Why do medium- and large-scale farmers succeed practicing CA and small-scale farmers often do not? – experiences from Paraguay

Conservation agriculture (CA) is defined as a system comprising no or minimum mechanical soil disturbance, permanent organic soil cover, and crop species diversification [FAO. (2014). What is Conservation Agriculture? FAO CA website, consulted on 15.09.2014. Retrieved September 15, 2014, from http://www.fao.org/ag/ca/1a.html]. The vast majority of medium- and large-scale farmers in Paraguay and neighbouring countries (Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay) who use tractor-based farming systems have moved from conventional agriculture and adopted CA through no-tillage technologies. Among this farmer type, very few wish to return to the old system of tillage agriculture. However, despite massive efforts to transmit the technology to small-scale farmers by development aid projects and local governments, widespread adoption of CA has not happened on farms that use animal traction or manual farming systems; in fact significant dis-adoption of CA practices by smallholders has occurred. Some of the reasons for this dynamic are analysed in this paper. The reasons for dis-adoption by small-scale farmers can be generally divided into two groups. One group has to do with the fact that, comparatively, small-scale farmers are less able to cope with the factors related to CA (e.g. degraded soils, recuperating and maintaining soil fertility and know-how) than medium- and large-scale farmers. The second group of reasons has to do with the approaches and strategies that development aid agencies and local governments have taken towards small-scale farmers, which have influenced small-scale farmers’ ability to adopt and maintain CA practices. Small-scale farmers’ main asset is the soil and the CA/no-tillage system is a knowledge-based, learning-intensive system. However, despite the technical support provided by aid agencies and local governments, small-scale farmers often lack a deeper understanding of the CA concepts and practices. This is attributable to the short- to medium-term and rather conservative transfer-of-technology approaches that have been applied by development aid agency and local government programmes over the years, without any changes and without adaptive research. The latter can be derived, for instance, from the accountability of results to donor agencies or the one-size-fits-all approach applied in order to achieve ‘numbers’. One consequence of this is that ownership by and empowerment of farmers is often absent among dis-adopters. It therefore seems more suitable to apply long term, adaptable approaches to CA with smallholders. The lessons learned in Paraguay may well serve to properly direct future development intervention efforts in this country and also serve to mend development strategies in other countries in South and Central America, Africa or Asia.     

How do Agricultural Programmes Alter Crop Production? Evidence from Ecuador

Evaluating agricultural programmes requires considering not only the programmes’ influence on input and output indicators, but also considering the relationship between these indicators as embodied in the production technology. This article examines the impact on production of an intervention in the Ecuadorian Sierra designed to improve returns to potato production through training and through linking smallholders to high‐value markets. Critical to identifying the impact of the programme is the careful construction of a counterfactual and meticulous data collection. To assess the impact of the programme on production, a weighted estimation, where weights are constructed through propensity score matching, is employed to estimate a production function within a damage abatement framework. The function incorporates a series of interaction terms to assess the impact of the programme on the production technology. The findings provide evidence that the programme enhances yields both through a general shift in technology as well as increased input use. The results suggest that the use of effective farming techniques that are learned through the programme induce this technological shift.     

Smallholder cooperatives and agricultural performance in Rwanda: do organizational differences matter?

Agricultural policies in Rwanda focus on agricultural intensification and increased market orientation of the smallholder farm sector. Cooperatives are seen as key vehicles in this, but little is known about their effectiveness to achieve these goals. In this article, we analyze the impact of cooperative membership on the agricultural performance of rural households in Rwanda. We use cross‐sectional survey data, collected in 2012, to analyze the impact of cooperative membership on different agricultural performance indicators, including indicators on agricultural intensification, market orientation, farm revenue, and income. We use several econometric techniques to deal with potential selection bias in estimating the impact of cooperative membership, including a proxy variable method based on a willingness to pay measure and propensity score matching methods. We find that cooperative membership in general has a positive impact on farm performance but these effects are driven by specific types of cooperatives.     

