System of Wheat Intensification (SWI)
in Mali – West Africa3 years of experience
Erika Styger SRI International Network and Resources Center (SRI-Rice)
Mali - Timbuktu region
Sahelo-Saharien and Saharien climate
• 150-200 mm rain/yr• Annual mean Temp:
29.1°C (13°- 43°C)Food Security: >70%
communes are among most vulnerable in Mali
•
Irrigated Rice and Wheat in the Timbuktu region
Village Irrigation Perimeter
30-35 ha - 1 motor pump
Shared among 100 farmers
0.33 ha / farmers
SRI Story in Mali 2007 - 2011
• 2007: first farmer exploratory test: SRI: 9 t/ha vs 6.7t/ha
• 2008: 60 farmers in Timbuktu: 9.1t/ha vs 5.5 t/ha
• 2009: 450 farmers in 5 regions: 7.7 t/ha vs 4.5 t/ha
• 2010: Scaling up to new sites, more farmers/site and more acreage; numbers not yet known
• Feb 2011: National SRI Coordination Committee under the Ministry of Agriculture
SWI Pioneers in Mali, 2009
Village chief, Horogoungou with Africare extension officer; President of Agriculture cooperative in village of Hara Hara;Imam village of Douegoussou, Goundam and Dire Circles, Timbuktu region, Mali
First Farmer-led test of SWI in 2009
• Organic matter application of 10-15 t/ha
• Soil plowing and land leveling
• 3 treatments: – Direct seeding: 25 cm x 25 cm, 1 seed/hill,
seed soaking for 24 hours– Transplanting at the 2 leaf-stage– Control
•Use of Cono-weeder for soil aeration
System of Wheat Intensification (SWI)
• Seed reduction: 94% (10 vs 170 kg/ha)
• Yield increase: +10% (2.2 vs 2.0t/ha)
• Problems: mortality, spacing too large (25cm x 25cm)
• Labor reduction: 40 %• Irrigation water reduction: 30%
SWI: 10.2 cm Traditional: 4.2 cmPanicle length Number of tillers
18.4 3.7
System of Wheat Intensification, 20102nd year
SWI in Mali, 2011• No funding to date
• Africare agriculture extension agent Harouna Ibrahim continues to work with 20 farmers on SWI (in spare-time)
• Challenge to let people know about the importance of SWI
• Experience on SWI/SCI in Bihar and India is crucial for the rest of the world
Thank you!
SRI-Rice, Cornell University
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