Agriculture for Development

12th Hugh Bunting Memorial Lecture: Integrating women and youth in climate-smart African agriculture The impact of elevated levels of carbon dioxide The famine on our doorstep Invasive apple snails in Thailand No nonsense surveys Building on gender dynamics in Tanzania A chicken in every pot No. 33, Spring 2018 TAA 2017 AGM reports and presentations Guidelines for Authors .1371%2Fjournal.pone.0017516 Agriculture for Development Book: Brammer H, 2012. The physical geography of Bangladesh. Dhaka, Bangladesh: University Press Ltd. The editors welcome the submission of articles for publication that are directly related to the aims and objectives of the Association. These may be Book (edited): Fuglie KO, Sun Ling Wang, Ball E, eds, 2012. Productivity short communications relating to recent developments and other growth in agriculture: an international perspective. Wallingford. UK: CAB newsworthy items, letters to the editor, especially those relating to previous International. publications in the journal, and longer papers. It is also our policy to publish Book (chapter): Warner K, 1997. Patterns of tree growing by farmers in papers, or summaries, of the talks given at our meetings. eastern Africa. In: Arnold JEM, Dewees PA, eds. Farms, trees & farmers: Only papers written in English are accepted. They must not have been responses to agricultural intensification. London: Earthscan Publications, 90- submitted or accepted for publication elsewhere. Where there is more than 137. one author, each author must have approved the final version of the Conference proceedings (published): McIntosh RA, 1992. Catalogues of gene submitted manuscript. Authors must have permission from colleagues to symbols for wheat. In: Miller TE, Koebner RM, eds. Proceedings of the include their work as a personal communication. Seventh International Wheat Genetics Symposium, 1987. Cambridge, UK: Papers should be written in a concise, direct style and should not normally IPSR, 1225–1323. exceed 3,000 words using Times New Roman font, 12-point size for the text Agency publication: Grace D, Jones B, eds, 2011. Zoonoses (Project 1) body, with lines single spaced and justified and pages numbered. Tables, Wildlife/domestic livestock interactions. A final report to the Department for graphs, and photographs may take a further 1 page plus, but we try to keep International Development, UK. the total length of each paper to 3-4 pages of the Journal. Good quality photographs are particularly welcomed, as they add considerably to the Dissertation or thesis: Lenné JM, 1978. Studies of the biology and taxonomy appearance of the contents of the Journal. We prefer high resolution digital of Colletotrichum species. Melbourne, Australia: University of Melbourne, images. PhD thesis. Format Online material: Lu HJ, Kottke R, Martin J, Bai G, Haley S, Rudd J, 2011. Identification and validation of molecular markers for marker assisted • An informative title not exceeding 10 words. selection of Wsm2 in wheat. In: Plant and Animal Genomes XIX Conference, • Authors listed, usually with first name and surname. abstract W433. [http://www.intl-pag.org/19/abstracts/W68_PAGXIX_433.html] • A short biographical note about the author(s) is included, preferably with . Accessed 20 April 2012. a photograph of the author(s). If still working, indicate your position and email address. If retired, your previous job (eg formerly Professor of Tables Agriculture, ABC University). • Self-explanatory with an appropriate legend above the table, without • For papers longer than 1,500 words, a short abstract (summary) of 150- abbreviations. 200 words. • Number with arabic numerals, eg Table 2. • A short introductory paragraph is useful describing, succinctly, the • Refer to tables in the sequence in which they are presented. current state of work in the relevant field. • Use lower-case letters, eg a, b and c, for footnotes to tables. • Système International (SI) units should be used. Others should be related to SI units at the first mention. Figures • No full stops should be used with abbreviations such as Dr or Prof, or eg, • Self-explanatory with an appropriate legend below the figure, without ie, status quo, viz, and inter alia. Acronyms such as GFAR, FAO, IFPRI, abbreviations and GDP do not have full stops or spaces between the letters. Acronyms • Number in a separate series from the tables. should be presented in full at their first mention. • Use arabic numerals in the text, eg Figure 2. • Do not use footnotes to the main text. • Subdivisions within figures should be labelled with lower-case letters, • Thousands should be indicated by a comma and no space eg 12,400. eg a, b and c • Use ‘s’ rather than ‘z’ (eg fertiliser, organisation, mechanisation). • Commercial equipment and products referred to should name the Submission product and company, but addresses should be omitted. Your paper should be submitted ready for editing and publication. • State any statistical methods used eg analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Accepted text file types: Word (.DOC or .DOCX), Rich Text Format (.RTF) ensure that the analysis method chosen is appropriate for the data. Data or Postscript (.PS) only. tables presenting, for example, mean values should include the Accepted figure file types: .TIF, .EPS or .PDF. appropriate standard errors (SE) and degrees of freedom (DF). No lecture notes or PowerPoint presentations, please. If the paper is a • Results should be presented in an orderly fashion and make use of tables presentation from a TAA meeting, please let us have this or as soon as and figures where necessary. possible afterwards so that there is no last minute rush in trying to meet • Discussion should focus on the work presented and its relationship with the next publication deadline. other relevant published work. • Sources of funding should be listed in the acknowledgements. Send submissions via e-mail to [email protected] preferably in an attached file. References Copyright • Key references should be quoted, but these should be kept to a minimum. • Only papers accepted for publication or published may be cited. Agriculture for Development holds the copyright of all published • If at one point in the text it is necessary to cite two or more references, articles, but the authors retain the right to publish all or part of an article list them in chronological order, eg Walker (2009), Sims (2011), Harding elsewhere, with due acknowledgements. (2016). Cover images • At the end of the paper, give full details of references, in alphabetical order, and in the journal style, as per the examples below. High quality colour images, suitable for the cover of Agriculture for • Personal communications in the text should be cited as: Development, are welcomed and should be sent to the Coordinating initials, name, brief address, personal communication. Editor ([email protected]) Journal (article): Bajželj B, Allwood JM, Cullen JM, 2013. Designing climate change mitigation plans that add up. Environmental Science & Technology, 47(14), 8062-9. Journal (online): Osborne K, Dolman AM, Burgess S, Johns KA, 2011. Disturbance and the dynamics of coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef (1995–2009). PLoS ONE http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10

Cover photograph: Farmers transporting produce to market in Badakhshan, Afghanistan (Photo: David Radcliffe). Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Special Issue on Women in agriculture: negotiating and networking

The TAA is a professional association of individuals and Contents corporate bodies concerned with the role of agriculture for IFC Guidelines for authors development throughout the 2 Editorial world. TAA brings together 2 Future options for the sustainable production of Agriculture for Development | Paul Harding individuals and organisations 4 Article 1 412th Hugh Bunting Memorial Lecture: Integrating women and youth in climate-smart African from both developed and less- agriculture | Margaret Mangheni developed countries to enable 8 News from the Field 1 them to contribute to international 8 Fundamentals of farming on Tristan da Cunha | Alasdair Wyllie policies and actions aimed at 11 Article 2 11 The impact of elevated levels of carbon dioxide on host plants, insect pests, and their natural reducing poverty and improving enemies: implications for tropical agriculture | Ravindra Joshi and Leocadio Sebastian livelihoods. It grew out of the 17 News from the Field 2 Imperial College of Tropical 17 Report on ECHO Asia Conference, Chiang Mai, Thailand, 3-6 October 2017 | Keith Virgo Agriculture (ICTA) Association, 19 Article 3 which was renamed the TAA in 19 The famine on our doorstep: Africa is burning, the North is watching | Benny Dembitzer 1979. Its mission is to encourage 24 News from the Field 3 24 Women farmers till the land to protect agricultural heritage and change ways of living the efficient and sustainable use | Priya Pillai of local resources and technologies, 26 Article 4 to arrest and reverse the degradation 26 Invasive apple snails (Pomacea spp) in Thailand: current status and integrated management | of the natural resources base on Ratcha Chaichana and Ravindra Joshi which agriculture depends and, 30 News from the Field 4 30 Women in irrigation management in Argentina: participation and opportunities | Laura Imburgia by raising the productivity of 33 Article 5 both agriculture and related 33 No-nonsense surveys: aspects of survey design which affect results | Miranda Mortlock enterprises, to increase family 38 International Agricultural Research News incomes and commercial 38 Improving livelihoods and safeguarding chocolate | Geoff Hawtin 40 Article 6 investment in the rural sector. 40 Building on gender dynamics in household gardens to reduce malnutrition in Tanzania Particular emphasis is given to | Ralph Roothaert and Pepijn Schreinemachers rural areas in the tropics and 43 Opinions Page subtropics and to countries with 43 The Limits to Growth 2.0 | Charles Bevan less-developed economies in 46 Article 7 46 A chicken in every pot | Alex Zieba temperate areas. TAA recognises 49 Bookstack the interrelated roles of farmers 49 Biology and management of invasive apple snails | Ravindra Joshi, Robert Cowie and Leocadio and other stakeholders living in Sebastian (Paul Harding) rural areas, scientists (agriculturists, NGO discourses in the debate on genetically modified crops | Ksenia Gerasimova (Paul Harding) economists, sociologists etc), Thin on the ground, 2nd edition | Anthony Young (Paul Harding) Against the grain: a deep history of the earliest states | James Scott (Brian Sims) government and the private The famine next door: Africa is burning, the North is watching | Benny Dembitzer (Jim Ellis-Jones) sector in achieving a convergent 54 TAA Forum approach to rural development. 54 TAA 2017 AGM: This includes recognition of the Report of the meeting | Elizabeth Warham importance of the role of Chairman’s 2017 Review and 2018 Preview | Keith Virgo Treasurer’s 2017 annual report and accounts | Jim Ellis-Jones women, the effect of AIDS and Towards a new TAA Strategy | Jim Ellis-Jones other social and cultural issues 2017 TAA Honours | Paul Harding on the rural economy and liveli- Development Agriculturalist of the Year presentation. Lendwithcare: crowdfunding for hoods. micro-finance | Ajaz Khan 62 News from the Regions Publications and 62 TAA SW summer field visit to the Isles of Scilly | Ray Bartlett Communications Committee TAA SW Conference on Sustainable tourism for development: Conference Report | Ray Bartlett Paul Harding (Chair and Overview of global tourism and agritourism | John Wibberley Coordinating Editor Ag4Dev) Improving lives and livelihoods through responsible rural tourism, examples from India | Keith Brian Sims, Elizabeth Virgo, Manisha Pande, Pooja Masoor and Dinesh Pande Rural tourism as a strategy for sustainable rural development in Zimbabwe | Clare Robbie Warham, Andrew Ward, TAA London and SE Curry Club Talk: Michael Fitzpatrick, Charles Ups and downs along the Seed Road | Michael Turner Howie, and Alastair Taylor 75 TAAF News (Technical Editors) 75 TAAF News | Antony Ellman and James Alden Amir Kassam 79 Reminiscences and Reflections 79 From soils to livelihoods | David Radcliffe Geoff Hawtin 83 Institutional Members’ Page Hugh Brammer 83 Vrutti | Pramel Gupta James Alden 84 Obituaries Keith Virgo (Webmaster) 84 Mike Carr | Andrew Bennett contact: Michael Harrison | Alister Allen Roger Tayler | John Wibberley [email protected] Ian Robinson | Tessa Robinson [email protected] 89 Upcoming Events Tel: 01694 7222897 92 Protection of members' personal data ISSN 1759-0604 (Print) IBC How to become a member of the TAA BC Executive Committee members ISSN 1759-0612 (Online)

1 Editorial Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Editorial Future options for the sustainable production of Agriculture for Development Introduction - the current situation • Reducing the length of the journal from 80 to say 60 or even 50 pages; We currently produce our journal Agriculture for Development • Publishing the journal only twice a year; (Ag4Dev) three times a year. Each issue is about 80 pages long. • Including only full articles in the journal, and including the Some 250 members receive hard copies, in black and white (only TAA-specific features such as News from the Regions, a few essential pages are coloured). The remaining 300 members Obituaries, TAAF News, Reminiscences and Reflections, on prefer to use the online version, which is in full colour. We the website; currently rely on volunteers to plan, commission, chase, edit and proofread all material. We pay a commercial printer to lay out, • Including only full articles in the journal and publishing a print, bind, package, and distribute the hard copies, at a cost of separate low-cost Newsletter; around £4,000 per issue, or £12,000 per year. • Publishing the journal, either as it is, or separated into articles plus a Newsletter, online (ie do away with all hard The volunteer editors are under considerable pressure to meet copies); the expectations of members, and to meet deadlines three times a year. The Coordinating Editor in particular has close to a full • Publish the journal with articles online only, but produce a time job, requiring about 30 hours a week, managing and editing hard copy Newsletter. the current issue, receiving material for the following issue, and Of these options, the easiest to implement would be to either planning the next two or three issues ahead. This is not reduce the length of the journal or to publish only twice a year. considered sustainable, and when the current Coordinating Longer-term, publishing online only is the most likely. Editor retires, it will not be easy to find a replacement. A peer-reviewed journal? The solution for producing Ag4Dev in the long-term Depending on the future strategy of the TAA, and the growth in membership, one medium-term option will be to further There will always be a role for the volunteer editorial team to plan, develop Ag4Dev into a peer-reviewed journal. An experienced commission and chase material for the journal, but professional peer-review panel would be established from the membership. editors could remove much of the editorial pressure. Professional The journal would probably be published twice a year, along editors could provide a copy-editing and proofreading service, with a separate Newsletter. leaving the volunteer editors to do any technical editing, and to Maintaining hard copies with this option would add further provide a final proofreading check. This would reduce the costs, so it is most likely that the journal and/or the Newsletter workload of the volunteer editors by about 50 percent, which would be available online only. To attract quality articles from would be a more realistic and, therefore, more sustainable non-members, and to ensure maximum exposure, the peer- voluntary contribution in the long-term. reviewed journal would have to be open access. This means that the journal is immediately and freely-available online to members and non-members, and articles can be downloaded The costs to the TAA free of charge. Most open access journals charge authors publication fees, which ideally cover the costs of production. The proposed professional copy-editing and proofreading input will of course have a cost. It will increase the overall cost of As a new peer-reviewed journal, authors’ publication fees producing the journal by about 50 percent, and will put the would have to be carefully managed, growing from an initial TAA annual budget into deficit. These additional costs can be very low level. met either by a 30 percent increase in membership, or by a similar increase in membership fees, or by a combination of increased membership and membership fees. We want to hear what you think Options for reducing costs All members are invited to send their views on the various future options for Ag4Dev to the Coordinating Editor at If increases in membership and/or membership fees do not [email protected] or [email protected]. occur, or are not desirable, costs can be reduced by a number of options, including:

2 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Editorial

Ag4Dev33, an Open Issue

This issue is another open issue with no specific theme. The Bookstack contains five book reviews, three of the books unusual cover photograph makes the point that we are written by TAA members: Thin on the ground, second interested in agriculture’s contribution to development edition, by Tony Young; The famine next door by Benny everywhere, not just in the tropics. Dembitzer; and Biology and management of invasive apple by Ravi Joshi and colleagues. A broad range of articles from TAA members around the snails NGO discourse in the debate on GMOs, by Ksenia Gerasimova, and Against the world are included. The first article, Integrating women and grain: a deep history of the earliest states by James Scott youth in climate-smart African agriculture, is the 12th Hugh complete an interesting and varied group of book reviews. Bunting Memorial Lecture by Margaret Mangheni from Book reviews by members are always welcome. Uganda. Article 2 is a state-of-the-art review of The impact of elevated levels of carbon dioxide on host plants, insect TAA Forum contains reports and papers from the TAA 2017 pests and their natural enemies: the implications for AGM, including the acceptance paper presented by Ajaz tropical agriculture, by the TAA Pacific Coordinator Ravi Khan on behalf of the 2017 Development Agriculturalist of Joshi and Leocadio Sebastian, both based in the Philippines. the Year, CARE International, for their micro-financing Article 3 is a passionate call for appropriate help for Africa programme lendwithcare. The TAA contributes to this by TAA member and Nobel Peace Prize winner, Benny programme and individual members are encouraged to Dembitzer. Entitled The famine on our doorstep: Africa is consider supporting it with their own donations. , it is a summary of Benny’s burning, the North is watching News from the Regions contains presentations from the TAA latest book of the same title, which is also reviewed under SW Conference on Sustainable Tourism; a report on the TAA Bookstack. SW summer field visit to the Isles of Scilly; and a TAA Article 4 is another in the series of country reports on London and SE Curry Club talk on seeds by Michael Turner. invasive apple snails. Entitled Invasive apple snails in TAAF News contains five reports from TAAF awardees. Thailand: current status and integrated management, the David Radcliffe provides a thoughtful summary of the twists authors are Ratcha Chaichana from Thailand and Ravi Joshi and turns of his career for Reminiscences and Reflections. from the Philippines. TAA member Miranda Mortlock, from It is remarkable how much our members have contributed Australia, provides more guidance on experimental design and achieved during their careers in the various aspects of in her paper No-nonsense surveys: aspects of survey design agriculture for development. Pramel Gupta gives a which affect results. Ralph Roothaert (based in Tanzania) description of Vrutti, our new Institutional Member from and Pepijn Schreinemachers (based in Thailand), employees India, in Institutional Members’ Page. Finally, we include of TAA Institutional Member the World Vegetable Centre, in obituaries for four colleagues who have recently passed Taiwan, provide an article entitled Building on gender away: Mike Carr, Michael Harrison, Roger Tayler and Ian dynamics in household gardens to reduce malnutrition in Robinson. Tanzania. The final article is an opinion piece by Alex Zieba, who is based in Canada, and is Vice-President for Research Paul Harding and Development for TAA Institutional Member Mountain Coordinating Editor Lion Agriculture Ltd, Sierra Leone. Alex describes the evolution of maize production in the USA and how it has Agriculture for Development been manipulated by governments and big agribusiness. He argues that it is not a model that should be exported to developing countries. Four News from the Field items report on agriculture in Tristan da Cunha (by TAA member Alasdair Wyllie); a recent conference hosted by TAA Institutional Member ECHO Asia; empowering women farmers in India (by Priya Pillai from new TAA Institutional Member Vrutti); and women in irrigation management in Argentina (by Laura Imburgia, a student at TAA Institutional Member, Reading University). The latest of TAA member Geoff Hawtin’s regular feature, International Agricultural Research News, focusses on cacao trees and cocoa in Improving livelihoods and safeguarding chocolate. TAA member Charles Bevan provides a thoughtful piece for Opinions Page, with an update on feeding the world’s population entitled The Limits to Growth 2.0.

