CIMMYT training courses play a critical role in helping international researchers meet national food security and resource conservation goals. By sharing knowledge to build communities of agricultural knowledge in less developed countries, CIMMYT empowers researchers to aid farmers. In turn, these farmers help ensure sustainable food security. In contrast to formal academic training in plant breeding and agronomy, CIMMYT training activities are hands-on and highly specialized. Trainees from Africa, Asia and Latin America benefit from the data assembled and handled in a global research program. Alumni of CIMMYT courses often become a significant force for agricultural change in their countries.
Agricultural production in Bangladesh is heavily dependent on machines for land preparation, irrigation, pest control, harvesting and transport. Small enterprises that make up the light engineering sector in Bangladesh are responsible for the creation, maintenance and repair of these machines. Without a functioning light engineering sector, agricultural production would quickly grind to a halt.
As with other industries in the country, most light engineering workshops closed at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as restrictions on movement eased and in response to demand from agricultural machinery operators, the machinery manufacturing and repair workshops have started to open again.
Worker washes hands in agricultural machinery workshop with water tank provided through the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia Mechanization Extension Activity, funded by the United States Agency for International Development Feed the Future initiative. (Photo: Rashed/CIMMYT)
Ensuring COVID-19-free workshops
To ensure a safe and hygienic return to work, the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia Mechanization Extension Activity (CSISA-MEA) provided water tanks with handwashing points and knapsack sprayers to 50 workshops employing 1,624 staff in Bogura and Jashore to disinfect the workshops and tools. To create awareness on COVID-19 prevention and guide staff on using the handwashing points and sprayer, the CSISA-MEA team distributed low text graphics-based user guides and WHO designed flyers. The flyers also show staff the precautions they should take at home to prevent COVID-19 infection.
Since behavior change is a complex process, the use of more than one approach is often needed. Therefore, workshop owners and workers were sent SMS messages weekly, reminding them of the need to wash hands, disinfect the workspaces and practice other COVID-19 mitigation actions such as maintaining social distance and wearing face masks.
Staff disinfect the machines each day before working. (Photo: Rashed/CIMMYT)
Ahsan Habib, a workshop owner in Bogura, said, âThis equipment is a blessing for my workers and me. Â I have 35 workers and before, they had to use the small tank for handwashing, which was not adequate for many people. Now I can ensure their safety. At the same time, we disinfect the machines with the sprayer before we start working.â
The relatively small investments in equipment and provision of information provided through this USAID-supported activity has helped 50 small companies operate safely in the pandemic. The new equipment and practices allow them to make and repair the machinery that keeps agricultural production running in Bangladesh and contributes to ensuring national food security.
Rural women in Nepal significantly contribute to food security, and when they are empowered, they can create avenues for agricultural growth. As seed producers are often disadvantaged in terms of accessing advanced agricultural knowledge and seed production skills, one opportunity for growth is strengthening the capacity of women seed producers.
âIn more than 80% of households in Sindhupalchowk district, women have the final say on the selection of maize variety,â said D.B. Bhandari, managing director of Hairyali Community Seed Company (HCSC). âThis urged me to engage women in seed production of preferred maize varieties for the mid-hills.â
HCSC, a partner company of the Nepal Seed and Fertilizer (NSAF) project implemented by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), is working to improve the business literacy of rural women to support their involvement in seed production and marketing of maize, wheat and rice seeds in Sindhupalchowk district, Bagmati province, Nepal.
Seed producers attend an orientation on the production and marketing of hybrid seed. (Photo: Dharma Dawadi/CIMMYT)
A path to empowerment and income
Access to agricultural inputs such as seed and fertilizer is challenging in Thulosirubari village due to its rural location and absence of agrodealers or nearby markets. Progressive farmers Parbati Gautam and Kamala Gautam, who grew up in the village in a family that has cultivated maize for generations and now grow maize, rice, millet and vegetables, found a solution. They decided to establish a cooperative âThulosirubari Mahila Krishi Sahakari Sanstha â that not only eases the supply of seed for farmers in their village but also engages in seed production. The cooperative has 45 female members so far.
In coordination with HCSC and the Government of Nepalâs Prime Minister Agriculture Modernization Project (PMAMP), orientation programs and women-only trainings were designed and organized by the NSAF project so farmers could boost their seed production efficiency and profitability at the grassroots level. The partnership between CIMMYT, HCSC and PMAMP provided technical and financial support to these groups, improved their entrepreneurship skills and business literacy, and created marketing linkages between the farmers and buyers. Thirty-five women were trained in the use of good agricultural practices in quality seed production and marketing of hybrid maize, rice and tomato seeds. HCSC supported the women with male and female lines of hybrid maize â Khumal hybrid-2 â to produce first generation seeds and build their skills on estimating ratios for sowing seeds, balanced fertilizer application, weeding, rouging and detasseling.
âI am so happy to learn about the importance of having different male and female lines and how to maintain their quality for crossing to produce first generation of hybrid maize seeds,â Kamala Gautam said.
After getting the required training and technical support, seven farmers from the cooperative, including Kamala and Parbati, collectively produced 1.1 mt of Khumal hybrid-2 with the value of $2,514, which was sold to HCSC in 2019. As the cooperative is a contract seed producer for HCSC, the women have market assurance and do not worry where and how to sell their seed.
âMy husband and I are not educated,â Parbati Gautam explained. âHowever, I was able to sell the hybrid maize seed then use the money to buy decent clothes and offer a better education to my two daughters and son.â
A woman stands in her rice seed production field in Nepal. (Photo: Mohan Mahato/CIMMYT)
Women empowering women
Parbati Gautam has served as chairperson at the cooperative for eight years, where she has mentored other seed producers. Based on her experience, women who have access to information and seed production technologies tend to have better crop yields and make informed decisions to increase their incomes and livelihoods.
