Preserving the (water) harvest: effective water use in agriculture

2001 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
pp. 133-139 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacob W. Kijne
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Food Prices ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Irrigated Agriculture ◽  
Tillage Practices ◽  
Land And Water Management ◽  
Food Shortages ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Innovative Approaches

The alternative to increasing the world's irrigated area by an estimated 30% to secure food security for all, seems to be limited irrigation expansion and consequently higher food prices and probably food shortages. This paper explores other options for ensuring food security. It discusses meaningful similarities between innovative approaches for land and water management in rainfed and irrigated agriculture. The focus is on innovative approaches to increase yields in sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia. Innovative technologies, such as improved tillage practices and water harvesting are important. But at least as important are the processes by which new agricultural practices are developed, improved and extended. In the end it comes down to human inventiveness.

scholarly journals Agriculture and food systems in sub-Saharan Africa in a 4 ° C+ world

2011 ◽  
Vol 369 (1934) ◽  
pp. 117-136 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip K. Thornton ◽  
Peter G. Jones ◽  
Polly J. Ericksen ◽  
Andrew J. Challinor
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Systems ◽  
Agricultural Development ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Commodity Price ◽  
Adaptation Strategies ◽  
Policy Support ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Agriculture And Food

Agricultural development in sub-Saharan Africa faces daunting challenges, which climate change and increasing climate variability will compound in vulnerable areas. The impacts of a changing climate on agricultural production in a world that warms by 4 ° C or more are likely to be severe in places. The livelihoods of many croppers and livestock keepers in Africa are associated with diversity of options. The changes in crop and livestock production that are likely to result in a 4 ° C+ world will diminish the options available to most smallholders. In such a world, current crop and livestock varieties and agricultural practices will often be inadequate, and food security will be more difficult to achieve because of commodity price increases and local production shortfalls. While adaptation strategies exist, considerable institutional and policy support will be needed to implement them successfully on the scale required. Even in the 2 ° C+ world that appears inevitable, planning for and implementing successful adaptation strategies are critical if agricultural growth in the region is to occur, food security be achieved and household livelihoods be enhanced. As part of this effort, better understanding of the critical thresholds in global and African food systems requires urgent research.

scholarly journals Weather patterns, food security and humanitarian response in sub-Saharan Africa

2005 ◽  
Vol 360 (1463) ◽  
pp. 2169-2182 ◽  
Author(s):  
Menghestab Haile
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Rural Communities ◽  
Climate Variability ◽  
El Niño ◽  
El Nino ◽  
Humanitarian Aid ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Weather Patterns ◽  
Food Shortages ◽  
Sub Saharan

Although considerable achievements in the global reduction of hunger and poverty have been made, progress in Africa so far has been very limited. At present, a third of the African population faces widespread hunger and chronic malnutrition and is exposed to a constant threat of acute food crisis and famine. The most affected are rural households whose livelihood is heavily dependent on traditional rainfed agriculture. Rainfall plays a major role in determining agricultural production and hence the economic and social well being of rural communities. The rainfall pattern in sub-Saharan Africa is influenced by large-scale intra-seasonal and inter-annual climate variability including occasional El Niño events in the tropical Pacific resulting in frequent extreme weather event such as droughts and floods that reduce agricultural outputs resulting in severe food shortages. Households and communities facing acute food shortages are forced to adopt coping strategies to meet the immediate food requirements of their families. These extreme responses may have adverse long-term impacts on households' ability to have sustainable access to food as well as the environment. The HIV/AIDS crisis has also had adverse impacts on food production activities on the continent. In the absence of safety nets and appropriate financial support mechanisms, humanitarian aid is required to enable households effectively cope with emergencies and manage their limited resources more efficiently. Timely and appropriate humanitarian aid will provide households with opportunities to engage in productive and sustainable livelihood strategies. Investments in poverty reduction efforts would have better impact if complemented with timely and predictable response mechanisms that would ensure the protection of livelihoods during crisis periods whether weather or conflict-related. With an improved understanding of climate variability including El Niño, the implications of weather patterns for the food security and vulnerability of rural communities have become more predictable and can be monitored effectively. The purpose of this paper is to investigate how current advances in the understanding of climate variability, weather patterns and food security could contribute to improved humanitarian decision-making. The paper will propose new approaches for triggering humanitarian responses to weather-induced food crises.

scholarly journals COVID‐19 and food prices in sub‐Saharan Africa

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Samuel Kwaku Agyei ◽  
Zangina Isshaq ◽  
Siaw Frimpong ◽  
Anokye Mohammed Adam ◽  
Ahmed Bossman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Prices ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Sub Saharan

scholarly journals Is High Whitefly Abundance on Cassava in Sub-Saharan Africa Driven by Biological Traits of a Specific, Cryptic Bemisia tabaci Species?

