Development of Smallholder Dairy Systems in the Kenya Highlands

2002 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 113-120 ◽  
Author(s):  
B.O. Bebe ◽  
H.M.J. Udo ◽  
W. Thorpe
Keyword(s):  
Market Access ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Population Pressure ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
Agricultural Policies ◽  
Smallholder Farming ◽  
Household Resources ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Market Opportunities ◽  
Milk Market

Kenya is recognized among developing countries for its success in integrating dairy into smallholder farming systems, particularly in the highland areas. The major determinants of this success were colonial history, its favourable agroecology and supportive agricultural policies, and the importance of milk in rural and urban diets. In response to agricultural policies, market opportunities and human population pressure on land, smallholders have changed their farming systems by introducing the Friesian and Ayrshire breeds, keeping smaller herds with fewer heifers but more cows, increasing stocking rates through stall-feeding, growing fodder, purchasing feeds and becoming more dependent on external inputs and services. As a result, they can sell more milk. This increasing intensification, here defined as the use of external inputs and services to increase the output quantity and/or value per unit input, has ensured that more people are maintained per unit of land through increased returns per ha of family land. Because the level of intensification varies with the agroecological potential for cropping and dairying and with the level of milk market access and household resources, recommendations for production practices supporting intensification will be site-specific. Identifying appropriate recommendations will require a thorough understanding of farmers' objectives for keeping cattle.

scholarly journals Mountain Farming Systems’ Exposure and Sensitivity to Climate Change and Variability: Agroforestry and Conventional Agriculture Systems Compared in Ecuador’s Indigenous Territory of Kayambi People

2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2623
Author(s):  
Raúl Córdova ◽  
Nicholas J. Hogarth ◽  
Markku Kanninen
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Disease Outbreaks ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Agroforestry Systems ◽  
Smallholder Farming ◽  
Conventional Agriculture ◽  
Global Food Security ◽  
Climate Change And Variability ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Agriculture Systems

Smallholder farming is considered one of the most vulnerable sectors to the impacts of climate change, variability, and extremes, especially in the developing world. This high vulnerability is due to the socioeconomic limitations and high environmental sensitivity which affect the biophysical and socioeconomic components of their farming systems. Therefore, systems’ functionality and farmers’ livelihoods will also be affected, with significant implications for global food security, land-use/land-cover change processes and agrobiodiversity conservation. Thus, less vulnerable and more resilient smallholder farming systems constitute an important requisite for sustainable land management and to safeguard the livelihoods of millions of rural and urban households. This study compares a comprehensive socioeconomic and environmental dataset collected in 2015–2016 based on household interviews of 30 farmers of highland agroforestry systems and 30 farmers of conventional agriculture systems, to determine which system provides better opportunities to reduce exposure and sensitivity. A modified Climate Change Questionnaire Version 2 of the World Overview of Conservation Approaches and Technologies (WOCAT) was applied to collect the data. The interview data are based on the perceptions of Kayambi indigenous farmers about the levels of exposure and sensitivity of their farming systems during the last decade. Descriptive statistics were applied to analyze the data from the 60 farms. Results indicate that both agroforesters and conventional farmers clearly perceived increases in temperature and reductions in precipitation for the last decade, and expected this trend to continue in the next decade. Furthermore, conventional farmers perceived greater exposure to droughts (20%), solar radiation (43%), and pests, weeds and disease outbreaks (40%) than agroforesters. Additionally, results emphasize the better ability of agroforestry systems to reduce exposure and sensitivity to climate change and variability. These findings support the well-known assumptions about the key role played by agroforestry systems for climate change adaptation and mitigation, especially in developing countries.

scholarly journals Malaysia and Its Transition Process Towards More Gender Equality at the Labor Market

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (7) ◽  
pp. 7-22
Author(s):  
Nina Weimann-Sandig
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Gender Equality ◽  
Market Access ◽  
Transition Process ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Rural And Urban ◽  
Market Opportunities ◽  
Market Focus ◽  
Labor Market Access ◽  
Hr Managers

The promotion of labor market opportunities for females in Malaysia has been part of several quantitative studies. Although the empirical data stresses the existence of gender-related constraints females are facing when trying to access labor market, the reasons remain mainly unexplored. Thus, this qualitative study tried to identify major constraints and challenges females are facing when entering the Malaysian labor market. Focus group discussions with different groups of females aged 16 to 50 have been conducted, as well as with employers and HR Managers of global players. The study identifies local disparities between rural and urban living as major consequences for female labor market access and the achievable employment situation. The analysis of the focus groups also highlights that two groups of women – females living in Projek Perumahan Rakyat (PPR) or “People ́s Housing Project” areas and Single Mothers – are strongly affected from often being no constant part of labor market but trapped in side-jobs or non-satisfying microbusinesses. The solidification of social inequality by an absence of support structures and empowerment programs can be seen as the most important reason. Policy recommendations, based on the empirical results, are therefore discussed in order to stimulate a discussion on gender equality.

