Location: Malawi

SIMLESA lead farmer Agnes Sendeza harvests maize cobs from a stook on her farm in Tembwe, Salima district, Malawi. (Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT)

How gender equity and social inclusion are improving the lives of rural families in Africa

Written by Carolyn Cowan on March 7, 2019. Posted in Videos.

Women have the potential to be drivers of agricultural transformation in Africa, holding the key to improving their families’ livelihoods and food security. However, constraints such as lack of access to initial capital, machinery, reliable markets, and knowledge and training are difficult to overcome, leading to restricted participation by women and young people in agricultural systems in Africa.

A new video from the Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) project highlights the importance of gender equity and social inclusion to achieving project impacts and outcomes, helping to drive transformative change towards securing a food-secure future for Africa. Case studies and interviews with women and men farmers — including young people — detail how SIMLESA’s approach has re-shaped their maize-based farming lives.

The video is aligned with the theme for International Women’s Day 2019, “Think Equal, Build Smart, Innovate for Change,” which places the spotlight on innovative ways in which we can advance gender equality and the empowerment of women.

“This video is intended to educate the agricultural community and wider public on the importance of applying sustainable intensification agricultural practices and technologies in order to bridge the gender gap in agricultural productivity and achieve agricultural transformation for smallholder farmers in Africa,” said Rahma Adam, Gender and Development Specialist with CIMMYT in Kenya. “We hope stakeholders will be able to see the benefits of these practices and technologies, and work towards finding ways to implement them into their agricultural practices or programs.”

Launched in 2010, SIMLESA is led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and funded by the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). It is implemented by national agricultural research systems, agribusinesses and farmers in partner countries including Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.

Putting equal opportunities at the center

Following a participatory research for development approach, the SIMLESA team works alongside farmers and partner organizations to achieve increased food production while minimizing pressure on the environment by using smallholder farmers’ resources more efficiently and empowering women, men and young people to make decisions.

The SIMLESA project achieves impact by integrating gender sensitivity into all project activities and developing a deep understanding of social contexts and factors that constrain access to, and adoption of, improved technologies. Initiatives are able to reach all individuals in the project’s target communities, leaving no one out.

“The benefits of fostering equal opportunities for women, men and young people through SIMLESA’s work are enormous,” said Adam. Equal opportunities mean better access to information, markets, and improved varieties of seeds; participation in field trials, demonstrations and training; and the provision of leadership opportunities in local innovation platforms.

Central to the success of the SIMLESA project is the concept of Agricultural Innovation Platforms. “Being members of these platforms, farmers can access credits, which they can use to purchase farm inputs,” explained Adam. “They are able to take part in collective marketing and get a better price for their crops. The Agricultural Innovation Platforms also facilitate training on better agribusiness management practices and the sharing of ideas about other productive investment opportunities to better farmers’ lives. All these benefits were hard to come by when the women and youth farmers were farming on their own without being associated to the SIMLESA project or part of the platforms.”

The words of Rukaya Hasani Mtambo, a farmer from Tanzania, are a testimony to the power of this idea. “As a woman, I am leader of our group and head of my household. I always encourage my fellow women, convincing them we are capable. We should not underestimate what we can do.”

To watch the full video, click here.

To watch other videos about the SIMLESA project, click here.

Sylvia Horemans (right) and a warehouse supervisor (left) inspect seeds at Kamano Seeds. (Photo: Lucy Maina/CIMMYT)

International Women’s Day 2019: Women in seed systems in Africa

Written by Jennifer Johnson on March 6, 2019. Posted in Features.

The maize seed sector in eastern and southern Africa is male-dominated. Most seed companies operating in the region are owned and run by men. Access to land and financial capital can often be a constraint for women who are keen on investing in agriculture and agribusiness. However, there are women working in this sector, breaking social barriers, making a contribution to improving household nutrition and livelihoods by providing jobs and improved seed varieties.

The Gender team within the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center’s (CIMMYT) Socioeconomics Program conducted interviews with women owners of seed companies in eastern and southern Africa. They shared information on their background, their motivation to start their businesses, what sets their companies apart from the competition, the innovative approaches they use to ensure smallholder farmers adopt improved seed varieties, the unique challenges they face as women in the seed sector and the potential for growth of their companies. The resulting stories will be published as a report in May 2019.

These women in leading roles serve as mentors and examples to both male and female employees. In honor of International Women’s Day, held March 8, 2019, CIMMYT would like to share some of their stories to recognize these women — and many others like them — and the important work they do in seed systems in Africa.

Sylvia Horemans

Sylvia Horemans started Kamano Seeds in April 2004 together with her late husband Desire Horemans. The company derives its name from a stream that runs through their farm in Mwinilinga, Zambia. Kamano means a stream that never dries, aptly describing the growth the company has enjoyed over the years, enabling it to capture 15 percent of the country’s seed market share. Sylvia became the company’s Chief Executive Officer in 2016.

“The initial business was only to sell commercial products but we realized there was a high demand for seed so we decided to start our own seed business,” says Sylvia. “We work with cooperatives which identify ideal farmers to participate in seed production.”

The company takes pride in the growth they have witnessed in their contract workers. “Most farmers we started with [now] have 20 to 40 hectares. Some are businessmen and have opened agrodealer shops where they sell agricultural inputs,” Sylvia announced.

Kamano prides itself in improving the lives of women smallholders and involving women in decision-making structures. “We empower a lot of women in agriculture through our out-grower scheme,” says Sylvia. She makes a deliberate effort to recruit women farmers, ensuring they receive payment for their seeds. “We pay the women who did the work and not their husbands.”

To read the full story, please click here.

Zubeda Mduruma

Zubeda Mduruma, 65, is a plant breeder. She took to agriculture from a young age, as she enjoyed helping her parents in the family farm. After high school, Zubeda obtained a bachelor’s degree in Agriculture. Then she joined Tanzania’s national agriculture research system, working at the Ilonga Agricultural Research Institute (ARI-Ilonga) station. She then pursued her master’s in Plant Breeding and Biometry from Cornell University in the United Stations and obtained a doctorate in Plant Breeding at Sokoine University of Agriculture in Tanzania, while working and raising her family. “I wanted to be in research, so I could breed materials which would be superior than what farmers were using, because they were getting very low yields,” says Zubeda. In the 22 years she was at Ilonga, Zubeda was able to release 15 varieties.

Aminata Quality Seeds is a family business that was registered in 2008, owned by Zubeda, her husband and their four daughters. Aminata entered the seed market as an out-grower, producing seed for local companies for two years. The company started its own seed production in 2010, and the following year it was marketing improved varieties. “I decided to start a company along the Coast and impart my knowledge on improved technologies, so farmers can get quality crops for increased incomes,” says Zubeda.

Zubeda encourages more women to venture into the seed business. “To do any business, you have to have guts. It is not the money; it is the interest. When you have the interest, you will always look for ways on how to start your seed business.”

To read the full story, please click here.

