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The 2012 ICCO Food Security survey for the Western Bahr El Ghazel state in South Sudan, part of the diocese of Wau and participated in by CARD the Diocese of Wau development agency.
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1
Food Security and Thematic Program (FSTP)
FOOD/SUDAN/2011/02
Increased Food Security and Sustainable Livelihoods for Poor and
Marginalized Households in Western Bahr el Ghazal State, South Sudan
Baseline Survey Report
FINAL VERSION
September 25, 2012
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Contents Executive summary ....................................................................................................................................... 5
1.0 Background ........................................................................................................................................... 13
1.1 Purpose and objectives of the Baseline survey ................................................................................ 13
1.2 Specific research questions ............................................................................................................... 14
1.3 Steps taken to conduct the baseline survey ..................................................................................... 14
1.4 Brief description of the intervention for which baseline was under taken ............................. 15
1.5 Socio-Economic and Political Context ............................................................................................... 17
1.5.1 Western Bar-el-Ghazal State ...................................................................................................... 17
1.5.2 Bio-Physical Environnent ........................................................................................................... 17
1.5.3 Political Environment ................................................................................................................. 18
1.5.4 Population and Livelihood ......................................................................................................... 18
1.5.5 Governance System ................................................................................................................... 20
1.5.6 State Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Irrigation (SMoAF&I) ............................................ 20
1.5.7 The FSTP Target group ............................................................................................................... 21
1.6 Explanation and justification of the methods used, scope and limitations of the Baseline
survey ..................................................................................................................................................... 22
1.6.1 Sampling ..................................................................................................................................... 22
1.6.2 Field work ................................................................................................................................... 23
1.7 Analysis of the gathered information/data and presentation of the findings ......................... 25
2.0 Findings of the Baseline Survey ...................................................................................................... 26
2.1 Current status of the four result areas ........................................................................................ 26
The FSTP has four results areas: ...................................................................................................... 26
2.1.1 Production of staple crops ......................................................................................................... 26
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2.1.2 Agricultural Diversification ......................................................................................................... 31
2.1.3 Marketing Systems ..................................................................................................................... 32
2.2 Capacity of partners to address food insecurity and climate threats ..................................... 34
2.3 Affordability and feasibility of an appropriate inputs cost recovery system for the target
groups of the project. ........................................................................................................................... 35
2.4 Options for storage methods and facilities for perishable produce ........................................ 36
2.5 Cultural appropriateness and how best to improve animal-ploughing in the target area ... 36
2.6 How best the project can have effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders,
partners and others to ensure inclusive participation in a Project Steering Committee (PSC) 37
2.7 Project processes actions and deliverables which can potentially exacerbate on the
existing conflict in the project area. ................................................................................................... 38
2.8 Perceived needs and constraints in the target communities .................................................. 38
2.9 Monitoring and Evaluation ............................................................................................................... 40
3.0 Conclusions ........................................................................................................................................ 43
4.0 Recommendations ............................................................................................................................. 46
The Evaluation Consultants ........................................................................................................................ 49
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Executive summary
This document is a presentation of the baseline survey report of the food security thematic
program FSTP funded by the European Union and implemented by a consortium of five NGO
led by ICCO, in two Counties of Western Bahr-el-Ghazal, in South Sudan—Jur River and Wau
Counties. The survey was conducted in by months of August and September 2012, by a team of
external consultants and staff of the partner organizations. The purpose of the survey was to
assess the initial value of indicators at the beginning of interventions aimed at changing
characteristics of individuals and systems. The 36 month project that was approved to start
beginning 1 April 2012 but was delayed by three months, seeks to reduce the incidence of
general and acute malnutrition among rural households in Western Bahr el Ghazal. In this
regard the first planting season was missed. The Project results focus on increased production
of mainly staple crops through the application and continued availability of improved seeds as
well as better use of the traditional seeds. In addition, the project will also focus on the
diversification of household diets by improving the access to micro-nutrients (kitchen gardens,
fruit, poultry, etc.) and by increasing awareness on nutritional topics among the target group.
Key findings Production of staple crops The baseline survey confirmed the need for the project interventions as spelt out in the project
document. Rural poor and vulnerable target populations are unable to produce sufficient
quantities to meet their nutritional needs. While the average land holding is 4 fedans, only an
average of 2.4 is normally cultivated per household. The main reasons for non-cultivation of
land are lack of tools; lack of labor, and lack of seeds.
The constraints and root causes are linked to poor, ineffective and unsustainable farming
practices and focus on monoculture. Specific problem areas in this respect are: 1) insufficient
technical know-how, poor access to improved technologies (only 12% of the farmers use
improved seeds and planting materials for most of the staple foods) 2) poor access to resources
such as land, quality agricultural inputs, business development services (BDS) and financial
sources, and 3) insufficient organization of farmers, all resulting in low productivity and
production. These constraints are further exacerbated by dependency on climate (rain-fed
agriculture) and vulnerability to natural hazards such as frequent drought or erratic rainfalls
linked to climate change that result in water logging and/or floods. According to the survey
findings, only 2% of the farmers owned a plough; 67% owned a hoe; 5.7% owned a cultivator;
20% owned a rake; 3% owned a wheel barrow; 3% owned a shovel; 9% owned a pick axe; 48%
owned an axe; 3% owned a cart.
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Only 15.7% of the households had a vegetable garden. Of those who have a vegetable garden,
76.7% said they own it while 19% said it belonged to the community. In terms of access to
water, only 11.5% had access to water. Of those who had access, only 40% had access to
perennial water source and 53% had it within 0.5 km.
Most households were severely food insecure, 83.7% had no food in stock in the past one
month before the survey; 82% slept hungry; and 80% spent a whole day without food. Only
20.3% reported that they rarely had times when there was no food to be eaten; 21.2% reported
they slept hungry rarely; and 25.4% reported they went the whole day and night without food
rarely. Up to 72% of the households reported they had stock of food that could not last for more
than a fortnight; and only 5% had stock that could last for more than 4 months. The average
number of months where there was not enough food (hunger gap) is 3.
Agricultural diversification
Because of smallholders’ focus on staple crops as the main food component, the diet is not
diversified. There is limited knowledge on and awareness of nutrition and sanitation, resulting in
malnutrition and other health-related problems. Over 72% of the farmers had no access to fruit
trees like mangoes, oranges, lemon, pawpaw and guava. According to the findings of the
survey, the food items/groups that household members had eaten the day before the survey (in
the last 24 hours) during the day and night was analyzed to determine the dietary diversity.
Only 27% of the households were able to diversify their foods. Agriculture is still the main
source of livelihood for 51% of the respondents. Only 5.7% earned their incomes from livestock,
10% from trading, 6% from casual labor in agriculture; 4% from other casual labor and 14%
from civil service/other employment. It was however learnt that crop farming communities had a
system of keeping their livestock with cattle keeping communities outside the state. The
average weekly household income is 70 SSP. Over 65% reported that their income had
declined over the past month before the survey; while only 8% reported an increase. Food takes
55% of the household income. By the time of the survey, 35% of the respondents were in debt.
The nature of the debt varied with 72% being cash and 91% being in form of sorghum that was
borrowed.
Marketing Systems Farmers normally sell their produce in the local market centers along the major roads that are at the payam headquarters. Given the vastness of the payams and the numerous villages, coupled with lack of transport means, most farmers carry their produce on their heads and walk the long distance to the market. It is common to see many farmers first having to sit down and rest before spreading their goods on the road side. There is no organized market place in the rural payams. Months of maximum trade are January to April. Months of minimum trade are August to December.
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Main conclusions Food security Nearly all targeted households (84%) are vulnerable in terms of food security and nutrition. Implication of this is that beneficiary selection should not be based on food insecurity, so other criteria should be used. In addition, the project interventions should initially aim at improving household food security and nutrition. At this stage, value addition is not necessary as households are still struggling with food security. Most households rely on sorghum as the staple food, so there is need to promote production of roots and tubers as they have more potential in terms of production per unit area and are important elements of ensuring food security. The use of hybrid seed is very low. Therefore the introduction of hybrid seed should not be a priority for improving food security and nutrition. The average acreage cultivated per household in very low (fedans). The use of ox ploughs is limited in most communities as most people are using hand held tools and implements. Since the project wants to increase the acreage per household, it is important to promote the use of draught animal power. Although the project plans to promote rearing of chicken, there is a challenge of limited access to veterinary services and drugs, which can affect the chicken flocks, especially with the deadly and quick spreading New Castle Disease (NCD). The promotion of kitchen gardens could start with urban areas where there are smaller plots and easy access to markets and better purchasing power. The growing of traditional vegetables should be encouraged in the rural areas, for improvement of diets. Recovery The input recovery should focus on seeds (in kind), through farmer groups. The recovery of cost of ox ploughs is not viable, considering the need for ensuring food security, rather than marketing of food crops. However, an MOU can be signed with the groups, so that recovery can be spread over a longer period. The sharing of ox- ploughs should take into consideration the need for clearing the land in time for timely planting, given the erratic nature of the rains. In this regard, the number of households sharing one plough should not be too big, at least 5 household per one plough and ox. Given that the average number of people per household who can work is 3, the labor implications for land opened up by ox ploughing, is limiting to the promotion of draught animal power. If more land is opened up, there will be labor crisis regarding planting, weeding and harvesting and post- harvest handling, especially for women, activities which will not be mechanized. It is the view of the consultants that the use of ox- cultivation should be selectively done with households that have adequate labor to carry out the post land preparation activities. This should be one of the selection criteria for beneficiary households in Kangi payam.
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Food storage options The current production of perishable products does not warrant an intervention into storage methods and facilities. Even after the project interventions, it is unlikely that households will have excess perishable products that may require storage, considering the high need for diet diversity at household level. However, there is need to introduce simple storage methods of vegetables like blanching and drying for household use during the dry season. This is important for dietary diversity. In addition, for petty traders in marketing centers selling some vegetables and fruits, provision could be made for them to use simple ways of storage for foods that are not sold the same day, given the low purchasing power in the community. Cultural appropriateness of animal ploughing The use of animal ploughing does not contradict the cultural beliefs and practices among
communities in the project area. Therefore introduction of ox ploughing is a welcome
intervention. However, there will be a need for monitoring of the animals so that the oxen do not
get eaten, as some may have the attitude that “who is thinking of working if we can eat meat for
free”.
Effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders At the moment, there are no terms of reference for the Project Steering Committee (PSC) and also no agreement has been reached on who should be on the PSC. Given that the project was approved in April 2012, it is not good practice to have it running for four months without this committee to provide guidance. As a result, some partners had already started activities without proper guidance, e.g. selection of beneficiaries without an agreed selection criteria. Given the diversity of stakeholders, ensuring effective and inclusive participation will remain a challenge to the project. One of the key stakeholders is the state government. Currently, the state government faces challenges of availability of qualified human resource, especially at the payam level. The second key category of stakeholders is the project local partners at the operational level. They also face similar challenges of inadequate skilled personnel. As of now, no capacity needs assessment of the partners has been undertaken. It should be noted that the project document stated that capacity building should be done in the inception phase, which is nearly ending at the end of September 2012. This activity should therefore be fast tracked to identify capacity gaps for preparation of capacity building plans. The international partners (ICCO and DORCAS) are currently seen as the “big brothers” who call the shots and make the final decision. There is therefore need for a change of attitude among the local and international partners, to foster equality in decision making. Even the smaller ones need to understand that they cannot survive without the two bigger brothers that simply have more capacity in dealing with EU than the smaller ones. Of course it is the WAY how you present yourself. ICCO and DORCAS need to be aware of that. They needed each other and ONLY together they can make a difference! The third category of stakeholders is the project beneficiaries. While it is a good idea to have beneficiaries directly involved in project management, most are not yet organized into viable groups and are also illiterate, limiting their potential contribution to the PSC.
