East and Southern Africa FlagshipKey highlights of our work so far-Polly Eriksen

1. East and Southern Africa Flagship
Key highlights of our work so far
Prepared by Siboniso Moyo and Mohammed Said
Presented by Polly Ericksen
CRP-DS Science and Implementation Workshop
30th June – 4th July, 2014
Holiday Inn Hotel - Amman, Jordan
1

2. Resilience areas
Land pressure, increasing human population,
diminishing access to resources, weak policy
frameworks, under developed/lack of markets, low
livestock productivity
Increased vulnerability to shocks such as
drought, price increases and conflict
Response
Develop enabling policies
Develop resilience enhancing mechanisms

3. Intensification areas
High population densities, small plot sizes, low soil
fertility, labour constraints, heterogeneity of land
pressure and farmer preferences
Opportunities for intensification of agriculture exist,
technologies need to respond to markets, IPs and
value chain enhancement are key
Agricultural intensification can substantially contribute
to reduce household and increase food security

4. Resilient
livelihoods
Wealth
and well
being
Food
access
Natural
Resources
Management
Gender
Empowerm
ent
Capacity
to
Innovate
Contribution to IDOs
In Pastoral, Agro-Pastoral, Crop based and Mixed crop x livestock systems

5. 5
East and Southern Africa Flagship
Action Sites

7. 7
Chama
Angonia
Lundazi
Chipata
Petauke
Katete
Chadiza
Tsangano
Zumbo
Mutarara
Chora-Bassa
Magoe
Maravia
Chiuta
Macanga
ICRISAT
CIAT
CIAT
CIP
ICRAF
Bioversity
CIAT
CIP
CIP
Dedza
Nsanje
Tholo
Zomba Chiradzulu
Mulanje
Machinga
Common Action Site in the Chinyanja Triangle

8. 8
Source: ASARECA Report; KRDP/ASAL DM
Galla goats
indigenous breed
for milk and meat
in West Pokot
Reclaimed farm
(African Foxtail
grass) from
invasive prosopis
julifora
Sale of fatten
livestock fed on
African Foxtail
grass

9. Main research questions
• What are resilience enhancing options?
• Where are the hot spots of land degradation and how
best to tackle this?
• Do integrated crop and livestock systems minimise
environmental impacts, reduce risk and enhance
resilience?
• What are the major determinants of technology
adoption by smallholder farmers?
• What are the best bet technology options that can be
recommended for adoption by smallholder farmers?

10. Main research questions
• What are the dynamic drivers of change in the
status of agricultural biodiversity resources in
integrated crop livestock systems?
• What is the soil health status of landscapes and its
implication on sustainable intensification?
• How to make low input small scale farming
productive, profitable and resource efficient?
• What are the decision support tools which will help
intensification of integrated agricultural water
management interventions?

11. Tools and methods
• Development of vulnerability frameworks
• Characterisation of food systems and identification of
entry points
• Characterisation of agricultural biodiversity resources
• Understanding research gaps and gap filling
• Developing integrated systems approach to land and
water use for productivity and income
• Developing resilience enhancing options and testing best
bet technologies

12. Tools and methods
• Baseline surveys, agronomic and socio-economic surveys
• Participatory value chain analysis and development of
interventions
• Test extension approaches for NRM, land use plans,
governances and tenure security
• Innovation platforms for stakeholder engagement
• Integrated systems simulation modelling, remote sensing
and geospatial analysis
• Developing capacity of farmer associations and cooperatives

13. Scale of operation
• Household (individual surveys)
• Plot level
• Farm level
• Community level (FGDs,
participatory mapping)
• Landscape (rangeland ecology,
NRM, water management)
• Ecosystem, biomass (range and
biodiversity assessments and
modelling)

14. Collaboration frameworks and
Partnerships
• Bioversity, CIAT, CIP, ICARDA, ICRAF,
ICRISAT, ILRI, IWMI and SSA-CP
• Currently there is a regional focus
• Partnerships formed around bilateral
projects
• All CGIAR Centres in DS/ESA;
• NARS;
• Farmers, Extension Services;
• Private Sector;
• Universities and colleges; and
• NGO Partners in target sites
• Policy makers – in various countries

15. Key Achievements (1)
• Four Innovation Platforms (IPs) established in mixed
crop-livestock systems
• Nine major technologies tested and put into use eg.
- mechanised and non-mechanised CA;
- intercropping maize with legumes;
- cultivation of improved forage varieties;
- Seed multiplication
• Partnerships developed and some strengthened
• Capacity building – eg. training of farmers, extension
staff, MSc students and the project teams.

16. Key Achievements (2)
• Soil and landscape health assessment conducted in the
Chinyanja Triangle.
• Review on agricultural water management interventions for
the Chinyanja Triangle.
• Revision of Empirical Model upon which Index Based
Livestock Insurance contracts are based.
• Wildlife and conservation Management Bill 2013 was
passed in Kenya.
• Work with K NDMA on EWS system.
• Generated knowledge, tools and data (eg. lessons distilled
on IPs and NGO partnerships to improve livestock value
chains)

17. Key Achievements (3)
• Publications, policy briefs and policy engagements (revision of
policy) and media materials
• Conference papers on various topics on sustainable
intensification of agriculture.
• Consultative process to compile and synthesise knowledge on
trees and resilience in the drylands of Africa.
• Special publication on pastoral farming systems and food
security in Sub-Saharan Africa priorities for science and policy
• Special publication on Pro-poor co-investment in environmental
services in Africa and Asia: a theory of change

18. Successes
• Developed appropriate technologies
• Introduced improved management practices
• Generated data on several areas (eg. soils, landscapes, and
household typologies)
• Forged partnerships with local organisations which helped with
implementation
• Engaged stakeholders identification of constraints and
opportunities
• Generated publications on conceptualizing and measuring
resilience in drylands,
• Generated publications on sustainable intensification and on
trees.
• Conducted a number of capacity building initiatives

19. Challenges (1)
• Understanding complexity of systems and implications
for research and development.
• Developing and tailoring the management technologies
to a diverse group of large numbers of smallholder
farmers.
• There are barriers to adoption of technologies which are
beyond Science and require investments (capacities and
infrastructure) in the drylands.
• Limited capacity to implement systems research (trans
disciplinary research across organizations and partners)

20. Challenges (2)
• CG Centres in the FP not yet working closely in
implementing an integrated systems approach at
the action site level.
• New to joint planning
• Centre issues result in focal points without
authority to follow up on deliverables in some
cases

21. Areas for improvement
• Adopt systems approach, and make use of synergies
• Engage relevant stakeholders from the beginning.
• More attention and involvement of policy and decision
makers.
• Improve Centre coordination and communication (joint
planning).
• Develop joint proposal to support the work of the FPs
(currently plans do not match the available resources).
• Improve reporting mechanisms.
• Disburse funds in good time.

22. What would we do differently?
• Define the goal of each FP clearly from the
beginning.
• FPs should have the funding initially not Centres.
• Activities should be accompanied by resources.
• Allocate enough time and resources to do the work.
• Define and agree areas for joint resource
mobilisation (filling the gaps).
• Improve mechanisms for inter centre coordination
(funds, communication).

23. • Thank you for your attention