CIMMYT’s work in Africa helps farmers access new maize and wheat systems-based technologies, information and markets, raising incomes and enhancing crop resilience to drought and climate change. CIMMYT sets priorities in consultation with ministries of agriculture, seed companies, farming communities and other stakeholders in the maize and wheat value chains. Our activities in Africa are wide ranging and include: breeding maize for drought tolerance and low-fertility soils, and for resistance to insect pests, foliar diseases and parasitic weeds; sustainably intensifying production in maize- and wheat-based systems; and investigating opportunities to reduce micronutrient and protein malnutrition among women and young children.
Malawi’s Principal Secretary for Agriculture, Erica Maganga, led a delegation of Government Principal Secretaries and seed company representatives to Mpilisi and Ulongue in Balaka District on 11 March to observe progress in conservation agriculture (CA) adoption, as part of the country’s Agriculture Sector Wide Approach Program (ASWAP).
A poster depicting DT maize varieties.
“CIMMYT is on the forefront in promoting different options to farmers… previous challenges will now not be an issue here as farmers have been exposed to different solutions,” said Maganga, after seeing the benefits of a trial in Ulongue where maize is grown under CA using different types of residues. Over the last several years the country has actively pursued CA, implementing practices that include eliminating traditional ridge-and-furrow tillage systems, keeping crop residues and rotating maize with leguminous crops.
Malawi is smaller than the state of Pennsylvania, yet supports 17.4 million people, half of whom live below the poverty line. Global climate change has disrupted the country’s traditional rain cycles, resulting in longer droughts or extreme floods. Maize is Malawi’s primary food crop, but unpredictable weather causes longer “hungry seasons” – the months until the next maize harvest, after the previous year’s grain has been eaten. With 85% of Malawian farmers depending upon rain-fed agriculture, erratic weather jeopardizes food security and livelihoods.
In 2006, 5 farmers were practicing conservation agriculture in Balaka District, Southern Malawi. Today, there are over 2,200. Photo: T. Samson/CIMMYT
The Malawian government and farmers are working vigorously to address climate variability and support projects in affected communities. One example is Tiyanjane Nutrition Group, a beneficiary of CIMMYT’s ReSEED Maize Project funded by USAID. The group is involved in small-scale farming, value addition and sale of baked goods. Farmers use the proceeds to help orphans and other people in need and to buy inputs for better farming.
“CIMMYT through ReSEED is demonstrating drought-tolerant maize varieties to farmers,” Maganga said. “I want to urge seed companies to be proactive in providing these new maize varieties to farmers.”
The delegation also visited farmers who adopted CA practices such as intercropping pigeonpea with maize. Other demonstrations showcased crop diversification, promotion of indigenous crops, nutrient management, good agriculture practices and construction of infiltration pits and lowland tracts to manage water runoff and filter pollutants.
Mphatso Gama explaining how CA works with Principal Secretary of Agriculture Erica Maganga looking on.
The high-level delegation included representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, the Principal Secretary for Trade and Industry, the Principal Secretary for Finance, the Principal Secretary for Transport and Public Works, the Principal Secretary for Local Government and Infrastructure Development, the Principal Secretary for Lands and Housing Development, the Principal Secretary for Nutrition, HIV & AIDS, the Principal Secretary for Youth, and the Principal Secretary for Economic Planning and Development. Seed companies including Monsanto, Pannar Seed, Chemicals and Marketing Company, Total LandCare Malawi and Self Help Africa also participated.
CIMMYT has received a grant of USD 17.8 million from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to implement a new project dubbed Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa Seed Scaling (DTMASS). The three-year project officially started on 15 March 2015.
The project aims to produce and deploy affordable and improved drought-tolerant, stress-resilient and high-yielding maize varieties for 1.8 million smallholder farmers in Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Mozambique and Zambia by the end of the project. Similarly, DTMASS plans to produce approximately 7,900 metric tons of maize varieties with a strategic goal of improving food security and income for the farmers.
“This is a great achievement for the project team, which worked tirelessly to develop the project proposal that has just been approved for implementation”, remarked Tsedeke Abate, DTMASS project leader. He added that the project will go a long way in supporting farmers to increase their returns from maize farming, while at the same time giving them good-quality maize for consumption. “This is a good day for maize in Africa,” said Tsedeke.
DTMASS will be implemented in close collaboration with USAID’s Feed the Future program, building on experience, successes and lessons from the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa and other complementary CIMMYT maize projects in Africa like Improved Maize for African Soils and Water Efficient Maize for Africa, to strengthen production and delivery of maize seeds to farmers in the seven target countries.