Grace Malindi

Grace Malindi, 67, started Mgom’mera in Malawi in 2014 with her sister Florence Kahumbe, who had experience in running agrodealer shops. Florence was key in setting up the business, particularly through engagement with agro-dealers, while Grace’s background in extension was valuable in understanding their market. Grace has a doctoral degree in Human and Community Development with a double minor in Gender and International Development and Agriculture Extension and Advisory from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign in the United States. Mgom’mera is a family-owned enterprise. Grace’s three children are involved in the business, serving as directors.

Mgom’mera distinguishes itself from other seed companies because of its focus on maize varieties that have additional nutritive value. The company uses the tagline “Creating seed demand from the table to the soil.” It educates farmers not only on how to plant the seed they sell, but also on how to prepare nutritious dishes with their harvest. The company stocks ZM623, a drought-tolerant open-pollinated variety, and Chitedze 2, a quality protein maize. In the 2019 maize season it will also sell MH39, a pro-vitamin A variety. In addition, they are looking forward to beginning quality protein maize hybrid production in the near future, having started the process of acquiring materials from CIMMYT.

Grace observes that women entrepreneurs are late entrants in seed business. “You need agility, flexibility and experience to run a seed business and with time you will improve,” says Grace, advising women who may be interested in venturing into this male-dominated business.

To read the full story, please click here.

Women at a maize mill in Ethiopia. (Photo: P. Lowe/CIMMYT)

How collaboration can help grow and transform agriculture in Africa

Written by on May 16, 2018. Posted in Blogs.

It’s been four years since African leaders met in Equatorial Guinea to commit themselves to boosting agricultural growth across the continent. This is an important way to create real change in Africa. During the gathering, all the African Union’s heads of state signed the Malabo Declaration. It offered a blueprint for Africa’s agricultural sectors, to be achieved by 2025.

For example, the declaration called for at least 10% of any nation’s public expenditure to be allocated to agriculture and rural development. It also set out plans for increasing countries’ food security by intensifying agriculture in a way that didn’t destroy the environment.

There has been some progress in attaining these goals, as a recent status report conducted by the African Union Commission shows. But there’s still a great deal of work to be done.

The report shows that in 2015 and 2016 only ten of the 47 signatory states reached or exceeded the target of 10 percent investment in public expenditure in agriculture and rural development. These are Malawi, Ethiopia, Angola, Egypt, Sudan, Mauritania, Mali, Senegal, Burkina Faso and Equatorial Guinea. Some other countries had invested as little as 0.6 percent of public expenditure in these crucial sectors. Only 20 of the 47 signatories are on track to meet the declaration’s goals by 2025.

There’s no doubt that investment in agriculture can empower economic transformation in the region. But money alone can’t solve Africa’s agricultural problems. International collaboration is key. And it can yield real results, as a project we’re involved in has proved.

The project has relied on multidisciplinary teams of both local and international researchers from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre, The University of Queensland and the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in East and Central Africa. Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania’s departments of agriculture are also involved.

The collaborative effort has meant that it’s been possible to address multiple constraints. These include low crop productivity, poor market access, environmental degradation, and social inequalities. The project had a strong value chain focus. This involves linking – among others – farmers, agribusinesses, traders and policy makers. The result has been improved productivity. We’ve also seen reduced climate risks and improved soil fertility and soil conservation among highly vulnerable smallholder farmers in five East and Southern African countries.

Initiatives like these can help translate the Malabo Declaration from mere document to reality.

Great gains

The Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Cropping Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa Programme is led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre. It is funded by the Australian government. Researchers from Australia and the participating African countries have worked together with researchers from the centre.

The project was set up in 2010 in response to major concerns about food security across the eastern and southern Africa regions. So far, 258,393 smallholder farmers in Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania have benefited from our activities. We expect this number to increase to 600,000 by 2020.

To date, up to 91 percent of the targeted farmers have adopted at least one of sustainable intensification practices the project promotes. These practices include using drought tolerant maize non-GMO varieties; the rotation of maize and legumes; and intercrops, where a legume is sown into a standing maize crop.

Yields have increased between 30 and 60 percent across the five countries because these practices and associated technologies were adopted.

We don’t only work directly with farmers. It’s important to develop skills and capacity in crop and soil management, market development, resource conservation, gender issues and project management and evaluation.

One key resource here has been the Australia Awards Scholarships. These give people from developing countries the chance to undertake undergraduate or postgraduate studies at Australian institutions. So far this award has supported 65 master’s and doctoral candidates.

Once they return to their countries, these graduates can contribute to solving the complex problems of achieving food security and eliminating poverty. They apply modern research tools, inform policy, train others and even provide leadership in their original institutions.

Harnessing potential

The Malabo Declaration is a useful document against which to measure progress. It offers countries clear targets. It sets metrics against which they can monitor their success. This will help countries to achieve many of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals by 2030 – including those related to agriculture and food security.

The work of the Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Cropping Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa Programme offers an insight into how these goals can be met.

Countries must develop a better understanding of constraints and opportunities so they can massively scale out more productive, efficient and sustainable farm practices. They also need to develop markets, value chains and supporting policies and institutions. And crucially, continued collaborations will be necessary to increase the continent’s capacity in science, extension, policy, institutions, governance and leadership.

These must be priorities to harness Africa’s agricultural potential and spur economic growth.

This article orinally appeared on The Conversation. For the full article, click here.

Christian Thierfelder

Written by on April 17, 2018. Posted in Uncategorized.

Christian Thierfelder is a Principal Cropping Systems Agronomist working with CIMMYT’s Sustainable Intensification program.

Since 2009, Thierfelder has led CIMMYT’s conservation agriculture systems research in Southern Africa with the aim to adapt conservation agriculture systems to the needs and environments of smallholder farmers. He currently focuses on fine-tuning conservation agriculture systems to different agro-ecologies and researching farmers’ adoption of new technologies, green manure cover crops and grain legumes integration into maize-based farming systems, climate-smart agriculture, GxExM and agro-ecological management of the fall armyworm.

His research mainly covers Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe, and to a lesser extent Namibia. Thierfelder works with a wide range of national and international partners from research and extension in all target countries. Capacity building is a central part of his work, which includes farmers, extension officers and national researchers but also university students from all degree levels.

Science can reverse “new normal” of climate change-related disasters

Written by on March 9, 2018. Posted in News.

Naivasha, Kenya 2017. Photo: CIMMYT/ P.Lowe

In the last decade, the climate of Africa has been changing in dramatic ways. Many regions face unpredictable levels of rainfall, which can lead both droughts and severe flooding. Sub-Saharan Africa is the only region in the world with over 30 percent of children under five facing stunting – severe malnutrition, and is the only region where the rate of undernourished people has consistently increased.

The Sustainable Intensiﬁcation of Maize-Legume Cropping Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) program, launched in 2010, works to improve maize and legume productivity and reduce yield risk for over 650,000 farm households in sub-Saharan Africa.

Maize is a vital staple cash and sustenance crop in most of Africa, and legumes provide nutrition, income and improve soil fertility. However, farmers’ yields are suffering due to declining soil fertility, drought and poor access to improved technologies.

Over the last eight years, SIMLESA has developed productive, resilient and sustainable smallholder maize-legume cropping systems. SIMLESA focuses on improving maize-legume cropping systems by encouraging the adoption of sustainable agriculture systems through conservation agriculture practices such as crop residue retention, crop rotation and intercropping practices to simultaneously maintain and boost yields, increase proﬁts and protect the environment.

