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The Impact of War on Agrifood Entrepreneurs in Sudan: Gendered Insights from Participatory Action Research in Kassala and Gadarif States

Written by dmedina on . Posted in Publications.

Introduction

CIMMYT, through the USAID-funded Sustainable Agrifood Systems Approach for Sudan (SASAS) program, empowers farmers and herders to reduce their reliance on humanitarian assistance, even in conflict-affected Sudan, where over 10 million people have been displaced and livelihoods across the country have been severely impacted. Improving agricultural value chains and agribusiness development is one of the five broad intervention areas of the SASAS program.

Several SASAS program partners support agribusiness development by working directly with micro-, small-, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), which act as intermediaries between large firms and smallholder farmers, facilitating farmers’ access to inputs and promoting national food security. The critical role and challenges faced by agricultural MSMEs have been exacerbated by the ongoing civil war in Sudan. Due to pre-existing gender norms, the impact may differ between women and men entrepreneurs. SASAS implementing partners urgently need up-to-date, ground-level insights into the key business challenges. This includes understanding which businesses are existing and why, identifying promising and actionable coping strategies adopted by agrifood entrepreneurs, and capturing MSME owners’ perspectives on the priority interventions needed to support them.

To provide SASAS partners with critical evidence to inform their development activities with agricultural MSMEs, a team of CIMMYT researchers conducted semi-structured interviews in May 2024 with 20 women and 20 men agrifood enterprise owners residing in Kassala and Gadarif states. The findings from this research were documented in reports. The next phase of the CIMMYT team’s participatory action research focused on holding results dissemination meetings in each of the two states. The purpose of these meetings was to share study findings with research participants and SASAS partners, Mercy Corps and Practical Action, and provide an opportunity for feedback. This feedback helps clarify and validate the study findings and is central to the CIMMYT team’s approach to generating nuanced, contextually based lessons that inform the programming of SASAS partners working with agribusinesses.

Attendance at results dissemination meetings and perceptions of participants

The results dissemination meetings brought together SASAS development partners and MSME owners (research participants). In Kassala, 20 agrifood entrepreneurs (10 women and 10 men), along with several representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), the Humanitarian Aid Commission (HAC), and local Kassala communities, attended the meeting. CIMMYT’s partner, Practical Action, co-organized the session. In Gadarif, 13 agrifood entrepreneurs (10 women and 3 men) were joined by representatives from the MoA and local community leaders for the results dissemination meeting, hosted by CIMMYT’s partner Mercy Corps. Participants in both states engaged actively in open discussions about the research findings, offering valuable feedback, while also helping to validate and refine the results.

Participants in the research results dissemination meeting –in Kassala actively participate in the group work (Photo: Mohamed Abdulmajid/CIMMYT)

After introductions and an icebreaker, the results dissemination meetings turned into a brief presentation of key study findings facilitated by CIMMYT’s MEL consultant, Mudar Ahmed. Participants in both meetings listened intently, and their initial feedback conveyed the relevance of the study results to their lives. For instance, when asked about the applicability of the study findings, one participant in Kassala said, “The research on the impact of war on women and men agrifood entrepreneurs is valuable as it gathers various perspectives on how war has affected our work, outlines the challenges we face, identifies coping mechanisms, and offers suggestions to overcome the current bottleneck.”

Social norms influencing women’s and men’s participation in the agrifood sector

One of the factors influencing CIMMYT’s selection of Gadarif and Kassala states as study sites, aside from the relatively stable security situation and concentration of agrifood enterprises, was the interesting contrast the two states offer in terms of women’s participation in the labor market and (agricultural) business operation, with women in Gadarif generally being more active. During the meetings, participants were asked to elaborate on these gender dynamics and how they play out in their lives.

A female participant in Kassala state explained this regional difference in gendered agricultural roles and shared insights into how and why it is changing over time, “In Gadarif most of the agricultural activities are rainfed and farms are in remote areas, limiting the number of women in cultivation activities. However, more and more women cooperatives are active in agriculture and many of them get loans from funding institutions and receive technical support from women’s empowerment institutions.  The main challenge that hinders more women from participating in agricultural activities in Gadarif is that rainfed cultivation requires a lot of financial resources that women cannot access. In Kassala, although the community is more conservative and many believe that women need to stay at home and not to go out for work, more and more women are active in agricultural activities, including manual weed control and harvesting. Now thousands of women in Kassala are active in vegetable production and processing like drying okra and onions.”

Participants further explained that while there are differences in occupational gender dynamics in different states, in general, women farmers in Sudan face major barriers to agricultural entrepreneurship regardless of location. However, some highlighted ongoing improvements towards gender equality. A female participant in Gadarif had this to say: “Most agricultural land is inherited or assigned by authorities, often excluding women from ownership. However, as more women become active agrifood entrepreneurs, many have purchased farms, and several women’s cooperatives have gained access to these lands.”

Participants in the results dissemination meeting in Gadarif (Photo: Mohamed Abdulmajid/CIMMYT)
War-related challenges to daily business operations

One of the top discussion points at the meetings, was the war-related challenges to participants’ daily business operations.

A male agricultural input dealer in Gadarif noted, “Since the conflict began, prices for agricultural inputs have soared and availability has decreased, leaving us without funding and diminished profits. Many of our customers have exited agriculture and stopped purchasing from us, resulting in significant stagnation. To mitigate the adverse effects of the war on our business, we have sought joint ventures with other dealers to cut operational costs and are looking for funding to revive our operations.”

A female agrifood entrepreneur in Kassala described how internal displacement during the war has strained her business, driven by a sense of obligation to help those most in need “Due to the ongoing conflict in Sudan, hundreds of thousands of displaced people resorted to Kassala state seeking safety and work opportunities. However, the limited housing capacity in the town forced many displaced people to shelter on farms limiting our cultivation activities. As vegetables and fruit producers, we had to give some of our yields freely to these vulnerable displaced people.”

A participant sharing his view during a group discussion in Gadarif (Photo: Mohamed Abdulmajid/CIMMYT)
War-related financial challenges

Participants discussed how the ongoing conflict has impacted access to finance, cash flow, and overall business sustainability. They highlighted several challenges, including the loss of assets, difficulties in accessing loans, and shifts in market dynamics caused by the war. In both Kassala and Gadarif, discussions emphasized the rising prices, which have directly affected their businesses and personal lives.

A common issue raised was the lack of adequate financial assistance, largely due to the suspension of financial aid projects that previously provided grants or microfinance through various institutions. Participants in Kassala proposed forming partnerships with institutions that could offer funding opportunities as a potential solution. Meanwhile, participants in Gadarif suggested creating small savings funds to meet the needs of the most vulnerable by offering credit opportunities within the community.

War-related non-financial challenges

Participants in this group discussed the broader non-financial impacts of the ongoing conflict, focusing on issues such as displacement, lack of infrastructure, and psychological stress. They shared personal experiences and explained how these challenges have negatively impacted business operations and development.

In Kassala, one of the key issues raised was the suspension of education, which has left thousands of students out of school. This directly affected businesses involved in food production and marketing to students. Another major challenge discussed was the increased competition in the labor market, exacerbated by the influx of internally displaced persons (IDPs). Participants suggested that small NGOs should provide more support to herders and called for government intervention to address the education crisis.

In Gadarif, the group discussed security concerns that have made it difficult to conduct business operations or even move around the area safely. They also noted the strain on basic services due to the influx of IDPs, which has led to overpopulation of the state. As solutions, participants emphasized the need for an end to the conflict, improved security, and better services to address the IDP crisis and strengthen basic infrastructure and social services.

Future business plans and needs

At the results dissemination meetings, agrifood entrepreneurs openly discussed how the ongoing conflict has affected their business expansion plans. As one male participant in Kassala state noted, “Our growth plans have been severely affected by the current economic situation, as many financial institutions are no longer operating, the operational and fuel costs are high, our marketing areas have shrunk, we face competition from new businesses established by displaced people, and public services such as electricity, water, and transportation are under increased demand.”

While most participants agreed that the conflict has created significant challenges, some meeting participants described opportunities that have arisen for local agrifood entrepreneurs during the current civil war in Sudan. For example, some participants described how internally displaced farmers have begun to cultivate in Gadarif and Kassala, creating a moderate demand for agricultural inputs that has benefited agribusinesses. It was also noted that displaced entrepreneurs have started new businesses in the two states, which, in addition to financial and other support from international NGOs, has facilitated the acquisition of new skills and technologies, including solar systems for processing agricultural products. Finally, one participant explained that the conflict has made entrepreneurs become more agile. These observations provide examples of human resilience and document how growth can persist even under the most challenging circumstances.