3 Article 1 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

12th Hugh Bunting Memorial Lecture, hosted by the University of Reading, 8 November 2017 Integrating women and youth in climate-smart African agriculture

Margaret Najjingo Mangheni

Margaret Najjingo Mangheni is an Associate Professor of Agricultural Extension in the Department of Extension and Innovation Studies at Makerere University, Uganda. She is the Co-Lead for the Gender Responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural Transformation (GREAT) project (www.greatagriculture.org). [email protected]

Abstract evidence from literature, the paper outlines the triple challenge of climate change and variability, gender gaps in agriculture, A synthesis of gender and age-group disaggregated statistics and the population explosion, which has culminated in the reveals youth and gender-based constraints in sub-Saharan youth bulge. It proposes a re-thinking and reconfiguration of Africa (SSA), necessitating special targeting of women and paradigms underpinning agricultural research disciplines, and youth in climate-smart agriculture. This paper makes a case a model for building capacity to make this happen. for transformation of agricultural disciplines to embrace gender-responsive research involving a blend of social and bio- physical sciences. A new set of skills and attitudes to tackle Inclusive climate-smart agriculture: complex climate response research problems from new angles, the role of women and youth within unconventional inter-disciplinary research teams, is essential. The transformation should be supported by new SSA is one of the continents most vulnerable to climate capacities at institutional and individual levels; hence the need change. Climate predictions point to changes in intensity, for novel training and capacity-building models. predictability, and frequency of precipitation; sea level and ground-water rises; as well as temperature increases, with the warming highest in some parts of the Sahara, central and Introduction southern Africa (Porter et al, 2014). These changes are likely to have far-reaching impacts on farming and food. Climate- African economies, and livelihoods of the vast majority of the smart principles are essential to counter pre-existing population dependent on agriculture, are facing the dual vulnerability, by ensuring that farming and agricultural challenge of climate change and the unprecedented youth commodity value chains are more resilient to climate shocks. bulge. The challenge is exacerbated by gender-based These principles include sustainably increasing agricultural constraints that disadvantage women, who constitute about productivity and incomes, and reducing and/or eliminating 50 percent of the African population and play a critical role in greenhouse gas emissions. household food security, economic survival and climate change adaptation. Women would contribute even more An effective response to climate threats requires that SSA significantly to climate adaptation and mitigation if the wide- equips and deploys all of its human capital. Everyone must spread gender-based constraints are addressed. Targeting be able to access and utilise technologies, information and women for effective agricultural development has remained a resources to identify and tackle the challenges. This is not the topical issue, attracting much attention by researchers, case for women and youth. Women’s productivity is adversely funders, national and regional strategies and programmes for affected by gender inequalities. Despite their big contribution decades, yet the problem of the marginalisation of women to agriculture, compared to men, women continue to have less persists. The increasing impacts of climate change, and the access and control over both productive resources and population explosion, further complicate the gender and services, as well as decision-making within households and the agriculture problem since both sex and age variously define wider community (World Bank, 2014). access to the productive resources necessary for agriculture Regarding the youth, statistics reveal a demographic dividend and climate resilience in SSA. This points to the need to for Africa. Africa has the youngest population in the world understand better, and raise awareness about, the nature and (about 200 million people aged between 15 and 24). Currently, extent of the recurrent problem of marginalisation based on youth between the ages of 15 and 24 number 1.2 billion of the gender; and to identify actionable interventions suited to the 7.5 billion global population (Population Reference Bureau, SSA context. This provides the focus of this paper. Citing 2017). In some countries such as Uganda, 77 percent of the

4 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 1

population is under 30 (Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 2016). national, international and household level (Kabeer, 1999). Therefore, the ‘youth bulge’ provides a unique window of Across the diverse socio-cultural institutions in SSA, the opportunity in which youth can be engaged as a positive gender division of roles and responsibilities results in women resource in creating a more sustainable world. However, in shouldering a larger share of the burden of unpaid domestic order to tap into the potential of the youth, SSA needs to and farm work compared to men. The disproportionately high address prevailing constraints, notably: their inadequate access amount of time spent by women on this kind of work detracts to production resources and services, high unemployment from time they could otherwise devote to activities that build levels, and negative attitude towards agriculture as a their asset base to enable them to adapt better to the effects of profession, especially in its current low technology, climate change. This is despite the fact that women are rudimentary nature. predominantly responsible for tasks that will be made more Global statistics show that 91.3 percent of the youth are literate difficult due to climate change. These include water and food and 13.7 percent are unemployed (World Bank, 2017). Youth provisioning and post-harvest handling, among others. Over unemployment levels stand at 11 percent in SSA, and 23 50 percent of households in SSA depend on women to locate, percent in North Africa (ILOSTAT, 2016). In Uganda for collect and carry the family’s water supply. The socio-cultural example, a quarter (25.6 percent) of the youth were norms disadvantage women with regard to access to resources unemployed in 2015. Of these, females (30.3 percent) and services critical for responding to climate stress, namely: represent a higher proportion than males (19.3 percent). In education, information, extension, and insurance among addition, slightly more than one-fifth (20.7 percent) of the others. youth are not economically active, with a higher share of Regarding literacy, evidence shows 62 percent of men enjoy females (24.6 percent) than males (15.4 percent) (Uganda higher literacy levels compared to only 38 percent of women Bureau of Statistics, 2016). Women and youth must be (UNESCO, 2015). Gender gaps in literacy and access to supported in order to contribute more effectively to internet and digital technology undermine both women’s agriculture, which most contemporary national and regional ability to access timely weather information and to use other development strategies recognise as the most viable pathway climate-smart agricultural technologies. In SSA, the out of poverty (AGRA, 2017). Women and youth are among percentage of women and men above 16 years that are using the most vulnerable groups to climate change impacts, the internet stands at 4 percent and 9 percent respectively. coupled with possessing enormous potential for enhancing Also, according to a study conducted in 17 African countries, resilience. The youth represent the next generation which being a woman significantly reduces the probability of either needs to be fully engaged in sustainable paths of development knowing what the internet is, or using the internet and having and in the climate change debate. an email address (Gillwald et al, 2010) (Figure 1). Globally, the “The energy of youth can spark economies … The future proportion of women using the internet is 12 percent lower belongs to them and they have a clear vision of the world we than that of men (ITU, 2017) (Figure 2). For a majority of SSA need to build together” (Ban Ki-moon, Former United Nations countries, men spend more hours listening to the radio, with Secretary-General). South Africa, Namibia, Kenya and Zambia being the exceptions (Gillwald et al, 2010) (Figure 3). These gaps give a glimpse of the missed opportunity for SSA countries to optimally utilise Why gender matters in African the potential of women to contribute to the welfare of their climate-smart agriculture households and wider communities through well-supported climate adaptation and mitigation. Most of SSA agriculture is undertaken by smallholder family farms in rural areas, most of which depend on family labour and directly produce agricultural products for their food security. NEPAD (2013) estimated the total number of African smallholder farms to be over 33 million, averaging about 2 hectares each. Smallholder farming is intimately intertwined with the social fabric of society. Culture (or gender) defines how men and women relate within the household, the roles they perform, how they interact with the factors of production, the enterprises they produce, and the benefits enjoyed. The socio-cultural construction of men, women, girls and boys, which varies across space and time, invariably results in constraints that explain the observed gaps between men and women. This system has subordinated women and girls and disadvantaged female youth, undermining their optimal contribution to climate change adaptation. The gender inequalities are social products of unequal gender power Figure 1. SSA gender gaps in internet usage (Source: Gillwald et al, 2010). relations which cut across social, economic, political and cultural divides (Kabeer & Subramanian, 1996). They are Most climate-smart agricultural interventions presume created and sustained by social norms that in turn are ownership of land. However, Doss et al (2015) found that, reinforced and replicated across key institutions at local, across many African countries, the pattern that women own

5 Article 1 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

less land than men, regardless of how ownership is LED climate-smart agricultural research and extension conceptualised, is remarkably consistent and in many cases interventions should therefore be inclusive and explicitly the gender gaps are quite wide. pursue the goal of equitable impact. The only acceptable credible evidence to assess impact should therefore employ gender and age-group disaggregated data which would reveal disparities as well as gender and youth issues. This should be a routine practice in agricultural research and development, rather than the exception. Men and women may grow different crops, or produce the same crops but for different purposes. Consequently, men and women may have differences in indigenous knowledge systems, trait preferences, opportunities for resource access and control, and consequently, may adopt different technology packages. Failure to take such characteristics into account will compromise the attainment of desired results for men and women farmers, and other value chain actors. There is need for gender-responsive agricultural research which Figure 2. Global gender gaps in internet usage (Source: ITU, 2017). uses social science methods and tools to document and analyse the different needs, priorities, and constraints of men and women in order to design agricultural interventions that meet the needs of men and women, and reduce, rather than exacerbate, any existing gender disparities (Rubin, 2016). This calls for a transformation of researchers’ mindsets and paradigms of agricultural disciplines to embrace the value of inter-disciplinary research (gender/social science and agriculture). Building capacity for this kind of research also calls for novel training models that equip researchers with a new set of skills and attitudes to tackle complex inter-sectoral problems from new angles within team configurations that promote inter- disciplinarity. Such capacity-building approaches should Figure 3. SSA gender gaps among radio listeners: daily average hours of radio promote both a re-thinking of disciplinary paradigms and a listening (Source: Gillwald et al, 2010). tearing-down of disciplinary silos so that bio-physical scientists work with social scientists in a complementary and synergistic Integrating women and youth into manner addressing complex climate response research problems climate-smart agriculture from diverse disciplinary perspectives. Lessons and best practices from these kinds of training models Policies, information, and technologies suited to farmers’ are still scant, globally. However, a recent initiative by Cornell needs are crucial to meet climate mitigation targets. Research University, USA, and Makerere University, Uganda, under the is needed to generate technologies that foster adaptation and Gender Responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural mitigation. Additionally, the dissemination of these Transformation (GREAT) project (www.greatagriculture.org) technologies is needed to take the technologies to scale, and (2016-2020) is designed to contribute to this capacity need. funding streams will be required to provide the needed The GREAT professional development certificate course targets resources. Finally, policies and institutions to anchor these research teams of agricultural scientists and social scientists interventions urgently need to be restructured to respond to working together on funded agricultural research projects with the needs of youth and identified gender gaps. Wollenberg the aim of equipping them with skills to undertake gender (2017) sounded an alarm calling for radical shifts in agriculture responsive research. Embedded in the course design are to reduce the risk of increasing the cost of mitigation by having elements to promote inter-disciplinarity and, post-training on- to mitigate more in other sectors. She asserts that just job application. First, participants are recruited as teams tweaking current agricultural intensification will not be working on funded on-going projects providing an opportunity enough to achieve the targets set by the United Nations for immediate application of skills acquired. Secondly, training Framework Convention on Climate Change’s (UNFCCC) Paris is organised around cohorts of scientists working on the same Agreement. More transformational, high-impact technical and or related commodities, and each cohort is linked after the policy interventions that embody Low Emission Development course through a community of practice for mutual support (LED) principles are needed, including options that meet the and collaboration. Competitive seed grants awarded after the needs of farmers in the developing world (Wollenberg, 2017). course make it possible for winning teams to undertake Farmer-centred interventions must, of necessity, be sensitive publishable gender-responsive research projects. Preliminary to inherent diversity within the farming community, reflecting results from the project’s monitoring, learning and evaluation principally the constraints affecting women and youth, as well studies show significant changes in knowledge, skills, and as the opportunity they present for effective climate-smart post-training application of gender-responsive research agriculture. practices.

6 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 1

UNESCO, 2015. Institute for Statistics global databases. Montreal, Canada: Conclusions United Nations Education Scientific Cultural Organisation. https://data.unicef.org/topic/education/literacy/ A synthesis of gender and age-group disaggregated statistics USAID, 2014. Youth and agriculture in Uganda: an assessment, combining reveals youth- and gender-based constraints in SSA, pointing agriculture improvements and youth development shows promise for both. to an urgent need to re-align agricultural climate response Accessed on 28th February 2015: http://www.usaid.gov/sites/default/files/ strategies to target the needs of women and youth. There is documents/1860/Youth_and_Agriculture_in_Uganda_Assessment-October_ 2014.pdf and http://pdf.usaid.gov/pdf_docs/Pnady157.pdf therefore a need for new capacities to support this re- alignment within institutions and organisations, agricultural Wollenberg L, 2017. The mitigation pillar of Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA): targets and options. Agriculture for Development, 30, 19-22. disciplines and at the personal level. Building capacity for this World Bank, 2014. Levelling the playing field: improving opportunities for kind of research also calls for novel training models that equip women farmers in Africa https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/handle researchers with a new set of skills and attitudes to tackle /10986/17790?show=full complex inter-sectoral problems from new angles within team World Bank, 2016. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SE.ADT.1524.LT.ZS configurations that promote inter-disciplinarity between social World Bank, 2017. Accessed on 27 January 2018: https://data.worldbank. and bio-physical agricultural disciplines. It is important that org/indicator/ SL.UEM.1524.ZS the performance of localised project-based efforts are carefully tracked using gender and age-group disaggregated evidence, gradually refined, and then best practices out-scaled. Acknowledgements

This paper draws insights from the work of the GREAT project (www.greatagriculture.org), implemented jointly by Makerere University and Cornell University with funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. The reviews by the GREAT project team are gratefully acknowledged. However, the views expressed are those of the author, and do not necessarily represent those of the implementing organisations or the GREAT project.

References

AGRA, 2017. Africa Agriculture Status Report: The Business of Smallholder Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa (Issue 5). Nairobi, Kenya: Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). Doss C, Kovarik C, Peterman A, Quisumbing A, Bold M, 2015. Gender inequalities in ownership and control of land in Africa: myth and reality. Agricultural Economics, 46, 403-434. Gillwald A, Milek A, Stork C, 2010. Gender Assessment of ICT Access and Usage in Africa http://www.ictworks.org/sites/default/files/uploaded_pics/2009/ Gender_Paper_Sept_2010.pdf ITU, 2017. International Telecommunicatons Union. http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/facts/ICTFactsFigures2017.pdf Kabeer N, 1999. Resources, agency, achievements: reflections on the measurement of women’s empowerment. Development and Change, 30, 435-464. Kabeer N, Subramanian R, 1996. Institutions, relations and outcomes: framework and tools for gender-aware planning. IDS Discussion Paper 357. Sussex: Institute for Development Studies. New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD), 2013. Agriculture in Africa: transformation and outlook. Johanesburg, South Africa: NEPAD. Population Reference Bureau, 2017. World Population Data Sheet - with a special focus on youth http://www.prb.org/pdf17/2017_World_Population.pdf Porter JR, Xie L, Challinor A, Cochrane K, Howden MM, Lobell D, Travasso MI, 2014. Food security and food production systems. In: Climate Change 2014: impacts, adaptation and vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. http://www.ipcc.wg2.gov/ Rubin D, 2016. Qualitative methods for gender research in agricultural development. IFPRI Discussion Paper 01535. Washington DC: International Food Policy Research Institute. Uganda Bureau of Statistics, 2016. Statistical Abstract. Kampala, Uganda:Uganda Bureau of Statistics.

7 News from the Field 1 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

News from the Field

Fundamentals of farming on Tristan da Cunha Introduction Climate

Tristan da Cunha is a tiny volcanic island deep in the South The climate can be described as temperate maritime, but this Atlantic, at around 37˚ south. The nearest city is Cape Town, generalisation does not convey the day-to-day reality of the some 1,600 miles to the east. It has a population of 260 people. weather, and of the way in which the weather plays a pivotal Tristan was first occupied by a British garrison in 1816, and part in limiting farming options. Summer temperatures can today it is one of the British Overseas Territories. In 1961, the range from 16 to 28˚C, and although the climate is wet, there island was evacuated because of the volcano coming to life, can be prolonged dry spells in the summer. Winter the population spending 18 months in Britain until they were temperatures range from 4 to 16˚. There is great variety in able to return. The island is known as being the most remote the weather, with sometimes a few spring-like days in the inhabited island in the world. middle of winter, and vice versa. However, one of the most In November 2016, I travelled out to Tristan to take up a 2- significant weather elements is the wind; at any time of the year contract as Agricultural Adviser to the Government of year the island can have 5 or 6 days in which storm-force winds Tristan da Cunha. The central objective was the increase of blow without a break, most often accompanied by heavy rain. island food production, for strategic and economic reasons. Rains in the last 12 months have resulted in some serious flood Technical advice and advocacy are the two pillars of my work damage, a combination of erosion and alluvial deposits being here. washed down from the high ground accounting for the loss of some 10 percent of the available pasture land, which previously The long-existing agricultural enterprises are cattle, sheep and amounted to around 400 hectares. Most crops need shelter potatoes, plus some vegetables and a little fruit. There is much from the wind to survive. improvement to be made in all these enterprises. My brief also included the promotion of some quite fanciful ideas, including for example the commercial development of tea, and truffle Soils production. I am pleased to be able to report that I have had agreement on the abandonment of these peripheral ideas, and The very limited land area is generally poor, boulder-strewn we are concentrating on a ‘back to basics’ approach in the ground which is not ploughable. This has become ‘pasture’ interests of food security and sustainability. by the colonisation of kikuyu grass which, of course, is low in The main problems being faced can be categorised as being production and low in digestibility. As with most soils of cultural, logistical, climatic and technical. The cultural issues volcanic origin, the soil pH is very low: 5.2 to 5.8. No lime has have developed as a result of the community on the island having been applied since the early 1970s. We now have lime ordered very little contact with the outside world for most of its 200 years and due to arrive in a few weeks’ time – as the beginning of a existence. Whereas in the early days the island was visited by programme which should be repeated annually if funds permit. whalers and seal hunters, these visits died out as a result of over- We also aim to reseed some of the pasture land; this will be exploitation of these natural resources, and in some years not a done by spraying off the surface vegetation with glyphosate, single ship visited. Because of the isolation, the spread and and using a tined pneumatic seeder to sow a mixture of grasses adoption of new ideas is naturally very restricted. that has been prepared for these conditions by a specialist seedsman in Scotland. The seeded surface will be rolled using a home-made roller made of two written-off gas cylinders filled Logistics with concrete.

The logistical problems all relate to the extreme remoteness of the island. There is no airport, and only some eight visiting Livestock cargo ships each year. The ships come from Cape Town, with a crossing time ranging from 6 to 15 days. These bare facts During the winter months, the livestock that are dependent point to one of the main problem areas, which is that it takes on the grazing have a hard time (Figure 1). In round figures a very long time for orders placed to arrive on the island. This we have a total herd of 420 single-suckled cows and followers, affects obtaining, for example, machinery spares, medicines and around 800 sheep. There is no grass conservation, and it and other urgent supplies – indeed some orders originating in is illegal to bring in hay because of the high risk of bringing in the UK can take more than nine months to arrive. The price hitch-hikers, both alien plants and alien insects. The worst of everything coming to the island is augmented by shipping year for the cattle was in 1906, when numbers had been costs, and as may be imagined, there has developed a strong allowed to climb to around 700, and a hard winter resulted in ‘make do and mend’ attitude. 364 deaths.

8 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Field 1

are used for the propagation of seedlings (Figure 3) and for the production of tomatoes and cucumbers (Figure 4). Garden areas have to be sheltered from the wind, and New Zealand flax is extensively used for wind breaks. The climate is such that some crops, notably kale and cabbage, will grow throughout the year. There is some advantage in growing crops in the winter months because then there are no damaging insects. There are two particular insect pests that cause great damage in the summer months: the diamondback moth in the outside areas, and the whitefly in the greenhouses. These are both alien species that arrived on the island in recent years, but they have no predators here – no predating insects, no hedgehogs, no insect-eating birds. As a result, these two pest species can rapidly multiply out of control, particularly since they arrived here with well-developed resistance to insecticides.

Figure 1. Cattle on the overgrazed Western Plain (Photo: Alasdair Wyllie).

The sheep tend to have an easier time than the cattle do, because they are able to graze the upland areas (Figure 2) where there is much less grazing competition. Sheep are kept primarily for meat, but the wool is also important. There is a significant cottage industry of carding, spinning and knitting, with a range of quality woollen items being sent to customers around the world.

Figure 3. The home-made greenhouse, and seed boxes made of recycled materials (Photo: Alasdair Wyllie).

Figure 2. Sheep grazing on the foothills of the volcano (Photo: Alasdair Wyllie).

We managed to do an AI programme with the cattle last February, and if all goes well, we hope to introduce new blood into the sheep flock next year. Nothing is ever simple, and both cattle and sheep are privately owned by individual families on quota systems. The management decisions that would be relatively easy with a co-operative or with an owning company, for example, to reduce the herd size in order to reduce overgrazing, are exceptionally difficult here. Although there Figure 4. Tomato plants in the second greenhouse (Photo: Alasdair Wyllie). seems to be increasing awareness of the need to reduce stock numbers, the suggestions that have been made for meaningful Potatoes have been grown on the island since the arrival of the changes to how things are done have not met with agreement first settlers. They are grown in small wall-enclosed areas (‘The from the islanders themselves. Potato Patches’) (Figures 5 and 6) that closely resemble the ‘kale yards’ that are to be found in the Orkney Islands and in the Outer Hebrides. Each family has a number of Patches, Vegetables where they grow their own crop. It would surprise all potato- growing farmers around the world to know that the potatoes In small, enclosed garden areas there is some production of are grown on the same ground year after year, with no rotation, vegetables, and there are two home-made greenhouses that but for some reason this gives reasonable results here on

9 News from the Field 1 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Tristan. There are good years and not-so-good years, but in a Tristan da Cunha, see my web site at www.penguins-and- good year surplus potatoes are sent off to St Helena, as part of potatoes.co.uk. a good-will exercise. There seems to be a degree of vulnerability in growing potatoes with no rotation, and in Alasdair Wyllie order to try to develop the protocol for growing an alternative carbohydrate crop, we are about to try cultivating sweet potatoes – which are not susceptible to the same pests and Alasdair is a long-term TAA member, who was brought up diseases as the standard potato. on a 3,000 acre mixed farming estate in Suffolk. After qualifying from the Royal Agricultural College, he was Farms Manager on six farms in Fife, and then General Manager of an estate in Morayshire, before going out to the Sultanate of Oman for the first of his many overseas appointments. He worked for sixteen years overseas, in the Arabian peninsula, the Caribbean, and in former USSR countries, leading a wide range of farming and development projects including cereals, dates and top fruit, vegetables, dairy cattle and potatoes, as well as irrigation, port development, property management and extension services. He then spent fifteen years running his own company in Scotland, carrying out rural engineering works including forest road bridges, water treatment and private water supply engineering. He and his wife then started-up and ran an eco-tourism business in France. Alasdair now works as a consultant, specialising in appraisals as well as technical and Figure 5. Aerial view of some of the Potato Patches (Photo: Alasdair Wyllie). managerial advice aimed at getting production and profitability where needed. He plans to return to this work on his departure from Tristan da Cunha in a year’s time.