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Potential for escalating existing conflicts in the project area The survey established that the current conflict is not something to worry about concerning implementation of this project. The planned activities therefore have limited potential to escalate this conflict, if any. It is however recommended that a risk analysis should be part of the annual project review, considering the fluid unpredictable nature of conflicts. Perceived needs and constraints of the target community The project document has correctly identified the needs and constraints of the target community concerning food security and livelihoods. However, there are other needs beyond food security that communities are concerned about, which require an integrated approach and building of synergies with other development partners. These include access to health, education, clean water and infrastructure.
Recommendations
Improving food security
Recommendations for the project implementers
The project should focus on providing inputs like seed for staple crops in rural areas and
vegetables in the peri- urban areas, as well as hand held tools. The beneficiaries requested
that tools should be provided by the end of September 2012 to enable them to clear the land in
time for the May – June rains of 2013. The seeds for staple crops should be provided by April
2013 for timely planting in the May- June rains. Vegetable seeds should be provided by end of
September for the planting season of October 2012.
Selection of beneficiaries should be based on the agreed beneficiary selection criteria
Farmers should be organized and trained before receiving inputs.
Mechanisms should be set up for regular food security surveillance, using the baseline survey
household questionnaire, to collect data for the log- frame indicators.
Recommendations for the state government
As a matter of urgency, the WBG state government should put in place extension workers in the
rural payams of Kangi and Gete as their contribution to this project.
The state government should improve market infrastructure in the payams, so that farmers can
sell food in a hygienic environment.
The state government should, as a matter of priority, target rural payams where this project is to
be implemented, for faster land mine clearance, to enable farmers to open more land.
Input cost recovery
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The project should initially focus on the recovery of seeds. Recovery of the cost of the ox
ploughs should be spread over a longer period of time, as the livelihoods of farmers are still
precarious. In the meantime, the project should set up a system for recovering these costs in
the third year of the project and beyond, after analyzing surveillance reports on the status of
household food security.
Options for storage methods and facilities of perishable produce
For project implementers
For household food security, simple techniques of food preservation and storage should be
introduced, e.g. blanching and drying of leafy vegetables.
For market oriented households, appropriate storage technologies should be promoted for
produce that is not sold on the same day. In this regard, the project should work with the
CUoSSFAES to research on traditional ways of food storage e.g. the use of pots.
For the state government
As part of the improvement of the market infrastructure, the state government should work in
partnership with local market vendors to construct lockable stalls for storage of perishable
goods, to reduce on burden of carrying them to and from markets.
In addition, regular grading of roads would go a long way in easing access to markets,
especially the Aweil – Wau road which passes through Kangi and Gete payams. Currently
transport by road from Kangi to Wau takes 2 hours, instead of the 20 – 30 minutes.
Cultural appropriateness and best way to improve animal ploughing
For project implementers
Since animal ploughing is culturally appropriate in the project area, the project should go ahead
and its use in the targeted payams. The project should first identify farmers who have interest
and trained oxen.
The lessons learnt from OXFAM Intermon are critical and implementer should carefully consider
them before purchasing the ploughs.
For the state government
The WBG state government should ensure that the farmers supported with ox ploughs are able
to access veterinary care for the trained oxen.
Effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders
As a matter of urgency, the project should develop the mandate and inaugurate the PSC to
guide project stakeholders.
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A stakeholders’ meeting should be held to determine the composition of the members of the
PSC and define the parameters for its operation.
Conflict escalation
Although there is no risk of conflict escalation, the project should carry out annual risk analysis
in the target areas, in partnership with the state and development partners and also address the
issue of grazing of animals from Dinka land in the Luo land especially when the Luo are about to
harvest the crops.
Perceived needs
While food security is an urgent need, it is recommended that an integrated approach be
adopted to address other pressing needs in the areas of education, health, water, sanitation and
hygiene which are important for proper nutrition and improving livelihoods. The WBG should
therefore coordinate the activities of all development partners in the state to address these
perceived community needs.
Non- conflict related aspects informing choice of interventions
The effects of climate change on farming activities need to be addressed, focusing on soil and
water conservation, as well as controlling flooding of crop fields.
Considering the livestock population in the target communities, there is need to promote use of
compost manure for improving soil fertility and crop productivity.
The project needs to determine the role of local leader in project implementation, beyond
community mobilization, for purposes of the sustainability of project interventions and impacts.
The project needs to adopt a household based approach where the roles of men, women and
youth in production and marketing are emphasized for improved household food security and
livelihoods. Emphasis should be on sharing resources, benefits and decision making.
The project should look at promoting non- agricultural livelihoods for the youth who were
observed to be shunning agriculture.
The sale of canned beer of high alcohol content of above 14% should be addressed to reduce
incidences of domestic violence and drunkenness among the youth.
Monitoring and evaluation
The current log- frame indicators need to be revised to complete setting of targets for all
indicators.
All implementing partners should prepare their own log frames and M&E plans that mirror the
project log frame.
The qualitative indicators will require a score card as a tool for data collection
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A comprehensive monitoring and evaluation training should be carried out among project
implementers and government extension workers.
Data collection tools for participatory monitoring should be developed before the project goes
too deep into activity implementation.
Capacity for project implementation and management
A capacity needs assessment of partner staff and organizations should be undertaken and a
capacity building plan developed before the end of November 2012.
The rest of the document is organized as follows. Section one provides the background to the
baseline survey—the purpose and objectives and the methodology used, as well as a
description of the intervention for which the baseline was taken. The political and economic and
social context is also described in this section. The findings are presented in section two and the
conclusions and recommendations in sections three and four respectively. Because of its
volume, the annex is presented as a separate file although in the bound copy it is included at
the end of the report.
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1.0 Background
1.1 Purpose and objectives of the Baseline survey
The baseline study was meant to assess the initial value of indicators at the beginning of
interventions aimed at changing characteristics of individuals and systems. First, the survey was
to establish baseline values of intended outcomes (based on the log frame) against which future
measurements would be made of changes in behavior, systemic capacity and impact on the
conditions of the households and individuals. Secondly, the study was meant to gather accurate
data and analyze information that would assist project staff in designing or modifying
appropriate interventions and to generate information for further refining the project log frame
and M&E plan. The third reason for the baseline survey was to validate the needs and priorities
of communities and institutions identified in the project document. Lastly, the survey was an
opportunity to train staff and partners with methods associated with conducting baseline,
subsequent monitoring and evaluation and other studies. In this regard, the following activities
were carried out.
1. Measuring food insecurity at the project location through use of questionnaires (HFIAS
and DDS), FGDs and key informant interviews.
2. A survey on affordability and feasibility of an appropriate inputs cost recovery system for
the target group was part of the baseline exercise.
3. Training, in methodology and techniques of data collection and interviewing of Partners
staff in addition to field exposure of 2nd and 3rd year university students of CUoSSFAES
was done. The training was conducted by the two external consultants hired by ICCO.
The baseline survey was a major exercise which involved preparation and (logistics)
organization.
4. Explored options for storage methods and facilities for perishable produce, possibly
resulting in a pilot project.
5. Assessed cultural appropriateness and how best to improve animal-ploughing in the
target area.
6. Consulted/ Explored how best to have effective and inclusive participation of
stakeholders, partners and others to ensure inclusive participation in a Project Steering
Committee (PSC).
7. Established project deliverables which would exacerbate on the existing conflict in the
area and proposed alternatives.
8. Identified perceived needs and constraints in the target communities
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9. Reviewed the other non-conflict related aspects informing choice of interventions and
project design and the factors that are expected to change and how to address and/or
mitigate them.
10. Identified any other missing data and/or information that would be needed to execute the
intervention and complete the baseline document.
1.2 Specific research questions
What is the current food insecurity situation at the project location?
How affordable and feasible is the planned inputs recovery system for the target groups
of the project?
What options exist for storage methods and facilities for perishable produce?
How culturally appropriate is the animal ploughing in the target area and how best can it
be improved?
How best can the project have an effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders,
partners and others to ensure inclusive participation in the Project Steering Committee?
What processes, actions and deliverables have the potential to exacerbate the existing
conflicts in the project area so that alternative interventions can be planned?
What are the perceived needs and constraints of the target community?
1.3 Steps taken to conduct the baseline survey
1. Study planning and design was done by ICCO, partners and state local government at
state level WBGS
2. Qualitative research was done to obtain input from participants on issues, questions to
be asked and categories of anticipated replies
3. Quantitative research was done by defining the needs for quantitative data, deigning
draft questionnaire, coding and editing questionnaire, pre-testing and reviewing draft
questionnaire, finalizing questionnaire and preparing a draft tabulation plan.
4. Sampling was done by mapping the study population and compiling the sampling frame,
designing sample and deciding on sample size and selecting the sample.
5. Training and field work involved selecting and training interviewers, conducting field data
collection, supervising field work and checking and filing questionnaires.
6. During data processing, all questionnaires were checked before data was transferred to
computer. Data cleaning was done and the computerized data was edited.
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7. Data analysis involved producing tables based on tabulation plan, preparing charts and
graphs, studying the tables and drawing conclusions from findings. It was then that the
draft and final reports were prepared.
8. The next step will be to disseminate the findings. ICCO will print and distribute the report
to targeted audiences, organize a workshop and discuss with the consortium partners,
beneficiaries, donors and other stakeholders to communicate findings, get involvement
in determining follow-up action plans; and prepare action plans to carry out
recommendations.
1.4 Brief description of the intervention for which baseline was under taken
Overview of Program/project
The 36 month project that was approved beginning 1 April 2012 but commenced three months
later, seeks to reduce the incidence of general and acute malnutrition among rural households
in Western Bahr el Ghazal.
In line of the above, the following two interlinked specific objectives have been formulated:
Specific Objective 1: To improve the food security and nutrition of particularly disadvantaged
and marginalised people in Western Bahr el Ghazal.
Specific Objective 2: Strengthened local institutions to better address food insecurity and
climate threats.
Concrete expected results of the intervention, leading to the achievement of these objectives
are: increased production and diversification of agricultural production, increased awareness on
nutrition issues, an improved and accessible marketing system and increased food access for
vulnerable IDPs and returnees.
A multifaceted approach will be applied and incorporates building capacities of partners,
counterparts and stakeholders and the creation of a demand-driven service delivery to farmers
prioritising community ownership while reinforcing and working through existing structures. It
incorporates also a rights-based approach (claim-making capabilities of target groups) to food
security.