Recently, Elliud Kireger, director general of the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organization (KALRO), Mulugetta Mekuria Asfaw, SIMLESA project leader and Daniel Rodriguez, associate professor, Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation (QAAFI) The University of Queensland, wrote a joint opinion piece “Africa: Science Can Reverse ‘New Normal’ of Hunger and Climate Disaster” in All Africa on the impacts of SIMLESA, read it here.

The Sustainable Intensiﬁcation of Maize-Legume Cropping Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) program is funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR).

Project helps African farmers identify regional best practices

Written by on October 11, 2017. Posted in News.

MEXICO CITY (CIMMYT) – Traditional farming systems in Africa must be updated for today’s climate and market challenges, according to a new report by the University of Queensland.

The Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) is an international research-for-development project working directly with farmers to solve some of the challenges they face.

For example, the project has greatly improved food production in Mozambique since 2010. It is also promoting rotational cropping systems with legumes in Tanzania to improve soil fertility as well as dietary diversity, and in Malawi, rainfall erosion has been reduced by 80 percent as farmers leave plant residues on fields to improve stability.

“The exact details of best practice change everywhere you go in Africa,” said Caspar Roxburgh, a research officer at the University of Queensland who works with SIMLESA. “A lot of this research just hasn’t been done yet in Africa.”

SIMLESA seeks to have an open dialogue between farmers and scientists to identify what works best in individual areas and define best practices for the region.

“We find out who’s doing the best, learn from them, and then we do the science to back it all up,” explained Roxburgh.

Over the past seven years, SIMLESA has helped more than 200,000 farmers adopt sustainable technologies and practices, improving yields and income.

SIMLESA is funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) and implemented by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), the University of Queensland along with the governments of Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi and Mozambique.

Read more about how SIMLESA is changing how food is grown in Africa here.

Artificial inoculation of maize germplasm at the Naivasha MLN screening site, Kenya. (Photo: B.Wawa/CIMMYT)

New online portal offers information to curb maize lethal necrosis in Africa

Written by on July 24, 2017. Posted in News.

The new maize lethal necrosis (MLN) online portal provides up-to-date information and surveillance tools to help researchers control and stop the spread of the deadly disease.

MLN was first reported in Kenya in 2011 and has since then been reported in several countries in eastern Africa, especially the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. The disease kills plants before they can grow, and the pathogens are transmitted by insects or contaminated seed. Serious damage to the region’s maize production from MLN has impacted household food security.

The online portal, found at mln.cimmyt.org, details the spread of MLN, where the disease has been managed and controlled, and how to identify it in the field. It also provides key MLN publications, surveillance software, MLN incidence maps, information on the MLN Screening Facility, and MLN-tolerant hybrids that are either released or in pipeline.

One tool on the portal is the MLN surveillance and monitoring system that provides real-time data to identify the presence and spread of the disease across five endemic countries in eastern Africa, and three selected non-endemic countries in southern Africa. The system was developed by scientists collaborating with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), with support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

In 2016, MLN surveillance was successfully conducted in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe – three major seed producing countries in Africa – and the data is presented in the portal, detailing MLN’s status across 652 surveyed maize fields. Future data gathered in other affected countries will also be uploaded to the portal as surveillance teams conduct fieldwork using Global Positioning System online survey tools, to assess the spread and severity of the disease in these countries. Ongoing surveillance in endemic countries allows stakeholders to see real-time updates on the spread of MLN.

MLN susceptible hybrids compared to a CIMMYT-derived MLN-tolerant hybrid. Photo: CIMMYT

Since the disease was first reported, collaborative efforts have resulted in the establishment of a MLN Screening Facility at the Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization (KALRO) center at Naivasha in 2013. The facility, managed by CIMMYT, has so far screened nearly 100,000 maize germplasm entries — 56 percent from CIMMYT — against MLN under artificial inoculation over the last four years.

Nine CIMMYT-derived MLN-tolerant hybrids have been already released in three countries – seven in Kenya, one in Uganda and one in Tanzania. Eleven second generation hybrids are currently in national performance trials in these countries. Intensive efforts are currently being made by seed companies in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda to expand the delivery of MLN-tolerant maize seed to the smallholders.

The MLN portal enables researchers to comprehensively assess the situation with regard to MLN, helps strengthen the national disease monitoring and diagnostic systems by providing faster and accurate data, and offers access to CIMMYT-offered MLN phenotyping services.

Farmer in Malawi defines true project success

Written by on June 15, 2017. Posted in Blogs.

Esnath Shaibu (left) on his farm in Malawi discussing resource allocation on his plots. Photo: C. Thierfelder/CIMMYT

LIWONDE, Malawi (CIMMYT) — Esnath Shaibu, a smallholder farmer from Matandika, southern Malawi was a host farmer with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) for seven years who helped the organization conduct research trials on sustainable agriculture intensification with support from the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

Shaibu’s farm in Matandika, like most other farms in this area, is small and restricted to less than one hectare (ha) per household. Matandika is highly affected by the effects of climate change and a growing population is putting more pressure on dwindling land resources. Farmers have experienced more droughts in recent years which has affected food and nutritional security. Investment into soil conservation and maintaining soil fertility has therefore become critical.

A good proportion of Shaibu’s livelihood is generated from the land of his .3 ha research plot, which evaluates conservation agriculture (CA) systems in the environments and circumstances of Matandika.

The fields in Matandika are on hillsides and need to be seeded with as little disturbance as possible to avoid soil erosion and run-off. Farmers have also understood the value of crop residues and integrate legumes as intercrops in their fields to intensify their farming systems and increase diversification. Optimal plant spacing, early planting and precision application of fertilizers have been other good agriculture practices that farmers perfected in this area.

During the trials, Shaibu practiced a direct seeded CA method, intercropping maize and pigeonpea, and compared the results with conventional tillage practices just planting maize. Yields from Shaibu’s plots were increasingly stable under the CA system, as they proved to be more resilient against in-season dry-spells, drought and unevenly disturbed rainfalls which often fell at great intensity.

Shaibu graduated from the CA program in 2014, but continued to implement the same principles and practices on his own without CIMMYT’s interference or support.

When questioned about his rationale during a field visit in 2017, Shaibu said “we saw something good in it,” and his healthy looking crop spoke for itself.

Shibu’s case demonstrates that technology adoption is only successful if we as development practitioners work ourselves out of a job. He is a true adopter who has continued investing his own resources to produce a good maize crop on a significant proportion of his land by applying CA principles at highest standards. Shaibu has also converted other fields he owns to CA and continues to be an influential advocate in the community for the benefits of CA.

Fall armyworm devastates crops in sub-Saharan Africa: A quick and coordinated regional response is required

Written by on June 2, 2017. Posted in News.

The recent appearance of the fall armyworm, an insect-pest that causes damage to more than 80 crop species in 14 countries in sub-Saharan Africa, poses a serious challenge and significant risk to the region’s food security.

In a recent interview, B.M. Prasanna, director of the Global Maize Program at International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the CGIAR Research Program on MAIZE, who is working at the forefront of CGIAR’s response, highlights the potential impact of the pest and how CGIAR researchers are contributing to a quick and coordinated response across the region.

