386 Enabling Policies and Institutions for Sustainable Agricultural and Food Systems
Box 19.2 Identifying options for policy and practice: examples from the field sites
Mali
In the irrigated rice village of Tissana in Mali, the diversification by farmers into crops
other than rice is set to continue. Further growth of the scheme is also underway,
with investment in construction of new canals and irrigation works into neighbouring
dryland areas. Interventions to improve soil-fertility management within the Office du
Niger thus need to include a combination of:- A shift in research and extension from an exclusive focus on irrigated rice, grown
with inorganic fertilizer, towards support for other crops, combining organic and
chemical materials to best effect. - Work with newly settled rice farmers who are less familiar with inputs and credit,
water management and marketing, as well as how best to maintain and improve
the quality of soil on their plots, combined with attention to areas long under
cultivation where soils are suffering from salinization and loss of structure. - Seeking maximum complementation between livestock and cropping enter-
prises in and around the Office du Niger. Cattle herds depend on gaining access
to dry-season grazing, while at the same time providing manure which is becom-
ing a key component of the farming system.
Ethiopia
In the highland site in southern Ethiopia, livelihood options are increasingly con-
strained. Limited land areas and the lack of available oxen and cash to invest in
increasing agricultural production on the small plots of land means that a flexible
strategy involving a range of farm and non-farm activities is essential. The current
focus for rural development in this area concentrates on an extension package
involving improved seeds and fertilizer linked to a credit arrangement, which is
implemented in an inflexible manner. Only the better-off can risk the package and
gain the undoubted benefits. By contrast, this option increases vulnerability for
poorer farmers, as they have no other sources of income or land to fall back on in
case of failure. Alternative options could include:- A wider set of technical options as part of the package, which involve lower-risk
crops and management practices. - A more flexible form of package so that farmers may take different elements of
the package in relation to the condition of their soils, their production objectives,
their asset status and risk preferences. - An alternative form of ‘credit for livelihoods’ which would allow the allocation of
credit to a range of livelihood activities to encourage agricultural improvement
in the context of wider livelihood diversification. - The linking of formal credit (from government and private sources) to informal
institutions governing savings and mutual assurance.