A participant shares the findings from a group discussion about the Impact of War on Women and Men Agrifood Entrepreneurs Research (Photo: Mohamed Abdulmajid/CIMMYT)

Deployment of new tools and technologies into the CGIAR-NARS breeding program increases the rate of genetic gain per dollar invested

Written by dmedina on . Posted in Publications.

Food security in the prevailing uncertain climatic and economic conditions can only be guaranteed by deliberate actions toward maximizing production, especially in stress-prone environments. The main priority of the CGIAR and NARS breeding programs is to enhance genetic gain in crops through the assessment of seed varieties with drought-resilient, nutritional, and yield traits. This is achieved by leveraging data-driven approaches and embracing contemporary tools and methodologies.

Innovative approaches such as molecular tools, doubled haploid technology, and refined breeding schemes have greatly contributed to the strides made in CIMMYT’s endeavor to elevate genetic gain within breeding pipelines. These advancements not only drive improved productivity but also promise cost-effective strategies for navigating the challenges posed by climate variability.

Molecular Tools

In maize breeding, traditionally, at each stage of the pipeline, entries are grown in multi-location trials. Phenotyping in multiple environments helps to select the best entries not only based on their genetic values but also on environmental factors and their interaction with diverse environments. However, this is also a labor-intensive and time-consuming step in the breeding pipeline. Molecular breeding offers a transformative solution by expanding breeding programs while minimizing phenotyping requirements. It is a well-known fact that trait phenotype results from both genetic and non-genetic factors, with genetic factors being contributed by the expression of genes at the DNA level.

Identifying genomic regions close to causative genes for traits of interest, such as high yield, disease resistance, or quality, can help to incorporate desirable genes/alleles into selected elite genotypes. DNA-based markers aid in efficiently tracking the inheritance of genetic traits, thereby facilitating the selection of desired traits in breeding programs. Marker-assisted forward breeding accelerates the selection of plants with desired traits by identifying the genetic markers associated with those traits. With such harnessed genotypic information, breeders can pre-select genetic material before embarking on the resource-intensive phenotyping stages. This strategic utilization of molecular markers, particularly in identifying susceptibility to key diseases like maize streak virus (MSV) and maize lethal necrosis (MLN), enables the judicious allocation of resources for phenotyping.

 

Figure 1. Summary of marker-assisted forward breeding across six breeding pipelines for MLN- and MSV-resistance haplotypes over the past six years.

Since 2018, CIMMYT has been implementing marker-assisted forward breeding for MSV and MLN. Since then, more than 100,000 pure breeding lines have been tested by examining their favorable haplotypes with a small set of 10 genetic markers and discarding the lines carrying unfavorable haplotypes for MSV and MLN resistance. In the last six years, nearly 30,000 lines have been rejected before undergoing field testing. In southern Africa, for instance, a rapid response to seed movement using molecular and serological techniques prevented the spread of MLN and facilitated the incorporation of resistance traits into new plant varieties.

Most hybrids in the final stages of breeding pipelines are passed through forward breeding. While Fall Armyworm, Gray Leaf Spot, common rust, and Turcicum Leaf Blight also cause substantial yield reductions in sub-Saharan Africa, research carried out under the AGG project indicates that the genetic makeup of these traits is oligogenic, governed by both moderate and small effect quantitative trait loci (QTLs), but lacking a single major-effect QTL and not amenable to forward breeding. This means that their resistance is influenced by complex multiple genetic factors, rather than being primarily controlled by a few major genetic regions. Alternatively, these biotic stress traits can be improved effectively through genomic selection.

Genomic selection is used to improve complex traits that are controlled by many small-effect QTLs. This approach does not require prior genetic information about the trait of interest and uses genome-wide marker information to estimate all marker effects and select individuals with high genomic-estimated breeding values (GEBVs). This means it uses data from various genetic markers to predict which individuals are likely to have desirable alleles for MSV and MLN. Genomic selection is being applied for grain yield under drought stress, and efforts are underway to extend its application to address more complex challenges related to plant diseases and pests. Foliar diseases are moderately complex traits.

Proof of concept on applying genomic selection for foliar diseases like gray leaf spot and northern corn leaf blight showed high prediction accuracies, supporting the implementation of genomic selection together with forward breeding for other traits at the early stage of the breeding pipeline. Implementing genomic selection for GY under optimum and drought management proved that maize breeders could obtain the same gain as with conventional breeding, where all entries are phenotyped in the field, but at approximately 35-40% less cost. Many candidate hybrids now entering the advanced stages of the breeding pipeline were developed using genomic selection. Several of our earlier studies (Beyene et al., 2015, 2016, 2019, 2021; Chaikam et al., 2019; Crossa et al., 2017; Prasanna et al., 2022; Vivek et al., 2017) showed that breeding pipelines achieved high genetic gain by adopting new molecular tools, thus confirming the benefit of adopting molecular breeding tools.

Currently, in CIMMYT’s eastern and southern breeding pipelines, all product profiles are using genomic selection at stage I, where the training population is evaluated in multiple locations with a sparse design, estimating the GEBVs for the unphenotyped lines, and using GEBVs and phenotypic BLUPs of test crosses in the selection for stage II. This process allows the handling of a large number of lines at stage I with a fixed budget without losing selection accuracy. Since 2017, we have used the “test half and predict half” strategy (Figure 2), where all the lines were genotyped with mid-density markers, and the selected ~50% of the total stage I lines were testcrossed and evaluated in multiple locations to be used as a training population to estimate the GEBVs for the other 50% of the unphenotyped lines for the traits of interest. High prediction correlations were observed in three selected product profiles for GY under optimum, managed drought, and low soil N conditions (Figure 3).

Genomic selection is also implemented to reduce the breeding cycle. However, our final products are three-way cross hybrids, where genomic selection is applied only to select the best line rather than selecting the best hybrid combinations. Historical data were used to test the possibility of reducing the breeding cycle. However, our results showed that the use of historical data to predict 100% of lines from the current year yielded low to moderate prediction correlations both under optimum and drought conditions for GY, anthesis date, and plant height (Figure 4). Incorporating 10 to 30% of the testing population into the training population leads to high prediction correlations. This concludes that by using historical data, the training population, which needs to be test-crossed and evaluated in multiple locations every year, can be reduced from 50% to 10-30%, which helps breeders allocate the saved resources to evaluate more lines without losing prediction accuracy.

Doubled Haploid Technology

Doubled haploid technology speeds up the creation of inbred lines by producing entirely uniform lines. Pedigree line development is a traditional method in plant breeding aimed at gradually improving and stabilizing the genetic makeup of the new variety over time. It involves multiple generations of controlled crosses between parent plants with known characteristics. Each subsequent generation is carefully selected based on specific traits of interest, such as yield, disease resistance, or quality. Pedigree line development is expensive, particularly when nurseries are in remote locations.

Unlike traditional methods where some genetic variation remains, doubled haploid lines are completely homogeneous. This means that there is increased heritability of desirable traits and improved accuracy of selection. Doubled haploid technology, which is more compatible with the use of molecular markers, simplifies breeding processes and shortens the time needed to develop inbred lines (Chaikam et al., 2019).

The first doubled haploid facility in Africa was established in 2013 and is extensively used by the CGIAR, NARES, and the private sector. Over the past five years, 1,349 populations have been induced and more than 223,144 doubled haploid lines delivered to breeding programs from CGIAR, NARES, and the private sector in sub-Saharan Africa. Shifting from traditional pedigree-based breeding to doubled haploid technology has shown a high impact on key breeding metrics (gain per cycle and gain per year) not only in CIMMYT but also in national partners’ breeding programs, thus increasing genetic gain within the available budget.

Figure 2. Number of lines evaluated with phenotypic selection (PS) and genomic selection (GS) at stage I in EAPP1 product profile from 2017 to 2023. (PS – phenotypic selection, GS – genomic selection)
Figure 3. Prediction correlations for grain yield (GY) under optimum (OPT), drought (MDt) and low soil N (low N) management conditions in EAPP1, EAPP2 and SAPP1 at stage I in 2023

 

Figure 4. Prediction accuracies for grain yield (GY), anthesis date (AD) and plant height (PH) estimated from independent validation schemes using a training population (TRN) consisting of 2017- and 2018-years breeding data and 10%, 30%, 50%, 70% and 90% of 2019 data converted from the testing population (TST) to the training population under optimum and managed drought conditions

 

References

Beyene, Y., Gowda, M., Olsen, M., Robbins, K. R., Pérez-Rodríguez, P., Alvarado, G., Dreher, K., Gao, S. Y., Mugo, S., and Prasanna, B. M. (2019). Empirical comparison of tropical maize hybrids selected through genomic and phenotypic selections. Frontiers in plant science 10, 1502.