According to Bhandari, farmersâ preferences are gradually shifting from local to hybrid varieties which offer better yields, early maturity and resilience to the effects of climate change. Parbati and Kamala Gautam confirm this, sharing that hybrid seed production provides 4-5 times more monetary value per kilogram of seed than that of grain.
âAlthough the cost of parent lines is expensive for seed production, improved farming technology ensures better quality seeds, higher yields and attractive farm business opportunities,â Parbati Gautam explained.
Since 2017, NSAF project researchers have been working to establish linkages with partner seed companies for seed marketing. Altogether, about 300 mt of maize and rice seed was produced by women farmers engaged in the project with the value of $112,000, and 80 percent of this seed was sold to three private seed companies including HCSC. In 2019, the NSAF project team established partnerships with an additional three cooperatives in Banke, Dang and Sindhupalchowk districts, where over 800 women are members.
The projectâs engagement of women’s seed producer groups is an example of an inclusive seed business model where farmers decide what to grow and how to sell. This intervention can be piloted in other parts of Nepal where women account for over 60 percent of the rural farming community. Targeted and sustained interventions to increase womenâs business agility, technical capacity in quality seed production, and market linkages will help boost productivity at household level and the country at large.
To the first-time observer, the aftermath of a fall armyworm infestation must be terrifying. The larvae can cause significant damage to an entire field in a single night, leaving once-healthy leaves looking like tattered rags.
A new instructional video, which will air in Bangladesh, aims to combat both the pest and the distress its appearance can cause with detailed, actionable information for farmers. The video describes how to identify the pest, its lifecycle and the kind of damage it can do to maize â among other crops â and provides techniques for identifying, assessing, and combating an infestation.
This video was developed by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) with support from the Department of Agricultural Extension (DAE) and the Bangladesh Wheat and Maize Research Institute (BWMRI), as part of the project Fighting back against fall armyworm in Bangladesh. Supported by USAID’s Feed the Future Initiative and Michigan State University, this CIMMYT-led project works in synergy with the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), and with national partners to mitigate the impact of this invasive pest on smallholder farmers’ livelihoods.
The video is available in Bangla with English captions.
When we talk about the impact of agricultural research we often rely on numerical metrics: percent increase in yield, percent decrease in crop loss, adoption rates, etcetera. For farmers on the ground, however, the impact can be much harder to boil down to a few numbers. Hiding behind every statistical table are real stories of dreams dashed or fulfilled, of everyday people trying to survive and flourish.
A new educational video powerfully dramatizes this point through the story of Jamal Mia and his daughter Rupa. Jamalâs dreams to own a house and see Rupa enroll in college are threatened when his maize crop is attacked by fall armyworm. An encounter with an agricultural extension officer puts Jamal on track to tackle the infestation, save his crop and secure his familyâs wellbeing.
The video was developed by CIMMYT with support from Bangladeshâs Department of Agricultural Extension and the Bangladesh Wheat and Maize Research Institute (BWMRI), as part of a project titled “Fighting back against fall armyworm in Bangladesh.â Supported by USAID’s Feed the Future Initiative and Michigan State University, this CIMMYT-led project works in synergy with the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) and with national partners to mitigate the impact of this invasive pest on smallholder farmers’ livelihoods.
The video was filmed in Dinajpur district, Bangladesh, and is available in Bangla with English captions.
âWhat you are now about to witness didnât exist even a few years ago,â begins the first video in a series on zero tillage produced by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). Zero tillage, an integral part of conservation agriculture-based sustainable intensification, can save farmers time, money and irrigation water.
Through storytelling, the videos demonstrate the process to become a zero till farmer or service provider: from learning how to prepare a field for zero tillage to the safe use of herbicides.
All videos are available in Bengali, Hindi and English.
This videos were produced as part of the Sustainable and Resilient Farming Systems Intensification in the Eastern Gangetic Plains (SRFSI) project, funded by the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR). The videos were scripted with regional partners and filmed with communities in West Bengal, India.
Phenotypic selection of resistant lines (Ms. H. Kouki Field technician and consultant A. Yahyaoui) at the Septoria Precision Phenotyping Platform at Kodia/INGC. (Photo: Septoria Precision Phenotyping Platform)
Tunisia has been a major durum wheat producer and consumer since Roman times, a crop used now for couscous, bread and pasta dishes throughout North Africa and the Mediterranean Basin.
However, a persistent disease known as Septoria tritici blotch (STB) has been threatening durum wheat harvests across the country thanks to its increasing resistance to fungicides and adaptability to harsher climatic conditions. The disease, which is caused by the fungus Zymoseptoria tritici, thrives under humid conditions and can cause up to 60% yield loss in farmersâ fields.
To help fight this disease, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) established the Septoria Precision Phenotyping Platform in collaboration with the Institution of Agricultural Research and Higher Education of Tunisia (IRESA) and the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) in Tunisia in 2015.
The platform aims to accelerate the transfer of STB resistance genes into elite durum wheat lines from national and international breeding programs, particularly CIMMYT and ICARDA breeding programs. Researchers at the platform have tested an impressive diversity of durum wheat lines for resistance to the disease from research institutes across Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria, Mexico, France, Italy, the UK, USA and Canada.
STB field reactions showing typical necrotic symptoms containing pycnidia on an infected adult plant leaf of wheat. (Photo: Septoria Precision Phenotyping Platform)
“New and more virulent strains of the pathogen are constantly emerging, which results in previously resistant wheat varieties becoming more susceptible,â said Sarrah Ben M’Barek, head of the laboratory at the Septoria Precision Phenotyping platform.