Q: What is the fall armyworm and why is it so destructive?

The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) is an insect-pest which causes major damage to more than 80 crop species, including economically important crops, such as maize, rice, sorghum, wheat, sugarcane, several other vegetable crops and cotton.

It was first officially reported in Nigeria in early 2016 and has been officially confirmed in 11 and suspected in at least 14 other African countries, as of April 2017.

Q: What are the potential impacts of the pest in sub-Saharan Africa?

The fall armyworm poses a serious challenge and a significant, ongoing risk to Africa’s food security.

The pest’s ability to feed on a range of crop species means that smallholder farming systems in Africa, which are based on intercropping, are particularly vulnerable. Also, the rapid damage and migratory capacity of the pest, combined with its capacity to reproduce quickly in the right environmental conditions and its ability to rapidly evolve resistance to synthetic pesticides increase the region’s vulnerability.

In sub-Saharan Africa, where fall armyworm is currently devastating maize crops, estimates indicate 13.5 million tons of maize valued at $3 billion are at risk in 2017-2018, which is equivalent to over 20 percent of total production for the region (based on data from CABI, April 2017).

Q: What are the key challenges that countries in sub-Saharan Africa will face?

There is no doubt that smallholder farmers, particularly maize farmers, in sub-Saharan Africa will face a significant and ongoing risk from the fall armyworm. In particular, resource-poor smallholders will be severely affected due to their inability to control the pest using synthetic pesticides, currently the only way to effectively respond, which are very costly.

Q: What are three ways that countries in sub-Saharan African can strengthen resilience of food and agricultural systems to the potential effects of Fall Armyworm?

Working groups need to be established quickly to develop and implement strategies to respond to the issue. In particular, we need to develop a comprehensive, regional response centered on: Monitoring and early warning; Social and economic assessments of impacts, and forecasting; Integrated Pest Management (IPM); Development and dissemination of low-cost, effective and sustainable solutions and development of appropriate regulatory tools and policies to support the response.
As this process unfolds, gaps, challenges and successes will need to be documented to inform capacity-building needs with a focus on understanding the capacity of individual countries to respond. While fall armyworm outbreaks across Africa is an emergency situation, it should also be an opportunity to review and understand regional food production and food security issues and as an opportunity to improve on systematic approaches to build capacity to prevent and respond to future threats of transboundary pests and pathogens in Africa.
Strong coordination across different levels of government is required: “political coordination” (among the local governments, NPPOs, and sub-regional organizations), and “technical coordination” (fast-tracked testing and deployment of relevant technologies).

Q: What role do CIMMYT and CGIAR have in building capacity in the region’s ability to respond to Fall Armyworm?

CGIAR institutions, including CIMMYT and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), have significant strengths in building the region’s ability to respond to trans-boundary pathogens (e.g., previous examples include Maize Lethal Necrosis, wheat rust and insect-pests, such as fall armyworm.

Specific examples of CGIAR/CIMMYT expertise that will be important in the fall armyworm response include:

Development and dissemination of crowd-source based tools and digital surveillance systems and analysis of the data collected across countries for a strong monitoring and early warning system.
Systematic and large-scale assessment of the present and potential socio-economic impact of fall armyworm in Africa, and the development of forecasting tools to understand potential losses
Review of the efficacy of different fall armyworm management options (learning from experiences of the United States, Brazil and Mexico), and adapting this information to the African context
Determining the efficacy of cultural control options against fall armyworm, including early versus late planting of crops like maize, handpicking, soil and habitat management, crop hygiene, etc.
Evaluating the impacts on-going integrated pest management (IPM) initiatives and the impacts of the fall armyworm invasion on the effectiveness of these interventions
Developing and implementing appropriate insect resistance monitoring and management strategy in fall armyworm affected countries
Analysis of the effects of conservation agriculture on fall armyworm management and the influence of fall armyworm incidence on diverse cropping systems
Testing and introgression of conventionally-derived resistance (from identified CIMMYT and U.S. Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service [USDA-ARS] germplasm sources) into Africa-adapted maize germplasm, followed by fast-tracked varietal release, seed scale-up and delivery of improved maize hybrids/varieties through public-private partnerships (e.g., MLN is a great example of this).
Developing a “Fall Armyworm Information Portal”, similar to the MLN Information Portal and Wheat Rust Tracker (led by CIMMYT), as a one-stop portal for relevant information.

Q: CIMMYT recently co-hosted an emergency meeting on the strategy for effective management of fall armyworm in Africa. What were the key outcomes and next steps for the response to this issue?

The emergency meeting was an opportunity to assess the present and potential damage due to fall armyworm and to devise a holistic control strategy.

CIMMYT, Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) and the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) jointly hosted a Stakeholders Consultation Meeting in Nairobi, Kenya (April 27-28, 2017). About 150 experts and stakeholders from 24 countries in Africa, and five outside Africa (Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Britain and the United States) participated, with participants from government, national plant protection agency, national agricultural research systems in Africa, as well as scientists from international agricultural research organizations, and representatives of service providers, non-governmental organizations, development partners, donor agencies and the media.

Discussions covered the present status of the pest in Africa as well as contingency plans to manage the pest, assessment of current control options being used. Experts from the U.S. and U.K. provided expertise and insight on the response to fall armyworm in the U.S. and Brazil.

Action points and recommendations on four key areas were developed to ensure an effective, coordinated response:

Contingency planning and awareness generation;
Fall armyworm monitoring and early warning;
Socio-economic impact assessments and modeling of potential losses;
Development and Dissemination of fall armyworm management options;
Coordination of Institutional Interventions for fall armyworm management in Africa.

FAO is expected to convene a regional workshop in early June to engage and coordinate with relevant regional organizations who will be involved in the response.

CIMMYT and CGIAR have responded and will continue to address the issue over the following months. For more information see these recent publications: Multi pronged approach key for effectively defeating fall army worm in Africa; Scientists tackle deadly fall armyworm infestation devastating maize in Southern Africa and Global experts and stakeholders meet to develop fall armyworm emergency strategy for Africa.

Similarly, international coverage of the fall armyworm crisis has been extensive and includes the following:

This article was originally posted by CGIAR.

As climate change threatens to increase the incidence of plant pests and diseases, action must be taken to protect smallholder farmers and global food security.

At this year’s UN Climate Talks, CIMMYT is highlighting innovations in wheat and maize that can help farmers overcome climate change. Follow @CIMMYT on Twitter and Facebook for the latest updates.

Gender and development specialist Rahma Adam: Aiding African women to build household food security

Written by on March 8, 2017. Posted in Blogs.

Women account for over 50 percent of farmers in many parts of Africa. Photo: CIMMYT/Peter Lowe

EL BATAN, Mexico (CIMMYT) — In a special interview to mark International Women’s Day, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) gender and development specialist, Rahma Adam, detailed how her research aims to improve the agricultural productivity of women in southern and eastern Africa.

With women making up over 50 percent of farmers in many parts of Africa, it is essential to understand how gender roles, relations and responsibilities encourage and hinder their agricultural productivity, said Adam.