CIMMYT will also work with the respective countries’ extension wings of the ministries of agriculture, public and private seed companies, national agricultural research organizations, community-based organizations and non-governmental organizations. More on DTMASS
Targeting increasing farm-level food security and productivity to mitigate the effects of climate risk and change: Through the SIMLESA Project, smallholder farmers practice sustainable intensification principles, such as zero or minimum tillage, maize–legume intercropping, and maize–legume rotations. In the photo, Mr. Ringson Chitsiko (standing), Permanent Secretary (PS), Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, officially opens CIMMYT–SARO’s 30th anniversary celebrations. On the extreme left is the International Livestock Research Institute’s Representative for Southern Africa, Dr. Sikhalazo Dube. To the PS’s left is the Principal Director in the Department of Research and Specialist Services, Mrs. Denisile Hikwa. Dr. Olaf Erenstein (in striped shirt), Director of CIMMYT’s Socioeconomics Program; and partly in the picture is Dr. Eric Craswell, SIMLESA Project Steering Committee Member.
On March 18, CIMMYT Southern Africa Regional Office (SARO) celebrated 30 years of agricultural research and development.
The colourful ceremony, held amid pomp and fanfare, was attended by more than 300 people representing donors, non-governmental organizations, research institutions, Zimbabwe government departments, seed companies and farmer associations. The celebration included an on-station tour, with CIMMYT–SARO showcasing its work.
CIMMYT–SARO has been operating in Zimbabwe since March 1985 with the support of the government of Zimbabwe, and other public and private-sector partners, including the University of Zimbabwe and the Department of Research and Specialist Services. In Zimbabwe, CIMMYT conducts experiments at its main station, as well as at Muzarabani and Chiredzi sub- stations. There are also on-farm trials across the country.
Officially commemorating CIMMYT–SARO’s 30-year anniversary (SARO@30), Zimbabwe’s Minister of Agriculture, Mechanisation and Irrigation Development, Dr. Joseph Made, said, ‘’The regional office has been focusing on developing new maize varieties adapted to smallholder farmers in Zimbabwe and the mid-altitude agroecologies in sub-Saharan Africa. Since then, the office has expanded to include development of research technologies for conservation-agriculture systems, sustainable intensification of production of smallholder farms and postharvest research activities.”
Stay on course, but also look beyond yield
In a speech read on his behalf by Mr. Ringson Chitsiko, the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Made applauded CIMMYT’s research work on developing a stock of maize since this was a major staple in the country, and beyond. Although CIMMYT and its partners had introduced various technologies for increasing yields, the Center had to develop more technologies to mitigate the effects of climate change and other challenges.
The minister advised: “CIMMYT needs to work harder and be alert, especially in the face of the ever-growing population, climate change and variability, and new threats through maize diseases and pests. I urge CIMMYT to continue pursuing its mandate for the benefit of the Southern African region.”
In support of this goal and in recognition of CIMMYT’s sustained presence and commitment to the SADC region and Zimbabwe, the Zimbabwe government in 2012 renewed the Host Country Agreement, according CIMMYT–SARO diplomatic status. ‘’We are jointly working towards signing a new collaborative agreement to strengthen maize research to combat a new threat in the form of maize lethal necrosis [MLN] disease recently discovered in East Africa and which has a potential to wipe out an entire maize crop if it spreads to Southern Africa,’’ Made said.
MLN caused 100 percent crop loss for some Kenyan farmers between 2011 and 2012, and cases were also reported in Uganda and Tanzania.
Speaking at the same occasion, Dr. Olaf Erenstein, Director of CIMMYT’s Socioeconomics Program who represented Dr. Thomas Lumpkin, CIMMYT Director General, said CIMMYT, since its establishment in Mexico in 1966 currently has 13 representative offices around the world. Its mandate and mission is to sustainably increase the productivity of maize and wheat systems to ensure global food security and reduce poverty. The regional office, he said, is serving its purpose in contributing to increasing food security.
Just one year shy: John Chifamba (foreground, in blue shirt, and cap, facing the camera), receives his long-service certificate. With 29 years of service under his belt, he’s been with CIMMYT–SARO for almost as long as it has existed.
‘Easy Friday’: Reflect, Celebrate, Play, Plan for The Future
As part of the continued celebrations, March 27 was ‘Easy Friday: CIMMYT–SARO hosted a luncheon and sports day for its staff. Thirteen long-serving employees who served for between 15 and 29 years were honored for their commitment. The employees were from administration, finance, Global Maize Program and Conservation Agriculture Program.