Figure 6. Some of the Potato Patches from a nearby volcanic hill (Photo: Alasdair Wyllie).

Concluding remarks

There are many challenges to the mission of bringing about meaningful and lasting improvement to the agricultural productivity of the island. Because of the problems associated with food imports, including the need to minimise imports in order to minimise breaches in bio-security, import substitution is an important issue. The principles of self-sufficiency and sustainability are also important. However, nothing can be achieved without the buy-in of the islanders themselves, and there is a reluctance to engage in anything ‘new’. The normal process of taking decisions based on the observation of how people in the next parish do things is simply not available on Tristan da Cunha! For more details on some of the interesting elements of life on

10 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 2

The impact of elevated levels of carbon dioxide on host plants, insect pests and their natural enemies: the implications for tropical agriculture

Ravindra C Joshi and Leocadio S Sebastian

Ravindra C Joshi is currently TAA Pacific Coordinator; Technical Advisor on golden apple snail to DELTAMED (Asociación de Deltas del Mediterráneo); SAFE-Network Pacific Islands Coordinator; Visiting Professor of Agriculture with Pampanga State Agricultural University, Philippines; and Visiting Adjunct Professor at the University of the South Pacific, Fiji. [email protected], [email protected]

Leocadio S Sebastian is currently the Regional Programme Leader, Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) – Southeast Asia, based at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI). His primary responsibility is to ensure coherence among CCAFS R4D activities from field to regional level, and play a key role in achieving outcomes and impacts of CCAFS’s work at the national and regional levels. He leads the integration of CCAFS agenda into the regional agenda and national programmes in CCAFS focus countries. [email protected]

Abstract 410 ppm as of April 2017, higher than at any time in the last 26 million years (Pearson & Palmer, 2000). The current CO2 levels are expected to double within the next 100 year with This review provides insights into the effects of rising increased fossil fuel consumption and clearing of forests that atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) on tri-trophic interactions, act as carbon sinks (IPCC, 2001). While there will be some namely host plants, insect herbivores and their natural gains, depending on crops grown and regions, the overall enemies. Effects of elevated CO2 on plant physiology, impacts on agriculture are expected to be negative, thus morphology, and phytochemistry are variable and not threatening global food and nutrition security. universal for most crops. These changes in the host plants affect insect herbivory either directly or indirectly. However, This paper reviews research literature on the effects of elevated individual species' responses to elevated CO2 among feeding levels of CO2 on tri-trophic interactions (host plants-insect guilds are inconsistent and remain unclear. The effects on herbivores-natural enemies). It also discusses the implications natural enemy populations from elevated CO2 are relatively few of these effects on food and nutrition security in tropical to be able to conclude if species-specific natural enemy actions agriculture. will be buffered, amplified, or will have no significant changes. The overall impacts from tri-trophic interactions with elevated Effects on host plants CO2 are expected to be negative, and consequently will threaten food and nutritional security in tropical agriculture regions. As an essential element of photosynthesis and the ultimate In future, more collaborative research is needed in the tropics source of all carbon fixed via primary production, atmospheric using controlled environment closed chambers, greenhouses, CO2 strongly influences plant physiology, morphology, and open and closed field top chambers, and free-air carbon dioxide phytochemistry. Photosynthesis is catalysed by ribulose-1,5- enrichment (FACE) experiments, to understand the impacts bisphosphate carboxylase oxygenase (RuBisCO), which fixes of elevated CO2. This is a condensed version of a full paper, carbon to form carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are then prepared for Agriculture for Development, a more detailed transported throughout the plant and subsequently converted bibliography is available from the principal author. to various carbon-containing compounds required for plant metabolism, structure, storage, and defence. The effects of Introduction elevated CO2 on plant physiology, morphology, and chemical composition have been covered in numerous reviews Agriculture is extremely vulnerable to climate change. It (Ainsworth & Long, 2005; Leakey et al, 2009; Lindroth, 2010). influences agricultural production through changes in Although the effects of elevated CO2 on plants are variable and atmospheric CO2, increased temperatures, altered not universal, for most crops, assuming adequate water and precipitation, extreme events, and sea level rises. Atmospheric nutrients, elevated CO2 conditions often lead to enhanced CO2 levels have risen inexorably from their pre-industrial photosynthetic activity, increased productivity, and increased (1750-1800) level of 280 parts per million (ppm), to more than leaf area or biomass (Hughes & Bazzaz, 1997; Ainsworth et al,

11 Article 2 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

2002; Woodward & Lomas, 2004). However, this increase in Effects on herbivores (insect pests) photosynthetic activity is short-lived and not sustained over a long-term exposure to elevated CO2. Such plants tend to A gradual, continuing rise in global atmospheric CO2 affects acclimatise to high levels of CO2 and become less responsive pest species directly (the fertilisation effect of CO2 inevitably (Kant et al, 2012). Increases in atmospheric CO2 might also leads to lower nitrogen concentrations; as C:N ratios rise, alter plant primary and secondary metabolism (Stiling & leaves have reduced nutritive value to herbivores – Nicolas & Cornelissen, 2007). Sillans, 1989); and indirectly (via interactions with other CO2-enriched atmospheres almost invariably increase C:N environmental variables). However, individual species’ ratios (Coûteaux et al, 1999) due to a combination of decline responses to CO2-mediated changes vary: feeding rates of in foliar nitrogen concentrations and concomitant increases insect herbivores generally increase, but this does not in carbohydrate and phenolic concentrations in plant tissues necessarily compensate fully for the reduced quality of food causing a ‘nitrogen dilution effect’. Foliar concentrations of (Cannon, 1998), resulting in poor performance (Fajer et al, nitrogen typically decline (on average, 14-17 percent relative 1989; Watt et al, 1995). There is a tendency not only for to ambient CO2), due to reductions in RuBisCO concentrations herbivores to consume more plant material, but also to grow and dilution by accumulating carbohydrates. This low more slowly (Lindroth et al, 1993a,b), take longer to develop, nitrogen concentration, coupled with a high C:N ratio and its show reduced fecundity, and suffer heavier mortality (Watt et potential effects on plant secondary metabolism, means a al, 1995). The consequent effects on performance are strongly lowered concentration of leaf protein and therefore reduced mediated via the host plant species. For example, gypsy moth nutritive value to herbivores (Lincoln et al, 1986). Levels of (Lymantria dispar) larvae on host plants grown under elevated simple sugars may or may not increase, whereas levels of CO2 showed poorer performance on aspen (despite markedly starch generally increase substantially. Studies of the effects increased consumption), but improved performance on oak of CO2 on secondary metabolites in trees have been restricted (Lindroth et al, 1993a). Wang et al (2008) reviewed the effect to ‘carbon-based’ compounds, particularly phenolics and of elevated CO2 on the performance of leaf-feeding forest terpenoids. Elevated CO2 typically, but not invariably, increases insects at individual, and community, level. They concluded tannin concentrations (Lindroth, 2010). Common, but less that changes in insect population, and the actual response of consistent, are increases in simple phenolics, including consumption by leaf-feeding forest insects, under CO2 phenolic acids and glycosides (eg salicylates). Growth under enrichment remain unclear, and thus more field-based elevated CO2 also tends to increase lignin concentrations in experiments need to be conducted. tree leaves (Coûteaux et al, 1999; Norby et al, 2001), although Although elevated CO2 accelerated the accumulation of more recent results from long-term free air CO2 enrichment carbohydrates and increased the biomass and yield of C3 crop (FACE) studies, have shown no such effects (Finzi et al, 2001; plants, it also reduced their nitrogen (N) and trace element Parsons et al, 2008). Terpenoid levels are generally not affected (zinc and iron) concentrations (Bloom et al, 2010). Nitrogen by atmospheric CO2 concentrations; although a few studies is known to be limiting for many herbivores (Scriber & have revealed increases, most have found no change or Slansky, 1981; White, 1984). Thus the consequent changes in decreases in concentrations (Lindroth, 2010). primary and secondary metabolites would affect the The fertilisation effect of higher CO2 levels might increase the palatability of host plants and the feeding of herbivorous rate of photosynthesis. Coupled with improved nitrogen and insects, and may therefore change their feeding behaviours water use efficiencies this often increases crop yields (Beedlow (Myers et al, 2014). et al, 2004; Ainsworth & Long, 2005). Water stress is also Phytophagous insects may also develop adaptations to consistently ameliorated in plants exposed to elevated CO2 overcome higher C:N ratios. For example the pine sawfly (Rogers & Dahlman, 1993), suggesting a general trend towards (Neodiprion lecontei) showed an increase in the efficiency of improved water-use efficiency (van de Geijn & Goudriaan, nitrogen utilisation when reared on plants treated with high 1996). However, elevated CO2 is widely considered to also affect CO2 concentration (Williams et al, 1994). However, other plant morphology, canopy structure, and hence micro-climate insect species seem unable to compensate the lower and the resident micro-floral populations in such environments nutritional quality of the plants by increasing the efficiency of (Eastburn et al, 2011). There is compelling evidence from nutrient utilisation (Brooks & Whittaker, 1999). The herbarium leaves that plants have responded to anthropogenic experiments of Lindroth et al (1993b) on three species of increases in CO2 concentration. For example, leaf epidermal saturniid moths showed that the performance of caterpillars morphology such as stomatal density (SD – the number of is only marginally affected when the nitrogen content of the stomatal pores per unit area) and their mean aperture has leaves is reduced by 23 percent and the carbon to nitrogen decreased over the last century (Woodward, 1987). Under ratio increased by 13-28 percent. elevated CO2 conditions, stomatal conductance generally declines, decreasing transpiration and improving water use Soybean (Glycine max) grown in an elevated CO2 atmosphere efficiency leading to improved drought resistance (Mortensen, (500 ppm) had 57 percent more damage from insects 1987; Radoglou et al, 1992). The changes in trichome density (primarily invasive Japanese beetle, potato leafhopper, western in response to CO2 are idiosyncratic. For example, trichome corn rootworm and Mexican bean beetle) than those grown in density increased by 57 percent in Brassica rapa (Karowe & ambient air. It is thought that increased concentrations of Grubb, 2011), and Medicago truncatula (Guo et al, 2014), but soluble sugars (glucose, sucrose, and fructose) in the soybean decreased in Arabidopsis and wheat under elevated CO2 (Masle, leaves serve as powerful feeding stimulants (Ladd, 1986; 2000; Bidart-Bouzat & Imeh-Nathaniel, 2008). Hamilton et al, 2005; Dermody et al, 2008). In addition, the

12 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 2

enriched CO2 atmosphere increased the susceptibility of Effects on reproduction have rarely been investigated. Lindroth soybean to Japanese beetle and western corn rootworm et al (1997) found no effect of CO2 on the number and mass of (Diabrotica virgifera virgifera) by decreasing the jasmonic acid eggs produced by gypsy moths, whereas Awmack et al, (2004) and ethylene related transcripts. Elevated CO2 increased reported decreased fecundity in aphids on Betula papyrifera salicylic acid levels in field-grown soybeans, and in leaves and under elevated CO2. rhizomes of two varieties of ginger (Zingiber officinale) (Zavala There are inconsistent reports of the effects of elevated CO2 on et al, 2008; Ghasemzadeh et al, 2010). Aside from the leaf area sap-feeding homopteran pests, and in some cases, fecundity removal, the fecundity of Japanese beetles ( ) Popillia japonica and abundance of this group can increase (Bezemer et al, 2 was greater than those that fed on leaves grown in elevated CO 1998). Aphids feed exclusively on the phloem sap and are very that fed on leaves under ambient conditions (O’Neill , et al sensitive to changes in plant quality caused by climate change 2008). These findings suggest that predicted increases in (Pritchard et al, 2007). Gao et al (2008) found that the aphid soybean productivity under projected elevated CO2 levels may (Aphis gossypii) may become a more serious pest under be reduced by increased susceptibility to invasive crop pest elevated CO2 concentrations because of increased survivorship species. of the aphid, and the extended development period of its main Agrell et al (2005) demonstrated that forest tent caterpillars predator, the Coccinellid Propylaea japonica (Coleoptera: (Malacosoma disstria) altered host plant preferences not only Coccinellidae). Recent experimental studies have observed between species (and genus), aspen (Populus tremuloides) and increased damage to crops caused by phloem-sucking insects paper birch (Betula papyrifera), but also within a species under elevated CO2. This is due to increased settling times (P. tremuloides genotypes), grown in high CO2 environments. (Smith, 1996) and fecundities (Awmack et al, 1996), and Species-specificity in terms of insect herbivore responses to possibly as a response to increased emission of green leaf volatiles (Staudt et al, 2001; Vuorinen et al, 2005). However, elevated CO2 may be linked to differences among feeding guilds (for example, chewers, miners, sap-feeders, seed-feeders). In an the nature of the response can differ according to the host early review it was suggested that different herbivore guilds plant: the potato aphid (Aulacorthum solani) increased daily nymph production rates on bean (Vicia faba), but not on tansy respond differently to CO2 enrichment (Bezemer & Jones, 1998). For those herbivores that chew leaves, a reduction in the nitrogen (Tanacetum vulgare); whilst development times were concentration in crop tissue (an index of protein), and the significantly shorter on tansy, but unchanged on bean (Awmack et al, 1997). resulting increase in the C:N ratio, under elevated CO2 could cause these insect pests to consume more leaves to meet their N Recent meta-analysis result shows that aphids tend to perform needs (Bezemer & Jones, 1998; Sun & Ge, 2011). In addition, better under elevated CO2 on average (Robinson et al, 2012), leaves grown under elevated CO2 show a decreased ability to although other studies have discerned no significant effects on produce jasmonic acid (JA), a hormone that contributes to plant sap-feeder herbivores. For example, not all aphid species are defenses against chewing insects (Zavala et al, 2008). Casteel et affected by elevated CO2, but the species that have positive al (2008, 2009) observed that the production of JA is stopped responses are generalist, polyphagous feeders, such as Myzus under elevated CO2 with a subsequent loss of chemical defence persicae (Sulzer) (Hemiptera: Aphididae) (Bezemer et al, 1999; against pest attack. This effect, when coupled with high levels of Whittaker, 1999; Hughes & Bazzaz, 2001; Sudderth et al, carbohydrates in plant tissues under elevated CO2, attracts more 2005). Docherty et al, (1997) could find no evidence that insects to cause severe damage to the crop plants. A CO2-induced populations of sap-feeding homoptera would change as a result reduction in host plant quality resulted in increased larval of elevated CO2 levels; likewise, Salt et al (1996) discerned no consumption rates in generalist (Lincoln et al, 1984; Osbrink et significant effects on the population sizes of either shoot- or al, 1987; Johnson & Lincoln, 1990), as well as specialised, leaf- root-feeding aphid species under elevated CO2. Greenhouse feeding caterpillars (Fajer et al, 1989) and in an anthomyiid whitefly (Trialeurodes vaporariorum) populations decreased leafminer (Salt et al, 1996). However, for some species, growth significantly as a result of CO2 enrichment, despite high C:N rates under elevated CO2 are no different from those in ambient ratios in tomato plants (Tripp et al, 1992), while growth rates CO2 regimes (Williams et al, 1994); meaning that increased of tobacco whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) populations were consumption rates compensate fully for decreased leaf nitrogen. uninfluenced (Butler et al, 1986). This implies that the physiological effects of such CO2-induced Elevated CO2 reduced leafminer oviposition on Populus changes in consumption rates vary according to the particular tremuloides (Kopper & Lindroth, 2003), but increased birch plant-insect interactions (Lindroth , 1993b; Roth & Lindroth, et al aphid oviposition on one of two clones of B. pendula (Peltonen 1995). The compensatory feeding responses may be constrained, et al, 2006). The few feeding studies conducted to date suggest however, by the simultaneous consumption of higher that preferences of insects for ambient versus elevated CO2 concentrations of secondary metabolites such as phenolics. foliage are not easily predicted, as shifts in both directions, and Approximate digestibility of food is not typically affected to a no change, have been reported (Traw et al, 1996; Agrell et al, significant degree, but conversion efficiencies of digested food 2005; Knepp et al, 2007). into biomass generally decline. Little is known about how CO2 levels affect insect detoxication capacities; a study on gypsy moths revealed enhanced oxidase, reductase, and esterase Effects on natural enemies activities in larvae fed with CO2-enriched Populus tremuloides, but not Acer saccharum (Lindroth et al, 1993b). Development Elevated CO2 may change natural enemy populations periods are usually prolonged, while growth rates and final pupal (predators, parasitoids, and pathogens) on insect herbivores and adult weights decline or are unaffected, but rarely improve. via shifts in the diversity, abundance, and quality of prey (for

13 Article 2 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

example, insect size or concentrations of plant-derived toxins); Relevance to global food and changes in host-searching mechanisms (Vuorinen et al, 2004; Pinto et al, 2007); or via the behaviour of their prey (Mondor nutritional security et al, 2004; Hillstrom & Lindroth, 2008). However, relatively few studies on the effects of elevated CO2 on plant-herbivore The most verifiable direct effect of higher CO2 levels is a interactions have been conducted to test the effects of elevated dramatic boost in crop growth rates (biomass) and yields, CO2 on attack rates of herbivores by natural enemies, probably ensuring that more people globally will be food secure. The because of the difficulties inherent in maintaining all three Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change trophic levels in laboratory conditions (Stiling et al, 2003). (CSCDGC) [www.CO2science.org], and the CO2 Science Plant Although not observed in the FACE study, other researchers Growth Database (http://www.co2science.org/data/plant_ have observed that in order to obtain sufficient nitrogen for growth/plantgrowth.php), summarised thousands of research their metabolism, insects sometimes feed more vigorously on studies on crops, forests, grasslands, alpine areas and deserts leaves that have lowered nitrogen content (Coviella & Trumble, enriched by CO2. CSCDGC showed that for the 45 crops that 1999). Increased C:N ratios in plant tissue resulting from account for 95 percent of global crop production, an increase increased CO2 levels may slow insect development and increase of 300 ppm of carbon dioxide would increase yields from 5 the length of life cycle stages during which they are vulnerable percent to 78 percent (Idso, 2013). A 300 ppm increase in the to attack by parasitoids (Coviella & Trumble, 1999). Thus, air’s CO2 concentration improves the productivity of natural enemies frequently benefit from increased host quality herbaceous plants by 30-50 percent, and of woody plants by under elevated N (Moon & Stiling, 2000). Increased parasitism 50-80 percent. Indian researchers found that lentils, peas, rates under elevated CO2 may result from slowed herbivore beans and other legumes grown at 700 ppm CO2 improved development providing a longer period of vulnerability to their total biomass by 91 percent, their edible parts yield by attack (Johns & Hughes, 2002; Asshoff & Hättenschwiler, 150 percent, and their fodder yield by 67 percent, compared to 2005). Smith & Jones (1998) also reported that the reason similar crops grown at 370 ppm CO2. The increase was herbivore densities are lower under elevated CO2 is that death possible by stimulating nitrogen fixation in the legumes, rates of herbivores from natural enemies increased. Increased helping them to form stronger symbiotic relationships with attack rates by natural enemies may result from leaf-miner nitrogen-fixing soil bacteria, thus increasing further (Dialectica scalariella (Zeller)) (Lepidoptera: Gracillariidae) photosynthetic rates. Chinese scientists calculated that rice taking longer to develop in elevated CO2, thereby exposing their grown at 600 ppm CO2 increased its grain yield by 28 percent larva longer to search by parasitoids or predators (Fajer et al, with low applications of nitrogen fertiliser, and 32 percent with 1989; Smith & Jones, 1998), or because larger mine areas more nitrogen fertiliser (Driessen, 2013). Thus, crops with C3 attract more enemies. Thomson et al (2010) observed that pea photosynthesis (soybean, rice, and wheat) are likely to respond plants had reduced nitrogen content when grown under higher more positively to increasing CO2 than C4 crops (maize, sugar levels of CO2 and this in turn influenced the size of the cotton cane, and biofuel grasses such as switchgrass and elephant bollworm larvae. The predatory bugs were more effective grass) (CSSA, 2011). These results are found to be robust across a variety of experimental settings such as controlled under higher CO2 levels because they appeared to be better at subduing the smaller bollworm larvae. Similarly, Leis axyridis environment closed chambers, greenhouses, open and closed (Pallas) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), coccinellid predator of the field top chambers, and free-air carbon dioxide enrichment aphid herbivore Aphis gossypii (Glover) (Hemiptera: (FACE) experiments. Aphididae), consumed more prey under elevated CO2 (Chen et Several of the above-cited publications demonstrate that al, 2005). However, in another aphid pest, Sitobion avenae though the rising CO2 levels are likely to increase the yield of (F) (Hemiptera: Aphididae), Chen et al (2007) found a many crops (Ziska et al, 2012; Amthor, 2001), they can also negligible impact of elevated CO2 on its coccinellid predator, lower their nitrogen (protein), phosphorus and potassium Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae), but contents, along with many important micronutrients increased abundance of the braconid parasitoid Aphidius including copper, zinc, magnesium and sulphur (Myers et al, picipes (Nees) (Hymenoptera: Braconidae), resulting in 2014; Loladze, 2014; Giri et al, 2016). Recently, in an extensive increased aphid parasitism in elevated CO2 compared to meta-analysis to examine the effect of elevated CO2 on nutrient ambient CO2. In contrast, two studies have found the bottom- content of several varieties of six commonly cultivated field up effects of CO2 on parasitoid performance (survivorship, crops, Myers et al (2014) showed that major C3 cereal crops development, and growth) to be minimal to nil (Roth & including rice and wheat had lower concentrations of iron and Lindroth, 1995; Holton et al, 2003). The virulence of zinc, in addition to protein, compared to their counterparts pathogens such as nuclear polyhedrosis virus (NPV) is linked grown at ambient CO2 level. Elevated CO2 levels have a to host plant chemistry, for example tannins (Foster et al, negative impact on the nutritional quality of two commonly 1992), so CO2-enriched atmospheres may influence the consumed leafy vegetables: lettuce and spinach (Giri et al, dynamics of disease outbreaks. CO2-induced increases in 2016). There have been some reports that show that elevated condensed tannins in P. tremuloides did not, however, alter CO2 may increase the photosynthetic activity in plants, the susceptibility of gypsy moths to NPV (Lindroth et al, 1997). favouring higher C:N ratios, which is likely to have a positive At this time there is insufficient information to predict whether impact on the synthesis of secondary metabolites, many of the bottom-up effects of CO2 on natural enemies will in general which are known to function as health-promoting be buffered, amplified, or, more likely, context- and species- phytochemicals and plant defence compounds (Oh et al, 2009; specific. Zhang et al, 2014). The reduced concentration of these