The project aims to collaborate closely with the government and other development actors
within the context of the WBS Strategic Plan, which is currently in the making.
Food insecurity among vulnerable populations exists as a result of physical unavailability of
food, lack of social/ economic access to adequate food and inadequate food utilisation. There is
limited choice available in Wau and surroundings but in general enough food is being imported
from Uganda and Kenya. Food insecure target groups are not able to meet their dietary needs
and food preferences for a healthy and active life. Household food security is the application of
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the food security concept at family level with individuals within households as the focus of
concern. Household food security has three cornerstones: sufficient availability of food,
adequate access to food and proper utilization of food. Within this concept, the specific role of
women is of utmost importance since they play a crucial role in agricultural production and in the
composition of a nutritious diet for household members; besides, women and girls have specific
food needs, especially during pregnancy and breast feeding.
Results focus on increased production of mainly staple crops through the application and
continued availability of improved seeds as well as better use of the traditional seeds. In
addition, the project will also focus on the diversification of household diets by improving the
access to micro-nutrients (kitchen gardens, fruit, poultry, etc.) and by increasing awareness on
nutritional topics among the target group.
Strengthening local and resilient food systems is central to a strategy of direct poverty
alleviation. ICCO will do this by working in a multi-stakeholder context of civil society
strengthening and capacity building of government counterparts, while at the same time
contributing to an environment where the voice of target groups is heard by policy makers
(avenues for empowerment). As such, the Catholic University of South Sudan, Faculty of
Agriculture and Environmental Science (CUofSSFAES) in Wau will play an essential role as a
research institute supporting demand-driven research questions with active exposure of its
students to extension work. Besides it will enhance their role as advisors to local communities
as well as future policy makers in the agricultural sector. Following ICCO’s holistic development
approach, the project will take into account the whole value chain and focus also on the
availability of reliable and updated market information in order to improve market access for the
target group. Especially since the project focuses on women as a target group, it will take into
account the specific role of women in the project as well as in the household food security
situation.
The project is consistent with the ICCO Alliance strategy plan 2011-2015 for Central and East
Africa, with regards to Food and Nutrition Security (FNS). ICCO believes that the following
issues need special attention: Insufficient availability of nutritious food; Limited access to
(nutritious) food; inadequate nutritional outcomes and Poor public policy management
processes
ICCO envisions that communities in the target areas, including children, youth, men, women, PWD, PLWHA and aged, have access to adequate, safe and nutritious food in sufficient quantity to satisfy their nutritional needs FNS Envisioned impact, outcomes and strategies. The project will contribute to the following outcomes of the CEA strategy:
Outcome 1: Improved availability of nutritious food for the poor and vulnerable households
Outcome 2: Improved access to nutritious food for the poor and vulnerable households
Outcome 3: Enhanced nutritional outcomes for the poor and vulnerable households
Outcome 4: Improved enabling environment to ensure the right to food
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1.5 Socio-Economic and Political Context
Local leaders are key in making decisions about the affairs of the payam. This includes both the
traditional and government leaders.
1.5.1 Western Bar-el-Ghazal State
The Western Bahr el Ghazal state (WBGS) lies in the western zone of Southern Sudan in a
region, which formerly comprised of four states of Warrap, Lakes, Northern Bahr el Ghazal and
Western Bahr el Ghazal. It has an area of 93,900 km² and its capital is Wau town. It is bordered
by Warrap State to the east, Northern Bahr Ghazal and Southern Darfur to the north, Central
Africa Republic to the west and Western Equatoria State to the south. The state is divided into
three counties; Wau, Raga and Jur River Counties. The Counties are further divided into
payams and each payam is divided into bomas. Western Bahr el Ghazal state is administered
or governed by a state governor. A County is administered by a county commissioner and a
payam is controlled by a payam administrator whereas bomas are presided over by executive
chiefs or hereditary chiefs who are assisted by the goalers or heads of clans. It is a multi-ethnic,
multicultural, multi-lingual, and multi-religious state founded on justice, equality and respect for
human dignity and advancement of human right and fundamental freedoms.
1.5.2 Bio-Physical Environnent
WBGS comprises all lands and areas that were under the administration of the former district of Wau of the former Bahr el Ghazal province that now constitute Western Bahr El Ghazal State, as their boundaries stood on January 1, 1956. WBG State is hilly with several rivers and perennial streams draining from the Nile-Congo watershed and other sources. The most prominent is the Bahr el Ghazal River, which drains to the Nile River. Its climate is tropical and is characterized by an average annual rainfall of 1,000 mm resulting in high humidity during the six months heavy rains ( May- October ) and temperatures 18-40 degree Celsius.. It ranges from arid to tropical wet-and-dry in the far southwest. Temperatures do vary with the season.
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The rainfall also varies according to the length of the predominant air flows; the dry northeasterly winds from the Arabian Peninsula and the southwesterly winds from the Congo River basin. From November to April, the state has a dry season influenced by the dry north-easterlies. Vegetation is thick forest to wooded grassland. Subsistence shifting agriculture and pastoralism are the major sources of the livelihood for the majority of the people. Main crops are sorghum, maize, cassava, groundnuts, and simsim. People also keep few goats, sheep, and cattle. One of the major sources of income for the State was Wau Agro - Industry Plant, but the plant had been totally destroyed in war time. WBGS has both sandy, clay and laterite soils. They underlie the extensive moist woodlands. Crop production is scattered, and the soils, where cultivated, lose fertility relatively quickly under the common shifting cultivation practice.
1.5.3 Political Environment
Western Bahr el Ghazal State government was formed along with the other nine States in the latter half of 2005. The State was carved from the greater Bahr el Ghazal region, which consisted of the current Lakes, Warrap and Northern Bahr el Ghazal states. It has three counties (Wau, Raja and Jur River) and 60 bomas. The civil war period in the 1990s and the need to protect the Wau-Khartoum rail led to bitter fighting between the Government of Sudan (GoS) and allied forces including the Mara heel on the one side and the SPLM/A on the other. This witnessed mass population displacement into IDP camps in west and north Sudan in the 1990s. In the process children and women were abducted into slavery, livestock and food was looted and assets belonging to villages along the railway line were destroyed. These events, compounded by drought generated huge IDP populations. Following a return of peace, many displaced are voluntarily returning necessitating the need to provide material and social services (particularly water).
1.5.4 Population and Livelihood
WBG state is in a moderate to densely populated region. It is inhabited by 19 ethnic groups and
clans: Keresh, Yulu, Foroge, Banda, Binga Kara, Balanda, Indri, Biogo, Azande, Golo,
Mangayat, Bai, Bongo, Shere, Ndogo, the Luo (Udici and Kuajiena areas) and the Dinka (Marial
Wau area). The Joluo who are part of Luo tribe are mostly found in Wau county, Wau North,
Alelthony, Barwoul, Gaite Bar urood Udici, Kangi, Baryar,Dhe-kou, Wau South, Pambili, Kuar-
jieno, Waadlyiela, Aya, Mapel and Rocrocdong payams to the north respectively. Meanwhile
the Jo Luo Bori ethnic group, or Pa-Bor who are actually part of the larger Luo Ethnic group of
Western Bahr el Ghazal are found in Wau east in villages of RaffiI, Tirga, Bazia, Ayo, Gitten and
Taban while JoluoThuri who are also part of Luo tribe are mostly found in Wau West in Raja and
Deim Zubeir and other remotes areas respectively.
Balanda tribe occupy most of the Wau, Bussere, Deim Zubeir, Bazia and Raja County
respectively. Zande who are commonly found in Wau West, Bazia, Raja, Kalim, Getan Duniaka
respectively.
19
Mboro who are leading a nomadic way are mostly found in Wau West Bussere, Bazia, Raja,
Duniaka, Deim Zubeir. The Baai who are related to Balanda bviri are settled in Wau east, Rafili,
Bazia ,Sopo, Kitongo, Raja and other places to the west. Gollo are found in Wau west, Deim
zubeir, Raja and other remote areas in Western Bahr el Ghazal state. The Bongo people are
along the main road from Wau to Raja and others in nearby villages. The Dinka who are mostly
cattle keepers are found in Wau, Marialbai, Tharqueng, Marialajieth and other remote villages.
The Sudanic (Fertit) occupy the western part of Western Bahr el Ghazal state.
The exact population of WBG is not known as the insecurity has displaced the citizens internally and to the neighboring countries. However, the population in the accessible areas is estimated at about 400,000. This is expected to increase to over 500,000 after returnees. It is an area of swamps and ironstone plateaus, where livelihood is subsistence farming and cattle herding. It is subjected to frequent raids by Arab nomads from Darfur. The annual livelihood activity calendar is shown in Table 1. A substantial, but decreasing fraction of population is internally displaced or are refugees in neighboring countries. Table 1: Livelihood Calendar
Farm activity
Jan Feb Mar Apr May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Male/ female
Land clearing
M/F
Planting M/F
Weeding M/F
Harvesting M/F
Threshing and storage
F
Sales of grain
1
M/F
Purchase of grain
M/F
Sale of livestock
M
Purchase of livestock
M
Fishing
M
Collection of wild Foods
F
Hunting (honey)
M
Movement to lowlands (toic) for fishing
M
Movement to highlands from fishing
M
Source: WBGS Strategic Plan
1 Purchases and sales are separated because in many cases they are done either by the males or females
20
1.5.5 Governance System
The CPA outlines the broad vision for a federal and decentralized reform to governance and creation of new institutions in southern Sudan. The 10 states of southern Sudan are autonomous units of governance and have their own constitution. Counties are the second tier of governance in each state. Payams and Bomas are administrative units within counties. Western Bahr el Ghazal state is divided into three counties; Wau, Raga and Jur River Counties. It is a multiethnic, multi-cultural, multi-lingual, and multi-religious state founded on justice, equality and respect for human dignity and advancement of human right and fundamental freedoms. This governance system needs a significant capacity building at all levels of government to allow for effective decentralization and equitable resource allocation. The state has governor, deputy governor and eight appointed cabinet ministers. There are also appointed advisors to the state government. The offices of the governor and the ministries have yet to develop functional administrative and management units with professional staff Source of legislation in the State are the state constitution, customs and values of the people, popular consensus, Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan, Interim National Constitution and other sources that conform to morality and public order. The signing of the CPA on 9th January 2005 in Naivasha, Kenya, the installation of the Government of National Unity (GONU) in Khartoum, the formation of the Government of the Southern Sudan in Juba (GOSS) and the adoption of the Interim Constitution of the Southern Sudan (ICSS) in 2005, have paved a way for the introduction and adoption of a decentralized system of governance in Southern Sudan with the following levels;
The Government of the Republic of South Sudan (RoSS), which exercises authority in respect of the people and states in Southern Sudan.
The State level of Government, which exercises authority within the state and render public service through the level closest to the people.
The Local Government level within the state is the closest level to the people and consists of County, Payam and Boma in rural areas and City, Municipal and Town Council in the urban areas. All indigenous languages of the state are national languages. However, English and Arabic are the official languages at all levels of the government of the state. The Governance in the State promotes democratic principles and political pluralism, and is guided by the principles of decentralization and devolution of power to the people.