Sixty-two year-old Mr. John Chifamba, a recorder who has worked for CIMMYT for 29 years, said, “CIMMYT is my home. I have gained considerable on-the-job experience in maize research. “Any plans of leaving CIMMYT?” To this, Chifamba said an emphatic no. “Very soon, it will be retirement time and I will find a plot to utilize the good agricultural practices I have seen and learned at CIMMYT.“
Joining hands: From Zambia to Afghanistan
Mekuria continued: ‘’Our partnership approach will give us more capacity to meet with our constituents at the highest level, strengthening our relationships with governments as they formulate the most effective agricultural policies for the good of their people and natural resources.”
CIMMYT says ‘Thank You!’ CIMMYT–SARO staff who have served the Center for between 15 and 29 years each received a long-service certificate, which they display here.
CIMMYT–SARO is part of the world’s largest public drought and low nitrogen stress research network. Every year 500,000 envelopes of maize seeds are sent to over 70 institutions worldwide. The demand for CIMMYT–SARO maize germplasm extends from Zambia to Afghanistan.
During the past 10 years, sustainable intensification strategies based on the principles of conservation agriculture (CA) have been successfully promoted in Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe. Making use of the combined benefits of minimum soil disturbance, crop residue retention and crop rotation, CA increases yields when compared to conventional agricultural practices after two to five cropping seasons. Trials on farmers’ fields in Malawi, for example, increased yields by 20 to 60 percent. In Zambia and Zimbabwe, yields were increased by almost 60 percent using animal traction CA technologies.
Major highlights during the 30 years existence of CIMMYT in Zimbabwe include the development and release of more than 50 maize hybrids and open pollinated varieties (OPVs) adapted to drought-prone regions. These new varieties are expected to benefit almost 12 million people, helping to enhance food security, increase livelihoods and reduce poverty in Southern Africa.
CIMMYT’s seed system activities and support in training and technical assistance have led to the emergence of smaller domestic seed companies in the various Southern African countries. Farmers’ access to seed has improved. In addition, the Center has trained more than 200 technicians and graduate students through short- and long-term training in their various disciplines. Nearly 30 percent of these trainees are women. Trainees are drawn from southern Africa, the rest of Africa, and beyond.
A maize–legume rotation exploratory trial in Tete Province, Mozambique.
And what solution is this? That Southern Africa smallholder farmers can attain food security and more income through sustainable intensification of maize-based farming systems. This was revealed during recent field learning tours in Malawi and Mozambique.
SIMLESA’s farmer-tested improved maize–legume technologies were showcased during the learning tours. Smallholder farmers interacted with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and private-sector partners who have shown a great interest in the SIMLESA outscaling approach using lead farmers and learning sites. Some of the sites promote smallholder agriculture development by linking farmers with buyers and agrodealers, and by providing access to credit and technical training.
In Malawi, the field visits began at Kasungu District, with 16 farmers and technical staff from Mozambique who were on an exchange visit also participating. The group visited outscaling initiatives by the National Association of Smallholder Farmers of Malawi (NASFAM), in which maize–groundnut rotations and maize–pigeonpea systems are being implemented through lead farmers. More than 120 households per field learning site are participating in the demonstrations on each of the five NASFAM sites visited.
In the mid-altitude agro-ecological region of Malawi, new maize varieties have been introduced under SIMLESA Phase II as well as new groundnut and cowpea varieties, in addition to the previously tested soybean varieties in the core on-farm exploratory trials.
Conservation agriculture (CA) exhibited mixed fortunes and presented more opportunities for learning and information sharing. Due to the excessive rains experienced in January, maize on the conventional ridge and furrow farming systems was generally greener and taller than on the CA plots, although the positive rotation effects in CA were clearly evident from the healthy maize crop following soybeans. Also, some maize varieties under CA were more susceptible to diseases such as leaf rust and suffered more from pests such as white grubs which attacked maize roots.
The next stop in Malawi was Mitundu, Lilongwe District, with new crop establishment trials. Here, various new hand-planting tools were being tested, such as jab planters, the Li seeder or planting hoe and the Oklahoma State University (USA) green seeder – all in comparison to the conventional dibble stick and traditional hoe.
The use of a Li seeder has a lot of advantages, including enabling farmers to work faster and therefore saving time, and it does not strain the back,” said Mr James Segula, a smallholder farmer. The Li seeder simultaneously opens a hole in the ground, drops seed and fertilizer, and covers the hole.
Key lessons for the Mozambique and Malawi groups were timely weeding, right maize–legume crop varieties, correct use of fertilizers, residue application and appropriate and safe use of agrochemicals.
Transforming agriculture through technology: Mrs Grace Chitanje,one of the farmers in Mitundu District, Malawi, demonstrates how to use the Li seeder.