Field phenotyping – the use of field-testing to identify desired plant traits â is the heart of the platform. Scientists can test as many as 30,000 plots each year for STB resistance.
Evaluations are conducted at two main field research stations managed by the Regional Field Crop Center (CRRGC) and the National Institute of Field Crops (INGC), based at two major hotspots for the disease in Beja and Kodia. This work is complemented by laboratory research at the National Agronomic Institute of Tunisia (INAT) at Tunis.
âThe platform plays a critical role in identifying STB resistant wheat germplasm and characterizing the resistance genes they possess. These resistant sources be can further utilized in hybridization schemes by durum wheat breeders worldwide to develop durable resistant varieties,â explained CIMMYT consultant and platform coordinator Amor Yahyaoui.
With the help of data from the platform, breeders hope to combine multiple resistance genes in an individual variety to create a genetically complex âlockâ whose combination the fungus will not easily break.
According to Ben M’Barek, the huge genetic diversity in wheat and its ancestors has helped breeders to develop new varieties for almost a century. However, the adoption of new varieties has typically been slow.
Farmers in Tunisia traditionally rely on fungicides to manage the disease. However, with the pathogen recently becoming more resistant to fungicides and more adaptive to harsher climatic conditions, interest in STB resistant varieties is increasing.
Field disease reactions of a susceptible wheat cultivar. (Photo: Septoria Precision Phenotyping Platform)
A hub for training and collaboration
The platform is also a hub for training and capacity development for national and international scientists, field research and lab. assistants, students and farmers. It brings together research staff and technicians from different institutions within Tunisia including the CRRGC, INGC, the National Institute of Agricultural Research of Tunisia (INRAT), INAT and the University of Jendouba.
Farmerâs organizations and regional extension services, as well as private organizations such as Comptoir Multiservices Agricoles (CMA), seed and chemical companies also collaborate with the platform. The result is a team effort that has generated a tremendous wealth of data, made only possible through the dedication of Yahyaoui, said Ben MâBarek.
âSpending a few days at the platform each year is a like a crash course on STB resistance. All subjects are covered and great experts around the world come together to discuss all details of this host-pathogen interaction,â said Filippo Bassi, senior durum wheat breeder at ICARDA.
âSending young scientists to spend some time at the platform ensures that they learn all about the mechanisms of resistance and take them back to their home country to deploy them in their own breeding programs. It is like a true university for STB.â
Yet, the platform still has a lot of work to do, according to Ben MâBarek. Scientists at the platform are now working on raising awareness on crop and pest management such as integrated management approaches amongst farming communities, setting up on-farm field trials and developing disease early warning surveillance.
Next year the platform will provide a unique podium for students, academics and researchers to exchange ideas and research findings on cereal leaf blight diseases. The International Symposium on Cereal Leaf Blights will take place on May 19-21, 2021 in Tunisia. Details can be found here.
The Septoria Precision Phenotyping Platform is led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), in collaboration with the Institution of Agricultural Research and Higher Education of Tunisia (IRESA) and the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) and is supported by the CGIAR Research Program in Wheat (WHEAT).
Alison Bentley (right) and Martin Jones inspect wheat in a glasshouse. (Photo: Toby Smith/Gloknos)
In November 2020, Alison Bentley will be joining the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) as the new program director of the Global Wheat Program. She will be succeeding Hans Braun, who has steered the program for the last 16 years.
Bentley is thrilled to join CIMMYT and excited about the opportunity to harness science and breeding to improve livelihoods. She believes in a collective vision for equitable food supply and in science-led solutions to deliver impact.
âIt really is an exciting time for wheat research: the international community has worked together to produce sequence and genomic resources, new biological and physiological insights, a wealth of germplasm and tools for accelerating breeding. This provides an unparalleled foundation for accelerating genetic gains and connecting ideas to determine how we can practically apply these tools and technologies with partners to deliver value-added outputs,â she said.
Bentley has worked on wheat â wheat genetics, wheat genetic resources and wheat pre-breeding â her entire career. She is the UKâs representative on the International Wheat Initiative Scientific Committee, and is a committee member for the Genetics Society, the UK Plant Sciences Federation, the Society of Experimental Botany, and the Editorial Board of Heredity.
Bentley obtained her PhD from the University of Sydney, Australia, in 2007. She then joined the National Institute of Agricultural Botany (NIAB) in the UK, where she progressed from Senior Research Scientist (2007) to Program Leader for Trait Genetics (2013), and Director of Genetics and Breeding (since 2016).
Currently, Bentley is involved in international research projects in Ethiopia, The Gambia, Ghana, India and Pakistan. She leads a number of UK-India projects with partners including Punjab Agricultural University, the Indian National Institute of Plant Genome Research and the University of Cambridge, studying variation and developing wheat and other cereal germplasm with enhanced resource use efficiency.
Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat (AGG), a project led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), brings together partners in the global science community and in national agricultural research and extension systems to accelerate the development of higher-yielding varieties of maize and wheat â two of the world’s most important staple crops.
Specifically focusing on supporting smallholder farmers in low- and middle-income countries, the project uses innovative methods that improve breeding efficiency and precision to produce varieties that are climate-resilient, pest- and disease-resistant, and highly nutritious, targeted to farmersâ specific needs.
The maize component of the project serves 13 target countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe in eastern and southern Africa; and Benin, Ghana, Mali, and Nigeria in West Africa. The wheat component of the project serves six countries: Bangladesh, India, Nepal, and Pakistan in South Asia; and Ethiopia and Kenya in sub-Saharan Africa.