Beyene, Y., Gowda, M., Pérez-Rodríguez, P., Olsen, M., Robbins, K. R., Burgueño, J., Prasanna, B. M., and Crossa, J. (2021). Application of genomic selection at the early stage of breeding pipeline in tropical maize. Frontiers in Plant Science 12, 685488.

Beyene, Y., Gowda, M., Suresh, L. M., Mugo, S., Olsen, M., Oikeh, S. O., Juma, C., Tarekegne, A., and Prasanna, B. M. (2017). Genetic analysis of tropical maize inbred lines for resistance to maize lethal necrosis disease. Euphytica 213.

Beyene, Y., Semagn, K., Crossa, J., Mugo, S., Atlin, G. N., Tarekegne, A., et al. (2016). Improving maize grain yield under drought stress and non-stress environments in sub-saharan africa using marker-assisted recurrent selection. Crop Science 56, 344–353. doi: 10.2135/cropsci2015.02.0135

Beyene, Y., Semagn, K., Mugo, S., Tarekegne, A., Babu, R., Meisel, B., Sehabiague, P., Makumbi, D., Magorokosho, C., and Oikeh, S. (2015). Genetic gains in grain yield through genomic selection in eight bi‐parental maize populations under drought stress. Crop Science 55, 154-163.

Chaikam, V., Molenaar, W., Melchinger, A. E., and Prasanna, B. M. (2019). Doubled haploid technology for line development in maize: technical advances and prospects. Theor. Appl. Genet. 132, 3227–3243. doi: 10.1007/s00122-019-03433-x

Crossa, J., Pérez-Rodríguez, P., Cuevas, J., Montesinos-López, O., Jarquín, D., de los Campos, G., et al. (2017). Genomic selection in plant breeding: Methods, models, and perspectives. Trend Plant Sci. 22, 961–975. doi: 10.1016/j.tplants.2017.08.011

Prasanna BM, Burgueño J, Beyene Y, Makumbi D, Asea G, Woyengo V, Tarekegne A, Magorokosho C, Wegary D, Ndhlela T, Zaman-Allah M, Matova PM, Mwansa K, Mashingaidze K, Fato P, Teklewold A, Vivek BS, Zaidi PH, Vinayan MT, Patne N, Rakshit S, Kumar R, Jat SL, Singh SB, Kuchanur PH, Lohithaswa HC, Singh NK, Koirala KB, Ahmed S, San Vicente F, Dhliwayo T, Cairns JE. 2022. Genetic trends in CIMMYT’s tropical maize breeding pipelines. Scientific Reports 12, 20110. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-24536-4

Vivek, B. S., Krishna, G. K., Vengadessan, V., Babu, R., Zaidi, P. H., Kha, L. Q., et al. (2017). Use of genomic estimated breeding values results in rapid genetic gains for drought tolerance in maize. Plant Genome 10, 1–8. doi: 10.3835/plantgenome2016.07.0070

Linking sustainable agricultural methods

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

While agricultural food systems feed the world, they also account for nearly a third of the world’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. Reducing the negative environmental footprint of agrifood systems while at the same time maintaining or increasing yields is one of the most important endeavors in the world’s efforts to combat climate change.

One promising mechanism is carbon credits, a set of sustainable agricultural practices designed to enhance the soil’s ability to capture carbon and decrease the amount of GHG’s released into the atmosphere.

Farmers generate these carbon credits based on their reduction of carbon released and then sell these credits in the voluntary carbon market, addressing the critical concern of sustainably transforming agricultural systems without harming farmers’ livelihoods.

Two is better than one

Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a system that involves minimum soil disturbance, crop residue retention, and crop diversification, among other agricultural practices. Its potential to mitigate threats from climate change while increasing yields has made it increasingly popular.

Using remote sensing data and surveys with farmers in the Indian states of Bihar and Punjab, four CIMMYT researchers quantified the effect on farmer’s incomes by combining CA methods with carbon credits. Their findings were published in the April 22, 2024, issue of Scientific Reports.

Previous CIMMYT research has shown that implementing three CA practices: efficient fertilizer use, zero-tillage, and improved rice-water management could achieve more than 50% of India’s potential GHG reductions, amounting to 85.5 million tons of CO2.

“Successfully implemented carbon credit projects could reward farmers when they adopt and continue CA practices,” said Adeeth Cariappa, lead author and environmental and resource economist at CIMMYT. “This creates a win–win scenario for all stakeholders, including farmers, carbon credit businesses, corporate customers, the government, and the entire economy.”

Farmers would enjoy an additional income source, private sectors would engage in employment-generating activities, the government would realize cost savings, and economic growth would be stimulated through the demand generated by these activities.

Less carbon and more income

The researchers found by adopting CA practices in wheat production season, farmers can reduce GHG emissions by 1.23 and 1.97 tons of CO2 per hectare of land in Bihar and Punjab States, respectively.

The researchers determined that CA practices, when combined with carbon credits, could boost farmer income by US $18 per hectare in Bihar and US $30 per hectare in Punjab. In Punjab, however, there is a ban on burning agricultural residue, which reduces potential earnings from carbon markets to US $16 per hectare.

“More farmers engaging CA methods is an overall positive for the environment,” said Cariappa. “But convincing individual farmers can be a struggle. By showing them that carbon credits are another potential source of income, along with increased yields, the case for CA is that much stronger.”

While the potential benefits are significant, there are challenges to linking CA and carbon credits.

“To achieve these potential benefits, carbon credit prices must rise, and projects must be carefully planned, designed, monitored, and implemented,” said Cariappa. “This includes selecting the right interventions and project areas, engaging with farmers effectively, and ensuring robust monitoring and implementation mechanisms.”

Eight-year study in India by CGIAR and ICAR scientists suggests adoption of Conservation Agriculture can boost yields and manage an increasing carbon footprint

Written by Nima Chodon on . Posted in Publications.

Twenty-twenty four is set to become one of the hottest years on record. Warmer temperatures are destabilizing ecosystems, threatening human life, and weakening our food systems. On Earth Overshoot Day, CIMMYT calls for increased attention to the interplay between environmental health and efficient, abundant food production through sustainable practices.

Food systems are one of the top contributors to greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, accounting for one-third of all human-caused GHG emissions. While contributing to climate change, food production is also sorely impacted by it, undermining agrarian livelihoods and the ability to feed an increasing global population. Extreme and unpredictable weather is causing economic hardship, food and nutrition insecurity, and use of environmentally harmful practices.

In the Western Indo-Gangetic Plains of India, rice and wheat are the dominant staple crops, grown yearly in rotations covering more than 13 million hectares. But conventional tillage-based methods have been unable to increase yields. Some of these traditional methods based on intensive tillage have harmed the soil, exhausted aquifers, and increased GHG emissions, without raising crop yields. CGIAR soil and climate scientists and agronomists have partnered to find solutions that help increase rice and wheat production, while minimizing harmful environmental effects.

One of the CA-based practice research fields at ICAR-CSSRI. (Photo: Nima Chodon/CIMMYT)

At CIMMYT, we interviewed a group of CGIAR scientists who recently published a long-term study on sustainable intensification in the Western Indo-Gangetic Plains. Their work, conducted at the Central Soil and Salinity Research Institute (ICAR-CSSRI) in Karnal, India, demonstrates how integrating Conservation Agriculture (CA)-based principles into cropping systems can support climate-resilient and sustainable food systems.

“Today, agriculture faces many challenges, such as increasing input costs to maintain yield in the face of climate change and ensuring the sustainability of agricultural land,” said Mahesh Gathala, senior scientist at CIMMYT.

He mentioned that the collaborative research spanned over eight years, covering various crops and cropping cycles, and studying seven scenarios representing different farming practices. One scenario was based on farmers’ existing practices, while the other six involved combining and integrating the agronomic management practices and crop diversification options based on CA principles. The team collected data on yield, profitability, soil health, global warming potential, and fertilizer use, to name critical factors.

Gathala highlighted, “The findings are consistent with our previous research conclusions, while reinforcing the significant compounding impact of Conservation Agriculture-based cropping practices in the region, in the long-run.”