Crossing borders to Mozambique’s Angonia District, the group visited exploratory trials which included farmer-preferred maize varieties and the new maize–soybean intercrop system being tested for the first time. In SIMLESA Phase 1, common beans intercrop failed, hence the switch to soybeans. In the central region, members of the national innovation platform which brings on board NGOs such as Total Land Care, Manica Small-Scale Farmers and the Agência de Desenvolvimento Económico de Manica (ADEM) showcased the importance of partnerships. Innovation platforms are fora for information and knowledge sharing on agricultural development. Interesting differences in the tested maize hybrid and open pollinated varieties (OPV) included better leaf diseases tolerance from the hybrid Pristine, in contrast to early maturity characteristics from the OPV.
SIMLESA’s innovation platform is working with partners such as ADEM to facilitate farmers’ access to inputs, link them to financial institutions to access credit and connect them to markets for their produce. Mr Domingos Dias, SIMLESA–Mozambique National Coordinator, said: “We commend this approach of linking farmers to input suppliers and credit providers. Lessons learned, and experience gained over the years, indicate that training alone without market links is not profitable.”
Water plays a major role in smallholder farmer crop production, and CARE International’s Graduation with Resilience to Achieve Sustainable Development (GRAD) program aims to sustain food security for food insecure households in rural Ethiopia.
In this picture from CARE taken by Josh Estey, shows Desta Seba, 28, and his wife Hana Eliyas, 25. They have four children. The family farms 1 hectare (2.5 acres) of land, cultivating bananas, chat, coffee, haricot bean, inset, maize and teff.
They have three goats, eight chickens and four cows. They only eat meat once a year. Before GRAD the family would eat two meals a day consisting of inset and maize. Through GRAD they have been able to save money for the first time in their lives and they can now buy such essential items for their family as salt, soap and baby food.
GRAD aims to graduate 50,000 thousand food insecure households from the Ethiopian government’s productive safety net in 16 targeted woredas (villages) and increase each household income by $365 dollars a year.
For more information, follow CARE on Twitter @CAREintuk
In this picture, taken by WFP staffer Kiyori Ueno, children are eating porridge made of maize and haricot beans produced by local farmers at the Udassa Repi Elementary School in Butajira, a project supported by Dubai Cares.
Through the School Meals program, WFP provides a daily hot meal to almost 700,000 school children to promote increased attendance and enrollment, reducing drop outs in food insecure areas. The program also supports formal education by developing schools into community resource centers that promote good nutrition and environmental awareness.
This photo was taken at the Tool Baye Seed Cooperative processing unit in Kaolack, Senegal.
Daniella Van Leggelo Padilla took this picture to show the quality of the certified maize seeds that were being sold at a subsidized price thanks to the World Bank West Africa Agricultural Productivity Program (WAAPP/PPAAO).
Due to a late — and poor — rainfall in 2014, farmers lost their crops, putting them in a precarious position for the fall harvest.
The WAAPP program was able to shore up this loss by providing Senegalese farmers with short cycle, drought-resistant seeds to help them salvage the season’s crops.
Farmers face a range of challenges related to crop production. Nguse Adhane, a smallholder farmer who lives in a small village in Ethiopia, collects his water from a spring source, which runs dry for months at a time.
Charity WaterAid and its partner Development Inter Church Aid Commission are building a gravity flow scheme, which will mean the 875 village residents will not have to depend on an unreliable water source.
Adhane, shown in this picture taken by Guilhem Alandry, has cattle and grows tomatoes, pepper, maize, teff, wheat, lentils and onions on his small farm.
“When I collect water from here for my crops, the roots become dry,” he said.
“There are worms in the water and this impacts on the crops. The cattle become distended after they drink the water as there are worms in it.
“Because there is no water, we cannot water our crops. We have a shortage of water. Our irrigations have been dry for a month now. The rains start in June.”
“If we have water, we will be very happy,” he said.
KULUMSA, Ethiopia (CIMMYT) — An irrigation reservoir at the Kulumsa Agricultural Research Center in Ethiopia’s highlands captures water from a nearby beer distillery about 168 km (105 miles) southeast of the capital Addis Ababa.
Before the irrigation project was constructed, the industrial runoff poured into the nearby river and had a negative effect on the health of local residents. Now it nourishes crops growing in neighboring fields during the dry season or in periods of drought. It can store up to 38,195m3 of water.
“The irrigation project has been a key investment – it’s very instrumental for accelerating seed multiplication of improved high-yielding rust resistant varieties for local wheat projects,” said Bekele Abeyo, a senior scientist and wheat breeder working for the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).
“It allows us to advance wheat germplasm and seed multiplication of elite lines twice a year, which we couldn’t do previously. This cuts the time by half from the currently required eight to 10 years to four to five years for the development and release of new varieties through conventional breeding.