This project builds on the impact of the Delivering Genetic Gain in Wheat (DGGW) and Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa (STMA) projects.
Objectives
The project aims to accelerate the development and delivery of more productive, climate-resilient, gender-responsive, market-demanded, and nutritious maize and wheat varieties in support of sustainable agricultural transformation in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia.
To encourage adoption of new varieties, the project works to improve equitable access, especially by women, to seed and information, as well as capacity building in breeding, disease surveillance, and seed marketing.
Funders
Project funding is provided by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, the United States Agency for International Development and the Foundation for Food and Agricultural Research (FFAR).
Key partners
The primary partners for this project are the national agricultural research systems in the project target countries and, for the maize component, the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and small and medium enterprise (SME) seed companies.
Scientific and technical steering committees
We are grateful to our excellent maize and wheat scientific and technical steering committees for their suggestions and thoughtful question on key issues for the success of AGG. Read about the recommendations from the maize steering committee here and the wheat steering committee here.
Year 1 Executive Summary
In its first year of operation, AGG has made great strides in collaboration with our national partners towards the project goals âdespite the unprecedented challenges of working through a global pandemic. For specific milestones achieved, we invite you to review our AGG Year 1 Executive Summary and Impact Report (PDF).
Year 2 Executive Summary
AGG has made progress towards all outcomes. Our scientists are implementing substantial modifications to breeding targets and schemes. AGG is also in a continuous improvement process for the partnership modalities, pursuing co-ownership and co-implementation that builds the capacities of all involved. For specific milestones achieved, we invite you to review our AGG Year 2 Executive Summary and Impact Report (PDF).
Seed companies play a crucial role in delivering improved seed varieties to smallholder farmers. Masindi Seed Company Limited, located in Ugandaâs mid-western region, is one such enterprise.
It traces its beginnings back to the Masindi District Farmers Association (MADFA) more than a decade ago. At the time, the association, which was comprised of about 9,000 farmers, was organized into a seed out-grower scheme of the then government-led Uganda Seed Project.
While its members were well trained, operated professionally and did their out-grower work diligently, the association faced one major challenge that almost broke it up: the âcertifiedâ seed they bought from some seed firms could not germinate.
âAt the time that we were operating solely as a farmersâ association, we did our best to grow maize seed for various seed companies who would then go on to produce and supply certified seed,â said Eugene Lusige, Masindi Seed general manager. âBut we soon realized that a lot of the certified seed that we bought was of very poor quality due to their inability to germinate or because of low germination rates. This caused our farmers huge losses. We instead took this situation as a blessing in disguise, venturing into the certified seed production business based on our experience.â
Such turn of events meant the association had to not only produce the right seed, at the right price, at the right time and with the attributes their farmers desired, but also had to provide an opportunity to generate income for its members. By establishing Masindi Seed Company in 2009, the association members fulfilled their dream and ended up killing several birds with one stone by addressing multiple seed production challenges.
Over the past few decades, the liberalization of the Ugandan seed industry has seen it morph from government control, largely with the support of public sector research institutions, to increased private sector participation. This saw a resurgence in local and foreign-based seed firms involved in seed production, processing and marketing, which significantly contributed to increased delivery of certified seed to farming communities.
A sign leading to the Masindi District Farmers Association (MADFA) offices in Masindi town. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)
Reliable and beneficial partnerships
As one of the enterprises operating in the formal seed market, Masindi Seed has grown from strength to strength over the years, working closely with the National Crops Resources Research Institute (NaCRRI) of the National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) in Uganda. The Longe 5D, an open pollinated variety (OPV) â an improved version of the Longe 5 â was the first certified seed that ushered them into the seed production and marketing landscape in 2009. The company accessed hybrids and parental materials from NARO, which works very closely with the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) to obtain improved stress tolerant maize.
âBesides the parental materials we receive from CIMMYT through NARO, we are trained on best practices in quality seed production, and receive materials and financial support for some of our operations,â Lusige said.
In the first year, the company produced about 120-150 tons of the Longe 5D variety, which has remained their flagship product over the past decade. Currently, the variety has up to 65 % share of the companyâs annual seed production capacity, which stands at about 1,200 tons. The annual capacity is poised to reach 2,400 by 2025 due to growing demand from farmers. The first stress tolerant hybrid, UH5053, was introduced in 2013 and two more hybrids have since gone into commercial production.
âThe hybrids have much higher yield than the OPVs and other varieties in the market in this region. They are stress tolerant and some are early maturing,â Lusige said âBut, the advantage with the Longe 5D is that it is much cheaper, with a seed packet going for less than its hybrid equivalent. So, it is best suited for the resource-constrained farmers who may not have the funds to buy artificial fertilizer. However, under normal farmer conditions, it yields between 1.5-1.8 tons per acre compared to a hybrid that can produce about 3 tons or more.â
The Longe 5D is also a quality protein maize (QPM) variety, which combats hidden hunger by providing essential amino acids that children and lactating mothers need, according to Godfrey Asea, director of the National Crops Resources Research Institute at NARO.
âOne of the initiatives we have been working on is nutritious maize, with some of the OPVs that we have released in the past being QPM varieties,â Asea said. âWe are thinking of integrating more nutrient qualities such as vitamin âAâ in new varieties, some of which are in the release pipeline. We have also acquired genetic resources that are rich in zinc. QPM varieties, as well as varieties that are biofortified with vitamin A and zinc are very important in improving household nutrition in the future for resource-constrained maize-dependent communities.â
To make farmers aware of available seed and important attributes, marketing and promotional activities through radio, flyers, banners, field days and on-farm demonstrations come in handy. For some newer varieties, the company goes as far as issuing small seed packs to farmers so they can see for themselves how the variety performs.