Insects ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 260
Author(s):  
Habibu Mugerwa ◽  
Peter Sseruwagi ◽  
John Colvin ◽  
Susan Seal
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Bemisia Tabaci ◽  
Development Time ◽  
Adult Emergence ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Biological Traits ◽  
Population Development ◽  
Species Classification ◽  
First Instar ◽  
Sub Saharan

In East Africa, the prevalent Bemisia tabaci whiteflies on the food security crop cassava are classified as sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) species. Economically damaging cassava whitefly populations were associated with the SSA2 species in the 1990s, but more recently, it has been to SSA1 species. To investigate whether biological traits (number of first instar nymphs, emerged adults, proportion of females in progeny and development time) of the cassava whitefly species are significant drivers of the observed field abundance, our study determined the development of SSA1 sub-group (SG) 1 (5 populations), SG2 (5 populations), SG3 (1 population) and SSA2 (1 population) on cassava and eggplant under laboratory conditions. SSA1-(SG1-SG2) and SSA2 populations’ development traits were similar. Regardless of the host plant, SSA1-SG2 populations had the highest number of first instar nymphs (60.6 ± 3.4) and emerged adults (50.9 ± 3.6), followed by SSA1-SG1 (55.5 ± 3.2 and 44.6 ± 3.3), SSA2 (45.8 ± 5.7 and 32.6 ± 5.1) and the lowest were SSA1-SG3 (34.2 ± 6.1 and 32.0 ± 7.1) populations. SSA1-SG3 population had the shortest egg–adult emergence development time (26.7 days), followed by SSA1-SG1 (29.1 days), SSA1-SG2 (29.6 days) and SSA2 (32.2 days). Regardless of the whitefly population, development time was significantly shorter on eggplant (25.1 ± 0.9 days) than cassava (34.6 ± 1.0 days). These results support that SSA1-(SG1-SG2) and SSA2 B. tabaci can become highly abundant on cassava, with their species classification alone not correlating with observed abundance and prevalence.

Cassava Processing in Sub-Saharan Africa: the Implications for Expanding Cassava Production

1994 ◽  
Vol 23 (3) ◽  
pp. 197-205 ◽  
Author(s):  
Felix Izu Nweke
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Water Supply ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Wide Range ◽  
Intensive Use ◽  
Cassava Production ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Processing Techniques ◽  
Technical Solutions ◽  
Poor Soil

Cassava makes an important contribution to improving food security and rural incomes in sub-Saharan Africa, as it is tolerant of drought and poor soil and its cultivation does not require much labour. However, the fresh roots are bulky and perishable and need to be processed before they can be marketed; processing also removes the cyanogens which make many varieties poisonous in their raw form. Cassava roots are turned into granules, flours, pastes and chips, with a wide range of flavours and appearances for different areas and markets. Many different processing techniques are used, some of which make intensive use of fuelwood while others require a plentiful water supply. These requirements, as well as the need for a good transport and marketing infrastructure, limit the expansion of cassava production in sub-Saharan Africa, but technical solutions are being found.

scholarly journals Climate Smart Agriculture as Final Goal: Use of Improved Cereals Varieties in Cinzana, Mali.

2017 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 50
Author(s):  
Kalifa TRAORE ◽  
Daouda SIDIBE ◽  
Harouna COULIBALY
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Water Conservation ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Heavy Rain ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Improved Varieties ◽  
Farmer Organizations ◽  
Conservation Technology ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Smart Agriculture

Climate variability and change are recognized as the greatest challenge to crop production and food security in sub-Saharan Africa. This work assesses farmers’ perception on the contribution of improved varieties of sorghum and millet in the search for food security in Cinzana rural commune of Mali in the current context of climate change.The methodology was based on focus group surveys with both, the decentralized technical services, administrative and municipal authorities, NGOs, farmer organizations and producers but also farmer exchanges visits on improved varieties tested in farmer’s field.The result shows that climate change is described by the majority of farmers (87%) as decrease in rainfall amount and length of rainy seasons, high increases in temperature and high deforestation and water scarcity. Unpredictability of climate, (80%), drought (70%) and heavy rain (65%) occurrence were identified as major perception of farmers on risks in climate for crop production and soil degradation. After farmers’ study tour, 80% of the participants mentioned a better growth of plants and increase of soil moisture with the use of contour ridges tillage as a water conservation technology. Adapted cycle (55%) and higher yield (37%) of improved varieties were farmer’s main drivers for adoption of improved millet and sorghum varieties.The study revealed that local farmers have substantial knowledge on climate variabilities and risks and also are aware of some adaptation strategies. However, for wide scale adoption of effective strategies, capacity strengthening appeared a prerequisite.

scholarly journals Implications of Climate Change on Soil Functions: A Case for Achieving Local Coconut Sufficiency from Sustainable Agricultural Practices

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chinedu Egbunike ◽  
Nonso Okoye ◽  
Okoroji-Nma Okechukwu
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Management Practices ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Agricultural Practices ◽  
Sub Saharan Africa ◽  
Soil Functions ◽  
Soil Biodiversity ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
Sub Saharan ◽  
Sustainable Agricultural Practices

Climate change is a major threat to agricultural food production globally and locally. It poses both direct and indirect effects on soil functions. Thus, agricultural management practices has evolved to adaptation strategies in order to mitigate the risks and threats from climate change. The study concludes with a recommendation the coconut farmers should explore the idea of soil biodiversity in a bid to mitigate the potential negative impact of climate related risk on the farming. The study proffers the need for adopting sustainable agricultural practices to boost local coconut production. This can contribute to the simultaneous realisation of two of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations: SDG 2 on food security and sustainable agriculture and SDG 13 on action to combat climate change and its impacts. The study findings has implications for tackling climate change in Sub-Saharan Africa and in particular Nigeria in order to boost local agricultural production and coconut in particular without negative environmental consequences and an ability to cope with climate change related risks.

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