An additional pond with the capacity to capture 27,069m3 of natural water from the river, generates the capacity to irrigate more than 30 ha of land during the off season. The project resulted from the joint investment of the East Africa Agricultural Productivity Program, the Durable Rust Resistance in Wheat Project and CIMMYT.
The construction of the ponds began in April 2012. Sprinkler irrigation was completed in 2014 and management of the project was handed over to the Kulumsa Agricultural Research Center.
A study published early this month in the Journal of Nutrition shows that biofortified maize can meet zinc requirements and provide an effective dietary alternative to regular maize for children in vulnerable areas of rural Zambia.
Photo: CIMMYT
“This adds to the growing body of evidence supporting the efforts of HarvestPlus, a CGIAR global effort to end hidden hunger and to which CIMMYT contributes through the development of maize and wheat with enhanced levels of vitamin A, zinc, and iron,” said Natalia Palacios, CIMMYT Maize Nutrition Quality Specialist and co-author in the study. “Maize is an important staple food for 900 million people living on less than $2 each day, but a diet rich in maize cannot always provide the nutrients needed by the body.”
Zinc plays important roles in human health, and zinc deficiencies are associated with stunting and a weak immunological system, making the malnourished more susceptible to common infections. More than 17 percent of the global population is at risk of zinc deficiency.
The study found that when the biofortified maize provided by CIMMYT was fed as a staple to Zambian children, their zinc intake was more than sufficient for their dietary needs.
The higher zinc level (34 µg zinc per gram, versus 21 µg) meant that the biofortified maize greatly outperformed the control diet, while biofortified grain was shown to be more efficient than Zn-enriched flour at getting the nutrient absorbed into the body.
This research joins another study in Zambia that revealed orange maize to be an effective way of reducing vitamin A deficiency in young children, which globally causes 500,000 to go blind each year. HarvestPlus has supplied 10,000 farming households in Zambia with orange maize, supported by government recognition of the value of biofortification in its National Food and Nutrition Strategic plan.
“Only those of us bold enough to try conservation agriculture technologies like zero tillage and intercropping benefited a lot, while all others were left behind.” – Hunegnaw Wubie, farmer, South Achefer District, Amhara Region, North Ethiopia
As the curtain comes down on CIMMYT’s Conservation Agriculture and Smallholder Farmers in East and Southern Africa (CASFESA) pilot project, participating farmers in project demonstration sites have said that conservation agriculture (CA) practices have proven to be a viable means of improving their productivity and livelihoods, and need to be scaled up across the nation.
A farmer speaks: ‘farmer-researcher’, clergyman Enkuhanhone Alayu, said people laughed at him for expecting to cultivate crops without plowing. Now they call him even at night seeking advice.
The farmers made these remarks at a one-day workshop on February 23, 2015, convened to take stock of the CASFESA experience after three years of implementation in South Achefer and Jebitehnan Districts of Amhara Region, Northern Ethiopia. The project began in June 2012 and will end in March 2015. Funded by the European Union through the International Fund for Agricultural Development, CASFESA aimed at increasing food security and incomes of poor smallholder farmers through sustainable intensification of mixed, cereal-based systems.
The project will leave a rich legacy, including:
adaptation and demonstration of CA-based technologies on selected farmer plots;
enhancing pro-poor and gender-sensitive targeting of CA-based interventions;
improving the delivery of information, including on technologies and market opportunities to smallholders, as well as developing policy options and recommendations that favor these technologies; and,
enhancing the capacity of research, and development interventions, for project stakeholders.
Reaping where you do not harrow
Farmers spoke passionately on how CA technologies proved profitable for them and their families “in beating the odds”. Most reported harvests of six or more tonnes per hectare of maize from the CA plots – relatively better harvests than with conventional plowing methods, plus the added benefits of reduced use of oxen and labor, and attendant advantages. They also called upon officials responsible to undertake corresponding measures to ensure that CA technologies are sustainably implemented and adopted on a wider scale.
One of these ‘farmer-researchers’, clergyman Enkuhanhone Alayu, narrated how people at first ridiculed him when, three years ago, he volunteered to demonstrate CA practices on his meagre plot of land. They laughed at him “for expecting to cultivate crops without plowing” – a reference to minimum tillage practices that the project advocates as a central element of conservation agriculture.
“But when they later saw that we were cultivating more quantity of maize per unit of land, they were surprised and people who had called me a fool began calling me even at night seeking advice on how they can replicate CA practices on their plots and gain the benefits,” Alayu said. “Zero tillage practices, which require considerably less labor, are even more relevant at this time when oxen are increasingly becoming very expensive and most farmers are not able to afford them.”
Another farmer speaks at the meeting.