According to M.L. Jat, a former CIMMYT scientist who is global director for ICRISAT’s Resilient Farm and Food Systems Program, the CA-based measures that emerged from this research are applicable in much of the Western Indo-Gangetic Plains and beyond.

“Most of our research trials over some 2-5 years have provided substantial evidence in favor of Conservation Agriculture-based cropping diversification and sustainable intensification,” Jat said. “However, this study is one of very few long-term, collaborative research trials that provide strong evidence for policy decisions on resilient, climate-smart cropping system optimization to boost yields and nutrition, while improving soil health and fighting climate change.”

Other lead authors of the publication, Timothy Krupnik, principal scientist at CIMMYT and CGIAR South Asia, and Tek Sapkota, the Climate Change Science lead at CIMMYT, provided further explanation of important lessons from this eight-year study.

Two CA-based practice research scenarios at ICAR-CSSRI. (Photo: Nima Chodon/CIMMYT)
How does CA contribute to the sustainable and conscious use of natural resources? In what ways could CA be framed to governments to develop policies that do a better job of feeding us nutritious food while contributing to climate change adaptation and mitigation?

Tek Sapkota: Conservation Agriculture promotes the production of nutritious, diversified crops, sustainable yield improvements, climate change adaptation, economic benefits, and environmental protection. Governments can support these initiatives through financial incentives, subsidies, investment in research and extension services, and the development of supporting infrastructure and market access. This support further enables farmers to implement and benefit from sustainable agricultural practices.

CIMMYT and CGIAR-led projects in South Asia, like CSISA/SRFSI/TAFFSA, have already recorded some wins for CA implementation. What are some immediate implications of this study on CIMMYT’s ability to deliver this knowledge to more smallholders in the region?

Timothy Krupnik: The ICAR-CIMMYT partnership establishes long-term experiments, or living labs, across diverse ecologies to build trust among smallholder farmers, extension workers, and stakeholders. These initiatives aim to demonstrate CA’s benefits, as part of sustainable intensification. The science-based evidence generated will be co-owned by partners, through their extension networks, and shared with farm communities to highlight CA’s advantages. Additionally, the study supports reducing carbon footprints, contributing to climate change mitigation and sustainable agricultural practices and potentially used by carbon market players to disseminate CA.

Apart from climate resilience, could you explain what are the economic benefits of diversification in the rice-wheat dominant systems?

Tek Sapkota: Diversifying away from rice-wheat cropping systems provides significant economic benefits beyond climate resilience. It enhances income stability, improves resource use efficiency, maintains soil health, reduces production costs (such as irrigation expenses and water usage), and opens up new market opportunities. Diversification contributes to the creation of more sustainable and profitable farming systems.

How can CGIAR and national agricultural research and extension systems promote more widespread adoption of these technologies by farmers in South Asia and beyond?

Tek Sapkota: By establishing a multi-stakeholder platform for learning, knowledge sharing, and developing adoption pathways, CGIAR Research Centers could work together with national partners to create programs that support capacity building and knowledge transfer. Another crucial step would be to collaboratively adapt and customize the technology to local production conditions ensuring smooth implementation at the grassroots level. Additionally, it is important to encourage innovations in policies, markets, institutions and financial mechanisms to facilitate scaling.

Read excerpts of the full journal article: Enhancing productivity, soil health, and reducing global warming potential through diverse conservation agriculture cropping systems in India’s Western Indo-Gangetic Plains

Unlocking Zambia’s maize potential through crop diversity

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

While maize is the primary staple food crop in Zambia, its productivity on farmers’ fields reaches on average only about 20 percent of what it could achieve with good agronomic practices. Some reasons for this inefficiency are use of traditional varieties, low fertilizer use, and ineffective weed and pest control.

Closing the gap between potential and realized yields would have major benefits for farmers in Zambia, both in terms of income and food security at the household and national levels. One possibility to increase maize productivity is by increasing crop diversity through the inclusion of legumes in maize-based farming systems. This could be done through intercropping, growing legumes in the rows between maize plants, or crop rotations and alternating maize and legumes in the same field from season to season.

CIMMYT scientists, along with collaborators from the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI) and the University of Zambia’s School of Agricultural Science, set out to determine which cropping systems might lead to increased productivity for maize farmers in Zambia and their results were published in the journal Field Crops Research.

“There is great potential in Zambia to increase yields to help ensure food security,” said Mulundu Mwila, PhD candidate and scientist at ZARI. “We wanted to determine the cropping systems that offered the most benefits.”

Setting up the study

For this research, ZARI and CIMMYT scientists established maize-based cropping systems trials, comprising maize monocropping, and maize-legume rotations and intercrops under both ‘conventional’ tillage, and Conservation Agriculture, across 40 farms in a variety of agroecological zones in Zambia.  The team also conducted household surveys in the same communities hosting the on-farm trials to determine the share of households with enough cultivated land to benefit from the tested cropping systems.

Researchers found that the tested cropping systems produced more maize per hectare compared to non-trial host farms in the same region. The greatest positive effect uncovered was that maize-legume rotations in Zambia’s Eastern Province had the potential to increase maize yield by 1 to 2 tons per hectare, per growing season. “The Eastern Province trials showed better results because of stable and adequate rainfall amounts and distribution and because of using groundnut as a rotation crop,” said Mwila.

Researchers attributed the small effect of legumes on maize yield in the Southern Province to low levels of biomass production and nitrogen fixation, due to low and erratic rainfall, and to low residue incorporation because of livestock grazing. Conversely, the small effect of legumes on maize yield in the Northern Province might be attributed to the high rainfall amount in the region, leading to high rates of leaching of residual nitrogen during the growing season as well as the use of common beans as the preceding crop.

Finding the right amount of land

With evidence showing the potential benefits of maize-legume rotations, the availability of land is a constraint for small farms across sub-Saharan Africa, thus it is important to quantify the land area needed for farmers to implement maize-legume rotations.

“Our findings match prior research showing the benefits of maize-legume rotations in Eastern Zambia” said Silva. “However, implementing maize-legume rotations remains a challenge for many smallholders due to small farm sizes.”

Nearly 35, 50, and 70% of the surveyed farms in the Northern, Eastern, and Southern Provinces, respectively, had enough land to achieve the same level of maize production obtained on their farm with the yields of the maize-legume rotations tested in the on-farm trials. “With our findings showing increased maize yields, and our efforts to determine the amount of land needed for food and nutrition security at household level, the next steps can be to facilitate methods to disseminate this information to policy makers and to farmers that have enough land area to benefit from diversified cropping systems,” said Silva.

For farmers with not enough land to reap the benefits of maize-legume rotations, intercropping legumes within the maize has shown promising results. The researchers also call for further research to specify the contributing factors to small farms not seeing benefits from maize-legume rotations.

Cultivating healthier communities with provitamin A maize varieties

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

In Murehwa District, situated in Zimbabwe’s grain basket in the eastern part of the country, vitamin A deficiency is prevalent in almost all households, regardless of their wealth, reveals a study striving to quantify the nutritional yields of provitamin A maize across a diverse range of smallholder farms in Zimbabwe and to understand the potential role of improved agronomy in increasing nutritional yields. Published in the Journal of Nutrition, the study is part of a collaborative project between CIMMYT and Rothamsted Research, funded by the UK Global Challenges Research Fund, administered by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.

The study revealed that vitamin A deficiency is most prevalent in the wet seasons when the number of people within a household is higher. Using a range of realistic provitamin A concentration levels, modelling showed that the consumption of provitamin A maize could ensure that almost three-quarters of households reach 50% of their vitamin A requirement.

“This study highlights how provitamin A maize could make a real difference in vitamin A intake of smallholder farmers in rural areas of Zimbabwe,” said Frédéric Baudron, the lead author of this study. “And the impact could be even higher as greater gains are made through breeding and supported by better agronomy, a key determinant of nutrient concentration in the grain produced.”

Thirty households participated in the study, quantifying the composition of their diet across the main agricultural (wet) season and off (dry) season. A market study of locally available food was also conducted at the same time. In Murehwa District, almost 80% of the population is engaged in small-scale agriculture as their primary livelihood and stunting rates have increased over the past decade in this district, in sharp contrast to the rest of Zimbabwe.

Though maize is a dietary staple widely consumed in various forms in Zimbabwe, vitamin A deficiency exerts a heavy toll on people’s health, particularly in rural communities where its impact is most keenly felt. The consequences, ranging from preventable blindness in children to heightened maternal mortality rates and reduced immune function, emphasize the urgency of sustainable interventions.

