I am required to start an agroforestry project in a small town in Mbeya - Tanzania. I find it difficult in reaching the villagers to accept agroforestry as a way to improve their farms productivity. The idea is to plant gliricidia sepium mixed with either sunflower or maize.
Any direction on approach to reach resource poor people in relation to agricultural techniques will be greatly appreciated. I am from agricultural engineering and biomass energy background and social economic issues are a challenge.
Thanks.
Dear Mjema,
There is so much to say about your question.
Agroforestry stands out as an option applies to conventional agriculture in developing countries. Agroforestry could help reduce many common problems such as poverty and environmental degradation through the creation of wealth. To do this, it is possible to build on the examples of organic agriculture, carbon sequestration and monetary valuation of ecosystem goods and services to create added value through agroforestry systems. However, many improvements are needed before its implantation is possible on a larger scale. The technical and financial constraints and the importance of the cultural context must be especially thorough in order to understand the behavior of adoption of agroforestry practices. Agroforestry is nevertheless one of the largest tool for sustainable development called disadvantaged.
The widespread implementation of agroforestry must pass through the creation of wealth and income in order to attract the interest of poor farmers. For that agroforestry is a tool for sustainable development in disadvantaged areas, it is necessary that the users (ie mainly subsistence farmers) can find any interest or advantage allowing them to improve their socioeconomic conditions.
In general, agroforestry must maintain or even increase the incomes of the poor in order to justify the adoption of agroforestry practices. Furthermore, economic risks - bankruptcy, significant income, system malfunction - associated with adopting new technologies should also be reduced. High risk generally reduced the adoption of long-term practices.
Agroforestry reduces the use of chemical pesticides. This reduces pollution but could also help to increase
farmers' income as in the case of organic farming. Indeed, the organic product certification process and the increased demand for this type of food from the consumer to add value to production. For the period 2002-2005, global sales organic products increased 43%, from 23 to 33 billion US. The application may be so strong that in some cases the offer fails to fill. This represents an interesting market for agroforestry farmers. The development of agroforestry could therefore pass either by integrating the principles of organic certification, or by creating a single certification. In the first case, a lot of studies and analyzes will be necessary for agroforestry can comply with the strict standards of organic certification. In the second case, the idea of developing a new certification and adapted to agroforestry may sound interesting, but to date, yet little infrastructure were created to support such a project. However, there is already an example in the case of the coffee grown in the shade.
The portrait of agroforestry as contributing to sustainable development in so-called disadvantaged countries would not be complete without the inclusion of the social sphere. However, interest in agroforestry was first expressed by ecological studies. Subsequently, economists are interested in this type of farming and its profitability potential. However, still few researchers focused on the social aspect. Therefore, this aspect is delayed compared to the ecological and economic dimensions of the benefits of agroforestry. However, some social benefits of agroforestry have been demonstrated: the creation of jobs, the supply of raw materials farmers and food sovereignty of local communities.
With my best regards
Prof. Bachir ACHOUR
Dear Mjema,
Just a few additional sentences as a comment.
Before arriving for implantation of agroforestry on a large scale, more elements remain to be corrected. The local technical assistance and demonstration of benefits Agroforestry is essential to publicize these practices to farmers poor. In this way, it gives them an alternative to agriculture burning. International aid should increase the financing of small projects promoting dissemination of agroforestry technologies. Moreover, economic incentives and a
Monetary support, through loans, should be made available to farmers poor to offset the costs of implementing agroforestry systems. The costs implantation can prevent poor farmers to adopt practices agroforestry. The participation of local actors in agroforestry projects
also necessary, because it is they who know best their needs. Their Integration would recalibrate in order not to be based on assumptions incorrect research.
In another vein, development aid should focus on
the establishment of institutions and agencies whose role would be to support the implementation of agroforestry systems. The weakness or the absence of appropriate institutions in developing countries limit the adoption of agroforestry on a large scale.
Finally, the severity with which agricultural subsidies in Western countries
harmful to developing countries as well as the austere restructuring programs of the International Monetary Fund and loans from the World Bank even more strongly justify the implementation of agroforestry. The so-called disadvantaged groups must get their food sovereignty; by investing massively in agroforestry, they could partly overcome socioeconomic constraints they must undergo. The cancellation or at least easing of the debt of third world countries, however, is required to reduce the economic burden of these countries and facilitate their own support for the development of agroforestry systems. The development of institutions devoted to agroforestry is not possible if monetary surpluses are allocated to the payment of the national debt.
Despite the environmental benefits brought by economic and social agroforestry, much work remains to be done. Reforming the economic system World is not an easy task and fight against the inertia of policy makers and economic lot of effort and a good dose of courage. Nevertheless, it is allowed to have hope that agroforestry will ever be distributed over a majority of Farmland and at the global level. The so-called disadvantaged groups have the right living in better socioeconomic conditions, so now is the time acting. Who knows ? Maybe one day called developed nations will be based on this which is done in developing countries to change their current agricultural practices.
With my best regards
Prof. Bachir ACHOUR
Training programs and workshops with mass mobilization ks necessary ,,,,
The magnetic seed treatment can be applied in agroforestry practices, such as biotechnological tool because it can improve the conditions of the kinetics of germination. It can also improve morphological parameters of the root and seedling . We have also found increases in the mass of the leaves. It is estimated that improve plant resistance to environmental effects .