Understanding gender relations improves the work of researchers and development specialists to target programs in the correct areas and with right people in order to get the most impact, she said.

Adam works with the Intensification of Maize and Legume Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) project to investigate gender relations to best promote sustainable intensification agricultural practices that will improve household food security.

Conservation agriculture systems involve crop rotations and inter-cropping with maize and legumes to increase yields. In the photograph, conservation agriculture practitioner Lughano Mwangonde with the gender development specialist Rahma Adam in Balaka district, Malawi. Photo: CIMMYT/Johnson Siamachira. — Conservation agriculture systems involve crop rotations and inter-cropping with maize and legumes to increase yields. Pictured here are conservation agriculture practitioner Lughano Mwangonde (L) and gender and development specialist Rahma Adam in Balaka district, Malawi. Photo: CIMMYT/Johnson Siamachira.

Sustainable intensification agriculture practices are aimed at enhancing the productivity of labor, land and capital without damaging the environment. In practice, sustainable intensification involves such conservation agriculture practices as minimal soil disturbance, permanent soil cover and the use of inter-cropping and crop rotation to simultaneously maintain and boost yields, increase profits and protect the environment. It contributes to improved soil function and quality, which can improve resilience to climate variability.

Through SIMLESA, supported by the Australian Center for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), Adam shares her findings with a network of stakeholders, such as governments and non-governmental organizations, aiding the delivery of agricultural technologies, taking into account gender norms to hold a greater chance of adoption.

We spoke to about her work in a short interview listen here or read below:

Q: Please explain a bit about your work. What is SIMLESA, where does it operate and what are its key objectives?

A: SIMLESA stands for, Sustainable Intensification of Maize and Legume Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa, we are now in the second phase of the project. We focus on several things, providing the needed knowledge in terms of technology, improved varieties of seeds for maize and legumes and how to use them in the practice of sustainable intensification practices. The idea is to improve crop yields from current levels, that’s the basic idea of SIMLESA.

The project operates in mainly five countries, Tanzania, Kenya, and Ethiopia for Eastern Africa and Malawi and Mozambique for southern Africa. But we have three spill over countries where SIMLESA also have some activities, they are Rwanda, Botswana and Uganda.

We want to make sure farmers know the practices of sustainable intensification, they are able to use them, able to adapt them for the benefit of improving food security of the household and increase their livelihoods.

Q: Why is gender analysis important in meeting SIMLESA’s objectives?

A: Women in sub-Saharan Africa play a lion’s share of farming, the literature shows on average they farm as much as men, they make up 60 percent of farmers or more in some countries. Because they are the majority, there is no way we could put them on the back-burner, and not address or try to understand what are their constraints for agricultural production and agricultural marketing and all the other things that go with an agricultural household being successful in terms of their livelihoods.

It is very important to think about women, not alone, but also their relationships with men, we also have to think about who are their husbands. In sub-Saharan Africa most households are patriarchal, so they are male dominated, meaning a husband has much more say than the wife in terms of decision making in regards to what to grow, how much money should be spent that they have collected from agriculture, among other things.

It is important to not only think about how to improve the lives of women but also to understand the norms that go on. The institutional norms within a community, within a household and how they can play some sort of role that can either make a women successful or make a woman unsuccessful in terms of bringing up her household, in terms of the betterment of nutrition and schooling, etc.

It is a very complex issue. That’s why we cannot ignore gender itself as it sits in the rural households of Africa, because it is the nucleus of it. Once we understand how the relationship works between husband and wife or man and woman working within a society then we will be able to say how we can really propel sustainable intensification in these communities.

Q: Although rural women in southern and eastern Africa play crucial role in farming and food production why are they less likely to own land or livestock, adopt new technologies, or access credit?

A: Most of the problem of women’s lack of ownership of assets, such as land, among others stems from the institutional social norms of the communities in which they reside. Usually for patriarchal societies in sub-Saharan Africa, women are married into their husband’s home, and thus nearly all assets including land, livestock, improved or new technologies and money belong to their husbands and in some occasions, wives have very little say, with regards to those assets.

Because the major assets of the households are under the hands of the husband, it is hard for the wife to be able to access credit facilities, without involving the husband. As most of the credit and financial facilities, require a collateral, before they provide one a loan.

Three major commercial maize seed exporting countries in southern Africa found free from maize lethal necrosis

Written by on November 25, 2016. Posted in News.

brenda_2 — Maimouna Abass, a plant health inspector at Zambia Agriculture Research Institute collects leave samples to test for MCMV in a practical session during the MLN surveillance and diagnostic workshop held in Harare, Zimbabwe. Photo: D. Hodson/CIMMYT

NAIROBI, Kenya (CIMMYT) – Three major commercial maize-growing and seed exporting countries in southern Africa were found to be so far free from the deadly maize lethal necrosis (MLN) disease. MLN surveillance efforts undertaken by national plant protection organizations (NPPOs) in Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe in 2016 have so far revealed no incidence of MLN, including the most important causative agent, maize chlorotic mottle virus (MCMV).

The three countries export an estimated 7,000 metric tons of maize seed to Angola, Botswana, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Swaziland and Tanzania for commercial cultivation by millions of smallholder farmers whose households rely on maize as a staple food.

MLN surveys were conducted as part of ongoing efforts through a project on MLN Diagnostics and Management, funded by U.S. Department for International Development (USAID) East Africa Mission, to strengthen the capacity of NPPOs on surveillance and diagnostics. A total of 12 officers were equipped with knowledge on modern sampling and diagnostics techniques to test plants and seed lots for MLN causing viruses; this was done through a training workshop held in Harare, Zimbabwe on March 3 and 4, 2016 facilitated by scientists working with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).

The NPPO teams from Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe then undertook surveys of farmers’ and commercial maize seed production fields, including testing (through MCMV immunostrips) for possible presence of the virus.

“When CIMMYT called the first stakeholders awareness meeting we realised we needed to do this surveillance as soon as possible to ascertain MLN status in the country – and so the training was very important and extremely useful,” said Maimouna Abass, a plant health inspector at Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI). “The fact that we went to the field and successfully conducted the surveys using the MLN diagnostics and sampling techniques learnt was great.”

Abass and three colleagues who participated in the training, trained 10 other inspectors who took part in the surveillance work.

The results from farmers’ fields, commercial seed production fields and agri-seed dealers, showed negative results for the presence of MCMV and MLN. The MLN surveillance techniques and protocols used across all the three countries were similar, making it possible to effectively compare the results.

“The harmonization of the protocols, across the teams from Malawi and Zambia, was important for me, since this meant that the three countries were able to do the same surveillance using the same protocols and applying the same design across all the countries,” said Nhamo Mudada, chief research officer from the Plant Quarantine Station in Zimbabwe.

Participants recieve instructions from L.M Suresh, a maize pathologist at CIMMYT, during the MLN surveillance and diagnostic workshop. Photo: D.Hodson/CIMMYT

Although the MLN disease has not been detected in the southern Africa region, the risk of incidence still remains high through various means, including insect vectors, contaminated seed, and cross-border grain transfers. Therefore, continued caution and stringent surveillance, monitoring and diagnostic measures are required to prevent the possible incidence and spread of MLN into the non-endemic countries.