Preparation of “sadza” a local staple widely consumed in Zimbabwe. (Credit: Jill Cairns/Alan Cairns)

The first provitamin A maize variety was released in Zimbabwe over a decade ago. Subsequent breeding efforts, aiming to develop varieties capable of providing 50% of the estimated average requirement of vitamin A, have focused on increasing the provitamin A concentration in maize and yields obtained under a range of stresses that farmers frequently encounter. To date, 26 provitamin A varieties have been released in Southern Africa. However, several key research questions remained unanswered. For instance, how prevalent is vitamin A deficiency within vulnerable populations and what is the cost of an affordable diet providing enough vitamin A? Furthermore, can the nutritional concentration of provitamin A maize grown by smallholder farmers help significantly decrease vitamin A deficiency for the majority of rural households?

The nutritional concentration of biofortified crops is related to the environment they are grown in. Biofortified maize primarily targets resource-poor farmers, holding potential in addressing nutritional gaps. However, existing research on the potential health outcomes of the consumption of provitamin A has largely been centered on maize grown in controlled environments, such as on experimental research stations or commercial farms.

The CIMMYT-led study concludes that the consumption of provitamin A maize alone would not fully address vitamin A deficiency in the short-term, calling for additional interventions such as diet diversification, industrial fortification, and supplementation. Diet diversification is one viable option highlighted by the study: modelling showed most households could obtain a diet adequate in vitamin A from food produced on their farms or available in local markets at a cost that does not exceed the current cost of their diets.

In Murehwa District, the CIMMYT-led study estimated the daily costs of current diets at USD 1.43 in the wet season and USD 0.96 in the dry season. By comparison, optimization models suggest that diets adequate in vitamin A could be achieved at daily costs of USD 0.97 and USD 0.79 in the wet and dry seasons, respectively. Another study conducted in 2023 showed that almost half of the farms in the district had knowledge of PVA maize and its benefits but did not grow it, primarily due to a limited availability of seed.

With agricultural diversification, more is better

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

Over the last seventy years, intensively managed monocultures, focused on maximizing calorie production, have become a dominant approach to global food production. This trend toward simplification in agricultural systems has supported productivity gains but has very troubling consequences for the environment including nutrient pollution and biodiversity loss at a massive scale. Restoring diversity is essential to regaining ecological balance.

Monocultures are generally all the same, turning biologically-rich systems into chemical-intensive engineered ones nearly devoid of life forms other than those yielding a genetically identical commodity crop. Their guiding principle is producing food ingredients as cheaply as possible. Biologically diversified agricultural systems can take many forms. Their guiding principle is recapturing resilience and resource use efficiency while supplying balanced diets and viable livelihoods.

In recent years, there have been many efforts to biologically diversify farming systems. Increasing the number of species and the genetic diversity is associated with improved resilience and resource use efficiency.

A new paper published in Science consolidates evidence from across a wide range of diversification strategies, applied on five continents, to understand how they affect environmental and social outcomes. These strategies encompass many different interventions ranging from crop rotations and cover crops to livestock inclusion to use of compost, hedgerows, and contour farming.

Farmers hold groundnuts as a preferred crop. (Photo: Sieglinde Snapp/CIMMYT)

The study shows that the likelihood of environmental and social benefits goes up when a greater number of diversification strategies are combined. Importantly, the environmental benefits of diversification were found to be greatest in very simplified landscapes with less than 20% in non-crop area.

It also found that applying multiple diversification strategies in tandem reduces tradeoffs. In other words, the path to agricultural win-wins leads to diversified working landscapes, not just diversification strategies on individual farms.

The push toward commodity monocultures has been baked into many agricultural policies, such as subsidies and trade deals, and into land tenure systems. The monoculture bias is also reinforced through pricing, payment, and other supply chain arrangements. Even research agendas have encouraged monoculture with the long-term emphasis on yield-focused breeding.

It’s time to dismantle the structural barriers that leave so many farmers just getting by “against the odds” and at the expense of functioning ecosystems.

Unanswered questions and unquestioned answers

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

Over the past few decades, Conservation Agriculture (CA) has moved from theory to practice for many farmers in southern Africa. CA is a system that involves minimum soil disturbance, crop residue retention, and crop diversification among other complimentary agricultural practices. One reason for its increasing popularity is its potential to mitigate threats from climate change while increasing yields.

However, there are limits to the adaptation of CA, especially for smallholder farmers. Challenges are both agronomic (e.g. lack of sufficient crop residues as mulch, weed control, pest and disease carryover through crop residues), socio-economic, and political (both locally and regionally).

A recent paper, Unanswered questions and unquestioned answers: the challenges of crop residue retention and weed control in Conservation Agriculture systems of southern Africa, published in the journal Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems in February 2024, led by CIMMYT and CGIAR scientists examines two specific challenges to more widespread CA adaptation: how to deal with trade-offs in using crop residue and finding alternatives to herbicides for weed control.

For crop residue, the two most prevalent actions are using leftover crop residue for soil cover or feeding it to livestock. Currently, many farmers allow livestock to graze on crop residue in the field, leading to overgrazing and insufficient ground cover. This tradeoff is further challenged by other multiple household uses of residues such as fuel and building material. The most common way to control weeds is the application of herbicides. However, inefficient and injudicious herbicide use poses a threat to human health and the environment, so the research team set out to identify potential alternatives to chemical weed control as the sole practices in CA systems.

“The answer to the question ‘how should farmers control weeds?’ has always been herbicides,” said lead author Christian Thierfelder, CIMMYT principal cropping systems agronomist. “But herbicides have many negative side effects, so we wanted to question that answer and examine other potential weed control methods.”

What to do with crop residue

Previous research from the region found that ungrazed areas had long-term positive effects on soil fertility and crop yields. However, it is common practice for many farmers in Malawi, Zambia, and Zimbabwe to allow open grazing after the harvest in their communities. Livestock are free to graze wherever they wander, which results in overgrazing.

“Open grazing systems help keep costs down but are very inefficient in terms of use of resources. It leads to bare fields with poor soil,” said Thierfelder.

Maize on residues. (Photo: CIMMYT)

While it is easy to suggest that regulations should be enacted to limit open grazing, it is difficult to implement and enforce such rules in practice. The authors found that enforcement is lacking in smaller villages because community members are often related, which makes punishment difficult, and there is an inherent conflict of interest among those responsible for enforcement.

Controlling weeds

Weeding challenges in CA systems have been addressed worldwide by simply using herbicides. However, chemical weeding is often not affordable and, sometimes, inaccessible to the smallholder farmers and environmentally unfriendly.

Using herbicides, though effective when properly applied, also requires a degree of specialized knowledge, and without basic training, this may be an unviable option as they may pose a risk to the health of the farmers. Thus, alternatives need to be identified to overcome this challenge.

Some alternatives include mechanical methods, involving the use of handheld tools or more sophisticated tools pulled by animals or engines. While this can be effective, there is the possibility of high initial investments, and intercropping (a tenet of CA) forces farmers to maneuver carefully between rows to avoid unintended damage of the intercrop.

Increasing crop competition is another potential weed control system. By increasing plant density, reducing crop row spacing, and integrating other crops through intercropping, the crop competes more successfully with the weeds for resources such as light, moisture, and nutrients. When the crop seed rate is increased, the density of the crops increases, providing more cover to intercept light, and reducing the amount of light reaching the weeds thereby controlling their proliferation.

A holistic approach

“What we learned is that many of the crop residue and weed challenges are part of broader complications that cannot be resolved without understanding the interactions among the current scientific recommendations, private incentives, social norms, institutions, and government policy,” said Thierfelder.

Continuing research into CA should aim to examine the social and institutional innovations needed to mainstream CA as well as strengthen and expand the research on weed control alternatives and focus on the science of communal grazing land management to enhance their productivity.

Agricultural research adds billions of dollars to economy

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Publications.

As the world searches for effective solutions to mitigate and adapt to climate change while navigating the cost-of-living crisis, delivering food security goals alongside robust economic value is more imperative than ever in agricultural research.

CGIAR plays a vital role in this mission, aiming to transform food, land, and water systems in collaboration with its 15 Research Centers, such as CIMMYT. Now, a new study published in World Development comprehensively analyzes CGIAR’s fiscal impact on global agricultural over nearly 60 years.