1.5.6 State Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Irrigation (SMoAF&I)
Agriculture Agricultural food production is an important preoccupation of the population and the State. Land is still a communal asset and agricultural production is largely subsistence although good surplus production is available for sale. Besides, the government is embarking on the development of State farms through extensive mechanized farming. The Ministry has four sub sectors; agriculture, forestry, livestock development and fisheries. Issues and challenges as stated in the State strategic plan
Inadequate capacity
Inadequate production inputs (drugs, seeds, tools, equipment).
21
Inaccessibility to agricultural land
High incidence of pests and diseases
Natural disasters (floods and droughts)
Deforestation
Lack of coordination among the partners
Poor marketing system Priority needs as per the state strategic plan
Increase food production through agricultural inputs (tools and seeds)
Increase in fishing inputs and livestock vaccination
Encourage communities to participate in own contribution to households food economy.
Land mines clearance so as to increase access to land and pasture in rural areas.
Introducing paddle grassing system so as to avoid animals destroying farms. Or else the
government should come up with policies the pastoralists have to stay far until farmers
finish their harvesting
1.5.7 The FSTP Target group
The main target groups of the proposed intervention live in areas within the Ironstone plateau
livelihood zone. Of the two counties targeted agriculture is the main livelihood in Wau County,
while agro-pastoralism is mainly practiced in Jur River County.
Although the rural communities in Wau County are predominantly sedentary farmers, the urban
populations in Wau town and its suburbs have a sizeable number of returnees and IDPs.
Western Bahr el Ghazal State ranks 3rd highest in terms of number of returnees from Sudan
(17,000) and it are estimated that about 4% of the households in the state host either IDPs or
returnees. Returnees have had to make drastic livelihoods changes for food and income
sources while IDPs mainly depend on limited quantities of food aid, some of which they sell to
earn a small income. Both groups are highly vulnerable with many of them involved in petty
businesses, menial jobs and daily labor activities to earn meager incomes for survival.
In Jur River County, in addition to crop farming, the communities also own some livestock, of
which most of the cattle are kept with neighboring Dinka tribes. As the county with the least
developed agricultural production in WBS, the communities normally supplement their
household food and income during the lean/hunger gap period with income from livestock trade.
Grains are either obtained with money earned from selling livestock or by direct exchange of
livestock (especially goats) for grains. Therefore, livestock-grains term of trade is an important
economic factor in this area.
22
Cultural activities are highly valued among the Luo of Jur County. People can spend a whole afternoon
and night dancing with their traditional regalia. Even the disabled can participate.
1.6 Explanation and justification of the methods used, scope and limitations of
the Baseline survey
The Baseline survey included site visits to consult with the relevant field personnel and project
stakeholders, and to collect information in accordance with the requirements stipulated in the
Baseline survey work plan. This mission took two weeks in duration. All relevant field personnel
were briefed on arrival and before departure from the field.
Two day training was conducted for 20 research assistants. The data collectors were drawn
from partner staff and second and third year students from Catholic University of South Sudan,
Faculty of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences in Wau. All the data collectors were awarded
a certificate of participation at the end of the exercise as an indicator that they acquired the
skills.
1.6.1 Sampling
Since there was no detailed beneficiaries list at the time of the survey, and the population is
scattered and vulnerability level of targeted beneficiaries is heterogeneous, the consultant used
two stage clusters sampling in the two counties and four payams where the project is planned to
cover. Seven villages (bomas) were purposively selected from the four payams and then 40-45
households were randomly sampled from a list of households in each boma. In this case a
minimum sample size for <= 1,500 was 300. Since there were more people in Wau County, a
total of 180 households were sampled based on the proportion of population and a total of 120
households were also sampled from Jur River County based on the proportion of the population.
23
Table 2: Sampled households
County Payams Bomas Partners Status of
Community
Number of HH
sampled
Wau County (Urban
and peri-urban)
Wau North Bilpham DORCAS IDPs 45
Agok DORCAS People living
with Leprosy
45
Aweil Jedid ECS/CARD Returnees 45
Wau South Masna ECS/CARD Residents 45
Total 180
Jur River County
(Rural)
Gete-Udichi Gete DORCAS Residents 40
Kangi Kangi CAD &ECS/CARD Residents 40
Zagalona/Alelchok DORCAS IDPs/returnees 40
Total 4 7 120
1.6.2 Field work
1 Administering questionnaires
Two teams of 20 research assistants were deployed in the two counties to collect household
data from sampled households for results 1, 2 and 3. Each team was supervised by one of the
two consultants. The household food insecurity access scale (HFIAS) and household dietary
diversity score (DDS) questionnaires was adapted through a review process by the informants,
who were familiar with the conditions and experiences of household food insecurity (access) in
the areas where the survey was conducted. These included partner staff, government officials,
prominent community members, academics, and other knowledgeable individuals. The
questionnaires were then pre-tested on 20 individuals that were representative of survey
population but not part of the survey sample. Care was taken to standardize local units of
measurements for various commodities and items during the pretesting of the questionnaire. In
addition to the HFIAS and DDS questionnaires, a separate set of questions was prepared to
capture information on the indicators in the project log frame at objective and result levels.
The exercise took place just around the lean period or so called hunger gap—a perfect timing to
establish vulnerabilities related to food availability and access, as this is the time (June-August)
when most people have used up own food stocks/reserves, have planted but first harvests are
not yet ready and people resort either to coping and/or alternative means e.g. sale of livestock
and household items, etc.
24
2 Key informant interviews
As much as possible key informant interviews in the two counties were conducted by the
consultants using the semi-structured interview guide notes developed during the training.
These included extension workers, farmer group leaders, partners (CAD, ECS-CARD and
DORCAS), local NGOs/CBOs like OXFAM, WOTAP, FAO, local government authorities at
county, payam and boma levels (Executive Directors of Wau and Jur River Counties, two county
agriculture directors, DG state ministry of agriculture, director of planning, state minister of
agriculture, representative in the ministry, Director of SSRRC Wau, and county extension
workers of Jur River and Wau) taking note of gender representations in all these (see annex7
for list of people consulted/interviewed). A trend analysis was conducted to assess the external
operating environment in which ICCO and its partners are working or will be working, how that
environment is changing and the implications on their work.
3 Focus group discussions
The trained researchers conducted FGDs with some selected groups of farmers, marketing
committees, widows/women groups, ex-combatants, the physically challenged, and the jobless,
especially youth, some lead/model farmers, IDPs and returnees in the sampled bomas. This
helped to explore issues in more detail as part of the research on why certain things are
happening or to understand change. Some PRA tools were used to help the communities to
overtly analyze issues and to translate their analysis into a format that the researchers can
understand. These may include calendars, ranking, mapping, etc.
4 Market price survey
The market survey tool was used to collect information on price stability, supply and demand of
goods and services, viability of cash-based interventions and availability and access to food in
the selected four payams areas of Gete-Udici, Kangi, and Wau suburban (south and north). In
relation to food access in these areas the consultants have noted that livestock also plays a role
in incomes and therefore it was important to consider the terms of trade: Livestock to the major
staples like sorghum. The focus was on commodity networks, market linkages and the price
trends in these areas. An attempt was made to look at the market structures, conduct, and
performance of different market tiers at village, Boma, Payam and County levels.
5. Beneficiary selection Criteria
Diagnostic sessions were done on nutrition and market access issues during FGD. Beneficiary
selection will be based on the baseline questionnaire. The selection criteria will be developed
using the results of the baseline questionnaire. This will provide information on various
vulnerability levels/forms, and also it will serve to gauge the interest of potential beneficiaries in
proposed activities. The students/partners will benefit from collection, entry, organization and
analysis of this data to select beneficiaries with guidance from the Consultants.
25
1.7 Analysis of the gathered information/data and presentation of the findings
Data Analysis
Quantitative data from questionnaires was entered into SPSS and processed to generate
frequencies for the variables. Qualitative data was analyzed using qualitative data analysis
techniques.
Draft and final Baseline Survey Report
The Consultant prepared and submitted a draft Baseline survey report for review by ICCO and
partners within (2) weeks of returning from mission and this was in soft copy. Within one (1)
week of receiving comments from ICCO and FSTP partners’ comments on the draft report, the
Consultant revised and submitted Twelve (12) copies in hard copy format of final Baseline
survey report including a Baseline survey abstract/executive summary.
The stakeholders that attended the debriefing session at the end of the field data collection
26
2.0 Findings of the Baseline Survey
2.1 Current status of the four result areas
The FSTP has four results areas:
Result 1: Increased production of staple crops among rural target groups. CAD: Kangi Payam (Ajugo and Kangi bomas). Farmers groups include animal ploughing; (400 HH) ECS/CARD: Gete, Ajugo and Kangi bomas (660 HH) include ox ploughing DORCAS: Gete (330 HH) include ox ploughing Total 1390HHs Result 2: Increased agricultural diversification among target group IDP/returnee 650 HHs;
Resident households 740, Total 1390 HHs in Wau and Jur River ECS/CARD and DORCAS Aid
International
Result 3: Improved marketing system in place in target areas DORCAS-led with partners Result 4: Increased capacity of Wau University, government departments and local NGOs to
address food insecurity and climate threats ICCO-led
Below we discuss the status of each of the four result areas at the time of the baseline survey.
2.1.1 Production of staple crops
The baseline survey confirmed the need for these project interventions as spelt out in the
project document. Rural poor and vulnerable target populations are unable to produce sufficient
quantities to meet their nutritional needs. While the average land holding is 4 fedans, only an
average of 2.4 is normally cultivated per household. The main reasons for non-cultivation of
land are lack of tools; lack of labor, and lack of seeds.
Table 3: Main reason why land is not cultivated Reason Frequency Percent
Lack of labor2 57 30.6
Lack of seeds 48 25.8
Lack of tools to till the land 47 25.3
Lack of rain 12 6.5
Water logged soils 4 2.2
Lack of fertilizer 3 1.6
Fallow land 2 1.1
Others 9 4.8
Total 186 100
2 The people in the household that are able and willing to dig are few in most cases of households.
27
The constraints and root causes are linked to poor, ineffective and unsustainable farming
practices and focus on monoculture. Specific problem areas in this respect are: 1) insufficient
technical know-how, poor access to improved technologies (only 12% of the farmers use
improved seeds and planting materials for most of the staple foods) 2) poor access to resources
such as land, quality agricultural inputs, business development services (BDS) and financial
sources, and 3) insufficient organization of farmers, all resulting in low productivity and
production. These constraints are further exacerbated by dependency on climate (rain-fed
agriculture) and vulnerability to natural hazards such as frequent drought or erratic rainfalls
linked to climate change that result in water logging and/or floods. According to the survey
findings, only 2% of the farmers owned a plough; 67% owned a hoe; 5.7% owned a cultivator;
20% owned a rake; 3% owned a wheel barrow; 3% owned a shovel; 9% owned a pick axe; 48%
owned an axe; 3% owned a cart.
In addition, as a result of inter and intra state conflicts3 essential knowledge about agricultural
practices has disappeared and productive assets were destroyed, severely affecting livelihoods
in the area. Insecurity, strife and poor governance, handicapping effective and inclusive policies,
further add to the problem. Most of the people in the two counties have stayed long in the IDP
camps in the North, and long period of relief hand-outs most likely has affected the culture of
food production in the state.