14 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 2

essential nutrients in major cereal crops (rice and wheat), Bezemer TM, Knight KJ, Newington JE, Jones TH, 1999. How general are legumes (field peas and soybean), and leafy vegetable (spinach) aphid responses to elevated atmospheric CO2? Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 92, 724-730. in many developing countries certainly raises the spectre of a widespread global nutritional (hidden) hunger. Bidart-Bouzat MG, Imeh-Nathaniel A, 2008. Global change effects on plant chemical defenses against insect herbivores. Journal of Integrative Plant Elevated CO2 mainly affects different guilds of herbivores and Biology, 50, 1339-1354. their natural enemies via indirect effects on the plant, and Bloom AJ, Burger M, Asensio JSR, Cousins AB, 2010. Carbon dioxide interaction with other climate change drivers. Currently, in enrichment inhibits nitrate assimilation in wheat and Arabidopsis. Science, 328, 899-903. doi: 10.1126/science.1186440. agro-ecological systems there are limited studies on the long- term and large-scale interactive effects of climate change Brooks GL, Whittaker JB, 1999. Responses of three generations of a xylem- feeding insect, Neophilaenus lineatus (Homoptera), to elevated CO2. Global drivers on tri-trophic levels (host plant, pest, and natural Change Biology, 5, 395-401. enemy), that realistically mimics climate change. Therefore, Butler GD Jr, Kimball BA, Mauney JR, 1986. Populations of Bemisia tabaci in the absence of such empirical data it is not possible to (Homoptera: Aleyrododidae) on cotton grown in open-top field chambers predict pest outbreaks, or for policy-makers to design policies enriched with CO2. Environmental Entomology, 15, 61-63. for food security. Thus, future research programmes should Cannon RJC, 1998. The implications of predicted climate change for insect focus more attention to addressing this vacuum. pests in the UK, with emphasis on non-indigenous species. Global Change Biology, 4, 785-796. Future climate change research needs a paradigm shift from impact assessment to developing adaptation and mitigation Casteel CL, O’Neill BF, Zavala JA, Bilgin DD, Berenbaum MR, Delucia EH, 2008. Transcriptional profiling reveals elevated CO2 and elevated O3 alters strategies, and innovative options (new tools and techniques), resistance of soybean (Glycine max) to Japanese beetles (Popillia japonica). to address broader societal concerns of food and nutritional Plant Cell and Environment, 31, 419-434. security. Casteel CL, Berenbaum MR, Delucia EH, 2009. Does elevated carbon dioxide universally alter phytohormone signaling? Entomological Society of America References Annual Meeting, 14, 2009, Indianapolis. Chen FJ, Ge F, Parajulee MN, 2005. Impact of elevated CO2 on tri-trophic interaction of Gossypium hirsutum, Aphis gossypii, and Leis axyridis. (A full bibliography on elevated CO2 effects on host plants, Environmental Entomology, 34, 37–46. doi: 10.1603/0046-225X-34.1.37. insect herbivores and natural enemies is available from RC Chen FJ, Gang W, Megha N, Parajulee FG, 2007. Impact of elevated CO2 on Joshi) the third trophic level: a predator Harmonia axyridis and a parasitoid Aphidius picipes. Biocontrol Science and Technology, 17, 313-324. Agrell J, Kopper B, McDonald EP, Lindroth RL, 2005. CO2 and O3 effects on host plant preferences of the forest tent caterpillar (Malacosoma disstria). Coûteaux MM, Kurz C, Bottner P, Raschi A, 1999. Influence of increased Global Change Biology, 11, 588-599. atmospheric CO2 concentration on quality of plant material and litter Ainsworth EA, Davey PA, Bernachi CJ, Dermody OC, Heaton EA, Moore DJ, decomposition. Tree Physiology, 19, 301-311. Morgan PB, Naidu SL, Yoora HS, Zhu XG, Curtis PS, Long SP, 2002. Coviella C, Trumble JT, 1999. Effects of elevated atmospheric CO2 on insect- A meta-analysis of elevated [CO2] effects on soybean (Glycine max) physiology, plant interactions. Conservation Biology, 13, 700-712. growth and yield. Global Change Biology, 8, 695-709. CSSA, 2011. Position statement on crop adaptation to climate change. http://dx.doi.org/10.1046/j.1365-2486.2002.00498.x Madison, WI, USA: Crop Science Society of America. 16p. Ainsworth EA, Long SP, 2005. What have we learned from 15 years of free-air Dermody O, O’Neill BF, Zangerl AR, Berenbaum MR, Delucia EH, 2008. Effects CO2 enrichment (FACE)? A meta-analytic review of the responses of of elevated CO2 and O3 on leaf damage and insect abundance in a soybean photosynthesis, canopy properties and plant production to rising CO2. New Agroecosystem. Arthropod-Plant Interactions, 2, 125-135. doi: Phytologist, 165, 351–372. doi:10.1111/j.1469-8137.2004.01224.x 10.1007/s11829-008-9045-4. Amthor JS, 2001. Effects of atmospheric CO2 on wheat yield: Review of results Docherty M., Wade F, Hurst D, Whittaker J, Lea P, 1997. Responses of tree sap- from experiments using various approaches to control CO2 concentration. feeding herbivores to elevated CO2. Global Change Biology, 3, 51-59. Field Crops Research, 73, 1-34. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0378- doi:10.1046/j.1365-2486.1997.00096.x. 4290(01)00179-4 Driessen P, 2013. Carbon dioxide: the gas of life. Tiny amounts of this miracle Asshoff R, Hättenschwiler S, 2005. Growth and reproduction of the alpine molecule make life on earth possible. Washington, DC, USA: Committee for a grasshopper Miramella alpina feeding on CO2 enriched dwarf shrubs at Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT). 19p. treeline. Oecologia, 142, 191-201. Eastburn DM, McElrone AJ, Bilgin DD, 2011. Influence of atmospheric and Awmack CS, Harrington R, Leather SR, Lawton JH, 1996. The impacts of climatic change on plant-pathogen interactions. Plant Pathology, 60, 54-69. elevated CO2 on aphid-plant interactions. Aspects of Applied Biology, 45, 317- doi:10.1111/j.1365-3059.2010.02402.x. 322. Awmack CS, Harrington R, Leather SR, 1997. Host plant effects on the Fajer EP, Bowers MD, Bazzaz FA, 1989. The effects of enriched carbon dioxide atmospheres on plant–insect herbivore interactions. , 243, 1198-1200. performance of the aphid Aulacorthum solani (Kalt) (Homoptera: Aphididae) Science at ambient and elevated CO2. Global Change Biology, 3, 545-549. Finzi AC, Allen AS, Delucia, EH, Ellsworth, DS, Schlesinger, WH, 2001. Forest Awmack CS, Harrington R, Lindroth RL, 2004. Aphid individual performance litter production, chemistry, and decomposition following 2 years of free-air CO2 enrichment. Ecology, 82, 470-484. may not predict population responses to elevated CO2 or O3. Global Change Biology, 10, 1414-1423. Foster MA, Schultz, JC, Hunter MD, 1992. Modelling gypsy moth-virus-leaf Beedlow PA, Tingey DT, Phillips DL, Hogsett WE, Olszyk DM, 2004. Rising chemistry interactions: implications of plant quality for pest and pathogen dynamics. Journal of Animal Ecology, 61, 509-520. atmospheric CO2 and carbon sequestration in forests. Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment, 2, 315-322. Gao F, Zhu, SR, Du L, Parajulee M, Kang L, Ge F, 2008. Interactive effects of Bezemer TM, Jones TH, 1998. Plant-insect herbivore interactions in elevated elevated CO2 and cotton cultivar on tri-trophic interaction of Gossypium atmospheric CO2: quantitative analyses and guild effects. Oikos, 82, 212-222. hirsutum, Aphis gossyppii, and Propylaea japonica. Environmental Entomology, 37, 29-37. Bezemer TM, Jones TH, Knight KJ, 1998. Long-term effects of elevated CO2 and temperature on populations of the peach potato aphid Myzus persicae Ghasemzadeh A, Jaafar HZ, Rahmat A, 2010. Elevated carbon dioxide increases and its parasitoid Aphidius matricariae. Oecologia, 116, 128-135. doi: contents of flavonoids and phenolic compounds, and antioxidant activities in Malaysian 10.1007/s004420050571 young ginger (Zingiber officinale Roscoe.) varieties. Molecules, 15, 7907-7922.

15 Article 2 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Giri A, Armstrong B, Rajashekar CB, 2016. Elevated carbon dioxide level Lindroth RL, 2010. Impacts of elevated atmospheric CO2 and O3 on forests: suppresses nutritional quality of lettuce and spinach. American Journal of phytochemistry, trophic interactions, and ecosystem dynamics. Journal of Plant Sciences, 7, 246-258. http://dx.doi.org/10.4236/ajps.2016.71024. Chemical Ecology, 36, 2-21. doi: 10.1007/s10886-009-9731-4.

Guo H, Sun Y, Li, Y, Liu X, Wang P, Zhu-Salzman K, Ge F, 2014. Elevated CO2 Loladze I, 2014. Hidden shift of the ionome of plants exposed to elevated CO2 alters the feeding behaviour of the pea aphid by modifying the physical and depletes minerals at the base of human nutrition. eLife, 3, e02245. chemical resistance of Medicago truncatula. Plant Cell & Environment, 37, http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.02245. 2158-2168. doi: 10.1111/pce.12306. Masle J, 2000. The effects of elevated CO2 concentrations on cell division rates, Hillstrom ML, Lindroth RL, 2008. Elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide and growth patterns, and blade anatomy in young wheat plants are modulated by ozone alter forest insect abundance and community composition. Insect factors related to leaf position, vernalization, and genotype. Plant Physiology, Conservation and Diversity, 1, 233-241. 122, 1399. doi: 10.1104/pp.122.4.1399. Holton MK, Lindroth RL, Nordheim EV, 2003. Foliar quality influences tree- Mondor EB, Tremblay M, Awmack CS, Lindroth RL, 2004. Divergent herbivore-parasitoid interactions: effects of elevated CO2, O3, and plant pheromone-mediated insect behaviour under global atmospheric change. genotype. Oecologia, 137, 233-244. Global Change Biology, 10, 1820-1824. doi: 10.1111/j.1365- 2486.2004.00838.x. Hughes L, Bazzaz FA, 1997. Effects of elevated CO2 on interactions between the western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis (Thysanoptera: Thripidae) Moon DC, Stiling P, 2000. Relative importance of abiotically induced direct and the common milkweed Asclepias syriaca. Oecologia, 109, 286-290. and indirect effects on a salt-marsh herbivore. Ecology, 81, 470-481.

Hughes L, Bazzaz FA, 2001. Effects of elevated CO2 on five plant-aphid Mortensen LM, 1987. CO2 enrichment in greenhouses. crop responses. Scientia interactions. Entomologia Experimentalis et Applicata 99, 87-96. Horticulultae, 3, 1-25. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/0304-4238(87)90028-8. Idso CD, 2013. The positive externalities of carbon dioxide: Estimating the Myers SS, Zanobetti A, Kloog I, Huybers P, Leakey ADB, Bloom AJ, Carlisle E, monetary benefits of rising atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations on Dietterich LH, Fitzgerald G, Hasegawa T, Holbrook NM, Nelson RL, Ottman global food production. Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global MJ, Raboy V, Sakai H, Sartor KA, Schwartz J, Seneweera S, Tausz M, Usui Y, Change. [http://www.co2science.org/education/reports/co2benefits/Monetary 2014. Increasing CO2 threatens human nutrition. Nature, 510, 139-143. doi: BenefitsofRisingCO2onGlobalFoodProduction.pdf]. Accessed 28 January 2018. 10.1038/nature13179. IPCC. 2001. Third assessment report. Climate change 2001. Nicolas G, Sillans D, 1989. Immediate and latent effects of carbon dioxide on Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge insects. Annual Review of Entomology, 34, 97-116.

University Press. [https://www.ipcc.ch/ipccreports/tar/]. Accessed 28 January Norby RJ, Cotrufo MF, Ineson P, O’Neill EG, Canadell JG, 2001. Elevated CO2, 2018. litter chemistry, and decomposition: a synthesis. Oecologia, 127, 153-165.

Johns CV, Hughes L, 2002. Interactive effects of elevated CO2 and temperature Oh MM, Carey EE, Rajashekar CB, 2009. Environmental stresses induce on the leaf miner Dialectica scalariella Zeller (Lepidoptera: Gracillaridae) in health-promoting phytochemicals in lettuce. Plant Physiology and Paterson’s curse, Echium plantagineum (Boraginaceae). Global Change Biochemistry, 47, 578-583. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.plaphy.2009.02.008. Biology, 8, 142-152. O’Neill BF, Zangerl A, Delucia EH, Berenbaum MR, 2008. Longevity and Johnson RH, Lincoln RH, 1990. Sagebush and grasshopper responses to fecundity of Japanese beetle, Popillia japonica (Newman), on foliage grown atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration. Oecologia, 84, 103-110. under elevated CO2. Environmental Entomology, 37, 601-607. Kant S, Seneweera S, Rodin J, Mateme M, Burch D, Rothstein SJ, Spangenberg Osbrink WLA, Trumble JT, Wagner RL, 1987. Host suitability of Phaseolus G, 2012. Improving yield potential in crops under elevated CO2: Integrating lunata for Trichoplusia ni (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) in controlled carbon the photosynthetic and nitrogen utilization. Frontiers in Plant Science, 3, 1-9. dioxide atmospheres. Environmental Entomology, 16, 639-644.

Karowe DN, Grubb C, 2011. Elevated CO2 increases constitutive phenolics and Parsons WFJ, Bockheim, JG, Lindroth RL, 2008. Independent, interactive, and trichomes, but decreases inducibility of phenolics in Brassica rapa species-specific responses of leaf litter decomposition to elevated CO2 and O3 (Brassicaceae). Journal of Chemical Ecology, 37, 1332-1340. doi: in a northern hardwood forest. Ecosystems, 11, 505-519. 10.1007/s10886-011-0044-z. Pearson PN, Palmer MR, 2000. Atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations over Knepp RG, Hamilton JG, Zangerl AR, Berenbaum MR, Delucia EH, 2007. the past 60 million years. Nature, 406, 695-699. Foliage of oaks grown under elevated CO2 reduces performance of Antheraea Peltonen PA, Julkunen-Tiitto R, Vapaavuori E, and Holopainen JK, 2006. polyphemus (Lepidoptera: Saturniidae). Environmental Entomology, 36, 609-617. Effects of elevated carbon dioxide and ozone on aphid oviposition preference Kopper BJ, Lindroth RL, 2003. Responses of trembling aspen (Populus and birch bud exudate phenolics. Global Change Biology, 12, 1670-1679. tremuloides) phytochemistry and aspen blotch leafminer (Phyllonorycter Pinto DM, Nerg A, Holopainen JK, 2007. The role of ozone reactive tremuloidiella) performance to elevated level of CO2 and O3. Agricultural and compounds, terpenes, and green leaf volatiles (GLVs), in the orientation of Forest Entomology, 5, 17-26. Cotesia plutellae. Journal of Chemical Ecology, 33, 2218-2228. Ladd TL Jr. 1986. Influence of sugars on the feeding response of Japanese Pritchard J, Griffiths B, Hunt EJ, 2007. Can the plant-mediated impacts on beetles (Coleoptera: Scrabaeidae). Journal of Economic Entomology, 79, 668-671. aphids of elevated CO2 and drought be predicted? Global Change Biology, 13, Leakey ADB, Ainsworth EA, Bernacchi CJ, Rogers A, Long SP, Ort DR, 2009. 1616-1629. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2486.2007.01401.x. Elevated CO2 effects on plant carbon, nitrogen, and water relations: six Radoglou KM, Aphalo P, Jarvis PG, 1992. Response of photosynthesis, stomatal important lessons from FACE. Journal of Experimental Botany, 60, 2859-2876. conductance and water use efficiency to elevated CO2 and nutrient supply to Lincoln DE, Sionit N, Strain BR, 1984. Growth and feeding response of acclimated seedlings of Phaseolus vulagaris L. Annals of Botany, 70, 257-264. (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae) to host plants grown in Pseudoplusia includens Robinson EA, Ryan GD, Newman JA, 2012. A meta-analytical review of the controlled carbon dioxide atmospheres. Environmental Entomology, 13, effects of elevated CO2 on plant-arthropod interactions highlights the 1527-1530. importance of interacting environmental and biological variables. New Lincoln DE, Couvet D, Sionit N, 1986. Response of an insect herbivore to host Phytologist, 194, 321-336. doi: 10.1111/j.1469-8137.2012.04074.x. plants grown in carbon dioxide enriched atmospheres. Oecologia, 69, 556-560. Rogers HH, Dahlman RC, 1993. Crop responses to CO2 enrichment. In: Lindroth RL, Jung, SM, Feuker AM, 1993a. Detoxication activity in the gypsy Rozema J, Lambers H, Van de Geijn SC, Cambridge ML, eds. CO2 and moth: effects of host CO2 and NO3 availability. Journal of Chemical Ecology, biosphere. Advances in vegetation science, 14, 117-131. Dordrecht, 19, 357-367. Netherlands: Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-1797-5_8.

Lindroth RL, Kinney KK, Platz CL, 1993b. Response of deciduous trees to Roth SK, Lindroth RL, 1995. Elevated atmospheric CO2: effects on elevated CO2: productivity, phytochemistry and insect performance. Ecology, phytochemistry, insect performance and insect parasitoid interactions. Global 74, 763-777. Change Biology, 1, 173-182. Lindroth RL, Roth S, Kruger EL, Volin JC, Koss PA, 1997. CO2-mediated Salt DT, Fenwick P, Whittaker JB, 1996. Interspecific herbivore interactions in changes in aspen chemistry: effects on gypsy moth performance and a high CO2 environment: root and shoot aphids feeding on Cardamine. Oikos, susceptibility to virus. Global Change Biology, 3, 279-289. 77, 182–237. doi: 10.2307/3546072.