The economic impact of CGIAR-related crop technologies on agricultural productivity in developing countries, 1961–2020 suggests that adoption of these technologies equates to US $47 billion annually in economic benefits, with an overall economic benefit of US $1,334 billion for the years covered by the study.

Additionally, investment in productivity gains for staple crops in developing countries has aided entire populations by securing lower food prices and generating large local growth multipliers, thus achieving a greater impact on poverty reduction when compared to productivity growth in other sectors.

CIMMYT contributes 40% of total CGIAR varietal impact

At least 221 million hectares in at least 92 countries were occupied by CGIAR crop technologies in 2020. Between 2016 and 2020, CIMMYT maize varieties accounted for 24.5 million hectares (11%) of this figure, while CIMMYT wheat varieties made up almost 74 million hectares (33%).

An example of how these CIMMYT varieties impact farmers can be seen in sub-Saharan Africa, where using improved maize seed led to an overall average increase of 38.9% in yields to 1,104 kilograms per hectare (kg/ha), equal to an increase of 429 kg/ha. With increased yields come increased profits and employment security for farmers and their families.

The frequency with which technologies are upgraded also signifies the impact of agricultural research and development (R&D) on crop productivity and the economy. On the 221 million ha planting area, many farmers utilize second or third generation technologies. For example, average varietal generation in maize is estimated to be 1.1, meaning that 10% of farmers use a second-generation variety, and most wheat farmers were also using second or third generation modern varieties. This highlights that ongoing crop research continued to impact productivity, even when the size of the adoption area remained constant.

Expanding the impact

As CGIAR’s reach and capacity have grown, economic benefits are now apparent in an increased number of global regions compared to when its work began. Initially, most economic benefits came from wheat and rice farming in Asia; however, 30% of CGIAR crop technologies now occupy sub-Saharan Africa, generating a significant share of its impact. This region remains heavily reliant upon CGIAR-related varieties, so continued investment is encouraged to maintain and build on the positive outcomes achieved to date.

“Considering the urgent need to attain nutrition security, CIMMYT always seeks ways to assure global food systems,” said Bram Govaerts, director general of CIMMYT. “This thorough analysis is a strong validation of CIMMYT’s work and its significance not just for farmers and their immediate families, but for communities and generations into the future. Our collaborative partnerships with CGIAR Research Centers and National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) are integral in delivering successful projects that enable smallholder farmers to maximize the potential of their land.”

While similar studies have been undertaken in the past, this work takes a unique approach by drawing on a wider range of evidence built on country- and crop-specific data, such as the adoption of crop improvement technologies and productivity impacts per hectare, thereby providing a more granular assessment of CGIAR’s economic inputs.

Read the full study: The economic impact of CGIAR-related crop technologies on agricultural productivity in developing countries, 1961–2020.

Sustaining Conservation Agriculture initiatives: lessons from Malawi

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Blogs, Publications.

Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) has experienced the worst impacts of climate change on agriculture over the past decades and projections show such effects are going to intensify in the coming years. Diminished agricultural production has been the primary impact channel given the high reliance on rainfed agriculture in the region. Combined with a growing population, food security for millions of people is threatened.

Conservation Agriculture (CA) is a sustainable cropping system that can help reverse soil degradation, augment soil health, increase crop yields, and reduce labor requirements while helping smallholder farmers adapt to climate change. It is built on three core principles of minimum soil disturbance, crop residue retention, and crop diversification.

CA was introduced in southern Africa in the 1990s, but its adoption has been patchy and often associated with commercial farming. A group of researchers, led by Christian Thierfelder, principal cropping systems agronomist at CIMMYT, set out to understand the reasons why smallholder farmers adopt CA, or why they might not or indeed dis-adopt. Their results were published in Renewable Agriculture and Food Systems on March 12, 2024.

Conservation Agriculture plot. (Photo: CIMMYT)

“Conservation Agriculture can cushion farmers from the effects of climate change through its capacity to retain more soil water in response to high water infiltration and increased soil organic carbon. It is therefore a viable option to deal with increased heat and drought stress,” said Thierfelder. However, even with these benefits, adoption of CA has not been as widespread in countries like Malawi.

“There are regions within Malawi where CA has been promoted for a long time, also known as sentinel sites,” said Thierfelder. “In such places, adoption is rising, indicating that farmers are realizing the benefits of CA over time. Examining adoption dynamics in sentinel sites can provide valuable lessons on scaling CA and why some regions experience large rates of non- or dis-adoption.”

Thierfelder and his co-authors, Innocent Pangapanga-Phiri of the Center for Agricultural Research and Development (CARD) of the Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR), and Hambulo Ngoma, scientist and agricultural economist at CIMMYT, examined the Nkhotakota district in central Malawi, one of the most promising examples of widespread CA adoption.

Total LandCare (TLC), a regional NGO working in Malawi has been consistently promoting CA in tandem with CIMMYT in the Nkhotakota district since 2005.

Results from both individual farmer interviews and focused group discussions revealed that farmers that implement CA saw higher yields per hectare than those who practiced conventional tillage practices. In addition, farmers using CA indicated greater resilience in times of drought, improved soil fertility, and reduced pest infestation.

Why adopt CA?

The primary factors enhancing CA adoption in the Nkhotakota district were the availability of training, extension and advisory services, and demonstration plots by the host farmers. Host farmers are farmers that have been trained by a TLC extension officer and have their own plot of land to demonstrate CA methods. In addition, host farmers train other farmers and share knowledge and skills through farmer field days and other local agricultural exhibitions.

“Social networks among the farmers serve a vital role in CA adoption,” said Ngoma. “Seeing tangible success carries significant weight for non-adopter farmers or temporal dis-adopters which can persuade them to adopt.”

Maize demonstration plot. (Photo: CIMMYT)

During focus group discussions facilitated by the authors, farmers indicated that demonstration plots also removed fear for the unknown and debunked some myths regarding CA systems, for example, that practitioners show ‘laziness’ if they do not conventionally till their land.

“This suggests that CA uptake could be enhanced with increased, targeted, and long-term promotion efforts that include demonstration plots,” said Ngoma.

Similarly, the longer duration of CA exposure positively influenced farmers’ decisions to adopt CA methods as longer exposure might allow farmers to better understand the benefits of CA practices.

Why not adopt CA?

Farmers reported socioeconomic, financial, and technical constraints to adopt CA. An example is that farmers might not have the labor and time available for weed control, a necessary step in the first few years after the transition to CA.

“Weed control is an important challenge during the early years of CA adoption and can be seen as the ‘Achilles heel’ of CA adoption,” said Thierfelder. CIMMYT scientists therefore focused a lot of research in recent years to find alternative weed control strategies based on integrated weed management (IWM) using chemical, biological, and mechanical control options.

Examining the stover in a maize plot. (Photo: CIMMYT)

In most cases, the benefits of CA adoption are seen only after 2 to 5 years. Having such a long-term view is not always possible for smallholder farmers, who often must make decisions based on current conditions and have immediate family obligations to meet.

As a contrast to adopters of CA, non-adopters reported a lack of knowledge about CA as a whole and a lack of specific technical knowledge needed to transition from more traditional methods to CA.

This scarcity of technical support is often due to the lack of strong agriculture extension support systems. Since CA adoption can be complex, capacity building of both farmers and extension agents can therefore foster adoption and implementation of CA. This reinforces that farmer-to-farmer approaches through host farmers could complement other sources of extension to foster adoption.

Next steps

The authors identified three policy recommendations to accelerate CA adoption. First, there is a need to continue promoting CA using farmer-centric approaches more consistently, e.g., the host farmer approach. Using a farmer-centered approach facilitates experiential learning and can serve as a motivation for peer-to-peer exchange and learning and can reduce misinformation. The host farmer approach can be augmented by mega-demonstrations to showcase CA implementation at scale. In addition, rapid and mass extension delivery can be enhanced by using digital technologies.

Second, CA promotion should allow farmers the time to experiment with different CA options before adoption. What remains unclear at the policy level is the types of incentives and support that can be given to farmers to encourage experimentation without creating economic dependence. NGOs and extension workers could help farmers deal with the weed pressure soon after converting from full to minimum tillage by providing herbicides and training.

Third, there is a need to build and strengthen farmer groups to facilitate easier access to training, to serve as conduits for incentive schemes such as payments for environmental services, and conditional input subsidies for CA farmers. Such market-smart incentives are key to induce initial adoption in the short term and to facilitate sustained adoption.