Target populations lack coping mechanisms such as cereal banks or storage facilities to ensure
food availability in case of shortage. In spite of their key roles in ensuring food security at
household level (sourcing of input, production, marketing, processing, storage, etc.), the space
for participation of women in production and decision-making around food security for the family
is very limited.
Sorghum, groundnut and maize are the most produced crops in the target rural area but
agricultural yields and quality are extremely low and hardly sufficient to feed a household,
especially the poorest and most vulnerable ones. In the season before the survey, the average
household production of maize was 75 kg; sorghum was 106 kg; beans were 24kg; cow peas
were 33 kg and groundnuts was 269 kg. Most farmers use very rudimentary agricultural
techniques and many farmers lack even the most basic agricultural tools such as hoes and
picks. There is a huge lack of knowledge about more efficient production methods, like mixed
cropping, soil-moisture conservation techniques and ox-ploughing4. Besides, households are
focused on their own immediate needs and don’t produce for the external market. The cultivated
areas are therefore limited and there is no substantial surplus in the target areas. The farmers
are subsequently very vulnerable to external shocks. In case of unpredicted adverse weather
conditions, which increasingly occurred during the last years, their cultivated area will not be
sufficient to even feed their own households during the hunger period in which case they have
to resort to sell off part of their livestock to overcome this period. Formerly the local varieties of
sorghum (major staple food) were well adapted to the environment but nowadays the long
3 Part of these conflicts emerges due to returnees that have difficulty in claiming (back) their original land.
4 Many people are returnees or IDPs who are not familiar with the production of local crop varieties. Many were not even
farmers before they came to this area.
28
variety often produces less than usual or even fails completely due to prolonged dry spells in the
rainy season.
Only 15.7% of the households had a vegetable garden. Of those who have a vegetable garden,
76.7% said they own it while 19% said it belonged to the community. In terms of access to
water, only 11.5% had access to water. Of those who had access, only 40% had access to
perennial water source and 53% had it within 0.5 km.
Table 4: Production of non- staple food crops by household
Food crop Percent of HH producing the crop Average household production in previous season
Tomatoes(Kg) 77.3 143.6
Carrots (Kgs) 0 0
Cucumber (Kgs) 33.3 20
Onion/Shallot(Kgs) 42.9 30
Cowpeas (Kg) 71.4 10.4
Ground nuts (Kg) 97.9 202.7
Okra (Kg) 98.2 51.4
Irish Potato(Kg) 0 0
Sweet potato(Kg) 33.3 0
Pumpkins/squash(Heads) 98.1 42.8
Rape (Bundles) 0 0
Peas(Kg) 20 0
Beans(Kg) 87.9 15.6
Spinach (bundles) 0 0
Butternut (Kg) 20 0
Pawpaw (Kg) 42.9 2
Banana (Kg) 20 15
Cassava (Kg) 42.9 25
Avocado (Kg) 0 0
Orange/Lemon (Kg) 50 38
Source: Baseline Survey 2012
29
The rains started satisfactorily in May and continued intermittently even during the survey
period. Rainfall from August onwards was generally good to very good, and best in the west.
There was, however, considerable local variation in rainfall distribution.
Sorghum varieties in WBGS are mostly tall and of long maturation (up to >200 days). Crops that
were well established during the first rains should give a reasonable harvest in December and
January. Later plantings from late July and early August will probably also give good returns if
the rain continues.
Cassava is most plentiful in the west, both bitter (up to 3 years maturation) and sweet (about
one-year maturation) varieties are grown, mostly in mixtures to give continuity of production.
Production this year is as usual. Constraints include shortage of planting material and
ubiquitous infection with cassava mosaic. Groundnut production is satisfactory this year,
especially on lighter soils, no significant disease problems were reported. There are also several
small household patches of Bambara nut which are doing very well in Gete-Udici Payam.
Sesame production is variable. Crops sown in May at the beginning of the rains were being
harvested at the time of the survey, while those sown later at the end of July and the beginning
of August are expected to give a good harvest as well. Sorghum is affected by stem-borer, but
levels are similar to those of other years. Smut is present at low levels. Striga is very common,
especially in Raja and was observed in Wau County during this survey. Most cassava is
infected with cassava mosaic; it appears to be especially serious in Raja, where the crop is
most plentiful.
FAO provided seed and hand-tools for distribution to farmers through Peace Corps in 2011.
Intermon Oxfam has also been active, with EU finance, in providing seeds (cereals, vegetables
and cassava planting material), tools, fishing gear, goats, ox ploughs and bee-keeping
equipment in Wau County. In addition, WBGS is recorded as having a high ratio of cattle per
head of population - 3.5:1, compared with 1.3:1 for the whole of South Sudan and 1.9:1 for
NBGS. However, these numbers refer to cattle brought in seasonally (from June to November)
from South Darfur, NBGS, Warrap State and Central African Republic. The indigenous
households of WBGS are not predominantly cattle-owners, especially those in Wau County. The
condition of cattle and goats is currently very good and pasture and water are generally plentiful.
Vaccines are often reported to be in short supply.
WBGS has a high percentage (15%) severely food insecure people as compared to a country
average of 10.6%. In total, WBGS has high numbers of vulnerable groups. Causes of food
insecurity are attributed to a combination of structural effects (such as low productivity and
income, low human capital, poor market integration, the burden of waterborne diseases)
exacerbated by exposure to multiple shocks (such as high food prices especially during the
hunger gap period in and around September). The table below proves that the project has
chosen the right target group.
30
Table 5: Food security status in the project location August 2012 (baseline)
State
Projected
population
(2012)
%
rural population
Projected rural
population
(2012)
%
severely food
insecure
%
moderately
food insecure
% Mildly
food
insecure
%
food
secure
WBGS 394,360 57% 225,294 15.0% 38% - 46%
Wau and Jur
River County
project areas
-
-
-
21
42
23
14
Source: FSTP Baseline Survey August 2012-09-08
A severely food insecure household is one that has graduated to cutting back on meal size or
number of meals often and or experiences any of the three most severe conditions (running out
of food, going to bed hungry, or going a whole day and night without eating), even as frequently
as rarely—any household that experiences one of these three conditions even once in the last
four weeks is considered severely food insecure. According to this survey, 83.7% had no food in
stock in the past one month before the survey; 82% slept hungry; and 80% spent a whole day
without food. Up to 20.3% reported that they rarely had times when there was no food to be
eaten; 21.2% reported they slept hungry rarely; and 25.4% reported they went the whole day
and night without food rarely. Up to 72% of the households reported they had stock of food that
could not last for more than a fortnight; and only 5% had stock that could last for more than 4
months. The average number of months where there was not enough food (hunger gap) is 3.
Food storage is an important aspect that will need attention as well as marketing of products.
A moderately insecure household sacrifices quality more frequently by eating a monotonous diet or undesirable foods sometimes or often, and/or has started to cut back on quantity by reducing size of meals or number of meals rarely or sometimes. But such a household does not experience any of the three severe conditions (running out of food, going to bed hungry, or going a whole day and night without eating). According to this survey finding, 41.7% reported having eaten sometimes the food they did not want to eat; and the same percentage reported often eating the food they did not want to eat.
A mildly food insecure (access) household worries about not having enough food sometimes or often, and/or is unable to eat preferred foods, and/or eats a more monotonous diet than desired and/or some foods considered undesirable, but only rarely. But it does not cut back on quantity nor experience any of the three most severe conditions (running out of food, going to bed hungry, or going a whole day and night without eating). According to our survey, only 20.6% of respondents were rarely unable to eat preferred food.
A food secure household experiences none of the food insecurity (access) conditions, or just experiences worry, but rarely. According to our survey, only 12% said they did worry about food and of those that worry, only 14% said they did so rarely.
31
2.1.2 Agricultural Diversification
Vulnerable communities are unable to purchase food, due to poverty, limited livelihood options
and lack of savings culture. Even if households dispose of some small income, food is either not
available in the local markets, or access to markets is hampered by factors such as distance,
poor infrastructures (roads and communications) and dysfunctional markets. Market
imperfections also limit their ability to sell agricultural surplus, if any, and consequently to earn
an income that would permit them to buy (more diversified) food items. Sale of surplus is also
commonly affected by cultural belief that those who sell food are considered as people who can
cause hunger in homes. So this makes it difficult for some people to sell the surplus food they
have.
Food diversity includes vegetables and other cereals like maize, apart from sorghum that is the main
staple.
Because of smallholders’ focus on staple crops as the main food component, the diet is not
diversified. There is limited knowledge on and awareness of nutrition and sanitation, resulting in
malnutrition and other health-related problems. Over 72% of the farmers had no access to fruit
trees like mangoes, oranges, lemon, pawpaw and guava.
According to the findings of the survey, the food items/groups that household members had
eaten the day before the survey (in the last 24 hours) during the day and night was analyzed to
determine the dietary diversity.
32
Table 6: Household dietary diversity
Food category Percent of hh
A Cereals (maize porridge, rice, sorghum, millet pasta, bread, or other) 76
B Roots and Tubers (cassava, potatoes, sweet potatoes or other) 7.7
C Pulses/ legumes/nuts (beans, peas, groundnuts, simsim, or other) 46
D Vegetables and leaves 73.6
E Fruit 9
F Meat, poultry, offal (beef, goat, lamb, poultry) 24
G Fish and sea food 9.3
H Milk/dairy products (milk, yogurt, cheese or other) 9.3
I Eggs 3
J sugar, sugar products, honey 27
K oil/fats (oil, fat or butter) 20.7
L Condiments (spices, tea, coffee) or other miscellaneous food 22.7
Source: Baseline Survey 2012
The average household dietary diversity is 27. That means only 27% of the households are able
to diversify their foods. Agriculture is still the main source of livelihood for 51% of the
respondents. Only 5.7% earn their incomes from livestock, 10% from trading, 6% from casual
labor in agriculture; 4% from other casual labor and 14% from civil service/other employment. It
was however learnt that crop farming communities had a system of keeping their livestock with
cattle keeping communities outside the state. The average weekly household income is 70 SSP.
Over 65% reported that their income had declined over the past month before the survey; while
only 8% reported an increase. Food takes 55% of the household income. By the time of the
survey, 35% of the respondents were in debt. The nature of the debt varied with 72% being
cash and 91% being in form of sorghum that was borrowed.
2.1.3 Marketing Systems
Farmers normally sell their produce in the local market centers along the major roads that are at
the payam headquarters. Given the vastness of the payams and the numerous villages, coupled
with lack of transport means, most farmers carry their produce on their heads and walk the long
distance to the market. It is common to see many farmers first having to sit down and rest
before spreading their goods on the road side. There is no organized market place in the rural
payams. Months of maximum trade are January to April. Months of minimum trade are August
to December.
33
Vendors in Kangi Market center display their merchandise on the road side.