Masindi Seed Company offices in Masindi town. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)
From a regional outfit to the national stage
In the beginning, growth was slow for Masindi Seed due to capacity and financial constraints to sustain promotional activities. Around 2013 and 2015, the company received support from the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) to scale-up its marketing and promotional efforts, which greatly enhanced Masindi Seedâs capacity and visibility. From then on, Masindi Seed went from being just a small regional-focused outfit to a nation-wide seed firm, marketing seed as far as northern and eastern Uganda.
By working closely with farmers, Masindi Seed Company puts itself at a strategic position to understand farmersâ preferred traits better. They have found that farmers prefer traits that allow them to earn more, such as higher yield, which allows them to harvest much more maize and sell the surplus for much-needed income.
A double cobber maize crop on Alinda Sarah’s farm in Masindi, western Uganda. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)
Seed that farmers can trust
Alinda Sarah, who doubles up as both a contract farmer for Masindi Seed and a large-scale grower for maize grain, agrees that obtaining the right seed that is guaranteed to germinate and offers a higher yield is a major boost to her trade.
âAll I require is seed that I trust to have the attributes I want. What works for me is the seed that offers a higher yield, and can tolerate common stresses including drought, diseases and pests. This way, I can sustain my farming business,â she says.
The second attribute the farmers keep mentioning to Masindi agricultural extensionists is the maturity period, with farmers inclined to prefer faster maturing varieties, such as varieties that mature in 90 days. Ultimately, beyond some of these desirable and beneficial traits, the farmer is, before anything else, interested in the germinability of the seed they buy.
âBy confirming the attributes that we tell them regarding our varieties with what they see at demo farms, the farmers trust us more,â Lusige said. âTrust is good for a business like ours and we try our best to preserve it. In the past, we have seen how some companies who lost the trust of their customers quickly went out of business.â
âBesides offering improved seed to farmers, we encourage our partner seed companies to support and teach the farmers good agronomic practices such as proper fertilizer requirements and application rates, early planting, appropriate spacing, weed control, integrated pest management and intercropping with legumes,â said Daniel Bomet, maize breeder at NARO.
Cover photo:Â Alinda Sarah demostrates how happy she is with the maize cob due for harvest on the farm she owns with her husband in Masindi, mid-western Uganda. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)
Post-harvest losses â which can range between 10-20% in major cereals â cause not only the loss of economic value of the food produced, but also the waste of scarce resources such as labor, land, and water, as well as non-renewable resources such as fertilizer and energy.
A significant proportion of these losses are caused by late harvest due to labor shortages, with crops languishing in the field before farmers can retrieve them. Small and medium-sized machinery may seem like the answer, but many one or two-axe machines are often unable to reach the inner sections of rice and wheat fields because of limited road access, or the fact that they are simply too heavy to carry.
âAs mechanized land preparation works outwards, inner fields get ready for harvest first, but without any applicated technical solution,â he explains.
Could motorized scythes be the answer? Yahaya thinks so.
The other scythe
Motorized scythes are hand-operated tools used for mowing grass or reaping crops. Though largely replaced by horse-drawn and tractor-mounted implements, they are still commonly used in some areas of Asia and Europe.
Models specifically adapted for harvesting rice and wheat have been commercially available in Africa for over two decades and currently sell for $150-350, presenting the lowest initial investment cost of all engine-driven solutions on the market. The motor scythe also boasts the lowest harvest cost per hectare and is portable enough to reach inner fields.
Despite its relative affordability, uptake in much of West Africa has been slow, as many farmers have found the 10kg machinery too heavy for sustained use.
âStudies carried out in Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote dâIvoire and Mali show that this rapid fatigue is caused by incorrect handling of the machinery, including flawed posture,â Yahaya explains. âThis is simply because most operators have never undertaken official training for operating the tool.â
In a bid to address this challenge, Yahaya has been collaborating with Elliott Dossou, Sali Atanga Ndindeng and Ernst Zippel â all scientists at AfricaRice â to design and test potential solutions. Their proposal for the development of a Service Provider Harvest (SPH) model has been shortlisted for the GIZ Innovation Fund 2020 award, from a GIZ/BMZ-supported Innovation Fund.
Ernst Zippel, CIM/GIZ Integrated Expert at AfricaRice, presents on the reduction of postharvest losses through correct usage of motor scythes. (Video: AfricaRice)
Cut for service
The approach focuses heavily on capacity development, with an initial nucleus group of trainers taking the lead on activities such as recruiting and contracting service providers, providing training on harvesting and threshing, supporting aftersales services such as machine maintenance and repair, and helping to determine the optimum harvest time.
Under the proposed model, each trainer will be responsible for a group of around 50 service providers, who will receive guidance on understanding their role, finance, creating a network of client farmers, machine maintenance and use.
In addition to the financial rewards and aftersales services, the training opportunities will make this technology accessible to young entrepreneurs in rural areas. Earning up to $18 a day for harvesting and weeding services, those using the tool can expect to see a return on their initial investment in one to two months.
âYoung people are the main prospective clients for this initiative,â says Yahaya. âWith the motor scythe and related training, they can start earning serious money.â He stresses, however, that all farmers â regardless of age or gender â will be able to benefit from the job creation opportunities this initiative provides.
The initiative has been shortlisted for the GIZ Innovation Fund 2020. If selected, funding from the accelerator program would support testing, the integration of GPS sensors into the tools, creation of a platform for bank security and Carbon Credit earning, other technical activities.