scholarly journals Wheat yield gaps across smallholder farming systems in Ethiopia

2021 ◽  
Vol 41 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
João Vasco Silva ◽  
Pytrik Reidsma ◽  
Frédéric Baudron ◽  
Moti Jaleta ◽  
Kindie Tesfaye ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Stochastic Frontier Analysis ◽  
Stochastic Frontier ◽  
Wheat Yield ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Smallholder Farming ◽  
Yield Gap ◽  
Frontier Analysis ◽  
Ecological Zones ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Yield Gaps

AbstractWheat yields in Ethiopia need to increase considerably to reduce import dependency and keep up with the expected increase in population and dietary changes. Despite the yield progress observed in recent years, wheat yield gaps remain large. Here, we decompose wheat yield gaps in Ethiopia into efficiency, resource, and technology yield gaps and relate those yield gaps to broader farm(ing) systems aspects. To do so, stochastic frontier analysis was applied to a nationally representative panel dataset covering the Meher seasons of 2009 and 2013 and crop modelling was used to simulate the water-limited yield (Yw) in the same years. Farming systems analysis was conducted to describe crop area shares and the availability of land, labour, and capital in contrasting administrative zones. Wheat yield in farmers’ fields averaged 1.9 t ha− 1 corresponding to ca. 20% of Yw. Most of the yield gap was attributed to the technology yield gap (> 50% of Yw) but narrowing efficiency (ca. 10% of Yw) and resource yield gaps (ca. 15% of Yw) with current technologies can nearly double actual yields and contribute to achieve wheat self-sufficiency in Ethiopia. There were small differences in the relative contribution of the intermediate yield gaps to the overall yield gap across agro-ecological zones, administrative zones, and farming systems. At farm level, oxen ownership was positively associated with the wheat cultivated area in zones with relatively large cultivated areas per household (West Arsi and North Showa) while no relationship was found between oxen ownership and the amount of inputs used per hectare of wheat in the zones studied. This is the first thorough yield gap decomposition for wheat in Ethiopia and our results suggest government policies aiming to increase wheat production should prioritise accessibility and affordability of inputs and dissemination of technologies that allow for precise use of these inputs.

scholarly journals Innovation Meets Tradition in the Sheep and Goat Dairy Industry

Dairy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 422-424
Author(s):  
Paola Scano ◽  
Pierluigi Caboni
Keyword(s):  
Dairy Industry ◽  
Small Ruminants ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Smallholder Farming ◽  
Sheep And Goats ◽  
Smallholder Farming Systems ◽  
The World

Small ruminants, such as sheep and goats, are mostly raised in smallholder farming systems widely distributed throughout the world [...]

scholarly journals Drivers of Forest Cover Dynamics in Smallholder Farming Systems: The Case of Northwestern Vietnam

AMBIO ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. 344-356 ◽  
Author(s):  
Isaline Jadin ◽  
Veerle Vanacker ◽  
Huong Thi Thu Hoang
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Smallholder Farming ◽  
Smallholder Farming Systems

scholarly journals Can Enhancing Efficiency Promote the Economic Viability of Smallholder Farmers? A Case of Sierra Leone

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 4235
Author(s):  
Silvia Saravia-Matus ◽  
T. S. Amjath-Babu ◽  
Sreejith Aravindakshan ◽  
Stefan Sieber ◽  
Jimmy A. Saravia ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sierra Leone ◽  
Technical Efficiency ◽  
Structural Equation ◽  
Crop Production ◽  
Structural Equation Models ◽  
Smallholder Farmers ◽  
Farming Systems ◽  
Economic Viability ◽  
Necessary Condition ◽  
Smallholder Farming

By developing meta-frontier efficiency and structural equation models, the paper examines whether farm economic viability is positively associated with technical efficiency in a highly food insecure context, such as that of rural Sierra Leone. The findings show that technical efficiency can be a sufficient but not necessary condition in determining economic viability of smallholder farming. It is possible to breach reproductive thresholds at the cost of reduced technical efficiency, when the crop diversification strategy of smallholders includes market-oriented high-value crops. This calls for a dual policy approach that addresses farmers’ internal needs for self-consumption (increasing efficiency of food crop production) while encouraging market-oriented cash crop production (diversification assisted through the reduction of associated transaction costs and the establishment of accessible commercialization channels of export related crops and/or high-value crops). The work also calls out for a move-up or move-out strategy for small holders to create viable farming systems in developing world.

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