Non-agricultural products are sold by traders in makeshift shops. All agricultural outputs are sold
locally. There is no distinction between cash and food crops as the latter is sold to get some
money to buy non-food items. All commodity prices are higher this year than at the same time
last year. Prices are normally lower during the hunger gap as people lack resources to purchase
food although traders normally have the capacity to respond to any increase in demand. One
reason for this is the closure of the border by Sudan. Consequently less food is coming in from
the north. On the other hand prices have eased since a peak in September, indicating an easing
of the border restrictions and/or more smuggling. Terms of trade have not altered significantly,
with livestock prices rising roughly in concert with crop prices.
Table 7: Price trends for key livestock
Animal SSP, October 2010 SSP, October 2011 SSP, August 2012
Medium-sized bull 1200 1500 2000
Cow 800 1200 1500
Sheep (ram) 300 450 500
Goat in Wau County 70 175 150-500
Goat in Jur River County 100-150 200-300 80-190
Bartered cow - - 200 kg of grain
Chicken in Jur River
County
- - 10-35
Source: baseline Survey 2012.
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Table 8: Prices of key food crops
Crop Unit of
measure
Kangi Gete Zagalona/Alelcok Wau Bilpharm
Jadit
Aweil
Jadit
maize kg 15 20 12 - - -
Maize flour kg - - 8 -
Okra bundle 1 1 1 1 1 1
Groundnuts Kg 4 10 16 - 4 -
Unshelled
gnuts
heap - - 1 1-2 - -
Hard nuts kg - 25 - - - -
Beans Kg 10 20 4 - - -
Yam bundle 1 - - - - -
Sweet
potatoes
heap - - - 2-5 - -
Sorghum
seeds
Kg 25 25 16 - - -
Sorghum flour kg - - - 20 6 2
simsim kg 20 20 - - - -
Water melon head - - - 6 - -
Source: market survey. Please note that the blank spaces meant no data meaning either the commodity was not
available in the market at the time of the survey or like in Kangi, it is not sold in the markets.
2.2 Capacity of partners to address food insecurity and climate threats
The causes of food insecurity are well known in the project areas. The planned activities can
improve food security if successfully implemented and monitored by the partners and other
stakeholders. This calls for skills in monitoring and evaluation. The project has planned to train
partners in M&E. The project has also planned training for farmer and women groups. There will
be a need to conduct organizational assessment of all the partners and the targeted CBOs and
develop capacity development plan. In the absence of organization assessment (OA) report, it
was difficult to determine the capacity of partners to address food insecurity. However, the
project proposal gave a brief outline of the capacity of the partner organizations and these
organizations were approved by EU. There is a need to build capacity so that the partners are
better positioned to address issues of food insecurity. The OA will provide the baseline status of
the capacity of partners and capacity development indicators will be developed with a score
card as the monitoring tool. The score card will be self administered by the partners and ICCO
35
will review this annually for the consortium partners while the consortium partners review
annually the capacity of the farmer groups in partnership with the local extension workers of
government.
2.3 Affordability and feasibility of an appropriate inputs cost recovery system for
the target groups of the project.
Cost sharing and recovery aims to reduce the dependency of target groups on external sources
of assistance and encourage households to take charge of their destiny. The project consortium
highlights the principle of building capacity of target groups to gain self-sufficiency before the
project comes to an end. Cost recovery is built into all the four results of the project where cost
recovery mechanisms are introduced to encourage and motivate beneficiaries to be
economically active and independent.
The most common response to the issue of input cost recovery was that it was feasible, considering that it was already being done by FAO. According to the Food Security Coordinator of WOTAP which is currently implementing a Year project funded by FAO, recovery of seed has not been problematic. Stakeholders viewed input cost recovery as a way of making farmers less dependent on aid. However, there were some concerns, namely:
The project is targeting poor people, who might not be able to pay back. The project target being vulnerable households like those that lack productive assets like land and or livestock has implications on their ability to pay back, yet they are the most food insecure. Selection criteria should therefore include access to productive assets, whether owned, borrowed or leased.
Recovery of seeds is not as difficult as recovery of the cost of tools & equipment which are more expensive. Although the project intends to recover only 20% of the cost of tools, there are implications on the marketability of agricultural products promoted by the project, as beneficiaries will need cash, as opposed to recovery of seed which can be in kind. The project could first test recovery using seeds as people get used to it and then introduce recovery on tools.
Crop failure due to drought or floods and reducing soil fertility. This has implications on the mitigation measures like soil and water management structures to reduce the effects of droughts and or floods, as well as the use of manures to improve fertility.
Limited farm land, especially among the peri- urban displaced communities. This has implications on the type of agricultural activities to promote among the displaced communities in and around Wau town. It was however noted in Aweil Jadit, one of the areas hosting displaced communities that although people had small plots in the peri- urban community, some had access to larger pieces of land outside town where they could farm. The project could target such households as well.
Suggestions for successful implementation of this strategy included the following:
Cost recovery will need a lot of sensitization. Front line workers should understand the
process very well before going out to introduce the idea on the farmers
The process of selecting and mobilizing farmers and farmer groups with capacity and
interest in the project and good leadership
36
It is important to get the commitment of local leaders (e.g. chiefs), for the system to be
acceptable in the communities. This was echoed in Kangi payam.
Types of crops grown should be profitable to enable farmers pay back
Marketability of the produce is important for one to get cash for paying back.
The management of the project by the partners, including timely delivery of inputs to
farmers and a strong monitoring system are crucial to farmers’ ability to pay back
It is important for the project to avail water for production and fertilizer to guard against
crop loss.
2.4 Options for storage methods and facilities for perishable produce
It was noted that the current production of vegetables and fruits is still low to necessitate
prolonged storage. Reasons for limited production were limited tools for tillage and lack of water
for irrigation.
Suggested options for storage methods include:
Spreading the fresh produce in a shady place (e.g. house) on the ground, to keep it
aerated
Covering the produce with grass in a cool place until time for marketing
Transporting it in containers with adequate ventilation e.g. cartons
Washing the produce after harvest to avoid rotting
Selling off the produce as soon as possible after harvest to avoid rotting
2.5 Cultural appropriateness and how best to improve animal-ploughing in the
target area
Most respondents indicated that there was no cultural barrier to using oxen for ploughing, as
this has already been done by OXFAM, which has so far trained farmers and 50 oxen. The
Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Irrigation also has trained staff in the technology who can
assist in the farmer training. Some concerns raised about ox ploughing however included:
The view of some stakeholders that pastoralists might not be willing to use the oxen as they
think this would be a punishment to the animals. However, it was also noted that some agro-
pastoralists in Jur River County were already using the technology. Type of plough supplied is
of concern, as previous experience of OXFAM with heavy ploughs was inappropriate for the
nature of the soil and the woody environment that does not allow for easy maneuvering.
The effort of removing trees is prohibitive before ploughing the land, as trees make it hard to
maneuver the oxen and ploughs
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Some crop farmers who own more land do not have livestock, which would necessitate
supplying oxen as well
Difficulty of keeping the oxen from roaming in other people’s crop fields which would lead to
conflict. This may call for zero grazing units for the oxen in order not to let them wander around.
This needs to be discussed with the elders.
Proposals for successful implementation:
There is need to provide oxen to the crop farmers who do not have cattle. However, it is also
possible to have them rent an ox and an ox plough at 150ssp for a fedan, instead of buying
oxen. Whatever the case, the oxen have to be restricted in these areas to avoid crop damage.
Setting up a demonstration farm where farmers can come and learn more about the technology,
but with conditions attached. Only those that can participate in the demo garden who are
motivated to train others and participate actively will have to be selected.
Animal ploughing could be promoted in the Dhe-Beehr area where there are fewer trees
Provide donkey ploughs as donkeys are easier to keep, since they can feed on anything.
However, it was noted that donkeys do not have a divided hoof and cannot turn fast in muddy
ground. Some youth could be organized and supported to start a rent an ox with plough instead
of providing too many beneficiaries with animals
Ensure that the farmer groups take the responsibility of taking care of the oxen. This will be
applicable only to those few who are made responsible for the plouhing teams.
Help farmers to remove trees from the fields to make the ploughing easier.
2.6 How best the project can have effective and inclusive participation of
stakeholders, partners and others to ensure inclusive participation in a Project
Steering Committee (PSC)
Some concerns for participation of stakeholders were mainly about the inadequate government
staff in local governments, as there are no extension officers at Payam level in both counties.
This was attributed to lack of funds, the current government austerity measures including a
freeze on recruitment and poor facilities at payam level. It was however noted that trained
personnel were increasing as the university is training technical people. In addition,
administrative structures are in place, up to Boma level.
38
While farmers in some bomas were willing to form groups to participate in the project, it was
apparent that farmers in Agok, Masna and Bilpham were reluctant to work in groups. This could
be attributed to the transient nature of the communities.
Ways of stakeholder participation suggested include the following:
Carrying out an organizational scan for benchmarking of partners.
Providing transport for extension workers in the counties to work with project
implementers for sustainability of the project.
Farmer group committees and the partners should work together to make the project
work. The chief can mobilize the people and the committee members can help the
farmers to make sure the project succeed.
The PSC should be able to listen to farmers’ ideas and challenges they are facing in
order to improve implementation.
The PSC should have farmer representation, community leaders and government
officials as this will ease flow of information and effectiveness of the implementing
agencies.
Having a PSC will help the community to separate NGOs that claim they are working
and are not being monitored.
Training farmers in groups but supporting them to work on their individual farms
2.7 Project processes actions and deliverables which can potentially exacerbate
the existing conflict in the project area.
Stakeholders were of the view that there were no activities that could worsen the existing
conflict between Sudan and S. Sudan. Rather than exacerbate the conflict, there was concern
that border conflicts could affect the flow of project resources. On the other hand, the conflict
was viewed as an opportunity for farmers in the state to work harder to overcome food shortage
due to the closure of the boarder. Internal conflicts were noted among the Dinka and Luo in Jur
River County concerning the grazing of animals. As farmers in the project expand their acreage
and grow more crops, they will want to ensure that their crops are not destroyed by the Dinka
animals. The Dinkas normally bring their animals to the Luo land for grazing in the months when
the Luo are about to harvest their crops and the animals end up destroying the crops. If this
issue is not addressed, it may escalate the conflict.
2.8 Perceived needs and constraints in the target communities
Farmers have limited knowledge and technology for modern farming. This could be
attributed to the fact that there is no government extension staff at payam level, which
affects farmers’ access to information and new technologies.
There is a high infestation of tsetse fly and worms affect livestock, reducing farmers’
livelihood options. However, farmers cannot access the necessary veterinary services
which are lacking in the payams.
39
There is a high infestation of crop pests and disease which is attributed to the limited
access to agrochemicals.
High weed infestation increases the work load of farmers.
The rainfall patterns have changed and rains are now unreliable, coming as late as July,
instead of April/ May. This has effects on the hunger period, increasing food insecurity.
All focus group discussions with farmers revealed that famers lack adequate tools and
seeds for growing enough food to take them throughout the year.
In addition, there was also lack of improved seeds. It was noted that the seed distributed
by development agencies sometimes fails to germinate. There is therefore need to test
seed before it is supplied to farmers.
During the dry period, cattle from the pastoral communities moves through the crop
farming areas in search of grass and water, destroying crops. This is a source of conflict
between the crop farmers and the pastoralists. There is need to develop a mechanism
for solving these conflicts.