Bargaining for Better: How gender roles in household decision-making can impact crop disease resilience

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

‘A better understanding of the links between gender roles in household decision-making and the adoption of technologies can enhance the uptake of innovations in smallholder farming systems,’ concludes a recently published paper by CIMMYT. The paper connects women’s bargaining power in households with the adoption of rust resistant wheat varieties, based on the work of Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat (AGG) in Ethiopia.

“While an emerging body of literature finds positive correlations between women’s influence in household decision-making and socioeconomic, health, and nutritional outcomes, few studies have analyzed the links between intra-household decision-making and the adoption of agricultural technologies,” said Michael Euler, agriculture research economist at CIMMYT.

A case study in Ethiopia

For this study, researchers used a dataset from Ethiopian wheat-producing households.

Ethiopia is the second-largest wheat producer in Africa, with an aggregate grain production of 5.5 million metric tons and 4-5 million farmers engaged in cultivation. The Ethiopian Highlands are a hot spot for wheat rust. With recurrent epidemics in the last decade, the emergence of new strains of wheat rust increased production risks. On the positive side, farmers seem to be responsive to the management of rust diseases. Rust-resistant bread wheat varieties, released since 2010, have been widely adopted by smallholder farmers across Ethiopia.

The CIMMYT study surveyed 1,088 wheat-producing households in Ethiopia to analyze the links between women’s role in household decision-making concerning crop production and the adoption and turnover rates of rust-resistant wheat varieties. Female and male members from the same households responded separately, which facilitated capturing individual perceptions and the intra-household dynamics in decision-making.

Farmer Shumuna Bedeso weeds her wheat field. (Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT)

Intra-household decision-making arrangements and wheat varietal choice

Overall, the study reveals a positive association between women’s role in decision-making regarding the selection of wheat seed and the adoption of rust-resistant wheat varieties and wheat varietal turnover. Findings may be related to differences in risk aversion between women and men farmers. While women farmers may tend to advocate for the adoption of rust resistant varieties to avoid potential financial difficulties that arise from purchase of fungicide in the growing season, men farmers may be more inclined to adopt high yielding varieties and use fungicides to combat rust within the season.

Spouses may agree or have different opinions regarding their decision-making roles. Spousal agreement on the woman having a role in making crop variety decisions is associated with higher adoption rates compared to spousal agreement that the woman has no role. Joint decision-making with mutually uncontested spousal roles may yield better outcomes due to larger combined exposure to information, as well as spousal discussion and reflection on potential implications of the varietal choice decision.

Conclusion: It is about negotiation, contestation and consensus

Household decisions, including the decision to adopt agricultural technologies often result from negotiation, contestation, and consensus between wife and husband. This process is shaped by diverging interests, motivations and objectives, while its results are determined by different levels of individual bargaining power. “Our findings indicate that women’s ownership of agricultural land and household assets is strongly associated with their active role in household decisions on wheat varietal choice, and with spousal agreement,” said Moti Jaleta, senior agricultural economist at CIMMYT. The dynamics in intra-household decision-making are likely to influence households’ adoption of agricultural technologies.

Disregarding the dynamics in decision-making implies that households are unilateral decision-makers, a scenario which probably does not hold true considering the level of spousal disagreement regarding their roles and influence in choosing crop varieties. A deeper understanding of the connections between gender dynamics in household decision-making and adoption choices can enhance the efficiency of public extension systems, increase the adoption rates of modern innovations, improve agricultural productivity, and enhance livelihoods in smallholder agriculture.

Read the complete paper here.

CIMMYT wheat varieties help Ethiopia’s farmers mitigate devastating rust diseases

Written by mcallejas on . Posted in Publications.

Ethiopia is the largest wheat producer in East Africa, with about 65% share of the total wheat production in sub-Saharan Africa. The area under wheat increased from about 1.5 million hectares in 2010 to 2.5 million hectares in 2023. More importantly, the productivity increased from 1.8 tons per hectare to about 3 tons per hectare in the same period, implying an increase of about 5% per annum in productivity (See Figure 1).

Several factors have contributed to this spectacular increase in productivity, including better farm practices implemented through clustering farmers land to reduce production costs, and introducing new, improved varieties which enable farmers to withstand challenges of crop diseases.

Figure 1: Wheat grain yield trends in Ethiopia by decade, 1960 to 2022 (USDA data).

A DNA finger printing study found that about 87% of the wheat area in Ethiopia comprises of varieties developed by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). In 2023, the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) released six new wheat varieties of CIMMYT origin aimed for the mid to highlands (> 1800 meters above sea level) and lowlands (< 1800 masl) of the country. “These newly released varieties provide options for farmers to face devastating rust diseases and at the same time obtain higher productivity,” said wheat breeder Leonardo Crespo.

Gadisa Alemu, wheat breeder based in EIAR, Kulumsa, added that the CIMMYT varieties were tested in farmers’ fields prior to release. “This allows participating farmers to have quicker access to seed of selected varieties,” he said.

Wheat breeders . The aim was to obtain additional insights into the activities of CIMMYT’s partners and co-design a strategy that allows early evaluation and access to CIMMYT germplasm by national partners in Ethiopia. The team visited research centers in Holetta (highlands), Debre Zeit and, Kulumsa (midlands), and Arsi Negele (lowlands). Kulumsa, together with the highlands of Meraro and Asasa plains, represent about 60-70% of the wheat area in Ethiopia.  “These are important sites for wheat breeding activities in Ethiopia. Given that Holetta and Debre Zeit are hot spots for diseases, there is an increased interest in the Arsi Negele region to expand wheat production under irrigated conditions,” said Bekele Abeyo, wheat breeder and CIMMYT’s Ethiopia Country Representative.

AGG Maize and Wheat Improvement Teams Meet with Partners to Develop CG-NARES Breeding Strategy

In the first fortnight of September 2023, researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and National Agriculture Research and Extension System (NARES) met in Nairobi, Kenya to create high-level strategies and guiding principles for CG-NARES breeding activities. This is in alignment with the ‘Genetic Innovations’ initiative of the One CGIAR strategy. CIMMYT representation included breeding teams from the wheat, maize, and dryland crops. The meetings were organized by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and CIMMYT’s Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat (AGG) project team.

It was recognized that the aforesaid strategies and principles need to be based on the biology of the crops and the context of each breeding program; incorporate the logistics of the breeding operations; and implement data driven tools for decision making such as genomic selection.

Participants shared how the application of novel and innovative technologies shortens the breeding cycles, accelerates the rate of genetic gain, and provides tools to enable the evaluation of plant materials (future variety candidates) and future target environments where these varieties will be grown.

It was concluded that effective breeding networks can be a strong instrument to enable faster delivery of improved germplasm to farmers. For this to happen efficiently, the networks require a high degree of coordination, organizational structure, governance, and clarity of roles. “It is fundamental for network members to agree the objectives, vision and expected outcomes of collaborative activities. This forms the basis for co-design and co-implementation of crop improvement plans” said Kevin Pixley, Interim Director of the Global Wheat Program and Director of the Dryland Crops Program.

The meeting also served as a platform for AGG’s and dryland crop’s breeding teams to exchange ideas and experiences. For instance, the Maize team shared their experience and learnings from on-farm-testing activities. The Wheat team shared the evolution and path of breeding modernization and implementation of new technologies. The Dryland Crops team shared their experience with co-designing and co-implementing breeding networks with NARES partners in Africa.

Discovering the potential of multispectral UAV and satellite sensors in detecting wheat rust in Ethiopia

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

Latest advances in sensor technology and data processing allow early detection, mapping and monitoring of crop infestation, helping prevent large-scale outbreaks.

A recent study published in Nature Scientific Reports, assesses the capability of very high-resolution satellite (VHRS) imagery and high-resolution unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) imagery for high-throughput phenotyping and detecting impacts of wheat rusts in earlier crop growth stages. UAVs and VHRS offer high potential for nonintrusive, extensive, rapid and flexible measurements of plant biophysical properties at very high spatial and temporal scales.

The study—led by CIMMYT in partnership with the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) and Lincoln Agritech Ltd from New Zealand—establishes that these advanced sensor technologies are emerging as gamechangers in crop health management. They save time, complement traditional disease scoring methods and field surveys, and are cost-effective.

Further, the study establishes that multispectral VHRS sensors can pave the way for the upscaling of disease severity assessment from plot to regional scales at early growth stages.

