The following are highlights from a recent report, written by Mahmoud Solh, Maarten van Ginkel from the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA – a member of the CGIAR Consortium), and Rodomiro Ortiz from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp, Sweden. The views expressed are those of the authors.
Fresh approaches are needed if agricultural research is to deliver results that can offer real advances in food and nutrition security for poor communities. We are talking about a whole new mindset here. Instead of addressing single commodities or themes, it is time for a shift in focus, so that research is more holistic in the way it tackles problems. We need to take a longer term view when planning projects that seek to combat hunger and poor nutrition. And countries must have more practical policy options tailored to local needs and conditions, if they are to make tangible progress against the obstacles they face.
The task is a massive one, which is why the old strategies simply will not work. Already, one-quarter of the world’s 6.5 billion people do not have enough to eat and that figure is set to rise to more than 9 billion by 2050. Add to that the difficulties posed by climate change and the challenge takes on even greater proportions. Put simply, the biggest challenge is for the planet to produce much more food without further damaging the environment and depleting the already scarce natural resources such as water, land biodiversity and energy.
Most farmers do not live neatly compartmentalized lives, based on one single crop or technology. They use a mix of approaches to earn a livelihood and husband their resources. In practical terms, broadening the research vision means looking at combinations of income-earning approaches for small-scale producers in developing countries. It might involve investigating how a mix of crop, livestock, tree planting, fisheries and natural resource management options in addition to socio-economic consideration and an enabling policy environment would best suit a particular situation in a given community or country.
Pragmatic policies and system-based strategies
Policies need to offer concrete support adapted to poor communities’ actual circumstances. Practical policies that help farmers gain better access to information, knowledge and technologies are helpful. So too are those that enable smallholder farmers to obtain market information which can let them plan production and sell their produce for a decent price. But abstract global policy advice, which has little chance of working in the context of the daily conditions which people really face, is neither realistic nor constructive. In many instances, community approaches that develop code of ethics that protect collective properties like water and rangelands has proven their effectiveness in improving livelihoods in rural communities and protecting the natural resource base.
It is tempting to look for single solutions, but experience shows that such an approach cannot produce lasting results. Especially when shifting climate patterns are factored into the equation. For example, new disease-resistant wheat varieties cannot resist deadly wheat stripe or stem rust forever. So research must be based on a system-focused strategy that includes using a range of wheat cultivars, chemicals to stop epidemics in their tracks, cross-border cooperation, surveillance and early warning.
High technology is not always the answer. For many low-income rural communities, simple techniques that can be scaled up easily have better prospects. Conservation agriculture is producing impressive results in many dryland countries in South America, parts of Africa and Asia and most recently in the Near East, where farmers are gaining higher yields with lower production costs
The bigger picture
Increasing crop yields is important, but it is not much use unless it is part of a broader package. A far more effective approach is to integrate high yielding varieties with other strategies for improving livelihoods, such as high-value crops, mixed crop-livestock systems and livestock insurance that bring more income to farmers. The result is that households will have more income to buy food, spend on healthcare and educate their children, including girls. Such advances will have a knock-on effect – it is well documented that growth in the agriculture sector also drives growth in the non-farm community.
There is plenty of proof that an agro-ecosystems approach to agricultural research is effective, especially when it is driven by demand from rural people, rather than by the research community. In chronically poor areas of the High Plateau of Peru and Bolivia, Andean and international partners have focused on synergies between crops, livestock and non-farming activities, such as handicrafts, to increase incomes and manage natural resources in the most sustainable way.
In Morocco and Tunisia, fodder crops are being alley-cropped with barley as a way of providing a reliable supply of feed for sheep and goats, while countering erosion and increasing soil moisture retention, and hence agricultural output. A blend of water harvesting and supplemental irrigation is enabling farmers in the Middle East to deliver precious water to crops just when they need it, helping them to combat drought and plan their planting, instead of relying on increasingly erratic rainfall.
More investment, better targeted
Investment in agricultural research is way too low. Just US$3 billion per year is spent on researching the seven most important crops. It is important that the benefits of agricultural research are shown to decision-makers, so that they will see that this is money well spent. A study by ICARDA on research investment in a wheat initiative in Upper Egypt showed returns of 37%. It is hard to argue with figures like that.
But perhaps almost as important as increasing investment is the need to rethink the way agricultural research is targeted. Demand-driven research that tackles global development challenges is at the heart of the new CGIAR research agenda. So too is a cross-cutting approach, so that precious energy and resources are not duplicated. Three new CGIAR Research Programs are currently under development, adding to the 16 that are already up and running. Between them, they embody the broad-based research that is crucial if we are to provide the results that are so badly needed.
Climate change makes an agro-ecosystems approach to global dryland development especially urgent. The challenges are complex. So the solutions must be too. We owe it to the hungry to abandon the old way of worn-out thinking. And to come up with more innovative approaches that really work.
This post consisted of highlights from a recent report written by Mahmoud Solh, Maarten van Ginkel from the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA – a member of the CGIAR Consortium), and Rodomiro Ortiz from the University of Agricultural Sciences, Alnarp, Sweden. The views expressed are those of the authors.
Photo credit: K.Trautmann/CCAFS
More information:
Innovative agriculture for food security: an integrated agro-ecosystems approach PDF (ICARDA)
Strategies for combating climate change in drylands agriculture PDF (ICARDA)