Further surveillance work will be conducted in 2017, so that each team can cover other targeted areas within their respective countries. MLN surveillance using harmonized protocols will also be undertaken in the MLN-endemic countries, namely Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda. Through systematic surveillance efforts, NPPOs, seed companies and policymakers can clearly understand the prevalence of MLN in specific areas in an endemic country for targeted management. Also, seed companies will be able to target production of commercial seed in MLN-free areas.

As this work progresses, B. M. Prasanna, director of the CGIAR Research Program on MAIZE and CIMMYT’s Global Maize Program as well as Leader for the MLN Diagnostics and Management Project, emphasized the need to intensively deploy MLN-tolerant and resistant varieties, not only in the MLN-endemic countries in eastern Africa, but also in the non-endemic countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

“We have about 22 new, high-yielding, MLN-tolerant or resistant hybridsthat are presently under national performance trials in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. We actively encourage seed companies operating in southern Africa to take up promising pre-commercial hybrids with MLN tolerance or resistance from CIMMYT, for release, scale up and deployment to the farmers,” Prasanna said. “Diagnostics and surveillance have to go hand in hand with deployment of new improved varieties that can effectively respond to the MLN challenge.”

In the East African countries of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, seed companies have already released MLN-tolerant varieties. While one hybrid is already being commercialized in Uganda, three more are expected to reach farmers in Kenya and Tanzania from 2017.

“There is also now a very urgent need to deploy MLN resistant varieties in Rwanda and Ethiopia. We need to convey this message to the government and seed companies and work closely to get the seed of MLN resistant varieties to the farmers as soon as possible,” Prasanna added.

The MLN diagnostics and management project, which is funded by the U.S. Department for International Development (USAID), supports work aimed at preventing the spread of MCMV from MLN-endemic to non-endemic areas in sub-Saharan Africa. USAID also supports the commercial seed sector and phytosanitary systems in targeted countries (Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe), in the production of MCMV-free commercial seed, and promotes the use of clean hybrid seed by the farmers.

Target for 10 million more climate-smart farmers in southern Africa amid rising cost of El Niño

Written by on November 23, 2016. Posted in Features.

EL BATAN, Mexico (CIMMYT) – El Niño may have passed, but food security in southern Africa will continue to deteriorate until next year, as farmers struggle to find the resources to rebuild their livelihoods. Currently, around 30 million people in southern Africa require food aid, expected to rise to 50 million people by the end of February 2017.

Two Zimbabwe-based scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) highlighted predictions that El Niño will become more frequent and severe under climate change, and that heat stress will reduce maize yields in southern Africa by 2050. Research centers, development agencies and governments must work together to respond to climate predictions before food crises develop, they said.

Q: What do climate predictions say and how do they inform CIMMYT’s work?

Comparing a new heat and drought-tolerant maize variety in Zimbabwe. CIMMYT/Johnson Siamachira — A new stress-tolerant maize variety compared in Zimbabwe. CIMMYT/Johnson Siamachira

Jill Cairns: Using climate projections we identified what future maize growing environments are going to be like, what traits will be needed for these environments and where the hotspots of vulnerability will be in terms of maize production.

We identified that heat stress is going to become a more important issue for maize in southern Zimbabwe, and southern Africa generally.

Previously we had no heat screening in the whole of Africa for maize breeding, and four years ago we set up heat screening networks. Through that we are starting to get maize varieties that do well under heat and drought.

This was meant to be for 2050, but now we have seen in this last El Niño that heat stress is a real problem. We actually have varieties now, thanks to the identification of the problem and the pre-emptive work towards it.

Q: What can be done for farmers in drought-stricken areas?

Drought in southern Africa caused by El Niño. CIMMYT/GIS Lab — Drought in southern Africa during El Niño. CIMMYT/GIS Lab

Christian Thierfelder: We have systems with adaptation qualities. For example, conservation agriculture increases water infiltration and maintains higher levels of soil moisture. So in times of dry spells, these systems can produce more, and live from the residual moisture in the soil.

Stress-tolerant maize is selected under drought and heat stress besides other biotic and abiotic stresses, and specifically adapted to such circumstances. We know that the varieties themselves can help farmers’ yields by 30 to 50 percent, but if you combine that with other technologies, and we have seen that this last year, you can have yield gains of over 100 percent with conservation agriculture and improved seed for example under drought conditions.

We have seen this year in Malawi, in communities that were heavily affected by El Niño, that we harvested almost two tons more maize per hectare in comparison to the conventional systems. I think this is a huge benefit that we really have to roll out.

Q: What can be achieved over the next five to seven years?

Christian Thierfelder: Our biggest aim is to improve and increase the resilience of farming systems. We are not looking at a single technology like drought tolerant maize or conservation agriculture in isolation, but looking at it more from livelihoods perspective and a farming systems perspective.

One option: crop index insurance for farmers

Besides technologies, we also need other climate-smart options and approaches that support farmers to respond to a changing climate. Farmers also need cash if they have failed in a drought year, and small loans or microfinancing will be critical to buy things from scratch and re-initiate farming.

We have the technologies, we have researched them and we know their impact on a small scale. What we want to do now is encourage public and private organizations, including seed companies, that work in that space to come together with us and jointly find solutions.

We as CIMMYT can only tackle a certain proportion of the farming system with our technologies and approaches. We have other CGIAR centers that specialize in legumes, cassava and livestock, and we partner a lot with international NGOs like Concern, Catholic Relief Services, CARE, World Vision, Total LandCare and the national agriculture research and extension systems to help us with scaling.

If we really come together now, if we have a coherent and joint multidisciplinary approach, I think in seven years’ time we will have reached many more farmers. We will target 10 million farmers practicing climate-smart agriculture in the next five to seven years.

Building a sustainable future: A history of conservation agriculture in southern Africa

Written by on June 23, 2016. Posted in News.

This story is one of a series of features written during CIMMYT’s 50th anniversary year to highlight significant advancements in maize and wheat research between 1966 and 2016.

HARARE, Zimbabwe (CIMMYT) — When practiced unsustainably, agriculture has led to environmental degradation and famine, which have plagued civilizations through the centuries. Innovations such as irrigation or the plow (since circa 6,000 and 3,000 BC) increased productivity, but often deteriorated long-term soil fertility through erosion and other forms of degradation.

We are now facing historically unprecedented challenges to food security. We must increase food production by 70 percent to feed nine billion people by 2050, without damaging our finite and often already degraded natural resource base. In addition, farmers face more frequent drought and water scarcity, which makes it increasingly difficult to grow crops, and extreme weather events such as the 2015-2016 El Niño, which has already caused large-scale crop failures and soaring maize prices in southern Africa.

Conservation agriculture (CA) practices based on the principles of minimal soil disturbance, permanent soil cover and crop rotation are helping farmers combat growing environmental challenges by maintaining and boosting yields, while protecting the environment and increasing profits for smallholders globally. When CA practices are coupled with water-use efficient and drought tolerant varieties, the benefits are even greater.

