criterion (Table 2/ tool1).Thus, each sub-criterion is rated by assigning to it a number ranging from 1 to 10 using the following approximate scale: 1 = \"impact is very negative\" 5 = \"impact is neutral\" 10 = \"impact is very positive\".The process used to obtain this rating may vary from case to case, depending on whether this tool is used in a participatory setting or not (see Box below).Step 4: rating different market opportunitiesDesigning the evaluation process A potential impact can be evaluated in different ways. One way is to evaluate it by working in a small team made up of people who know the sector well, in terms of both production and the market. Such an assessment could be done by the team jointly or individually. If done individually, average values would be derived from individual assessments.Another way is to undertake the evaluation within a bigger group, as part of a participatory process where different experts and point of views of market chain actors are represented and involved. In this case, however, it will be important to consider the fact that personal, institutional and commercial interests may distort the process. do not have the skills.For each market opportunity, values are calculated for each sub-criterion by multiplying A x B x C where: A = Weighting factor of general objective (%) B = Weighting factor of sub-criterion (%) C = Rating of impact at the sub-criterion level (value 1 to 10) D= A x B x C =result of evaluation of each sub criteria To compare the overall expected impact across market opportunities, the coefficients calculated for each sub-criterion (i.e. all value D) are added up for each case (see   The impact dimensions of the project are labeled as (Ai) and they are: economic (A1), social (including gender) (A2), and environmental dimension (A3). Each dimension is weighted (%) in relation to the others. The relevant sub-criteria for each dimension are labeled as (Bi) and are weighted to reflect their relative importance in (%).Then, a numerical ranking from 1 (a very negative impact) to 10 (a very positive impact) is used to rate the expected effect that each market opportunity (MO1, MO2, MO3, etc.) would have on the different impact dimensions and sub-criteria specifically (value from 1 to 10, labeled as Ci).Finally, the weighted results from each sub-criteria (labeled as Di) for each market opportunity are totaled (labeled as E) to allow comparison of the overall impact potential of all market opportunities. As an example the table present calculation for the market opportunity 1 (MO1).It is recommended to discuss and interpret results with the actors involved in the market opportunity to create ownership and agreement on results by all stakeholders.If the evaluation chart is prepared using average values obtained from individual evaluations, it will be interesting to discuss their final results separately as well as the differences among the individual evaluations.The latter will allow you to discuss why there are similarities and differences among evaluators, if such be the case.Which market opportunities should be prioritized is partly a decision that will depend on the final score in each application.Nevertheless, it will also be important to consider other issues and their relative importance regarding the market opportunity that may not yet have been taken into account.This is particularly important if the assessed market opportunities received similar scores.For example, certain market chain opportunities might better capitalize on assets that are already available (e.g. market information, production know-how and business contacts, etc.).Gender is another very important aspect to take into account when choosing a market opportunity. Gender inequalities are still present in many market chains.This disparity can be expressed in terms of power holding positions, access to resources and opportunities and benefits (e.g. income received). Thus, contributing to reduction of gender inequalities and enhancement of women's economicStep 6: interpreting the resultsStep 7: drawing sound conclusions C h a p t e r I I empowerment or, at a minimum, seeking to avoid negative impact on the most vulnerable actors, including women, should be important considerations when finally discussing and choosing a market opportunity.The Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter is a flexible tool, given that it can be adjusted to different context where an ex-ante impact assessment is relevant. In either case, when adapting the tool, those using it need to redefine the development objectives, and the three impact dimensions and their sub-criteria, as well as the way they are weighted.The Gender-Sensitive Impact Filter is derived from the poverty filter 6 (Devaux &Thiele, 2004).6. Devaux A. and Thiele G. 2005. Filtros de pobreza para identificar oportunidades de mercado favorables para pequeños productores. In: Conceptos, Pautas y Herramientas, CIP, Papa Andina, p.84-88.Who: PMCA Facilitators When:Beginning of Phase 1 of PMCA Preparation: ½ day (capacity building)1 day (testing the tool) Category:Interview Duration:45-60 min. per interviewThe tool aims at collecting and analyzing the perspective of key institutions and stakeholders intervening, influencing or supporting the VC development.The analysis focuses on understanding both: i) the gender awareness and knowledge of the institution in a given context, and ii) the capacities of the institution to implement gender responsive actions in support to gender equality and empowerment.The institutions selected for the survey and assessment include farmer organizations, local/regional government, NGOs, R&D institutions and other service providers.The total number of interviews to realize for the survey should be among three to five approximately.Assess the knowledge and awareness of the supporting organizations and institutions and their capacity to respond to gender issues related to: gender roles and division of labor within the value chainBrief description:Purpose:Tool 2: Gender Organizational Assessment of Partner Organization Barone S., Amaya N.,Terrillon J., Mayanja S.,Velasco C., Mudege N. Interviews shall be conducted by staff members of the R&D institution who will act as PMCA facilitator or by a team of interviewers. It is important to consider gender balance both among the interviewers and the interviewees, in order to obtain a wider range of perspectives. Interviewers should be familiar with gender concepts and qualitative data collection and analysis. If this is not the case, training on basic gender concepts will be necessary.It is recommended to test the interview before its application; two to three tests should be conducted to assure that all the questions are clear and well understood by the interviewees.Thus, the interview will be revised and adjusted. An example of the interview's guide is presented at the end of the tool (Table1/ tool2)Step 1: select the team of interviewers, develop and test the interviewStep 2: adjust the interview Before going to the field, map the relevant market chain actors and staff from governmental and nongovernmental organizations that you will need to interview. Such information can be obtained by key informants or from secondary data (project reports). Another option would be to hold a brainstorming session among staff of partner organizations in the region.The guiding questions to select the institution and the staff to be interviewed within the institution can be: What are the organizations or institutions involved in the agriculture development sectors?Which of these institutions support economic empowerment of women in that particular market chain?For each selected institution, key actors to be interviewed will be selected by following guiding question: -Who is in the management position? -Who is engaged at the operational level? -Who is in charge of gender mainstreaming if any? Schedule the appointments with the identified people to be interviewed in each institution.At the moment of the interview, remember to introduce the topic, as well as the objectives of the interview.Break the ice before starting the interview by providing some personal information such as your name, position, number of years working in the organization, knowledge and understanding of the topic, that can make the interviewee more relaxed and prone to respond.Step 3: identify key institutions and actors to be interviewedStep  ½ dayThis tool can be used as a preliminary brainstorming tool by R&D organizations as an attempt to understand the gender dimensions (level and term of men and women's participation) of the market chain.The information used in this tool is obtained from the Qualitative Assessment of the Market Chain (see Trainer's Guide) that is carried out in Phase 1, alongside with any relevant secondary data.This mapping tool is then used in a participatory manner in the first final event, to understand both male and female chain actors, raise awareness on gender issues and inequalities along the chain in a systemic way, and start reflecting on what could be done to bridge the gender gap. Make visible women role and activities in the value chain.Identify where men and women play a dominant role in specific segments of the chain where value is high.Use a gender lens to:-Identify power, influence and control along the value chain.Brief description:Purpose:Tool 3: Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping Mayoux L.,Vanderschaeghe, M., Lindo P., Senders A., Motz M. and Terrillon J. Based on Mayoux and Mackie, ILO, 2008 and on APF Gender in Value Chains Toolkit, version 2. 7.In case the PMCA trainer is not confident with his/her gender knowledge and experience, a gender expert may be requires to develop gender session of PMCA.Tool 3 -Determine whether the support services and the environment (physical, business, policy, social, etc.) are enabling men and women's participation and upgrade in the value chain.-Identify bottlenecks (constraints) and opportunities in the value chain and how they influence women's economic empowerment.When used in the PMCA, the Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping tool enables the facilitating R&D organization to capture information on male and female actors along the chain and existing gender issues that may impede or foster the chain development. It is an iterative tool, which can be used after the Rapid Assessment of the Market Chain (beginning of Phase 1) and at the end of Phase 1 during the final event (during the Market Chain Sketch). It can also be used in Phase 2 when market opportunities are analyzed, to get an overview of the context and the constraints and opportunities in terms of gender equality and women's economic empowerment. Finally, a new gender-sensitive map could be drawn at the end of Phase 3 to reflect whether any changes have occurred as a result of the PMCA interventions.Draw a map of the value chain using the following criteria. What is the geographic area (country, province) and specific end product for your value chain? What is the end market? What are the main processes/nodes involved in the chain? Write them down on a colored card.Step 1: actor mapping ment, quality assurance) and financial services (savings, credit, insurance), research. Include also services that can alleviate women's workload.Which services do men and women get from participating in the chain and how? If possible, mention them by node and the percentage of men and women who receive these services. Do men and women have equal access to these services? What are the main constraints that men and women face to access those supporting services? Identify important factors that affect the role and position of men and women in the value chain, such as land ownership rights, infrastructures, public policies, gender norms and stereotypes, market and consumer trends, climate change, etc.Write them on colored cards.You can use minus (-) and plus (+) symbols to illustrate constraints and opportunities.What are the likely constraints women and men could face in this regard? What could be the potential strategies to overcome these constraints?  It will also be useful to identify the benefits that men and women have from participating in a specific chain.This tool is complementary to the Gender-Based Constraint Analysis and Planning (tool4), and they are best used in tandem with each other.Enough time for preparation is required, especially for data collection from secondary sources, prior to mapping.Step 4: identify opportunities and constraints for men and women in the value chain environment  Four days, including the application of two or three tools depending on the context. One of these tools should be the Gender Based Constraint Analysis and Planning Tool (tool4).Despite having at hand the PMCA User Guide, facilitators of thematic groups will face different theoretical and practical issues that might prevent them from moving ahead with the work in their thematic groups.The PMCA trainer should respond to these challenges with practical suggestions.Facilitators of thematic groups during PMCA Phase 2.With these backstopping activities, trainees will be able to: 1 Form thematic groups that have good potential to define and pursue equitable and inclusive market chain innovations with interesting potential development. The day is used for the implementation of the PMCA Phase 1 Final Event.For logistic reasons, the backstopping of activities related to the preparation of final event of phase 2 (check points g to i) might be realized just before the final event take place, and the training workshop for phase 3 may be conducted right after the final event of Phase 2. This will allow the PMCA trainer to be present and to see \"how things go,\" making him/her aware of the strengths and weaknesses linked to the PMCA application (i.e., quality of participation, level of trust and collaboration amongst actors, capacities of PMCA facilitators).Suggested Structure of Workshop 2 Sessions: Representative 1 dayThis tool can be used as a follow up of the Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping (tool 3). It comprises two tables.The first one provides insights into the division of work between female and male actors along the different nodes of the value chain, while also identifying the constraints faced by these actors in accessing resources and services needed to carry out their activities.The second table enables the users to make an analysis of the identified gender-based constraints by looking at its consequences, both for the actors and for the sector as a whole, and by prioritizing the most crucial to be addressed. Root causes of the genderbased constraints are then described to inform strategies to address them. These strategies can then be mainstreamed into a business plan.To provide insights into: division of work by sex; analysis and understanding of the constraints, linked to the access to resources and services, that men and women face when undertaking activities at different nodes of a value chain.Tool 4. Gender-Based Constraint Analysis and PlanningTerrillon J., McEwan M., Mayanja S. (2014) Overview:Brief description:Purpose:Tool 4It enables facilitators to prioritize constraints and identify actions to address these for planning purposes, in particular when drafting business plans.This tool is best used after a market or business opportunity has been selected by the thematic group. It can be first used by facilitators and then validated in a participatory way with thematic group members to realize that, while the opportunity may be good for both male and female actors, different strategies may have to be employed to allow optimal participation and benefits for different gender groups.The information obtained from the analysis is used to develop gender-responsive business plans and innovations.The information collected through the Gender-Sensitive Value Chain Mapping (tool 3) could be used as input for Step 1 actor and activity mapping.Identify actors for each node of the value chain (e.g. small-scale producers, processors, vendors, etc.). Make one single table, focusing on one actor in a specific node or function of the value chain (table 1/tool 4).For each type of actor, list the activities and indicate who carries out the activity (male/female or male youth/female youth).For instance, you could ask small-scale producers to list all the activities they perform during the crop season, from crop and land selection to selling.For each identified activity, probe the degree of responsibility for every gender category by asking \"who does it the most?\" or \"who is mostly involved in that activity?\"Use in PMCA:Step 1: actor and activity mappingStep 2: degree of responsibility by activity  Indicate whether the responsibility is low (X), medium (XX), or high (XXX). One can also use percentage as a measure of degree of responsibility.Identify the constraints men, women and youth (female and male) face or are likely to face while carrying out different activities in each node of the chain.These constraints may be related to access to and control of resources, when such restraints hinder and/or limit actors from benefiting from their participation in the market chain.To identify possible constraints, consider the different capitals described in the PMCA User Guide (p. 3) 8 .Fill in column four of Table 1/tool4 with constraints faced by different actors while carrying out an activity. For example: female fresh root producers in sweet potato market chain in Uganda mentioned planting as an activity in which they are solely involved 9 .They identified lack of access to labor force and manure as a major constraint.Step  This tool is best used with thematic group members in separate focus groups of men and women, followed by a validation in plenary with both groups. It is also advisable to meet actors for each segment of the value chain and fill the tables separately.It may be important to separate the youth category into female and male, depending on the type of chain and socio-economic setting. For example: if land is a constraint, usually female youth face more constraints than male in accessing and using family land.  Ideally, the backstopping activities relating to the planning and implementation of the large final event (end of Phase 3) should take place in a small workshop setting, where the PMCA trainer helps the R&D organization to set up a sound concept for this final event. Given the importance both of the quality of the product (labels, brand, and other marketing standards) and of a successful final event for the last structured phase of the PMCA application, Phase 3 calls for particularly careful backstopping! Suggested Structure of Workshop 3 Sessions: Who: PMCA facilitators (R&D organizations) and thematic groups When:Phase 2 and 3 Preparation: 1 day Duration:Half a dayThe Gender Risk-Benefit Analysis is a useful participatory ex-ante assessment tool to quickly evaluate the effect that implementing a business opportunity has on female and male chain actors.The tool helps to ensure that business opportunities do not exert a negative effect on either female or male chain actors.Selecting a business opportunity bears the risk of having a negative impact on some actors, especially those who are little visible, or have no voice.This tool enables facilitators and actors to perform an ex-ante analysis on the potential positive and negative effects of a business opportunity on chain actors, during business planning. It enables them to identify mitigating strategies to address potential negative effects, and also to decide whether the opportunity will be worth pursuing. The tool can also be used for monitoring and evaluation purposes.This tool can be used in PMCA Phase 2 and 3. It is helpful to score and assess the possible or actual risks and benefits that a business opportunity mightBrief description:Purpose:Use in PMCA:Tool 5. Gender Risk-Benefit Analysis It analyzes risks and benefits differentiated by gender, it creates awareness of the interdependence between actors in a market chain, and determines how the upgrading of one actor can affect the socio-economic conditions of another within the community and market chain.It provides support to plan for potential actions to overcome identified negative impacts and thus increase benefits.It screens for the best business opportunity (economic viability, inclusiveness) and eventually helps to decide whether it is possible to implement it or not, taking into account the benefits generated for vulnerable groups, including women.List actors disaggregated by sex for each node of the market chain and place them on the vertical axis of the matrix shown in Step 1:Step 2: Income and control of resources: this refers to changes in income and control of resources such as land, animals, and credit.Social position: this refers to changes in social position and gender relations as a result of the value chain upgrading.Market position: this refers to changes in economic power position between value chain actors as a result of chain upgrading strategy.Categories in the matrix can be adapted to specific situation and needs. Other relevant categories can be health, food security, etc.Fill in the matrix with the participants/chain actors through a participatory process. Ideally you should use this tool with the thematic group members using the following questions: Some questions to deepen the discussion and come to proposal of action: Who is benefiting and who is losing due to the value chain upgrading? Do you notice differences between changes in the lives of men and women? if so, name them as well as their causes.To what degree are these changes desired?  How can the negative impact be minimized? How can obstacles or negative factors be dealt with? Is it easier/harder for men and/or women to deal with those obstacles and do something about them? What actions can be taken to overcome potential negative impacts? Can men and women undertake those actions equally? Explain.Let the participants answer the questions in groups. Hand out a copy of the matrix on a pieceStep 3:C h a p t e r I I of paper to be completed by each group with the guidance and monitoring of the facilitators.The groups are formed corresponding to different nodes in the chain, to gender criteria (men and women in separate groups) or both (i.e. a female group of actors from a specific node and another of male actors, so one node would have two groups).Each group presents its completed matrix in a plenary session.The facilitation helps to resume and highlight the most important positive and negative changes identified.Information obtained in the workshop should be analyzed.The results can be used to improve the business opportunity identified by suggesting mitigating strategies aimed at reducing negative impact on either group, as well as to monitor and/or assess its impacts.It is recommendable to have two facilitators with the ability to probe further into the first answers given, ensuring that women's voices do not get overpowered.The tool can also be used with one type of value chain actor.The different categories on the vertical axis can be: men, women, household and/or other actors/community, depending on the specificities of the value chain and/or participants. See an example of an application of this tool in the annexes.Step 4:The R&D organization that has applied PMCA will face a new situation, where the role of the R&D organization has changed.The issue is no longer to facilitate a process but rather to respond to specific needs of the market chain actors who own the commercial innovations generated during the PMCA application. If technological and institutional innovations arise from the PMCA process, the R&D organizations will most likely be interested in consolidating these and taking advantage of new market opportunities to create further benefits for smallholder farmers linked to the targeted market chains.R&D staff and 'champions' 10 who have been involved in the PMCA application and who see a need to keep up the innovation process with new mechanisms.By the end of the event, trainees will be able to:1 Identify new opportunities for value chain upgrading and define roles of R&D organizations that have been involved in the PMCA application. Built-in mechanism such as gender policy/strategy to integrate a gender perspective in organization and intervention Pineapple: groups implementing are mixed groups. Implement through partners. Strengthen their capacities to analyze gender issues along the value chain. Give grants, models such as Gender Action Learning System (GALS), capacity building on gender. Gender policy that guides the way PELUM mainstreams gender. Get more involved in gender related work (GALS).Coordinating role with partners.Have an element of gender and VC (injustices in the value chain). Capacity enhancement of members in that methodology.Section A. Institutional knowledge and awareness on gender issues and capacity to develop and implement gender-sensitive interventions  ","tokenCount":"8232"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"d2e8080e6fc21e3d95afed022f5c097d","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://repository.cimmyt.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/97b3ffe2-2adf-45b7-86ce-ba9567e6cf88/content","id":"-2073560334"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"dcdcdfb6-cfdf-4adf-88f2-67d826edd6a9","pagecount":"30","content":"As governments heighten the drive to mechanize agriculture, critical information is required on (i) existing mechanization options, (ii) barriers and challenges, (iii) opportunities for scaling and effective demand for mechanization. This paper combines quantitative and qualitative surveys to help elucidate on some of these key issues in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe where mechanization is part of national policy priorities. Data were collected through Qualitative surveys involving 484 participants in focus group discussions and 109 key informants. Focusing mainly on farm mechanization and irrigation options for smallholder farmers, we found that animal draft power is still dominant for land preparation, ahead of two-and four-wheel tractors. Common options for post-harvest management include shellers, improved granaries and hermetic bags. In terms of demand, there is nascent literature suggesting that farmers in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe are willing to pay positive amounts for different mechanization services, indicating prevalence of effective demand and good opportunities for mechanization. Supply side barriers to scaling mechanization include limited availability of machines and spares, poor after sale, and repair and maintenance services in the vicinity of farmers. On the demand side, high capital requirements, limited awareness and technical knowledge and the high cost of hire services are some of the main barriers to scaling. Based on these findings, there is need for inclusive and innovative financing mechanisms, demand creation and awareness raising to scale up and scale out mechanization.Mechanization is central to making African agriculture more productive, commercial and less arduous (FAO and AUC, 2019). This is epitomized by the inclusion of mechanization in the 2014 Malabo Declaration during the African Union Summit on Accelerated Agricultural Growth and Transformation for Shared Prosperity and Improved Livelihoods that aims to end hunger in Africa by 2025 1 . Given past epochs of limited success to scale out large and expensive four-wheel tractor-based mechanization by national governments (Pingali, 2007), current efforts are more careful not to repeat the same mistakes. Instead of focusing on tractorization 2 -making tractor available -the current impetus focuses on scaleappropriate mechanization which in a broad sense implies adapting machines to the context of farmers and their farming conditions, and needs (Baudron et al., 2015). Therefore, current focus of donors, governments, and international development in general is broadly on agriculture mechanization rather than farm mechanization. This distinction is vital.According to FAO and AU (2019), agricultural mechanization considers the whole value chain from manufacturing, distribution, and use of all types of tools, implements, machines and equipment covering the whole gamut from land preparation, crop management, production, harvesting and primary processing of agricultural produce whereas farm mechanization refers mainly to production activities for crops, livestock, and aquaculture within a farm unit.A focus on agricultural mechanization takes care of both demand and supply side issues. On the demand side, there are efforts to create demand and raise awareness for mechanization and testing of different machinery and mechanization models that assure farmers' access to appropriate machines that can generate income. These activities are centered on the private sector as the main drivers, while governments, NGOs, research institutes and universities provide support functions including financing, research and development, policy and regulations (Daum and Birner, 2020). Often, the pace of mechanization is quicker and becomes more sustainable when the private sector takes center stage. This usually follows the initiation of mechanization activities funded by donors and governments. In essence, investments by donors and governments are necessary to kickstart and sustain mechanization activities until private sector actors are crowded in.Increasing land scarcity, demand for food, population and rural wages, and the increase in the proportion of 'well-off' medium scale farmers (Jayne et al., 2016;Daum and Birner, 2020;Jayne et al., 2021) create a conducive environment for capital-intensive, labor-saving mechanized options (Ngoma et al., 2021). For example, in Ghana, rising land-labor ratios, labor scarcity and the need to expand cropping area are driving up demand for agricultural mechanization through mechanization (Diao et al., 2014). While current conditions favor 2 Refers to the use of any type of tractor (single axle, two-wheel tractor [2WT]; two-axle, four-wheel tractor [4WT]; or track-type) of any power rating in agriculture (FAO and AU, 2019). mechanization and the renewed optimism gives hope, questions remain on how large the effective demand for mechanization is in Africa and the capacity of African smallholder farmers to pay for mechanization services (Pingali, 2007). The effective demand and the extent to which farmers are willing to pay for mechanization is a function of farmers' socioeconomic characteristics, resources endowments, familiarity with and availability of machinery options.This paper takes stock of current mechanization interventions in selected parts of Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe and assesses opportunities and barriers for scaling mechanization and offers some reflections on demand. Mechanization is defined broadly to include any non-human powered agricultural operations covering land preparation, production, harvesting, post-harvest processing and storage, and transportation. We used a mixed methods approach combining qualitative surveys (focus group discussions and key informant interviews) in all the four target countries and secondary data collected in another project (Understanding and Enhancing Adoption of Conservation Agriculture in Smallholder Farming Systems of Southern Africa -ACASA) in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. This paper builds on recent literature that assesses the state and impacts of, and demand for mechanization in Africa (Daum et al., 2023;Ngoma et al 2023;Tufa et al., 2023;Daum and Birner, 2020;Adu-Baffour, Daum and Birner, 2019;FAO and AUC, 2019;Diao et al., 2014;Pingali, 2007). In essence, we review the quite rise of appropriate mechanization and identify barriers and opportunities for scaling.The use of agricultural mechanization in form of large and expensive four-wheel tractors has been promoted in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe from way before these countries attained their political independence (De Groote, Marangu, and Gitonga, 2018). Despite many years of promoting agriculture mechanization in Sub-Saharan Africa, the uptake of mechanization has been slow over the past decade (Daum, 2022;FAO, 2022).In recent years, governments of Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (among other African countries) have shown interest in promoting mechanization as reflected in their current agricultural or mechanization policies. Kenya 's Agricultural Mechanization Policy aims to raise and sustain the level of motorized power use to 50% by 2030 from the current level of 30% (Wawire et al., 2016;Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Fisheries and Cooperatives, 2021). Adoption of mechanization for smallholders in Kenya is limited to a few farm activities such as land preparation and transportation with other activities are done manually.In Malawi, most of the farmers are still using basic hand tools such hoes for land preparation and weeding and have continued using hands for harvesting and processing crops. The National Agriculture Policy of Malawi therefore considers agricultural mechanization as one of the priority policy areas to promote mechanized cultivation, agro-processing and value addition. The policy supports market-based imports of agricultural machinery that is appropriate for the needs of the farmers in Malawi (Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, 2016).As is the case with Malawi, access to agricultural mechanization in Zambia is still very low We used mixed methods, combining qualitative surveys and secondary data. Qualitative surveys included 48 focus group discussions (FGDs) with farmers and 109 key informant interviews (KIIs) in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe (Table 1). Four FGDs were conducted per district/county disaggregated by gender and age group i.e., one for each of female, male, youths, and mixed group (female, male and youth). Overall, 593 people participated in the qualitative surveys across the four countries (180 female, 177 male and 127 youth). The secondary data used in the analysis were collected through household surveys conducted in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe under the ACASA project. In consultation with national stakeholders, the ACASA surveys were conducted in Nsanje, Balaka, Nkhotakota, Chitipata, Dowa, Rumphi, and Zomba districts in Malawi. In Zambia, the surveys were conducted in parts of Choma, Siavonga, Mumbwa, Kaoma, Chipata, Mpongwe and Serenje districts. Ten districts were covered in Zimbabwe, including Chiredzi, Matobo, Bubi, Masvingo, Zaka, Gokwe South, Kwekwe, and Nyanga, Murewa and Shamva. This gave a sample of 1,512 in Malawi, 1,407 in Zambia and 1,455 in Zimbabwe. Results based on these data exclude Kenya because it was not part of the ACASA survey. Willingness to pay in Malawi was assessed using contingent valuation method while the Becker-DeGroot-Marschak (BDM) experimental auctions were used in Zambia and Malawi. Unlike contingent valuation which uses hypothetical scenarios in eliciting willingness to pay, BDM mimics a market scenario where participants bid for good and services using real money. This makes BDM incentive compatible. See (Tufa et al., 2023) for details on the methods used in Malawi and (Ngoma et al., 2023) for Zambia and Zimbabwe. The follow-up qualitative surveys in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe were done in a subset of districts covered by the ACASA surveys in these countries. As such, the two activities are complementary.We identified 19 mechanization options that being promoted and used by farmers in parts of Nakuru and Makueni counties in Kenya (Table 2). These mechanization options include hermetic bags, four and two-wheel tractors, rippers, shellers and improved animal drawn implements. The cost of machinery is one of the key barriers to scaling mechanization in Kenya. There is a desire for more trainings on mechanization options (especially on the benefits and use of different machinery) to enhance scaling in Kenya. More details are in Table 2. While there is a perception that mechanization is low in Malawi, we found some incipient mechanization activities in Balaka and Nkotakota districts. Hermetic bags, four-wheel tractors, rippers, shellers and knapsack sprayers among the 14 distinct mechanization options promoted and used by farmers in parts of Balaka and Nkotakota districts (Table 3).The main challenge hindering scaling up of mechanization in Malawi is limited number of  3 for further details.  Participants in FGDs and KIIs four districts in Zambia identified 21 mechanization options being promoted and used by farmers (Table 4). Example mechanization options two -and four-wheel tractors, hermetic bags, solar irrigation, shellers, etc. (Table 4). The main barriers to scaling include lack of finance to buy and hire mechanization equipment, inadequate knowledge on the benefits of mechanization equipment and limited access to mechanization equipment. There is potential for scaling mechanization options in Zambia due to high demand as most of the farmers appreciate the benefits of mechanization and there is plenty of arable land that can be exploited using mechanization. -No chemicals are used to preserve the harvest, thus reducing costs -Provides a safe way to keep crops from being attacked by termites as there is no oxygen that is left in the bag -Can store up maize for a long time Four-wheel tractor -Four-wheel tractors are very expensive to buy or hire as most smallscale farmers do not own them. Hiring charge can go as far as ZMW 1,000 per hectare -High fuel costs and maintenance -Tractors destroy the soil as they make furrows in the field -Promotion programs only target farmers with a certain of production capacity -Requirements to be considered in promotion programs requires consideration of a business plan -Tractors are retrieved from the farmers when they don't reach the set agreements within time -Land in the area is not titled and thus cannot be used as collateral for one to access mechanization inputs -Tractor use requires a large land size otherwise it gets underutilized which is a waste of resource. Some small-scale farmers have small pieces of land to use a four-wheel tractor -Absence of a variety of credit schemes -It is difficult to use a four-wheel tractor in the muddy field when there has been two much rainfall and the process becomes slow because the tractor cannot move faster as compared to how it moves normally on a dry field -Lack of knowledge on the use of tractors and tractors contribute to soil erosion -It makes rip lines deeper than those of ox-drawn rippers. ADP rippers struggle to reach the required ripping depth in the hard pan -Those without animals but have money are able to borrow and plough large pieces of land -People are still using ploughs which takes a lot of time even when they know that tractors are fast -Farmers are willing to pay for hiring services for tractor ripping service provision -The use of four-wheel tractors reduces on human labor, farmers get to use tractors to easy their work.