Unto the next generation…
Another farmer, Ato Hunegnaw Wubie, said he was so pleased with CA technologies that he also taught his children how to do it on a portion of his land allotted to each of them. “One of my six children was so successful that this year he was able to reap 66 kilos of maize from a 10 by 10 meter plot. He sold his harvest at the market, and, with some additional money from me, bought a bicycle that he uses for transport to and from school. Only those steadfast enough and willing to learn new things will reap the benefits from such novel practices,” he added with pride.
And the farmers were not alone. Speaking at the workshop, the Deputy Head of Amhara Region Bureau of Agriculture, Dr. Demeke Atilaw, noted that maize production in the region stands at a meagre 3.2 tonnes per hectare, and that one reason for this is that “our agricultural practices didn’t include conservation agriculture. This needs to change both at the regional and national levels.” He further pledged that the bureau will work towards sustainably implementing these technologies with a view to increasing maize yields to eight tonnes per hectare.
Roadmap to national goals: “… projects alone cannot bring about significant change…”
In addition to CASFESA, CA technologies are being implemented in the region by SIMLESA, a CIMMYT project in Ethiopia, as well as in Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique and Tanzania. Presenting the experience of SIMLESA thus far, project leader, Dr. Mekuria told the participants that “the experience of both these CIMMYT projects, promising as they are, cannot alone bring about significant change unless they are scaled out using more new varieties of maize and sustained through meaningful institutional involvement – especially that of agencies at all levels of government.”
CIMMYT Agricultural Economist and CASFESA project coordinator, Dr. Moti Jaleta, also said that the experience of CASFESA has demonstrated that CA technologies are economically viable and thus worth pursuing on a wider scale and in a sustainable way. He particularly commended those farmers who volunteered to provide portions of their land as demonstration plots for CA technologies. “Their efforts and dedication have now paid off,” he noted, adding that project end does not mean that CASFESA will leave precipitously: there are still monitoring and evaluation and other wind-up tasks before project exit.
Participants of the CASFESA closure workshop in Ethiopia.
The Deputy Director General of the Amhara Regional Agricultural Research Institute, Dr. Tilaye Teklewold, summed up the mood of the day when he said that CASFESA’s experience in Amhara Region has shown that conservation agriculture is an ideal way of increasing the productivity of maize in the region, and that “concerted efforts are needed to raise the awareness and dedication of all actors involved in the region to implement these technologies and ensure lasting food security in the region and beyond.”
Links
Presentations at the workshop
CASFESA Project: Results, Lessons, Gaps, Opportunities and Challenges in English | Amharic
Gender research and outreach should engage men more effectively, according to Paula Kantor, CIMMYT gender and development specialist who is leading an ambitious new project to empower and improve the livelihoods of women, men and youth in wheat-based systems of Afghanistan, Ethiopia and Pakistan.
“Farming takes place in socially complex environments, involving individual women and men who are embedded in households, local culture and communities, and value chains — all of which are colored by expectations of women’s and men’s appropriate behaviors,” said Kantor, who gave a brownbag presentation on the project to an audience of more than 100 scientists and other staff and visitors at El Batán on 20 February. “We tend to focus on women in our work and can inadvertently end up alienating men, when they could be supporters if we explained what we’re doing and that, in the end, the aim is for everyone to progress and benefit.”
Funded by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, the new project will include 14 village case studies across the three countries. It is part of a global initiative involving 13 CGIAR research programs(CRPs), including the CIMMYT-led MAIZE and WHEAT. Participants in the global project will carry out 140 case studies in 29 countries; WHEAT and MAIZE together will conduct 70 studies in 13 countries. Kantor and Lone Badstue, CIMMYT’s strategic leader for gender research, are members of the Executive Committee coordinating the global initiative, along with Gordon Prain of CIP-led Roots, Tubers and Bananas Program, and Amare Tegbaru of the IITA-led Program on Integrated Systems for the Humid Tropics.
“The cross-CRP gender research initiative is of unprecedented scope,” said Kantor. “For WHEAT, CIMMYT, and partners, understanding more clearly how gendered expectations affect agricultural innovation outcomes and opportunities can give all of our research more ‘ooomph’, helping social and biophysical scientists to work together better to design and conduct socially and technically robust agricultural R4D, and in the end achieve greater adoption and impact.”
To that end, outcomes will include joint interpretation of results with CRP colleagues and national stakeholders, scientific papers, policy engagement and guidelines for integrating gender in wheat research-for-development, according to Kantor. “The research itself is important, but can’t sit on a shelf,” she explained. “We will devise ways to communicate it effectively to partners in CGIAR and elsewhere.”