Nearly 65,000 farmers in Nepal, 40% of which were women, have benefited from the Agronomy and Seed Systems Scaling project, according to a comprehensive new report. This project is part of the Cereals Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and supported by USAID.
One of the project’s most recent successes has been in accelerating the adoption of the nutritious and stress-tolerant mung bean in rice-wheat farming systems.
Farmer Chhalu Bhattarai harvests her mung bean crop in Manikapur, Surkhet, Nepal. (Photo: P. Lowe/CIMMYT)
Rice-wheat is the dominant cropping system in the lowland region of Nepal. Farmers typically harvest wheat in March and transplant rice in July, leaving land fallow for up to 100 days. A growing body of evidence shows, however, that planting mung bean during this fallow period can assist in improving farmers’ farming systems and livelihoods.
âThe mung bean has multiple benefits for farmers,â says Narayan Khanal, a researcher at CIMMYT. âThe first benefit is nutrition: mung beans are very rich in iron, protein and are easily digestible. The second benefit is income: farmers can sell mung beans on the market for a higher price than most other legumes. The third benefit is improved soil health: mung beans fix the nitrogen from the atmosphere into the soil as well as improve soil organic content.â
Commonly used in dishes like dahl, soups and sprout, mung beans are a common ingredient in Asian cuisine. However, prior to the project, most farmers in Nepal had never seen the crop before and had no idea how to eat it. Encouraging them to grow the crop was not going to be an easy task.
Thanks to dedicated efforts by CIMMYT researchers, more than 8,000 farmers in Nepal are now cultivating mung bean on land that would otherwise be left fallow, producing over $1.75 million of mung bean per year.
The newfound enthusiasm for growing mung bean could not have been achieved without the help of local womenâs farming groups, said Timothy J. Krupnik, CIMMYT senior scientist and CSISA project leader.
Employees select and clean mung beans at Poshan Foods in Butwal, Nepal. (Photo: Merit Maharajan/Amuse Communication)
An employee selects mung beans at Poshan Foods, in Butwal, Nepal. (Photo: Merit Maharajan/Amuse Communication)
After mung bean is toasted, employees at Poshan Foods select the beans. (Photo: Merit Maharajan/Amuse Communication)
Poshan Foods uses mung bean for a wide range of products but has been particularly successful with baby food, which includes important nutrition advice for parents. (Photo: Merit Maharajan/Amuse Communication)
Bringing research and innovations to farmersâ fields
Introducing the mung bean crop to farmersâ fields was just one of the successes of Agronomy and Seed Systems Scaling, which was an added investment by USAID in the wider CSISA project, which began in 2014. The project aims to move agronomic and crop varietal research into real-world impact. It has helped farmers get better access to improved seeds and machinery and strengthened partnerships with the private sector, according to Khanal.
CSISA support in business mentoring and capacity building of seed companies to popularize newly released, biofortified and stress-tolerant wheat varieties has led to seed sales volumes tripling between 2014 to 2019. The project also led to a 68% increase in the number of new improved wheat varieties since the inception of the project.
Nepalâs National Wheat Research Program was able to fast track the release of the early maturing variety BL 4341, by combining data generated by the project through seed companies and the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC) research station. Other varieties, including Borlaug 100 and NL 1327, are now in the pipeline.
Empowering women and facilitating womenâs groups have been critical components of the project. Nepal has seen a mass exodus of young men farmers leaving the countryside for the city, leaving women to work the farms. CIMMYT worked with women farmer groups to expand and commercialize simple to use and affordable technologies, like precision seed and fertilizer spreaders.
Over 13,000 farmers have gained affordable access to and benefited from precision agriculture machinery such as two-wheel âhand tractorsâ and âmini tillers.â This is a major change for small and medium-scale farmers in South Asia who typically rely on low horsepower four-wheel tractors. The project also introduced an attachment for tractors for harvesting rice and wheat called the âreaper.â This equipment helps to reduce the costs and drudgery of manual harvesting. In 2019, Nepalâs Terai region had almost 3,500 reapers, versus 22 in 2014.
To ensure the long-term success of the project, CSISA researchers have trained over 2,000 individuals from the private and public sector, and over 1,000 private organizations including machinery manufacturers and agricultural input dealers.
Researchers have trained project collaborators in both the public and private sector in seed systems, resilient varieties, better farming practices and appropriate agricultural mechanization business models. These partners have in turn passed this knowledge on to farmers, with considerable impact.
âThe projectâs outcomes demonstrates the importance of multi-year and integrated agricultural development efforts that are science-based, but which are designed in such a way to move research into impact and benefit farmers, by leveraging the skills and interests of Nepalâs public and private sector in unison,â said Krupnik.
âThe outcomes from this project will continue to sustain, as the seed and market systems developed and nurtured by the project are anticipated to have long-lasting impact in Nepal,â he said.
The Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) is led by the International Maize and Wheat Center (CIMMYT), implemented jointly with the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). CSISA is funded by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
Cover photo: A member of a women farmers group serves a platter of mung bean dishes in Suklaphanta, Nepal. (Photo: Merit Maharajan/Amuse Communication)
Stephen Mugo (left) shows grain filling to Felister Makini of KALRO and Oscar Magenya, from Kenya’s Ministry of Agriculture. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)
After a long and distinguished service as a maize breeder and senior manager at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Stephen Mugo has retired from the organization. A Principal Scientist and Maize Breeder at CIMMYTâs Global Maize Program, Mugo also served as CIMMYTâs Country Representative for Kenya and CIMMYTâs Regional Representative for Africa.