-Knowledge has been made available to farmers on the use of tractors and hence a lot of farmers are willing to use tractors -Availability cooperatives that can help with access to tractors Shellers -Shellers are expensive to buy and hire for most small-scale farmers.In particular, hiring of the shellers is very expensive and many farmers are discouraged by high prices -The available shellers are not enough for the number of farmers needing the service -High grain production for which shelling services are required -Shelled maize is clean when compared to one shelled using hands -A lot of maize can be shelled within a short period of time -Farmers are aware of the benefits of using shellers -Availability of local materials that be used to fabricate shellers -There are no follow ups by promoters to enhance the knowledge of how the sheller can be made -Lack of knowledge of the use of shellers While shellers have good fuel consumption, solar powered shellers would reduce running costs --Rippers -It leaves a lot of weeds between lines compared to conventional methods.-There is a lot of spacing in between the rip lines -Some people are stuck with the old ways of farming, and don't want to adjust.-Ripping is done before the rainy seasons commences while a lot of people would only start farming when they have seen the rainfall starting.-People don't have money for hiring rippers and cows to pull the ripper.-The fields that are cultivated are little and harvests are small as there is too much space left in between rippers.-Some farmers don't know the benefits associated with ripping.-Ripping technology goes hand in hand with the use of herbicides for weed control, without proper planning for the purchase of herbicides, the implementation of the technology is not successful.-Lack of knapsack sprayer hinders the successful utilization of the ripping technology -Knowledge gap on the correct types and use of herbicides.-Rippers are very expensive to buy and hire.-Some farmers or camp officers personalize rippers given to the community by some stakeholder to help the community.-Lack of shops that stock rippers in the communities.-High yields from ripped plots motivates farmers.-Crops don't easily die out when there is drought as rip lines retain moisture.-Lion head weed does not grow with vigor.-Rip lines holds moisture for the crops.-It does not destroy the soil structure as those planting stations are the only areas that are disturbed in the field.-We have agro shops that stock rippers in the nearby towns.-There are some people with bigger animals that can lend others to help with ripping.-Land availability.-It does not promote soil erosion and keeps the fields in one shape.-Not very labor intensive.-Some NGOs have donated some rippers to various community -People have been learning about conservation agriculture thus they have the knowledge on how to use these technologies.-They can be hired from those who own them.Electric solar fenced Kraal (Secure fencing)-They are expensive and a farmer needs to raise at least K7,000 for the equipment.-There is no credit facility.-The prevalence of cattle in the area and need to secure animals from theft or loss creates a demand for this technology.-Framers have adequate land for this kraal model.-There is general willingness by farmers exposed to this technology to procure if there is a pay-slow or credit facility for the item.Water harvesting (Roof top water harvesting).-Limited to farmers with iron roofing sheets.-The tank size of the technology is not large enough for the amount of water the gutters are able to collect from the rainwater.-The gutters used on the roof to harvest the rainwater are not easily found in local shops.-There is a good number of farmers that are using the iron roofed houses.-The willingness by farmers to harvest water for irrigation is high.Milking cans -Very expensive for small scale farmers.-Milking cans are not easily accessed -Dairy improved companies provide access to milking cans.-Makes the transportation of milk to be hygienically safe. Solar powered submersible pump -The initial cost of acquiring the needed solar equipment and borehole sinking is out of reach for many smallholder farmers.-The challenge of water in some areas makes it difficult to implement.-Lack of credit schemes to support solar irrigation.-There are a good number of areas available in the communities where solar pumps can do well.-There are points within the communities that have boreholes and therefore would only require a tank for irrigation purposes.-Through the AWARE project, a good number of farmers have acquired the knowledge of sourcing ground water technology. Water application technologies (Overhead and drip irrigation systems) -The cost of acquiring a drip and sprinkler system is quite high for a smallholder farmer, as there are many parts including a tank that should be set-up. -This irrigation system is limited to farmers that have access to a source of water.-A large water storage capacity is required to achieve the water pressure levels required particularly for the sprinkler system.-It is possible for community members facing challenges with irrigation, to work together and afford the irrigation system.-Common methods of irrigation among farmers in gardens such as buckets are laborious. The drip and sprinkler systems are less laborious.Water harvesting using concrete slab reservoir -Infrastructural cost is high for the smallholder farmer as it requires materials such as polythene plastics, conforce wire, cement, blocks sand and crushed stone.-Limited positive attitude by the farmers because of the many requirements needed.-Lack of knowledge on how to set it up.-Lack of interest from some farmers.-There are many farmers willing to be trained in water harvesting due to lack of water for irrigation in many areas.-Water comes out in drops which helps to conserve water; there is no wastage of water.-Crops can be planted throughout the year.-Can work on large pieces of land.-The tractor is expensive for most smallholder farmers to buy them.-People need to book in advance to have a tractor work on their field because of having few tractors in the community.-The farmers who wone these tractors live in distant places making it difficult for some farmers to access them.-The price for hiring is way too high.-They are labor intensive.-More rip lines are created using a plough than a tractor.-A lot of seed is planted within a short period when a tractor is used compared to ox-drawn plough.-A tractor works as long as there is fuel, it does not tire like a cow or donkey.-There is proper spacing when a tractor is used, and this leads to good breathing space and good harvest.-Work is made easy on the farm and people admire that.-Less labor is hired as only one person moves with the tractor. Cows need someone to help the one ploughing.-The two-wheel tractor is a dual purpose as it plants and rips at the same time.-There have been demonstrations on how the tractor ripper performs and so a number of farmers have been sensitized on it.-There is local demand for 2-wheel tractor powered machinery by farmers in the area. Dairy equipment -Cans -Lack of feed for dairy animals leading to poor milk production limits the need to acquire improved milk cans.-The number of farmers owning dairy animals has reduced.-Cans are very expensive to buy.-Non-members of the cooperative mostly do not have access to the cans.-The private company Bonnita through farmer cooperatives has a credit facility that enables access to milk cans by smallholder farmers who cannot afford direct purchase.-There are buyers for milk making cans have relevance.-Dairy feed is available in some cases that would increase milk yield and therefore create a demand for the milk cans among the smallholder farmers.-Traditional methods of holding or transporting collected milk deteriorates the milk quality at a higher rate. Silos (Plastic material drum) -It is a capital-intensive practice at procurement.-The promoted silo has a limited capacity of storage as it holds only up to 8x50kg bags of grain weight.-Lack of shops stocking this equipment.-Lack of sensitization on the use of Silos.-Current use of chemicals for storage by farmers does not preserve the stored maize grain longer than silos drum can.Treadle pumps -A few farmers have learnt about the pump and thus there is little knowledge about it.-Some farmers are just lazy to attend meetings and try out these treadle pumps.-They are very expensive to buy or hire and can't be afforded by most farmers.-The physical energy which is required to operate a treadle pump is high.-Most gardens are controlled by women and thus can't pump as they are hard for them to pump.-Lack of water sources such as rivers and dams are a limiting factor as current streams of water easily dry out soon after the rainy season.-High maintenance costs and spare parts for the equipment are not readily accessible.-A large portion of land is watered at a given time.-There are a lot of gardens in the area that would benefit from the use of treadle pump technology.-Male farmers already possess the knowledge on how to operate treadle pumps.-There are shallow water points in some areas where the treadle pump can be used.-Farmers can access on loan.-The current use of cans is laborious.-There are few farmers who have treadle pumps who can scale-up this practice.-Helps to supply water in the community when pipes are connected.-Does not to use fuel to pump water.-The treadle pump safer has a tendency of easily getting clogged by weeds making this a technical challenge with the equipment.-They are very expensive to buy and set up. Gradient irrigation -This practice was promoted for upland rice production, but rice seed is not readily available to farmers.-Limited to the amount of water that can be harvested for the upland rice.-Extension services are available under the ministry to assist farmers on slope gradient measurements to trap water.-There are many areas that have slopes where water run-off takes place.Watering cans -Watering cans are expensive for some smallholder farmers; one water cane costs ZMW 130.-Very labour intensive because they have to be carried with hands from one point to another.-Risks of falling into the dam or well when drawing water.-It is commonly used and very easy to use; no technical knowledge needed to use them.-They are not very expensive to buy, and they can be used for a very long time.Hammer mill -When the hammer mill does not grind well, people tend to avoid using it.-Solar hammer mills are not very effective when there is no sunlight.-Hammer mills are expensive as farmers are charged ZMW 12 per ton.-A few individuals own hammer mills and people have to travel long distances to access them.-It is expensive to run diesel hammer mills as not all communities have electricity.-Hammer mills are expensive to buy.-Lack of mechanical services to repair them when they get spoiled.-Traditional beliefs have hindered scaling up, they believe if they use hammer mill to grind their maize the mealie meal loses its natural scent.-It doesn't take a lot of time and it is hygienic compared to using stones.-They are within the communities and government has also provided solar hammer mills.-The maize bran that remains is used to feed livestock.-Hammer mills are good for the production of maize meals.-We leave maize meal residues for feeding our animals.-There is a lot of maize grown in the communities.-Farmers can get hammer mills and pay back bit by bit if given small loans.ADP ripper -Limited access: not many farmers have rippers.-Agro-shops that stock rippers are far.-There are areas that do not have the animals required to draw the rippers.-There is a challenge of weeds in minimum tillage.-Lack of sensitization on application of herbicides.-ADP rippers struggle to reach the required ripping depth in the hard pan.-There are stakeholders that are promoting ADP rippers.-There are some farmers that have animals.-There has been evidence of the benefits of minimum tillage observed by many farmers, and most have developed the interest.-ADP rippers are accessible in some areas for interested farmers.-Most farmers cannot afford to hire tractor powered rippers and ADP is an affordable practice more farmers can use.-Current conventional methods of land preparation are time consuming. Ripping improves the work rate of land preparation.We identified 25 mechanization options being promoted in the four districts visited in Zimbabwe (Table 5). In addition to common ones in other countries like two-and fourwheel tractor, we found metal silos, mango dryers, multi-crop shellers, direct seeders, etc.As in other countries, the main barriers to uptake include high cost of equipment, limited availability, limited technical knowledge and in some instances, limited availability. Hermetic bags -Only a few can afford due to its high price -Uptake is very low.-Farmers do not understand the technology behind.-There is need for affordable hermetic bags as people are interested in it.-There is need for more farmer awareness and trainings on management of post-harvest losses.-More technical support to smallholder farmers in terms of post-harvest storage management can increase its uptake.-More strategic partners scaling are needed. Four-wheel tractor -The cost of tractors is very high for an average farmer.-The land youth farmers own are usually small making it is uneconomical for a single youth to own a tractor.-High maintenance costs.-The uptake of the hiring model is very low, and this has constrained the viability of tractor renting services.-The cost of hiring the tractor service is still high for the average Zimbabwean farmers.-Group ownership can increase usage of tractors.-Introduction of affordable credit services to buy or hire tractors.-There is need for awareness and trainings on the importance and benefits of using tractors.-Partners should come up with business models that will address the issue of affordability of the services on the side of the farmer.-Farmers have been slow in adapting shellers.-Lack of income to pay for shelling services and some farmers are not willing to pay opting for manual shelling.-The cost of buying a sheller is relatively high.-At times it is not economical to use a sheller since the yield and harvest is low.-The government department of mechanization is incapacitated to visit and help farmers and raise awareness of the technology.-There are a few available shellers located in strategic positions (stationary), and farmers find it difficult to carry their cobs to the shellers.-There are conditions attached to accessing shellers.-There is need promoting adoption, creating demand and affordability of shelling equipment -They are very quick and can shell maize, cowpeas, sorghum, small grains, rice, and wheat making people have time for other activities.-They are easy to use by all age groups and women.-Farmers are looking forward to bigger shellers which can at least service a number of farmers in a single day.-There are local model plots where farmers can learn and experience modern technologies.-The young people are eager to adopt mechanization.-More initiatives aimed at increasing the number of shellers are needed. Rippers -They need animal draught power to be able to function.-Most farmers lost their livestock due to diseases.-The ripper should be modified for two-wheel tractor -Need for increased access of rippers at affordable prices.-Very few rippers available in the farming community -Only a few farmers can access the ripper due to its low capapcity -The technology needs to be promoted more intensely for its increased uptake.-There is need for a better design which makes sure that every seed is covered even in mulched fields Jab planter -They are very few jab planters available.-Not easily accessible by farmers.-Hard to use as it strains the hands; this has discouraged its uptake.-Increase availability.-There is a need to improve the design to make it easy to use especially by woman farmers.Mango dryer -They are usually only given to lead farmers some of who do not share it with group members. under their group.-Very few dryers are available, and this has reduced farmers interest in the technology.-Most young people do not own mango trees since the trees belong to their parents.-The business model is not clear as to how the farmer will then get money and how much will they be getting.-There is a need for provision of more dryers.-Lead farmers need more training on operation of the mango dryers.-More training on how the business model operates.-Young people being given land for plantations.-Lead farmers needs to be held accountable to make sure they carry out their responsibilities.Nutrition gardens -There is competition and conflict between garden users and the community on usage as most of the times a community borehole is put on solar for garden use hence ownership challenges.-A constitution must be written governing contact and relationship between garden users and community.-Technical support is needed; an extension officer must be assigned to each garden. Communal irrigation scheme -Farmers struggle to pay electricity bills.-Alternative power sources like solar are ideal.-There is no backup plan if the system fails.-The water pump pumps water from the dam into storage tanks.-The garden project may not have the money at that particular time forcing it to relay on external help. -Many people can't afford to set them up.-The water source is overwhelmed.-There is need for funding schemes. -There is need for strategic relationships with the service providers.-Backup pumps are needed in case of breakdowns.-Assistance with construction of dams.-Drilling of boreholes and setting up the scheme is very expensive.-Assistance in form of funding and credit is needed especially for young people.-There is need for proper monitoring of projects.-There was no coordination between Agritex officer and the project implementers.-Such projects are usually targeted towards a few individuals and young people are hardly part of the projects.-Lack of water source -Overheard is spreading diseases as compared to drip irrigation -There is a need for strong coordination with local extension officers.-Assistance with drilling boreholes.-To avail credit facilities to support irrigation schemes.Water sourcing (Water pans, water tanks, dam)-There is only one irrigation scheme in the area with no room for expansion.-It is difficult for newcomers to enter the scheme.-The dam is at high risk of siltation.-Some smaller gardens apart from the cooperative garden have seasonal water sources which dry during the dry season.-There is need for more to be constructed.-Boreholes should be drilled.-There is need for proper fencing of the dam area so as to prevent free range cattle from entering the area.-More awareness is needed among community members so as to instill a sense of responsibility.-For some smaller dams that dry, proper siting needs to be done.-Promotion of drip irrigation will save labour and conserve water. Two-wheel tractors -Very expensive for the smallholder farmers (USD$ 3 000).-Servicing parts are very expensive, and they have a short warrant period.-Service parts are found in Harare.-Very difficult when turning at the end of the field.-Difficult and tiresome to walk around the field planting.-Cranking to start the tractor is difficult.-Expensive to hire.-The 2-wheel tractor need people who appreciate importance of specific calibrations for maximum benefits.-Most of them have brake problems.-Tyres are unsuitable for hot weather.-Provision spare and servicing parts at affordable prices.-Provision of credit and affordable payment plans for buying tractors.-Modifying the tractor by adding an ignition key.-Adjustments need to be done to ease turning.-Add a third wheel enable sitting while operating the tractor.-Provide spares at affordable prices -Provision of credit institutions and affordable payment plans.-Local versions of the imported technology will increase productivity and make repair parts readily available.-When travelling at night, the tractor light can't focus on the road when reaching a high ground.-Fuel is expensive.-Mechanized conservation agriculture has the potential to double/triple yields.-Government promotion of conservation agriculture.-With death of cattle due to tick bone diseases, it's easier to shift to mechanization unlike to wait for 2-3 years to build a head.-More two-wheel tractors should be made available. Planter -Servicing parts are expensive.-Calibration problems -wastes too much time -Leaves some seeds uncovered, prompting covering follow up-extra labour.-The planter gets clogged.-Provide spares at affordable prices.-Very advantageous as it plants seed, fertilizer and cover the seed -Even a single individual (including the elderly) can operate it.-It can widely be adopted if well promoted.-Calibration trainings need to be conducted. Multi crop thresher -Servicing parts are expensive -Provide service parts at affordable prices. Metal silo -The metal sheets are expensive top buy.-Poor yields reduce the desire to build metal silos.-The trained individuals who are supposed to make the silos charge high prices.-They have a minimum size at which they can be constructed, and that size is above the quantity of grains to be stored by communal farmers.-The programme of silos was initially for chiefs.-Provide at affordable prices -The metal silos are very ideal and cut costs as there is no chemical application leading to low storage costs -The metal silos are portable.-They need to be made affordable.-People can form groups and buy silos.-The department of agriculture has the technical capacity to fabricate the metal silos and to install -Farmers can have a centralized place where the silo can be constructed.-Silos are more ideal for relatively bigger farmers.-Local artisans were trained to make metal silos. Water application technology: water troughs and buckets -It is laborious and sometimes a straining and painful process especially if the area to be irrigated is big.-A lot of water is lost in irrigating portions with no plants.-Drip irrigation technology is needed; Not only will it only increase water use efficiency but will also be suitable for women farmers.Main barriers to scaling Opportunities for scaling -Water from the storage tanks goes into water troughs where it is then fetched by buckets.-Fetching water from the water troughs is often and uncomfortable process for woman as they must bent down in the presence of man -It very difficult to fetch water when the water levels in the troughs are low.-Bucket system is for those near water bodies.-There is need for other improved irrigation technologies other than the bucket system.-It is easier to set up drip irrigation systems as there are already storage tanks.-Partners that can come in to install the system are needed.Treadle pumps -Inadequate knowledge on how it works.-Linking farmers to service providers and making sure they have a full understanding on how the machine works. Granaries -It is expensive to construct a granary.-The uptake of the modern design which is constructed with bricks is still very low.-The modern granary being promoted by the department of agriculture has a much longer service life since bricks are more durable than wooden poles which have proven to be susceptible to wood weevils' attack -The department of agriculture has the technical capacity to construct the granaries.-Granaries are the most preferred post-harvest storage method in the ward. Direct seeder -It is heavy and labour intensive.-They are expensive to buy and only a few are available in most areas making it difficult for everyone to access them.-Innovation to make it user friendly.-There is demand.Water sourcing (ground water, boreholes)-Inadequate resources to drill more boreholes.-Very few individuals have boreholes.-Drying and siltation of the few available boreholes.-The water points are very limited or few.-Farmers are still struggling to adopt techniques or technologies that use irrigation water efficiently.-High cost of inputs making projects not feasible even under irrigation.-Collective action at drilling boreholes so that it becomes affordable for farmers.-Collective action by farmers at water sourcing is needed.-More water points are needed if irrigation is to transform the local agribusinesses -It will be possible to increase water access points if water can be piped from the boreholes.-Other localized gardens in different villages can be created -De-siltation of dams will increase their carrying capacity allowing more water to be used for irrigationOpportunities for scaling -The water is not that safe for drinking because of high amounts of iron underground where the Borehole is located.-Farmers can be trained on drilling wells -There is the abundance of sunlight for solar powered boreholes.Improvised plough -There are no implements to drill holes.-Government is trying to liaise with companies like Grownet for self-powered implements like direct seeder so as to mechanize conservation agriculture and enhance adoption.-The government is encouraging farmers to remove moldboard plough to be left with only the shear so as to only open a furrow.-Some few farmers bought ripper tines, and these are mounted on ox ploughs. Water harvesting -Inadequate water storage facilities like tanks.-Most the farmers cannot afford to buy storage facilities.-Gradient and trenching resources are also a constraining factor.-Lack of mobility resources by the department of agriculture.-Initiatives are needed to help farmers with water storage facilities.-Strategic partners should come in and work with the AGRITEX officers in helping farmers in the construction of water harvesting trenches.Gradient irrigation -Only suitable for farmers that are downstream.-Initial set up is very expensive and cost of pipes is high.-Youth don't have access to own such type of land unless it is by inheritance.-Older people feel threatened of losing their lands.-There is need for strategic partners that can come in with an irrigation installation facility.-Farmers can be allowed to pay back in instalments.-Farmers need to group themselves and approach developmental organization for help in setting up the irrigation scheme.-Youths have identified areas that if given permission and resources permitting, they are ready to set up youth community gardens.-There is need for linkages to high value markets. Ox drawn ploughs -Lack of animal traction has minimized the use of ploughs.-Most farmers are still using hand hoes.-Farmers still need other mechanization options for a more contemporary approach to farming.Siphoning system -Few individuals who can afford it are using this technology.-Those who can afford it are leaving others out as they are fencing their facilities.-Construction of dams so as to increase water sources for farmers.Prevalence and use of mechanization in Malawi, Zambia, and ZimbabweUsing survey, we found that draft animals were the most popular source of farm power owned by 19%, 37%, and 57% of households surveyed in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, respectively (Figure 2). Four-wheel tractors are the second most known and second least ever used. Despite some 32-62% of households surveyed in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe saying they know about two-wheel tractors, less than 2% ever used two-wheel tractors in Zambia and Zimbabwe, while none in Malawi. These findings are line with those in Sims and Kienzle (2017) and FAO, AUC (2019) that draft animal power is the most important form of farm power in sub-Saharan Africa. Notes: Usage (ever used) and ownership are computed for those who know a particular farm power. Accessibility was computed for those farmers who did not hire mechanization services for the 2020/21 season but have used before while affordability was computed for those who know about the mechanization option and think it is possible to hire. ^ statistically invalid, n < 30. Source: (Ngoma et al., 2023 ) and (Tufa et al., forthcoming)  Households in Malawi are willing to pay US$69/hectare for land preparation, US$2.6 per trip for transportation, and USD0.5-USD1.2 for shelling 50 kg maize or groundnuts (Table 6).These amounts are similar to market prices at the time of the survey, indicating that the estimates are realistic. And a large proportion of male respondents than female respondents were willing to pay the market rates then (Tufa et al., forthcoming). Based on BDM auctions, willingness to pay for most services is higher in Zimbabwe compared to Zambia. On average, households interviewed in Zimbabwe were willing to pay USD 51, USD 69, USD 58 per hectare for ripping, ripping, and seeding, and direct seeding, respectively; and USD 12 for transportation of 0.5 tons per 20 km radius, while sample households in Zambia were willing to pay USD19, USD28, and USD26 per hectare for tillagebased services and USD 6 for transportation per 0.5 ton within a radius of 20 km. See Ngoma et al (2021) for details. While these estimates are in nominal terms, it would appear that farmers in Zimbabwe have a higher willingness to pay for mechanization services than those in Zambia.As governments heighten drive to mechanize agriculture, critical information is required on (i) existing mechanization options, (ii) barriers and challenges, (iii) opportunities for scaling and effective demand for mechanization. This article combines quantitative and qualitative surveys to help elucidate on some of these key issues in Kenya, Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe where mechanization is part of national policy priorities. We focus mainly on farm mechanization and irrigation options. There are common mechanization options whose uptakes are at different levels in these countries. Animal draft power is still dominate for tillage in all these countries. Other unpopular options include two-and four-wheel ","tokenCount":"6688"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"875a3049fa9bbf8c0f994f6bc82f4fd7","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://repository.cimmyt.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/c92b258d-5b6c-489c-9153-1230d7c25a4a/content","id":"-1395238099"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"3f3f80fa-898a-4845-b442-b587c5abb599","pagecount":"38","content":"CIMMYT®) (www.cimmyt.mx) es una organización internacional, sin fines de lucro, que se dedica a la investigación científica y la capacitación. Tiene su sede en México y colabora con instituciones de investigación agrícola de todo el mundo para mejorar la productividad y la sostenibilidad de los sistemas de maíz y trigo para los agricultores de escasos recursos en los países en desarrollo. El CIMMYT forma parte de los 16 centros de Future Harvest dedicados a la investigación sobre cultivos alimentarios y el medio ambiente. Con oficinas en todo el mundo, los centros de Future Harvest llevan a cabo investigación colaborativa con agricultores, científicos y formuladores de políticas para combatir la pobreza y aumentar la seguridad alimentaria, al tiempo que protegen los recursos naturales. Son financiados por el Grupo Consultivo sobre la Investigación Agrícola Internacional (CGIAR) (www.cgiar.org), entre cuyos miembros se cuentan cerca de 60 países, organizaciones tanto internacionales como regionales y fundaciones privadas. El CIMMYT recibe fondos para su agenda de investigación de varias fuentes, entre las que se encuentran fundaciones, bancos de desarrollo e instituciones públicas y privadas.® Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo (CIMMYT) 2003. Derechos reservados. El CIMMYT es el único responsable de esta publicación. Las designaciones empleadas en la presentación de los materiales incluidos en esta publicación de ninguna manera expresan la opinión del CIMMYT o de sus patrocinadores respecto al estado legal de cualquier país, territorio, ciudad o zona, o de las autoridades de éstos, o respecto a la delimitación de sus fronteras. El CIMMYT autoriza el uso de este material, siempre y cuando se cite la fuente.Análisis del sistema argentino de investigación agropecuaria Gabriel H. Parellada 1 y Javier Ekboir 2 1 Instituto de Economía y Sociología, INTA 2 Programa de Economía del CIMMYT Notas: Cuando se preparó este documento, el sistema de investigación argentino se encontraba en un proceso de profunda reestructuración. La información que aquí se presenta refleja los cambios ocurridos hasta enero de 2000. Los autores agradecen la colaboración del Lic. Daniel Lema en la elaboración de los flujos de financiamiento del SIN; y del Lic. Mariano Laffaye y la Ing. Magdalena Marino por la recopilación y elaboración de la información estadística. Todos ellos, sin embargo, quedan exentos de cualquier responsabilidad por el contenido de este informe.El financiamiento de esta investigación fue proporcionado por el Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (Donativo # CIMMYT/BID ATN/SF-5790-RG). El sector agropecuario ha desempeñado siempre un papel fundamental en la economía argentina. En la segunda mitad del siglo XX, los productos de origen pampeano tuvieron un fuerte crecimiento gracias a la adopción masiva de nuevas tecnologías de comercialización y producción. Estas tecnologías fueron desarrolladas por redes de agentes que incluyeron en forma prominente productores innovadores, empresas privadas e investigadores de instituciones públicas. Sin embargo, las instituciones mismas tuvieron una participación limitada, y su mayor impacto se derivó del desarrollo de semillas mejoradas de los principales cultivos pampeanos.En la primera mitad del siglo XX, Argentina construyó un sistema público de investigación fuerte, localizado fundamentalmente en las universidades nacionales. Una característica del sistema es que estaba organizado en base a una concepción lineal de la ciencia, la que desincentivaba las colaboraciones interdisciplinarias, interinstitucionales y/o con agentes que no fueran investigadores formales. A partir de la década del 50, Argentina creó un número de institutos tecnológicos destinados a prestar apoyo técnico a las políticas públicas. El sistema público comenzó a deteriorase por cuestiones políticas y económicas a partir del golpe de estado de 1966 y no ha podido recuperarse hasta la fecha.En la década del 90 hubo algunos intentos de reformar el sistema público, pero estos esfuerzos no tuvieron éxito por falta de continuidad y de recursos. A pesar del deterioro del sistema público de investigación, el sector privado argentino (especialmente las empresas proveedoras de insumos y asociaciones de productores) generó una oferta continua de innovaciones. La característica de estas innovaciones es que no requerían inversiones importantes en investigación (por ejemplo, tecnologías de manejo de cultivos) o eran importadas directamente de los países desarrollados (por ejemplo, agroquímicos).El sector agropecuario desempeña un papel fundamental en la economía argentina, tanto por su contribución directa e indirecta al producto bruto interno como por su relevancia en las cuentas externas. Las exportaciones argentinas se concentran principalmente en cuatro grandes rubros: granos, carnes, derivados del petróleo y automotores. El aumento de las exportaciones de estos bienes determina el ritmo de expansión de la economía, ya que de ellos depende la capacidad de importar bienes de capital e intermedios esenciales para el crecimiento del resto de la economía.La agricultura argentina, principalmente la de origen pampeano (es decir, granos y carnes), ha tenido una expansión considerable desde la década del 70, como resultado del desarrollo y la adopción masiva de nuevos paquetes tecnológicos (introducción de soja, trigos con germoplasma mexicano, híbridos de maíz y girasol y siembra directa), inducido por nuevas políticas macroeconómicas y sectoriales.Los paquetes tecnológicos incluyeron insumos y conocimientos generados por agentes públicos y privados que interactuaron por medio de mecanismos formales e informales. Estos agentes, sus interacciones y normas (formales e informales), constituyen el Sistema Nacional de Innovación (SNI). Uno de sus componentes esenciales es el Sistema de Investigación (SI), formado por instituciones tradicionales y no tradicionales de investigación. Este trabajo analiza la estructura del SI agropecuario argentino.Hace 40 años, Argentina tenía un SI formal de primer nivel internacional, pero poco integrado con el sector productivo. Esta estructura compartamentalizada había sido creada a partir de una concepción lineal de los procesos científicos y tecnológicos, según la cual los desarrollos científicos se efectuaban en los institutos de investigación y después de un proceso de investigación adaptativa eran transferidos a los usuarios. Esta concepción también influyó en la organización de las instituciones de investigación que se formaron sobre la base de disciplinas científicas, con poco espacio para el desarrollo de actividades interdisciplinarias y de sistemas. Si bien el SI agropecuario se organizó sobre esta misma base, hubo algunos factores que interactuaron para promover procesos muy dinámicos de adopción de tecnologías:• Las políticas macroeconómicas que se adoptaron a partir de 1930 originaron un sesgo contrario al sector agropecuario pampeano. Los productores pampeanos se vieron obligados a buscar activamente tecnologías que les permitieran compensar los sesgos. En cambio, los empresarios industriales y los productores agropecuarios de insumos para la industria nacional que surgieron después del establecimiento de políticas de sustitución de importaciones, estaban protegidos de la competencia internacional (Katz, 2001). Su mayor preocupación era contar con una buena administración financiera que les permitiera superar las sucesivas crisis de balanza de pagos y las modificaciones a las políticas macroeconómicas. Por tanto, la adopción de innovaciones como instrumento para aumentar la competitividad era una prioridad menor. • Muchos desarrollos tecnológicos no son intensivos en ciencia, es decir, no requieren grandes instalaciones, insumos costosos o profesionales con formación doctoral. Esta característica permitió que agentes del sector privado desarrollaran componentes esenciales del paquete. En esta categoría se encuentran la mayoría de los desarrollos de maquinaria y tecnologías de manejo de cultivos. Estas últimas, en particular, requieren una visión sistémica de las empresas agropecuarias, pero en las instituciones formales de investigación no había espacio para ellas. Por esa razón, los productores agropecuarios de mayores recursos formaron asociaciones a fin de generar las mencionadas tecnologías (Ekboir y Parellada, 2000). • Otros desarrollos que sí son intensivos en ciencia, como los agroquímicos, pueden ser fácilmente introducidos desde otros países. Las similitudes ecológicas y estructurales de producción entre la región pampeana y las principales regiones agropecuarias del hemisferio norte, favorecieron en Argentina la instalación temprana de empresas multinacionales productoras de semilla de híbridos. • La interacción activa entre los programas de mejoramiento de trigo argentinos (Buck, INTA y Klein) y el CIMMYT, hizo posible la introducción de germoplasma mexicano en semillas adaptadas a las regiones trigueras argentinas. • Desde el principio, el INTA estableció un sistema de extensión agropecuaria, que compensó en parte el aislamiento de sus investigadores. Sin embargo, los equipos de investigación de universidades e institutos de investigación en otras ramas de la ciencia, al no contar con un mecanismo similar, tuvieron un impacto muy limitado.A partir de 1966, el SI hizo frente a una serie de crisis que aún no ha superado. En primer lugar, una gran cantidad de investigadores del sector público emigraron a causa de los golpes militares de 1966 y 1976. Después del retorno a la democracia en 1983, las instituciones públicas de investigación perdieron apoyo social por su reducida capacidad operativa y poca interacción con el aparato productivo. Finalmente, dadas las severas crisis económicas del país, los gobiernos sucesivos restringieron sus contribuciones para la ciencia y técnica, hecho que mermó aún más la capacidad operativa de las instituciones públicas. Si bien se reconocía que el SI estaba en crisis, no se promovió ninguna discusión sobre cuál debería ser la función del sistema en la sociedad argentina. Para responder a la crisis, las instituciones de investigación introdujeron cambios parciales en los mecanismos de financiamiento y en los patrones de interacción con otros agentes del SNI. Sin embargo, al no existir una visión integrada del SNI, estas acciones han carecido de una línea conductora y no han afectado factores clave que determinan la eficiencia de las instituciones de investigación. Por ejemplo, no se hizo ninguna revisión del conjunto de incentivos ofrecidos a investigadores y administradores.En la segunda sección se describe brevemente la agricultura pampeana y los principales hitos tecnológicos de la segunda mitad del siglo XX. En la tercera sección se analiza el sistema de investigación y se establece la diferencia entre los sistemas centralizado y no centralizado de investigación. En la cuarta sección se presentan algunos indicadores de las actividades innovadoras en Argentina y de las interacciones entre los diferentes componentes del SNI. Por último, la sección cinco analiza en detalle el SI agropecuario.Desde el punto de vista agroecológico, Argentina puede dividirse en dos grandes macrorregiones: la región pampeana y la extra-pampeana (Cascardo et al., 1991;SAGPyA, 1997). La región pampeana, que abarca el centro-este del país, es una llanura relativamente homogénea, con una extensión aproximada de 50 millones de hectáreas. En esta región se genera más del 60% del PBI agropecuario, el 80% de los granos y 70% de las carnes vacunas. La producción agrícola se concentra en cinco granos: girasol, maíz, sorgo, soja y trigo. Argentina exporta una proporción importante de su producción de granos y carnes vacunas, y desempeña un papel preponderante en los mercados internacionales de dichos productos.La región extra-pampeana ocupa el resto del país y tiene una gran diversidad de paisajes, que varían desde selvas subtropicales a regiones semiáridas templadas y tundra. Estas regiones se especializaron en una amplia gama de productos agropecuarios (azúcar, algodón, té, tabaco, arroz, etc.), orientados principalmente al abasto del consumo interno y la producción de insumos para la industria nacional.Desde la década del 60, la agricultura pampeana mostró un fuerte dinamismo sustentado en la adopción rápida y masiva de tecnologías modernas. Estas tecnologías fueron desarrolladas por un número importante de agentes que interactuaron por medio de mecanismos formales e informales.A partir de los años 60, los productores agropecuarios pampeanos sustituyeron masivamente los caballos por tractores y adoptaron la cosecha mecánica. Los detonantes de esos cambios fueron la estabilización de la estructura agraria, luego de las políticas antiagrarias del gobierno peronista, el crecimiento de los mercados agropecuarios (internos y externos) y la disponibilidad de créditos subsidiados para la compra de maquinaria (Flichman, 1978).En 1976 se inició un proceso de desregulación parcial de la economía, que incluyó la disminución de los aranceles de importación y un aumento de los impuestos a la exportación de bienes agropecuarios. Estos cambios indujeron alzas en las tasas de interés, una revaluación del peso frente al dólar y un crecimiento de los índices de inflación que culminaron en un proceso hiperinflacionario en 1989. La creciente inestabilidad económica y el cambio en los precios relativos resultantes de las nuevas políticas forzaron a todos los sectores productivos a realizar grandes ajustes. Asimismo, la contracción de la actividad industrial causó una fuerte crisis económica, que Argentina superó apenas a mediados de los años 90.La rentabilidad de los bienes exportables, entre ellos los productos agrícolas pampeanos, cayó debido a la sobrevaluación del peso. Ante la necesidad de mantener su competitividad, a mediados de los 70 los productores pampeanos adoptaron un paquete tecnológico que incluía soja como cultivo único o en cultivo doble con trigo, semillas mejoradas (híbridos de maíz o trigos con germoplasma mexicano), mayor uso de agroquímicos (fertilizantes y herbicidas), labranza mínima y maquinaria moderna. La alta productividad de este paquete compensó con creces el sesgo antiexportador de las políticas macroeconómicas. Entre 1974 y 1985 la producción de granos en la región pampeana fue el único sector económico con un crecimiento positivo, saltando de alrededor de 20 millones de toneladas en 1974 a 35 millones en 1984.La creciente inestabilidad de la sociedad argentina derivó en un proceso hiperinflacionario en 1989. Así, para estabilizar la economía, el gobierno puso en marcha en 1991 el denominado \"Plan de Convertibilidad\". Este plan establecía una tasa de cambio fija del peso frente al dólar, eliminaba varias regulaciones, entre ellas las de los impuestos a las exportaciones agropecuarias, y privatizaba servicios esenciales para el sector agropecuario (por ejemplo, transportes, puertos y teléfonos). La nueva estabilidad de la economía, combinada con servicios más eficientes y nuevas formas asociativas y de comercialización, aceleró el proceso de adopción de un nuevo paquete tecnológico basado en la siembra directa (Ekboir y Parellada, 2000).La difusión masiva de la siembra directa permitió un aumento substancial de los rendimientos en los principales granos, una caída de los costos de producción y la expansión de la superficie sembrada fuera de la región pampeana. La incorporación del riego complementario para el maíz permitió un aumento considerable de los rendimientos en el área central de la Provincia de Buenos Aires. Durante el período 1997-1998 se logró una producción récord de 19 millones de toneladas métricas de maíz en una superficie similar a la requerida 25 años antes para producir 8 millones. La tasa anual de crecimiento del rendimiento de granos por hectárea durante el período mencionado fue de 3.5 (Reca y Parellada, 2001.) En 1988 el 85% de la tierra era explotada directamente por sus dueños (INDEC, 1988). Sin embargo, en los últimos años han proliferado diferentes mecanismos de arrendamiento, entre los que se destacan los consorcios de siembra, los fondos de inversión directa y los arrendamientos plurianuales. La característica común de estos sistemas es que inversores no vinculados a la agricultura aportan fondos para la producción de granos utilizando las tecnologías más modernas (por lo general con maquinaria y tierra alquilada) bajo la administración de profesionales de la agricultura. Estos sistemas otorgan gran flexibilidad a los diferentes agentes para reaccionar frente a cambios en las condiciones de mercado.La difusión de los arrendamientos de maquinaria aceleró la adopción de tecnologías modernas, en virtud de que los contratistas, al dar un mayor uso al equipo, renuevan el parque de maquinaria con más frecuencia que los pequeños productores.El valor del PBI argentino aumentó de 237 mil millones en 1993 a 282 mil millones de pesos en 1999 (19%). 1 En este mismo período, el PBI agropecuario aumentó de casi 12 mil millones a 15 mil millones de pesos en 1998 (25%); pero en 1999 descendió a 11.6 mil millones debido a una fuerte caída de los precios internacionales de cereales y oleaginosas. La caída en el valor de la producción agropecuaria fue parcialmente compensada por un fuerte crecimiento en la producción física de granos, que aumentó de aproximadamente 35 millones de toneladas a principios de los 90 a cerca de 65 millones en el 2000 (85% de crecimiento). El crecimiento de la producción agropecuaria fue la consecuencia de la adopción masiva de un nuevo paquete tecnológico.Si bien la participación del sector agropecuario en el PBI total ha oscilado alrededor del 5.3% (Cuadro 1), su importancia radica en que aproximadamente el 24% del PBI industrial corresponde a agroindustrias (alimentos, bebidas, tabacos, textiles, industria de la madera y fabricación de papel) y el 60% de las exportaciones a productos agropecuarios o manufacturas de origen agropecuario. Tradicionalmente, el ritmo de crecimiento de las exportaciones agropecuarias determinaba los límites de expansión de la economía argentina. Las industrias que crecieron al amparo de las políticas de sustitución de importaciones demandaban insumos y bienes de capital importados; es decir, el crecimiento del sector industrial determinaba la demanda de divisas. En cambio, la oferta de divisas dependía casi exclusivamente de la capacidad exportadora del sector agropecuario y de unos cuantos productos primarios (por ejemplo, petróleo) o industriales (por ejemplo, caños de acero).Cuadro 1. PBI a precio de mercado, valor agregado a precios de productor (millones de pesos corrientes). Las producciones pampeanas (cereales, oleaginosas y ganadería vacuna) constituyen los principales rubros del PBI agropecuario y determinan en gran medida la tasa de crecimiento de este último. De hecho, la participación de cereales, oleaginosas y forrajeras en el valor bruto de la producción agropecuaria aumentó de 28% en 1993 a 32% en 1998, mientras que, en los mismos años, la ganadería vacuna cayó del 22% al 17% (Cuadro 2).Durante el periodo 1970-1997, la producción agrícola creció a una tasa anual del 3.2%. Sin embargo, la productividad total de los factores de producción en el mismo período creció a una tasa anual del 1.6%. La diferencia en las tasas de crecimiento se explica por el aumento en el volumen físico de los factores de producción, principalmente agroquímicos (Lema, 1999). La apertura de la economía desempeñó un papel fundamental en este proceso por la baja de precio de los insumos importados de alto impacto productivo, sobre todo agroquímicos y maquinaria agrícola.La producción de cultivos anuales, básicamente cereales y oleaginosas, creció a una tasa anual promedio del 6.7% en la década del 90, en marcado contraste con lo ocurrido entre 1970 y 1990, cuando el crecimiento fue del 2% anual. Lo mismo sucedió con la evolución de los rendimientos, que aumentaron a una tasa anual de 3.6% en los años 90, y de 2% en los últimos 20 años. La superficie sembrada en la década del 90 aumentó a 2.4% anual. En consecuencia, el aumento de la producción es resultado de los incrementos de la superficie cultivada y/o los rendimientos (Reca y Parellada, 2001). Estos incrementos fueron impulsados por los cambios tecnológicos y una mayor oferta de servicios dirigidos al sector (Cuadro 3). Superficie en miles de hectáreas; producción en millones de toneladas. Fuente: Elaboración propia con base en datos de la FAO.Las variaciones en la composición de las exportaciones reflejan los cambios estructurales ocurridos en la economía argentina. Las exportaciones totales crecieron de 8 mil millones en 1980 a 23 mil millones de dólares en 1999. En este periodo, las ventas externas de productos agropecuarios (sin procesar o de manufacturas de origen agropecuario) cayeron del 79% al 58% del total (Cuadro 4). Esta caída de la participación en las exportaciones agropecuarias fue causada por 1) la considerable expansión de las exportaciones de petróleo y gas, sobre todo después de la privatización de la empresa petrolera estatal, 2) el aumento de las exportaciones de automotores gracias a los regímenes promocionales para exportarlos a Brasil, y 3) la fuerte caída de los precios internacionales de los granos y oleaginosas en 1999.A pesar de la caída de los precios, el volumen de las exportaciones de productos agropecuarios aumentó entre 1980 y 1999 más del 100%.Entre 1980 y 1999, el valor de las exportaciones, tanto de bienes primarios como de manufacturas de origen agropecuario, creció a una tasa anual del 3.1%. Sin considerar el año de 1999 (afectado por la caída de los precios agrícolas), se observan dos tendencias claras: un fuerte crecimiento en las exportaciones de los productos tradicionales (cereales,  El SI argentino consta de dos subsistemas: el centralizado y el no centralizado. El primero está constituido por organismos oficiales y privados que participan formalmente en la definición de las políticas públicas (la asignación de recursos para la investigación), o que dependen de estos organismos públicos. El segundo subsistema lo integran empresas, organizaciones no gubernamentales e individuos que realizan investigación fuera de las estructuras del subsistema centralizado.El núcleo del sistema centralizado está conformado por un conjunto de instituciones públicas. Muchas de estas instituciones fueron creadas en el marco del modelo de sustitución de importaciones. Este modelo se basaba en la idea de que la industria nacional se encontraba en una etapa inicial, por lo que se requería una acción firme del Estado para favorecer su desarrollo. Dentro de este modelo, los institutos públicos tenían el papel de generar tecnologías de punta para la industria nacional, en particular para las empresas públicas (Bisang y Malet, 1999).Dos características de la política nacional en ciencia y tecnología en esa época fueron el establecimiento de instituciones públicas con cobertura nacional o regional para resolver problemas concretos, y la dependencia funcional de las instituciones de investigación del ministerio vinculado temáticamente a los mismos (por ejemplo, el INTA dependía de la Secretaría de Agricultura). Así, en la década del 50 se crearon numerosas instituciones con mandatos superpuestos (por ejemplo, INTA, INTI e INA), pero con pocas instancias de coordinación y centradas en sí mismas (Bisang y Malet, 1999).Los siguientes cuatro factores determinaron la falta de integración entre los institutos públicos y el aparato productivo:• La política de sustitución de importaciones no incentivaba la innovación en las empresas, por lo que éstas no buscaban proveedores de tecnología. • La mayoría de los institutos públicos de investigación tenían la misión de apoyar al sector público en sus respectivas áreas de competencia. oleaginosas y carnes); y un crecimiento más sólido de las exportaciones de productos no tradicionales como pescados, hortalizas, frutas frescas, productos lácteos y de molienda (Cuadro 5). La caída en las exportaciones de semillas oleaginosas entre 1986-1988 y 1996-1998 fue causada por el impulso que se dio a la exportación de aceites (comparada con la exportación de semillas sin procesar).2 Las leyes de defensa de la competencia indujeron a las empresas privadas en EUA a establecer vínculos con institutos públicos de investigación y con universidades. En consecuencia, el desarrollo de estas instituciones fue menos autónomo (Mowery y Rosenberg, 1993).• Los institutos se organizaron con base en una concepción lineal de la ciencia, según la cual la función de los institutos de investigación consistía en generar tecnologías que luego se ofrecían a los usuarios. Según esta concepción, la falta de adopción de las nuevas tecnologías no se debía a problemas en la etapa de generación ni en problemas en la identificación las necesidades tecnológicas, sino en el proceso de adopción. • Los esquemas de incentivos a los científicos y los administradores de las instituciones públicas de investigación no propiciaban la interacción con otros actores fuera de sus institutos (por ejemplo, no se permitía a los investigadores realizar docencia, consultorías o proyectos conjuntos).Con este esquema, los institutos no lograron establecer contactos sólidos con las industrias para las que deberían trabajar. Este hecho limitó el proceso de transferencia de tecnologías (Bell, 1993). 2 La gran excepción fueron las instituciones de investigación vinculadas al sector agropecuario (INTA y algunos grupos de investigadores universitarios).Los procesos de apertura económica y desregulación implementados en la década del 90 forzaron un importante ajuste en el comportamiento de los agentes públicos y privados. La reducción del papel del sector público (incluyendo la de las instituciones de ciencia y técnica) y una mayor competencia internacional, crearon nuevas necesidades y oportunidades tecnológicas para los diferentes actores del SNI argentino. Entre las consecuencias más importantes para la ciencia y la tecnología se cuentan la caída de las inversiones públicas (infraestructura y financiamiento de las instituciones de investigación), así como un acceso más fácil a proveedores internacionales de tecnologías.En respuesta a estas circunstancias, el gobierno nacional y las instituciones públicas de investigación implementaron una serie de cambios. Desde el gobierno central, se redujeron los aportes directos y se crearon mecanismos de financiamiento competitivos. A nivel de las instituciones, se definieron nuevas reglas de interacción con otros agentes del SNI y se buscaron nuevas fuentes de financiamiento, entre las que se destacan proyectos conjuntos con el sector privado y la venta de bienes y servicios. Estos cambios tuvieron resultados diversos. Entre los resultados positivos se observa una mayor integración de los institutos nacionales con los usuarios de sus tecnologías y una diversificación en las fuentes de fondos. Entre las consecuencias negativas figuran un fuerte debilitamiento de la capacidad operativa de los institutos, una creciente importancia de proyectos cuyos resultados pueden comercializarse y un sesgo hacia proyectos de corto plazo y poca complejidad.Estos cambios se han introducido en forma desarticulada. En particular, no se ha promovido una discusión para definir la función que deben desempeñar cada una de las instituciones dentro del SI. Por ejemplo, se ha promovido la investigación en las universidades, sin definir previamente para cada una de éstas si serán centros de investigación avanzada, centros de enseñanza o una mezcla de ambos. 3 Esta definición es necesaria para establecer sistemas de reclutamiento, mecanismos de incentivos y políticas de inversiones adecuadas a cada función (ver más adelante).3.1.1 Regulación del sistema de investigación El gobierno nacional es el principal responsable de la definición de las políticas tecnológicas, incluida la organización del SI; el poder de decisión de las provincias en estas áreas es reducido. En general, la investigación agropecuaria es más descentralizada que la de otros sectores por la regionalización del INTA, introducida a fines de la década del 80, y por la creación de universidades en las provincias.En el SI argentino participan cuatro tipos de agentes públicos: entes reguladores, entes financiadores, ejecutores de la investigación y formadores de recursos humanos; algunos pueden pertenecer a más de una categoría. La Figura 1 muestra las interacciones entre las principales instituciones involucradas en los subsistemas centralizado y no centralizado.Las normas de funcionamiento del sistema centralizado son fijadas por el Poder Ejecutivo y el Congreso Nacional. El Poder Ejecutivo actúa por conducto de la Secretaría de Tecnología, Ciencia e Innovación Productiva (SETCIP), el Ministerio de Educación y el Ministerio de Economía, fijando políticas, normas de funcionamiento y de asignación de recursos. Ambas cámaras del Congreso Nacional cuentan con comisiones de ciencia y tecnología, cuya función es evaluar el desempeño del sector y promover leyes que regulen su funcionamiento. Además, el Congreso puede modificar las partidas para ciencia y técnica contenidas en la propuesta del presupuesto nacional.La SETCIP es responsable de programar y coordinar la investigación a nivel nacional, generar mecanismos de seguimiento, evaluar las actividades de los distintos agentes que participan en el sistema centralizado, y fomentar las interacciones entre los diferentes agentes públicos y privados que participan en el SI. Los organismos de ciencia y técnica provinciales realizan tareas similares en el ámbito de sus provincias, y su actividad complementa las de la SETCIP.Dentro de la SETCIP funcionan dos instituciones centrales del SI: la Agencia Nacional de Promoción Científica y Tecnológica (Agencia) y el Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONICET). La Agencia patrocina proyectos de investigación e innovación, mientras que el CONICET financia y ejecuta fundamentalmente actividades de investigación.El CONICET es la institución ejecutora más importante en Argentina. Funciona como un ente autárquico del Estado en jurisdicción de la SETCIP. La dirección del CONICET está a En 1999 el CONICET empleaba 3,800 investigadores de tiempo completo y 2,600 agentes de apoyo a la investigación; mantenía 104 institutos, centros y laboratorios, y siete centros regionales que promueven interrelaciones entre grupos de investigadores. Su presupuesto oscila alrededor de los 200 millones de dólares anuales. Sus actividades abarcan una gran gama de áreas temáticas, que incluyen tanto ciencias duras como humanidades y ciencias agropecuarias. El CONICET utiliza cinco instrumentos para realizar sus actividades:• La carrera del investigador científico y tecnológico para profesionales empleados por el CONICET. • La carrera del personal de apoyo a la investigación.• Becas de investigación en el país y en el extranjero para profesionales que no son empleados permanentes de instituciones de investigación; los becarios pueden trabajar en instituciones que no pertenecen al CONICET. • Becas para la realización de estudios de postgrado en el país y en el extranjero.• Subsidios para la ejecución de proyectos de investigación, organización de congresos, etcétera.El énfasis del CONICET es el desarrollo científico, y confiere menor importancia a los desarrollos tecnológicos. Esto se refleja tanto en su estructura organizativa como en los mecanismos de asignación de recursos y de evaluación, los cuales utilizan fundamentalmente indicadores académicos tradicionales (publicaciones, asistencia a congresos, citas en publicaciones internacionales, etc.), y en menor medida, indicadores tecnológicos (por ejemplo, número de patentes o interacciones con la industria). Es sintomático que sólo a fines de la década del 90 el CONICET haya constituido una Comisión de Tecnología, con el propósito de fomentar los desarrollos tecnológicos.Además del CONICET, la investigación científica se lleva a cabo en una serie de institutos con mandatos específicos, que dependen de diversas reparticiones del gobierno nacional. Los más importantes son:• El Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA) es un organismo descentralizado que depende de la Secretaría de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación. Creado en 1958, su misión inicial fue el desarrollo y adaptación de tecnología mediante investigación y transferencia para el sector rural. Recientemente amplió su mandato y ahora incluye apoyo a las agroindustrias y el manejo sostenible de los recursos naturales. El INTA es dirigido por un presidente, asesorado por un consejo directivo en el que están representados el gobierno nacional, las asociaciones de productores y las universidades que se dedican a la investigación agropecuaria (en las siguientes secciones se hace un análisis más detallado del funcionamiento del INTA).• El Instituto Nacional del Agua (INA), dependiente de la Secretaría de Recursos Naturales y Medio Ambiente, cuyas funciones son realizar investigaciones y desarrollos tecnológicos en el área de recursos hídricos y ofrecer asesoramiento y servicios técnicos altamente especializados a organismos oficiales y privados. • El Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero (INIDEP) tiene como mandato planificar, ejecutar y controlar los programas de investigación relativos a los recursos pesqueros y su explotación económica racional en el mar y aguas continentales. • El Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Industrial (INTI) es un organismo descentralizado dependiente del Ministerio de Economía y Obras y Servicios Públicos. Su función es colaborar en el perfeccionamiento tecnológico del sector productivo mediante la prestación de servicios técnicos a empresas, y la realización de actividades colaborativas de investigación. Asimismo, presta otros servicios como el establecimiento de normas, control de calidad, capacitación, información técnica y el registro de transferencia de tecnología. El INTI realiza investigaciones para mejorar o generar productos, así como procesos de elaboración de materias primas y subproductos. El Insituto dispone de una estructura científico-técnica integrada por dos tipos de unidades organizativas interdependientes: laboratorios centrales de física industrial y meteorología, química analítica aplicada y biotecnología, tecnología de alimentos, mecánica, construcciones, energía, computación y cálculo, electroquímica aplicada, proyectos y prototipos, higiene y seguridad; y 31 centros de investigación que atienden los requerimientos de casi todos los sectores industriales del país. Cuenta con una planta estable de 514 investigadores. • La Comisión Nacional de Energía Atómica (CONEA) tiene como objetivo fundamental desarrollar tecnologías para aplicaciones pacíficas de la energía nuclear en el campo de la energía eléctrica, la medicina, la agricultura, la industria y el ambiente.Existen también unos pocos institutos provinciales dedicados a la investigación y desarrollo tecnológico en áreas específicas. Por ejemplo, la Estación Experimental Obispo Colombres, en la provincia de Tucumán, ha hecho una contribución importante al desarrollo tecnológico de la caña de azúcar, tabaco y soja; su influencia se ha extendido a todo el noroeste argentino.El sistema universitario argentino experimentó cambios drásticos en la segunda mitad del siglo XX. Tradicionalmente, el núcleo del sistema estaba constituido por las universidades públicas nacionales que realizaban investigación y docencia en una gran variedad de áreas, entre ellas Ciencias Biológicas, Ingeniería y Medicina. Hasta 1966 estas universidades tuvieron un nivel de docencia e investigación sumamente alto y se hicieron acreedoras, entre otros reconocimientos, a tres Premios Nobel. 4 Sin embargo, como su organización estaba basada en el modelo tradicional europeo, no se fomentaba la interacción con otros investigadores o con agentes fuera del ámbito académico (por ejemplo, empresas u organismos públicos) (Chesnais, 1993). Durante las tres décadas siguientes, la falta de presupuesto para inversiones y gastos operativos, persecuciones ideológicas durante los gobiernos militares, bajos salarios y la falta de una política global de investigación y docencia, causaron un grave deterioro de las actividades de docencia y de investigación.A mediados de la década del 90, varias universidades públicas establecieron mecanismos débiles de incentivos a la investigación, pero en gran parte éstos fueron suspendidos a fines de la década debido a restricciones presupuestarias. A pesar del gran deterioro de la capacidad de investigación en las universidades públicas, todavía sobreviven algunos equipos reconocidos internacionalmente.Actualmente, el sistema universitario está compuesto por 36 universidades nacionales y 43 privadas. En 1995 el plantel docente alcanzaba un total de 100,480 profesores, de los cuales 9,477 tenían dedicación exclusiva y 21,720 dedicación semiexclusiva. 5 Es decir, las universidades dependían en gran medida de profesores con dedicación simple, hecho que origina serios problemas de calidad en la docencia y la capacidad de investigación (Bisang y Mallet, 1999).La mayoría de los fondos de investigación en las universidades provienen de mecanismos competitivos, tanto internos como externos. La investigación financiada por los sectores productivos constituye una porción muy baja de los recursos asignados a esas actividades.El sistema de universidades nacionales cuenta también con programas que otorgan becas a los docentes auxiliares para estudios de postgrado. El propósito de estos programas es mejorar el nivel de educación formal y la capacidad de investigación en las universidades.El desglose de los presupuestos universitarios no permite calcular con certeza el monto de los recursos dedicados a la investigación. Bisang y Malet (1999) estimaron en 1996 que, de un presupuesto total de 1,400 millones de pesos, los gastos de investigación ascendieron a 180 millones (12% del total). Normalmente, los proyectos son pequeños, de alrededor de 30,000 pesos anuales para un investigador principal y varios ayudantes. Si bien estos recursos son adecuados para proyectos modestos en algunas áreas temáticas (ciencias sociales o ciertas áreas en agronomía), resultan insuficientes para disciplinas que requieren grandes instalaciones o insumos costosos (por ejemplo, biología, biotecnología o medicina).Con muy pocas excepciones, las universidades privadas ofrecen carreras en áreas temáticas que no requieren inversiones considerables en infraestructura (por ejemplo, humanidades, economía, arquitectura, leyes o informática). Dado el sesgo hacia carreras de bajo costo en la mayor parte de las universidades privadas, la contribución de estas últimas para satisfacer las necesidades de innovación de la sociedad argentina es necesariamente limitada.En 1998 el Ministerio de Educación puso en marcha un procedimiento de acreditación universitaria, cuyo propósito consiste en elevar la calidad de la enseñanza y promover la investigación universitaria. Este procedimiento, que comenzó por los postgrados y seguirá con las carreras de grado, le otorga una ponderación relativamente alta a las instituciones que dedican recursos financieros y humanos a la investigación. Sin embargo, dada la ausencia de recursos y sistemas de incentivos adecuados para realizar investigación, el sistema de acreditación ha tenido muy poco impacto.Existen varios agentes (empresas productoras de bienes y servicios, asociaciones de productores, organizaciones sin fines de lucro, etc.) que participan del proceso innovador desde fuera del sistema centralizado de investigación. La creciente integración de Argentina a la economía mundial en la década del 90 junto con las reformas económicas, han inducido a estos agentes a adoptar una actitud más innovadora para aumentar su competitividad. En una primera etapa, las industrias importaron tecnologías en forma directa para lograr una modernización rápida; en una segunda etapa, algunas empresas invirtieron en el desarrollo local de innovaciones (Bisang y Malet, 1999).Las actividades de investigación en el sistema no centralizado se concentraron en desarrollos tecnológicos que no requieren una base científica importante, es decir, que pueden ser efectuados por personal con poca formación académica, y/o que no requieren instalaciones o insumos costosos. La inversión más importante por parte de las empresas se concentró en la adquisición de tecnologías intangibles (licencias, software, consultorías, acuerdos con entidades de ciencia y tecnología, etc.), generadas principalmente en el extranjero. Estos gastos, junto con las inversiones en capacitación, aumentaron 60% entre 1992 y 1996. Asimismo, las inversiones en tecnología incorporada en bienes de capital importados crecieron 103%, mientras que aquellas en tecnologías que emplean bienes de capital nacionales aumentaron sólo 39% (GACTEC, 1997).Una encuesta realizada por la Universidad Nacional de Quilmes y la Universidad de General Sarmiento complementa la información sobre la actividad innovadora en el sector privado. 6 De 1,533 empresas que respondieron la encuesta, sólo 534 informaron que habían asignado recursos para actividades de innovación entre 1992 y 1996. Durante este periodo, los gastos de innovación se incrementaron del 0.31% al 0.34% del volumen de ventas; el personal destinado a la investigación también aumentó en un 14%. Las dos ramas productivas en las que se registran los mayores aumentos de inversión en innovaciones son alimentos y siderurgia de acero y metales no ferrosos. Asimismo, los resultados muestran una interacción muy débil entre las empresas innovadoras y los centros de investigación. Del total de empresas que habían realizado actividades de innovación, sólo 97 tenían acuerdos de cooperación con instituciones públicas o privadas para realizar actividades de ciencia y técnica. 7 Los recursos financieros destinados a innovaciones en el año 1996 en el total del sector agroalimentario habrían sido de unos 15 millones de dólares.Las empresas privadas constituyen el grupo más importante del sistema no centralizado. En los últimos años han invertido entre el 25 y 30% del total de gastos en ciencia y tecnología en Argentina. Este aumento de las inversiones es la consecuencia de las políticas oficiales de financiamiento que incluyen líneas de créditos blandos para investigaciones en el sector productivo, beneficios impositivos y subsidios directos a través de fondos competitivos que requieren una contrapartida del receptor.Algunas organizaciones sin fines de lucro han desempeñado una función destacada en el desarrollo de la ciencia y la técnica, entre ellas se destacan la Fundación Campomar en Ciencias Bioquímicas y AACREA y AAPRESID en tecnologías agropecuarias. Las estadísticas sobre inversiones en ciencia y técnica indican que las organizaciones sin fines de lucro contribuyen con un 3% del total. Sin embargo, el monto de inversión real es substancialmente superior, dado que las cifras oficiales no incluyen los gastos en asesoramiento técnico, maquinarias, insumos, búsqueda de información, etc., realizados por los productores que pertenecen a estas asociaciones.Existen varias fuentes de financiamiento para el SI, tanto en el subsistema centralizado como en el no centralizado. Normalmente, los agentes emplean varias fuentes de manera simultánea y, cada vez más, los agentes dentro del sistema centralizado captan fondos del sistema no centralizado. Este financiamiento cruzado tiene tres consecuencias importantes: 1) se genera un sistema de definición de prioridades paralelo a las fijadas por las propias instituciones; 2) se debilita la capacidad de los administradores de gobernar sus instituciones, ya que en muchos casos los investigadores establecen contratos y mecanismos de cooperación desconocidos por los administradores; y 3) se reducen las diferencias entre el sistema centralizado y el no centralizado, en virtud de que los agentes del primero se comportan cada vez más como agentes del segundo.Las instituciones públicas de investigación están sujetas a las mismas regulaciones que el resto del sector público. Estas regulaciones imponen un marco demasiado rígido para el manejo de fondos y de personal técnico, que no responde a las necesidades de las actividades de investigación. Desde hace varios años las mismas autoridades han reconocido este problema y han creado una serie de mecanismos para flexibilizar el manejo de los fondos. Ejemplos de estos mecanismos son la administración por parte de instituciones multilaterales (por ejemplo, IICA o PNUD), la creación de fundaciones con carácter privado (por ejemplo, Fundación ArgenINTA) o la aportación directa de socios a investigadores. En muchos casos, las propias instituciones no cuentan con un registro de los recursos adicionales, lo que dificulta la administración de las instituciones.A pesar de que se reconocen las dificultades impuestas por las reglas de contabilidad del sector público, no se ha flexibilizado el régimen de funcionamiento de las instituciones públicas de investigación. 