Integrated agricultural production systems for the poor and vulnerable in dry areas

IFAD-Funded Regional Project:

“Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”

An Overview

Marwan Owaygen

October 21/2014

Amman, Jordan


Overall Goal:

Enhance smallholder farmers’ livelihoods through innovative research to business platform.

Specific Objectives:

1. Develop gender responsive profitable and climate change - proof best-bet options/models of tested and proven technology options.

2. Facilitate the institutional and policy environment for an accelerated scaling up of these technologies.

Geographical coverage: Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, and Yemen

Budget and Duration: 1.5 million US$, two years (March 2014 – March 2016)


Main Partners:

Egypt: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Agricultural Research Center (ARC)

Eritrea: Ministry of Agriculture, National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI), and Hamelmalo College of Agriculture

Ethiopia: Ministry of Agriculture, Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR), and Amhara Regional Agricultural Research Institute (ARARI)

Kenya: Ministry of Agriculture, Kenya Agriculture Research Institute (KARI)

Sudan: Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Agricultural Research Corporation (ARC)

Yemen: Ministry of Agriculture & Irrigation, Agricultural Research and Extension Authority (AREA)

Selection of intervention sites:

The selected intervention sites, except for Eritrea, have been within the target areas of an IFAD on going project. Operational linkages have been developed with these projects in the form of in kind contributions and involvement of their extension staff.


Strong multidisciplinary: Multi-institutional research and development country teams coordinated by a senior scientist have been established drawing on expertise from NARSs.


According to countries’ work plan for Year I the technologies to be prioritized and validated technically and economically can be grouped under three categories: Improved crop varieties and agronomic practices: Wheat (Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Yemen), chickpea (Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan), barley (Eritrea), crop rotation and intensification (Egypt). Water saving technologies: Pipe conveyance system (Sudan). Improved livestock production: Breeding (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Yemen), supplementary feeding practices (Sudan, Yemen), improved vetch production (Ethiopia), silage making from crop residues (Egypt), uptake of feed block (Eritrea), improving veterinary services (Eritrea).


Field interventions in Phase I:

Improved new wheat varieties + agronomic practices (planting time, fertilizer, raised bed)

Urea treatment for wheat straw

Crop rotation and intensification

Silage from corn and sorghum

EGYPT


EGYPT

Linkages with IFAD projects in Upper Egypt:

1.On-farm Irrigation Development Project in the Old Lands (OFIDO 2010-2018)

2.Promotion of Rural Incomes through Market Enhancement Project (2012-2020)



SUDAN

On-farm demonstration and yield maximization plots of wheat and winter grain legumes

Mineral and concentrate supplementation to lactating animals

Sheep fattening

Demonstration of small-scale irrigation water savings schemes (pipe conveyance, drip irrigation and sprinkler irrigation systems)


SUDAN

Irrigated area along lower Atbara River was selected as target site for interventions.

Butana Integrated Rural Development Project is operating in the same area.

Linkages with IFAD projects

The project networked and knowledge sharing system was established with Butana Project.


YEMEN


Improving crop management:

Introducing to farmers newly released wheat and lentil varieties; fertilization, seed rate and irrigation recommendations were the main interventions to improve crop management.

- Introducing pure breed of goat to farmer communities

Improving livestock production:

- Introducing feeding diets to improve level of nutrition

- Introducing new cereal forage crop

Linkages with IFAD projects:

Rainfed Agriculture and Livestock Project (2009 - 2014)

ETHIOPIA


Field interventions in Phase I (Gedemso and Gumara sites)

Improved horticulture production (onion, tomato, pepper, potato)

Improved field crop production (wheat, barley, Maize, tef, chick pea, faba bean)

Improved livestock production:

(Introduction of forage species for grazing, artificial insemination, community- based small ruminant breeding, bee keeping)

Community- Based Integrated Natural Resources Management Project (2010 - 2017)

Linkages with IFAD projects:

Research-to-Business Model:

Scaling up Through a Value Chain Approach

ERITREA

1. How to incorporate the rural poor into value chains?

2. How poor people can change the terms of incorporation to increase the benefits of enterprise to small-scale producers at the upstream end of the chain?

-Horizontal coordination (as one form of upgrading strategies, aiming at addressing shared constraints, interests and entry barriers associated with scale, such as weak negotiating power, high transaction costs, low output, and lack of capital)

-Vertical coordination (as a second form of upgrading strategies involving moving along the continuum from one-off spot transactions toward longer-term relationships between actors in different functional nodes).

Eritrea: Increasing wheat productivity (2 to 3 fold) through improved varieties and agronomic practices

Vertical Coordination (Contract farming)

Small Producers of Improved Wheatand Agronomic Practices(Horizontal Coordination)

Milling Factory

Eritrea: Towards Achieving Impact at Scale

Environment

Integrated agricultural production systems for the poor and vulnerable in dry areas