16 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 2 / News from the Field 2

Scriber JM, Slansky F, 1981. The nutritional ecology of immature insects. Vuorinen T, Nerg A, Ibrahim MA, Reddy GV, Holopainen JK, 2004. Emission Annual Review of Entomology, 26, 183-211. of Plutella xyllostella-induced compounds from cabbages grown at elevated CO2 and orientation behavior of the natural enemies. Plant Physiology, 135: Smith H, 1996. The effects of elevated CO2 on aphids. Antenna, 20: 109-111. 1984-1992. Smith PHD, Jones TH, 1998. Effects of elevated CO2 on the chrysanthemum Vuorinen T, Nerg A, Vapaavuori E, Holopainen JK, 2005. Emission of volatile leafminer, Chromatomyia syngenesiae: a greenhouse study. Global Change organic compounds from two silver birch (Betula pendula Roth) clones grown Biology, 4, 287-291. under ambient and elevated CO2 and different O3 concentrations. Atmospheric Staudt M, Joffre R, Rambal S, Kesselmeier J, 2001. Effect of elevated CO2 on Environment, 39, 1185-1197. doi:10.1016/j.atmosenv.2004.09.077. monoterpene emission of young Quercus ilex trees and its relation to Watt AD, Whittaker JB, Docherty M, Brooks G, Lindsay E, Salt DT, 1995. The structural and ecophysiological parameters. Tree Physiology, 21, 445-448. impact of elevated atmospheric CO2 on insect herbivores. In: Harrington N, Stiling P, Cornelissen T, 2007. How does elevated carbon dioxide (CO2) affect Stork NE, eds. Insects in a changing environment. London: Academic Press, plant-herbivore interactions? A field experiment and meta-analysis of CO2- pp198-217. mediated changes on plant chemistry and herbivore performance. Global Williams RS, Lincoln DE, Thomas RB, 1994. Loblolly pine grown under Change Biology, 13, 1823-1842. elevated CO2 affects early instar pine sawfly performance. Oecologia, 98, 64-71. Stiling P, Moon DC, Hunter MD, Colson J, Rossi AM, Hymus GJ, Drake BG, White TCR, 1984. The abundance of invertebrate herbivores in relation to the 2003. Elevated CO2 lowers relative and absolute herbivore density across all availability of nitrogen in stressed food plants. , 63, 90-105. species of a scrub-oak forest. Oecologia, 134, 82-87. doi: 10.1007/s00442-002- Oecologia 1075-5. Whittaker JB, 1999. Impacts and responses at population level of herbivorous 2. , 96, 149-156. Sudderth EA, Stinson KA, Bazzaz FA, 2005. Host-specific aphid population insects to elevated CO European Journal of Entomology responses to elevated CO2 and increased N availability. Global Change Biology, Woodward FI, 1987. Stomatal numbers are sensitive to increases in CO2 from 11, 1997-2008. pre-industrial levels. Nature, 327: 617-618.

Sun Y, Ge F, 2011. How do aphids respond to elevated CO2? Journal of Asia- Woodward FI, Lomas MR, 2004. Vegetation dynamics: simulating responses Pacific Entomology, 14, 217-220. doi: 10.1016/j.aspen.2010.08.001. to climatic change. Biological Reviews, 79, 643-670. Thomson LJ, MacFadyen S, Hoffmann AA, 2010. Predicting the effects of Zavala JA, Casteel CL, Delucia EH, Berenbaum MR, 2008. Anthropogenic climate change on natural enemies of agricultural pests. Biological Control, increase in carbon dioxide compromises plant defense against invasive insects. 52, 296-306. doi:10.1016/j.biocontrol.2009.01.022. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, USA, 105, 5129-5133. doi: 10.1073/pnas.0800568105. Traw MB, Lindroth RL, Bazzaz FA, 1996. Decline in gypsy moth (Lymantria dispar) performance in an elevated CO2 atmosphere depends upon host plant Zhang Z, Liu L, Zhang M, Zhang Y, Wang Q, 2014. Effect of carbon dioxide species. Oecologia, 108, 113-120. enrichment on health-promoting compounds and organoleptic properties of Tripp KE, Kroen WK, Peet MM, Willits DH, 1992. Fewer whiteflies found on tomato fruits grown in greenhouse. Food Chemistry, 153, 157-163. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.foodchem.2013.12.052. CO2 enriched greenhouse tomatoes with high C:N ratios. HortScience, 27, 1079-1080. Ziska LH, Bunce JA, Shimono H, Gealy DR, Baker JT, Newton PC, Reynolds MP, Jagadish KS, Zhu C, Howden M, Wilson LT, 2012. Food security and Van de Geijn SC, Goudriaan J. 1996. The effects of elevated CO2 and temperature change on transpiration and crop water use. In: Bazzaz F, climate change: on the potential to adapt global crop production by active selection to rising carbon dioxide. Sombroek W, eds. Global climate change and agricultural production: direct Proceedings of Royal Society of London , 279, 4097-4105. http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2012.1005. and indirect effects of changing hydrological, pedological and plant Series B physiological processes. Chichester, UK: John Wiley, pp101-121.

News from the Field

Report on the ECHO Asia Conference Chiang Mai, Thailand, 3-6 October 2017

ECHO Asia recently joined TAA as an institutional member. Its me, was innovative. With my many years of experience, it was Impact Centre in Chiang Mai exists to equip workers to be amusing to see the wheel re-invented in some cases: one could more effective in agriculture and community development by have heard the same statements 25 years ago on the need for providing resources, training, and seeds throughout Asia, community involvement and ownership of projects! including SE, South and Central Asian countries. TAA A potentially innovative workshop, hosted by Geoff Wheeler members may have read the recent article by Abram Bicksler (Centre for Vocational Building Technologies), focussed on Dry (Director) and his colleague, Boonsong Thaneritong, in Composting Toilets: a subject that could have widespread . I was fortunate to be able to attend their 6th Ag4Dev31 application in countries like India, with Mr Modi’s aim of Biennial Conference, , and to Improving Lives and Livelihoods ‘toilets for all’. However, there is still no magic bullet. be able to present a paper on impacts of rural tourism in India. Complications of urine separation persist, which reduces As with any large conference (there were 227 delegates from acceptability for the user. However, reference was made to a across the world (Figure 1)), one feels somewhat gob-smacked new UK-designed urine diverting ‘western’ toilet, made of glass on the first day. Or, as Abram put it in his opening address: “it fiber reinforced plastic, which is ideal for self-build dry is like trying to drink from a fire hose!” I do not intend to composting toilet projects https://www.pinterest.com/pin/ review all the many presentations, but to focus on what, to 331014641343624171/. Currently, though, it seems there is

17 News from the Field 2 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

no way to replace the attraction of a flush toilet and its high 6 in this issue). demand for scarce water. A different view of farming was given by Osamu Arakawa (Asian Rural Institute, Japan), in a lively and animated discussion of the impacts of the explosion of the Fukushima nuclear power plant and the tsunami. The biggest problem in the aftermath was a lack of reliable information: too many experts saying different things about the radiation dangers to food crops. After huge decontamination investment, food crops are now being grown safely. We made a field visit to the home of Scott Braden, a laid-back Australian, who used to practise CA farming in Queensland, but now lives in Chiang Mai and devotes himself to ‘peri-urban farming’. He demonstrated his diversity of medicinal plants, micro-aquaponic system, vegetables and 'chooks' (he casually announced that “they were all taken by a python last week”). Figure 1. Team Photo, ECHO Asia 6th Biennial Conference. He emphasised the need for organic mulch to maintain soil Soil is vital for agriculture, but it is so often forgotten these fertility, but since it breaks down rapidly, he is always seeking days. Tom Thompson (Virginia Tech) gave two presentations: plant waste locally. He also practises ‘natural farming’ – on the nature of soil and the maintenance of fertility, with a brewing aerobic organic liquid from some local leaf litter, a focus on tropical soils. It was a pleasure to listen to a clear, boiled potato, some sea salt and water: “It smells disgusting uncomplicated description of the principles and importance of but mixed with some fertiliser and piss, it maintains the all- soil science, which appealed to the wide diversity of people important fungi in the soil.” present (and to me as, originally, a soil scientist). It was One innovation that did help the attendees was the use of a surprising that none in the audience admitted to an awareness smart phone app ‘Whova’, which provided up-to-date details of conservation agriculture (CA) as a way to boost soil organic of the programme, speakers and topics, with helpful interactive matter and better access nutrients. items (sharing taxis from the airport, photographs, lost and Perhaps the most innovative workshop was given by Pat found, messaging delegates and bulletin boards). Details are Donovan (Virginia Tech), on the use of smart phone available at https://whova.com/whova-event-app/. Whova can technology and apps for agricultural programmes in the provide quotations for setting-up a conference app. region. We all know the logistic and analysis problems of ECHO is funded largely by sponsors and donors from the USA, conducting farm surveys. The EpiCollect5 app, developed by with a preponderance of Church donors. As a result, many Imperial College, London, enables survey forms to be designed presentations were contributed by American academics and and held on smart phones, which can be used off-line in the field workers, often with subtle biblical references. That said, field and then downloaded in the office for analysis and Cloud it was impressive just how much valuable and practical archiving. Just think how much paper and photocopying this agriculture and community work is being done across the might save! Details can be found at https://five.epicollect.net. region by US NGOs. It was also good to learn from Abram that Perhaps a topic for a Curry Club talk? A novel approach to ECHO’s membership of TAA is appreciated. The next biennial funding rural development is Kiva (https://www.kiva.org): this conference may be in the Republic of Georgia, to tap their is an on-line, small-scale lending system, which resembles a Central Asia members. combination of crowd-funding and Lendwithcare. Donors can select a project, such as a community farming group, and Full details of the conference programme, and presentations make loans in tranches of $25. Loan repayments can be and outcomes, will be posted on the ECHO Community credited to the donor or re-cycled. Pat described other apps webpages in due course: that are useful to farmers, such as weather forecasts. However, https://www.echocommunity.org/en/pages/event_resources_asia) as with any such service, the value depends on the quality and coverage of the on-line information. A farmer about to harvest Keith Virgo his or her rice needs local data: a regional forecast is no use. TAA Chairman Pepijn Schreinemachers (World Vegetable Centre, Thailand – an institutional member of the TAA) described their experience in small-scale vegetable farming for nutrition. He encouraged the terminology ‘household gardens’ instead of ‘home gardens’, because a vegetable plot does not have to be near the house to benefit a family. Food production policy typically focuses on staples, and nutrition is overlooked. He cited Cambodian household gardens that are 50 percent for nutrition and 50 percent for production. Increases in production of vegetables result in increases in home consumption, with benefits in family nutrition. Enhanced consumption of Vitamin A is the main benefit (see also article

18 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 3

The famine on our doorstep: Africa is burning, the North is watching

Benny Dembitzer

Benny Dembitzer is a member of the TAA. He is a development economist who studied at Cambridge, Uppsala, and Lausanne. He is a member of the team awarded the 1985 Nobel Peace Prize. He has worked in the field of small-scale industries and handicafts, and small-scale farmers, for the last 50 years across 35 countries in Africa and two in Asia. [email protected]

Abstract continent imports annually $35 billion worth and the figure is projected to increase to $110 billion by 2025 (Akinwumi, 2016). This paper analyses the exodus of biblical proportions that leads Meantime, there are ever grander meetings and conferences to to thousands and thousands of people trying to land on the discuss the issues, all of them showcases for the top people, from shores of Europe. It argues that we think that the pull factor of whatever part of the world they might come from. Europe is the reason for so many millions trying to get here, risk dying in the Sahara, then buying their way across the A chain reaction Mediterranean Sea, possibly drowning, almost certainly languishing for years in refugee camps. Or, if they are unlucky, Across the world, some 25,000 children die per day – about being sold in open-air slave markets in Libya. The article argues 11,000 of them due to hunger. When the land dries up and that the real reason is the push factor of climate change, drying- produces less food, people escape to the cities which eventually up of the land, population explosion, rural exodus, that force explode. The people then have to try to move to other countries. them to leave their homes. We need to encourage land reform, The tragedy of Syria over the last decade has been the clearest rights of women farmers, proper management of planning for manifestation of this concatenation of events. It started with the forests and canals, water reservoirs and so on. The thrust of most slow drying up of the land due to a long-term period of drought of the major policies forced by the North upon Africa have been, that lasted almost 12 years. People of different creeds and and continue to be, disastrous. We carry on delivering what we traditions – Alawites, Shias, Sunnis, Druze, Christians – have think is right and do not understand that the main reason why been living for centuries in contiguous villages, but could no people are starving to death now is not because they cannot grow longer survive and so they had to leave. Their exodus started first their food – it is because of politics. Let us speak truth to power. to the larger villages, then to the major cities, and then to the West. And we started to notice it. Introduction But it is not just in Turkey and Greece that we see the biblical dimensions of a reality that we ignore. There are thousands of The tipping point of several disasters for us in Europe and North would-be asylum seekers in Libya, Tunisia, Algeria, and Morocco. America is on the horizon; they are not here yet – they will reach In other parts of the world a parallel phenomenon is taking place. us in the next decade or the decade after. For the poorest in the Millions of people from all over Latin America are trying to get world the disasters are here and now. Most of us in the UK are into the USA. Millions are trying to escape SE Asia to find jobs more familiar with sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) than with many and try their chances in the Middle East and East Africa. The other parts of the world; in SSA at least one-third of the entire entire world seems to be on the move. One hundred and sixty population is currently already affected. There are 200-250,000 years after the end of the US Civil War, fought primarily over the people queuing across North Africa trying to get into Europe. issue of slavery, there are again open-air markets in Libya where But there is potentially a much longer queue of the enormous human beings who have not been able to pay their debts to population no longer able to survive in the increasingly harsh traffickers are being bought and sold. conditions of most of SSA. That means perhaps 250 million The West has broken all of its own humanitarian laws and people who are being forced to escape a physical, social and international covenants to which it is a signatory and rejected political environment no longer able to cope with the changes in most of those seeking asylum. We are all, whether we want to climate, the loss of arable land, the increase in population, the be or not, involved in the African drama. We have huge grand corruption of their governments, the petty corruption of interests in, and influence on, what happens in Africa. We have their officials, the many wars, the slums and violence of the cities ties at all levels with individuals across the continent, huge (University of Texas, 2016). commercial and financial investments, employees, volunteers, The level of starvation is increasing. More food is being imported consultants, offices and embassies everywhere in Africa. As and will have to continue to be imported to cope with the needs. we seem unable to plan for future challenges, we will have to Twenty years ago Africa did not import any food; now the cope with ever more short-term reactions to the emergencies.

19 Article 3 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

A global context that militates against need more land to produce more and better food and grow biomass to build their homes and cook their food. We have the weakest not yet understood that arable land is a diminishing resource. They need energy to improve their lives and their livelihoods. Sub-Saharan Africa is less resilient and far more affected by They need education and jobs. They need political stability. global forces than many other parts of the world. Some of it They have to move because these basic requirements cannot is due to geography; the earth is warmer round the tropics. As be met in their communities. Most of us who work or have temperatures rise, those areas suffer proportionally to a greater worked in the South know that the smallholders are not those extent than more temperate climates. The land is drying more who are responsible for anthropogenic climate change! rapidly. The degradation of the soil dictates that greater Let us concentrate on the key issues: limit the damaging varieties of plants should be introduced, more intercropping, effects of climate change, increase the productivity of the land, more agroforestry mixed in with subsistence staples. The West assuage rural exodus, make appropriate energy available, calls this ‘climate-smart agriculture’. People who have always reduce inequality. Why do we seem unable to concentrate on grown the same crops in the same manner on the same soils and target such highly fundamental aims? find it difficult to improve their productivity. They do not understand what is happening. We in the West produce more studies to show what can be done; they fear witchcraft. The distortion of the debate Population is rapidly increasing. We think that the figures we have are reliable, but they are not. Most demographic studies tend to Three fundamental fallacies dominate and distort the global be based on household surveys. Yet, these do not account for discourse over food and agriculture. The first is that there is a nomadic populations, for remote settlements, for people in some global food crisis, when, in fact, there are only local shortages. city slums where enumerators fear to visit. We have little idea of Most people will switch to some other forms of food if their the real numbers of poorest (Stuart et al, 2015). The right-wing most common staple is not available. The second is that any Christian movement in the USA has pushed President Trump, in surpluses in one place can be transported to where there is a one of the first actions of his incoming administration in January shortage. This is a convenient argument for the international 2017, to abolish all subsidies to UN agencies that promote family food cartels; but food is very expensive to transport with the planning and sex education. This means that around $600 million result that only richer people are able to buy it. The third is in funding will be withdrawn from vital projects (BBC, 2017). More that poor productivity in one area can be addressed by using unwanted children will come into the world. More women will die the methods used in other parts of the globe. Not true; in attempts to self-induce abortions. The increase in size and solutions need to be very local and specific. But these three population of the big cities is out of control. More people are forced fallacies are at the base of all arguments of incredibly rich and into slums; more than one and a half billion people are now living well-resourced international grain and commodity companies in appalling conditions. The situation will deteriorate as the global and the multinational chemical corporations that have seeds, population increases. pesticides and fertilisers to sell. The three fallacies are convenient for everyone who is into A reality check agriculture as a researcher, trader, academic, even campaigner. Each of these fields allows for infinite amounts of research and Most of us are bored by the sterility of the debate. We love it study and commercial activity. In the process, they ignore when we hear that the nations of the world have signed the that, at the end of the day, what matters is not the theory but UN Paris Climate agreement to mitigate the effects of climate the application of the findings. Here, I would argue that we change by keeping global temperature rise below 2ºC – beyond all – policymakers at national and international levels, which it will be impossible to halt irreversible damage to the investors, agricultural consultants, academics, the voluntary planet. But then we learn that the agreement has been derailed development agencies and the people of good intentions – when the President of the largest economy in the world opts make some critical and mistaken assumptions. I have tried to out of the same treaty. Some read with amusement in our identify below three interlinked sets of challenges. papers that the captains of industry meet with popstars at the annual lovefest in Davos and they agree to eradicate this Different economic systems disease or the other. We also know that tobacco and beer companies do great damage in the long-term to the The economic systems of various parts of the world do not smallholders of developing countries because they use valuable respond in the same manner to problems that might appear land to produce their inputs and encourage a wasteful form of on the surface to be similar. The form of capitalism practised economic development. They might be putting cash into local in the OECD countries is different in concept and operation to economies but we have to question at what cost to local health that of the resource-rich countries of the Middle East, for and who gets the benefits of the foreign currency. example. China subscribes to yet a different form of capitalism This article is directed at people who are both sympathetic to – state capitalism – that justifies the control of the communist the plight of the smallholders and have some understanding party and might be attractive as a form of economic of the key issues. And they must ask themselves, why has this governance to other large emerging economies, including state of affairs been allowed to develop? Let me try to Indonesia and Turkey. Yet the economic needs of the countries summarise the challenges as I see them. People are becoming of Africa are different to those of the other worlds. They are hungrier because their soils are producing less food. They mainly small nations, fragile, highly heterogeneous, and often

20 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 3

poorly governed. The GDP of the whole of sub-Saharan Africa been undertaken), and the World Bank that sets the global rules is smaller than that of the UK alone (IMF, 2016a). Malawi, with of the game. But then we have to add the more powerful 18 million inhabitants, has a budget that is smaller than my commercial players – seed and fertiliser multinationals, Borough in London, which has about 250,000 people. commodity brokers, banks and speculators. They are more powerful because they are well-funded and their aims are clearly defined by their owners and their managers. Then we have to The unclear nature of the state add not only the economists, researchers, international research institutes, think tanks, but also major donors and international We make some basic misassumptions about the nature and NGOs. They all inevitably have their own interests at heart and function of the state; the nation state is not a universal reality. they all give their own tint to the debate. There is no mechanism Even in the economically advanced nations, the state functions to involve and consult local people. in different ways and fulfils different roles. Observe how differently most Americans look at the role of the state in their It is not global policies, but local applications, that will solve societies from the European perception of its functions. In the challenges. Most of our policies are formed in an incorrect societies that are highly fractured, the notion of a central contextual framework which has been created by the government that governs on behalf and for the benefit of gatekeepers and intermediaries. everyone is at best an irrelevant proposition. You start to believe and offer loyalty to your state (and its institutions) when you Aid without aim have a two-way relationship with the state; you offer loyalty and you get something back. We have been trying to sell to most The rich world claims to be aiding the South, but it is very nation states in Africa our understanding of what their politics confused as to what it means by ‘aid’ and how it should be should be about and ignored the fact that most people in Africa delivered; too many discordant voices clamour to suggest what have different loyalties. Colonialism favoured strong central needs to be done. The standard 5-10 year time-horizon (at authorities. The nations that emerged at independence most) is too short to cope with situations that have gradually continued that model. More fluid structures – perhaps along the evolved over centuries and drastically accelerated in the last Cantonal approach of Switzerland – would, perhaps, have been few decades. Aid is transient. Too much assistance and more appropriate for most of sub-Saharan Africa. involvement in Africa is being delivered on the back of approaches that expect to generate commercial returns, when Economic forces cannot trump internal many services cannot be measured in commercial terms – including water, education, and health. For a period of 20 social dynamics years, from 1986 to 2006, official aid to agriculture in Africa decreased every year, from 20 percent of the total down to 3 We have generally assumed that economic and social actions percent (World Bank, 2008). The trend has now been reversed. and reactions will operate in the same way across the world. But the wrong sort of encouragement remains in place. We They do not. Nowhere in the Arab world, for example, have still support investment in commodities for export. state institutions, political parties or the judiciary, developed Governments of the North have not helped governments of free of religious and hierarchical traditions. This is only one the South to cope with the colossal challenges of land reform, of many obvious differences of the interplay between Southern of delivering clean drinking water, and of massive education – traditional forces and the forces of modernity (as defined by all three clearly issues of such magnitude that we cannot the North). Issues of minority languages, ethnic and tribal expect poor and weak nations to cope on their own. Those traditions, the role of women in society, the strength of the should have been the priority targets of the official aid. Helping family, the demands of religion, isolation and physical to combat diseases that would disappear if there was cleaner distances, all play differently and with different degrees of force water is, to me, putting the cart before the horse. in different societies. Social structures that have been imposed from above in the past – like the forced cooperatives in Uganda under Amin or the forced collectivisation of villages under Concentration on producing the wrong Nyerere in Tanzania – led millions of farmers to ruin. crops The debate has been hijacked by the The North in the past, and China currently, have forced African countries to become more and more dependent on the export of gatekeepers a few commodities. That is one of the few ways they have to repay the huge debts that have accumulated over the last half a There are so many vested interests in the field that it is becoming century. Twenty years ago the most important producer of coffee increasingly difficult to hear the needs and concerns of the in the world was Brazil, followed by Ethiopia. Now the first is smallholders amidst the cacophony of competition among the still Brazil, but the second is Vietnam. How come? Because the intermediaries. These gatekeepers comprise complex webs of World Bank made huge loans to the country to enable it to grow interests with, at their apex, national governments (who often more coffee. But the need to earn foreign currency means that ignore their own poorest) and the intergovernmental agencies precious land is being used not to feed local people but to obtain they have created, including FAO, WFP, IFAD (which have that foreign currency. Small-scale coffee farmers at the edge of assumed that governments would carry out the life itself in Vietnam are competing against coffee farmers in recommendations and act on the innumerable studies that have Ethiopia, to the detriment of both and to the gain of our