8 La introducción de nuevas figuras jurídicas contribuiría a lograr una administración más eficiente, estableciendo mecanismos de captación y administración de recursos de investigación más transparentes. Los flujos de financiamiento del SI se pueden dividir en tres áreas de intervención definidas por las funciones que desempeñan dentro del sistema: las fuentes de fondos, los administradores de fondos y los ejecutores de la investigación. Estos últimos fueron analizados en la sección anterior. Aquí se describen las dos primeras áreas.El financiamiento canalizado a través del sistema centralizado proviene de cuatro fuentes principales:• Las asignaciones del presupuesto nacional propuesto por el Poder Ejecutivo Nacional y aprobado por el Congreso de la Nación. • Los aportes del sector privado.• Las donaciones de organismos multilaterales.• Los fondos que aportan los estados provinciales. De menor importancia son los aportes de entidades sin fines de lucro, nacionales y extranjeras.El financiamiento que se canaliza por el sistema no centralizado incluye recursos de empresas, universidades extranjeras y fundaciones nacionales e internacionales. Cada vez más, las instituciones del sistema centralizado buscan fondos en el sector no centralizado, por medio de mecanismos que incluyen la venta de bienes y servicios, patentes y proyectos conjuntos con el sector privado. Estos recursos son todavía una porción pequeña pero creciente del financiamiento total de las instituciones del sistema centralizado. Por ejemplo, en 1998 el presupuesto del INTA ascendió a 140 millones de dólares, de los cuales 6.7 millones provenían de los parques de innovación tecnológica.La necesidad de cubrir una parte substancial de sus gastos operativos con recursos propios forzó a las instituciones públicas a establecer contacto con los usuarios de tecnología, aunque también sesgó los programas de investigación hacia proyectos de menor envergadura, menor costo y menor riesgo; es decir, las instituciones de investigación adoptaron la función de consultoras.Dentro del sistema no centralizado de investigación, los financiadores más vinculados al sector agropecuario son AACREA, AAPRESID, empresas proveedoras de insumos y de servicios, empresas compradoras de productos y productores agropecuarios. AACREA tiene entre 900 y 1,000 productores asociados, los que se nuclean en aproximadamente 130 grupos. Cada grupo gasta entre 2,000 y 3,000 pesos mensuales. Por su parte, AAPRESID cuenta con aproximadamente 2,000 productores y unas 40 empresas asociadas.Las empresas privadas (por ejemplo, empresas de maquinarias o de semillas) financian actividades internas de innovación y actividades realizadas por instituciones del sistema centralizado, por asociaciones de productores y, a veces, por productores innovadores. Por ejemplo, Monsanto patrocina las actividades del INTA, AAPRESID y, en algunos casos, distribuye insumos directamente a los productores.El organismo administrador de fondos más importante en Argentina es la SETCIP, quien los distribuye por medio de la Agencia y del CONICET. La Agencia promueve la investigación e innovación en los sectores público y privado, mediante el financiamiento de proyectos y la ejecución de otras acciones pertinentes. La Agencia cuenta con dos programas competitivos de distribución de fondos: el Fondo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (FONCYT) y el Fondo Nacional Tecnológico Argentino (FONTAR).El FONCYT apoya la ejecución de proyectos de investigación científica y tecnológica, la formación de recursos humanos, las inversiones en infraestructura de investigación y la organización de congresos y seminarios. Las prioridades son definidas por comisiones designadas para ese propósito. En el FONCYT pueden concursar únicamente investigadores de instituciones públicas o privadas sin fines de lucro. La calidad científica de los proyectos y su importancia con respecto a las prioridades del FONCYT son evaluadas por comisiones de pares. En 1998, el FONCYT financió proyectos por 31.6 millones de dólares; de esta cifra, aproximadamente 2.5 millones se destinaron al área agroindustrial.Por su parte, el FONTAR patrocina innovaciones en el sector productivo (desarrollo experimental, modernización tecnológica, capacitación de recursos humanos y asistencia técnica). Pueden solicitar fondos al FONTAR empresas productoras de bienes y servicios, unidades de vinculación tecnológica y organismos públicos y privados de transferencia de tecnología. Dentro del FONTAR existen diferentes tipos de instrumentos: créditos de reintegro contingente, créditos de reintegro total y subsidios. La mayoría de los recursos del FONTAR provienen del presupuesto nacional y del cupo de crédito fiscal (que se definen anualmente), de créditos de la banca comercial y de fondos de instituciones de crédito nacionales o multilaterales. En 1998, el FONTAR otorgó fondos por 51 millones de dólares, de los cuales 31 millones se asignaron a proyectos agroalimentarios (SETCIP, 1999a).El presupuesto del CONICET en 1999 fue del orden de 200 millones de dólares. Existen cinco mecanismos básicos de distribución de fondos: las asignaciones directas a los institutos del CONICET para gastos de funcionamiento, inversiones y gastos operativos de investigación; los salarios de los investigadores pertenecientes a la carrera de investigador; las becas concursables para la formación de investigadores; los fondos concursables para financiar proyectos de investigación en cualquier institución reconocida; y los subsidios para solventar gastos en bibliotecas, reuniones y conferencias de centros o instituciones de investigación.El Ministerio de Educación, la Secretaría de Recursos Naturales y Medio Ambiente y las agencias provinciales de ciencia y técnica también disponen de recursos para la investigación que son asignados en forma directa. Las universidades nacionales y provinciales en cambio generalmente emplean mecanismos competitivos. Comparados con los presupuestos de las instituciones de la SETCIP, los montos son relativamente pequeños. La Secretaría de Agricultura, Ganadería Pesca y Alimentación maneja dos tipos de fondos: el presupuesto del INTA y los fondos provenientes de su presupuesto y de los componentes de asistencia técnica incluidos en los préstamos de organismos multinacionales. Estos últimos se utilizan para financiar proyectos específicos con mecanismos no concursables. Los fondos se pueden otorgar a institutos de investigación (por ejemplo, INTA), institutos de control (por ejemplo, INASE o SENASA) o consultores privados.El Ministerio de Educación administra el Programa FOMEC, financiado con fondos provenientes de un convenio con el Banco Mundial y complementado con fondos del Tesoro Nacional. El objetivo de este programa es mejorar la calidad de la enseñanza superior y para ello se financian la compra de bienes y equipos y la formación de recursos humanos. De esta manera, el programa contribuye indirectamente apoyando las tareas de investigación en instituciones de enseñanza. Durante 1998 el FOMEC comprometió aproximadamente 6.5 millones de dólares para las universidades en áreas vinculadas al sector agropecuario (SETCIP, 1999b). En 1999 y 2000 la actividad del FOMEC decreció notablemente.En los últimos años han aumentado los financiamientos de algunas provincias que han creado organismos específicos para administrar programas científicos.El desempeño del SNI depende del sistema de incentivos a los investigadores y a las instituciones de investigación, y de las interacciones entre ambos. En esta sección se describen algunos de los mecanismos de incentivos que se aplican en la mayor parte de las instituciones de ciencia y técnica argentinas.La reorganización de las instituciones públicas de investigación argentinas se llevó a cabo básicamente por medio de un instrumento: nuevos mecanismos de financiamiento. Sin embargo, aún no se ha reconocido que el financiamiento es sólo un instrumento dentro del conjunto que determina el funcionamiento y la eficiencia de las instituciones de investigación. El conjunto incluye incentivos a los investigadores (sueldos adecuados, acceso a fondos operativos que permitan realizar actividades a largo plazo, capacidad de desarrollar líneas de investigación, posibilidades de actualización profesional y de interacción con otros agentes, reconocimiento de la calidad de la investigación, etc.); a los administradores (sueldos adecuados, reconocimiento por resultados, etc.); y a las instituciones mismas (reconocimiento social de su importancia, provisión de fondos, capacidad de consolidación, etc.).Los nuevos mecanismos de financiamiento sólo han flexibilizado el manejo financiero; el manejo de personal aún constituye un problema primordial en las instituciones públicas de investigación. Especialmente importantes son la estabilidad de los investigadores, prácticamente desde que son contratados, el envejecimiento progresivo de las instituciones por la falta de investigadores jóvenes formados, la falta de transparencia en los mecanismos de contratación, la falta de políticas de actualización para profesionales y de un sistema de incentivos que reflejen los objetivos institucionales al tiempo que premien la calidad de la investigación y las interacciones con otras agentes del SNI (Ekboir y Parellada, 1999). Uno de los incentivos más importantes es el salario. En Argentina existen básicamente tres regímenes salariales para los investigadores (Bisang y Malet, 1999):• El Sistema Nacional de la Administración Pública (SINAPA), introducido a fines de la década del 80. En este sistema, los salarios dependían de la función y la antigüedad, y se otorgaba un premio del 10% a los agentes destacados. Los criterios para otorgar tal incentivo eran fijados por cada institución. Inicialmente, los empleados públicos eran transferidos progresivamente a este sistema mediante concursos y selección, pero este régimen está siendo desmantelado paulatinamente por restricciones presupuestarias. • El sistema tradicional de salarios de la administración pública, en que los salarios dependen básicamente de la antigüedad y la función desempeñada. En general, los sueldos de los cargos administrativos jerárquicos son más altos que los de los investigadores destacados; es decir, existe un incentivo poderoso para que los investigadores se dediquen a tareas administrativas, pero, obviamente, esto repercute en la capacidad de investigación. Este problema se ve agravado por la falta de incorporación de investigadores jóvenes. • Los sistemas específicos de determinados institutos, como por ejemplo, el CONICET, que tiene escalafones propios para la carrera de investigador y para el personal de apoyo a la investigación, con mecanismos de evaluación y promoción específicos. El INTA cuenta también con su propio escalafón. Desde 1992 las universidades tienen libertad para fijar sus propios niveles salariales, por lo que existen diversos sistemas.Además de los salarios, existen otros mecanismos de incentivos, algunos de los cuales incluyen remuneraciones adicionales. Por ejemplo, la remuneración de cada profesor universitario está relacionada en forma directa con su producción científica, con lo que se ha incrementado el número de publicaciones de docentes universitarios, la participación en innovaciones patentables, etcétera.En ningún caso se han utilizado evaluaciones técnicas externas como insumo para dirigir a las instituciones de investigación ni para definir niveles de incentivos. Igualmente, los mecanismos de actualización profesional son, en el mejor de los casos, sumamente débiles.El gasto total en ciencia y tecnología en Argentina nunca ha superado el 0.5% del PBI (Cuadro 6). En la década del 90, el total de gastos en ciencia y técnica se incrementó tanto en valores absolutos (en aproximadamente 800 millones de dólares) como en términos relativos al PBI (pasando del 0.33% al 0.46%). El Plan Plurianual de la SECYT en 1999 estableció el objetivo de alcanzar un gasto en ciencia y técnica del 1% del PBI. A la luz de la crisis económica y los recortes presupuestarios puestos en marcha en Argentina en los años siguientes, ese objetivo parece difícil cumplir.Los gastos en actividades científicas y tecnológicas (en pesos de 1998) aumentaron 164% entre 1985 y 1999. El menor crecimiento se observó en los gastos de organismos públicos. A pesar de su menor tasa de crecimiento, en 1999 la mayor parte del financiamiento del sector centralizado provino de la Tesorería de la Nación, con contribuciones menores de provincias y municipios. Cerca del 65% del total invertido en ciencia y tecnología se obtuvo mediante aportes del sector público (gobierno y educación superior), un 30% de empresas privadas y un 2.8% de entidades sin fines de lucro. 9 El mayor crecimiento estuvo representado por los gastos del sector privado, que aumentaron 372%. El fuerte incremento de las inversiones del sector privado observado a partir de 1996 fue la respuesta a la apertura de líneas de financiamiento oficiales que demandaban una contrapartida del sector privado, en particular, el FONTAR.A pesar del incremento de las inversiones en actividades de ciencia y técnica, los científicos argentinos disponen de pocos fondos para sus actividades. En 1997 el gasto por investigador ascendió a 33,000 dólares, en comparación, el gasto en EUA fue de 113,000 dólares, en España fue de 101,000 dólares y en Chile fue de 66,000 dólares (RICYT, 2001).Las inversiones en desarrollos científicos en el área de Ciencias Agrarias se elevaron de 144.2 millones en 1993 a 160.9 millones de pesos en 1999. En términos porcentuales del gasto total correspondiente a ciencia y técnica, las inversiones en Ciencias Agropecuarias cayeron del 14% al 11% (Cuadro 7). Un panorama similar surge del análisis de los proyectos de investigación financiados por el sistema centralizado. En 1998 se financiaron 17,066 proyectos de investigación, de los cuales 1,623 correspondían a proyectos en Ciencias Agropecuarias (Cuadro 8). La proporción de proyectos vinculados al sector agropecuario en el total de proyectos de ciencia y técnica disminuyó drásticamente entre 1994 y 1998; sin embargo, el número de investigadores en Ciencias Agrícolas (4,040 investigadores) se mantuvo casi sin cambios. Estos datos indican una fuerte caída en los fondos disponibles por investigador en Ciencias Agropecuarias y, en consecuencia, en la capacidad operativa de las instituciones de investigación del sector.Cuadro 6. Gastos en actividades científicas y tecnológicas (en millones de pesos de 1998). La formación de recursos humanos se encuentra fuertemente sesgada hacia las Ciencias Sociales y la Medicina (Cuadro 10). Setenta y uno por ciento de los graduados universitarios, 83% de los estudiantes de maestría y 34% de los de doctorado estaban inscritos en estas disciplinas. En cambio, sólo el 17% de los graduados universitarios, el 9% de los estudiantes de maestría y el 10% de los de doctorado estaban inscritos en carreras de ingeniería y tecnología. Esta orientación de los estudiantes de doctorado muestra un sesgo muy fuerte en contra de las carreras más relacionadas con actividades de innovación en procesos productivos.Si bien los índices bibliométricos y el número de patentes son indicadores parciales de la productividad de los investigadores, hasta el momento no se han desarrollado indicadores más completos. Comparados con los de otros países, ambos índices para los investigadores argentinos resultan bajos. El número de publicaciones registradas en SCI-SEARCH por cada 100 investigadores, en equivalentes de jornada completa, es 17.4 para Argentina; 27.7 para EUA; 39.5 para España; y 44.2 para Uruguay. En 1999 Argentina otorgó 0.48 patentes a residentes por cada 100 investigadores, Chile 0.98 y EUA 4.48.El SNI agropecuario argentino ha alcanzado un grado de diversidad importante. Las primeras instituciones públicas de investigación agropecuaria fueron las carreras ligadas a la agricultura en las universidades nacionales creadas a fines del siglo XIX. 10 Estas instituciones seguían el modelo francés (Chesnais, 1993), en el que la investigación estaba dirigida a completar la formación profesional o a satisfacer la curiosidad intelectual de los profesores, pero no se requería que los investigadores interactuaran con otros agentes públicos o privados. Salvo los esfuerzos individuales de algunos docentes, no se establecieron vínculos institucionales importantes con el sector productivo. En esa misma época, algunas provincias crearon estaciones experimentales donde se ponía especial atención al mejoramiento genético vegetal. Estas instituciones tampoco tenían muchos vínculos con el sector productivo.Cuadro 10. Graduados universitarios por disciplina científica en 1996 (personas físicas). Como ya se mencionó, la capacidad de investigación de las universidades nacionales suele ser reducida. Sin embargo, algunos grupos aislados de investigadores han logrado reconocimiento internacional. Esta misma situación se presenta en los institutos del CONICET relacionados con el sector agropecuario.En forma paralela a las actividades del sector público, desde principios del siglo XX, surgieron una cantidad de empresas privadas que suministraban tecnologías incorporadas en insumos (semillas, agroquímicos y maquinaria agrícola). Por ejemplo, el semillero Klein 12 Entre los servicios que provee ARGENINTA se encuentran la administración de fondos para programas y proyectos del INTA y de terceras instituciones; la certificación de conformidad con normas voluntarias para alimentos, insumos, procesos y maquinaria; la operación como unidad de vinculación tecnológica; la operación como unidad de estudios y consultoría para la formulación, evaluación y administración de proyectos, incluida la identificación y gestión de posibles fuentes de financiamiento externas para los mismos; la organización de eventos y programas de promoción, difusión y capacitación. 13 Entre los servicios que provee INTEA, S.A. se encuentran la prestación de servicios a terceros; análisis, ensayos, consultorías, asistencia técnica especializada y capacitación; comercialización de tecnologías y productos agroalimentarios y agroindustriales; desarrollo de proyectos y de empresas llave en mano; desarrollo y administración de inversiones para actividades agropecuarias y forestales; licenciamiento de patentes, marcas y títulos; desarrollo de actividades comerciales, en forma independiente o asociada. 14 El Programa Cambio Rural proporciona recursos económicos a grupos de productores para la contratación de asesoramiento técnico sobre problemas específicos. El financiamiento proviene de la SAGYP, y el personal técnico es contratado y supervisado por el INTA. Cambio Rural apoya a unos 25,000 productores en 2,300 grupos. El Programa para Minufundistas, que utiliza la misma mecánica de operación, incluye 21,000 productores. ProHuerta es financiado por la Secretaría de Desarrollo Social y abarca 344,000 huertas que benefician a unos 2.000,000 de personas.comenzó a operar en 1919 y el semillero Buck en 1930 (Gutiérrez, 1991). Las fábricas nacionales de maquinaria agrícola se establecieron desde principios de siglo XX; comenzaron produciendo piezas para maquinaria importada y después copiaron y mejoraron modelos importados (Huici, 1984). A partir de la década del 60 las empresas de maquinaria agrícola incrementaron su actividad y alcanzaron un nivel importante de sofisticación. La mayoría de estas empresas tienen pequeños equipos de desarrollo de productos. Sus innovaciones parten en general de modelos desarrollados por la competencia, y cuando se trata de satisfacer necesidades más complejas (por ejemplo, agricultura de precisión) contratan desarrollos en el exterior. Estas fábricas también crean innovaciones propias, las que a veces son copiadas por empresas multinacionales (Ekboir y Parellada, 2000).En los últimos años, las empresas semilleras y agroquímicas han incrementado sus actividades de investigación y transferencia, y ha aumentado el número de empresas dedicadas al asesoramiento en negocios agrícolas. Según estimaciones de Mora y Araujo, 15 el 26% de los productores pampeanos reciben algún tipo de asesoramiento técnico en forma permanente y casi el 50% lo hace en forma circunstancial.Tomando como indicadores del cambio tecnológico operado en la agricultura pampeana el uso de fertilizantes y la difusión de siembra directa, siempre de acuerdo con estimaciones de Mora y Araujo, en 1999 el 76% de los productores trigueros aplicaron fertilizante a sus cultivos, mientras que en el caso del maíz la proporción alcanzó el 72%. Estas cifras representan un crecimiento de casi seis veces respecto a la proporción de productores que fertilizaban sus cultivos en 1993. La superficie cultivada con siembra directa en Argentina aumentó espectacularmente de 200,000 hectáreas a principios de la década del 90 a 9.3 millones en la campaña 2000/2001 (Derpsch, 2001).Algunas ONG han desempeñado una función importante, complementando los esfuerzos públicos de investigación. Ejemplos de ello son AACREA y AAPRESID, las que han sido fundamentales para mantener la competitividad de las empresas agropecuarias en la producción de granos y carnes. AAPRESID promovió activamente la difusión de la siembra directa en Argentina, en tanto que AACREA se concentró en la difusión de tecnología y el desarrollo de herramientas para la gestión agraria. Es en esta área donde actualmente se podrían lograr los mayores aumentos de competitividad y donde el sector público ha tenido menor importancia. Tanto AACREA como AAPRESID tienen una estructura descentralizada, en que la mayoría de las actividades de investigación o experimentación son realizadas y financiadas directamente por pequeños grupos de productores. Las unidades centrales desempeñan sólo algunas actividades de investigación y capacitación, ya que su misión principal es la coordinación de la búsqueda y distribución de información.AACREA se formó en la década del 60, siguiendo el modelo francés, en el que entre 8 y 12 productores se asociaban en un grupo estable que contrataba a un asesor técnico. La asociación de alcance nacional coordinaba los grupos y apoyaba profesionalmente a los asesores. El objetivo de esos grupos consistía en desarrollar experiencias productivas e intercambiar información, aprovechando economías de escala en la producción y la generación de información. El elemento distintivo de las actividades de AACREA es que aunque muchos de los temas abordados eran de poca complejidad científica, éstos requerían una visión sistémica de la explotación agropecuaria. En general, esta visión sistémica es difícil de implementar en instituciones públicas de investigación, las que están organizadas en base a disciplinas científicas (Ekboir, 2000). Si bien AACREA no ha tenido una relación institucional fluida con INTA, muchos técnicos de este último han interactuado asiduamente con grupos zonales o asesores específicos.AAPRESID fue creada en 1988 por un pequeño grupo de investigadores del INTA y agricultores de la región pampeana, con un fuerte apoyo de Monsanto. Su estructura operativa es similar a la de AACREA (una asociación nacional que coordina las actividades de grupos locales), pero sus actividades de investigación se limitan a temas relacionados con la siembra directa. Otra diferencia importante entre ambas instituciones es que AAPRESID tiene una política abierta de difusión de la información generada por los asociados, mientras que la de AACREA es más restrictiva, es decir, mucha de la información se distribuye sólo entre los asociados. AAPRESID desempeñó un papel fundamental en la adaptación local y difusión de la siembra directa a comienzos de la década del 90 (Ekboir y Parellada, 2000).El INTA y las empresas privadas de semillas mantienen contacto con algunos centros del CGIAR, en particular el CIMMYT, CIP y CIAT. En la mayoría de los casos, estos contactos se concentran en la obtención de germoplasma avanzado.Las instituciones argentinas de investigación agropecuaria participan en diversas redes internacionales. La más importante es PROCISUR, que está integrada por los institutos públicos de investigación agropecuaria de los países del Cono Sur. 16 Los objetivos de PROCISUR son favorecer el intercambio de experiencias y resultados de la investigación que se lleva a cabo en cada país; generar consultorías de especialistas de las instituciones participantes hacia el resto de las instituciones que integran el PROCISUR; y organizar y buscar financiamiento para proyectos de interés común para varios países miembros.Asimismo, las instituciones extranjeras de cooperación y ONG de importancia local han desempeñado una función importante en iniciativas vinculadas con el desarrollo rural, como por ejemplo, GTZ, FUNDAPAZ y otras organizaciones de menor tamaño pero que tienen un importante impacto local.Aunque algunos grupos individuales de investigadores en instituciones públicas se mantienen en contacto con instituciones extranjeras que ocasionalmente les proporcionan financiamiento para sus actividades, no existen mecanismos instituciones activos de interacción.Argentina tiene un sistema de investigación relativamente diversificado, en el que participan tanto agentes públicos como privados. Este sistema evolucionó a partir de dos fuentes principales, a saber, el sistema universitario creado a fines del siglo XIX (donde las universidades debían hacer ciencia \"no contaminada por el aparato productivo\"), y el conjunto de institutos por disciplina creados en la década del 50. La misión de estos institutos consistía en generar tecnologías para la industria nacional, en particular las grandes empresas públicas. Con excepción del INTA, la organización de los institutos no fomentaba interacciones con el sector privado.A partir de la segunda mitad de la década del 80, la apertura de la economía y la transformación del Estado redefinieron el marco en que funcionaba el SNI. Estos cambios produjeron una profunda crisis en el sistema. Si bien los sucesivos gobiernos y administraciones de instituciones establecieron diferentes políticas en respuesta a la crisis, también contribuyeron de forma activa y pasiva a la misma. Un ejemplo de su participación activa es la considerable reducción del financiamiento público para investigación. Ejemplo de su participación pasiva es la incapacidad para reestructurar las instituciones, en especial, para definir nuevos esquemas de incentivos.La reducción del financiamiento público de las instituciones de investigación las obligó a modificar substancialmente sus patrones de conducta. Cuando los fondos del presupuesto sólo alcanzaron a cubrir gastos de personal y estructura, las instituciones tuvieron que buscar nuevas fuentes para solventar sus gastos operativos. Éstas se dieron en forma de fondos competitivos, ventas de bienes y servicios, proyectos conjuntos con el sector productivo y licenciamiento de tecnologías propias.La creciente dependencia de fondos competitivos y aportes del sector privado desincentiva los proyectos de mayor riesgo o de plazos más largos de ejecución, que requieren inversiones importantes o que atienden a las necesidades de agentes que no pueden articular sus necesidades tecnológicas (por ejemplo, pequeños productores). El problema se agrava porque también se redujo la capacidad de investigación de las universidades y hoy éstas no alcanzan a cubrir los espacios que van dejando las instituciones oficiales tradicionales.En ninguna de las reestructuraciones implementadas se promovieron discusiones con los agentes del SNI sobre la función específica del mismo en la economía argentina, sobre su organización (incluyendo su participación en la captación de tecnologías en otros países), o sobre cuál debería ser la función de las instituciones públicas y privadas en el mismo. A partir de 1994, el gobierno nacional creó una serie de incentivos para aumentar las interacciones entre agentes (FONTAR, FONCYT, unidades de vinculación tecnológica). Asimismo, durante ese periodo, se realizaron revisiones parciales de los sistemas de incentivos a los investigadores. No obstante, al no existir una clara definición de los objetivos de las instituciones de investigación, no se pudo definir un régimen de incentivos adecuados para los agentes. Por ejemplo, si se premia la publicación de trabajos en revistas científicas, se desincentiva la interacción de los investigadores con las empresas para el desarrollo de innovaciones tecnológicas.A partir de 1992 también comenzó a fomentarse la investigación en las universidades, pero no se definió cuál era su objetivo primordial, es decir, si eran instituciones de investigación o de docencia. Como ya se mencionó antes, las universidades no tienen los recursos necesarios para mantener programas de investigación importantes. Sin una reforma substancial del sistema universitario que defina la función de cada institución y cada grupo de investigación, éste no podrá mejorar su capacidad de investigación ni de docencia (Ekboir y Parellada, 1999).Finalmente, como la discusión sobre las transformaciones del sistema de investigación se centró en el uso de incentivos financieros a las instituciones para forzarlas a reformar sus operaciones, faltó el análisis de: 1) el efecto que estos cambios tenían sobre la capacidad operativa de las instituciones, 2) cuál debería ser el papel de los diferentes agentes en el SNI, 3) cuáles deberían ser los mecanismos de incentivos y control de los investigadores y 4) si había otros instrumentos para alcanzar los mismos objetivos sin afectar la capacidad operativa de las instituciones de investigación.","tokenCount":"10979"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"236baf00719fb6f9fd1158f609901dbc","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/38b2703c-ad33-4959-b91d-c4a614836a25/retrieve","id":"-2128862989"},"keywords":["Cover, Jen Watson / Shutterstock.com","p.3, Francisco Marques / Shutterstock.com","p.4, James Audho / ILRI","p.5, Frederic Courbet / Panos Pictures"],"sieverID":"4143945e-484a-4815-a8ad-2e1f049b7796","pagecount":"8","content":"The new Kenyan Government faces a complex domestic and global environment, and it is widely expected to address key food and agricultural challenges with a new set of policies and programs. This policy brief provides research-based \"food for thought and action\" to support operationalizing the country's Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda 2022-2027. 1   Rapid population growth and urbanization with limited structural transformation present major challenges to Kenya's ability to achieve food security for all and become a higher-middle-income country in the medium term. The urban population is expected to constitute nearly 50 percent of the projected population of 80 million by 2050 (UNDESA 2018). With 75 percent of the population under the age of 35, a 40-year demographic dividend is expected by 2038, as the large youth population will rapidly expand the size of the labor force. As fertility rates decline, the labor force is expected to grow faster relative to the number of dependents in the economy, allowing for higher investment rates than at present (NCPD 2020). However, if recent economic trends are any indication, the country risks not having enough jobs to support the projected increase in the labor force, which could constrain the growing labor force's ability to save and invest and could reduce Kenya's likelihood of achieving the demographic dividend. Structural transformation usually 1 https://uda.ke/downloads/manifesto.pdf entails labor transitioning from less productive agricultural jobs in rural areas to more productive manufacturing jobs in urban areas (Hayami and Ruttan 1985). Although urbanization is occurring in Kenya, labor in cities is mostly concentrated in the low-productivity service sector (such as retail and wholesale), rather than the more productive manufacturing and more sophisticated service sectors (Lukalo and Kiminyei 2019).Another key consideration for the Kenyan government is how to feed the country's rapidly growing population in an increasingly volatile global environment. Food production is not keeping pace with population growth -maize yields, for example, have stagnated since the 1990s (FAO 2022) -and healthy diets are unaffordable for many (Ecker, Comstock, and Pauw, forthcoming). Climate change is further disrupting agricultural production, with temperature and rainfall variability expected to increase in the coming years. Droughts and locusts have plagued the country, particularly the arid and semi-arid areas, leaving an estimated 3.5 million people in need of assistance as of May 2022 (UNICEF 2022). The COVID-19 pandemic and the global commodity price crisis accelerated by the Russia-Ukraine war have similarly increased poverty and heightened food security and nutrition issues (Nafula et al. 2020;Breisinger et al. 2022).In order to address these challenges, the forthcoming book recommends several actions:1. Broaden the strategic and policy focus from a \"food security\" 2 to a \"food systems\" 3 approach to support the economic transformation envisioned by Kenya's Bottom Up Economic Transformation Agenda 2022-2027. The food security lens used in the Medium Term III, Big 4 Agenda mainly focuses on staple food crops such as cereals and root crops, as these account for a large portion of agricultural landholdings and public investments. However, cereals and roots are among the least effective in reducing poverty, creating employment, and improving diets, while animal products and traditional export crops are the most effective (Diao et al., forthcoming ). Within the food systems framework, policy priorities can be organized into five key areas: industrializing agrifood value chains, enhancing financial support to the agrifood sector, fostering digital innovation in food systems, promoting health and safety in food consumption, and transforming institutional approaches.2. Accelerate the industrialization and commercialization of food systems. In the Kenyan food system, the value added from nonfarm activities (such as processing) is lower than in other low-and middle-income countries (Diao et. al, forthcoming). For output and employment to transition from primarily agricultural to nonagricultural parts of the food system and beyond, increased on-farm productivity and the creation of nonagricultural jobs need to go hand in hand. To support such a transition, emerging commercial farmers need to be integrated into domestic and export value chains, and agricultural products need to be processed before domestic sale and/or export. Supporting mechanization is also crucial, as Kenya lags behind other countries in this area (Figure 1). Globally, successful nationwide mechanization efforts have resulted from governments providing systems and support services based on economic demand, rather than governments providing machinery supply, finance, and machinery-for-hire services directly (Diao, Takeshima, and Zhang 2020). Because mechanization usually reduces the number of on-farm 2 jobs, the food and agricultural sector needs to be industrialized across the value chain to create new, often higher-quality jobs (Lowder et al. 2016;Neven et al. 2009).3. Expand access to food system activities for smallholders. The existing e-voucher system, piloted in 2014/15, can serve as a starting point for a better-targeted fertilizer subsidy system. In the short run, the system's distributional and administrative processes can be improved and simplified. 