Hallo.
Thanks guys for very interesting and informative suggestions.
So if I get you guys correctly, I need to develop a tool with the following features:
1. Economic justification: The people I am trying to reach will have to understand the economic of financial justification of the project before they could start practicing it. Now if I follow this well, I will need to plan for training, workshops, and even demonstration plots that the people will see and experience how "profitable " the new approach to farming can be. Agroforestry must maintain or even increase the farmers income. Now this will need some time to develop and demonstrate. From some literature, plants like gliricidia sepium is said to increase nutrients on the soil since they are nitrogen fixing plants. But to be able to show this, a research will really need to be done for the farmers to accept and believe what I may be preaching
2. Financial constraints overcoming. I think one way of doing this is to have agricultural specific loans and may be even an insurance against natural hazards such as El Nino and La Nina. Policies will also need to be developed to ensure that there is protection for people deciding to venture into agroforestry.
One thing that I find challenging in Tanzania is that the disadvantaged groups in resources, are also disadvantaged in education and exposure which leads into being very protective of their beliefs and practices and they seem rather conservative in a way. This makes it a bit difficult in generating an understanding of agroforestry principles and advantages of the practice.
Once again let me thank you for your inputs and if you come up with any further ideas, I will really appreciate if you could put them here.
Regars,
Mjema
Dear Mjema,
Here are some additional thoughts on the subject.
Factors favoring the adoption and maintenance of agroforestry
1.Local technician training and technical assistance available
2.Demonstration plots
3.Clearly defined property rights
4.Profitability and access to credit and markets
Lack of knowledge of farmers and the lack of extension programs hinder the adoption of agroforestry.
This is why the training of local technicians and the agroforestry technical support specialists are vital to the development of agroforestry. The local presence of these technicians is an effective and inexpensive way to give direct support to people eager to learn about agroforestry practices. Moreover, specialists - local or foreign - Agroforestry play a major role on the perception that farmers have of agroforestry and may thus influence the adoption positively.
The establishment of demonstration plots can also promote the adoption of Agroforestry.
The dissemination of information and contact with people practicing agroforestry is an effective tool promoting the adoption.
This will concretely demonstrate the wealth created by the agroforestry systems. Farmers interested in agroforestry once subsistence needs met and only if the profitability of such a practice is demonstrated.
It is therefore necessary that there are agroforestry sites that showcase everything that can improve the socioeconomic conditions of small farmers. In this way, it maximizes the probability of conversion to agroforestry.
However, lack of appropriate institutions and infrastructure limit the adoption of agroforestry and farmers' access to markets.
Both activities require technical and financial support to promote the sustainability of agroforestry systems at least during the implementation phase.
Weak institutions and infrastructure is notably explained by an excessive public debt and structural adjustment programs from global financial institutions from the Bretton Woods conference in 1944: the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank.
These restructuring programs often have a negative impact on quality environmental and socio-economic conditions of people, including a decline in investment in environmental and social programs. Weak of institutions also limits farmers' access to markets.
In another vein, a very high proportion of farmers in most countries economically disadvantaged are not landowners. They often use degraded and the fringes of protected areas land territories – when it is not directly inside of them - cut the forest or lease land farm to meet their needs. The absence of property rights limits the adoption of agroforestry. The main reasons are the lack of resources, insecurity about future access to land and planting restrictions on tenants.
The lack of resources means that farmers can not receive any technical or financial support for the implementation of an agroforestry system - a crucial factor determining the success of such an approach.
Long-term investments are discouraged in such situations because insecurity farmer is amplified by the absence of property.
As for the restrictions on the cultivation of agricultural land imposed on tenants, they are a hindrance to the development of agroforestry practices because if the owner does not allow the cultivation of trees on the leased land, the establishment of an agroforestry system is impossible . In addition, the absence land titles landless makes possible their access to credit, even if the refund is safer with a diversified agricultural production The development of microcredit popularized by the economist Bengali Muhammad Yunus could potentially address this problem.
With my best regards
Prof. Bachir ACHOUR
Dear Innocent,
A suggestion would be not to come with a predefined agroforestry system in your mind and try to promote this among farmers, but rather design the agroforestry model in a participatory manner with you as a facilitator. Issues, which are important to consider include amongst others:
- Farmers' preference for agroforestry products for self subsistence
- Market potential of various agroforestry products
- Ecological / agronomic suitability of agroforestry crops / trees and their combination!
- Labor availability broken down by gender
- Labor requirement of managing various crops/trees and their combination
- Seasonal variations in product availability/demand and labor availability/demand
- Cultural preferences / tabus regarding certain trees, shrubs, crops, grasses, etc.
The participatory process should ideally make available and analyze the above information for your particular situation and lead to the design of an appropriate agroforestry model, suiting ecological, economic and social objectives. This way you can ensure that the agroforestry model is appropriate in the local context.
I hope this helps a bit,
Andras
Well, I know for us here in Nigeria agroforestry is an old land use practice of the small holder second to none. If one want to succeed in disseminating ideas he/she must study the people and their practices. In addition to other advices, try to be on the tree species that are most cherished by the local people and propagate your ideas through that. A times people will accept their own, not necessarily what others feel is better. Adopt bottom to top approach may be it will help.