科技兴农,促进农业持续,稳定,协调发展

赵紫阳同志在全国农村工作会议上强调指出:“发展农业生产要靠政策、靠科技、靠投入”。这“三靠”是在总结我国农业生产正反两方面经验的基础上提出的。农业科学技术在发展农业生产中起着非常重要的作用。每一次农业科学技术的进步,都有效地促进了农业生产的迅速发展。每一个新的农业科研成果在农业生产中的应用,都使农业科学技术转化为巨大的生产力,创造出大量的物质财富,促进整个国民经济的发展。农业生产在先进的农业科学技术的指导下,任何生产要素都可以进行科学的组合,以最少的人力、物力、财力,在一定的耕地而积上,生产出更多的产品,创造出更多的财富,获得最大的经济效益。     

马铃薯,甜瓜,糯玉米,大白菜,茼蒿,冬青菜多熟立体高效复种

马铃薯与甜瓜、糯玉米、大白菜、茼蒿及各青菜的间套种，是理想的多熟立体高效复种模式，经济、社会效益极为显著，其复种要占．合理布局，优化良种通常择地势高爽、排灌良好、肥沃疏松的砂质壤上，于播栽前结合耕翻施肥。通常春马铃薯选用早熟、优质、高产、抗病的品种。甜瓜选用优质、高产、抗病的“伊丽沙白”、“海冬青”及“梨瓜”等。糯玉米选用早熟、优质、高产的“沪糯一号”、“鲁糯玉1号”等。大白菜选用早熟、优质、耐热的“夏丰”、“夏舒”及“八月早”等。茼蒿选用优质、高产的大叶型种。冬青菜选用“矮杂3号”等优质、高产的…     

米缸,米缸,米缸

正在那间昏暗不明的灶房里,母亲以缓慢无声的姿态,靠近了那只立在墙角处,挺着圆鼓鼓大肚子的米缸,继而将一只干硬的鸡爪似的手伸了进去——她是想从米缸里掏出一点微笑来,然而掏出的却是一声叹息……这是母亲在我童年岁月里反复上演的一个情境。因其反复多次而在我的记忆里生了根,无法与如水的时间和解。母亲的反反复复,不厌其烦,目的很简单:我们活着每天都需要吃饭,需要向米缸索取粮食。是的,你已经注意到了:我"吃饭"的时间量词是"天",而不是"一日三     

改革,发展,稳定

目前,国企改革已到了决战阶段,在关系国合企业生死存亡的关键时刻。作为供销社来讲,必须坚持以改革统揽全局,抓管理上效益,才能促发展保稳定,顺利实现解困、发展、振兴的预期目标。 一、充分认识改革的必要性和重要性,加快现代企业制度建设步伐。转换企业经营机制 企业制度不适应市场经济的要求,企业经营机制不活,是影响企业竞争力的深     

艺术,不作为,政治

[注]译自Giorgio Agamben,"Art,Inactivity,Politics",inThinking Worlds The Moscow Conference on Philosophy,Politics,andArt(《思想世界:莫斯科哲学、政治学和艺术研讨会》),NY,Sternberg Press,2008.p.197-204近三年来我的研究一直聚焦于可被描述为经济与治理的神学系谱的那种东西。我试图展示当前经济与治理在社会生活一切领域上的支配,是在早几个世纪的基督教神学中,在——为协调单子论和三位一体——神学家把三位一体呈现为某种神圣的"经济",作为上帝组织与治理神圣生命与被造世界的方式的时候,是如何取得(形成)其范式的。     

市场,艺术,奇观

也许＂艺术市场＂永远对我而言,是个谜,因为毕竟从未有完全投入其中的经历,长年的理论分析和数据整理毕竟是纸上谈兵、表面文章,极有可能是最表面的、最经不起推敲的部分,必需深入其中才可得窥究竟、高下与深浅。     

总结经验,发展成绩,克服困难,团结奋斗,努力开创粮食工作新局面

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积极引导乡镇企业调整,整顿,改造,提高

党的十一届三中全会以来,在中央一系列正确方针,政策指导下,乡镇企业以其特有的活力迅速地改变着我国的经济结构、产业结构和整个农村的面貌。如今,乡镇企业已成为我国国民经济的重要组成部分,成为振兴我国农村经济的必由之路。1989年我国乡镇企业总产值达7350亿元,占农村社会总产值的60％,占全国社会总产值的25％;乡镇工业总产值5100亿元,占全国工业总产值的30％,为国家创汇100亿美元,占全国出口创汇的19％;向国家缴纳税金360亿元,占国家财政收入的12.8％。这     

2018,再出发,在此刻,从此地

正苟日新,日日新,又日新。迎面而来的2018年,又是一个新的节点、一个新的年头!刚刚过去的2017年,党的十九大报告首次提出乡村振兴战略并写入党章,将促进乡村发展提上了前所未有的高度,乡村社会必将由此迎来历史性的重大发展机遇。作为一本面向广大农民读者甚至更多领域的杂志,我们振奋之余,更深感责任重大,任重道远。