4 Longer-term solutions may include supporting domestic fertilizer production to avoid import disruptions; reducing last-mile delivery costs; reducing price volatility of output markets; and promoting the use of alternative or additional fertilizer sources. In addition, policies are needed to protect smallholders against climate change and systemic shocks, such as drought, and provide enhanced access to credit. The use of formal insurance markets is a viable policy option because it transfers risk outside of households and thus protects their collateral. Bundling insurance with credit also minimizes the risk of default by smallholder borrowers; in turn, this abates financial risks that threaten lenders' business stability, 4 https://vifaakenya.org./#/kenya/policy a common issue when rural agricultural production systems experience systemic shocks such as drought.4. Build on Kenya's digital success to transform food systems. Kenya has made significant strides in the digital space by improving its mobile/internet infrastructure and supportive policies. Despite being Africa's leader in digital innovation for agriculture, Kenya's nascent digital ecosystem is still insufficiently transformative and sustainable -it faces difficulties in scaling up, and the private sector relies heavily on grants and investments from international development agencies. For digitally enabled transformation, digital infrastructure (such as network coverage) must be expanded, particularly in remote rural areas, and public-private partnerships with digital service providers should be pursued. Digital services can also reduce barriers to accessing insurance and credit. However, greater attention is needed to ensure that private digital service providers have sustainable business models. Hype must also be separated from reality in this burgeoning industry -systematic assessments of both successes and failures at different stages of piloting and scaling digital solutions should accompany and inform future efforts.5. Improve nutrition through production and consumption policies. Malnutrition in Kenya is primarily a poverty problem, as the majority of Kenyans cannot afford a healthy, balanced diet (Figure 2). In addition to likely raising real incomes of producers and consumers through food systems development, diverse foods provide higher-quality diets with more micronutrients and give consumers a wider range of options when the prices of certain foods rise dramatically (such as maize flour). However, the promotion of more diverse diets must be accompanied by a more diverse food production base that reduces reliance on food imports and boosts domestic producers' incomes. To improve food safety, the government can monitor water sources used for irrigation, incentivize small and informal businesses to tackle food safety, implement frequent and thorough surveillance of high-risk foods, and leverage private sector capacity through self-monitoring and co-regulatory approaches. Building on successful responses to COVID-19, the government can continue encouraging the implementation of WASH infrastructure at markets and abattoirs. On the demand side, the government can provide infant and young child feeding recommendations for caregivers. These recommendations should be widely disseminated and easy to understand.6. Improve animal health and disease control. The government can support the veterinary laboratory system by providing technical support for disease surveillance, diagnosis, and quality control. Efforts to improve veterinary services must also promote equitable access to services (for example, vaccines), especially in value chains where women play a large role, such as indigenous chicken value chains. In addition, the State Department of Livestock and the Zoonotic Disease Unit under the Ministry of Health should work together to control zoonotic diseases using the \"One Health\" approach. Public-private partnerships for cross-county and transboundary infectious disease control need to be established. The private sector can also aid in the last-mile delivery of efficient and timely veterinary services. Finally, private and public sector initiatives should coordinate with Kenya Wildlife Services to control diseases at the livestock-wildlife interface.7. Provide better opportunities for women to make food systems more productive. Women constitute the majority of food system actors, and their contributions must be harnessed to realize the full potential of the Kenyan food system. Overcoming gendered challenges is crucial to building healthier and more productive food systems. Women have low rates of land ownership, minimal participation in decision-making and food governance, challenges in obtaining resources to produce food, and weaker networks than men. Food systems policies must address these constraints and ensure that women reap the benefits of food systems transformation.  There are no \"silver bullet\" policies that can transform the food sector overnight, and the idea of a food systems \"revolution\" is a misnomer. Previous \"revolutions\" (such as the second Agricultural Revolution and the Green Revolution) were not abrupt changes, but slow, decades-long transitions with committed policymaking and steady progress. Today, improved technology and access to information make it easier than ever to drive transformation through evidence and innovation. Seizing this opportunity will require enlightened, coherent, and evidence-based policy. Kenya is a land of great natural and human potential -and the new government has the chance to set an example for other countries on successful food systems transformation.","tokenCount":"1582"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"b97784d583ea605c1455a2721bbf2d3e","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/49389cd5-1467-45b7-839f-e05420d66d3b/retrieve","id":"-2113757287"},"keywords":["Congo basin forests","climate-smart conservation agriculture","farm investments","agroforestry","land access","tenure security"],"sieverID":"ece1bc0a-87c0-4ac0-b5f5-3bfb1012d2fa","pagecount":"21","content":"Background and Research Aims: Agriculture through deforestation is an important threat to biodiversity conservation in the Congo Basin's tropical forest. The policy challenge is not only to promote adaptation to perceived climate change but also to promote forest conservation. The aim of this study is to provide empirical evidence on the impact of farm-level investments in climate-smart agricultural practices related to conservation agriculture in some Congo Basin countries. The hypothesis is that property rights to land and trees play a fundamental role in governing the patterns of investment, forestland management for conservation, as well as in the profitability of agriculture. Methods: A Simulated Maximum Likelihood Estimation using a Mixed Logit model is used to test farmers' choice of agricultural system and a farmland value model for each agricultural system which includes determinants of tenure or property rights, climate, soils, and socioeconomic variables such as education and gender. The data was collected from more than 600 farms covering 12 regions and 45 divisions in 3 countries, Cameroon, the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Results: Farmers choose one of three agricultural systems to maximize farm profit mindful of the current tenure regime and environmental conditions. Conservation agriculture techniques within climate-smart practices show benefits for smallholder farmers through improvements in soil health, soil moisture retention and enhanced crop yields. The rights to access, withdraw, manage, as well as exclude others from land and trees affect both the farmers' choice of system and the profit earned from the chosen system. Conclusion: Farmlevel investments improve farm incomes and enhance conservation effort for farmers perceiving climate change. Implications for Conservation: Climate change adaptation through planting of trees improves soil stability, restores ecosystems and creates a safe haven for biodiversity. Secure land tenure promotes better forestland management and reduces land degradation in vulnerable communities.The tropics remain-an important area for nature conservancy, biodiversity regeneration and precursor for ecological sustainability (Hoang & Kanemoto, 2021;Mason et al., 2020;FAO, 2019;IPBES, 2019;Maddox, 2018). The Congo Basin which is recognized for its megabiodiversity, specifically is home to about 11,000 species of tropical plants, over 1200 species of birds, 450 mammal species, 700 species of fish, and 280 reptile species (Peya, 2018;Endamana et al., 2010;Mittermeier, et al. 1998). When healthy, the terrestrial ecosystems are important for agricultural production, via its provisioning, regulating, and supporting services (Hupke, 2023). Biodiversity in the Congo Basin Forest (CBF) plays a crucial role of local and international significance in maintaining ecosystem functions and services such as pollination, pest control, and soil formation (FAO, 2011).This natural wealth in the CBF of the central African subregion is however bedeviled by natural and anthropogenic interference which generates environmental stress, (Pörtner et al., 2021;FAO, 2019;IPBES, 2019). Climate change is inevitable and the consequences are expected to be grim on agroecosystems such as those within tropical forest ecosystems which represent a common heritage with livelihood portfolios shared by a great majority of people, especially in the Congo Basin countries (Djihouessi et al., 2022;Temple et al., 2022;Nkem et al., 2013;Ludwig et al., 2012).While the biodiversity wealth is challenged by climate change, the agricultural sector on which the survival of millions depend as producers, consumers and employees is significantly impacted by climate change induced biodiversity decline (Leal Filho et al., 2023;IPBES, 2019;IPCC, 2019a). In fact, temperature and precipitation change have influenced some species change (Pörtner et al 2021;IPBES, 2019). Climate change thus remains a pervasive threat to biodiversity and ecosystem services which are linked not only to the agriculture, but also to the water, health and energy sectors (Djihouessi et al., 2022;Pörtner et al 2021). For instance, soil which is paramount for food production, changes in its biodiversity is directly or indirectly linked to the alteration of climatic parameters (Leal Filho et al., 2023). In addition, changing temperature and precipitation impact agrobiodiversity. The IPCC and IPBES acknowledge the interconnectedness of climate change and agrobiodiversity (Pörtner et al 2021). The threats posed by climate change on biodiversity and agrobiodiversity are expected to increase, thus requiring conservation science to generate solutions, change behaviors and obtain better conservation outcomes, particularly at the farm, homestead and community levels (Hellin & Fisher, 2019).Therefore, in the advent of global warming induced climate change, addressing the food needs of an impending population bulge requires significant farm-level investments for a responsive agriculture system which internalizes ecological, economic and socio-cultural concerns. Conservation agriculture is thus emerging as a climate-smart tool which farmers could adopt to manage ecosystems while boosting soil fertility and crop yields for more food (Mhlanga et al., 2022;Thierfelder & Mhlanga, 2022;Waldron et al., 2017). Farmers investing in conservation agriculture require assurances to access land and associated property rights. While deforestation and degradation are tied to a complex array of socioeconomic and political factors (Robinson, et al., 2014;Molua, 2012), insecure tenure to forestlands breeds conservation concerns (Robinson et al., 2018). For example, Robinson et al. (2014) find evidence that land tenure security is associated with less deforestation, regardless of the form of tenure. Unsuitable land-tenure systems may thus constitute an obstacle to the adoption of farmland level investments (Shittu et al., 2018). In the Congo Basin where forests are a source of livelihood for millions of rural families, security of land tenure and access to land are important for effective environmental management and sustainable land use practices (Wong et al., 2022;Dupuits & Ongolo 2020;Ntirumenyerwa Mihigo & Cliquet, 2020). Hence, the problems of land tenure and land rights on farmers' conservation behavior warrants investigation.In this study, we specifically present a typology of the Climate Smart Conservation Agriculture (CS-CoA) land management techniques employed by farmers within the Congo Basin. We also document the agricultural land use, land tenure and land institutions in the region. We then proceed to establish the determinants of prevailing land tenure and the effects on tree management and the choice of the agricultural system which are necessary to promote conservation agriculture. The hypothesis is that property rights to land and trees play a fundamental role in governing the patterns of investment, farmland management for conservation, as well as in the profitability of agriculture.The rationale for our study hinges on the inherent relationship of rain-fed agriculture practiced in many tropical countries, which predestines it to an undisputed correlational relationship with climate variability and change (Pörtner et al., 2021;FAO, 2019;Kurukulasuriya et al., 2006). In a region where the stochastic variability of climate is well established (IPCC 2019a;IPCC 2019b), there is need for a corresponding response to protect agroecosystems and the significant livelihoods associated with it, as well as agriculture's capacity to preserve and protect nature and its essential services to people (IPBES 2019;IPBES 2018). How this plays out in agrarian dependent communities in the CBF will require temporal and spatial policy responses that promote farm investments which curb the strain on production systems and the associated value chain, so that the farm-tofork effect of exogenous stress from climatic factors are better managed for the dynamic outcomes of food security, livelihood stability and communal stability (IPBES 2018;IPCC 2019a;Branca et al., 2011).For hotspots like the CBF, which is the second most important lung of the world, climate change further complicates the effects of agriculture linked deforestation on human systems (Pörtner et al 2021;Couturier, 2019). Paradoxically, the system of agriculture practiced similarly remains an important threat to the CBF's wealth of biodiversity. It is estimated that in Cameroon, for instance, about 80% of the deforestation is due to small-scale farmers using extensive slash and burn techniques (Dalimier et al., 2021;Tyukavina et al., 2018). Reversing deforestation in the Congo Basin in particular, and increasing agricultural productivity to meet the demands of a growing population while promoting conservation are mutual objectives, which are vital for sustainable development (Tegegne et al., 2016;Molua, 2012;Endamana et al., 2010;Nkem et al., 2010). These efforts would have to put not only the farm sector but the entire food system at the center of climate action (Pörtner et al., 2021;Lipper et al., 2014). This calls for a resilient and sustainable agricultural sector in the Congo Basin (Thiombiano et al., 2012).Institutions operating in the Congo Basin such as the Center for International Forest Policy (CIFOR) lead the voices which address the vulnerability of communities to climatic variability and climate change, and the precariousness of the ecosystem and livelihood. The Congo Basin thus remains an important real-life laboratory challenged by climate change which add pressure on local and regional agriculture and food systems (Thiombiano et al., 2012;Brown et al., 2011), as well as on the ecosystem stability and the biodiversity that is crucial for agriculture (FAO, 2019). Properly managed ecosystems within the basin will provide advantages for both adaptation and mitigation of climate change. Some studies such as Locatelli et al (2010) have examined the twin options of adaptation of tropical forest ecosystems and positioning tropical forests for adaptation, and called for an integrated cross-sectoral approach to address mitigation and adaptation such that benefits derived in one area are not to be lost or counteracted in another.Overall, the vulnerability of the Basin is thus underscored in livelihoods highly dependent on climate-sensitive sectors like forests for household energy, agriculture, fisheries, food security, pastoral practices, water supply, herbs and tree barks (Bele et al., 2015;Branca et al., 2011).This vulnerability and sensitivity of communities in the CBF raise an important researchable question: do farm-level conservation agriculture practices thought to be climate-smart significantly influence agricultural outcomes?Despite the plethora of studies on climate and agriculture in other parts of the world (e.g. Mujeyi et al., 2021;Shahzad and Abdulai, 2021;Sardar, et al., 2021), very few agroeconomic surveys have been undertaken in the Congo Basin to analyze and quantify the extent of different agroeconomic practices that shape households' access to food security and income for sustainable agriculture. Our study sought to contribute to the few studies on Congo Basin agriculture and climate change, and gauged the wealth of natural capital in the region for meeting the needs of millions of households, simultaneously safeguarding food security, protecting the ecosystem and promoting conservation of nature via agricultural interventions. Other studies such as Bele et al. (2015), Somorin et al. (2012) and Nkem et al. (2010) have previously highlighted the institutional priorities to enhance resilience and sustainability in the Congo Basin, without exploring the stakes and challenges prevalent at the farm and household levels.We therefore proceed in the current study to examine how the property rights to ecological assets relating to land and trees impact the patterns of farmland management for conservation, as well as in the profitability of agriculture. We employ the discrete choice logistic regression 1 with a Simulated Maximum Likelihood Estimation of farmer's choice of agricultural system and a farmland value regression function. Farms and households in the three countries of Cameroon, the Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo are studied. We reveal that conservation agriculture techniques show benefits for smallholder farmers. Furthermore, farm-level investments are shown to enhance farm incomes and conservation effort for farmers.Our observation that accessibility to land promotes better forest management and reduces land degradation in vulnerable areas in the CBF is instructive of policy and corroborates previous studies (Somorin et al., 2012;Brown et al., 2011;Justice et al., 2001). The implications is on the plausibility of stronger tenure to promote farm level adaptation as well as lead to better outcomes for conservation (Leal Filho et al., 2023;Robinson et al., 2018;Robinson et al., 2014). According to Justice et al. (2001) the CBF, a major transboundary natural resource pool spanning approximately 200 million hectares is likely to be impacted with significant losses and damage by climate change. With the second-largest contiguous tract of humid tropical forest in the world after the Amazon Basin forest and is the largest in Africa covering almost 2 million sq. km, the forest extends to six countries namely Cameroon, the Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the Central African Republic (CAR), Gabon and Equatorial Guinea; with about 65 million people living inside or at the margins of the Basin, depending on it directly for livelihood. Subsistence small-scale slash-and-burn shifting cultivation is the dominant economic activity and farm practice of the inhabitants (Dalimier et al., 2021;Couturier, 2019;Tyukavina et al., 2018). Poverty and underdevelopment are significant in the region. About 73% of the population in the Basin is found in the CAR and DRC which are classified among the lowest income countries in the world (Nkem et al., 2010). Ecosystem damage and biodiversity related losses will without doubt lead to significant economic costs.Figure 1 conceptualizes how institutions, tenure, farm revenue and conservation are connected to drive the outcomes of climate-smart conservation agriculture. Four key sectors are identified including the drivers (biophysical, socioeconomic and institutional), adoption, values (economic, ecological and social) and outcome related to increased production, income and conservation levels. The decision to invest and adopt either long-term or short-term CS-CoA is driven by capacity to invest, incentives, external agency that include institutional and policy factors (e.g. extension, credit, land tenure regime) as well as infrastructure (e.g. rural roads, storage) (Thiombiano et al., 2012). Both the biophysical factors espoused as farm characteristics (e.g. slope, erosion status) and households' biographic characteristics (e.g. farm experience, family size, gender, level of education) remain important determinants for investment in CS-CoA (Molua, 2011;Meinzen-Dick et al., 1997). The empirical evidence we generate in this study on the impact of farm-level investments on CS-CoA practices in the CBF may provide policy relevant insights for tropical conservation science.Our examination of these issues is undertaken at a time when the UN system to which member states are committed to ending hunger, achieving food security and improved nutrition while promoting sustainable agriculture, protecting nature and taking urgent action to combat climate change. However, achieving these development goals comes at the behest of frontline communities such as those in the CBF which are bedeviled by tenure insecurity, declining soil fertility, degraded ecosystems, poor market access, inadequate funding and inadequate infrastructure.The Congo Basin is selected for this study for varied reasons. The Basin's interconnected tropical forest holds 70% of the total plant cover in the African continent, with a 2.9 ha of forest area per capita compared to a global forest area per capita of 0.8 ha (CARPE, 2021). More than 70 million people inhabit this transboundary pool of natural resources, with about 60% of whom still live in rural areas (Shapiro et al., 2021;Tegegne et al., 2016;FAO 2009a) and depend directly on forest ecosystem goods and services for household consumption, including food, fuelwood and medicinal plants (Dalimier et al., 2021). They also generate income from the trade of many forest goods, especially non-timber forest products. In addition to its environmental services such as watershed management, soil and biodiversity conservation and carbon sequestration, the CBF has enormous carbon stocks which represent a carbon reserve of global significance for regulating greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions (Couturier, 2019).The Basin while endowed with very rich but fragile ecoregions (Ceríaco et al., 2022;Molua, 2019), the highland physiographic features vary considerably. They occupy East of Cameroon and the Great Lakes region. They show different altitudes but are all above 1,000 m and are found in highly different bioclimatic contexts (Walters et al., 2021). These highlands are characterized by high population densities and continuous pressure on land (Walters et al., 2021;Kleinschroth et al., 2019). Major humid zones are found on the coasts, from Cameroon to the banks of the River Congo (Nest et al., 2022;Tshimanga et al., 2022). The population density of the Basin though varied is increasing. While the highlands of Cameroon has a higher population density (300 inhabitants/sq. km locally), some areas such as east Cameroon, the north of Congo and the Central African Republic have less than 5 inhabitants/sq. km (Tshimanga et al., 2022;Walters et al., 2021;Molua, 2019).DRC is the most urbanized country in the Basin (Nest et al., 2022). In the Central African Republic, more than 70% of the inhabitants live in rural areas. One of the major trends of the population of this region is the extreme diversity of the ethnic groups and indigenous cultures (Walters et al., 2021). Cameroon and DRC have respectively 234 and 350 different ethnic groups, one of the best-known being the Pygmy (Mbenga, i.e Aka and Baka of the western Congo basin, the Mbuti of the Ituri Rainforest, and the Twa of the African Great Lakes). The key natural resources of Central Africa are forest and oil (Kleinschroth et al., 2019;Molua, 2019). The population growth creates competition for access to and control over resources (Achille, 2020). This leads not only to unsustainable use of resources but also likely creates conflicts between countries (Kleinschroth et al., 2019;DeLancey, 2019).There is evidence of increasing pressure on resources in all the ecosystems of the region (Ceríaco et al., 2022;Walters et al., 2021;CARPE, 2021). Deforestation continues to affect habitats and livelihoods in the humid zones of the Basin where these effects are difficult to reverse (Badibanga & Ulimwengu, 2020;Kleinschroth et al., 2019;Molua, 2012). Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and Gabon are the main timber producers (Nest et al., 2022;DeLancey, 2019). Efforts at the conservation of Central African forests and their contribution of this sector in the gross domestic product (GDP) of the majority of the countries testify to the importance of this sector (Kleinschroth et al., 2019;DeLancey, 2019). The Commissariat des forêts d'Afrique Centrale (COMIFAC) has been created to enable the Central African states to harmonize their policies on the sustainable use of forest resources (Nago and Krott, 2022;Tshimanga et al., 2022;Achille, 2020).Socioeconomic data used in this study came from CIFOR's Congo Basin Adaptation and Mitigation Project (COBAM) dataset on rural households and farms. The dataset is based on household surveys collected from more than 600 farms across three countries, using pretested Questionnaire. The survey elicited information about infrastructure and distance to markets, ethnic composition and extent of in-migration, cropping and livestock activities, tree species composition, major treeplanting projects, prices of agricultural and wood products, natural and man-made shocks such as floods or war, and a set of tenure variables including rights over land and trees across broad tenure categories. Probability samples were drawn from Cameroon, the Republic of Central Africa and the Democratic Republic of Congo (see figure 2).In each country, between 3 and 4 regions were selected to cover a broad range of environmental and socioeconomic conditions. Our research uses cross-section data on 12 regions/provinces and 40 divisions in Cameroon, Central African Republic and the Democratic Republic of Congo to determine statistically the factors determining farm profits. The econometric model is developed from a theoretical model which also internalizes perception of climate change and prevailing land tenure institutions within the customary sector. The analysis is performed using the Stata 17 statistical software. This is supplemented with qualitative information from focus group discussions of key informants (local leaders, respected elders and agricultural officers) and unobtrusive observation of farming in the selected communities within the three countries.During the data collection process there were six sets of participants, which included trained Enumerators who conducted the actual surveys. Quality assurance was assured by the research team, using intepreters and translators where necessary. Some of the researchers served as Supervisors in selected regions with the role to manage the teams of enumerators, check surveys for completeness, keep records of completed interviews, and ensured smooth communication between different teams. Graduate research assistants were hired to serve as Data entry coordinators and Data entry clerks charged with electronically entering data. Some of the Authors of this research served as Field managers for the different country teams with the responsibility to plan and oversee the entire process of field data collection and managed all country field teams including drafting of the logistics and budget for the field work, as well as acting as primary liaison at the country level. The lead Author served as the Regional Field coordinator who decided important aspects such as the team setup and hiring criteria.A microeconometric model is employed and refined to study how the farming systems respond to institutions and environmental conditions in the CBF. The hypothesis is that property rights to land and trees play a fundamental role in governing the patterns of investment in crop and farmland management, as well as in the welfare of individuals and households who depend on natural resources.To examine how farmers under different tenure arrangements may choose their respective tropical farming systems we employ a robust analytical framework, the Mixed Logit, which is particularly appropriate in experiments of discrete choice behaviour (von Haefen and Domanski, 2018;Claassen, et al., 2013Claassen, et al., 2013), where farmers' behaviour may vary across agroecologies with heterogeneity in their preferences (Scarpa et al., 2021;Ahmed & Tesfye, 2021;Tesfaye et al., 2020). 2 The Mixed Logit relaxes the restrictive \"independence from irrelevant alternatives\" assumption and allows every individual to have their own preference, that is, it assumes that marginal utilities of individuals are not constant but vary across the sample (Hensher and Greene, 2003). The axiomatic foundations of the Mixed Logit are based on Multinomial Logistic regression 3 as established in Hensher & Greene (2003) as well as McFadden and Train (2000), and efficient in measuring the change in the probability of farmers' action given a unit change in any explanatory variable, keeping constant all other factors (Tesfaye et al., 2020;Seo & Bhattacharjee, 2012).The Mixed Logit model is selected for this research which deals with mixtures of revealed and stated preference for farmers' ex-ante adoption behaviour due to the inherent shortcomings of other choice methods such as the Multinomial probit models and Conditional logit models (Greene & Hensher, 2003;Hensher & Greene, 2003). The Mixed Logit overcomes limitations of the standard logit model by allowing for random output variation across farmers, unrestricted substitution patterns across farmers' choices, and the correlation in unobserved factors over time (David & Train, 1998). 4 This model has been used in several studies of choice experiment, where estimated parameters of the model are analyzed in terms of their marginal effects (von Haefen & Domanski, 2018;De Jalón et al., 2017;Seo & Bhattacharjee, 2012).The Simulated Maximum Likelihood Estimators (SMLE) from a Mixed Logit model is thus employed to explain a farmer's choice of agricultural system and farm returns (gross revenues) for each system after correcting for selection biases (Claassen, et al., 2013;Rigby et al., 2009;Alfnes, 2004;McFadden & Train, 2000;McFadden, 1973). The regressors in the equation include tenure or property rights, climate, soils, and socioeconomic variables such as education, gender, and country dummies. In line with the empirical framework of Seo and Bhattacharjee (2012) and Seo (2010a,b), we assume that farmers choose one of three agricultural systems to maximize farm profit mindful of the current tenure regime and environmental conditions.Based on the combination of crops and livestock that a farmer holds, three agricultural systems (j) are distinguished: a specialized mixed arable cropping system, a specialized integrated tree-arable crop system (agri-silviculture), and a mixed tree arable crop-livestock system (agrosilvopastoral). The prevailing tenure arrangement may therefore affect both the farmer's choice of system and the net revenue earned from the chosen system. The novelty of this approach, distinct from previous cross-sectional studies, is that we expect to quantify adoption behaviours explicitly and measure the differential effects of tenure rights on various agricultural systems.Assuming the net revenue (π) from farm system j and 1 is written as follows:(1)where E(u 1 |X,Z) = 0 and var(u 1 |X,Z) = σ 2 (Dubin and McFadden 1984), and the error terms may capture such factors as measurement errors, omitted variables, and other unobserved factors. These terms are assumed to average to zero and have equal variance. The subscript j is a categorical variable indicating the choice amongst J systems (in our analysis J =1 a specialized mixed arable cropping system, J = 2 denotes an agri-silviculture system, and J = 3 indicates an agrosilvopastoral system). Vector Z represents the set of explanatory variables relevant for all the alternatives and vector X contains the determinants of the profit of the first alternative, i.e. specialization in crops only. We identify choice equations by two variables: slope of terrain and walking time to district capital (Ahmed & Tesfye, 2021), which are excluded in the second stage regressions. Assuming η j 's are iid extreme value distributed, the choice probability can be written as the following integral over all possible values of γ j :chooses inputs and outputs to maximize the net revenue from operating the system. The maximum profit can be estimated as a function of the exogenous variables X directly from equation (1) above. However, it is likely that the errors in equations ( 1) and ( 2) are correlated. Since profits are only observed for those farms that actually chose farm type 1, the selection bias should be corrected to obtain consistent estimates of climate parameters (Scarpa et al., 2021;Ahmed & Tesfye, 2021;Heckman, 1979). Following Claassen, et al. (2013); Rigby et al., (2009), Alfnes (2004) as well as Dubin and McFadden (1984) for a multinomial choice, we assume the linearity condition with correlations among alternatives (r k ) summing up to zero. Thus, the conditional net revenue function for the crop-only system (or farm type 1) can be written as follows:Where P 1 is the probability of choice system 1 and P k the probability of alternative farming systems. The regressors (X i ) in the above equation include environmental and socioeconomic variables such as tenure (land ownership), education, gender, distance to markets and country dummies.For Cameroon, Central African Republic and the Republic of Congo we applied and obtained clearance from the respective Ministries of Scientific Research. We later presented the research permit to respective region, district and village leaders. We sought verbal agreement from all respondents prior to the interviews to guarantee their willingness to participate. To protect confidentiality, respondents' names and personal information are kept anonymous.Agricultural Land use, Land tenure and Land institutionsDuring the focus discussion we examined important issues surrounding land tenure, and rights for improved land management and sustainable development. We propped about problems associated with land ownership (titling, tenure and customary rights); the current trend of policy and regulatory regimes within land law; the status and challenges of land administration and institutions; marginalization of some social groups, such as women, local communities and indigenous people; violation of land rights; and existence of land conflicts. As expressed clearly in the focus group discussions, land in the Congo Basin embodies different meanings: it is a factor of production; it is a family or community property; a capital asset; and a source of cultural identity and/or citizenship.Hence, the importance of land issues to the socio-economic development of communities in the Basin is unquestionable. Growth and poverty reduction; governance in access and control of land; sustainable use of natural forests; and migration conflicts are in many ways integral parts of the land question in the region.Unobtrusive observation in the surveyed sites show that the land management choices adopted have multiple objectives including serving as a strategy for nature conservation and agroecology protection. For farmers who wished to do more, they reported that \"the conservation agriculture practices and agroecological techniques of farming demanded more access to land, as not only the primary requirement for food production, but as means to expand activities to benefit from natures contribution in farms.\" The demand for land hinges on the premise that when farmers own or control their farmlands they are likely to invest in sustainable land management practices such as tree planting and soil conservation.While it is expected that when tenure leads to increases in farm investment, higher agricultural productivity, and improved food security, it is an incentive for conservation, thus benefitting society as espoused by IPBES (2019). Farmers with secure ownership of land are therefore more likely to invest on its conservation, which results in a range of economic, social, and ecosystem benefits (FAO, 2021;IPBES, 2019;Endamana et al., 2010). However, the field reports indicate that for all the countries some farms operate in conditions where there are unequal land rights, or more precisely the laws or customs hinder small-scale famers especially youth and women's ownership and access to land.In Eastern Cameroon lying on the western flanks of the Congo Basin, an official of the Regional Delegation of the Ministry of Forestry and Nature Protection provide a succinct account of the role of tenure security in agroforestry conservation: \"Tenure systems vary from one rural community to another but hinges on three broad systems of communal, individual and family ownership.\" In his review, \"tenure security affects farmers' land use decisions, their welfare, and the biodiversity on the land. Land tenure security empowers farmers with agency over their land, to make farm decisions that may align with conservation goals such as proper soil management.\" This may imply that land tenure is a possible tool for conservation. He however admits that, \"land tenure systems are dynamic, responding to socio-economic and political changes put in place for resource utilization.