Drought is increasingly common in Malawi, leaving an estimated three million people in need of urgent humanitarian food assistance this year alone. However, a fortunate few will escape hunger, including more than 400 farmers and their families in Balaka, southern Malawi, who have been practicing CA over the last 12 years. "Few farmers have livestock in Balaka, so crop residues can be kept on the fields instead of feeding them to cattle," according to Thierfelder, who says Malawi presents a good case for conservation agriculture. CIMMYT and its strategic development partner Total LandCare have helped more than 65,000 farmers adopt CA systems throughout the entire country. Above, SIMLESA lead farmer Agnes Sendeza harvests maize ears on her farm in Tembwe, Salima District, Malawi. Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT — Drought is increasingly common in Malawi, leaving an estimated 3 million people in need of urgent humanitarian food assistance this year alone. However, more than 400 farmers and their families in Balaka, southern Malawi, who have been practicing CA over the last 12 years will escape hunger. CIMMYT and its partner Total LandCare have helped more than 65,000 farmers adopt CA systems throughout the entire country. Above, SIMLESA lead farmer Agnes Sendeza harvests maize ears on her farm in Tembwe, Salima District, Malawi. Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT

“CA approaches can mean the difference between farmers being able to feed their families or having to starve,” says Christian Thierfelder, senior cropping systems agronomist at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), regarding the recent El Niño – the strongest on record – in southern Africa. To date, approximately 10 million people in southern Africa are dependent on food aid and an estimated 50 million people are projected to be affected, pushing them to the brink of starvation.

Sustainable intensification of agricultural systems and practices such as CA have become a necessity for farmers in Africa, where a combination of climate change and unsustainable agricultural practices are undermining land and water resources. This, coupled with an exploding population, makes increasing productivity while conserving the environment absolutely urgent.

Based on its experience in Latin America, which began in the early 1990s, CIMMYT started its first CA project in Africa in 2004, targeting Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia and Zimbabwe. This initial work focused on understanding CA systems in the context of farmers and their environmental conditions and was funded by the German government and the International Fund for Agriculture Development. Its aim was to facilitate the adoption of CA systems by smallholder farmers. This culminated in the establishment in 2009 of a large PAN-African project on Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Systems in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA).

Farmers in Shamva District, Zimbabwe, are introduced to an animal traction direct seeder which allows seeding and fertilizing directly into crop residues with minimum soil disturbance. Labor-saving sowing systems are a key benefit for labor-constrained farmers and provide an entry point for CA adoption and outscaling. Photo: Thierfelder/CIMMYT — Farmers in Shamva District, Zimbabwe, are introduced to an animal traction direct seeder which allows seeding and fertilizing directly into crop residues with minimum soil disturbance. Photo: Thierfelder/CIMMYT

Since then, CIMMYT has leveraged its large network of partners to scale out CA. Between 2010 and 2015, CIMMYT, supported by a large group of donors including the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the United States Agency for International Development and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, helped over 173,000 farming households in the region adopt sustainable intensification practices.

Today, CA research at CIMMYT in Africa is increasingly focused on adaptation to the changing climate, which is leading to more erratic rainfall, increased heat stress and seasonal dry spells, in an effort to increase the use of climate-resilient cropping systems. CIMMYT’s work on CA in the region has shown that the practice can significantly increase farmers’ resilience to climate variability and change. Combining sustainable intensification practices with improved varieties has proved to increase productivity by 30-60 percent and income by 40-100 percent under drought conditions.

Despite CA’s successes, many smallholder farmers in developing countries still lack knowledge and understanding of sustainable agricultural practices and often revert to traditional farming practices that are labor-intensive and environmentally damaging. Also, CA systems are difficult to scale out if favorable policies and markets are not in place.

Araujo Njambo (right), a smallholder maize farmer in Mozambique, was used to the traditional way of farming that his family has practiced for generations, which required clearing a plot of land and burning all plant residues remaining on the soil to get a clean seedbed. However, as demand for land increases, this fuels deforestation and depletes soil nutrients. CIMMYT has been working with farmers like Njambo since 2006 to adapt sustainable intensification practices like CA to his circumstances. In remote areas of Mozambique, where Njambo’s farm is located, CA systems provide significant benefits during dry spells because farmers have no access to irrigation and depend only on rainfall. In the 2013-2014 cropping season, Njambo harvested his best maize yield in the last six years thanks to CA. Photo: Christian Thierfelder/CIMMYT — Araujo Njambo (right), a smallholder maize farmer in Mozambique, was used to the traditional way of farming that his family has practiced for generations, which required clearing a plot of land and burning all plant residues remaining on the soil to get a clean seedbed. However, as demand for land increases, this fuels deforestation and depletes soil nutrients. CIMMYT has been working with farmers like Njambo since 2006 to adapt sustainable intensification practices like CA to his circumstances. In the 2013-2014 cropping season, Njambo harvested his best maize yield in the last six years thanks to CA. Photo: Christian Thierfelder/CIMMYT

Mineral fertilizer, for example, is a basic agricultural input, but its adoption and use remain limited in sub-Saharan Africa. Farmers apply less than 10 kilograms per hectare on average due mainly to poor distribution networks (especially in rural areas) and high prices that are 3-5 times those in Europe. Lack of knowledge and training on how to use mineral fertilizer and other agricultural inputs renders them ineffective.

New discoveries in agriculture and breeding must be adaptable and transferable to smallholder farmers. This means improving physical distribution of technologies, training, knowledge and information sharing, credit availability and creating enabling environments for growth.

Just before passing away in September 2009, world-renowned agricultural scientist Norman Borlaug famously implored the world to “take it to the farmer” – a call to action we must follow if we are to sustainably feed the world by 2050. Without a basic understanding of good agricultural practices, most smallholder farmers will not be able to grow enough crops to move past subsistence farming.

Grain yield from a conservation agriculture demonstration plot in Zomba District, Malawi, is measured precisely as part of CIMMYT’s research on the combined benefits of drought tolerant maize and CA. Photo: Peter Lowe/CIMMYT

Improved maize fights drought in Malawi

Written by on May 26, 2016. Posted in News.

Members of the Malawi Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Food Security with smallholder farmers and extension workers admiring some of the drought tolerant maize varieties in Mangochi. CIMMYT/ Willie Kalumula — Members of the Malawi Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Food Security with smallholder farmers and extension workers admiring some of the drought tolerant maize varieties in Mangochi. Photo: Willie Kalumula/CIMMYT

LILONGWE, MALAWI – As an El Niño-induced drought continues to devastate southern African food crops, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) promoted drought-tolerant maize to Malawian politicians at a field day in April.

With more than half of Malawi’s population needing food relief due to drought, the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Food Security launched an assessment of the food situation across the country, which brought nine government officials to Mangochi District to learn about the impact drought-tolerant maize and climate-smart agriculture are having on the livelihoods of farmers.

Representatives of the Malawi Improved Seed Systems and Technologies (MISST) project, funded by USAID Feed the Future and implemented by CIMMYT, demonstrated positive yield results of drought-tolerant maize varieties to the nine politicians and to 314 smallholder farmers (202 of them women) in Minyanga village.

Politicians and farmers alike were impressed by the quality and yield of the CIMMYT-bred varieties in comparison to local varieties.