He joined CIMMYT in 1998 as a post-doctoral fellow and his last day of work was on May 31, 2020. His colleagues honored him with memorable tributes at an online meeting held on May 21, 2020.
âMugo has always demonstrated his commitment and determination, even in the most challenging times, for the benefit of CIMMYT and its staff. He has been a very productive scientist, maize breeder and project leader of several projects that have had great impact in the past. We are proud of what he has been doing and still does for CIMMYT,â said Director General Martin Kropff.
In his illustrious career, Mugo led the Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa Supplement Project (STMA-SUP) and the TELA Maize Project, both of which aimed at improving maize for drought tolerance and insect pest resistance in five countries in eastern and southern Africa. He was also the CIMMYT leader for the Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA) project (2008-2018), Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA) project (1999-2004) and the Strengthening Seed Systems project in Kenya and Uganda (2001-2003).
âI leave CIMMYT with fond memories and with my head held high. I sincerely wish to thank my colleagues for being a wonderful team that continues to work hard to ensure that we get the right seed to the farmer,â Mugo said. âI have enjoyed every bit of my time at the organization. What I would request is that for us to continue working well together, we need to respect and treat one another the way you would like to be treated. This way, the organization would move from strength to strength,â he expressed.
Stephen Mugo (right) at the MLN research station in Naivasha, Kenya, in September 2018. (Photo: Joshua Masinde/CIMMYT)
Mugo holds a PhD in Plant Breeding and Genetics from Cornell University and has published extensively in peer reviewed journals, with several book chapters to his name.
B.M. Prasanna, Director of the Global Maize Program at CIMMYT and the CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE) acknowledged the tremendous contribution that Mugo has made over the years in the projects he led.
âHis work on the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA) project has been phenomenally important, especially some of the germplasm that we are now finding as native genetic resistant to the fall armyworm,â Prasanna remarked. âHe is a great champion and tremendous ambassador for CIMMYTâs work in Africa. I am sure he will continue to contribute to CIMMYT for years to come.â
Even though he leaves the stage, Mugo will provide consultancy support to CIMMYT, particularly on the MLN Gene Editing and TELA Maize projects.
âWhat my project tries to do is visualize the diversity of corn that we have in my home country,â said Mexican designer Fernando Laposse. He partnered with CIMMYT, working with a village of Mixtec farmers and herders to transform waste from these plants into furniture. The cornâs kernels and husks come in hues of cream, deep red, pink, black and purple.
An overview of the proposed ILRI scaling process. (Graphic: ILRI)
âAgricultural research for development is increasingly being held accountable to demonstrate that research goes beyond successful pilots,â said Iain Wright, deputy director general of research and development at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).
In a bid to scale impact of its research outputs, ILRI has recently undertaken a systematic review of the scaling tools and processes available to help guide and improve the organizationâs efforts.
The Scaling Scan has been incorporated into a new scaling framework for ILRI projects and for the CGIAR Research Program on Livestock (Livestock CRP). The Scaling scan, developed in 2017 by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) in collaboration with PPPLab at SNV, is one of three tools that have been identified as most suitable for the ILRI and CGIAR operational contexts.
âILRIâs scaling framework applies the Scaling Scan and the USAID Scaling Pathway methodology before diving deep using the RTB/Wageningen Scaling Readiness methodology,â explained CIMMYT Scaling Coordinator Maria Boa. âItâs exciting because it aligns some of the best available tools to scale impact with a systems view.â
Designed for use by anyone involved in pro-poor and sustainable development programs looking to scale impact, the CIMMYT Scaling scan is found to be user-friendly and quick to help project implementation teams understand and define their scaling ambitions and asses their scaling environment. Though it is often applied as part of annual project review meetings, the tool can in fact be used at any stage of a projectâs lifecycle. This helps stakeholders understand the multiple dimensions of scaling and the significant role nontechnical factors play in a scaling mindset.
CIMMYT shared lessons on how the methodology can be applied in a workshop setting and the Livestock CRP team has already used these to organize two workshops around improving productivity and incomes in Ugandaâs pig value chain. The workshops, held in November 2019 and February 2020, brought together value chain actors, CRP researchers and project staff to better understand the multiple dimensions of scaling, develop realistic scaling goals, and identify key bottlenecks and opportunities using the Scaling Scan.
Itâs not always easy to produce and sell new maize varieties in Malawi.
Seed companies often serve as the link between breeders and farmers, but numerous challenges â from lack of infrastructure to inconvenient finance systems â mean that the journey from the laboratory to the field is not always a smooth one.
In spite of this, the sector continues to grow, with established and up-and-coming seed companies all vying to carve their own niche in the countryâs competitive maize seed market. To help bolster the industry, CIMMYT is working with around 15 seed companies in Malawi, providing them with early generation seed for CIMMYT-derived maize varieties, technical production training and marketing advice.
In a series of interviews, representatives from three of these companies share how they chose their flagship varieties and got them onto the market, and the CIMMYT support that helped them along the way.
Staff bag maize cobs at a Demeter Seeds warehouse in Lilongwe, Malawi. (Photo: Emma Orchardson/CIMMYT)
Francis Maideni, Technical Breeder and Management Advisor at Demeter Seeds
The company started primarily because we wanted to help farmers â the issue of profits came later. The founders of Demeter Seeds saw a gap in the market for open-pollinated varieties (OPVs) and thought they could fill it. Weâve now migrated halfway into hybrids, but we still feel that we should serve both communities.
At the beginning we used to multiply and sell OPVs from CIMMYT, and we started doing our own multiplication here a few years ago. What I like about CIMMYT is they have been continuing to give us technical support. The breeding teams are our regular visitors. When they give us materials they come here, work with us, we go to the fields together. Weâre so proud of this collaboration. Our whole company is based on CIMMYT germplasm since we donât have our own breeding program to develop our own varieties.