\"Three countries in the Basin have been subjected to colonial domination of different origins: this includes French colonization, (The Central African Republic, part of Cameroon), Belgium colonization (in DRC) and British (part of Cameroon). All these external dominations have influenced land policies and laws, as well as the related institutional setting. One consequence of the colonial history in the region is the legal dualism, land and natural resources being governed by statutory law as well as by customary law. However, this legal dualism has been developing at the expense of customary land laws, as the latter were never clearly recognized (Majambu et al., 2019;Sartoretto et al., 2017). Another legacy of colonial history is the State sovereignty over land. The colonial legacy continues to shape the land policy, legislation and land administration systems in the region. The State sovereignty over land in these countries -is the origin of the key land issues, as this sovereignty is not accompanied by the development of appropriate land policy instruments likely to enable sustainable land management (Inogwabini, 2021;Valkonen, 2021;Brawn, 2017).The question of considering customary rights in sustainable land management has been identified in almost all countries covering the Congo Basin. Customary land tenure is the foundation for the livelihoods of rural populations. These systems include the possession of land exclusively by individuals or households for residential use, farming or some other business activity within a given community. In addition, they incorporate the 'commons' -land shared by multiple users for grazing and for gathering field and tree products (fuel, construction poles, medicinal plants, fruits, grass) found in controlled and open access areas. However, customary land tenure is still not recognized in the majority of Central African countries. But, in reality, most people in the region occupy their land under a customary system. This means the absence of formal tenure rights and consequently insecurity of land tenure.The major ethnic groups studied largely reported 'patrilineal' inheritance and 'patrilocal' residence systems with largely male-headed households. Traditionally, lineage land has been owned collectively by a group of kin members, and this group usually consisted of a grandfather, sons and grandchildren. The land is bequeathed to brothers, nephews and sons in accordance with the decision of a family head. The head is selected from uncles, that is, a male member of the second generation, who exercises strong authority regarding land inheritance. The basic principle of land allocation is to maintain equity among lineage members.According to our interviews with farmers, it is primarily husbands who make farm management decisions. Even in de facto female-headed households, male figures like older sons and commuted husbands are still responsible for major farming decisions. In some communities, females make decisions in de jure female-headed households. However, females may make decisions even though they have no customary land rights. Land sales or exchange exist. Men are typically the custodians of lineage and family land and sign to the transfer of land to non-family members. Sons may jointly inherit private land, which was acquired either by opening forest land or by purchasing already exploited bush-fallow. Table 1 shows key characteristics of the major land tenure categories reported in all the communities studied. The Basin is largely dominated by 'patrilineal' communities with inherited land sourced largely through dominant male figures in families.Our observations have some implications. Though not necessarily formal titling, tenure security is associated with tropical cropland conservation practices and improvements. Reports such as Kombat et al. (2021), Amadu et al. (2020), Akugre et al. (2021) as well as Geist & Lambin (2002) document that customary land tenure institutions, greater population pressure and poor access to markets are significant causes of land conversion to agriculture, and hence to loss of trees. Private ownership of converted land promotes greater integration of trees and crops and leads to the highest density of trees on agricultural land. While Ketema et al. (2020) among others find that population pressure induces land conversion; the matrilocal system of household residence is noted to induce agricultural conversion, however with some improvement in the management of resources as their scarcity increases. Secure, long-term rights of access to land, particularly in the form of locally recognized use rights, create an incentive for people to make landscape-improving investments (Azadi et al., 2021;Jellason et al., 2021). For example, terracing or other investments in soil erosion control are generally associated with secure, long-term rights to land in some regions of SSA (Kombat et al., 2021;Mangaza et al., 2021). The right to at least bequeath, if not sell parcels, increases the likelihood that a farmer makes at least one longterm improvement on a parcel of land.Table 2 reports the proportion of land use under different tenure arrangements in the three countries studied. In Cameroon, 36% of arable croplands are inherited, 14% are under joint extended family ownership, 31% under single-family ownership and 19% are private owned whether purchased or cleared forest. In RCA, a higher proportion (42%) of arable cropland is inherited and the lowest proportion (8%) of farmlands is privately purchased land. In all three countries, tree plots are largely inherited, highlighting the socio-cultural importance of tree resources in farmlands. Tenure security which has to be at the heart of any agricultural development plan is achieved when property rights are clarified and widely acknowledged (Jellason et al., 2021;Kombat et al., 2021;Mangaza et al., 2021;Brawn, 2017;Andersson 2007). In most cases, progress will consist of (a) the reconciliation of diverse and conflicting claims, (b) the clarification of latent or overlapping rights in resources, and (c) the reconciliation of statutory and customary regimes.The essentiality of customary rights in sustainable land management is identified in almost all the countries examined. Currently, customary land tenure is not adequately recognized in the majority of Central African countries. However, in reality, most people in the region occupy their land under a customary system. This means the absence of formal tenure rights and consequently insecurity of land tenure. Concerns about population growth and pressure on land in urban areas and coastal zones have been raised in countries like Cameroon, Congo, Gabon and Equatorial Guinea (Mangaza et al., 2021;Kombat et al., 2021;Gilland, 2002). Forced evictions, expropriations and related land issues are also critical issues in Central Africa. These observations on land access have significant implications on forest management and resource conservation via controlling for deforestation and land degradation in vulnerable tropical areas (Long, 2013;Endamana et al., 2010).The focus group discussions identified priorities in their communities within the CBF, including a lack of a comprehensible land policy, inadequate regulations, security of tenure, State sovereignty over land, good governance in land administration, funding for the development and implementation of land policies, and protecting customary land rights, gender issues with special attention to access to land for women and marginalized groups, centralized land management administration and lack of participation. These reports reiterate the salient need for land reforms and effective land policy for countries in the region.A functioning land policy is crucial to sustainable livelihoods. 5 Land policy-making is usually led by the State through the pronouncement of specific laws and policy statements. Land policy reviews have recently been conducted in some CBF countries, leading to new land laws and/or the redefinition of the necessary institutional framework under which land policy is administered. In Central Africa, the State has the overall mandate for the formulation and the implementation of land policy. Formulation of land policy is generally influenced by the colonial legacy; it does not take into consideration customary land rights. In some cases, there is a dualism that does not necessarily give room to customary rights. The States implement land policy through a set of instruments. They are fiscal, institutional, legal and technical. In general, the ministry in charge of land and domains has the overall responsibility to elaborate and implement the land policy.In all the countries different agencies under the umbrella of the State are noted to be in charge of different sub-sectors. It appears that the objectives of land policy in many countries of the region target financial objectives, particularly land taxation or forestry taxation. In Cameroon and DRC, the states have created parastatal agencies in charge of implementing land policies. The role and responsibilities of these parastatal agencies vary according to the stakes of the sector (forests, mines, habitat etc.) concerned. The sectoral instruments, notwithstanding, available legislations are old and characterized by the absence of consultation either in elaborating or updating the existing legislation. Since there is no formal coherent land policy in the region, some sectoral instruments are available. They target sectors like forest and urban areas. Rural areas are not sufficiently covered. The process of land law formulation does not take into consideration the other sectors (agriculture, mines, town planning and others). These observations are similar to previous studies in the region (Inogwabini, 2021;Ongolo et al., 2021;Windey and Van Hecken, 2021;Majambu et al., 2019).These are important bottlenecks which hamper access to land, as well as the utilization and investment on land. Access to land and land tenure relations are critical where communities depend on control of land to ensure not only their food security but overall wellbeing. Appropriate land administrative and adjudicatory instruments are crucial to the effective distribution, use and management of tenure relations. Given the powerful coalition of interests, such as agri-business, land tenure administration is critical in determining rules of access and use, and systems of monitoring and sanction.The main question emanting from reports in the CBF relates to how secure the tenure systems are and whether there is equity or not. Tenure, as a bundle of rights, determines who owns what resources and why. The way land is transferred, adjudicated and owned is critical for determining the management regimes for both land and natural resources. It may also correlate with the employment of climate-smart farmland management measures. In the ensuing subsection, we attempt to demonstrate that access to more productive land and control of natural resources by agriculturists offers the most profitable form of agri-investment by smallholders. The extrapolation is that enhancing access to land, security of tenure, or sustainability of land resource use will ultimately enhance welfare, including food security (Lipper et al., 2014).Establishing the determinants of land tenure and tree management we rely on the mixed logit as a random-utility discrete choice model, where the expected utility of a choice farmers employ depends on the characteristics of the alternatives available and forgone, the characteristics of the farmers making the choices, and the socioeconomic factors which are specific to a combination of farmer and alternative practices (Akugre et al., 2021;Breitmoser, 2021). The results confirm that long-term agricultural growth for communities in the Basin hinges upon sustaining and improving the productivity of the natural resource base, particularly trees and tree products. Growing or maintaining trees protect at-risk ecosystems and habitats, with possibility to increase food supply (Kalkuhl et al., 2020). Excavating new farmlands via deforestation means losing habitats, as well as biodiversity. Farm trees are used to improve soil stability, restore ecosystems and protect endangered spices. Farmers report that their expectation to \"planting trees is to help rebuild the soil with nutrients, to soak up excess water, and reduce erosion\". The sustainable management of trees within the farming systems may not only increase farm incomes but also helps diversify production and thus spreads risk against agricultural production or market failures.Agroforestry systems and practices employed in the CBF come in many forms, including improved fallows, taungya 6 , home gardens, growing multipurpose trees and shrubs, boundary planting, farm woodlots, orchards, plantation/crop combinations, shelterbelts, windbreaks, conservation hedges, fodder banks, live fences, trees on pasture and tree apiculture (Gonçalves et al., 2021;Reang et al., 2021;Waldron et al., 2017). Empirical research has already identified important driving forces behind household decisions to plant trees on their farms (Duffy et al., 2021;Ngoma et al., 2021). Another body of research has centered on understanding changes in forested areas at the national and international levels (Ngoma et al., 2021).Very important, however, is the role of tenure in facilitating agroforestry systems. According to the logit regression of land tenure arrangements in table 3, some key socioeconomic characteristics explain the tenure conditions in which farm households operate. The size of area exploited, the age and gender of household head, years of schooling, family size, nativity or origin of household head and the distance of the exploited land from the homestead combine to explain the tenure arrangement. Of these factors, the age of the household head has a significant impact on private and jointly owned land. Increasing levels of female household-headship may be less important for joint family ownership, but results in higher levels of single-family ownership and a higher incidence of private ownership. Women were observed playing a pivotal role in maintaining and strategically using land and natural resources. However, gender relations are governed by the prevailing socio-political structures and religious-ideological value systems. The predominance of patriarchal systems ensures that women only have access to land and related natural resources through their spouse or male relatives. The insecurity of land tenure is a possible obstacle to increasing the agricultural productivity and income of rural women. Security of tenure is the key to having control over major decisions, such as what crop to grow, what techniques to use, what to consume and what to sell. Without this, women cannot access credit and membership of agricultural associations, particularly those responsible for processing and marketing. Inadequate access to credit and loss of membership in livelihood enhancing cooperation activities drive poverty of vulnerable groups, with consequences on locale biodiversity conservation. The persistence of extreme poverty and continued rapid loss of biodiversity appear intimately related. For example, IPBES (2019) documents geographic coincident of poverty and biodiversity loss especially in tropical areas in the Congo Basin where livelihoods depend disproportionately on natural capital embodied in forests, soils, water, and wildlife.It is informative in Table 3 to observe that the origin (nativity) of the household head though positive is less significant in explaining the prevailing tenure. This may be expected because a larger settler population increases the population pressure on land. This variable being less significant may increase access to land in the short-run, but also increase pressure on land in the long run. Larger family size is also noted to lead to the preservation of lineage ownership. By and large, walking time to forests, though negative, has no significant effects on the distribution of land ownership. There is significant evidence that scholarization induces private land ownership.We further observed that terrain and distance to district capital are significant. While farmers in general prefer flat terrains, however, farmers who make use of open cleared forestlands are indifferent whether its slope or flat land. There are significant correlations between the distance of farms from city centers and the ownership rights. Farmlands that are privately owned as well as operated in open cleared-forest land tend to be located closer to urban centers as proxy by distance. On the contrary, farms in family-owned lands are increasingly located further into the hinterlands. That with private tenure these factors are significant provides indication on such tenure condition for potential land cover change and possible deforestation thus causing degradation of biodiversity and carbon stocks. These findings have implications for who owns forestland, who has access and use, who manages, and who makes decisions about forest resources. However, regardless of the form of tenure of land and forests, better policymaking is required to strengthen biodiversity conservation and accountability particularly for programs related to the Reducing of Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, while minding the role of conservation, sustainable management of forests and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (REDD+).A major question is the relative speed by which primary forest and bush-fallow areas may be converted to commercial agriculture plantations under different land tenure institutions. If the major source of land is primary forest, agroforestry development comes at the expense of the natural environment. On the other hand, if agricultural plantations were primarily through enhanced utilization of existing arable lands through increased integrated agriculture, then this may bring environmental benefits. The environmental benefits may include addressing the triple challenge of ensuring food security, mitigation and reducing vulnerability and increasing the adaptability of agricultural systems to climate change. This will be increasingly important as the impacts of climate change become more pronounced. Trees and shrubs can diminish the effects of extreme weather events, such as heavy rains, droughts and wind storms. They prevent erosion, stabilize soils, raise infiltration rates and halt land degradation. They can enrich biodiversity in the landscape and increase ecosystem stability. Agroforestry practices in the CBF are therefore important both for climate change mitigation as well as for adaptation, and the socio-cultural needs to safeguard access to land (FAO 2009b).The inferences from these findings indicate fundamental implications in the management of local and global land and forest commons, as well as for adaptation and mitigation of climate change in the CBF. The significant probability that land tenure drives farmland efforts of tree crop management in a prevailing socioeconomic environment influenced by the bioeconomic nature of the farm holdings and operators' households is instructive of efforts required to meet global requirements in managing the commons in the Congo Basin. Pledges in the 26th UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP 26), for instance, and the call for reduction in deforestation amidst quest by local communities to exploit natural assets for direct productive gains and welfare, would require complementary national and communal efforts promoting better agricultural land use especially agricultural practices.Empirical field surveys such as in our study which show that agriculturists choose different farming systems to maximize profit while internalizing the tenure regime and environmental conditions they face have important policy implications on how local institutions should be managed to promote farm-level investments that enhance welfare in the face of climate perturbations and perception of climate change so that these agrarian agents at the frontlines could be veritable partners in conservation efforts in global commons such as the CBF.Some studies (e.g. Tseng et al., 2021;Alban Singirankabo & Willem Ertsen, 2020;Akram et al., 2019;Gottlieb & Grobovšek, 2019) have presented a range of views on the implications of different tenure regimes for agricultural productivity. They argue that the system of land tenure sets the context within which all efforts to raise agricultural output must operate. Land tenure will influence the farming system, social equity and agricultural productivity, and hence overall economic development (Akugre et al., 2021;Brawn, 2017). This is plausible since farmers with titles to their land may have better access to credit, which can enhance their productivity. We therefore examined how farmers in the selected Congo Basin communities have chosen their respective systems. Table 4 reports the parameter estimates for a mixed logit agricultural land-use choice. The independent variables, include area exploited, walking time to plot, ownership, climate-smart management practices, access to climate information, and access to extension services. The primary concern of our study is whether the choice of agricultural system is dependent upon tenure. Tenure variables are highly significant as a group. 7  As is clear from this table, the results are quite robust with respect to land use types. The more positive significant effects of private ownership imply that trees were more often planted/protected in private lands with secured tenure than when the land was jointly owned or in privately cleared public land. Recall that the bequest of land rights to sons is more important with increasing private ownership, whether as cleared land or purchased land. Thus, the dummies for private ownership being significant at the 5% level is consistent with our hypothesis that the management of trees in farmlands for its product and service benefits is largely independent of the level of tenure security.Anecdotal evidence from focus groups suggests land rights of single or joint family inherited land tend to increase when trees (fruit and non-fruit woody perennials) are planted. The trees are planted to lay claim to territory rather than for its environmental benefit. This may explain the lower significance of joint family ownership on tree planting compared with the effect of single-family ownership. Perhaps, this is why nativity measured as the region of origin has a positive effect on tree planting, which suggests the importance of ethnic origin as an effective variable to the returns on land use that required investment in trees. It is also instructive to acknowledge that these may be short-term effects, and in the longer run, there may be no significant difference in tree planting behaviour between family ownership and privately claimed lands. Whether in family or private farms, planted trees increase forest cover and contribute to the restoration of holistic ecosystems, which in turn promotes a range of flora and fauna to grow. In the humid tropics of the Congo Basin, such reforestation creates a safe haven for biodiversity, allowing for a wide array of habitats. Some important results are obtained on the impact of CS-CoA practices with respect to agricultural land-use types. The dummy variables representing soil, crop and water management techniques are positive and significant. Soil and crop management are more significant under arable crop and tree systems and less so under crop-tree-livestock integrated systems. While water and ecosystem management show increasing significance with the increasing complexity of the farming system, post-harvest supply chain management is significant across all land-use types. Given the importance of these efforts, walking time to the plot has a negative effect on tree planting, which suggests that distance as a variable affects return on land uses.Household characteristics such as size, gender, age, and education are also examined. Among household characteristics, the coefficient for the age of the head of the household is positive across all systems. When the head of household is older, a farmer tends to specialize in integrated crop-tree-livestock systems. Female heads of the household prefer focusing on crops over diversifying into trees and livestock. More educated heads of households tend to specialize in trees and crops. When a family is small, it tends to avoid specializing in livestock. Country dummies were entered to test country-specific conditions e.g. culture, agricultural and land policies. Against Cameroon as the base case, farmers in RCA and DRC farms are more likely to have crops only. Both of these countries heavily rely on forest exploitation.Having explained the choice of the agricultural system in the first stage, we estimate the land value of each of the three systems after correcting for selection biases in the second stage. In table 5, we run regressions of farm returns (gross revenue) against tenure and other control variables for each system. Tenure has differential effects. For example, cleared forest and single family-owned farms increase the value of the crop-only system and the mixed system, but decrease that of the arable crop only system because of the higher investments required for the more complex farming system. When a family is large and the household head is older, the farmland used for the crop-only system experiences higher returns. When the farm-head has more years of schooling, the revenue from the mixed farming system is observed to increase. Ecosystem management significantly contributes to revenue in all three systems more than the other management practices, perhaps due to the marketable wood and non-wood products from tree crops in farmlands. However, crop and water management as climate-smart practices are lowly significant in crop only systems. Water management is more significant in integrated crop-tree-livestock systems. The country dummies too are significant. The gross revenue for the tree-crop-livestock is lower in RCA than in Cameroon, which is the base case. The revenue for the three systems is significantly higher in DRC. 8  A typology of climate-smart agricultural land management techniques indicates a variety of measures employed in the Congo Basin to include soil management cost-effective cultural practices which are employed to conserve soil nutrient levels. The agricultural land use accounts for mostly inherited arable croplands, with some under joint extended family ownership, single-family ownership and privately exploited cleared forest land. Most of the ethnic groups report patrilineal inheritance of land assets in typically male-headed households.The predictors of prevailing land tenure and its effects on tree-husbandry are revealed by socioeconomic factors defining the functionality of farm households. These factors are identified to be the size of farm holdings, age and gender of household head, as well as educational levels, family size, and ethnicity or origin of the household head. The distance to farm plots, forms of land ownership, climate-smart management practices, access to climate information and technology appear as principal factors explaining the performance of the agricultural system. Tenure security is the most significant predictor of the returns to farmland investments. These results corroborate the evidence and stylized facts in previous studies beyond the Congo Basin (Ngoma et al., 2021, Shittu et al., 2021;Amadu et al., 2020;Molua, 2011).The findings of this study have wider implications beyond the CBF. Countries during COP 26 committed to reform policies to promote sustainable agriculture and accelerate the deployment of ecosystem-based green innovations for the agriculture sector, towards reducing the impact of climate change on the agriculture sector and lowering the sector's contribution to global warming. According to the pledge, \"if we are to limit global warming and keep the goal of 1.5 degrees Celsius alive, then the world needs to use land sustainably and put protection and restoration of nature at the heart of all we do\" (UN, 2021). This pledge encapsulates efforts required to accelerate the transition to more sustainable land-use practices in forest, agriculture and commodity trade.The discussions and outcome statements at COP 26 refocused the place of the CBF in the climate change debate in serving the global common. While the role of the Congo Basin is not new, the potentials of the CBF has contributed to the stirring debates whether REDD+ under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), could create a financial value for the carbon stored in forests, thus offering incentives for developing countries such as in the CBF to reduce emissions from forested lands and invest in low-carbon paths to sustainable development (Tegegne et al., 2021;Molua, 2012;Somorin et al., 2012). The challenges associated with these initiatives raise some key questions which should be addressed to valorize policymaking to safeguard the opportunities and options associated with CS-CoA. Our results show that CS-CoA is expected to meet immediate local demands of households and farmsteads, while at the same time contributing to the global good.The CBF is home to invaluable biodiversity, provide livelihoods for local people, and store carbon in their soils and trees. What happens in the farmlands of the CBF affects far more than just the Central African subregion. We have attempted to demonstrate the possibility of CS-CoA in the CBF to increase output, hence food production as well as income and safeguard biodiversity. Contrary to intensive and less environmentally friendly agriculture, properly designed CS-CoA use nature's 'environmental services' including more organic amendments which would mean more biological control for increased biodiversity and resilient agriculture. The implication of CS-CoA is that profitable opportunities exist for food production without degrading natural resource base on which agriculture depends with significant promise for biodiversity conservation.However, profitable agriculture would require ecological and social sustainability driven by tenure security. Land tenure security can be a lever for improving conservation goals. Nonetheless, the perpetration of unequal land tenure would mean inadequate support for conservation measures in the face of land scarcity, via continuous destruction of cultural and economic trees useful to rural economies.The fragile ecological assets of the Congo Basin remain pivotal for contemporary efforts to manage the global commons. Climate-smart conservation agriculture practices in the CBF protect soil from degradation, mitigate greenhouse gas (GHG) emission, and restore soil health (Bell et al., 2018;Nyasimi et al., 2014). In the Congo Basin tropical environment these actions mitigate climate change impacts by introducing trees in farmlands. These efforts help to reconcile agricultural production and forest conservation by limiting expansion of croplands into new areas.The inferences from these findings thus indicate fundamental implications in nature conservation, the management of local and global land and forest commons, as well as for adaptation and mitigation of climate change in the CBF. For instance, tenure security is important, since farmers who are unable to gain access to the agricultural land through sale and inheritance may migrate to areas where farmlands are relatively abundant. In fact, the significant probability that land tenure drives farmland efforts of tree crop management in a prevailing socioeconomic environment influenced by the bioeconomic nature of the farm holdings and operators' households is instructive of efforts required to meet global requirements in managing and conserving the commons in the Congo Basin.The implication of tenure influencing farm decisionmaking and farm profitability is that individual land ownership and the dominant user rights on resource conservation could promote natural vegetation to exist in contiguous patterns for the stability of wild biotic resources, soils and water sources; as well as control of natural resources such as managing soils for agricultural production to enhance crop yield and eventual environmental protection.The nature and practice of agriculture is thus an important driver for biodiversity protection in the CBF. This is urgent in the advent of global warming and climate change. Biodiversity loss from unfair agricultural practices, destruction of ecosystems and habitats on the quest for food and income may in turn threaten the ability to sustain the growing human population in the tropics. This therefore call for promoting climate change adaptation via approaches which are ecosystem-based, nature-friendly, biodiversity-supporting and limiting the use of inputs.Meeting household and regional agricultural production needs while simultaneously conserving biodiversity thus requires innovative solutions. Policy that promotes innovative approaches, such as integrated crop-livestock systems combined with forestry where necessary, must adhere to local contexts and challenges to create opportunities for diversification and agricultural growth while also mitigating environmental damage.In addition, the pledges of COP 26, for instance, calling for reduction in deforestation amidst quest by local communities to exploit natural assets for direct productive gains and welfare, would require complementary national and communal efforts promoting better agricultural land use and practices. Empirical field surveys which show that agriculturists choose different farming systems to maximize income while internalizing the tenure regime and environmental conditions they face have important policy implications. This generates knowldege on how local institutions should be managed to promote farm-level investments that enhance welfare while protecting nature in the face of climate perturbations and perception of climate change so that agrarian agents at the frontlines could be veritable partners in conservation efforts in global commons such the Congo Basin.The benefits of biodiversity is fundamental to societal wellbeing. Ecologically friendly agriculture can transform society's relationship with biodiversity and ensure nature-friendly production systems. On the heels of climate change, conservation agriculture provides a win-win option for ecological sustainability, better farm values and conservation of nature in agroecosystems. The adoption of conservation agriculture and other ecosystem-based approaches enhances the crucial role of biodiversity for food and agriculture.This research sought to examine the role of climatesmart conservation agriculture practices on farm returns in the Congo Basin. In achieving this goal, we used approximately 600 farm surveys collected from three Congo Basin countries. We then developed a microeconometric selection model which explains both the agricultural landuse choices and net revenues in tropical farming systems. In the first stage, we explained a farmer´s choice of one of the different farm-ownership types whether jointownership, single-family, private commercial or clearedforested land. In the second stage, system-specific land values or revenues for farming system types, e.g. crop-only system, a crop-tree system, or a mixed system of crops, livestock and trees, are estimated after correcting for selection biases.The empirical analysis reveals that a mixed farm which manages crops, livestock and trees is not only more profitable but cushions the farm households from the vagaries of climate. These findings highlight the importance of farm-trees and reforestation and further evoke some important policy recommendations amongst which are the need for policies that take a system-wide approach to address agriculture's continually expanding footprint under perceived climate change. There is also need for increased cooperation amongst the front line institutions dealing with the environment, forests, agriculture and land with the goal to ensure properly monitored access while preserve and protect nature and its essential services to people. Regular cooperation and collaboration will ensure timely evaluation and improvement of issues related to inadequate land access, promote climatesmart agriculture, and develop the capacity of farmer-based organizations for a resilient environmental practice which conserves soil and enhances ecosystem benefits. Overall, policy on biodiversity conservation is necessary to build a sustainable food system with climate and ecosystem friendly agricultural practices.The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.Data and material available upon reasonable request to the corresponding author.Ernest L. Molua  https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8724-6035 Notes 1. Discrete choice theory is concerned with understanding the discrete behavioural responses of individuals to the actions of business, markets and government when faced with two or more possible outcomes (or choices). The logistic regression is an efficient and powerful way to assess independent variable contributions to a binary outcome.  2000). 3. The Multinomial Logit (MNL) regression belongs to a class of mathematical techniques employed to address input-output interactions in observational studies where the dependent (output) variable consists of several unordered categories, as well as a set of independent variables (input-variables or explanators), which are used to predict the dependent variable. It is a variant of multiple regression in which the response is binary rather than quantitative. It can be used for classification in multiclass problems, i.e. with more than two possible discrete outcomes, and applied when the dependent variable consists of several categories that are not ordinal such that the ordinary least square estimator cannot be used. Instead, a maximum likelihood estimator like the multinomial logit is used. 4. The basic assumptions that must be met for a logistic regression of this nature include independence of errors, linearity in the logit for continuous variables, absence of multicollinearity, and lack of strongly influential outliers. 5. Land policy here relates to the process of drafting all aspects of land management, including setting the benchmark for acquisition/disposal of land; the social and legal tenure regimes; the distribution structure and mechanisms; the regulation and forms of land-use, management; the administration systems; and the adjudication of land disputes. 6. Growing annual agricultural crops during the establishment of a forest plantation. 