Take it to the farmer it to Take Take it to “ Our history is a reflection of the changing face of African agriculture” – The Sasakawa experience in Africa in Africa experience Sasakawa The Chris Dowswell, Bamako, 2011 the farmer The Sasakawa Feeding the Future experience in Africa Sasakawa Africa Association Africa Sasakawa Copyright © 2015, Sasakawa Africa Association Published by: Sasakawa Africa Association, 4th Floor, The Nippon Foundation, Building 1-2-2, Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0052 www.saa-safe.org SAA history soft cover.indd 1 07/04/2015 08:33 Take it to the farmer The Sasakawa experience in Africa Part 2 (history section) written by Chris Dowswell All other sections written by Paul Melly, Ian Lewis and James Gavin of the inDepth group www.indepth-reporters.com Edited by Patrick Orr, Raitt Orr and Associates Limited Foreword by Professor Ruth Oniang’o Chairperson, Sasakawa Africa Association The Sasakawa experience in Africa 1 Copyright © 2015, Sasakawa Africa Association All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without the written permission of the publisher: Sasakawa Africa Association, 4th Floor, The Nippon Foundation, Building 1-2-2, Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-0052 Designed by B-Creative Design and Print Limited Printed in the United Kingdom ISBN: 9780957372818 (Hardback) ISBN: 9780957372825 (Paperback) First edition 2015 Visit our website: www.saa-safe.org 2 Take it to the farmer CONTENTS Foreword A farmer-centered approach 4 Part One: SASAKAWA TODAY Today’s Sasakawa Africa Association 7 From transition to transformation 13 Part Two: CALL TO ACTION The history of Sasakawa Africa Association Chapter 1: The beginning 17 Chapter 2: SG 2000 spreads its wings 31 Chapter 3: Program consolidation 43 Part Three: A FIVE-PRONGED STRATEGY Introduction: Working across the agricultural value chain 55 Theme 1: Crop Productivity Enhancement (CPE) 57 Theme 2: Postharvest Handling and Agroprocessing (PHAP) 64 Theme 3: Public-Private Partnerships for Extension Delivery and Market Access (PPPMA) 69 Theme 4: Human Resource Development 75 Theme 5: Monitoring, Evaluation, Learning and Sharing (MELS) 77 Part Four: CURRENT FOCUS COUNTRIES Introduction 81 Ethiopia 82 Mali 87 Nigeria 92 Uganda 96 Part Five: SAFE Enhancing the skills of Africa’s extension workers 101 Part Six: INTERNATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS Progress through collaboration 107 Part Seven: CONCLUSION Building up the value chain, forging partnerships 113 Publications: Other SAA publications 115 The Sasakawa experience in Africa 3 FOREWORD: by Professor Ruth Oniang’o Chapter 1 A FARMER-CENTERED APPROACH In contributing this foreword to “Take it to the farmer: From The Carter Center, and President Carter himself, The Sasakawa experience in Africa’’, I am conscious of would come the policy advice to Africa’s political leaders how much is owed to our founders, Dr Norman E Borlaug, and international decision makers to give greater priority to former US President Jimmy Carter, and the Japanese African agriculture. philanthropist Ryoichi Sasakawa. This advice was not always heeded. Africa was put “Take it to the farmer” were Dr Borlaug’s last words through various economic contortions, including structural before he died in 2009. These words epitomize the way we adjustment and misconceived industrialization programs. operate today. Africa’s rural areas were largely ignored and its road networks In recent years, we have evolved from a highly centralized – which could have provided a stimulus to agricultural smallholder development organization with a single donor, development – left largely in disrepair. Rural populations, to a broader-based organization with several partners. In particularly young people, headed for the cities and their essence, however, we still work alongside farmers in their sprawling slums. fields and operate by example and demonstration. Today we Throughout this period, Sasakawa persevered and talk about the value chain and we strive to strengthen the links Norman Borlaug’s voice became more prominent. But it in that chain. We recognize the crucial role played by women was not until 2003 that Africa came together to embrace farmers and the need to incentivize them. We are fully aware agricultural development through the Comprehensive Africa of the potential of smallholder farming and the opportunities Agriculture Development Program (CAADP), which helped available to the youth of our continent through employment to harmonize donor support for the sector. Two years later, in agriculture. the Alliance for a Green Revolution for Africa (AGRA) was Dr Borlaug, President Carter and Ryoichi Sasakawa came launched, backed by funds from the Bill and Melinda Gates together at a moment in history when the world could no Foundation, with Kofi Annan, the former UN Secretary longer ignore the images of famine from a stricken Ethiopia. General, as its first Chairman. They believed that instead of tackling Africa’s problems of In 2014, AGRA finally felt able to declare