Another, longer-term goal is to question and unlock gender constraints to agricultural innovation, in partnership with communities. Kantor said that male migration and urbanization are driving fundamental, global changes in gender dynamics, but institutional structures and policies must keep pace. “The increase in de facto female-headed households in South Asia, for example, would imply that there are more opportunities for women in agriculture,” she explained, “but there is resistance, and particularly from institutions like extension services and banks which have not evolved in ways that support and foster the empowerment of those women.”
“To reach a tipping point on this, CGIAR and the CGIAR Research Programs need to work with unusual partners — individuals and groups with a presence in communities and policy circles and expertise in fostering social change,” said Kantor. “Hopefully, the case studies in the global project will help us identify openings and partners to facilitate some of that change.”
Kantor has more than 15 years of experience in research on gender relations and empowerment in economic development, microcredit, rural and urban livelihoods, and informal labor markets, often in challenging settings. She served four years as Director and Manager of the gender and livelihoods research portfolios at the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit (AREU) in Kabul. “AREU has influenced policy, for example, through its work on governance structures at the provincial and district levels,” Kantor said. “They will be a partner in the Afghan study.”
She added that working well in challenging contexts requires a complex combination of openness about study aims and content in communities, sensitivity and respect for relationships and protocol, careful arrangements for logistics and safety, diverse and well-trained study teams and being flexible and responsive. “Reflections on doing gender research in these contexts will likely be an output of the study.”
After her first month at CIMMYT, Kantor, who will be based in Islamabad, Pakistan, said she felt welcome and happy. “My impression is that people here are very committed to what they do and that research is really a priority. I also sense real movement and buy-in on the gender front. An example is the fact that, of all the proposals that could’ve been put forward for funding from BMZ, the organization chose one on gender. That’s big.”
Called the “Robert Gabriel Mugabe Award” (after the Zimbabwean president), it is presented bi-annually for critical breakthroughs in research. The USD 15,000 award was presented by acting President and Vice-President, Mr. Emmerson Mnangagwa, to the Crop Breeding Institute’s National Maize Breeding Programme, for outstanding research in the production and release of the maize variety ZS265.
“This variety, for which it is receiving the Robert Gabriel Mugabe Award is a truly Zimbabwean-bred non-GMO white-grained variety with excellent tolerance to diseases, drought and low nitrogen and therefore suitable for production under dryland conditions,” read part of the citation.
CIMMYT works in partnership with the Department of Research and Specialist Services in Zimbabwe’s Ministry of Agriculture, Mechanization and Irrigation Development. “We congratulate the national maize breeding program for winning this prestigious award. CIMMYT is proud and pleased that our partner is engaged, committed and as excited we ourselves are!” said Dr. Mulugetta Mekuria, CIMMYT–Southern Africa representative. “Food insecurity can be overcome if we can bring together new knowledge and skills to farmers in a very sustainable manner. There will be crop production challenges unless we integrate climate change, soil fertility and water,” he cautioned.
Magorokosho observed, “Considering that the Zimbabwe program has faced several challenges over the last several years, this is indeed a true achievement which will go down in history books, similar to the famous significant milestone that was reached in Zimbabwe in 1960 when SR-52, the world’s first single-cross hybrid, was released and made available for commercial planting.”
The Zimbabwe Maize Breeding Programme receives the Robert Gabriel Mugabe Award for Outstanding Research, at the10th Zimbabwe International Research Symposium, 13 February 2015. From left to right: Eng.G. Magombo (ZERA Chief Executive Officer); D. Kutywayo; Honorable O. Muchinguri-Kashiri (Zimbabwe Minister of Higher & Tertiary Education, Science &Technology Development); Dr. M.J. Tumbare; T. Chigama; P. Mphoko (Vice-President of the Republic of Zimbabwe); P. Mabodza; Honorable E.D Mnangagwa (Vice-President of the Republic of Zimbabwe); Dr. C. Mutimaamba; V. Tamirepi (holding trophy); P. Mazibuko; and Prof. I. Sithole-Niang; R. Mukaro. Photo: Courtesy of IBP
The variety was phenomenally successful not just in Zimbabwe, but across Africa. By 1970, 98 percent of Zimbabwe’s commercial maize area was sown to SR-52. The variety is still being grown today in of Africa, especially for green cobs.
In partnership with CIMMYT–Zimbabwe and in response to declining soil fertility and recurrent droughts as a result of climate change, the Zimbabwe national maize breeding team pioneered the development of drought and low nitrogen tolerant maize varieties in the late 1990s.
This culminated in the commercial release, since 2006, of two open pollinated varieties (ZM421 and ZM521) and seven hybrids (ZS261, ZS263, ZS265, ZS269, ZS271, ZS273 and ZS275) with combined tolerance to drought and low nitrogen. These varieties are white and of early-to-medium maturity. ZS261 is a protein-enhanced maize variety which was commercialized in Zimbabwe in 2006, while ZS263 and ZS265 have proven to be popular drought-tolerant varieties.