7. The standard deviation estimates, not reported, indicate that individual climate parameters are highly significant as well. 8. Two measures of the goodness of fit, given under the table, are high, ranging from 0.12 (McFadden's LRI) to 0.27 (Veall-Zimmermann). The tenure variables as a whole are highly significant determinants of the agricultural system according to the P-value of the Likelihood Ratio test. From the estimated parameters, the model predicts a current agricultural system accurately for 61% of the entire sample. The predictive power of the model falls to 45%, however, when tenure variables are dropped from the model. The Adjusted R-sq is 0.26 for the crop-only system, 0.38 for the crop-tree only system, and 0.53 for the mixed system. As the land value of a specific agricultural system is observed only when the system is chosen, we correct for selection biases from the farmlands that are used for the other systems).","tokenCount":"10646"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"a2ea1fe8fe4b561cb05bc3636acfa797","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/55a65d92-62af-48ca-b516-d81970ea270a/retrieve","id":"1762058418"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"9f6cbd5c-fd83-4f1f-9d98-6a6cab2af8d1","pagecount":"11","content":"The Africa Research in Sustainable Intensification for the Next Generation (Africa RISING) program comprises three research-for-development projects supported by the United States Agency for International Development as part of the US Government's Feed the Future initiative. The overall aim is to transform agricultural systems through sustainable intensification. Through action research and development partnerships, Africa RISING should create opportunities for smallholder farm households to move out of hunger and poverty through sustainably intensified farming systems that improve food, nutrition, and income security, particularly for women and children, and conserve or enhance the natural resource base. In Ghana, the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) collaborates with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the World Vegetable Centre (AVRDC) to test small-scale irrigation options for dry season vegetable production and explore potential supplementary irrigation in rainfed crop-livestock production systems. To make judicious use of available resources, and also for the ease of monitoring, all dry season vegetable production activities were implemented in the six vegetable hubs. The roles and responsibilities of each of the partners and agreed timelines for the completion of tasks are indicated in Appendix 1.The general objectives of this research were to: Determine the optimum water management systems for three crop species through two irrigation techniques, two fertilizer management options, and two planting density options.  Identify for each vegetable species the best varieties amongst two improved varieties and the best farmers' variety.  Determine the interaction between variety and water and soil management systems.The use of shallow wells for irrigation is one of the practices that have emerged in the Atankwidi and Anyari sub-catchments of the Volta Basin (Ofosu 2011). Even though yields of hand-dug wells are low, farmers construct gardens of sizes between 0.25 and 0.5 acres to take advantage of the available groundwater for dry season vegetable production. The major setbacks that these farmers face include their inability to determine the optimum amount of water required by the crop to be able to adopt best irrigation practices during the growing season to maximize profit. Farmers rely on their judgement and apply high volumes of water to make up for losses due to high evapotranspiration in the dry season without regard to the actual water requirement of the crop.Farmers can actually increase their farm sizes and by extension their income if they apply the right amount of water to crops at the right time. This can be achieved through the application of drip irrigation and deficit irrigation technologies. Drip irrigation allows the application of water to be precisely controlled when water drips slowly near the plant roots through a network of valves, pipes, tubing, and emitters. Deficit irrigation is a strategy that allows a crop to sustain some degree of water deficit in order to reduce costs of irrigation and potentially increase income. It can lead to an increase in net income where water costs are high or where water supplies are limited (Kirda et al. 2002). A dry season crop-water productivity analysis conducted by Adimassu et al. (2016) revealed that between 50 and 75% of crop water requirements can produce yields of between 70-90% of potential yield if well scheduled for typical high value crops such as tomato, onion, and pepper.Irrigation scheduling involves knowing when to apply water and how much. Though the scientific tools needed to schedule irrigation such as tensiometers and neutron probes are well developed, farmers, especially in developing countries, do not monitor soil water status due to the cost and complexity of these tools. A Wetting Front Detector (WFD) was developed at CSIRO in Australia in response to the low adoption of these existing irrigation tools. It is a tool that measures how deeply water has penetrated into the soil after an irrigation event. It is basically a switch, which alerts the irrigator that a front of a given strength has passed a given depth in the soil (Stirzaker 2003). A WFD is a relatively simple and cost-effective device that supports irrigation scheduling. It is also useful for the monitoring of nutrient losses in soils.In order to determine water management options for dry season vegetable production, the IWMI team set out to achieve the following objectives. Validate the findings of Adimassu et al. (2016) that if 50 ̶ 75% of crop water requirement is provided to the crop according to the correct schedule, it could result in between 70 ̶ 90% of potential yield.  Tests at the farm level, such as using wetting front detectors (WFDs), can improve crop and water productivity by guiding the farmer on when and how much to irrigate.The initial experimental design developed to ensure integration with the activities of AVRDC comprised three crop varieties, three fertilizer levels, two irrigation options, and two plant density options. This experimental design (Fig. 1) could not achieve first objective as it involves too many components, i.e., to determine the optimum water management options for three crop species through two irrigation techniques, two fertilizer management options, and two planting density options. IWMI insisted that the design be modified to incorporate two drip and two watering can treatments. The experimental design was therefore modified to incorporate these treatments (Fig. 2). To achieve this new design without necessarily increasing the cropping area, since water was a limiting factor, okro was removed from the setup; one fertilizer treatment was also removed and the plot sizes were decreased from 20 m 2 (4 × 5m) to 12 m 2 (3 × 4m).  The experimental treatments are summarized in the Table. Challenges with field implementationOnly four out of the six vegetable hubs could be used for the experiments-three in Nyangua and one in Tekuru. One well in Tekuru had low yield which was not enough for the experiment, while in the second, the fence was broken and was not repaired before the start of the experiments.Even though the plan was to establish the experiment immediately after the rainy season (September) to take advantage of residual soil moisture, land preparation delayed until late November, by which time the water level in the wells were already low.Due to uncertainties about the extent to which the available water would sufficiently irrigate the crops, only the drip irrigation experiment was set up. According to the IITA/AVRDC field staff, they were waiting for the proposed boreholes before setting up the watering can experiment, since the water from the wells would not be adequate for both experiments.The borehole became operational in February by which time it was too late to start the watering can experiment.Crops were planted at different times in the four vegetable hubs. Whereas the tomato in the first hub was transplanted in 30/11/2016, the tomato in the third hub was transplanted in 29/12/2016. For pepper, the first farmer's field was transplanted in 14/12/2016 and the third farmer's field in 26/01/2016. Seedlings were mostly outgrown in the nurseries before transplanting.The drippers did not match the crop spacing. Though there was an agreement between IWMI and AVRDC to use the already purchased drip kits (30 × 30 cm), the field set-up of the experiment by the IITA/AVRDC field staff did not consider that. Water was therefore not evenly distributed to all the crops.Farmers \"topped up\" the water manually in the absence of the field assistants possibly because they believe the crops were not getting enough water from the drip. It was therefore difficult to quantify the actual amount of water used by the crops.The water in the wells was not sufficient to irrigate the whole field (experiment). We therefore had to resort to buying water from tanker services to supplement to avoid crop failure.The water storage tanks which were being used for the experiment were removed from the field by IITA field staff without IWMI's prior notice, thereby bringing the drip experiment to a halt in February. Roles and responsibilities of partners and dependencies must be clearly defined. A coordinator should be designated to coordinate activities among the partners. Future experiments must be simple and targeted at achieving specific objectives.  As much as possible, IWMI's activities must not be dependent on other partners' activities.  IWMI should have a presence in the field at all times to ensure that activities are conducted on time. This will also ensure that all mishaps are also reported on time.  Future irrigation options must not include drip irrigation.","tokenCount":"1385"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"543703688c3fbe3c83ea4a11db0041cf","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/a1c4aae8-f171-47e5-80de-e5b808ae6a9f/retrieve","id":"-1152632116"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"d092e078-c256-4a25-8bf8-547342327576","pagecount":"10","content":"• Fieldwork from November 2018 to August 2019• Focus group discussions (seven FGDs)• Semi-structured interviews with youth and other household members (73 interviews) -15 female youth 13 male youth from fisher households -5 male youth and 5 female youth from farming households • Life histories, livelihood trajectories and the evolution of livelihood aspirations  \"They (the migrant workers) look very sophisticated, while previously they used to dress traditionally. They don't look like us anymore, who have to work in the water the entire day… They have gold earrings and look fair (tanned skin denoting outdoor manual work and a lower social status)…They can even wear their slippers to work\" (Young woman, 21)New desired futures through education and expanded urban mobilities, particularly to Yangon• Navigational capacities and material realities complicated a straightforward engagement with these new desired futures -Knowledge and experiences through social networks -Gendered material realities• Aspirations are broad and vague and take shape based on opportunities that emerge• Socioeconomic status and gender complicated a straightforward relationship with new desired futures• Interaction with generational promise was through aspirations that evolved with opportunities encountered• Engagement with foodsystems marked by a sense of temporariness","tokenCount":"191"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"13f6cb784de697427c02360f58e8fcfb","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://repository.cimmyt.org/server/api/core/bitstreams/cb7a7e99-5986-46c9-bdfb-5887161efedb/content","id":"-1952151608"},"keywords":["MIROSHNICHENKO","D.","CHERNOBROVKINA","M.","PHILIPPOV","M.","SIDOROV","E.","KHARCHENKO","P.","DOLGOV","C GUIMARAES","E.P.","BEDOSHVILI","D.","MORGOUNOV","A.","BABOEV","S.","ISKAKOV","A.","MUMINJANOV","H.","KUENEMAN","E.","PAGANINI","M"],"sieverID":"f05801be-1333-405a-a311-5c9e91556862","pagecount":"13","content":"Çàùèòà ðàñòåíèé ïÿòíèñòîñòè êîëîñêîâûõ ïëåíîê è ëèñòüåâ, âûçûâàåìûå Phaeosphaeria nodorum (Mull.) Hedjar. (àíàìîðôà: Staganospora nodorum (Berk.) Castell. & Germano (Pno), à òàêaeå ñåïòîðèîçíàÿ ïÿòíèñòîñòü è îaeîã ëèñòüåâ, âûçûâàåìûå Mycosphaerella graminicola (Fuckel) Schroeter (anamorph: Septoria tritici Rob. ex Desm.) (Mgr), ïðèçíàíû íàèáîëåå âðåäîíîñíûìè çàáîëåâàíèÿìè â Öåíòðàëüíîé Àçèè (Yahyaoui et al., 2003). Ñòåïåíü ðàñïðîñòðàíåíèÿ â ðåãèîíå ïàòîãåíà ãåëüìèíòîðèîçíîé ïÿòíèñòîñòè ëèñòüåâ Cochliobolus sativus (Ito & Kurib.) Drechsler ex Dastur (anamorph: Bipolaris sorokiniana (Sacc.) Shoem.) (Csa) ñ÷èòàåòñÿ íèçêîé (Hasanov, 1992). Ðàñïðîñòðàíåííîñòü ïàòîãåíîâ ðàçíîâèäíîñòåé ïÿòíèñòîñòè è îaeîãà ëèñòüåâ ìîaeåò âàðüèðîâàòü â çàâèñèìîñòè îò óñëîâèé ãîäà è ðåãèîíà. Ïîýòîìó ïðè îöåíêå óñòîé÷èâîñòè ãåíîòèïà òðåáóåòñÿ ïðàâèëüíàÿ èäåíòèôèêàöèÿ äîìèíèðóþùåãî ïàòîãåíà. ïðîòèâîâåñ îáëèãàòíûì áèîòðîôíûì ãðèáàì âòîðîñòåïåííûå ïîëóáèîòðîôíûå ãðèáû â ïîëåâûõ óñëîâèÿõ îïðåäåëÿþòñÿ ñ òðóäîì. Ðàçëè÷íûå ëèñòîâûå ïÿòíèñòîñòè èìåþò ðàçíûå íàçâàíèÿ, îäíàêî èõ ñèìïòîìû î÷åíü ñõîaeè, è íà ðàííèõ ñòàäèÿõ ïîðàaeåíèÿ äàaeå ÷åðåç óâåëè÷èòåëüíîå ñòåêëî ïî òèïó ñïîðîíîøåíèÿ èëè ïëîäîâûõ òåë èõ ñëîaeíî ðàçëè÷èòü. Ïðèçíàêè çàáîëåâàíèÿ òàêaeå ñèëüíî ðàçíÿòñÿ â çàâèñèìîñòè îò ôèçèîëîãèè ðàñòåíèÿ, íàïðèìåð, ïîðàaeåíèå ïÿòíèñòîñòüþ çíà÷èòåëüíî ñíèaeàåòñÿ ïðè âíåñåíèè âûñîêèõ äîç àçîòà. Âîçðàñò ëèñòà ðàñòåíèÿ òîaeå âëèÿåò íà ðàçìåð ïÿòåí Mgr (Lemaire et al., 2003). Ñëîaeíîñòü òî÷íîé èäåíòèôèêàöèè íà ïîëÿõ, â ñâîþ î÷åðåäü, Ââåäåíèå Áóðàÿ è aeåëòàÿ ðaeàâ÷èíû, âûçûâàåìûå ñîîòâåòñòâåííî Puccinia triticina Erikss. è P. striiformis West f..sp. tritici, ñ÷èòàþòñÿ â Öåíòðàëüíîé Àçèè íàèáîëåå âðåäîíîñíûìè áîëåçíÿìè îçèìîé è ÿðîâîé ïøåíèöû. Ñåëåêöèîíåðû è ôåðìåðû ëåãêî ðàñïîçíàþò èõ è ïîíèìàþò çíà÷åíèå ìíîãîîáðàçèÿ ïàòîãåíîâ â ýïèäåìèîëîãèè áîëåçíåé è áîðüáå ñ íèìè. Íà ñàìîì äåëå îáëèãàòíûå áèîòðîôíûå ãðèáû èççà ïîâñåìåñòíîãî èñïîëüçîâàíèÿ ðàñî-ñïåöèôè÷åñêèõ ãåíîâ óñòîé÷èâîñòè ïåðèîäè÷åñêè âçàèìîäåéñòâóþò ñ äðóãèìè ãåíàìè, ãåíîì-õîçÿèíîì è íîâûìè ðàñàìè. Èõ áûñòðîå ðàñïðîñòðàíåíèå ïî âåòðó íà áîëüøèå ðàññòîÿíèÿ ÷àñòî ïðèâîäèò ê ñåðüåçíûì ýïèôèòîòèÿì è áîëüøèì ïîòåðÿì óðîaeàÿ, ñâÿçàííûì ñ ïîòåðåé óñòîé÷èâîñòè ó øèðîêî âîçäåëûâàåìûõ ãåíîòèïîâ ïøåíèöû. Ó÷åíûå ïðèëàãàþò çíà÷èòåëüíûå óñèëèÿ ê òîìó, ÷òîáû âûÿâèòü è ââåñòè â ñîðòà ãåíû çàìåäëåííîãî ïîðàaeåíèÿ ðaeàâ÷èíîé èëè ãåíû óñòîé÷èâîñòè ê áîëåçíè âçðîñëîãî ðàñòåíèÿ (QTLs) (Singh et al., 2005). Òåì íå ìåíåå, çà÷àñòóþ âëèÿíèå ýòèõ ãåíîâ ìåíüøå, ÷åì ðàñî-ñïåöèôè÷åñêèõ ãåíîâ è çàâèñèò îò óñëîâèé ðåãèîíà, à ñîðòà, íåñóùèå ýòè ãåíû, äîâîëüíî ñëîaeíî âûÿâèòü.Áîëåå òîãî, íåêîòîðûå âòîðîñòåïåííûå ïàðàçèòíûå ïîëóáèîòðîôíûå ãðèáû íà ÿðîâîé �� îçèìîé ïøåíèöå ìîaeíî ïðèíÿòü çà ñèìïòîìû çàáîëåâàíèÿ aeåëòîé ïÿòíèñòîñòüþ è îaeîãîì ëèñòüåâ. Òàêèå áîëåçíè, êàê aeåëòàÿ ïÿòíèñòîñòü ëèñòüåâ, âûçûâàåìàÿ Pyrenophora tritici-repentis (Died.) Drechsler (àíàìîðôà: Drechslera triticirepentis (Died.) Shoem.) (Ptr), ñåïòîðèîçíûå ñàìè çàðàaeåííûå ñåìåíà, ðàçíîñÿòñÿ íà áîëüøèå ðàññòîÿíèÿ (Maraite et al., 1992). ×òî êàñàåòñÿ ïàòîãåíîâ Mgr è Pno, ìåëêèå àñêîñïîðû ðàçíîñÿòñÿ âåòðîì íà ðàññòîÿíèÿ â íåñêîëüêî êèëîìåòðîâ, â òî âðåìÿ êàê êîíèäèè, îáðàçóþùèåñÿ â ìÿêîòè ëèñòà èç ïèêíèäèé, âíåäðåííûõ â òêàíè ðàñòåíèÿ, ïåðåíîñÿòñÿ ñ äîaeäåâûìè êàïëÿìè è ÷åðåç çàðàaeåííûå âñõîäû. Ïÿòíèñòîñòü êîëîñêîâûõ ïëåíîê, âûçûâàåìàÿ âîçáóäèòåëåì Pno, òàêaeå ïîðàaeàåò çåðíî, à ñàìà èíôåêöèÿ ðàñïðîñòðàíÿåòñÿ ñ çàðàaeåííûìè ñåìåíàìè (Shah and Bergstrom, 2000).Âîçáóäèòåëü  (Manning and Ciuffetti, 2005). Îñíîâûâàÿñü íà òîêñè÷åñêèõ ñâîéñòâàõ Ptr, âûçûâàþùèõ íåêðîç è õëîðîç íà ðàçëè÷íûõ ñîðòàõ-äèôôåðåíöèàòîðàõ, áûëî âûäåëåíî äî 11 Ptr ðàñ (Lamari et al., 2005;Singh and Hughes, 2006). Ãåí Tsn1 ïøåíèöû îòâå÷àåò çà âîñïðèèì÷èâîñòü ê Ptr ToxA. Îäíàêî, ðåàêöèÿ íà òîêñèíû ëèøü ÷àñòè÷íî îáúÿñíÿåò ðàçâèòèå áîëåçíè. Ðåàêöèÿ ñîðòà óêàçûâàåò íà ñîâìåùåíèå ðàñî-òèïè÷íîé è íåòèïè÷íîé óñòîé÷èâîñòè (Faris and Friesen, 2005). Äëÿ ñåïòîðèîçíîé ïÿòíèñòîñòè ëèñòüåâ âûÿâëåíû ðàçëè÷èÿ â ñòåïåíè àãðåññèâíîñòè è íåêîòîðûõ îñîáåííîñòÿõ ïàòîãåíà-õîçÿèíà, îäíàêî äî ñèõ ïîð íåëüçÿ ãîâîðèòü î ñèñòåìå ðàñ. Îáíàðóaeåíà àäàïòàöèÿ ïîïóëÿöèè Mgr ê óñòîé÷èâûì ñîðòàì è íàðàñòàþùåå ðàçðóøåíèå óñòîé÷èâîñòè (Mundt et al., 2003, Marot and Maraite, íåîïóáëèêîâàííûå äàííûå). Ýòî óêàçûâàåò íà èçìåíåíèÿ â ïîïóëÿöèÿõ êàñàòåëüíî ïàòîãåííûõ ôàêòîðîâ. Äëÿ òàêèõ âîçáóäèòåëåé ïÿòíèñòîñòåé ëèñòüåâ, êàê Ptr, Pno è Mgr, õàðàêòåðíî î÷åíü áîëüøîå ãåíåòè÷åñêîå ðàçíîîáðàçèå, äàaeå íà óðîâíå ïîëåâîãî îïðåäåëåíèÿ (Di Zinno et al., 1998;Friesen et al., 2005;Murphy et al., 2000;Zhan et al., 2003). Îíî ñâÿçàíî ñ ÷åðåäîâàíèåì áèîòðîôíûõ è ñàïðîòðîôíûõ ôàç íà êóëüòóðå, âûaeèâàíèåì ïàòîãåíà â ñàïðîòðîôíîé ôàçå íà ïîaeíèâíûõ îñòàòêàõ è ôîðìèðîâàíèåì íà íèõ òåëåîìîðôíîé ôàçû (Duczek et al., 1999).Ðåïðîäóêòèâíûé öèêë ýòèõ ïàòîãåíîâ -î÷åíü âàaeíûé ôàêòîð â ýïèäåìèîëîãèè äàííûõ çàáîëåâàíèé, èõ øèðîêîé âèðóëåíòíîñòè êàê âíóòðè ïîïóëÿöèé, òàê è â ïðåäåëàõ êîíòèíåíòà, à òàêaeå óñòîé÷èâîñòè ê ôóíãèöèäàì, ÷òî áûëî îòìå÷åíî ïîñëå íåäàâíåãî îáíàðóaeåíèÿ â Çàïàäíîé Åâðîïå ñòðîáèðóëåíòíîé óñòîé÷èâîñòè (Amand et al., 2003)  Ïàòîãåí Csa (Cochliobolus sativus) áûë îáíàðóaeåí ëèøü íà 10% îáðàçöîâ, ÷òî êîíòðàñòèðóåò ñ øèðîêèì ðàñïðîñòðàíåíèåì ýòîé áîëåçíè â Þaeíûõ Ãèìàëàÿõ (Maraite et al., 1998). Ïàòîãåí Pno (Phaeosphaeria nodorum) ïðåâàëèðîâàë â ñåâåðíûõ îáñëåäîâàííûõ ðåãèîíàõ, à Mgr (Mycosphaerella graminicola) -â þaeíûõ, õîòÿ è òîò, è äðóãîé áûëè îáíàðóaeåíû íà îáðàçöàõ èç Àëìàëûáàêà (KZ-1), Øûìêåíòà (KZ-28), Äaeàìáóëà (KZ-33), Àëìàòû (KZ-41), Áèøêåêà (KG-2) è Êîðäàÿ (KZ-8). Ñ äðóãîé ñòîðîíû, ñìåøàííîå çàðàaeåíèå Ptr è Mgr èëè Pno áûëî âûÿâëåíî íà 43% âñåõ îáðàçöîâ. Ýòîò ôàêò óêàçûâàåò íà íåîáõîäèìîñòü òî÷íîé èäåíòèôèêàöèè èìåþùèõñÿ â ðåãèîíå ÖÀ ïàòîãåíîâ äëÿ óñòàíîâëåíèÿ ïðèîðèòåòîâ â ñåëåêöèîííûõ ��ðîãðàììàõ è îöåíêå ñåëåêöèîííîãî ìàòåðèàëà.Áîëüøàÿ ÷àñòü èç 101 èçîëÿòîâ Ptr ïðèíàäëåaeèò ê ðàñå 1 (Òàáë. 3), ÷òî ñîãëàñóåòñÿ ñ äàííûìè ä-ðà Ëàìàðè è äð. (Lamari et al., 2005). âåùåñòâ ñ ïîìîùüþ îêñèäàçû îïðåäåëÿëè â ÷àøêàõ â ïðèñóòñòâèè ñàëèöèëãèäðîêñàìîâîé êèñëîòû (SHAM) êîíöåíòðàöèåé 100ìã/ë èëè áåç åå äîáàâëåíèÿ.    è äð., 2006). Ðàñó 2 (òîëüêî Ptr ToxA) ðåãóëÿðíî âûäåëÿëè íà þãå îáñëåäîâàííîãî ðåãèîíà, îíà òàêaeå âûäåëÿëàñü ñðåäè ïîïóëÿöèé Pyrenophora tritici-repentis èç Íåïàëà (Mercado et al., 2003).Âûäåëåíèå ðàñû 3 (òîëüêî Ptr ToxC) èç ãåêñàïëîèäíûõ ñîðòîâ Ñîìîíè è Äàíãàðà (TJ-5) è Ñàðàòîâñêàÿ-42 èç Öåíòðàëüíîãî Êàçàõñòàíà (KZ-44) ñòàëî ïåðâûì ôàêòîì îáíàðóaeåíèÿ äàííîãî ïàòîãåíà â èçó÷àåìûõ ñòðàíàõ; äàííàÿ ðàñà òàêaeå äîìèíèðîâàëà â Ñèðèè íà òåòðàïëîèäíîé ïøåíèöå (Lamari et al., 2005). Ðàñà 4, íå îáðàçóþùàÿ òîêñèíû, áûëà âûäåëåíà èç ìàòåðèàëà ñîðòîâ ïøåíèöû Êðàñíîâîäîïàäñêàÿ-250 â Ìàéëåìîøàêå (KZ-27). Ýòî òàêaeå ïåðâûå ñâåäåíèÿ î äàííîé ðàñå â îáñëåäîâàííîì ðåãèîíå. Ðàñà 4 áûëà ñëó÷àéíî îáíàðóaeåíà â Ñåâåðíîé Àìåðèêå, à òàêaeå â ×åõèè íà ðàñòåíèÿõ ïøåíèöû è îòäåëüíûõ íåçëàêîâûõ òðàâàõ, ñ÷èòàþùèõñÿ òèïè÷íûìè ðàñòåíèÿìè-õîçÿåâàìè äëÿ äàííîãî ïàòîãåíà (Sarova et al., 2005)    2003, 2004 and 2005 between May and August on winter and spring wheat in various regions of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Uzbekistan and in Western Siberia (Russia), samples of wheat leaves showing leaf spot and leaf blight symptoms were collected at 113 locations or plots and analysed at the Université catholique de Louvain, Belgium. The analysis under a microscope and/or isolation revealed the presence of Pyrenophora tritici-repentis on 77% of the samples. Its prevalence fell to 31% on the samples from the Omsk region in Western Siberia where Phaeosphaeria nodorum was detected on all analysed samples. Overall, P. nodorum was associated with lesions on 50% of the samples, with a strong decline in prevalence in South Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan. Mycosphaerella graminicola was detected on 23% of the samples and appeared more frequent than P. nodorum in the latter regions. Mixed infections of two or even three of these pathogens were observed on 43% of the samples. Cochliobolus sativus was detected on only 10% of the samples. Some 101 single conidia strains of P. tritici-repentis were inoculated for race characterization on a set of differential wheat genotypes. Of these, 87% belonged to race 1, while only 7%, 5% and 1% were identified as race 2, race 3 and race 4, respectively. Evolution in race prevalence in Central Asia might affect the stability of tan spot resistance.The distribution of the mating type ideomorphs was determined for 49 P. nodorum isolates. The proportion of MAT-1 and MAT-2 isolates appeared balanced (23:19) among the Kazakh and Russian origins, but no MAT-2 isolate has yet been found in Tajikistan. The role of ascospores in glume blotch epidemiology might be reduced for a population with a skewed proportion of the mating types. MAT-1 and MAT-2 ideomorphs of M. graminicola were present in a rather balanced proportion (24:17) throughout the surveyed area.Sensitivity in vitro of the P. nodorum and M. graminicola isolates to propiconazole (Tilt) and azoxystrobin (Amistar) was assessed in PDB. No resistant isolate was detected. The EC 50 values of propiconazole and azoxystrobin ranged for M. graminicola from <0.003 to 0.013mg/L and 0.01 to 0.078mg/L, respectively; and for P. nodorum from 0.013 to 0.085mg/L and 0.016 to 0.267mg/L, respectively.The abundance of crop residues associated with conservation tillage practices, together with the frequent observation of Pyrenophora tritici-repentis pseudothecia on the stubbles as well as the regular isolation of both mating types of Phaeosphaeria nodorum and M. graminicola from the leaves, highlight the risk of a rapid evolution in the population structure of these pathogens with regard to the dispersion of virulence or fungicide resistance genes.","tokenCount":"1342"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"4aec664e58edbdd30afc867843aef27f","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/cd6cd953-8109-4489-9a1e-ea47041962d5/retrieve","id":"-76102941"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"d7929d91-e0a5-4cbd-993b-f342b88d884d","pagecount":"1","content":"Foodborne diseases are one of the most important public health problems in Thailand. During 2003-2012, the diarrheal incidence in humans increased continuously with highest incidences in the northern region since 2005. This study aimed to determine the differences in diarrhea preventive knowledge and perceptions regarding the risk of contracting diarrheal diseases, food consumption habits and potential risk behaviors among people in high and low diarrheal incident areas in northern Thailand. The study was designed and conducted under the EcoHealth Resource Center by different faculties of the Chiang Mai University (CMU). Pictures This document is licensed for use under a Creative Commons Attribution -Non commercial-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License September 2014Table 1: Knowledge on diarrhea diseases p-value An individual with diarrhea should be given anti-diarrheal medication..001 Diarrhea is caused by eating food or drinking water contaminated with disease organisms..003 Knives and cutting boards which have been used to prepare raw foods and are then used to prepare cooked foods might cause diarrhea..01The differences in knowledge among the two groups were individuals with diarrhea should be given anti-diarrheal drug (p < .01), eating contaminated food or drinking water could cause diarrhea (p < .01), using the same knives and cutting boards to prepare raw food (p = .01) (Table 1)Household members in high and low incidence areas perceived differently that eating meat from sick animals could cause diarrhea (p < .05) and the risk of getting diarrhea depends on individual eating practices (p < .05). All other risk perceptions were not statistically different (Table 2). .024 Risk of diarrhea depends on individual eating practices..043 Eating without washing hands puts someone at risk for diarrhea..111 Eating storage food without covering is the risk of getting diarrhea .313 Eating storage food without warming can cause diarrhea .130 Eating raw or partially cooked foods puts someone at risk for diarrhea..382 Severe diarrhea case should go to see a doctor or HCW immediately..336Table 4: Food consumption practices p-value Purchase raw food from a store in the village..000 Purchase raw food from a supermarket..000 Eat packaged food with FDA approval label .000 Eat food which has just been cooked..009 Eat food outside the home..048Practices in covering food in closed containers, washing fresh fruit and vegetable before eating, washing hands with soap and clean water before eating and after defecating, keeping uneaten food in refrigerator, and washing food utensils with dishwashing liquid, were statistically different among household members in the two areas (Table 5)Practices in disposing of food scraps in waste containers with lids, eradicating the garbage by burning and disposing all refuse in containers with lids and were statistically different between household members in the two areas (p < .01) (Table 3) .000Eradicate the garbage by burning .004Dispose all refuse in containers with lids..006 .000Wash fresh fruit and vegetable before eating..011Wash hands with soap and clean water before eating..013Wash hands with soap and clean water after defecating..013Keep uneaten food in refrigerator .015Wash food utensils with dish washing liquid..026There were many differences on knowledge, risk perception, and prevention practices toward foodborne diseases among people in high and low diarrheal incident areas in northern Thailand. Targeted community training activities should address those differences in the future. The study has been successfully demonstrated that that different faculties can work together in a strictly trans-disciplinary approach. Joint proposals are currently being developed, e.g. related to see food and PH concerns .Akeau Unahalekhaka, Faculty of Nursing, Chiang Mai University","tokenCount":"567"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"a7b97c5ba883434587ab62c9a6476b44","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/3a922bcc-de68-4ba4-ba8a-b70ac70353d6/retrieve","id":"-1247867803"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"3abdac08-dd90-466b-a6e4-b2cc022f4a51","pagecount":"3","content":"On 17 December 2020, the 13 th meeting of the Food Safety Working Group of Vietnam (FSWG) was convened to update the food safety activities of group members. This meeting focuses much on discussing the intervention package that the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), one of the core members of the group has conducted to improve the pork safety of Vietnam. About 50 members of the group attended the meeting virtually, and a few members attended it from the World Bank (WB) office in Hanoi. A round table update session was open to all participants to update on various food safety related activities. The final session was allocated to discuss on the preparation for the United Nations Food Systems Summit (UNFSS).1. Traditional food chains -gains, threats, and ways to de-risk them, by Fred  ","tokenCount":"133"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"4d3869223e0201c8e0f4eabc7336125f","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/1f1f3069-1aea-469c-877a-bfc983f9854d/retrieve","id":"-212195415"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"cbbfff98-617c-411c-8222-e293a3ea3f90","pagecount":"22","content":"This chapter provides an overview of predicted global climate change, placing special emphasis on the implications for agriculture. The power of modelling for understanding both impacts on productivity and adaptation options is demonstrated. The models on agricultural production for 50 crops predict significant impacts, with both winners and losers. The resultant need for systems reconstruction in highly vulnerable areas demonstrates a possible entry point for eco-efficient agriculture, in parallel with demands for adaptation measures that are climate smart and deliver on mitigation co-benefits. The chapter then focuses on Colombia and provides an end-to-end analysis of projected climatic changes for 2050, the impacts this may have on agriculture, and mitigation and adaptation options in the country's rice sector. Priority options include managing the methane emissions of flooded rice, eliminating crop residue burning, irrigation, genetic modification for heat tolerance, and increasing efficiency of nitrogen fertilizer application. The relevance of eco-efficient agriculture in adapting to and mitigating climate change is discussed, with special emphasis on synergies between eco-efficiency and climate change adaptation or mitigation.Climate change is widely considered one of the major drivers of societal change in this century, and agriculture has been identified as particularly 1 International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Cali, Colombia.2 CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), Cali, Colombia. 3 Institute for Climate and Atmospheric Science (ICAS), University of Leeds, United Kingdom. et al., 2009), agricultural systems will have to cope with changing rainfall regimes, geographical shifts in the occurrence of pests and diseases (Garrett et al., 2012;Jarvis et al., 2012), shorter growing seasons (Jones and Thornton, 2009), temperature stress (Challinor et al., 2007) and loss of climatic suitability (Jarvis et al., 2012). Global climate models 4 (GCMs) predict that while climatic variability is certain to produce both winners and losers, the losses will far outweigh the gains in many cases. The tropics, in particular, are expected to experience crop yield decreases in the order of 10-30% (Moorhead, 2009). Likewise, South Asia might well be too heat stressed to grow wheat by 2050 (Ortiz et al., 2008;Lobell et al., 2012). Both of these regions depend heavily on agriculture for rural livelihoods, making them especially susceptible to climate-change-induced pressures.Agriculture's position in the climate change equation is perhaps unique; it is simultaneously a highly vulnerable sector as the numbers above indicate, a highly culpable sector with regard to its significant contribution to anthropogenic emissions (Key and Tallard, 2012), and also a sector with enormous potential for mitigating anthropogenic climate change (Hutchinson et al., 2007;Tubiello and Fischer, 2007). Indeed, agriculture produces a disproportionate share of emissions of the high-impact gases methane (CH 4 ) (47% of global total) and nitrous oxide (N 2 O) (58% of global total) (Pye- Smith, 2011). It is responsible for 30% of all greenhouse gas emissions when taking into account land use change and deforestation for agricultural expansion, fuel, fiber, and food (IPCC, 2007). On the other hand, carbon sequestration in agricultural soils could potentially offset 5-15% of global fossil fuel emissions (Lal, 2004), not to mention the mitigation power of deforestation reduction and fertilizer and irrigation optimization through sustainable intensification practices.These considerations make climate-smart agriculture a critical topic for discussion and rapid action. Changing conditions require transformations in agricultural systems towards higher productivity, but on a lower-emissions trajectory (FAO, 2010a). Climate-smart agriculture aims to achieve food security for a world of 9 billion people and successful adaptation to an increasingly variable climate, while reducing emissions and sequestering carbon. It includes practices such as agroforestry, mulching, water management, intercropping, and silvopastoralism, as well as technologies for climate risk management, such as more accurate weather forecasts and the development of improved food crop varieties (Cooper et al., 2012;Smith et al., 2011;The World Bank, 2011). Specific definitions for climate-smart agriculture can vary widely depending on the source. For the purposes of this chapter we will use the following definition for climate-smart agriculture: an agricultural system employing practices which (a) contribute to farmer adaptation to climate change by bolstering the security of food systems, or (b) help to mitigate climate change by sequestering or preventing the release of carbon emissions, while (c) ideally increasing agricultural productivity.Although climate-smart agricultural practices have been shown to be effective in matters of adaptation and mitigation, there remains the question of whether a climate-smart practice is necessarily an eco-efficient practice. When applied to agriculture, eco-efficiency describes a system that produces the most possible output with the least possible input, harmonizing economic, social, and environmental needs (see Mateo and Ortiz, Chapter 1 of this publication).But to what extent do eco-efficient practices overlap with climate-smart practices? Although climate-smart farming practices may be able to reduce emissions from agriculture, do they also constitute a system that uses resources effectively and efficiently for maximum yields?This chapter shows how climate and crop models can be used to anticipate future scenarios for agricultural development and support decision making for priority adaptation and mitigation interventions. Future projections are presented, which are then used to evaluate impacts on agricultural production and systems. The chapter then presents a case study of Colombia, where likely climate changes are quantified, impacts on agricultural systems are assessed, and the efficacy of different adaptation and mitigation options for the country is evaluated. This example is then used to discuss whether climate change presents a challenge or an opportunity for eco-efficient agriculture, looking at the impacts and potential responses in a broader political economy. Using the example, we address the following question: are the high-priority adaptation and mitigation options identified for Colombia necessarily ecoefficient as well?While GCMs are all based on the same underlying principles, they vary in their implementation. We rely on the comprehensive collection of GCM climate change data and statistics of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) for the scenarios presented here.The IPCC used 24 GCMs in its Fourth Assessment Report (AR4) (IPCC, 2007) to show changes in climatic variables at various times in the future. The predictions depend on which of the various scenarios of economic and environmental development is assumed to occur, analyzed in detail in the IPCC's Special Report on Emissions Scenarios (SRES) (IPCC, 2000). Overall, annual mean temperatures are predicted to increase by 1-3° C by 2050 (depending on the SRES scenario), with mid-to high latitudes likely to warm at higher rates than the tropics. Changes in rainfall are varied and complex, ranging from -10 to +20% (again depending on the SRES scenario), with very high likelihood of increases along the Pacific coast of South America and in Eastern Africa, and decreases over South Asia (IPCC, 2007). More specifically, under the SRES A2 scenario (\"business as usual\"), global mean temperatures are predicted to rise by 1.6-8.4 °C by 2050, with winter temperatures at northern latitudes increasing most, while global average rainfall is predicted to increase as much as 1.9% by 2020 and 22.8% by 2050 (IPCC, 2007).Again under the SRES A2 scenario, the Mediterranean area of North Africa extending towards the Sahara is predicted to be drier throughout the year. Changes in rainfall in Asia are spatially variable, while in the Middle East, predictions show a decrease in overall rainfall [although with low certainty (IPCC, 2007)]. Changes in rainfall in the Amazon are highly uncertain, ranging from -10 to +15% by 2050.All of these changes are expected to have profound implications for world agriculture, but the impact will depend on: the crop grown, farmer adaptability to climate change, type and severity of the expected change, and the current system vulnerability. Coping with these changes requires reliable predictions of future climate, coupled with reliable impact models and knowledge of adaptation options that can be implemented at the individual farm level (Jarvis et al., 2011;Thornton et al., 2011).We cannot measure the response of the climate to natural or anthropogenic forcings in absolute terms, but we can represent it in GCMs. GCMs themselves, however, are based on imperfect approximations that cause inaccuracies and uncertainties. Inaccuracies occur when we do not reproduce observed climate patterns at the scales that they appear (i.e., predicted climates differ from observations). In contrast, uncertainties reflect the variability (i.e., spread) of GCM predictions and can arise from:• Disagreement on the future socio-economic behavior of the world's nations, leading to disagreement over which SRES scenarios to use • Lack of understanding of the response of the climate system to anthropogenic forcing • Inability to understand properly, and hence model, the different forcings in the climate system, which are then parameterized differently in the GCMs • Disagreement over GCMs' initial conditions (i.e., the fact that climate change experiments are initialized arbitrarily on the basis of a quasi-equilibrium control run) (Challinor et al., 2009).Often the conditions necessary to initialize GCMs in climate change experiments must be selected randomly (Gleckler et al., 2008;Taylor et al., 2012), which contributes to model spread. Uncertainties, therefore, are a range of predictions for any future time giving us a plausible range under which the impact of potential adaptation-or mitigation-oriented decisions can be analyzed (Moss et al., 2010;Webster et al., 2012). Quantifying these uncertainties is critical to understanding the future changes in climate and how agricultural systems will respond to them (Challinor et al., 2009;Moss et al., 2010).Given enough observed data, we can assess the predictive skill for any climatic variable prediction by the GCMs, but a variable that performs well in one instance (i.e., present-day climate) may not perform well in others (i.e., future scenarios) (Challinor and Wheeler, 2008). In addition, the uncertainty determined for one variable does not necessarily represent the uncertainty of all the others. That is, one variable's estimate of \"high uncertainty\" does not signify that the projection is highly uncertain in absolute terms. Quantification of uncertainty is critical for decisions regarding adaptation of agricultural systems to