21 Article 3 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Starbucks and Costa coffee chains. management should be encouraged, with the creation of water Yet, the IMF itself has recently warned the world that the reservoirs and irrigation canals, at village and district level. prospects for the producers of primary commodities are poor Land management, tenure and land rights (IMF, 2016b). The terms of trade are militating against them; East Africa has large lakes and yet there is little irrigation and they will earn less in the future than they are earning now. But virtually no canals. In Europe we had canals long before we had this is the same institution that 30-40 years ago, in conjunction railways. The management of land – to provide for agriculture, with the World Bank, under the terms of the Washington forests, reservoirs, canals, and cities – has been neglected. Rural Consensus, introduced the Structural Adjustment Programmes people do not have certainty of land tenure; perhaps 3-4 percent (SAPs). Governments were forced to retrench. Most of the of the entire land mass of SSA is properly documented and support systems for farmers were disbanded. Many of them had registered and most of it is for privately owned homes in the become the playthings of powerful men, highly corrupted and cities. But, as a result of the lack of property rights, there is no inefficient, but some were doing value work at the base. Now, incentive for the poorest to invest in land from which they can they do not exist at all. Governments do very little to support be dispossessed without redress. In the last 10 years there has agricultural extension services, except for export crops. The only been a phenomenal sale of land to foreign interests, often leading exception is Ethiopia, which is investing heavily in agricultural to the dispossession of some of the weakest farming extension personnel. communities (Cotula, 2013). Joseph Stiglitz, winner of the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2005, put it clearly in his Globalisation Back to first principles and its discontents; the policymakers in the North have never wanted to address the issue of land rights as it would have Most of us who are in the field of development have a natural alienated the local elites (Stiglitz, 2003). inclination to theorise about issues – we like clarity of thought Only Rwanda has been facing up to this challenge. With the help and of approach. But we also know that the challenges on the of the Tony Blair Foundation and the financial backing of DFID, a ground are somewhat different to those we would like them to comprehensive programme of land tenure has been introduced be. When I worked briefly for the World Bank in the early across the entire country (Pritchard, 2013). Anyone over 18, who 1970s, they used to issue us in the instruction folder a copy of can prove they come from a particular rural area, is entitled to their a poem that went along the lines of “… it is so sad that reality own piece of land. Local courts arbitrate on disputes. More does not fit well with theory...”. recently Zambia is attempting a similar broad land reform, but the I would argue that it is not our role to force change, but it is our results have not yet become evident. One of the consequences is duty to facilitate it. These are the areas in which changes can occur that there is little irrigation – it is estimate that less than 4 percent through joint partnerships between outsiders and local people: of the total area of Africa is irrigated. Land rights along the lines of the individual rights we have in the UK are not necessarily the Agriculture solution; there are variations of this. In France it is not unusual Agriculture generates eleven times more employment than any for the farmer to have to pay rent to several different owners of the other economic activities (World Bank, 2014). It feeds people land. What is necessary is clarity of land tenure, accompanied by and in Africa it is the main source of employment. Sub-Saharan local systems that allow for rectifying injustices. We also tend to Africa will never be able to become a substantial player in the ignore that land rights include water rights – another vital global game of industrialisation; it is the last-comer to the table. dimension in the development of SSA. But it is the only part of the world that has potentially the space Education – in the Guinea Savannah – to feed the whole world with the right policies and investment. We all – governments, voluntary The 2004 UNESCO study on African languages stated that organisations, individual shareholders – should encourage there were at least 3,300 different ones across the continent investment in these areas of the continent – estimated at 600 (UNESCO, 2004). About one-third of the children attend a million hectares, of which 400 million could be developed. primary school where they are taught in a language that is different to the one they speak in their own villages. Since the The main elements of a sane agricultural policy in Africa 1950s, we have known that a woman farmer with three years should be to diversify the range of crops through the of primary education would become a better farmer. But we introduction of local varieties, encourage local seed have not enabled African communities to become more improvements and multiplication, promote intercropping, literate. In these days when education could be delivered in planting trees, levelling the land where necessary to prevent so many different forms, from solar-powered televisions (as in run-off. Soil erosion is a common challenge that needs to be Mali since the 1980s) or by computer (in India in the last 20 tackled. Conservation agriculture should be encouraged in its years) that is an unforgivable omission. At present, the main various forms. Crop rotation should be promoted – provider of farming education by radio across Africa is a small particularly by planting leguminous species which add natural Canadian voluntary organisation. nitrogen and rejuvenate the soil. Best local seed varieties should be promoted and farmers should be encouraged to Equality exchange traditional seeds and not switch to new GM seeds. Some of the poorest across Africa are the rural farmers and the They do not have the most elementary capacity to follow the poorest among them are the women farmers. Women are the instructions, or the funds to purchase these seeds year after key element of change in agriculture; they are the mothers, year. Traditional organic methods of cultivation make better nurses, teachers, cooks and farmers. And they are ageing. use of the decreasing amount of arable land. Good water They have been given second rate treatment; education for all

22 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 3

should be a basic component of development. Without basic only the NGOs themselves. The result is that co-operation at education, in our own countries we were not able to widen our local level, with people working at the coal-face of development, own economic and social opportunities. Once you have a basic is being impeded – not facilitated. The NGOs must stand up to level of education you are able to make basic choices that lead their own governments to ensure improvements for the poorest. to more equality. Educational facilities for all should be the They must make agricultural development the centrepiece of clearest route to equality. priorities in SSA. That will create the basic momentum. It will recognise the role of the small-scale farmer, the relevance of the Energy woman in development, the need for basic education, the fight In Africa the main source of energy – which is vital to cook for land and property rights, and the development of local social what you eat as well as warming your home – is biomass. structures of support. But they also must educate the people of Dung is too valuable as a fuel to use for fertilising the soil. the North who hardly understand the depth of the challenges. Different techniques, from hydroelectric power to solar energy, could have been encouraged. Yet, very little has been done to bring energy to Africa. Foreign investors want to be able to re- References export their investment, but other players could have encouraged domestic investment. As long as this enormously Akinwumi A, 2016. Speech delivered by President Akinwumi Adesina of the important area of development is neglected, we are African Development Bank at the 7th African Agricultural Science Week and encouraging the denuding of forests, and therefore soil FARA General Assembly, held in Kigali, Rwanda, June 13, 2016. erosion, everywhere across the continent. [https://www.afdb.org/fileadmin/uploads/afdb/Documents/Generic-Documents /President_Adesina_s_Keynote_Address_at_the_Opening_Ceremony_of_the_ An agenda for localisation FARA_General_Assembly_Kigali.pdf]. Accessed February 2018. Amnesty International, 2017. Forced back to danger. Asylum-seekers We have always known that traditional societies have returned to Afghanistan. London, UK; Amnesty International. developed strategies that enable the poorest to survive. That [https://www.amnesty.org/download/Documents/ASA1168662017ENGLISH.P is how they survived. But the North, in its effort to pursue its DF]. Accessed February 2018. own agenda, has neglected local forces. We have chosen allies, BBC, 2017. US withdraws funding from United Nations Population Fund. such as national governments, that we understand because we London, UK: BBC News, 4 April [http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-us-canada- have created them in our image, but in different contexts they 39487617]. Accessed February 2018. seldom work in the anticipated way. We do not work with local Cotula L, 2013. The great African land grab?: agricultural investments and the global food system. London, UK & New York, USA: Zed Books. ISBN 978 1 forces that are more difficult to identify and might require us 78032 311 4. to rediscover solutions that existed once upon a time in our IMF, 2016a. World economic outlook, October 2016: symptoms and remedies. own societies, such as funeral societies, savings and credit Washington, DC: International Monetary Fund. [https://www.imf.org/en unions, and cooperative traditions. We need to support /Publications/WEO/Issues/2016/12/31/Subdued-Demand-Symptoms-and- cooperative operations and social institutions in the areas of Remedies]. Accessed February 2018. production, marketing, savings, rather than trying to develop IMF, 2016b. Regional economic outlook: sub-Saharan Africa. Washington, commercial enterprises that will seldom benefit the weaker DC: International Monetary Fund. [https://www.imf.org/en/Publications/ members of society. REO/SSA/Issues/2017/02/01/Multispeed-Growth]. Accessed February 2018. Pritchard MF, 2013. Land, power and peace: tenure formalization, agricultural reform, and livelihood insecurity in rural Rwanda. Land use policy, 30(1), An agenda for change 186-196. Stiglitz J, 2003. Globalization and its discontents. London, UK: Penguin At present everyone is advocating more of the same. It cannot Books. ISBN 0-713-99664-1. work. The scale of the challenge is growing exponentially and Stuart E, Samman E, Avis W, Berliner T, 2015. The data revolution: finding drastic change is required. I would argue that we need formal the missing millions. Research Report 3, Overseas Development Institute, UK. partnerships to be created between governments of the North [https://www.odi.org/sites/odi.org.uk/files/odi-assets/publications-opinion- files/9604.pdf] Accessed February 2018. and governments of the South, under which, for example, the UK helps Malawi, Uganda and Tanzania to achieve specific UNESCO, 2004. Education for all: the quality imperative. Paris France: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. [http://unesdoc. targets over a 25-year term in land reform, access to water for unesco.org/images/0013/001373/137333e.pdf]. Accessed February 2018. all, and universal primary education. Within that framework University of Texas, 2016. CCAPS final program report on climate, conflict agreement, different voluntary development agencies should and governance in Africa. The Robert S Strauss Center’s program on CCAPS. be encouraged to become involved at local level, in cooperation Texas, USA: University of Texas at Austin. 14 November. with local partners – be they planning, agricultural, [https://www.strausscenter.org/ccaps-news/ccaps-final-program-report-on- educational or traditional authorities. The NGOs would have climate-conflict-and-governance-in-africa.html]. Accessed February 2018. to agree to disband their national ‘embassies’ in favour of World Bank, 2008. World development report: agriculture for development. locally managed initiatives. National offices of international Washington, DC, USA: The World Bank. 365p.[https://siteresources.worldbank NGOs in the South have become obstacles in the effort to reach .org/INTWDR2008/Resources/WDR_00_book.pdf]. Accessed January 2008. the poor. They have created a new class of privileged World Bank, 2014. Agriculture: sector results profile. Washington, DC, USA: intermediaries and have become the new gatekeepers. Each The World Bank [http://www.worldbank.org/en/results/2013/04/15/agriculture- agency works with a silo mentality. results-profile]. Accessed February 2018. Benny’s book: The famine next door. Africa is burning. The North is Only the community of voluntary development can generate the watching, was published by Ethical Events Ltd on 20th March 2018. It is change that is required. At present they have become reviewed by Jim Ellis-Jones under Bookstack in this issue. independent fiefdoms that do not serve local communities but

23 News from the Field 3 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

News from the Field

Women farmers till the land to protect agricultural heritage and change ways of living

The 15th Indian Census noted a 24 percent increase in the number of women working as agricultural labourers in the decade from 2001-2011. At 61.6 million, it is more than half (58 percent) of the 98 million women who are employed in agriculture in the country. The same period saw a 10 percent decline in the number of female farmers as main cultivators and a 20 percent decrease in the number of marginal female farmers (Lahariya & Sethi, 2015). The trend reflects the distress in Indian agriculture dominated by small and marginal farms or subsistence farmers. Changes in patterns of agricultural production and trade, which favour large landholdings, mechanised production, and cash crops have weakened the production of subsistence food crops, often grown by women. Defying these trends is a small but growing movement of women farmers in Ramanagara district, in Karnataka State of Figure 1. Community seed bank (CSB) unit, Veerayanadoddi, Kankapura Business South India. Here, groups of 10-15 women farmers, owning Acceleration Unit (BAU), Karnataka, India. anywhere between 0.5-1.5 acres of land, come together to conserve and produce indigenous seeds, cultivate and process grains, and produce organic inputs. In 2006, the Genetic Resource, Ecology, Energy and Nutrition (GREEN) Foundation promoted Janadhanya, an association of women farmers, to protect agrobiodiversity, and promote organic farming and market linkages for farmer produce to advance sustainable rural livelihoods. Representatives from a cluster of five to seven villages are nominated to be the Board of Directors of Janadhanya. They make decisions, monitor and evaluate the activities of the groups and the federation, and ensure that members receive information and services. The association also facilitates linkages between government agricultural departments and other institutions, builds capacities of Community Resource Persons to support the village communities in livelihoods, and quality assures the Figure 2. Sumathi and Suma with an oil mill unit, Kankpura BAU, Karnataka, farmer produce through a decentralised organic farming India. certification, the Participatory Guarantee System. From Janadhanya’s wide network of 3,000 women, across 17 village local government. She talks about how women often villages, 694 have formed smaller Producer Groups (PGs). The have to travel 25 km to the neighbouring villages to find work: 21 groups operate community seed banks (CSBs), process “In this village, women are meant to work in agriculture as grains, and produce organic inputs and vegetable seeds, mill labourers. If it is not available here, then we have to go to edible oil, make vermicompost and vermiwash, and cattle feed other villages. We leave from home at 8 am and get back by (Figures 1 and 2). The activities of these groups are funded 7 pm. We are paid INR 200. It is difficult for us to finish all through member contributions, low interest loans from the our household work, and then travel out to earn. Getting Janadhanya Farmer Producer Company Limited (JFPCL), and work is also dependent on demand. We don’t find it all the revenue from sale of the produce. time.” Ratnamma, from Gollaradoddi village learnt farming after her Providing on- and off-farm economy-based employment for marriage, to a marginal farmer, when she was just 14 years old. women is a significant achievement of these groups: “If the She works alongside her husband in his half acre plot growing mill gets regular orders, then we get work. And we don’t just Ragi or finger millet. Today, she is the leader of the producer involve the members but also other women. We involve other group, Siridhanya Millet Processing Unit and a member of the women when the demand is large and needs to be delivered

24 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Field 3

in a short time. Many women go to find work in the garment outside. This oil mill has brought me out of my home. I meet factories in the cities. But my desire is for women in the other women and am not being dependent on anyone for my village to get work here,” says Ratnamma. The flour mill gives pocket money. I don’t have to explain myself anymore to step additional work opportunities for members and non-members out of my house.” of the group, and helps to keep their income flow steady. It In August 2016, Vrutti, a non-profit Centre for Sustainable reduces the drudgery of women’s daily labour as they choose Livelihoods started supporting this network of women farmers. their share of work based on their convenience. Grain Janadhanya benefits from Vrutti’s three-fold model that aims processing at small-scale ensures food and nutrition security to build wealthy, resilient and responsible smallholder farmers. for the village community, as it allows farmers and other Farmers receive a package of services including capacity families to get small quantities for self-consumption. building and mentoring support, business planning for The indigenous seed banks and seed production groups reduce enterprises and diversification, access to key inputs and the farmers’ dependence on hybrid seeds, which cannot be services, access to capital and financial inclusion, local and replanted after the harvest, thereby increasing the financial corporate market linkages and personal growth planning. burden of smallholder farmers. Janadhanya supports the A specific example is that of the organic millets and processed women farmers to set-up seed repositories and trains them on grains, marketed under the Janadhanya brand, that are gaining seed selection, storage and seed bank management. The access to domestic markets through corporate linkages. The women gather and store seeds, conduct germination tests at producers are able to tap into the dietary transition and the bank and preserve traditional varieties in situ by planting preferences towards healthy eating among urban consumers. them in test plots and in their own kitchen gardens. In the last year, the groups have mobilised an amount of 8.07 The 38 farmers from three seed production groups have million INR and sold produce worth 16.74 million INR conserved 249 varieties of 39 crops including rice, millets, oil including organic seeds, inputs and food, cattle feed and silk seeds, nuts and vegetables. In finger millet alone, a popular worm rearing trays or chandrike. crop in the region due to its low cost of production and The Janadhanya model leverages local food systems to sustain drought tolerance, there are 120 local varieties conserved. inclusive rural development. Women emerge as custodians of Local farmers, even outside of the Jandhanya network, can get agricultural biodiversity influencing food production and these seeds on the condition that they allot a portion of their consumption patterns, improving rural livelihoods and land to generate new seeds and return twice the amount that incomes, and building ecosystem resilience. In Kalavathi’s they borrowed from the group. words: “There is something special about women coming The seed banks (SBs) and production groups develop women together. Our concern is not just money. We respect and as resource persons, who promote the adoption of traditional respond to each other’s feelings and needs. We step out of agricultural practices and organic farming methods, and our house to conserve seeds, are proud to serve healthy food monitor the farming practices of seed-contributing members and have our voices heard within and outside our villages.” to ensure the quality of seeds. Women become critical agents of change in these local communities by strengthening livelihoods, ensuring a steady supply of quality seeds for Reference cultivation and increasing the availability and access to pesticide-free food for consumption. The positive bias in Lahariya K, Sethi AS, 2015. India’s quiet women farmers slip into crisis. favour of growing subsistence crops impacts nutrition security IndiaSpend, March 7, 2015. and family health. Kalavathi, a board member of the JFPCL and leader of the Priya Pillai (with additional reporting by Vandana Uttare Community Seed Bank unit in Veerayanadoddi village, Raj and Shiva Kumar) shares her pride, “Everywhere, we see men as farmers and Priya Pillai is a Senior Technical Specialist, Gender Core forming groups. But here in this village, it’s us women who Group in Swasti. Vandana Raj is the manager of the The farm. We are role models. Other farmers learn from us.” Project Management Unit, and Shiva Kumar is the head effectiveness of these Community Seed Banks led the of the Business Acceleration Unit, Kanakpura, at Vrutti. Government of Karnataka to establish such SBs all through Swasti and Vrutti are part of the Catalyst Group of the state. organisations working to empower poor, marginalised Women farmers in Jandhanya’s network villages are no longer and vulnerable communities. just low-wage labourers or confined to their homes. They are farmers and producers leading the revival and adoption of locally sustainable agricultural practices. They make decisions, their opinions are heard and they create employment for other women in their communities. “People in our community visit our oil mill, see the machines and our business and say that we have done what even men did not think about doing”, says Sumathi, the Director of JFPCL and leader of the Sri Maruthi Oil Processing unit. Suma, her neighbour and member of her group, adds: “For years, if I left home, my husband and family would ask me where I was going as I did not have any work

25 Article 4 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Invasive apple snails (Pomacea spp) in Thailand: current status and integrated management

Ratcha Chaichana and Ravindra C Joshi

Ratcha Chaichana is currently Assistant Professor at the Department of Environmental Technology and Management, Faculty of Environment, Kasetsart University, Bangkok, Thailand. [email protected], [email protected]

Ravindra C Joshi is currently TAA Pacific Coordinator; Technical Advisor on golden apple snail to DELTAMED (Asociación de Deltas del Mediterráneo); SAFE-Network Pacific Islands Coordinator; Visiting Professor of Agriculture with Pampanga State Agricultural University, Philippines; and Visiting Adjunct Professor at the University of the South Pacific, Fiji. [email protected], [email protected]

Abstract (Mochida,1991; Halwart & Bartley, 2006; Hayes et al, 2008). Between 1982 and 1984, P. canaliculata was imported from This article provides insights into the invasion of invasive apple Japan, Taiwan and the Philippines to Thailand for the first time snails (Pomacea spp) and rice cultivation in Thailand. The first (Keawjam & Upatham, 1990; Eimumpai et al, 2013). Keawjam known introduction of Pomacea spp took place in 1982 as an & Upatham (1990) considered the Pomacea spp in Thailand intentional introduction. Since then their population has to have been imported by the aquarium trade due to its increased swiftly and spread across Thailand. Pomacea spp beautiful yellow shells, but it is also probable that they were feed on plants and have become a major pest of rice in introduced for food, as elsewhere in South East Asia (Cowie, Thailand. These invasive apple snails may also influence other 1997). However, consumption of introduced apple snails by fauna due to competition for food and space, and predation, Thai people was not popular and therefore the snail farming in wetland systems. To reduce their impacts in Thailand, businesses were closed down. After business failure, and due several physical, chemical and biological management options to its rapid reproduction, the introduced apple snails started have been tested and used. In particular, the use of to appear in water bodies (Figure 1A and B), due to both biodegradable plant extracts has been promoted. Research and intentional and accidental introductions. collaboration among infested countries, particularly in South East Asia, is important for the identification of practical solutions and management options of invasive apple snails.

