Research and Development Towards Sustainable Agriculture by Resource-Poor Farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa: Some Strategic and Organisational Considerations in Linking Farmer Practical Needs with Policies and Scientific Theories

Sustainable agricultural development is presented as a diverse and dynamic process through which it copes with agro-ecological and socio-economic diversity at field level and with ever-changing needs and opportunities of (smallholder) farmers. In support, agricultural research—aimed at locally appropriate and environmentally friendly technologies—should contribute to bridging the currently increasing gaps between scientific theories and government agricultural policies as opposed to the practical field realities that farmers are facing.

These gaps are best illustrated by—what in the West is often presumed to be—a stagnant African agricultural (in reality it is not!) in spite of many ambitious policies and projects by national governments and international donors for several decades. Disappointing adoption rates by resource-poor smallholders of the proposed ‘modern’ agricultural technologies have often been blamed. However, the actual local systems are primarily based on ‘ecological’ and ‘organic’ concepts. Localised intensification through recycling of organic by-products is an integral part of such systems. Consequently, these systems are uniquely adapted to the diverse framer needs resulting from widespread variations in soil, climate and socio-economic conditions. By contrast most international R&D support for the African agricultural sector is aimed implicitly at creating a modern conventional system of farming based on external inputs and along a Western industrial model.

To cope with diverse and complex, location specific problems inherent in development, sustainability and poverty alleviation, requires strong national research and development (R&D) institutions that adopt comprehensive, people-centred approaches as opposed to the technocratic nature of most formal international development assistance. The development debate therefore should be turned around. The ‘existing’ smallholder farming systems and their needs should be a point of departure, while the various development initiatives and policies should be handled by including the related institutional aspects.     

The role of collaborations in the development and implementation of sustainable livestock concepts in The Netherlands

This paper discusses the role of collaborations in the development and implementation of sustainable livestock farming. The study reflects upon the experiences with two innovative pig farming concepts in the Netherlands that aim to address sustainability-related concerns regarding the economic viability, environmental impact and social responsibility of livestock production. The findings show that collaborations can result in smarter and innovative solutions and provide support in the development of more sustainable farming concepts. The study also shows that collaborations do not safeguard the implementing of these concepts in practice. Pioneers are confronted with higher production costs and the complex context of agricultural policies and regulations. These pioneering efforts are, however, the seeds for change, and the key ingredient for a transition towards more sustainable production. We rely upon their innovations, social networks and learning experiences in the transition towards more sustainable production. Therefore, pioneers need to be protected from market influences and regulatory barriers, and supported by intermediaries when developing novelties for a more sustainable agriculture. The findings emphasize the need for more knowledge exchange and understanding between farmers, policy-makers and researchers to navigate towards a more sustainable agriculture in the future.     

The rise of peri-urban aquaculture in Nigeria

The development of fish farming in Nigeria is traced from the colonial period through decades of mostly subsistence farming to large-scale commercial catfish farming today. Most African countries have encountered difficulties breaking into profitable commercial fish farming; however, Nigeria's strongly growing population at some 150 million and its very high demand for fish positioned the country on a much more strongly market-driven path based on commercial production in peri-urban areas. With investment in good management, selection of the hardy catfish for farming, development of intensively managed fish hatcheries and use of high quality fish feeds, farmers established a new model for raising fish in concrete tanks, which greatly reduced poaching and allowed farmers to get full return on their investment within one year. The paper details costs and benefits. With prospects of good profits, a number of medium-scale investors, invested in farming fish in tanks in ‘fish farming villages’ (also called fish farm estates) located in peri-urban areas near large markets, where several hundred tanks were cooperatively managed. With high demand and market prices, they were able to obtain credit, using professional business plans and security documentation required by lenders.     

Risk pooling cooperative games in contract farming

Contract farming can be an effective measure to deal with agricultural production risks. This study provides a two‐stage stochastic programming model to analyze farmers’ cooperation in the context of contract farming under uncertainty. It provides a fair cost allocation policy for a coalition of farmers using a stochastic linear duality approach. A fair cost allocation implies that no subset of farmers has an incentive to leave the coalition. Thus, a fair allocation policy ensures the stability of a coalition. Meanwhile, the risk pooling game is shown to have population monotonicity, which means that, every time a coalition adds a new member, each farmer within the coalition will incur a smaller cost. Hence, the population monotonicity gives an incentive for coalition expansion. Our results not only provide a simple way to design fair cost allocation policies for collaboration strategies in contract farming, but also play an important role in the sustainable development of farmers’ coalitions.     