climate change (Smith and Stern, 2011;Smith et al., 2011). These decisions directly impact farmers' livelihoods and therefore need comprehensive analysis of current vulnerabilities and future uncertainties to avoid the risk of making faulty recommendations (Jarvis et al., 2011).Despite the inherent uncertainties in climate change projections, there can be no excuse for inaction on the policy front. On the contrary, decisions on adaptation strategies should be anticipatory, putting into place as much effective policy and infrastructure as possible in the near term to avoid possibly irreversible repercussions. Moreover, anticipatory adaptation has the additional benefit of reducing the potential costs that may result from maladaptation, particularly for decisions regarding long-lived and costly infrastructure or sector-level planning (Ranger et al., 2010).Climate change adaptation is by no means without risk. Decision makers may fail to appreciate the magnitude of a climate-related risk and not deliver a crucial adaptation, or there is the possibility of overestimation of risk and thus \"over-adaptation\" and waste of resources (Willows and Connell, 2003). Although we cannot predict with complete certainty how the climate will be in the future, it is possible to take steps to buffer negative effects with minimum levels of risk. That is to say, adaptation does not necessarily require a perfectly accurate prediction. A framework developed by Willows and Connell (2003) emphasizes the necessity of keeping open or increasing the options that could allow adaptation measures to be implemented in the future, when the situation may be less uncertain.According to Willows and Connell (2003), risk assessments should aim to identify \"no-regrets\" alternatives or immediately actionable options that should deliver adaptation benefits under any circumstances regardless of actual climate outcomes. For example, an early-warning system for natural disasters would be a suitable adaptation for any foreseeable future; it would constitute a \"no-regrets\" option (Ranger et al., 2010). Other plausible approaches include building flexibility into the adaptability measure, e.g., constructing infrastructure that could be modified in the future, if necessary, rather than rebuilt, or building flexibility into the decisionmaking process itself by taking no-regrets actions first and delaying more high-stakes actions until better information is available (Ranger et al., 2010). Doing so could help to avoid decisions that may become maladapted with time or limit further flexibility. Planned adaptation options may be the most appropriate in the face of low uncertainty, while generating adaptive capacity in a system might be a more appropriate strategy if there is high uncertainty of climate impacts. In any case, while uncertainty may complicate the decisionmaking process, it should not hinder it altogether. and no crop becoming more than 10% more suitable. Over half (26) of the crops were relatively insensitive to climate change (suitability changing less than 5%). Global changes in suitability may, however, vary from one region to another and 37 crops lost more than 50% of the area currently classified as suitable (Figure 3-1).Trends in crop suitability also differed geographically. North Africa lost an average of 80% crop suitability, while Europe made the most important gains with no crop losing more than 5% suitability on average. Latin America, the Pacific, the Caribbean, and sub-Saharan Africa lost about 35-40% suitability overall, even allowing the crop area to migrate. Important issues of food security arise when crop suitability decreases significantly, especially in subtropics of the Mediterranean and India (Challinor et al., 2007).Overall, the tropics become less suitable because critical thresholds of adaptability are exceeded in most marginally suitable areas (Figure 3-1). Predicted losses of more than 20% climate suitability will occur over 10, 15, 50, and 75% of the area currently growing cassava (Ceballos et al., 2011;Jarvis et al., 2012),We ranked the area harvested of the 50 most important crops reported by FAOSTAT (FAO, 2010b) and assessed their patterns of crop suitability using the EcoCrop model, following the procedure described by Ramírez-Villegas et al. (2011). The areas of each crop ranged from 26,290 to 2,161,000 km 2 , and each had a wide range of physiological responses to climate, for example, growing seasons (40-365 days), rainfall (200-8,000 mm/yr), and temperatures (2-48 °C). Within their environmental ranges (as indicated by EcoCrop), adaptation for a particular crop ranged from very marginal to highly suitable. We expected, therefore, to show the range of climatic response of each crop and estimate the likely effects of climate change on crop distribution.We found that if crops were assumed to migrate without limit, global crop suitability increased by 0.84%, with buckwheat increasing most (+9.7%) and wheat decreasing most (-15.1%). At the global scale, 16 crops were less suitable, with wheat, sugar beet, white clover, and coffee becoming more than 10% less suitable, bananas (Ramírez et al., 2011;Van den Bergh et al., 2012), potatoes (Schafleitner et al., 2011), and beans (Beebe et al., 2011), respectively. In contrast, black leaf streak, a major disease in bananas, is predicted to decrease by 3-7% in most banana-growing areas (Ramírez et al., 2011). Crop traits that the model flagged as important were: cold/waterlogging tolerance for cassava (Ceballos et al., 2011;Jarvis et al., 2012), cold/heat tolerance for bananas (Ramírez et al., 2011), heat/cold/drought tolerance for potatoes (Schafleitner et al., 2011), and heat/drought tolerance for beans (Beebe et al., 2011). Although cold tolerance may seem an odd trait when climate change predicts higher temperatures, at least some tropical crops may extend into the subtropics where cold snaps can damage sensitive crops (e.g., citrus in Florida).In the past, farmers have adapted their cropping systems to tackle adverse climates and to respond to other environmental pressures. It is likely that they will continue to adapt their systems as the climate changes by adopting new varieties -or even new crops altogether -and by changing agronomic practices such as time of sowing (IPCC, 2007;Krishnan et al., 2007;Srivastava et al., 2010). There is a clear need to develop strategies to alleviate the negative impacts and capitalize on the positive impacts of climate change, particularly in the most vulnerable regions such as the tropics and subtropics. Adaptation strategies to overcome reduced crop suitability include:• Changes in management to temporarily buffer negative climate change impacts • Changes in infrastructure and timing, including modification of irrigation and drainage amounts, frequencies, and system types • Modification of varieties in a well-defined regional breeding strategy, using both conserved genetic resources and molecular biotechnology to respond quickly to adaptation needs as they appear • Changes in the intercropping, e.g., crop migration, taking into account economic and environmental sustainabilityAnother possibility is changing one or more of the components of the cropping system. Changing crops might be the only option available to poor smallholders, who are the most vulnerable, least able to adapt to rapid change, and most limited in access to new technology. Crop substitution therefore appears to be a key issue when addressing adaptation pathways for negatively impacted areas. It will be a challenge to produce well-adapted varieties that also comply with the many entrenched socio-cultural traditions that might prevent their adoption, such as regional preferences for size and color of beans in Mesoamerica (Thornton et al., 2011), or fruit characteristics in commercial bananas (Ramírez et al., 2011;Van den Bergh et al., 2012). Substitution of completely new crops will be even harder to bring about.Given the significant shifts in the geographic suitability of crops, a considerable turnover in agricultural technologies and practices is likely to take place. The result could be more opportunities for piggy-backing change, both through appropriate deployment of technologies/practices and the creation of suitable incentive mechanisms that ensure that new agricultural systems deliver greater eco-efficiency. However, this poses the question: are climate change adaptation and mitigation measures always going to be ecoefficient?This section develops a concrete example of a climate change challenge and the possible response mechanisms to put to the test the hypothesis that eco-efficient agriculture is synonymous with climate change adaptation and on-farm mitigation interventions specific to the case of Colombia. First, climate impacts are assessed and the effects these have on crop suitability are quantified. Possible response mechanisms in the rice sector are then developed and tested economically and biophysically for their likely effectiveness in adapting to the various challenges.We extracted annual rainfall and mean annual temperature data for Colombia for two time slices -2030 and 2050 (Figure 3-2) -from 19 global climate models (GCMs) forced with IPCC SRES scenario A2 (IPCC, 2007). SRES A2 is one of the less optimistic, \"business-as-usual\" scenarios based on continued regionally oriented economic and industrial intensification. Atmospheric concentrations of greenhouse gases (GHGs) over the 10 years since the SRES was published broadly match the scenario's prediction. We emphasize that the predictions in the text that follows are derived from the GCMs and should be treated as such.Precipitation in Colombia will likely decrease in some areas and increase in others for both time slices [Figures 3-2 The largest predicted decreases in annual precipitation are in the departments of Atlántico, Norte de Santander, Cesar, Sucre, Arauca, and Magdalena, and the largest increases will likely be in Valle del Cauca, Amazonas, Cauca, Quindío, Nariño, Tolima, Huila, and Caquetá. Precipitation patterns in 2030 and 2050 may be very similar to current patterns, though differing in magnitude, with ranges of -3 to +3% in 2030, and -6 to +5% in 2050.Overall, mean annual temperatures are predicted to increase by 1.0-1.4 °C by 2030 and by 1.8-2.4 °C by 2050 (Table 3-1). Although mean annual temperatures will probably increase in all departments, the increase is likely to be greatest in Vaupés, Guainía, and Vichada for both 2030 and 2050 [Figures 3-2Colombia is projected to warm 1.4-2.5 °C by 2050, while precipitation is likely to vary between -6% and +5% in the current values. Distribution of precipitation is also likely to change, again varying by region. Temperature-sensitive crops may be affected by the higher temperatures and have to move to higher altitudes to avoid suffering significant losses of yield and quality. There will likely be trade-offs, e.g., with areas at or under 1,200 m altitude becoming less suitable for coffee than at present, while areas above 1,800 m become more suitable.Although the GCMs are based on current understanding of the atmospheric processes, they do not implement that understanding in exactly the same way, causing their outputs to differ. The global climate change community deals with this by expressing the variation (i.e., spread) in the output as \"uncertainty\". 5 Uncertainty is a property of the external world, not the model itself, and as such it arises from a lack of data and/or knowledge about the initial conditions of the system, including the impossibility of modelling at a very high resolution (Challinor and Wheeler, 2008;Hawkins and Sutton, 2009;Majda and Gershgorin, 2010).The uncertainties of the 19 GCMs for annual precipitation and annual mean temperature are shown in Figure 3-3. The dispersion between models for precipitation is high (Figure 3-3), especially along the Colombian Andes. This outcome is probably due to the complex topographic gradients of the Andean region, which cannot be resolved with such coarse models. Hence, some models project large increases and decreases in precipitation in highland areas, but only small changes in the country's lowlands, such as the Eastern Plains and the Caribbean regions. The result is high uncertainty for regions in the center of the country (Table 3-1).The largest decreases in precipitation -up to 60 mm/yr by 2050 -are projected for the Caribbean region. The most pronounced increases are for the Amazon region and the coffee-growing zone: up to 130 mm/yr, although with relatively high uncertainty.Although the scales are different, the uncertainty for mean annual temperature is relatively low when compared with the uncertainty for annual precipitation (see also Hawkins and Sutton, 2009;2011 for a global analysis of 5 Although we are unable to represent exactly in a mathematical model how nature works, in this case the complex interactions of atmospheric circulation, there a number of different models that mimic the processes tolerably well. The results of these models can be expressed as a comparison between models (see e.g., Knutti et al., 2009;Meehl et al., 2007). There is an implicit understanding that the models used are approximations to what might be obtained from a thorough analysis if a fully adequate model of real-world processes were available. uncertainty). Both the differences between models and the standard deviation of their outputs vary longitudinally, increasing towards the east of the country, particularly in the Eastern Plains and the Amazon. The uncertainty in these two areas is also higher than elsewhere. The GCMs differ considerably -by up to 5 °C -in their projections for 2030 and 2050, although the mean of all models shows an increase of only half that by 2050. Differences between the GCMs, and thus their uncertainty, are relatively low in the southwest of the country.We cannot be certain which of the GCMs best represents the future climates. However, we can evaluate how well their output matches the baseline climates , i.e., present-day climates for which we have observational data.A simple way to evaluate the performance of We compared the results of each GCM with the readily-available climate databases WorldClim (Hijmans et al., 2005), Global Surface Summary of Day (GSOD) (Lott, 1998), Global Historical Climatology Network (GHCN) (Peterson and Vose, 1997;Lott, 1998), and Climate Research Unit (CRU) (Mitchell and Jones, 2005) following the methodology of Ramírez-Villegas et al. (2012) and Ramírez-Villegas and Challinor (2012) (Figure 3-4). We analyzed total rainfall and mean temperature over four seasons (Dec-Feb, Mar-May, June-Aug, Sept-Nov) and the whole year (ANN). For each model, the mean of all stations (GHCN and GSOD) or grid cells (WorldClim and CRU) was computed, GCM grid cells grouped, and the spatial consistency of the mean climate prediction assessed by calculating the coefficient of determination (R 2 ) between the observed data and the GCMs. This coefficient defines the skill of each climate model to represent the climate of the baseline period.The coefficient of determination (R 2 ) for the baseline of annual precipitation is medium-high for the majority of the GCMs, especially for the interpolated surfaces (WorldClim and CRU), but is lower for the station data (GSOD and GHCN) because of their geographic distribution and relative scarcity (Figure 3-4). The GCMs perform slightly better for annual data, but less well for seasonal data, especially in the second semester (JJA-SON). At least 40% of the seasons and GCMs perform poorly (R 2 <0.6) for precipitation, 1 9 9 -2 8 7 mm 2 8 8 -3 2 0 3 2 1 -3 4 0 3 4 1 -3 5 0 3 5 1 -3 6 0 3 6 1 -3 8 0 3 8 1 -4 0 0 4 0 1 -4 5 0 4 5 1 -5 0 0 5 0 1 -7 0 0 7 0 1 -9 0 0 and only 20% perform well (R 2 >0.8). In contrast, R 2 for mean temperature is greater than 0.95 for all the models, both for the annual cycle and for seasons of the year (see also Ramírez-Villegas et al., 2012). We conclude that GCMs can generate data of mean future climates with moderately high precision for temperature and low precision for precipitation, although models still have a long way to go before they can predict Colombian climate variations accurately.We calculated the average change in climatic suitability for 25 crops selected for their importance in harvested area (ha) and production (t) in Colombia (Table 3-2), calculated averages for each department, and grouped them by region. We estimated the change in climate suitability using EcoCrop (Hijmans et al., 2001;Ramírez-Villegas et al., 2011) and applied the SRES A2 scenario for 2050 using data from 19 GCMs (Ramírez-Villegas and Jarvis, 2010). Current climate data were from WorldClim (Hijmans et al., 2005).Overall, and using ±50% as the cutoff, losses in climate suitability between now and 2050 were greater than the gains. Losses could be seen in up to 82.7%, or about 945,930 km 2 , of the country's total area (1,143,640 km 2 ), while the remaining 17.3% (197,710 km 2 ) should continue to have suitable climatic conditions for growing crops. The most critical regions are the Amazon, Caribbean, Pacific, and the Eastern Plains, where all departments are projected to have negative changes, although changes in several departments may be less than 15%. Changes will likely be positive in five of the seven Andean departments and all three of the coffee-growing region's departments: Caldas (3.8%), Risaralda (4.9%), and Quindío (12%).It is useful for planning purposes to determine how many of the 25 crops analyzed are likely to become more suitable for the climate (winners), and how many are likely to become less suitable (losers) (Figure 3-5). In this case, the threshold of climate suitability -that is, a crop's climatic aptitude (CA) -for a winner or loser is ±5%.In some departments in the Andean and Pacific regions (Antioquia, Boyacá, Cauca, Cundinamarca, Nariño, and Valle del Cauca), 7-10 crops covering 1.6 million ha could gain in CA. In the departments of La Guajira, Cesar, and Bolívar in the country's Caribbean region, 9-13 crops covering 440,000 ha could decrease in CA. About 72 million ha show uncertainty (coefficient of variability between models) less than 30%, mostly in the Andean and Eastern Plains regions, which represent most of the country's agricultural activity.Rice ranks first among short-cycle crops in terms of its importance to Colombia's economy.The country is the second largest rice producer in Latin America, and even so is a net rice importer. Rice is the primary source of calories for the low-income group, which accounts for over 37% of Colombia's population (The World Bank, 2012).The two predominant systems of rice production in Colombia are mechanized -which includes both irrigated and rainfed systems -and manual, with all production activities being undertaken with hand labor. In 2007, Colombia produced 2,471,545 tons of rice on over 400,000 ha of land (Fedearroz, 2007).An expert workshop on climate change at the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) identified two potential climate-smart adaptation pathways for rice in Colombia: irrigation of traditional dryland rice and genetic modification for high-temperature tolerance. We also considered three mitigation measures for rice in Colombia: managing flooded rice to minimize CH 4 emissions, eliminating burning of crop residues, and optimizing the amount of applied fertilizer.Two important tools for selecting and prioritizing \"no-regrets\" adaptation or mitigation options are cost-benefit analysis (CBA) and cost-efficiency analysis (CEA). For adaptation purposes, the most relevant analysis is usually the CBA, which asks whether the returns (benefits, such as avoided damage/losses or extra developmental benefits compared with \"business as usual\") are greater than the costs (extra investment compared with \"business as usual\"), and by how much. CBA quantifies all costs and benefits of an intervention with monetary values, making it appropriate when economic efficiency is the only decision-making criterion (UNFCCC, 2011).The impact of climate change on crops can be quantified with modelling, as can the extent to which impacts can be avoided through one or more adaptation options. Thus the most effective adaptation option can be chosen based on a discrete comparison of the cost of implementing the adaptation measure and its resulting benefits (improvement in crop production, avoidance of economic losses). Elements of climate change mitigation, on the other hand, are not always so easy to express in monetary terms. For example, the benefits of reduced GHG emissions are not restricted to the site of the emissions but are global in their effects, making them difficult to estimate (it is not yet possible to estimate GHG emission damages by modelling at the specific local level and then extrapolating globally). Positive environment-, health-, or livelihoodrelated outcomes cannot be valued in a strictly monetary sense because they are not localized in the way that adaptation benefits are. CEA is useful for situations in which there is a concrete objective and where impacts are measurable but benefits are not (UNFCCC 2011), as is the case with many mitigation measures. The costs in a CEA can be valued in monetary terms, but the benefits must be expressed in \"physical\" units. It is then possible to construct a costefficiency curve that can be used to identify and prioritize those mitigation measures that are economically viable for achieving a well-defined physical target.Out of the area under rice production in Colombia, 256,295 ha (64%) are irrigated and 29,556 ha (36%) are dryland/rainfed (Fedearroz, 2007). The potential area for irrigation based on water availability and climate is estimated to be 6.6 million ha (AQUASTAT, 2010). Dryland rice will be vulnerable to yield losses from water stress caused by climate change, i.e., increased evapotranspiration due to higher temperatures and compounded by lower overall rainfall. Furthermore, the introduction of modern seed varieties has seen dryland rice lose competitiveness with irrigated systems; the average yield gap between irrigated and dryland systems can be more than 4 t/ha (Lang, 1996).We simulated the effects of climate change for dryland rice with the Decision Support System for Agrotechnology Transfer (DSSAT) (Jones et al., 2003), using the variety and agronomy currently recommended by the National Federation of Rice Growers (Fedearroz, its Spanish acronym). We first simulated the effect of climate change without irrigation and subsequently its effect with irrigation. We estimated the costs of providing irrigation in terms of the initial investment required and the costs of operation and maintenance with a life span of 20 years. We calculated the benefits of the irrigation project as the difference between rice production with and without irrigation under the SRES scenario A2. We calculated operation and maintenance costs and estimated an increase of 1% annually, using an annual social discount rate of 12%. Analysis of the financial flow shows that building an irrigation system in the Colombia's Caribbean and Eastern Plains regions gives positive net present values (Figure 3-6), and in each case the development would be financially viable.The second adaptation measure that we tested was a research program to seek and develop, by 2030, new rice varieties tolerant of higher temperatures. The rising temperatures expected from climate change pose a threat to rice production by increasing the risk for spikelet sterility during development. However, rice germplasms exhibit great variability in their response to heat stress. Heat-tolerant cultivars have been shown to respond well to increased 1,000 0 temperatures while still producing economic yield (Shah et al., 2011). Furthermore, improved cultivars could potentially offset stress from increased evapotranspiration by exhibiting better water use efficiency, greater harvest indices, and deeper/faster-growing roots.We used the costs of a 26-year research program (including researchers, assistants, field workers, materials, infrastructure, and operational and administrative costs) and simulated the yields in 2050 of the currently recommended variety and a synthetic variety less sensitive to temperature using DSSAT. 6 We calculated the benefit as the economic value of the difference in production between the current and the synthetic varieties. We assumed a progressively decreasing rate of adoption with a final level of adoption of 15% for the whole country and a discount rate of 12% annually.The cost-benefit analysis shows that it is highly desirable to mount a research program to improve the resistance of rice to high temperatures, giving a large net present value (Figure 3-7).CEA assesses the economic costs and the technical efficiency of different options to achieve some predetermined level of environmental quality. The analysis assists the decision-making process by allowing feedback from those affected by a proposed program or plan of action to revise the objectives as part of the process. CEA allows 6 DSSAT largely represents the effects of temperature on rice as its effect on the development rate, in which higher temperatures shorten the duration of the various growth stages. We arbitrarily altered the genetic coefficients in DSSAT to make a synthetic variety that was less sensitive to temperature by increasing the genetic coefficients P1 and P5 by 15%. Coefficient P1 is the time period [expressed as growing degree days (GDD) above a base temperature of 9 °C] from seedling emergence during which the rice plant is not responsive to changes in photoperiod. This period is also referred to as the basic vegetative phase of the plant. Coefficient P5 is the time period in GDD from the beginning of grain filling (3 to 4 days after flowering) to physiological maturity with a base temperature of 9 °C. Data from the field have shown that flooded rice generates greater emissions of CH 4 than rice grown with intermittent irrigation (or irrigation interspersed with dry periods), which allows soil aeration and is unfavorable for the anaerobes that produce CH 4 . Flooded rice in Colombia is typically grown in the municipalities of Jamundí (Valle del Cauca) and Cúcuta (Santander). Substituting of intermittent irrigation for continuous flooding requires the following: (1) implementation of a system of monitoring and water use control at the level of the individual field; (2) training and field demonstrations of land preparation and the use of water budgeting balance; and (3) land preparation for more efficient water use. The cost to implement these measures is US$107/ha per year, which will reduce GHG emissions by 11.65 t CO 2 eq/ha per year in Cúcuta and 13.06 t CO 2 eq/ha per year in Jamundí. The estimated cost efficiency is $9.20/t CO 2 eq per ha per year in Cúcuta and $8.21/t CO 2 eq per ha per year in Jamundí. The maximum potential reduction of emissions is 197,050 t CO 2 eq/yr for Cúcuta and 66,810 t CO 2 eq/yr for Jamundí.Harvest residues are typically burned in the municipalities of Espinal (Tolima), Valledupar (Cesar), and Yopal (Casanare). Instead of burning, residues can be managed using minimum tillage and decomposition accelerators, which, including training, costs US$112 for Espinal and Valledupar, and $57 for Yopal. The reductions of GHG emissions are 0.95, 0.53, and 0.47 t CO 2 eq/ha per year for Espinal, Valledupar, and Yopal, respectively, with estimated cost efficiencies of $59, $104, and $120/t CO 2 eq per ha per year. The potential reduction of GHG emissions is 26,270 t CO 2 eq/yr for Espinal, 3,280 t CO 2 eq/yr for Valledupar, and 3,300 t CO 2 eq/yr for Yopal.There are many factors that affect rice's nitrogen use efficiency (NUE), or its ability to absorb and use nitrogen inputs. The result is often that more fertilizer is applied than can be used by the plant, or that not enough is applied to get maximum yields and economic returns. There are three possible approaches for increasing the efficiency of nitrogen fertilizer application to rice in Colombia, thereby reducing unnecessary inputs and decreasing emissions from crop fertilization (Figure 3-8). The first involves reducing overall nitrogen application, which increases NUE but entails reduction in rice yields (scenario A). The second requires no reduction or increase in nitrogen application, but requires more-effective management techniques so that what does get applied is used effectively by the plant (scenario B). The final approach involves both increasing nitrogen inputs and NUE through better management to arrive at optimum economic returns from the system (scenario C). All three scenarios are climate smart -they result in fewer emissions per ton of rice produced due to optimal N uptake -however we will only be analyzing scenario A for economic viability and relative eco-efficiency.It is possible to halve the rates of fertilizer applied to rice in two regions of Colombia: the Andean and Caribbean regions. The cost of this option is estimated using the following equation:   The estimated costs of this option in terms of foregone production are: Andean, US$113/ha per year, and Caribbean, $183/ha per year. The expected reduction of GHG emissions are: Andean, 1.0 t CO 2 eq/ha per year, and Caribbean, 0.2 t CO 2 eq/ha per year. Nevertheless, the estimates of cost efficiency are $109 and $170/t CO 2 eq reduced for the Andean and Caribbean regions, respectively. The maximum potential reduction of GHG emissions is 76,170 and 2,920 t CO 2 eq/yr for the Andean and Caribbean regions, respectively.It is important to keep in mind that the yield reductions caused by decreased nitrogen inputs have further repercussions for global food security. There is a possibility that reducing N application in one region or country could simply displace GHG emissions to another, which would have to produce more to make up for the decrease in yield, a factor which was not taken into account in this analysis.The data for the three mitigation options in various departments in Colombia are summarized in Figure 3-9.The priority adaptation and mitigation interventions identified for the rice sector all involve optimization of resource inputs and outputs, be it fertilizers or water, or improved use of \"waste\" products. The economic analysis demonstrates the cost-benefit ratios of these interventions from a climate change mitigation perspective, but equally could consider these from a competitiveness perspective, or prioritize them based on ecoefficiency principles.Although the practices described above are already considered climate smart, our definition of the term leaves room for the possibility that, though a strategy may be climate smart, it may not necessarily be economically viable, environmentally sustainable, or make good use of resources. As noted by Keating et al. in  Making use of some of the explicit measures noted by Keating et al. (Chapter 2 of this publication), we attempted to qualitatively evaluate the climate-smart adaptation and mitigation measures chosen for Colombia based on their relative eco-efficiency. A measure of eco-efficiency must be made with regard to the relation of inputs, such as labor, capital, nutrients, and water; with desired outputs, such as harvested product or economic profit. Table 3-3 gives a positive or negative value for the ecoefficiency measures to each of the 5 climatesmart practices; a negative value (red) is assigned when a practice requires more inputs (+) or results in less of the desired outputs (-), whereas a positive value (green) is assigned for a reduction in inputs (-) or increase in desired outputs (+).Table 3-3 shows that not all of the climatesmart strategies chosen for Colombia are highly eco-efficient, though some are more so than others. For example, the composting of crop residues in the field instead of burning appears to be highly eco-efficient -as it both reduces the amount of input required in terms of labor, water, and soil nutrients, and increases outputs in the form of ecosystem services. This inference is confirmed by the cost-efficiency analysis, which shows that eliminating residue burning it is capable of greatly reducing GHG emissions at a very reasonable cost to the farmer.Despite the built-in uncertainties of global climate models, there is a reasonable amount of evidence to support the prediction that global temperatures could rise anywhere from 1 to 8 °C by 2050. Precipitation patterns are less predictable, though certain scenarios can predict with high certainty a global average increase of almost 23% by 2050, along with major changes in spatio-temporal distribution. Circumstances at the country level are similar, with Colombia predicted to undergo temperature increases between 1.4 and 2.5 °C by 2050, shifting distributions of rainfall, and a range of regional precipitation changes (-6 to +5%). The implications of these changes for world agriculture could be profound, with some 37 of the most important crops predicted to lose more than 50% of area currently classified as suitable for their cultivation. Colombia could experience losses in crop suitability in up to 83% of the country's total area, especially in the Amazon, Pacific, Caribbean, and Eastern Plains regions. In these regions, adaptation strategies will undoubtedly be necessary to cope with the impacts of decreased crop suitability.Economic analyses of preferred adaptation and mitigation strategies for Colombian agriculture give encouraging results. Both the adoption of an irrigation system and the development of a research program for heat-resistant rice are economically viable, and, in the latter case, highly profitable in the mid-term. Mitigation strategies offer a more mixed bag: replacing flooded rice with intermittent irrigation reduces emissions at a relatively low cost. Using minimum tillage and decomposition accelerators instead of burning residues greatly reduces emissions, but at a higher cost.Climate change necessitates the implementation of adaptation/mitigation measures to ensure food security. The critical question is whether these climate-smart strategies and measures that meet the standards of ecoefficiency are mutually inclusive. To be sure, many of the resources that eco-efficiency aims to manage prudently (water, nutrients, labor, finances, etc.) are the same resources that must be managed for adaptation/mitigation purposes. For example, using minimum tillage and decomposers in Colombian rice fields instead of burning crop residues after harvest is eco-efficient because it greatly reduces the inputs of water and labor required for conventional puddled transplanting systems while leaving yields virtually unaffected (Bhushan et al., 2007). The practice advances mitigation goals at the same time; omitting tillage and burning considerably reduces carbon emissions.Qualitatively evaluating the eco-efficiency of the climate-smart strategies chosen for Colombia in terms of the balance of inputs and outputs indicates that, while most eco-efficient practices are by default climate smart, not all climate-smart practices are necessarily highly eco-efficient. Instead, climate-smart practices display a range of compatibility with eco-efficient measures. While some, like the more precise application of nitrogen fertilizer, could result in significant reduction of inputs (soil nutrients, capital, labor, etc.) while augmenting desirable outputs, others may imply more labor, greater financial risk, or even unexpected environmental costs. Accordingly, those options which are a win for both system types should be emphasized in climate change planning to avoid the possibility of adaptation/mitigation coming at the price of efficiency and food security. Furthermore, climate financing could provide a boost to eco-efficient agriculture, thus opening the door for economic incentives to transform low-efficiency systems.","tokenCount":"7169"}

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+{"metadata":{"gardian_id":"952ff8a0aac9c8b16f23b31bbbfcf076","source":"gardian_index","url":"https://cgspace.cgiar.org/rest/bitstreams/215dbc08-232d-44fd-8a12-0dddf0b010eb/retrieve","id":"1759116895"},"keywords":[],"sieverID":"cb5bc02a-b58a-4a81-bdd9-2930d7018fd5","pagecount":"14","content":"Anytime that a processor is considering the value proposition of establishing of a seed unit to serve its root supply needs.Varies by team, but at least a 2-hour working session is required to work through the methodology and to customize assumptions to a processor's operationsStep 1. Read narrativeStep 2. Update assumptions in the modeling workbook sheetsStep 3. If value proposition looks promising, then identify the most valuable assumptions (through sensitivity analysis) and conduct primary research to calibrate themMethod. Demand creation trials to calibrate assumptions for the differentiated value of improved cassava varieties in the field and in the factory (ex. yield, starch level, starch stability, root morphology, disease resistance, plant structure)There is no relevant gender aspect tied to this toolThe Cassava Seed Unit Toolkit is not self-explanatory and requires some level of facilitationThe Toolkit was developed around an SAH-enabled seed unit and therefore cost and multiplication assumptions will need to be tailored to screenhouse on tunnel-based production systemsThe Toolkit was developed for processors in Nigeria and includes figures in USD & Naira. For use in other countries, the model will need to updated to the local currency.• The Cassava Seed Unit Toolkit is a dynamic toolkit of customizable business analysis resources to guide processors through their due diligence process• The analysis tools support processors' ability to evaluate the operational and financial impact of establishing a cassava seed unit• The tools form a major point of engaging processors hold working sessions, develop business casemake more informed decisions on whether to vertical integrate? And if so, how?","tokenCount":"255"}