Key lessons from international experiences about conservation agriculture and considerations for its implementation in dry areas

Land scarcity and soil degradation in dry areas are increasingly recognized and being documented. Their impact on the livelihood .of people and the resilience of ecosystems is a source of growing concern. Alternative land management practices and strategies are needed to mitigate/reverse currènt negative trends. Conservation agriculture (CA) may contribute to this goal. Indeed, CA emerged historically in response to soil erosion crises and their negative economic consequences. The adaptation of CA in diverse situations, inc1uding small-scale farming, ·of rainfed and irrigated agriculture has given way to developing various CA systems spanning a wide array of practices ranging from reduced tillage (RT) to no-tillage (NT) with varying degrees and means of soil coyer. CA is perceived as a powerful tool of land management in dry areas. It allows farmers to improve their productivity and profitability especially in dry years while conserving and even improving the natural resource base and the environment. However, CA adaptation indrylands faces critical challenges linked to water scarcity and drought hazard, low biomass production and acute competition between conflicting uses inc1uding soil coyer, animal fodder, cooking/heating fuel, raw material for habitat etc. Poverty and vulnerability of many smallholders that rely more on livestock than on green production are other key factors. This paper builds on selected lessons from a wealth of international experiences with the development, fine-tuning and dissemination of CA-based systems, their known drivers, constraints and impacts, to address the potential and challenges of CA in dry areas. It suggests ways and means that may he1p in designing and shaping alternative programs, tools and strategies aimed at sustainable land management in dry areas. (Résumé d'auteur

Involvement of small-scale dairy farms in an industrial supply chain: When production standards meet farm diversity

In certain contexts, dairy firms are supplied by small-scale family farms. Firms provide a set of technical and economic recommendations meant to help farmers meet their requirements in terms of the quantity and quality of milk collected. This study analyzes how such recommendations may be adopted by studying six farms in Brazil. All farms are beneficiaries of the country's agrarian reforms, but they differ in terms of how they developed their activities, their resources and their milk collection objectives. First, we built a technical and economic benchmark farm based on recommendations from a dairy firm and farmer advisory institutions. Our analysis of the farms' practices and technical and economic results show that none of the farms in the sample apply all of the benchmark recommendations; however, all farms specialized in dairy production observe the main underlying principles with regard to feeding systems and breeding. The decisive factors in whether the benchmark is adopted and successfully implemented are (i) access to the supply chain when a farmer establishes his activity, (ii) a grasp of reproduction and forage production techniques and (iii) an understanding of dairy cattle feed dietary rationing principles. The technical problems observed in some cases impact the farms' dairy performance and cash position; this can lead to a process of disinvestment. This dynamic of farms facing production standards suggests that the diversity of specialized livestock farmers should be taken into account more effectively through advisory approaches that combine basic zootechnical training with assistance in planning farm activities over the short and medium term. (Résumé d'auteur

What are the strategies and steps to build-up a dairy system in a harsh environment? The case of smallholder dairy farmers of Unaí - Brazil.

In the district of Unaí (Minas Gerais, Brazil), smallholder farmers face numerous challenges such as restricted access to land, capital and labor, weak collective organization and climatic constraints. Yet, they are eager to access local markets to sustain their livelihoods and are ready to adapt their production systems in different ways to overcome the above constraints and achieve their place in existing productive supply chains. The dairy sector offers them a unique opportunity to achieve their goals. To understand how small holder farmers in Unaí took their place themselves in the dairy sector, we interviewed 24 smallholder farmers that deliver milk for the local cooperative. Our aim was to analyze the trajectories they followed from installation up to now in order to build specialized dairy production systems. Trajectories differ in terms of the feeding strategies and sources of feed for cows in the dry periods; of the breeds used for milk production; of the sources of financial resources for investment in the production system; of the relative synchronization of milk production in dry and wet periods, among others. This variability is related to how much smallholder farmers try to provide security to their systems, and in doing so, decrease its vulnerability both to internal and external events. (Résumé d'auteur

Climate smart strategies to strengthened coffee farmers adaptive capacity to climate change. [P74]

In the last 30 years Kenya's national coffee production decreased by about 70%. In some areas like Muranga County, the decline was up to fivefold and coffee is now replaced by food crops in lower altitudes due to erratic rainfall and increased temperature. Projected mean temperature increase between 3ºC and 4ºC may result in yield losses of 8 - 22 percent by 2050 unless climate smart adaptation practices are undertaken. Adaptation depends on farmers noticing climate change has indeed affected them and perceiving the need for, and benefits from new production strategies. However, there is marked difference in the way scientists and farmers perceive climate change and how it affects agriculture. Therefore, this study aims to: 1) explore how cropping systems are changing; 2) analyse how scientists and farmers respectively perceive climate change; 3) present farm-level adaptation strategies and how climate smart strategies strengthen adaptive capacity of farmers. The study is based on interview of 120 farmers and collection of meteorological data. The data were analyzed in four directions: (1) farmers' perceptions about climate change, (2) trends for temperature and rainfall over 30 years, (3) relations between farmers' perception and climate data, (4) identification of adaptation strategies and adaptive capacity based on livelihood adaptation frameworks. The results revealed 1) 91 percent of the farmers perceived climate has changed, observing extended warmer seasons, changes in onset and cessation of rainfall which is indeed supported by meteorological data. 2) Only 54 percent of farmers are responding to the perceived changes, introducing climate smart practices such as varietal change, intercropping, irrigation and crop-livestock mixed farming. 3) Access to finance, human capacity building and information on weather are vital to strengthen farmers' adaptive capacity. We recommend further researches on future suitable places for coffee, with business as usual and climate smart practices to predict future winners and losers. (Texte intégral

Bilan des dispositifs de recherche en partenariat au Burkina Faso

International audienceCe bilan des dispositifs de recherche en partenariat au Burkina Faso s'inscrit dans une quête d'expériences de plateformes d'innovation sur lesquelles s'inspirer afin de développer des outils de renforcement et d'animation des plateformes de co-innovations du projet européen ABACO (agroecology based aggradation and conservation agriculture). Cet article vise à faire le bilan de la diversité des dispositifs de recherche permettant d'impliquer les acteurs de terrain dans la conception et la diffusion des innovations agropastorales. Pour collecter les données, une grille de lecture contenant des variables relatives à l'organisation, à la composition et à la gouvernance des dispositifs de recherche ainsi qu'à la communication a été appliquée pour analyser trois dispositifs de recherche en partenariat à travers 13 projets de recherche dans le domaine agropastoral : le champ école des producteurs (CEP), le cadre de concertation villageois (CCV) et la plateforme d'innovation. Le CEP est caractérisé par une structuration en sous groupes et un partenariat informel. Le CCV est caractérisé par une structuration pyramidale et la présence d'outils formels de gouvernance. La plateforme d'innovation est caractérisée par une absence de structuration interne et l'existence d'outils de gouvernance. Ces trois dispositifs trouvent leurs fondements théoriques et épistémologiques dans les théories de l'action, enracinées dans la sociologie compréhensive de Max Weber. Mais, en raison du fort pilotage des activités sur le terrain par la recherche, ces dispositifs peinent à atteindre leur objectif qui est d'associer les acteurs de terrain dans la conception et la diffusion des innovations agropastorales