Conditioning trends shaping the agricultural and rural landscape in Africa

African countries continue to face deepening food crises that have been accentuated by the global food, energy, and financial crises. This situation is part of a long‐term structural problem: decades of under‐investments in agricultural sector and poor policies of support for smallholder farmers who form the bulk of the farming population. The inability of these farmers to achieve a supply response when commodity prices were high and market access was less of a problem suggests that there are multiple sets of binding constraints that continue to limit the potential of agricultural growth to reduce food security and poverty on the continent. This article reviews some of the historical trends that have hampered the performance of the agriculture sector. In addition, it reviews the impacts of more positive trends that could stimulate agricultural growth in Africa that could change the African agricultural landscape. The article however warns that there are more recent global developments and some continental challenges that could prevent or slow agricultural growth. These include the global financial crisis, public sector investments, inequities in global agricultural development policies, rush for agricultural lands by foreign investors, domestic commercial financing markets, climate change, and emerging carbon markets. The article argues that while opportunities for accelerated growth exists for African agriculture, new sets of policy instruments will be needed to support smallholder farmers to access new agricultural technologies, finance, reduce impacts of climate change, and adopt sustainable land use practices that can allow them to benefit from emerging global carbon markets.     

Microfinance Interest Rates and Client Returns

The interest rates of microfinance institutions (MFIs) are widely criticized, although they are lower than those of many short‐term lenders in ‘developed’ countries. The criticisms are not usually related to the returns on micro‐investments. Little data is available, but earnings from farming seem generally to be below or little above the interest charged for microcredit. Returns from petty trade, a more frequent use of such credit, are well over the price that micro‐borrowers pay for their loans. Microfinance is not a replacement for subsidized farm credit; farming is subsidized, everywhere, and efforts should be made to improve and revive the provision of low‐cost agricultural finance.     

The novelty of simple and known technologies and the rhythm of farmer-centred innovation in family dairy farming in Brazil

Family dairy farming is under threat from the expansion of the sugarcane economy in south-eastern Brazil. This paper analyses an intervention programme which aimed to intensify dairy production and make family dairy farming sustainable in this competitive context. The case study of the ‘Balde Cheio’ Programme (Full Bucket) can be seen as an alternative method of knowledge generation to that of the dominant research approach which prioritizes cutting-edge technologies. This paper characterizes this farmer-oriented innovation programme for dairy farming systems, in which research, development and extension are seen as a long-term learning process. It analyses how the programme has been adapted to fit the diversity of situations found amongst farmers and to heterogeneous production conditions. The study relates the circulation of knowledge, the search for innovation by recombining apparently simple and known technologies, the use of experiments on the farm and the adaptation of the rhythm of innovation to the specific situation of the farm as the critical issues to achieve sustainable production systems.     

Part-time farming in the Federal Republic of Germany

Part-time farming is playing a growing role In the agricultural sector's response to changes In the economic structures of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and other western industrialized nations. The implications and fundamental reasons behind this trend have however been largely ignored by agricultural economists. This article sets out to discuss the relative importance of part-time farming in the FRG and the reasons for Its growth. The factors affecting demand for non-agricultural employment by former full-time farmers in a situation of overall underemployment are dealt with, along with the economic implications of this trend. The effects of these new sources of income on the agrarian population are outlined and the author suggests that the growth of part-time farming is yet another indication of the integration of the agricultural sector into the industrial economy.     