“In spite of the erratic and low rainfall received, we are surprised that the drought-tolerant maize varieties managed to produce large cobs,” said Mangochi Member of Parliament Lilian Patel, showing the maize cobs to other officials. “As an MP of this area, I am aware and scared by the scale, magnitude and impact of the drought in Malawi, but drought-tolerant maize varieties, alongside other technologies, have demonstrated that they are effective in coping with drought and climate change.”

Hannas Matola, field demonstration host farmer in Mangochi explaining some important attributes of drought tolerant maize varieties compared to the local varieties. CIMMYT/ Willie Kalumula — Hannas Matola, field demonstration host farmer in Mangochi explaining some important attributes of drought tolerant maize varieties compared to the local varieties. Photo: Willie Kalumula/CIMMYT

Farmer Annas Matola, the host of the demonstration field, was equally impressed by the performance of drought-tolerant maize varieties, saying, “The different maize varieties showcased here are very unique in the way they cope with and withstand the drought experienced this year compared to the other maize varieties in the neighboring field.”

According to Felix Jumbe, chairperson of Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture and Food Security, the MISST project is a huge stepping stone for smallholder farmers in Malawi because it gives them the opportunity to use improved drought-tolerant varieties of different crops such as maize and legumes.

Malawi relies heavily on agriculture for its economic growth, with 80 percent of the country’s population engaged full-time in this activity. Over the next two years, CIMMYT hopes to put drought-tolerant and nutritious maize in the hands of 300,000 people in Malawi.

In April, Malawian President Peter Mutharika declared a state of disaster in Malawi as severe drought continued to cause a sharp decline in crop production across the country. The projected drop in maize harvest from last year’s output is estimated at 12 percent, according to the presidential statement, which also stated that, as a result, an estimated three million people are in need of urgent humanitarian food assistance.

The World Food Program (WFP) is currently assisting nearly three million people in 23 of Malawi’s 28 districts, which are badly affected. “The current drought situation in Malawi came on the back of a bad crop last year, due to flooding which affected parts of the country,‘’ said WFP’s southern Africa spokesperson David Orr.

The WFP warned in February that about 49 million people were at risk of being affected by drought in southern Africa, with 14 million already facing hunger in the region.

Erratic rainfall and record-breaking temperatures have already induced large-scale crop failures in most countries. South Africa has declared the recent drought its worst in at least 100 years, and will have to import half of the maize it consumes.

Drought occurs frequently in Malawi, especially in its drier parts, such as Balaka and Machinga, while in the Lower Shire districts of Chikhwawa and Nsanje, floods are a common occurrence affecting maize productivity and production. This, coupled with the effects of El Niño, led to heavy rains in northern Malawi during April, causing severe flooding and extensive damage to crops, infrastructure and property, as well as the death of 10 people.

Harnessing maize biodiversity for food security, improved livelihoods in Africa

Written by on May 20, 2016. Posted in Features.

HARARE (CIMMYT) — As CIMMYT joins the world in celebrating the International Day for Biological Diversity on 22 May, it can take pride in the diverse maize varieties it develops which have improved the livelihoods and health of smallholder farmers globally.

These varieties have brought tremendous benefits to smallholders in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Over 90 percent of agricultural production in SSA is rainfed, which puts farmers at risk for drought and heat in addition to the poor soil fertility, pests and diseases they face. Drought alone damages about 40 percent of all maize crops in SSA, endangering the livelihoods and food security of millions of smallholder farmers.

Stress tolerant maize not only reduces risks for farmers in the face of unpredictable environmental and biological conditions, it also allows more stable crop production. The International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) breeds high-yielding, locally-adapted maize varieties with farmer-preferred traits such as drought tolerance, nitrogen use efficiency, and disease and insect pest resistance. Many of these varieties also have increased nutritional traits such as high protein quality and increased provitamin A content, which help increase children’s weight and height growth rates and reduce childhood blindness.

“Since working with CIMMYT, we have unlocked our production potential, ‘’ said Sylvia Horemans, Marketing Director of Zambian-based Kamano Seeds. Since its establishment in 2012, Kamano Seeds has benefitted from CIMMYT to strengthen its work in maize breeding besides technical support on maize seed production and marketing. Photo: Johnson Siamachira/CIMMYT — “Since working with CIMMYT, we have unlocked our production potential,” says Sylvia Horemans, marketing director of Zambia-based Kamano Seeds. Since 2012 Kamano Seeds has benefitted from CIMMYT to strengthen its work in maize breeding, seed production and marketing. Photo: CIMMYT

“Increasing adoption of these stress tolerant maize varieties is helping African farmers cope with drought and climate change, improve yields at household level and thereby enhance the livelihoods and food security of tens of millions of farmers,” said Cosmos Magorokosho, CIMMYT-Southern Africa maize breeder.

These drought-tolerant varieties have proven resistant despite harsh conditions brought on in southern Africa by an intense El Niño, according to Magorokosho. “Significant impacts have been observed in plots of smallholder farmers who grow these varieties.”

In 2014, over 54,000 metric tons of certified seed of the stress tolerant maize varieties were produced and delivered by partner seed companies for planting by smallholders. By the end of that year, more than five million smallholders had planted the improved drought tolerant varieties on over two million hectares, benefiting more than 40 million people in 13 countries in SSA.

Today, there are more than 200 stress tolerant maize varieties that yield the same or more than commercial varieties under average rainfall, and more importantly, produce up to 30 percent more than commercial varieties under moderate drought conditions. Armed with these improved varieties, CIMMYT is assuming a greater role to ensure stress tolerant maize reaches nearly five and a half million smallholder households in SSA by the end of 2019.

“The rain is very little here, but even with a little rain, this seed does well,” says a smallholder farmer Philip Ngolania, in south-central Kenya, referring to a drought-tolerant maize variety he planted during the 2015 crop season. “Without this seed, I would have nothing. Nothing, like my neighbours who did not use the variety." Photo: Johnson Siamachira/CIMMYT — “Even with a little rain, this seed does well,” says a smallholder farmer Philip Ngolania, in south-central Kenya, referring to a drought-tolerant maize variety he planted during the 2015 crop season. “Without this seed, I would have nothing. Nothing, like my neighbours who did not use the variety.” Photo: Johnson Siamachira/CIMMYT

“In close collaboration with our partners, we were able to create excitement about what can be achieved with drought tolerant maize in Africa,” said Tsedeke Abate, leader of CIMMYT’s Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa project. CIMMYT is working with national agricultural research systems, international research centers, and other development programs to disseminate improved maize seed to smallholder farmers in SSA through small-and medium-sized seed companies.

“The work we have undertaken on drought tolerant maize has created significant impacts. However, several challenges still remain,” cautioned B.M. Prasanna, Director of CIMMYT’s Global Maize Program and the CGIAR Research Program MAIZE. One of these challenges is maize lethal necrosis (MLN), which emerged in Kenya in 2011 and has since devastated maize crops across East Africa. CIMMYT is working to generate improved stress tolerant maize varieties with resistance to MLN and other major diseases.

Maize production in Africa is growing rapidly, making maize the most widely cultivated crop on the continent, and the staple food of more than 300 million people. Providing farmers with diverse, improved seed choices will thus strengthen food security, health and livelihoods in SSA.