The soil fertility is declining, leading to reduced yields per unit area. However, there is
currently a GOSS ban on fertilizer use. They need manure from the zero grazing units in
which the oxen for ploughing can be stored.
Areas cultivated are small, with estimated average area cultivated at 0.5 acres per
household. This means that farmers cannot produce adequate food for the whole year,
making their households more vulnerable. In rural areas of South Sudan land is plentiful
and there is no lack of land at all. Through more effort, farmers will be able to get access
to more land and they need to be taught to farm bigger areas effectively.
There is a shortage of hired labor in rural communities, as most of the people in the
village have gone to town. For example in Masna, the focus group revealed that most
youth have gone to Wau town where they are employed by Chinese company which
pays them better. This has implications on the amount of land that can be opened up for
cultivation by each household.
There is only one rainy season and the staples produced are inadequate, including
groundnuts, sorghum and maize, to last the whole year. There is very limited maize
produced in the state. However, it was learnt that there are short term varieties of
groundnuts and sorghum that can take people through the hunger gap. And the maize
that is planted does not produce optimally due to bad soil preparation prior to planting.
There is also need for post harvest handling training, as some of the sorghum goes to
waste because of poor storage facilities
There is frequent flooding in the state, which affects crop yields
Nutrition
People in the state lack basic foods for proper nutrition. Poor diet, consisting mostly of
sorghum and okra, one meal per day, supplemented by meat and wild leaves. Gathering
40
and hunting has been disrupted by insecurity. There is dry fish in the dry season but milk
is not sufficient. There is need for nutrition education
Socio- economic and political challenges
Large households among some communities, some with more than 10 wives and high
number of children who cannot be cared for properly
Targeting women is problematic due to lack of decision making power and heavy work
load and also due to the role the husband is playing in food security and the perceptions
of a high number of men towards agriculture.
Laxity of government, leaving food security issues to NGOs
There are no established food markets in the payams, Wau is the only established one
Many NGOs go to asses in communities and never return to help.
Fear that town is expanding towards farmers’ fields, leading to eviction
Sicknesses and diseases like pneumonia, unsafe drinking water, Lack of health facilities
for women to deliver—The GOSS stopped the TBAs from assisting women with delivery.
High water table, leading to sanitation related problems. This affects production
2.9 Monitoring and Evaluation
The FSTP log frame has indicators for the overall objective, specific objectives and the four
result areas. The consultant noted that some of the indicators are not one-dimensional. The
consultant has therefore suggested modifications. Qualitative indicators will need to be
assessed using scorecards. Besides, each individual partner is to prepare its own log frame that
mirrors the FSTP one. However, there is need to develop an overall detailed monitoring,
evaluation plan and reporting system for the project. This could be done during the M&E training
planned to take place in the first two months of the project. The consultant subjected the
framework into a results chain to establish the logic and adequacy of the interventions. The
conclusion is that the planned activities are adequate to achieve the results and the results are
adequate to achieve the planned outcomes/objectives. In table 9, the consultant has provided
the baseline information based on the planned targets for each of the indicators of the log
frame.
Table 9: Baseline and target numbers of Log-frame indicators
Intervention Logic Objectively verifiable indicators of achievement Baseline (2012)
Target (2015)
Overall objective
To reduce the incidence of general and acute malnutrition among rural households in WBS
Prevalence of underweight children <5 (MDG FS indicator) as compared to the baseline
n/a TBD
50% increase in the proportion of HHs with a balanced dietary diversity that meets their nutritional requirements during the hunger gap
27 41
41
Intervention Logic Objectively verifiable indicators of achievement Baseline (2012)
Target (2015)
Specific objective 1
To improve the food security and nutrition of particularly disadvantaged and marginalized groups in WBS
Reduction of the hunger gap period by 1 month after 3 years
3 2
Increase in number of meals per day during the hunger gap
1 TBD
Improvement in meal composition, food handling and preparation particularly FHHs
Use scorecard
TBD
Specific objective 2
Strengthened local institutions to better address food insecurity and climate threats
This specific objective focuses specifically on a capacity strengthening agenda However, the specific objective cuts through all result areas.
Strategic planning process results updated with annual plans at various levels
0 TBD
Participation of State institutions(policy making-implementation), local civil society and research institutions in this process
Use score card
TBD
Population and target group able to voice their right to FS in public hearings and consultations
Use scorecard
TBD
Result 1
Increased production of staple crops among rural target group CAD: Kangi Payam (Ajugo and Kangi bomas) Farmers groups include animal ploughing; (400 HH) ECS/CARD: Gete, Ajugo and Kangi bomas (660 HH) include ox ploughing DORCAS: Gete (330 HH) include ox ploughing
Total 1390HHs
50% increase in cultivated acreage (fedans) for the main staple crops after 3years
1.5 2
Proportion of HHs with increased acreage (yr 2) as per baseline (Av. Acreage per HH)
2.37 4
25 % Increase in staple crops production per fedan at the end of yr 3
No data TBD
Sorghum (kg) per household 116 145
Groundnuts (kg) per household 269 336
Maize (kg) per household 75 94
Proportion of HHs who have surplus for the market (to determine target)
13 TBD
Result 2 Increased agricultural diversification among target group IDP/returnee 650 HHs Resident HHs 740 HHs Total 1390 HHs in Wau and Jur River ECS/CARD and DORCAS
75 % of beneficiaries applying skills in improved horticulture and poultry keeping
0 TBD
75 % targeted beneficiary households having earned income from poultry and vegetable sales
0 TBD
Key nutrition messages understood and safe practices on hygiene and food utilization are adopted by targeted households
0 TBD
Result 3
Improved marketing system in place in target areas DORCAS-led with partners
75% of targeted farmers have access to market information after 3 yrs
0 TBD
At least an increase of 20% of products sold on markets after 3 years
TBD
20 % selling price increase after 3 years TBD
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Intervention Logic Objectively verifiable indicators of achievement Baseline (2012)
Target (2015)
Sorghum 22 26
Maize 15 18
Groundnuts 10 12
Beans 11 13
Stakeholders fully operate marketing system after 3 years
0 TBD
Result 4 Increased capacity of Wau University, government departments and local NGOs to address food insecurity and climate threats ICCO-led
Selected plans / initiatives resulting from capacity building have been realized
Use scorecard
TBD
Documented occasions when communities have voiced their concerns in front of GOVT and actions undertaken by officials
Use scorecard
TBD
Delivery of quality services to farmers following from research
Use scorecard
TBD
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3.0 Conclusions
Food security Nearly all targeted households (84%) are vulnerable in terms of food security and nutrition. Implication of this is that beneficiary selection should not be based on food insecurity, so other criteria should be used. In addition, the project interventions should initially aim at improving household food security and nutrition. At this stage, value addition is not necessary as households are still struggling with food security. Most households rely on sorghum as the staple food, so there is need to promote production of roots and tubers as they have more potential in terms of production per unit area and are important elements of ensuring food security. The use of hybrid seed is very low. Therefore the introduction of hybrid seed should not be a priority for improving food security and nutrition. The average acreage cultivated per household in very low (fedans). The use of ox ploughs is limited in most communities as most people are using hand held tools and implements. Since the project wants to increase the acreage per household, it is important to promote the use of draught animal power. Although the project plans to promote rearing of chicken, there is a challenge of limited access to veterinary services and drugs, which can affect the chicken flocks, especially with the deadly and quick spreading New Castle Disease (NCD). The promotion of kitchen gardens could start with urban areas where there are smaller plots and easy access to markets and better purchasing power. The growing of traditional vegetables should be encouraged in the rural areas, for improvement of diets. Recovery The input recovery should focus on seeds (in kind), through farmer groups. The recovery of cost of ox ploughs is not viable, considering the need for ensuring food security, rather than marketing of food crops. However, an MOU can be signed with the groups, so that recovery can be spread over a longer period. The sharing of ox- ploughs should take into consideration the need for clearing the land in time for timely planting, given the erratic nature of the rains. In this regard, the number of households sharing one plough should not be too big, at least 5 household per one plough and ox. Given that the average number of people per household who can work is 3, the labor implications for land opened up by ox ploughing, is limiting to the promotion of draught animal power. If more land is opened up, there will be labor crisis regarding planting, weeding and harvesting and post- harvest handling, especially for women, activities which will not be mechanized. It is the view of the consultants that the use of ox- cultivation should be selectively done with households that have adequate labor to carry out the post land preparation activities. This should be one of the selection criteria for beneficiary households in Kangi payam.
44
Food storage options The current production of perishable products does not warrant an intervention into storage methods and facilities. Even after the project interventions, it is unlikely that households will have excess perishable products that may require storage, considering the high need for diet diversity at household level. However, there is need to introduce simple storage methods of vegetables like blanching and drying for household use during the dry season. This is important for dietary diversity. In addition, for petty traders in marketing centers selling some vegetables and fruits, provision could be made for them to use simple ways of storage for foods that are not sold the same day, given the low purchasing power in the community. Cultural appropriateness of animal ploughing The use of animal ploughing does not contradict the cultural beliefs and practices among
communities in the project area. Therefore introduction of ox ploughing is a welcome
intervention. However, there will be a need for monitoring of the animals so that the oxen do not
get eaten, as some may have the attitude that “who is thinking of working if we can eat meat for
free”.
Effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders At the moment, there are no terms of reference for the Project Steering Committee (PSC) and also no agreement has been reached on who should be on the PSC. Given that the project was approved in April 2012, it is not good practice to have it running for four months without this committee to provide guidance. As a result, some partners had already started activities without proper guidance, e.g. selection of beneficiaries without an agreed selection criteria. Given the diversity of stakeholders, ensuring effective and inclusive participation will remain a challenge to the project. One of the key stakeholders is the state government. Currently, the state government faces challenges of availability of qualified human resource, especially at the payam level. The second key category of stakeholders is the project local partners at the operational level. They also face similar challenges of inadequate skilled personnel. As of now, no capacity needs assessment of the partners has been undertaken. It should be noted that the project document stated that capacity building should be done in the inception phase, which is nearly ending at the end of September 2012. This activity should therefore be fast tracked to identify capacity gaps for preparation of capacity building plans. The international partners (ICCO and DORCAS) are currently seen as the “big brothers” who call the shots and make the final decision. There is therefore need for a change of attitude among the local and international partners, to foster equality in decision making. Even the smaller ones need to understand that they cannot survive without the two bigger brothers, that simply have more capacity in dealing with EU than the smaller ones. Of course it is the WAY how you present yourself. ICCO and Dorcas needs to be aware of that. They needed each other and ONLY together they can make a difference! The third category of stakeholders is the project beneficiaries. While it is a good idea to have beneficiaries directly involved in project management, most are not yet organized into viable groups and are also illiterate, limiting their potential contribution to the PSC.
45
Potential for escalating existing conflicts in the project area The survey established that the current conflict is not something to worry about concerning implementation of this project. The planned activities therefore have limited potential to escalate this conflict, if any. It is however recommended that a risk analysis should be part of the annual project review, considering the fluid unpredictable nature of conflicts. Perceived needs and constraints of the target community The project document has correctly identified the needs and constraints of the target community concerning food security and livelihoods. However, there are other needs beyond food security that communities are concerned about, which require an integrated approach and building of synergies with other development partners. These include access to health, education, clean water and infrastructure.