乡村旅游农耕文化的挖掘研究——以沂源三岔乡为例

农耕文化作为乡村旅游的精髓,其发掘程度及模式对乡村旅游发展规模及发展质量具有重要的促进意义。文章通过文献分析和系统调研,对农耕文化的特征及重要性进行简要阐述,探讨了沂源县三岔乡乡村旅游中以农家乐、休闲娱乐和民俗表演为住的3种农耕文化的发展模式,同时指出在文化挖掘过程中存在的农耕文化产业链不完善、乡土特色缺乏及经营模式落后等问题,最后从挖掘农耕资源,打造农耕文化产品;拓展农耕观光体验,加快农耕旅游发展;加强农耕文化宣传,创建优势文化品牌;转变农耕文化发掘模式,创新农耕文化运营体系等方面提出对策措施,以期为沂源县三岔乡农耕文化的发掘与推广提供一定的理论及实践借鉴。     

Exploring the motivations and problems of farmers for conversion to organic farming in Iran

Identifying and understanding the heterogeneity of the motivations and problems of farmers is critical for designing better strategies as societies strive to convert towards agricultural approaches such as organic farming and sustainable intensification. The objective of this research is to explore the motivations and problems for conversion to organic farming in Iran. Survey data of Iranian organic producers were collected during the first half of 2015. These data were used to find the statistical determinants of motivations and problems for organic production. Results suggest that economic motivations, health, safety concerns and environmental issues are the predominant motives for conversion, while social and ethical motives are of lesser importance. Problems experienced during conversion relate to marketing, agronomic issues, lack of governmental and institutional support, negative pressure from other farmers and farm groups, and lack of physical and financial capital. To prosper, the Iranian organic sector must overcome fundamental economic problems and challenges. Some of the strategies recommended include the development and scaling up of sustainable intensification, strategies that encourage farmers’ markets and community-supported agriculture (CSA) initiatives, and sustainable procurement.     

Economic Meltdown in Malaysia

Abstract

The economic downturn in Malaysia has encouraged a debate on the benefits of its export-oriented industrialisation strategy. There is renewed interest in the agricultural and livestock sectors. One of the beneficiaries of this policy change could be the dairy farming sector. Using desktop research and ‘key-informant’ techniques, this study reviews various factors that could influence the development of the dairy farming sector in Malaysia. The study concludes that the (a) Government may encourage the start-up of integrated plantation crop, animal feed and livestock farms, (b) investment and trade linkages with neighbouring countries could lead to diversification of import sources, and (c) consumption of dairy products may have matured, leading to increases in dairy self-sufficiency. It is postulated that these developments will produce a dynamic environment and significant threats to the interests of traditional dairy exporting countries.     

Further participatory adaptation is required for community leaders to champion conservation agriculture in Africa

There is a recognized need for the participation of local communities in designing and implementing agricultural interventions for the sustainable intensification in smallholder systems. This study examines the perspectives of local community leaders towards the widely promoted, but not widely adopted, practice of Conservation Agriculture (CA) in African smallholder systems. Perceptions from 47 community leaders (both from traditional local authorities and farmer organizations) across six African countries are documented regarding how CA matches the wants, needs and capabilities of farmers in their communities. While community leaders generally perceived CA as potentially beneficial, they also indicated that CA is not currently perceived as feasible within their communities and hence has limited relevance. Three key themes were identified that limit both CA use and sustainable intensification more generally: [1] a perceived reluctance of farmers to engage with the community platform as part of a higher input, market-oriented production system; [2] informational constraints due to non-functional exchange mechanisms; and [3] a lack of local adaptation of CA underscored by the persistence of top-down, linear research and extension approaches. Through greater understanding of local perspectives, a clearer picture emerges of the need for greater participatory engagement and local adaptation if sustainable intensification of African smallholder agricultural systems is to be achieved.     

Exploring farmer perceptions of agricultural innovations for maize-legume intensification in the mid-hills region of Nepal

Maize-legume intercropping is a fundamental component of mixed farming systems in the mid-hills of Nepal. However, its productivity is constrained by several biophysical and social factors, and limited adoption of proven agricultural innovations. In this study, we assessed the productivity impact of a selection of relevant agricultural innovations and changes in the associated perceptions of farmers through a series of two-year participatory on-farm trials. The evaluated innovations resulted in higher yields as compared to farmers' current practices. The active involvement of farmers enlarged our understanding of underlying decision-making factors to adopt or non-adopt agricultural innovations. Additionally, the in-depth farmer engagement in our onfarm trials positively influenced farmer perceptions of the innovations and their interest to adopt the agricultural innovations. Yet, farmers final decisions to adopt some of the evaluated innovations were limited by a host of factors including labour scarcity, the availability of inputs, and by cultural preferences despite the increased yields. This was particularly true for low and medium resource-endowed farmers. This study shows the importance of active farmer participation and context-specific design of research and development projects aiming for local impact.     

