Integrated agricultural production systems for the poor and vulnerable in dry areas

1. IFAD-Funded Regional Project:
“Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
An Overview
Marwan Owaygen
October 21/2014
Amman, Jordan

2. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
 Overall Goal:
Enhance smallholder farmers’ livelihoods through innovative research to business platform.
 Specific Objectives:
1. Develop gender responsive profitable and climate change - proof best-bet options/models
of tested and proven technology options.
2. Facilitate the institutional and policy environment for an accelerated scaling up of these
technologies.
 Geographical coverage: Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Sudan, and Yemen
 Budget and Duration: 1.5 million US$, two years (March 2014 – March 2016)

3. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
 Main Partners:
Egypt: Ministry of Agriculture and Land Reclamation, Agricultural Research Center (ARC)
Eritrea: Ministry of Agriculture, National Agricultural Research Institute (NARI), and
Hamelmalo College of Agriculture
Ethiopia: Ministry of Agriculture, Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR), and
Amhara Regional Agricultural Research Institute (ARARI)
Kenya: Ministry of Agriculture, Kenya Agriculture Research Institute (KARI)
Sudan: Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, Agricultural Research Corporation (ARC)
Yemen: Ministry of Agriculture & Irrigation, Agricultural Research and Extension Authority (AREA)

4. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
Selection of intervention sites:
The selected intervention sites, except for Eritrea, have been within the target areas
of an IFAD on going project. Operational linkages have been developed with these
projects in the form of in kind contributions and involvement of their
extension staff.
Strong multidisciplinary:
Multi-institutional research and development country teams coordinated by a senior
scientist have been established drawing on expertise from NARSs.

5. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
According to countries’ work plan for Year I the technologies to be prioritized and validated
technically and economically can be grouped under three categories:
Improved crop varieties and agronomic practices:
Wheat (Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan, Yemen), chickpea (Eritrea, Ethiopia, Sudan), barley (Eritrea),
crop rotation and intensification (Egypt).
Water saving technologies:
Pipe conveyance system (Sudan).
Improved livestock production:
Breeding (Ethiopia, Eritrea, Yemen), supplementary feeding practices (Sudan, Yemen),
improved vetch production (Ethiopia), silage making from crop residues (Egypt), uptake of feed
block (Eritrea), improving veterinary services (Eritrea).

6. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
Field interventions in Phase I:
 Improved new wheat varieties + agronomic practices (planting time, fertilizer, raised bed)
 Crop rotation and intensification
 Silage from corn and sorghum
 Urea treatment for wheat straw
EGYPT

7. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
EGYPT
Linkages with IFAD projects in Upper Egypt:
1.On-farm Irrigation Development Project in the Old Lands (OFIDO 2010-2018)
2.Promotion of Rural Incomes through Market Enhancement Project (2012-2020)

8. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
Field interventions in Phase I:
SUDAN
 On-farm demonstration and yield maximization plots of wheat and winter grain legumes
 Mineral and concentrate supplementation to lactating animals
 Sheep fattening
 Demonstration of small-scale irrigation water savings schemes (pipe conveyance, drip
irrigation and sprinkler irrigation systems)

9. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
SUDAN
Linkages with IFAD projects
 Irrigated area along lower Atbara River was selected as target site for
interventions.
 Butana Integrated Rural Development Project is operating in the same area.
 The project networked and knowledge sharing system was established with Butana
Project.

10. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
YEMEN
Field interventions in Phase I:
 Improving crop management:
Introducing to farmers newly released wheat and lentil varieties; fertilization, seed rate
and irrigation recommendations were the main interventions to improve crop management.
 Improving livestock production:
- Introducing pure breed of goat to farmer communities
- Introducing feeding diets to improve level of nutrition
- Introducing new cereal forage crop
Linkages with IFAD projects:
Rainfed Agriculture and Livestock Project (2009 - 2014)

11. “Integrated Agricultural Production Systems for the Poor and Vulnerable in Dry Areas”
ETHIOPIA
Field interventions in Phase I (Gedemso and Gumara sites)
 Improved horticulture production (onion, tomato, pepper, potato)
 Improved field crop production (wheat, barley, Maize, tef, chick pea, faba bean)
 Improved livestock production:
(Introduction of forage species for grazing, artificial insemination, community-based
small ruminant breeding, bee keeping)
Linkages with IFAD projects:
Community- Based Integrated Natural Resources Management Project (2010 - 2017)

12. Research-to-Business Model:
Scaling up Through a Value Chain Approach
ERITREA
1. How to incorporate the rural poor into value chains?
2. How poor people can change the terms of incorporation to increase the benefits
of enterprise to small-scale producers at the upstream end of the chain?
-Horizontal coordination (as one form of upgrading strategies, aiming at addressing
shared constraints, interests and entry barriers associated with scale, such as weak
negotiating power, high transaction costs, low output, and lack of capital)
-Vertical coordination (as a second form of upgrading strategies involving moving
along the continuum from one-off spot transactions toward longer-term relationships
between actors in different functional nodes).

13. Eritrea: Increasing wheat productivity (2 to 3 fold) through improved
varieties and agronomic practices

14. Milling Factory
Vertical Coordination
(Contract farming)
Small Producers of Improved Wheat
and Agronomic Practices
(Horizontal Coordination)
Eritrea:
Towards Achieving Impact at Scale