History of introduction and spread

It is believed that there are three species of apple snail ( spp) in Thailand: , Pomacea Pomacea canaliculata Pomacea Figure 1. Invasive apple snail infestation (A) and their egg masses (B) on insularum and Pomacea sp (Eimumpai et al, 2013). vegetation along the canal, Bangkok, Thailand (Photo: Ratcha According to Hayes et al (2008), in Asia four species of Chaichana). Pomacea were found (P. canaliculata, P. insularum, P. scalaris The first report of exotic invasive apple snail in rice paddies was and P. diffusa) but the most widespread species were P. in 1987 (five years after its introduction), in an experimental canaliculata and P. insularum (P. maculata). P. insularum is rice field of Bangkhen Rice Research Station, Department of now a junior synonym of P. maculata (Hayes et al, 2012). P. Agriculture, Bangkok. One year after its appearance, their canaliculata and P. maculata have commonly been referred to populations had increased swiftly and sufficiently to destroy as golden apple snails, or GAS, often without clarifying the whole rice experimental field (16 ha) (Eimumpai et al, specifically which species or both, was involved, or indeed 2013). In 1988, according to the Office of Agriculture, the simply assuming it to be Pomacea canaliculata. For clarity, invasive apple snails were found in rice fields near Bangkok in this article avoids this ambiguous common name designation. village 7, Bang Plee District, Samut Prakan Province, and then Native to South America, apple snails, Pomacea spp, family spread further to Krathum Baen District, Samut Sakorn Ampullariidae, were introduced to Asia in about 1980 Province. One of the major pathways that caused quick spread

26 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 4

of these snails at that time was flooding. In 1990, after to mature faster than transplanted crops. The average flooding, they invaded and impacted eight provinces covering household rice farm is 2.4 ha, with an average productivity of an area of 3,694 ha. Their spread was most accelerated in between 2.5 t ha-1 with low levels of technology, to 3.1 t ha-1 1995, the severe flooding in that year leading them to disperse with higher levels of technology. In Thailand a total of 23.32 to 30 more provinces (64,623 ha). By 2000, populations of million tons of rice was produced from May to September invasive apple snails had spread to more than 60 provinces 2016. Chanchoungchote (2014) interviewed 15 farmers using (887,680 ha) becoming one of the most serious pests to direct seeded rice in Surin Province (northeastern Thailand). agriculture, especially wetland rice (Figure 2). Severely The study found net average profits from rice per farm per infested areas (Figure 3) are: central (Suphan Buri, Pathum cropping season to be USD 825 for Jasmine rice, USD 476 for Thani Provinces), northern (Sukhothai, Uttaradit and plain rice and USD 353 for sticky rice (Table 1). Kamphaeng Phet Provinces) and north eastern (Khon Kaen Province) regions of Thailand (Eimumpai et al, 2013). Impact of invasive apple snails

The invasion of apple snails has had an impact upon rice cultivation and production, as well as ecosystem biodiversity and functions. Moreover, their spread has led famers to use chemical substances in an effort to limit their impact.

Figure 2. Invasive apple snails in the rice crop, central part of Thailand (Photo: Ratcha Chaichana). Rice farming in Thailand

Thai rice cultivation and exporting generates huge economic income. In 2015, Thailand exported 9,795,763 tons of rice, valued at USD 4,613 million (Thai Rice Exporter Association, 2015). The total area of rice cultivation is approximately 9,008,000 ha. The largest area planted to rice is in the north eastern part (63.10 percent), followed by northern (21.93 percent), central (14.50 percent) and southern parts (0.47 percent) (Department of Rice, 2017). There are two rice crops per year: the main (first) rice cropping season is from May to October, and the off-season (second) rice cropping is from January to April. Three major kinds of rice are produced, namely: Thai Jasmine rice, Sticky rice and Plain rice. Farmers use two main cropping methods (transplanting and direct- seeding). Even though the transplanting method produces higher yields, most farmers in Thailand use the direct-seeding method to save on labour costs. Direct-seeded crops also tend Figure 3. Map of Thai Provinces infested with apple snails (Eimumpai et al, 2013).

Table 1. Cost and benefit of rice production (ha-1) in Thailand

Costs (USD ha-1) Net Total Yield Revenue profit Type of rice Direct Direct Production cost (ha-1) (USD) (USD) materials labour expenses Jasmine rice1 140 146 279 565 2.7 1,390 825 Sticky rice2 - - - 639 2.2 992 353 Plain rice3 - - - 632 5.0 1,108 476 Sources: 1Chanchoungchote (2014), 2Thongdeerawisuraket et al, (2016), and 3Chinrum (nd) - = No data available, Currency exchange rate: 33 Thai Baht (THB) = 1 United States Dollar (USD).

27 Article 4 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

The spread of apple snails is continuing: in 2017, in Buriram snails as omnivores in aquatic ecosystems. Province (north eastern Thailand) alone, they invaded 2,400 ha of paddy fields out of 48,000 ha (according to local media). Large areas are infested by apple snail invasions (Figure 3), Control of invasive apple snail obliging farmers to replant rice. In the rice fields where they In Thailand synthetic chemicals are commonly applied by rice are dominant, farmers can collect more than 60 kg of snails in farmers to control invasive apple snails. According to a single hectare. In central Thailand, farmers in Uthaithani Dokmaihom (nd), there are three groups of chemicals that Province are also facing problems from snail invasions; the et al farmers use against invasive apple snails (Table 2). Copper infested areas extend to over 160 ha. Farmers used chemicals sulphate pentahydrate (blue powder) is dissolved in water and and also hand labour to remove snails continuously, but still sprayed throughout the plot at a rate of 6.25 kg ha-1. The other could not control them to non-damaging levels. This led to two are molluscicides (Niclosamide-olamine and increased costs of rice cultivation – the economic loss to Thai metaldehyde), which are readily available from pesticide agriculture from apple snail invasion is around USD 3,000 retailers in various kinds of formulations such as granule, million per year (Vidthayanon, 2006). suspension concentration, and wetable powder. The field The impact of invasive apple snail on ecosystems is also of efficacy of various formulations of the two molluscicides has concern. Juvenile and adult invasive apple snails consume vast been evaluated by Chanyaped et al (2009). They are imported amounts of biomass causing a reduction of plant abundance from China and Switzerland (Table 3). In 2016 alone, the total and diversity (Carlsson & Bronmark, 2006; Fang et al, 2010). amount of molluscicides imported into Thailand was 206,000 They may also influence native faunal diversity. In Thailand, kg, with a monetary value of USD 319,161 (Thailand Pesticide native apple snails (Pila scutata) are disappearing from Alert Network, 2016). ecosystems and this may be linked to the invasion by the To reduce the amount of synthetic chemical used, and to avoid invasive apple snail in a shared habitat for either food, space, adverse effects on human health, non-target organisms and predation and greater adaptability to environmental stresses the environment, plant extracts such as tea seed cake (Chaichana & Sumpan, 2014, 2015). Invasive apple snails are ( ) and derris roots ( ) are in fact omnivorous and may also impact other small animals Camellia sinensis Derris elliptica recommended as alternatives. These biodegradable plant such as frogs. A report from the Thailand Nature Explorer extracts contain active ingredients such as saponins that are (2010) presents digital images as evidence of invasive apple harmful to invasive apple snails. Tea seed cake can be either snails feeding on frog spawn. Further investigations are mixed with water and applied to the whole plot or mixed with needed to fully understand the different roles of invasive apple

Table 2. Chemicals used to control invasive apple snails by farmers in Thailand. Chemical name Commercial name Recommended dose Price (USD kg-1) Copper sulphate Chun See 6.25 kg ha-1 2.30 Pentahydrate

Metaldehyde Deadmeal-5, 3.125 kg ha-1 2.58 Arount metaldehyde 6, Letgo

Niclosamide- Neeraka, Casza 250 g ha-1 21 olamine

Tea Seed Cake, 18.75 kg ha-1 0.78 Saponin Kark Cha, Sap Po Kyo-One

Plant Extracts N-X-TRA n/a 11.81

Source: Websites of commercial suppliers and personal communications.

Table 3. Pesticides imported annually for control of invasive apple snail, Thailand, 2016.

Active ingredient Concentration Formulation Country of Quantity Value (ai) (%) origin (kg) (USD) Metaldehyde 3.5 GR China 7,000 8,826 5 China 186,000 225,713 98 Technical Switzerland 8,000 44,292

Niclosamide- 83.1 WP China 5,000 40,330 olamine

Source: Department of Agriculture (2016). GR = granules; WP = wetable powder

28 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 4

rice grains before planting. Other plant extracts that have knowledge- and experience-sharing as well as technology transfer. proved to be effective as molluscicides under laboratory test In particular, further research (impact and eradication) and conditions in Thailand are: Cassia fistula, Jatropha curcas, capacity-building in terms of human resource development and Samanea saman, Hyptis suaveolens, Camellia oleifera, technology transfer and development are still needed. Keeping Syzygium gratum, Tamarindus indica, Duranta repens, populations of invasive apple snail in check is still critical in order Ammonnia baccifera, Sapindus emerginatus and Azadirachta to limit damage to agriculture and ecosystems. indica (Laohajinda et al, 1988; Chanyaped et al, 1996). Pesticides are usually applied once, at the seedling stage, when References the water level is lower than 5 cm. This is consistent with (Carvalho de Brito & Joshi, 2003) stating that 13-day-old Carvalho de Brito F, Joshi RC, 2003. Golden apple snail Pomacea canaliculata: transplanted seedlings, or direct-seeded rice, are more prone a review on invasion, dispersion and control. Outlook on Pest Management, to damage by invasive apple snails. Endosulfan 35% is not 27, 157-162. recommended and has been banned since 2003 due to its Carlsson N, Bronmark C. 2006. Size-dependent effects of an invasive toxicity and strong negative effects on aquatic organisms and herbivores snail (Pomacea canaliculata) on macrophytes and periphyton in the environment. The cost of molluscicide use to control Asian wetlands. Freshwater Biology, 51, 695-704. invasive apple snail is about USD 120 ha-1 or approximately 20 Chaichana R, Sumpan T, 2014. The potential impacts of the exotic snail Pomacea canaliculata on Thai native snails Pila scutata. Science Asia, 40, 11-15. percent of the total production cost. Chaichana R, Sumpan T, 2015. Environmental tolerance of invasive golden Physical removal of invasive apple snails by hand is another apple snails (Pomacea canaliculata, (Lamarck, 1822)) and Thai native apple means of control. Farmers collect them from their field and snails (Pila scutata, (Mousson, 1848)). Tropical Ecology, 56(3), 347-355. expose them to the sun until they die. However, in areas of Chanchoungchote W, 2014. Comparison of cost and return on Hom Mali 105 high infestation, this method may not be practical as it is time- rice cultivation between scattering and scattering with transplanting methods consuming and incurs a high labour cost. Farmers also use of farmers in Samrongtarb district, Surin province, Pathum Thani, Thailand. Rajamangala University of Technology, MBA thesis (in Thai). bamboo posts to attract female invasive apple snails to lay eggs, Chanyaped C, Seungsonthiporn S, Ardchawakom T, 1996. Test of plant extracts and then the egg masses can be easily removed. In addition, for prevention and control of golden apple snails and impact on aquatic animals. the use of fine-mesh net to filter juvenile invasive apple snails Research Report of Zoological Agriculture, Office of Insect and Zoology, while pumping water into the field can help to remove them. Department of Agriculture, Bangkok, Thailand. 264-265 (in Thai). Biological control of invasive apple snail has become more and Chanyaped C, Promkerd P, Suesa-ard K, Nookarn P, Rintaruk D, 2009. Efficacy test on niclosamide and metaldehyde in various formulations against golden more important. In particular duck and Asian openbill apple snail, Pomacea sp. Annual Report of Department of Agriculture, (Anastomus oscitans) are effective control agents as they feed Bangkok. 104-117 (in Thai). directly on invasive apple snails (Figure 4A and B). Asian Chinrum A, 2011. Economic production and marketing of sticky rice of upper openbill prefer snails smaller than 3.1 cm since the width of North Eastern part of Thailand 2010/2011. Bureau of Agriculture Economy their beak is between 2.3 and 3.1 cm (Eimumpai et al, 2013). Research. Office of Agriculture Economy, Bangkok, Thailand. http://www.oae.go.th/ewtadmin/ewt/oae_baer/ewt_news.php?nid=3764&filen In Thailand, Asian openbill are abundant during January to ame=index (in Thai) Accessed on 15/09/2017. May and October to December. They consume large amounts Cowie RH, 1997. International workshop on ecology and management of the of snails during mating and after hatching to feed their chicks. golden apple snail in rice production in Asia, participation report. 16-19 June, Piscivorous fishes such as climbing perch (Anabas 1997. Phitsanulok, Thailand, 15 pp. testudineus) and Malayan leaf-fish (Pristolepis fasciata) can Department of Agriculture, 2016. Import of hazardous materials for also predate on juveniles of invasive apple snail (size 6-13 cm) agriculture in 2016. http://www.doa.go.th/ard/FileUpload/hazzard at a rate of 20 snails day-1 (Freshwater Research and /4.2/Profile%20Import%20of%20Hazardous%20(B.E.%20%202559).pdf. Development Center, 2017). Accessed on 3/10/2017. Department of Rice, 2017. Rice situation in 2016/2017 round 1. http://www.ricethailand.go.th/web/home/images/brps/text2559/15092559/150 92559.pdf (in Thai). Accessed on 15/09/2017. Dokmaihom S, Phayakphan S, Sriniwet S, Plaikaew A, (nd). Golden apple snail. Protection and eradication. Department of Agriculture. 4pp (in Thai). Eimumpai K, Chaipakdee M, Chaipakdee W, Sonsa, T, 2013. Information about Asian openbill in Thailand. Wildlife Research Group, Office of Wildlife Conservation, Department of National Park, Wildlife and Plant Conservation, Bangkok, Thailand. 98 pp (in Thai). Fang L, Wong PK, Lin L, Lan C, Qiu J, 2010. Impact of invasive apple snails Figure 4. Avian predators of invasive apple snail in the rice fields, Thailand. in Hong Kong on wetland macrophytes, nutrients, phytoplankton and (A) Asian openbill (Photo: Eimumpai et al, 2013); and (B) ducks (Photo: filamentous algae. Freshwater Biology 55, 1991-204. Ratcha Chaichana). Freshwater Research and Development Center, 2017. Cherry snails. http://www.fisheries.go.th/if-suratthani/web2/ (in Thai). Accessed on 4/10/2017. Conclusions Halwart M, Bartley DM, 2006. International mechanisms for the control and responsible use of alien species in aquatic ecosystems, with special reference Invasive apple snails have spread across Thailand and other to the golden apple snail. In: Joshi RC, Sebastian LS, eds. Global advances in ecology and management of golden apple snails, 2006. Philippine Rice countries in Southeast Asia with negative impacts. Long-term Research Institute, Nueva Ecija, pp 449-458. control and containment is needed to reduce ecological and Hayes KA, Joshi RC, Thiengo SC, Cowie RH, 2008. Out of South America: economic losses. International collaboration among infested multiple origins of non-native apple snails in Asia. Diversity and Distributions, countries can lead to effective pest management due to 14, 701-712.

29 Article 4 / News from the Field 4 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Hayes KA, Cowie RH, Thiengo SC, Strong EE, 2012. Comparing apples with Thailand Pesticide Alert Network, 2016. Summary of imported hazardous apples: clarifying the identities of two highly invasive Neotropical materials for agriculture 2016. http://www.thaipan.org/sites/ Ampullariidae (Caenogastropoda). Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society, default/files/file_info/pesticide_doc34.pdf (in Thai). Accessed on 3/10/2017. 166, 723-753. Thai Rice Exporter Association, 2015. News. http://www.thairice Keawjam RS, Upatham ES, 1990. Shell-morphology, reproductive anatomy exporters.or.th/Press%20release/2016/TREA%20Press%20Release%20-%20January and genetic patterns of three species of apple snails of the Genus Pomacea in %202016%20-%2029012016.pdf (in Thai). Accessed on 15/09/2017. Thailand. 2, 45-57. Journal of Medical and Applied Malacology, Thongdeerawisuraket P, Thenchan N, Reungrungsee J, 2016. Comparative Laohajinda N, Duangsawat S, Sitthi S, 1988. South American golden apple analysis between the production cost and return on rice production of farmer snail (Pomacea canaliculata), the new pest of aquatic plants. Proceedings of group in Kanchanaburi province. Rajamangala University of Technology, 26th Annual Conference of Kasetsart University. 3-5 February, 1988. Bangkok, Rattanakosin (in Thai). Thailand. 108-115 (in Thai). Vidthayanon C, 2006. The worst invasive aquatic species of Thailand. In: Mochida, O, 1991. Spread of freshwater Pomacea snails (Pilidae Mollusca) from Report of a meeting on invasive species. Office of Natural Resources and Argentina to Asia. Micronesica Supplement 3, 51-62. Environmental Policy and Planning, Ministry of Environment and Natural Resource. 31 August 2006, Bangkok, pp 67-74 (in Thai). Office of District Agricultural Extension, 2017. Average cost, average production and revenue of industrial crop of Lopburi Province. http://banmi.lopburi.doae.go.th/tornton.htm (in Thai). Thailand Nature Explorer, 2010. Pond frog. http://www.siamensis.org/ node/2302 (in Thai). Accessed on 15/09/2017.