劳动力禀赋、耕地破碎化与农户生态耕种决策行为

[目的]为清晰识别影响农户生态耕种决策行为的影响因素,为我国农业可持续发展,加快耕地数量、质量和生态“三位一体”保护目标的实现提供参考。[方法]文章利用江西省11市47县（区）共1 488份农户的调研数据,从农户劳动力禀赋结构转变和小农生产造成耕地破碎的两大社会现象切入,采用双栏模型将农户生态耕种决策行为分为采纳意愿和采纳程度两个阶段进行实证分析研究。[结果]（1）以中位数为划分依据,有生态耕种采纳意愿的农户数占样本总数的67.20%,有采纳意愿的农户对10项具体生态耕种行为的平均采纳数为5.323项;（2）家庭总人口对农户生态耕种采纳意愿与采纳程度均呈负相关、劳动力人数均呈正相关,兼业程度对农户生态耕种采纳程度呈正相关,耕地破碎化对农户生态耕种采纳意愿呈负相关;（3）农户生态耕种决策行为还受到受教育程度、农业收入占比、是否加入合作社、是否享受农业补贴等因素影响。[结论]政府及相关管理部门一方面应注重农户临时务工平台搭建,拓展相关信息视野以提升生态耕种采纳度;另一方面应规范和推动土地流转与土地整治,促进土地规模化经营,降低破碎度。     

Trade‐offs in the performance of alternative farming systems

Numerous alternative farming systems are proposed as solutions to the sustainability challenges of today's conventional farming systems. In this paper, we review the production, environmental, and socioeconomic performance of three widely discussed and promoted alternative farming systems—organic, smallholder, and urban agriculture. We show that both organic and smallholder agricultures have some benefits, but also entail important trade‐offs; organic has environmental benefits, and also livelihood, health, and nutritional benefits for producers and consumers, but is hampered by lower yields and higher prices. Smaller farms have higher yields and host higher biodiversity, but are hampered by lower incomes to farmers. Urban agriculture can take some pressure off rural landscapes, provide nutritional benefits to the urban poor, and engage urban dwellers in addressing food system challenges, but it simply cannot scale up to be a substantial solution in and of itself. We suggest that instead of focusing on alternative systems, we should identify pathways to sustainable farming for all systems, reforming conventional systems where they perform poorly, and transitioning to alternative systems in contexts where they perform best.     

潮州市体验式乡村旅游的农耕文化发展研究

[目的]农耕文化是中国传统文化的重要组成部分,随着文化旅游的迅猛发展,农耕文化与乡村旅游的有机结合,对于保护、传承中国文化以及促进乡村旅游的健康持续发展具有重要的现实意义。[方法]通过文献查阅及相关资料的收集全面了解潮州市体验式乡村旅游、农耕文化等方面的研究成果,通过实地调查总结归纳潮州市乡村自然资源、农耕文化、民俗文化等基本乡村旅游资源,同时通过问卷调查分析游客对潮州市体验式乡村旅游的满意度,农耕文化的参与性及选择体验式乡村旅游农耕文化的目的等。[结果]潮州市乡村旅游农耕文化类型主要包括农家乐、民俗村、古村落及梯田等类型,且绝大部分游客对目前潮州体验式乡村旅游持满意态度,34.1%的游客选择体验农耕文化乡村旅游是为了参与农业劳动的过程,27.7%的游客选择农耕文化旅游是为了体验劳动的快乐,但目前潮州特有的茶文化和畲族文化等地方特色农耕文化开发力度不够,没有得到充分利用。[结论]利用农耕文化所蕴藏的内涵,形成具有乡村特色的旅游产品,为游客提供有品位的身心体验,增强乡村旅游地的独特吸引力,同时加强农耕文化保护,保证体验式乡村旅游的健康持续发展,进而获得理想的经济效益和社会效益。     