Wheat rust is a global challenge

Globally, crop infections are an increasing threat to crop production and food security. Increased cross-border trade and travel, coupled with a changing climate are resulting in increased frequency and severity of crop disease outbreaks. Of all the diseases that affect wheat, wheat rusts are among the most damaging, capable of causing epidemics on a vast scale with significant economic and production losses. As of date, global losses from wheat rusts equate to 15 million tonnes per year (USD $2.9 billion). In Ethiopia, a major stripe/yellow-rust epidemic in 2010 affected an estimated 600,000 hectares, resulting in production losses of 15–20% and causing economic losses of USD $250 million. Similarly, a stem/black rust (SR) epidemic from 2013-2014 infected approximately 40,000 hectares. SR, which can cause 100% crop loss within weeks, is re-emerging as a major concern to wheat production.

Early detection, monitoring and timely intervention is key

Rapid early-season detection, monitoring and timely control of wheat rusts in susceptible varieties are critical to avoid large-scale outbreaks, especially in countries where fungicides are scarcely available or too costly for smallholders. UAV-based high-throughput phenotyping (HTP) has been recently investigated to support wheat improvement breeding, in particular, to assess plant growth development, canopy architecture, physiology, reaction to abiotic stress, crop disease and insect pest response, and wheat yield.

Figure 1

Spectral and thermal measurements at the plant and canopy levels allow for monitoring the interactions between plant germplasm and environmental (abiotic and biotic) factors. The current study identifies several spectral features from UAV and VHRS multispectral imagery that have strong assessment power for the detection of combined wheat rust diseases at early crop growth stages.

During a randomized trial conducted in Ethiopia, six bread wheat varieties with differing rust resistance were monitored using UAV and VHRS. In total, 18 spectral features were tested to assess stem and yellow rust disease progression and associated yield loss. Spectral properties of the wheat canopy (e.g., pigmentation, moisture, and biomass) are altered under rust disease stress. Using multispectral images and derived vegetation indices, it is possible to determine crop susceptibility to diseases and consequently can be used for detection and monitoring of wheat rusts.

Figure 2

Recent research on wheat, maize and dry bean demonstrated strong and significant correlations between vegetation indices extracted from UAV and VHRS imagery, confirming the feasibility of VHRS-HTP targeting biomass and yield; however, such satellite applications for plant breeding programs are still scarce.

Looking ahead to upscaling

This study provides valuable insight into the upscaling capability of multispectral sensors for disease detection from UAV imagery at 5 cm per pixel to pan-sharpened satellite imagery at 50 cm per pixel, demonstrating a first step towards upscaling disease detection from plot to regional scales. Further work will expand and improve current methodology to examine the VHRS detection capability towards machine and deep learning techniques (e.g., convolutional neural network) to allow for continuous monitoring systems, focusing on both single and mixed rust diseases under different treatments (e.g., variable fungicide rates, irrigation rates).

The early detection of diseases through spectral analysis and the integration of machine learning algorithms offers invaluable tools to mitigate the spread of infections and implement prompt disease management strategies.

Figures (1-2):

Field trial captured at varying spatial resolutions:

(a) SkySat false color composite (NIR-R-G) at 50 cm pixels (booting stage; 2020-10-17)

(b) UAV false color composite (NIR-R-G) at 5 cm pixels (heading stage; 2020-10-29) 

(Photo: Nature Scientific Reports)

Early maturity products popular among farmers in Kenya

Written by mcallejas on . Posted in Publications.

Across all production environments in Kenya, early-maturity products demonstrate strong sales. This was revealed in a recent study by the CGIAR Initiative on Market Intelligence. During the long-rains season, farmers in higher rainfall production environments—wet, mid and high altitudes—purchased early-maturity seed products despite potentially lower yields. Also, the short-rains season, which represents almost one-fourth of total maize seed sales, was dominated by early-maturity products.

These insights were obtained through a panel of maize-seed sales data from 722 agrodealers in Kenya during two short-rains seasons and three long-rains seasons in 2020–2022. The study also offers insights into the extent the maturity level of seed products, purchased by farmers in Kenya, aligns with the production environment where they were sold. Market Intelligence applies eight criteria to identify seed product market segments (SPMSs) for CGIAR crop breeding. In the application of these criteria to maize in East Africa, two conditions distinguish the segments: production environment and maturity level. The other criteria do not vary. A key indicator for prioritizing breeding investments across segments is the relative size of SPMSs. In the case of maize, and other crops, teams generally use geospatial data to identify the area of production environments, with the assumption that farmers in each production environment would use the seed product with the maturity level designed for that environment.

The paper contends that a stronger focus on using sales data to inform breeding decisions in maize, and potentially other crops where retailers play an important role in seed distribution, should become a priority for market intelligence. Future work will engage stakeholders in maize seed systems in other countries of East Africa about the changes in demand for earlier-maturing products and the implications for segmentation.

This article is adapted from Market Intelligence Brief 5: Maize Farmers Acquire Early-Maturity Seed Across Production Environments – the fifth paper in the ongoing peer-reviewed series published inMarket Intelligence Briefs.

*About Market Intelligence Briefs

The CGIAR Initiative on Market Intelligence (‘Market Intelligence’ for brevity) represents a new effort to engage social scientists, crop-breeding teams, and others to work together toward the design and implementation of a demand-led breeding approach. In 2022, the Market Intelligence Brief (MIB) series was created as a valuable communication tool to support informed decision making by crop breeders, seed-system specialists, and donors on future priorities and investments by CGIAR, NARS, the private sector, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

The author would like to thank all funders who supported this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund. This project received funding from the Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat project (AGG) [INV-003439], funded by Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation; Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR); United States Agency for International Development (USAID); and United Kingdom’s Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO).

While you were sleeping: increasing nighttime temperatures and their effects on plant productivity

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Publications.

When one thinks of heat waves, the natural tendency is to consider high daytime temperatures. However, when most people are sleeping, a hidden factor of climate change is taking place: temperatures at night are not dipping as much as observed in the past, which has dramatic effects on many crops, including wheat. In fact, nocturnal temperatures are rising more rapidly globally than daytime temperatures, which is of great concern as research is starting to show the sensitivity of plants to warmer nights.

A group of researchers, from the University of Nottingham, the Sonora Institute of Technology (ITSON) and CIMMYT examined how different wheat lines reacted to the effects of rising nighttime temperatures treatments imposed in the field, for three years at CIMMYT’s Norman E. Borlaug experimental station in Ciudad Obregon, Mexico. Their results, Night-time warming in the field reduces nocturnal stomatal conductance and grain yield but does not alter daytime physiological responses were published in New Phytologist.

Previous studies revealed that wheat yields decline 3-8% for every 1°C increase of the nighttime low temperature. For this research, the team subjected the selected wheat breeds to an increase of 2°C. The varieties were selected based on previous evaluations of their daytime heat tolerance.

Notably, the findings highlighted that genotypes classified as traditionally heat tolerant were sensitive to small increases in nighttime temperature even without daytime temperature stress, implying that adaptation to warm nights is likely under independent genetic control than daytime adaptation.

“These results are exciting as they offer new perspectives on the impact of night temperatures on diurnal photosynthetic performance and wheat yields,” said co-first author Liana Acevedo-Siaca. “Through this work we found that wheat yields decreased, on average, 1.9% for every degree that increased at night. Our hope is that this work can help inform future breeding and research decisions to work towards more resilient agricultural systems, capable of dealing with warmer day and nighttime temperatures.”

Plants at night

While plants do not “sleep” in the way animals do, nighttime for plants has long been thought of as a time of repose compared to daylight hours when photosynthesis is taking place. However, recent findings have revealed that plants are more active than previously thought at night, for example in transpiration, which is the process of plants gathering liquid water from the soil and releasing water vapor through their leaves.

“An interesting result of our research was that we found varieties characterized as heat tolerant, showed some of the greatest declines in yield in response to warmer nights,” said co-first author Lorna McAusland, Division of Plant and Crop Sciences, School of Biosciences, University of Nottingham. “These are the varieties wheat farmers are being recommended for increasing daytime temperature, and so there is a worry that advantages gained during the day are being lost at night.”

“There is likely a goldmine of opportunities related to genetically improving nighttime processes in crops, as very little research has been conducted in that space. Useful genetic variation can be expected, since ‘night’ traits have never been considered or needed before now,” said co-author Matthew Reynolds, who leads the CIMMYT’s Wheat Physiology Lab that collaborates globally with experts via HeDWIC (https://hedwic.org/) and uses physiological pre-breeding as a conduit for cutting edge technologies to impact mainstream breeding.