Also in partnership with CIMMYT–Kenya, the national maize breeding team started conventional breeding insect-resistant varieties in the country in 2009. This was in response to serious field losses from stem borer and postharvest storage losses to the maize weevil and larger grain borer. Two conventionally-bred white maize hybrids that are resistant to the stem borer will be released for commercial use this year.
In recognition of their sterling effort in using plant breeding to address low maize productivity on smallholder farms, CIMMYT’s Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa project awarded the “Best Maize Breeding Team in Southern Africa” prize to Zimbabwe a record five times from 2008 to 2014.
We join in congratulating this truly outstanding team, and look forward to their future feats.
A sign indicates what conservation practices are being employed in a demonstration plot in Malawi. Photo : T. Samson/CIMMYT.
CIMMYT, Washington State University and Total Land Care (TLC) recently published a series of extension bulletins to spread awareness of the potential benefits of conservation agriculture (CA) techniques for farmers in Malawi.
The study, “Sustainable Intensification and Diversification on Maize-based Agroecosystems in Malawi,” took place over three years in the districts of Nkhotakota and Dowa, and was sponsored by the CGIAR Research Program on Maize through a Competitive Grants Initiative.
Over the study period, three different cropping systems — zero-tillage, conservation agriculture, and conventional tillage — were applied to smallholder farms. The three extension bulletins detail their respective impacts on crop yields and residue production, soil-water relations and the economic impacts for smallholder households.
The bulletins have been printed for distribution to Malawian extension agents and non-governmental organizations and, ultimately, to share with farmers.
The Findings
In the study, the zero-tilled maize plots incorporated only two of the three principles of CA – no tillage and residue retention – but not crop rotations, while conservation agriculture and conventional tillage incorporated diverse cropping systems.
It was found that crop rotations had the greatest impact on maize yields, leading to higher yields in conservation agriculture and conventional tillage than in continuous no-till maize.
Water infiltration was greatest in no-till maize and conservation agriculture, with 90 percent of applied water infiltrating into soils in the no-till plot and 60 percent under conservation agriculture, in Nkhotakota District. Sediment runoff was greatest in conventional tillage in both districts.
The study found that conservation agriculture used labor more efficiently than conventional tillage in smallholder plots, although variable costs were lowest in conventional tillage.
The authors of the bulletins are Dan TerAvest (Washington State University), John Reganold (Washington State University), and Christian Thierfelder (CIMMYT).
The bulletins are available in PDF format and can be downloaded here.
Born out of the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA) Initiative and other CIMMYT-Africa maize projects, the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa Seed Scaling (DTMASS) project will improve the demand for and availability of high-quality, affordable, certified seed of drought-tolerant maize varieties for small-scale farmers across eastern and southern Africa.
“DTMASS aims to produce close to 12,000 tons of certified seed of drought-tolerant maize varieties by the end of its fifth year,” said Tsedeke Abate, DTMA project leader who will also lead DTMASS, speaking at the Uganda launch of the project in Kampala on 4 February. “This will benefit approximately 2.5 million people through the increased production and productivity of maize and the adoption of improved certified seed.”
According to Abate, DTMASS will strengthen the formal seed system, thereby reducing counterfeit seed use, lowering the risk of seed-borne maize diseases and helping to maintain productivity as climates change.
Working in Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia, DTMASS will encourage cross-country learning and collaboration, Abate explained: “We have the knowledge and technology – what remains is translating knowledge to action.”
DTMASS countries account for 41 percent of maize area and production, and over 252 million people in sub-Saharan Africa.
A pillar of the project will be its strong partnerships with private and public seed companies, community-based organizations, non-governmental organizations and national extension systems. Fifty-three seed companies have already agreed to produce seed of 71 drought-tolerant varieties.
These partnerships enable increased and improved certified seed to reach small-scale farmers, increase farm production and enhance productivity, according to Dr. Imelda Kashaija, deputy director at Uganda’s National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO). “This project is at the right place at the right time,” she said.
DTMASS launched officially on 17-18 November 2014 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The goal for Uganda in 2015 is to produce 1,800 tons of improved maize seed.
In Malawi, the field visits began at Kasungu District, with 16 farmers and technical staff from Mozambique who were on an exchange visit also participating. The group visited outscaling initiatives by the National Association of Smallholder Farmers of Malawi (NASFAM), in which maize–groundnut rotations and maize–pigeonpea systems are being implemented through lead farmers. More than 120 households per field learning site are participating in the demonstrations on each of the five NASFAM sites visited.