A trait-based model of the potential demand for a genetically engineered food crop in a developing economy

We predict the potential demand of smallholder farmers for genetically transformed varieties of a food crop, the cooking banana of the East African highlands. Farmer demand for planting material is derived in an agricultural household model that accounts for variety traits and missing markets. The demand for candidate host varieties is predicted using a Zero‐Inflated Poisson (ZIP) regression system. The fitted model is used to illustrate the sensitivity of farmer demand for improved planting material to (a) investments in research and development, represented by the effectiveness of gene insertion and expression, and (b) other public investments in education, extension, and market infrastructure that support diffusion. By comparing the characteristics of agricultural households we demonstrate that the choice of host variety can have social consequences, favoring one rural population compared with another. Clients for transgenic banana planting material are likely to be poorer, subsistence‐oriented farmers in areas greatly affected by biotic constraints. A model of this type might be useful in assessing the investments needed to support the systematic dissemination of improved planting material. The approach can be generalized to other crop biotechnologies for smallholder farming systems, particularly in developing economies.     

Beyond the agroecological and sustainable agricultural intensification debate: Is blended sustainability the way forward?

With the sustainable development goals has come a renewed global interest in ending hunger and achieving food security, while preventing natural resource degradation. Despite this renewed interest and increased commitments to invest in agricultural development, there is an outstanding debate over the technological trajectories to sustainability. The debate centres on sustainable agricultural intensification (SAI) and agroecological intensification (AEI) pathways to agricultural sustainability. Using a systematic literature review approach, this study examines the debate over AEI and SAI. This study employs a theoretical framework based on the economic, social, and ecological dimensions of sustainable agriculture within a policy and institutional space. Based on the sustainability dimensions, a discourse analytical technique is applied to unravel the debate. The results reveal differences in actor composition in the SAI and AEI pathways. Both pathways aim to promote food security with optimal and sustainable use of inputs; however, the actors differ on discourse relating to the concept of farming, the role of genetic engineering, the scale of operation, land use and soil health. Resolving these differences requires a blended sustainability approach that moves beyond the current AEI and SAI debate by acknowledging the tradeoffs and synergies of the socio-economic and ecological dimensions.     

A comparative multidimensional evaluation of conservation agriculture systems: A case study from a Mediterranean area of Southern Italy

To avoid the current paradoxes of the global agro-food system it is necessary to define and implement a viable agricultural sustainable model, combining satisfaction of food needs and land preservation. A possible solution can be found in a holistic production system consistent with a sustainable development model, designed to satisfy diverse “local” economies. The conservation agriculture (CA) could be a part of this model, as it includes a set of best practices available to preserve agrarian soil and its biodiversity. Briefly, we cover the CA background in Europe followed by the evaluation of its impact in terms of private/public interest, using the sustainability’s metric.To test the viability of a model based on CA in “local conditions”, we compare economic performance of different conservation practices (i.e. minimum and no tillage) to that of conventional agriculture in a typical Mediterranean environment – Collina Materana – in Southern Italy (Basilicata region). Our findings suggest that: i) CA can actually be a viable alternative to conventional systems; ii) in Mediterranean agricultural areas CA has yield advantages especially during dry years, when conservation techniques increase water supply to crops; iii) public support is needed to direct farming choices in fact without financial incentives these practices would be not widely accepted and diffused; iv) European policy makers have to recognized the positive benefits of CA and pay them as ecosystem services in the framework of Good Agricultural Environmental Conditions and the present CAP subsidies.     

Conflicts in land use in Zimbabwe: Political, economic and environmental perspectives

Major conflicts have developed between and within the two main farming systems in Zimbabwe, especially over the past thirty or so years. Since independence in 1980 policies have favoured expropriation of land from commercial farms to resettle peasant farmers as a means of relieving ‘land hunger’ in the peasant sector. This article argues that that is a very simplistic view of current land-use problems, and that resettlement programmes are only a partial solution to the immense problems within the peasant sector. These are the product of a complex history of development incorporating political, economic and environmental issues. The article outlines the main features of this development so that a more balanced perspective on current problems can be achieved and so that more appropriate strategies to tackle the problems can be devised.