How do you decide which varieties to work with?
When we were starting out, the decision of which varieties to work with was based on what CIMMYT recommended based on the data from on-farm trials. Most Malawian farmers use local maize varieties so itâs a good step for them to start using improved varieties â not necessarily hybrids.
Apart from the yields, what else do Malawian farmers look for? It has to be white and it has to be poundable or flint varieties with a hard endosperm. Of course, there are other attributes you have to worry about as well such as yield and drought tolerance. The seasons are changing, the rainfall period is becoming shorter so weâre looking for short-maturing materials in particular. If you have a variety that takes 90-100 days to mature, youâre OK, but if you choose one that takes 140-150, the farmer can be at risk of losing out because it doesnât fit well into the growing season.
Having looked at those particular parameters we can decide on the variety weâre going to go for because this feeds into what our regular farmers want.
Is it easy to get farmers to buy those varieties, given that you know exactly what theyâre looking for?
Weâre not the only ones dealing with maize hybrids, so if youâre not aggressive enough in marketing youâll not be able to survive.
You canât just see that the demand is there and then put the product out. We have a marketing team within the company whose role is to market and advise the farmers. We try to listen to whatâs happening on the ground, see how our varieties are performing and share results with the breeders. If you sell your seed you have to get feedback â whether itâs doing well or not.
But it can be difficult with the lack of infrastructure in Malawi. There are some places which are not accessible, so there are farmers who want your seed but you canât reach them. Those farmers end up planting some local seed, which they might not have planted if they had access to improved varieties.
Chingati Phiri stands in front of a CPM plot reading for sowing in Bunda, Malawi. (Photo: Emma Orchardson/CIMMYT)
Chingati Phiri, Managing Director at CPM Agri-Enterprises
CIMMYT equals maize, so thereâs very little weâd be doing without them. There has been collaboration and partnership since we started the seed business.
We got all the parent materials, expertise and production training from CIMMYT. We now even have our own CIMMYT-trained internal inspectors, who ensure that the seed that we produce meet quality standards that are required. When they were giving us the lines, they also helped us with production of the basic seed to start our maize production. Without CIMMYT, we wouldnât be here.
Youâre one of the few seed companies in Malawi producing vitamin A biofortified maize, which CIMMYT develops in partnership with HarvestPlus. How did you decide to work on that variety?
We selected the orange vitamin A maize firstly because of corporate social responsibility reasons. There is a developmental aspect to what we do, and weâre not just here for money. I think whatever weâre doing should also help the people that are buying from us. We knew that micronutrient deficiency is an issue in Malawi, so we hoped that the vitamin A biofortified maize could address some of the countryâs malnutrition problems.
When the Government said it was looking at alternative ways of combating malnutrition, this was one of the proposed solutions and we thought we should be the first to do it. As of now, I think that of the 20-something lead seed businesses in Malawi, weâre one of only three producing this maize.
How challenging has it been to promote that variety?
Very, because the orange maize was not popular to begin with. In the first year, we had about 25 metric tons of seed and we didnât even sell 10.
Yellow maize was brought in to feed people during a famine in the early 90s, so I think when people see orange maize now they are reminded of that hunger. There are still those negative associations. So we had to do some convincing, visiting farmers with HarvestPlus and telling them about the benefits.
But this is our third year and we donât have any seed left â itâs all gone. Combined, the three companies involved in orange maize production had about 65 metric tons. But this year the demand has been around 1,050 metric tons. What we produced is not even one tenth of what is required.
Now that the orange maize has been popularized, we see demand increasing in the next five years as well. Apart from farmers, weâve also had inquiries from people that want to use it for industrial purposes and are looking for very large quantities. Now we know, if people are looking for orange maize, weâll be among the first to provide it.
Shane Phiri, Operations Manager at Global Seeds, shows a bag of MH34 seed. (Photo: Emma Orchardson/CIMMYT)
Shane Phiri, Operations Manager at Global Seeds
I studied agribusiness management for my first degree and went into farming immediately after. Later I completed a Masters in Agronomy, but the moment I started talking to CIMMYT I knew that I was lacking knowledge on the technical side. Over the years Iâve attended a number of courses â maize technician courses and programs to help people in the seed industry learn about hybrids â thanks to CIMMYT. A large part of my knowledge has come from those trainings, visiting the research station in Harare and attending field days.
Global Seeds is known for its flagship product, MH34. Why did you decide to focus on that specific variety?
One of the main driving factors for us to go for MH34 was that it was not being produced by anyone else. This was a new variety that no other company had branded as their own yet, so it was a good opportunity for us to own it.
At the same time, I liked this variety because it had two lines from CIMMYT and one line thatâs bred locally. Itâs kind of a mix. I really liked that because it meant that it would be a bit of a challenge for anyone outside the country to produce it because they would not get that extra 25% from the Malawian line.
Did that also make it difficult for Global Seeds to produce?
It was not easy for us to get it on the market. Itâs one of the stories Iâm most proud of â to say weâre one of the few companies producing this variety â especially when I look back at the last three years and the work it took to get it to where we are.
We got the lines we needed from CIMMYT, but when we went to the local program to get that one last ingredient, we got less than 1.4 kilograms. Normally we would need at least 5 kilograms.
We knew we had to produce quickly to commercialize the variety, so we took 900 grams and started trying to increase the line under irrigation. Then the water supply ran out and we had to hire a water bowser. It was quite a journey but in the end we produced a handful of seed, and now the story is that this variety is flying off the shelves.