that the “tipping hunger and malnutrition through endless humanitarian aid, point” for creating Africa’s green revolution had been reached. practical steps should be taken to increase crop production African Union member states have adopted an agricultural on millions of small-scale farms in Africa. Thus was born the transformation agenda, which the private sector, including Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA) in 1986. the major agribusiness companies, have started to buy into. None of this would have been possible without The The World Bank stated that growth in agriculture was 2.5 Nippon Foundation (originally the Japan Shipbuilding times more effective in reducing poverty than that in any Industry Foundation) and the vision of Ryoichi Sasakawa. other economic sector. His son Yohei, another man of vision, was also there at the Norman Borlaug had often despaired that a green start, and carries his father’s mantle through his continued revolution in Africa to match that in Asia during the middle of strong support for SAA’s work. the 20th century was beyond reach. But, if the tipping point Perhaps never in the history of African development has has now been reached, then it can be said that he and SAA financial assistance been more reliably and constantly given helped lay the foundation. by a non-governmental organization. Over $300 million has Even in the early years of this century, just before his death, been committed in nearly three decades. Few donors can Norman Borlaug was involved in a major reconstruction of match this record of consistent support. Sasakawa Africa Association through the development of This backing enabled the indefatigable Norman Borlaug a fresh Strategic Plan outlining the organization’s vision, to traverse the African continent and introduce Sasakawa- mission and goals until 2016. Global 2000 programs into 14 African countries. In this task, The Strategic Plan was driven by the changed environment he would rely on his hand-picked team of country directors. in which we found ourselves working. These changes are They all had their individual personalities and preferred outlined in the first chapter of this book, entitled “Sasakawa methods of work, but crucially, they produced results. 4 Take it to the farmer Today” and amplified in discussions of the theme areas and With a career in agricultural sciences striving to empower countries in which the organization works in later chapters. women farmers and to put nutrition at the heart of the The Plan was approved at our Board Meeting in Bamako, agricultural agenda, I am proud to chair both SAA and the Mali, which followed SAA’s 25th anniversary celebrations in Sasakawa Africa Fund for Extension Education (SAFE), November 2011. whose story is also told in these pages. Shortly after that, SAA’s Executive Director for Programs, Norman Borlaug said, “Take it to the Farmer”. Today we Christopher Dowswell, died suddenly at his home in Mexico. react with the words – let us listen to the farmer too. Ours Chris was an inspirational figure for SAA and for all of is a farmer-centered approach, and it works. us as individuals. His contribution to the Strategic Plan – and indeed to the entire organization over many years – was immeasurable. He spearheaded the reforms that SAA has now embraced. Chris drafted the historical sections of this book shortly before his death. By completing and releasing this book, we honor his passion to improve African agriculture and his desire for it to make a positive difference to the lives of poor African farmers. This history tells the story of how a relatively small NGO made a continent-wide impact and how it is tackling the challenges in the four countries where it now focuses its activities – still achieving successes and learning lessons that can be applied across Africa. Professor Ruth Oniang’o Chairperson Sasakawa Africa Association and Sasakawa Africa Fund for Extension Education The Sasakawa experience in Africa 5 6 Take it to the farmer PART ONE: Sasakawa today Chapter 1 TODAY’S SASAKAWA AFRICA ASSOCIATION Ending hunger across Africa by 2025 – that is the ambitious Smallholder farmers are the priority goal that leaders from across the continent have set themselves. “A huge proportion of the population of sub-Saharan Africa lives But they are under no illusions about the scale of the challenge. on small family farms. You cannot solve the challenge of poverty and raise living standards unless you work with them,” says Yohei Gathered at the June 2014 African Union summit in Malabo, Sasakawa, son of Ryoichi and current Chairman of The Nippon Equatorial Guinea, the leaders recognized that this will mean Foundation, SAA’s principal donor. at least doubling agricultural productivity, halving the wastage of crops after harvest and sustaining 6% annual growth in That, SAA believes, means building an effective partnership agricultural GDP. with government, helping to develop African states’ capacity to deliver agricultural extension services and train the skilled But the prize for success would be enormous.