46
4.0 Recommendations
Improving food security
Recommendations for the project implementers
The project should focus on providing inputs like seed for staple crops in rural areas and
vegetables in the peri- urban areas, as well as hand held tools. The beneficiaries requested
that tools should be provided by the end of September 2012 to enable them to clear the land in
time for the May – June rains of 2013. The seeds for staple crops should be provided by April
2013 for timely planting in the May- June rains. Vegetable seeds should be provided by end of
September for the planting season of October 2012.
Selection of beneficiaries should be based on the agreed beneficiary selection criteria
Farmers should be organized and trained before receiving inputs.
Mechanisms should be set up for regular food security surveillance, using the baseline survey
household questionnaire, to collect data for the log- frame indicators.
Recommendations for the state government
As a matter of urgency, the WBG state government should put in place extension workers in the
rural payams of Kangi and Gete as their contribution to this project.
The state government should improve market infrastructure in the payams, so that farmers can
sell food in a hygienic environment.
The state government should, as a matter of priority, target rural payams where this project is to
be implemented, for faster land mine clearance, to enable farmers to open more land.
Input cost recovery
The project should initially focus on the recovery of seeds. Recovery of the cost of the ox
ploughs should be spread over a longer period of time, as the livelihoods of farmers are still
precarious. In the meantime, the project should set up a system for recovering these costs in
the third year of the project and beyond, after analyzing surveillance reports on the status of
household food security.
Options for storage methods and facilities of perishable produce
For project implementers
For household food security, simple techniques of food preservation and storage should be
introduced, e.g. blanching and drying of leafy vegetables.
47
For market oriented households, appropriate storage technologies should be promoted for
produce that is not sold on the same day. In this regard, the project should work with the
CUoSSFAES to research on traditional ways of food storage e.g. the use of pots.
For the state government
As part of the improvement of the market infrastructure, the state government should work in
partnership with local market vendors to construct lockable stalls for storage of perishable
goods, to reduce on burden of carrying them to and from markets.
In addition, regular grading of roads would go a long way in easing access to markets,
especially the Aweil – Wau road which passes through Kangi and Gete payams. Currently
transport by road from Kangi to Wau takes 2 hours, instead of the 20 – 30 minutes.
Cultural appropriateness and best way to improve animal ploughing
For project implementers
Since animal ploughing is culturally appropriate in the project area, the project should go ahead
and its use in the targeted payams. The project should first identify farmers who have interest
and trained oxen.
The lessons learnt from OXFAM Intermon are critical and implementer should carefully consider
them before purchasing the ploughs.
For the state government
The WBG state government should ensure that the farmers supported with ox ploughs are able
to access veterinary care for the trained oxen.
Effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders
As a matter of urgency, the project should develop the mandate and inaugurate the PSC to
guide project stakeholders.
A stakeholders’ meeting should be held to determine the composition of the members of the
PSC and define the parameters for its operation.
Conflict escalation
Although there is no risk of conflict escalation, the project should carry out annual risk analysis
in the target areas, in partnership with the state and development partners and also address the
issue of grazing of animals from Dinka land in the Luo land especially when the Luo are about to
harvest the crops.
48
Perceived needs
While food security is an urgent need, it is recommended that an integrated approach be
adopted to address other pressing needs in the areas of education, health, water, sanitation and
hygiene which are important for proper nutrition and improving livelihoods. The WBG should
therefore coordinate the activities of all development partners in the state to address these
perceived community needs.
Non- conflict related aspects informing choice of interventions
The effects of climate change on farming activities need to be addressed, focusing on soil and
water conservation, as well as controlling flooding of crop fields.
Considering the livestock population in the target communities, there is a need to promote use
of compost manure for improving soil fertility and crop productivity.
The project needs to determine the role of local leader in project implementation, beyond
community mobilization, for purposes of the sustainability of project interventions and impacts.
The project needs to adopt a household based approach where the roles of men, women and
youth in production and marketing are emphasized for improved household food security and
livelihoods. Emphasis should be on sharing resources, benefits and decision making.
The project should look at promoting non- agricultural livelihoods for the youth who were
observed to be shunning agriculture.
The sale of canned beer of high alcohol content of above 14% should be addressed to reduce
incidences of domestic violence and drunkenness among the youth.
Monitoring and evaluation
The current log- frame indicators need to be revised to complete setting of targets for all
indicators.
All implementing partners should prepare their own log frames and M&E plans that mirror the
project log frame. The qualitative indicators will require a score card as a tool for data collection
A comprehensive monitoring and evaluation training should be carried out among project
implementers and government extension workers.
Data collection tools for participatory monitoring should be developed before the project goes
too deep into activity implementation.
Capacity for project implementation and management
A capacity needs assessment of partner staff and organizations should be undertaken and a
capacity building plan developed before the end of November 2012.
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The Evaluation Consultants Alice Mango, the Team Leader, has expertise in training, gender, organizational development,
including diagnosis and functional analysis, strategic planning and human resource
development. She is especially skilled in participatory rural appraisal techniques, needs
assessment and curriculum development. Alice has over 15 years of agricultural extension
experience and 8 years of training in the agricultural and water sectors and has designed and
implemented several training programmes in that respect. She is skilled in conducting socio-
economic research, policy analysis, project evaluation and report generation and is particularly
experienced in participatory gender analysis. She also has skills in project and programme
design and in conducting formal evaluation of development programmes/ projects. Alice has
worked with and is familiar with issues in the agriculture, health, social development and water
and sanitation sectors in Uganda. Alice has worked as a team leader in many jobs. Alice has
considerable experience in policy and program design, management, and evaluation in
community development projects, rights based approaches and socio-economic empowerment.
Alice coordinated all the baseline survey activities and maintained contact and communication
with ICCO FSTP Program Manager. She was also responsible for the technical aspects of the
survey including the following:
Measuring food insecurity at the project location through use of questionnaires (HFIAS and DDS), FGDs and key informant interviews.
Carrying out survey on affordability and feasibility of an appropriate inputs cost recovery system for the target groups of the project.
Carrying out training, in methodology and techniques of data collection and interviewing of Partners staff in addition to field exposure of 2nd and 3rd year university students.
Exploring options for storage methods and facilities for perishable produce and
Assessing cultural appropriateness and how best to improve animal-ploughing/traction in the target area.
Find out from the communities which other feasible methodology or activities could benefit them more than what is stated in the proposal.
Find out about cultural sensitivity of the state interventions to be implemented.
Sustainability after the project phase-out
Dan Opio, Team Member, holds a Masters Degree in Economics from Miami University, Oxford
Ohio, USA. Dan has proven experience in conducting quantitative and qualitative baseline
surveys and in reviewing and evaluating bi-lateral development programs and donor funded
NGO programs. He has extensive knowledge in the relevant sectors ICCO focuses on. He also
has good analytical skills and excellent computer and report writing skills in English. Dan has
conducted baseline surveys and reviewed programs in health, education, food security and
capacity building for many organizations and is well versed with rights-based approaches. He
was responsible for the following:
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Reviewing non-conflict related aspects informing choice of interventions and project
design and factors that are expected to change and how to address and/or mitigate
them;
Consulting/ exploring how best the project can have effective and inclusive participation of stakeholders, partners and others to ensure inclusive participation in a Project Steering Committee (PSC).
Identifying and establishing project processes, actions and deliverables which can potentially exacerbate on the existing conflict in the project area so that alternative interventions can be planned.
Identifying perceived needs and constraints in the target communities, and
Providing reference point data and/or information for measuring or assessing level of achievement of the 4 key result areas; in relation to the profile of refined outputs and monitoring indicators relevant to the programme objectives; provide linking with monitoring and reporting for assessing programme progress, impact and changes attained (review of the log frame).
Identify existing conflicts which might easily be exacerbated by this project
Roles and responsibilities
ICCO
The ICCO FSTP Program Manager will represent the Lead Agency during the Baseline survey;
he will be central in coordinating the Baseline survey process in close consultation with the
Consultant(s), implementing partners, LGAs and other stakeholders in the project.
Implementing partners and representatives from state government ministry of agriculture and
county extension workers were involved during the Baseline survey by attending meetings with
the Consultant(s), providing field staff to coordinate and direct the Consultant(s) to project sites,
providing necessary data and information needed for the Baseline survey.
The ICCO FSTP program manager is responsible for:
Overall responsibility and accountability for the Baseline survey;
Guidance throughout all phases of execution
Approval of all base line deliverables; and,
Co-ordination of the implementing partners and the government line ministries during the process of the base line survey.
Day to day administration during the period of the base line survey
Stakeholders
Through consultations and/or briefing sessions, the key stakeholders/implementing partners
(CARD, CAD, and Dorcas, CUofSS-FAES) participated in review of the TOR, the proposed
assignment i.e. clarifications on its expected focus, approaches, methods and field techniques
and feedback on proposed detailed field work activity plan. The partners also provided their
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feedback on the designed baseline collection protocol (guidelines & tools) and participated in
the pre-testing of the tools and their refinement for use in the field. The Partners’ staff also
participated in the field data collection and interaction with the interview respondents in the
targeted area or community at large. The Partners also attended and participated in a final
review meeting at the end of the filed visits and data collection exercise. The SMOAF&I did not
participate in the last meeting as it was held on a Saturday but provided overall guidance and
oversight during the entire process.
Consultant
The Consultant was responsible for:
Conducting the Baseline survey;
The day-to-day management of operations in the field during the period of the survey;
Regular progress reporting to ICCO FSTP Program Manager and ICCO Country Program Manager
The development of results; and,
The production of deliverables in accordance with contractual requirements.
Training Partners’ staff in the methodology and techniques of data collection and interviewing (staff to understand the importance and relevance of baseline data in relation to project plans) – to engage Partners staff in data collection, information and/or data collection, validation/triangulation of information for data analysis)
Guiding the team of interviewers/data collectors in the field
Some members of the evaluation team
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List of data collectors
s/no Name Gender Organization
1 Joseph Mwirigi m Dorcas Aid
2 Dominic James m Dorcas Aid
3 Olumu Augustine m Dorcas Aid
4 Michael Ayawa m Dorcas Aid
5 Samuel Yamba m CAD
6 Jambia David m CAD
7 Peter Malong m CAD
8 Kuol Kuot Dimo m ECS-CARD
9 James Umuor m ECS-CARD
10 Andrew Apiny m ECS-CARD
11 Lucia Valentino F CUoSSFAES
12 Gatdet peter m CUoSSFAES
13 Philip Marrial Kuol m CUoSSFAES
14 Agnes Joseph F CUoSSFAES
15 Aguil Tong Akeen F CUoSSFAES
16 Bibiana Butrus F CUoSSFAES
17 John Matuak m CUoSSFAES
18 Francis B. Philip m CUoSSFAES
19 Felix Emirio m CUoSSFAES
Lead Agency:
Interchurch Organization for Development Cooperation (ICCO), Field Office South
Sudan/Sudan, AIC Compound, Hai-Tarawa, Juba, South Sudan