News from the Field

Women farmers till the land to protect agricultural heritage and change ways of living Introduction Irrigation management systems in

In recent decades, the concept of participation became an Mendoza Province, centre-west important, even a required, element of development policy for Argentina natural resource management – the intention is to ensure more equitable and more sustainable resource conservation The irrigation management sector of Mendoza Province provides and development by involving resource users at all levels of an example of how even in a technically robust and well- decision-making in planning and management (Cornwall, established water management system, gender-based constraints 2003). However, at the same time, participatory governance to participation and decision-making by women persist. This of natural resources has been criticised for failing to improve case illustrates opportunities to address gender inequalities. resource management, and actually worsening sustainability and inequality problems. Institutions that are ‘participatory’ In recent years, Mendoza Province has experienced a water by definition can produce ‘participatory exclusions’ due to crisis precipitated by a prolonged period of drought. structural factors including rules of entry, social rules and Agriculture in this arid region, mostly production of wine, fruit perceptions, and personal and household characteristics and vegetables, is only possible under irrigation. The structure (Agarwal, 2001). While access to water is essential for all, of the farming sector is dominated by small and medium size, many rural women seem to be affected disproportionately by mostly family-unit producers (60 percent of irrigated farms unequal participation in decisions concerning the use and have 4 hectares or less of cultivated land). Profitability of management of irrigation systems. In many irrigated areas of agriculture has decreased due to economic and political the world, women are poorly represented in water user factors, exacerbating the effects of drought. In response, the associations (WUAs), especially in influential positions (Yami, Water Resource Department in charge has implemented a 2013; Udas, 2014; Buisson et al, 2017). This imbalance in series of changes aimed at strengthening the resilience of the participation has practical implications, which become water management system, with focus on the decentralisation particularly apparent in the small-scale irrigation sector. The of management and devolution of decision-making. diverse water needs of men and women seem to be not appropriately considered. This relates to crop and livestock Constraints to the participation of production (type of crops, market integration, family household needs) but also to the planning and maintenance women in irrigation management of irrigation infrastructure. Additionally, women are less frequent recipients of extension services related to technical The participation of farmers is regulated by a management aspects of irrigation and water management. system codified over a century ago. The almost 100,000 water

30 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Field 4

right holders of the province are organised in 142 non- in charge in 52 percent of the cases, and sharing government WUAs with financial autonomy and legal capacity responsibilities with husbands or male kin in 37 percent of to enforce surface water policy. Only two of them are led by cases. Men carried exclusive responsibility for these tasks in female farmers. Although the central water administration only 11 percent of the cases. While men were responsible for employs relatively more women (about 20 percent), they certain other domestic tasks, such as small maintenance occupy primarily administrative positions; few hold repairs (84 percent), these do not occur regularly and present engineering positions, and only in early 2017, was the first much smaller time demands. woman appointed to a senior management position. A Women today have relatively lower participation in the number of gender differences in agriculture may explain this small-scale agricultural sector of Mendoza, partly extremely low participation of women in the management of explained by the very low profitability of farming. Rural the irrigation sector: women in Mendoza recognise having worked much more in Even when holding formal water rights, many women do farming in the past. Reasons are evident: the current low not assert those rights; local cultural practices still favour profitability of farming (together with the high cost of living) men who dominate the usufruct and decision-making over obliges men and women to search for jobs outside the home. the economic value of water. In Mendoza, the Provincial The annual irrigation water fee has become too high for the Water Law (sanctioned in 1884) stipulates that formal water current profit margins of small-scale agriculture. Also, the rights are inherent to land rights. Water rights can only be required labour contribution to irrigation infrastructure realised through participation in WUAs. An analysis of the maintenance usually involves extra labour costs for women, registered names of 2,123 land titles, correlated with since such tasks as canal cleaning require rather heavy physical agricultural water rights in nine WUAs, showed that an average work, so women hire labour for these duties. Many women of 31 percent of the titles were registered in the name of now favour less physically demanding jobs with more women. Results from a survey conducted on a sample of male economic security, although it seems to be more challenging and female farmers from those nine WUAs showed that only for rural women to find appropriate job opportunities off-farm. 22 percent of the land titles were in women’s names alone, and Cultural practices and social norms still prevent many 6 percent in joint titles. However, a land title in the name of a women from undertaking activities related to irrigation woman does not necessarily mean that she is the one who is system management. Interviewees indicated that it is farming and/or making the agricultural decisions. In the farms usually harder for women to access leading positions and to owned by women alone or jointly with a man, many of the see their knowledge and capacity recognised in the irrigation farming decisions were made by husbands or male relatives, sector. This is not exceptional. Evidence from other locations as indicated in 53 percent of the cases; in 36 percent of the also show that women claiming participation in the male cases, women shared decisions with a household male; and dominated sector of water resource governance often have to only in 11 percent of those cases of women owning land, were confront culturally rooted ideologies and power structures, farming decisions made only by women. often at a personal cost (Vera Delgado, 2005 in Peru; Giarracca Traditional gender roles in agriculture still define an and Del Pozo, 2005 in Argentina). Male dominance in the invisible role for women, who tend to be engaged in engineering and irrigation professions may partly explain this usually unpaid employment in agriculture. Irrigation as a gender segregation (Zwarteveen, 2011). Despite a much male domain may be partly explained by the traditional gender higher awareness of gender-based constraints for rural women division of labour in agriculture, with men being in charge of in Mendoza today – in particular those related to domestic the more physically demanding jobs and those distant from violence – male (and some female) water resource the households, and women responsible for lighter duties close management officials and leaders of WUAs generally seem to to the home (Momsen, 2010). Interviews showed that in have a poor understanding of causes and consequences of households where the man is considered the farm head, the structural gender inequalities in the sector. Neither the woman identifies herself as a helper. It was reported that Provincial Agricultural Ministry and its research and extension women were less involved in land preparation (10 percent of institutions, nor the Provincial Water Office, have specific the cases) and application of pesticides (10 percent). Women gender equality policy frameworks in place. were found performing irrigation tasks in 23 percent of the These constraints notwithstanding, many rural women with cases (usually controlling proper distribution of irrigation primary family responsibilities, relatively less mobility than water along the field crop by opening and closing furrows by men, and lacking education and resources for entering other moving soil with a hoe). Other farming tasks showed higher economic sectors, still find in agriculture a main source of levels of female involvement, eg sowing and planting (32 employment. For example, farming has provided female percent), weeding (29 percent) and harvesting (53 percent). farmers in intensive vegetable production areas of Mendoza As for off-farm activities, in 28 percent of the cases women the opportunity to work close to their homes, securing a were involved in produce marketing. In 48 percent of the decent income and expanding their farming knowledge cases, women were responsible for farm administration and through training support received by the local agricultural paperwork. In domestic chores, women were exclusively extension agency (Figure 1). Another group of interviewed responsible for cooking and cleaning in 69 percent of the cases; women has recently developed their own wine production line in the remainder of cases they stated having the help of a male (Figure 2) in an effort to develop an independent livelihood household member. In households with responsibilities for diversification alternative to the very low returns realised in the care of children and elders, women were found exclusively grape production.

31 News from the Field 4 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

support small-scale agriculture, are essential steps to reach this goal. While this call may have been voiced before, its explicit resonance in development programmes remains low. Finally, gender integration policies, at present weak and scattered in the agricultural sector, and non-existent in the water management sector, are needed in Mendoza. Within the traditionally male-dominated water institutions, there is a clear need to educate water management officials to recognise the capacity of women in technical and management positions in water management. Raising the number of women employed (for example through establishing a female quota), while also addressing their capacity development needs, and involving specific expertise in this kind of process, can also help to Figure 1. Research session with women producers of fresh vegetables to supply collectively develop ways to increase the number and the city of Mendoza (May, 2017). effectiveness of women participating in irrigation management.

Acknowledgements

The research project described was partly supported by the Water Resource Department of Mendoza Province (Departamento General de Irrigación) within the study: The role of water users’ associations in the economic development of Mendoza. Conditions and opportunities in decentralisation and devolution (2017).

References

Agarwal B, 2001. Participatory exclusions, community forestry, and gender: Figure 2. Launch of the ‘Wine of Women’ during a local farmer's market, An analysis for South Asia and a conceptual framework. World Development, Mendoza (October, 2017). 29, 1623-1648. Buisson MC, Curnow J, Naz F, 2017. The gender gap between water management and water users: evidence from Southwest Bangladesh. South Conclusions Asian Water Studies, 5, 28-41. Cornwall A, 2003. Whose voices? Whose choices? Reflections on gender and Through their participation in this study, women could access participatory development. World Development, 31, 1325-1342. more information regarding the functioning of the WUAs and Giarracca N, Del Pozo N, 2005. La lucha por los derechos del agua en the irrigation management sector. As a result, many of them Tucumán. Transnacionales y mujeres en la protesta social. Alianza Estudio, indicated a growing interest in attending the WUA meetings and 58. Universidad de Buenos Aires. seemed more assertive about voicing their claims and issues with Momsen JH, 2010. Gender and development. 2nd ed. London: Routledge. water. These issues included improper water distribution, water Udas PB, 2014. Gendered participation in water management in Nepal: robbery and bribery and corruption in water distribution. While Discourses, policies and practices in the irrigation and drinking water sectors. Wageningen, Netherlands: Wageningen University, PhD thesis. these problems are not pervasive, according to field reports and observations they appeared to be disproportionally affecting Vera Delgado J, 2005. Irrigation management, the participatory approach, and equity in Andean community. In: Bennett V, Dávila-Poblete S, Rico N, eds. poorer (less powerful) small-scale farmers, particularly women. Opposing currents: The politics of water and gender in Latin America. These examples suggest the value of improving the Pittsburgh: University of Pittsburgh Press, 109-122. participation of women in the irrigation management sector. Yami M, 2013. Sustaining participation in irrigation systems of Ethiopia: What A number of emerging opportunities are promising. WUAs, have we learned about water user associations? Water Policy, 15, 961-984. with clear rules and regulations, but with flexibility to Zwarteveen M, 2011. Questioning Masculinities in Water. Economic and Political Weekly, 18, XLVI. accommodate the needs of different irrigation groups, including women, seem to better secure water for its members and reduce participation inequalities. These associations Laura Imburgia should be enabled to provide support to farmers in improved Laura is a PhD researcher in livelihoods, gender and agricultural and irrigation practices and market information. water resource management at the School of Agriculture, Policy and Development, University of Reading. She There is a need for cultural change in order to allow more holds a MSc degree in International Agricultural women in irrigation management, not only in quantity but Development from UC Davis. She has worked as also in terms of meaningful participation. Improving the technical advisor in rural development and agriculture income level of women in farming, strengthening their for over 17 years. technical knowledge, improving their access to information and extension services, and devising policies to explicitly [email protected]

32 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 5

No-nonsense surveys: aspects of survey design which affect results

Miranda Mortlock

Dr Miranda Mortlock’s research interests have been dryland crops and drought in Botswana, Queensland and the USA. Miranda previously lectured at the University of Botswana. In Queensland Government, she was a senior statistician in the Queensland Treasury; and she managed the Queensland Household survey for a couple of years in the Queensland Office of Economic and Statistical Research. Most recently, she was a Biometry lecturer at the University of Queensland. Miranda has an online statistical support website, called BeST for Africa (Bespoke eStyle Statistical Training), found at yieldingresults.org, for postgraduate students and researchers. [email protected]

Abstract practical collection of data. A few common design-related issues can produce survey Critique of comments from survey estimates that may be misleading, wrong or controversial under closer examination. Using surveys in research and plans or reports development for the purpose of distribution of resources from government coffers requires an awareness of survey design 1 “One in five responded to the survey, the results showed principles. I reference the design issues impacting on evidence most people ….…!” which include concealed groupings, response rates, 2 “No one has done this before, I plan to survey 30 people demographic adjustments and stratification. Other aspects ………..” discussed are questionnaire design, question development for complex issues and the need to anticipate the full range of 3 “I have got 50 questions written and I want to add another potential answers. Online survey tools are handy for selected 10 which would be interesting …” situations with a few caveats. I note the value of aligning your 4 “Question 102: Do you own or rent your cropping and study to other studies for comparison purposes. Innovations pasture land…………?” in survey methodology are briefly highlighted because complex The item 1 above is a low response rate (one in five responded) random samples are often used in research in health, so we cannot say anything about most people from the results. economics and agricultural development. Statements from surveys that have been correctly designed should state the sampled population and the response rate. Introduction Item 2 is a number that someone may have heard is a big enough sample for a survey. A sample size calculation needs Surveys are deployed for research or policy development to to be carried out to inform the survey sampling scheme. Item collect quantitative data in order to produce an estimate and 3 is the tendency to overdo the number of questions and shows its reliability. Data provides quantitative evidence for use in a lack of focus in planning, and can easily result in partial public sector resource allocation or to understand aspects of completed surveys as respondents get weary. Lastly item 4 is farming communities in development projects. I review a poorly thought out question, the results of which cannot be simple theory and some pitfalls to avoid. The importance of analysed. The reason is that this question needs to be evidence obtained from surveys is highlighted, as is the need rewritten as two questions and the range of responses need to to employ survey design principles relevant to the situation. cover all options. One question is on land ownership and the From a representative sample we can estimate an unbiased second is on land use. Piloting – trying out the questions with mean or unbiased proportion with its associated measure of local experts – will allow a full range of answers to be available. reliability. Estimates are commonly produced with a 95 Piloting early on will save time at the analysis phase. Response percent confidence interval. The unbiased aspect refers to the rates should be reported so that the reader is aware of the non- fact that the method allows a true estimate of the value of response bias if response rate is low or biased for some reason. interest. The prerequisite for this is to select a sample by using a method that gives every unit a known probability of being selected, which is in fact a random sample. Hence, each A few terms to understand household (in a household study), each business (in a business study) or each person (where a person is the unit of interest) Unit of study has a known chance (probability) of being chosen and this We first need to define our unit of study (eg a person, a avoids bias (Scheaffer et al, 2012). We need to apply statistical household, or a business). We need to know the spatial and or methods when we collect research data and this paper reminds temporal context of our interest, which in research may us of some survey design principles and relates them to the involve an area such as a region, or in an education setting

33 Article 5 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

may be a sample of schools or a sample of individual students units in the population and the actual study population will within a school. In a simple random sample each unit has a be a little different, in general a little smaller. This is because known probability of being selected. In a cluster or multi-level some responses cannot be collected if the household is not in survey there are two or more levels of units (eg students in a the frame, does not have a phone, has moved away or a school; or students within a class, classes within a school). A respondent may have died. In an educational setting, there sample is selected from each level at a known probability of may be students who enrolled late, those who have dropped selection. If there are spatial clusters, or repeat survey waves over out, moved or are suspended. In a rural setting, there may be time, they are more complex to analyse due to the feature of auto households without phones, or the list may be out-of-date. In correlation within a person or within a cluster. Basically, a person some countries we may find families have a town address and will have similarities within a series of questions over time a rural address, as the family cultivate or herd cattle away from compared to variations between different individuals. their urban home for some parts of the year (eg in Botswana). The currency of the sampling frame is important so the frame Survey frames needs to be as up-to-date (current) as possible. A census is an official count of persons in a state and is conducted on a regular five- or ten-yearly basis. It is primarily Sample size calculations for knowing a country’s population, and data is available from For a particular measurement within a survey, a sample size The Census Bureau (2017). A statistical survey is a designed calculation is carried out; an example is given in Ryan (2017). study that costs considerably less to administer than a census. In a survey of many variables, it is common to take the Surveys may have a particular function such as an omnibus measurement about which you are most interested. The survey (taking in a few questions from several government equation to calculate the sample size incorporates three things: departments) or a household survey to record employment or (i) the variation of the measurement within units, (ii) effect household expenditure or to focus on a neighbourhood for a size of the estimate and (iii) the number required to achieve particular need (such as renewal). An agricultural this in a group. The power of the study can be calculated if development household (farm) survey may focus on a two groups are to be compared. There are useful sample size particular crop or enterprise (eg cassava cultivation as a cash calculators online, such as HyLown Consulting LLC (2018), crop or goat farming). We have to consider how to select a however, this topic is not described in detail in this article. random sample (each unit having a known chance of being Statistical and practical considerations (such as cost) are selected). Therefore we need a list of units, or a map, as a balanced in real life situations. In general, if the sample is frame. This list or map is known as the sample frame. In a small, and/or there is high variability, there will be a large household survey this may be a list of names with postal standard error. addresses including a phone (land line). In development Response rate projects we may use a map, or an address list, or a mobile phone list. In Mozambique, farmers were selected using a The response rate relates to the number of respondents who mobile phone list as the frame (personal communication with completed the survey divided by the number on the frame who Nascimento Salomao Nhantumbo, PhD student). received the survey. The non-response can vary for a diverse number of reasons (Table 1). Often, not all questionnaires are Populations completed; this is due to refusals, non-contactable, ‘return-to- There is often a difference between the study population and sender’, spoiled mail and several other conditions. These the target population. The target population consists of all the details, should be in a technical report presented as a report

Table 1. A selection on non-response in various types of survey.

Table 2. Type of non-response and effect on data.

34 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 5

appendix. The higher the non-response rate, the less reliable results on the actual population so there is no bias due to and the less representative are the results. We know nothing education or age, etc. In Queensland, examples of surveys are about non-responders, so we may in fact know nothing about Community Life Surveys for reporting on Community 60 percent of our target population! In a postal survey, we may Renewal populations, and Queensland Government Household get RTS (return to sender), which are returned mail surveys, surveys (Queensland Government Statistician’s Office, 2015). and these are removed from the sampling frame (Table 2). In the former, the frame was an address list for a prescribed However in interviews, if the head of household was not at renewal area, and in a later, state-wide survey the frame was a home, this situation would be handled differently. In most list of phone numbers stratified by the eleven Statistical cases two or three follow-up visits are costed into the protocol Divisions. International surveys for agriculture are conducted or survey plan. Likewise in a telephone survey or a postal on a ten-year cycle (FAO, 2017). The relationship between survey a follow up or reminder may be used to assist in surveys and agricultural census, and the use of the data, are attaining as high a response rate as possible. outlined in FAO (2012). Multi-level structure In a study in Ghana, farms were randomly selected within randomly selected regions. The characteristics of farmers It is vital that the statistical analysis reflects the design adopting certified maize varieties were analysed using logistic structure of the survey. Hierarchical designs, also known as regression. Household size and farm size were the only factors multi-level designs, are often used to obtain survey data. These that significantly influenced farmers’ decision to use certified have a complex structure in which data are randomly sampled maize seed (Etwire at al, 2016). A study of goat production in from two or more levels, or strata. For example, households Zambia used two-stage sampling, with random samples taken may be sampled within a selection of regions. Such design in two regions (Chipasha , 2017). structures must be taken into consideration in the analysis. et al Such complex random samples generally require a larger sample size, however, they are often the most sensible Planning a statistical survey approach in practice. If the incorrect analysis, which ignores the design structure, is undertaken, there is a risk of the results “What is the key information you are hoping to get from this being affected by Simpson’s paradox. In Simpson’s paradox, survey?” effects observed at the individual level may be reversed, weaker or stronger, or even not exist, at the higher, population level. “Why are you asking this/these questions?” Simpson’s paradox can occur when the assumption is made “What is already known about the farmers in this region? that inferences made at the higher level apply to the individual “Have you timed this interview?” level (Sedgwick, 2015). These complex hierarchical or multi- level designs are analysed using multi-level linear models, also “Will you need to train the enumerator to understand this known as random effects models, to produce correct estimates question?” for standard errors and variance components (Goldstein, “What sections do you hope to report on with the data you 2011). collect?” Administrative data The above are questions relating to survey design. They Interestingly, some people are averse to using surveys as they remind us of the key aspects of survey planning. Firstly, we perceive surveys are expensive. Many ‘non-statisticians’ may need to be clear on our reason for conducting the survey, believe that administrative data are available and valid as a which involves knowing what we need to find out and why, source instead of collecting survey data! Administrative data and how our population is structured. Do we need to have a are collected for clerical purposes. Problems commonly multi-level design or to collect data over time? What data do occurring in administrative datasets include missing data, data we already have about the population, from census, or recent quality, repeats, non-consistency (eg inadequate coding of surveys? We also have to cost and think of the practicalities of location) and poor coverage of the population of interest. the mode of survey we are planning to do (the mode of the survey refers to mail, interview and telephone types of The value of survey evidence contact). Structure of the survey units In development projects, the opinions and experience of The simplest design is a simple random sample (Figure 1a). participants, and the economic outcomes from interventions, However we need to account for any repeating of the sample are important in project evaluation. The best way to collect over time (Figure 1c) or the use of samples within clusters primary data is to ask a sample of people in order to get (Figure 1b). Tests are available to assist in complex analysis current, relevant data in the context of the project. A survey of survey data with the emphasis of incorporating the multi- can be very cost-effective and efficient, and government level components where necessary, and in particular when we omnibus surveys are very useful for data collection. An are interested in them (Goldstein, 2011 and Bartolucci et al, omnibus survey includes a few questions known as 2016). ‘demographics’ which include age, gender, employment and education, etc. These demographic profiles allow us to assess whether the survey respondents contain a similar range of people as the actual population. If there are too many of one group among the respondents, it is possible to standardise the

35 Article 5 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

to font, the question order and the length of survey are important. When is a survey not a survey? Self- selection on a website Figure 1. Survey design (a) simple random sample, (b) sampling within clusters (c) a response for individuals over 3 time periods (t1, t2 and t3). The We now have online surveys and new ways of collecting data population is shown as a circle, randomly selected individuals are dots, and (via apps) from organisations or from the general public. This non selected members of the population are not shown. may be useful in a context where we wish to collect data on Avoiding bias select groups, such as dog breeders, professional associations, and employee organisations or within a workplace. There are The best thing you can do is to collect a representative sample, online tools such as Survey Monkey or Lime Survey. They particularly when we know very little about the characteristics have limitations: for instance, in the number of questions you of the target population. A simple random sample ensures may ask, the ability to ask a question within a question (sub- there is no selection bias. If you decided to take a convenience set questions), and response numbers may be limited. sample (of your mates at a conference) these would be over- Stratification by characteristics of the population (such as size represented by like-minded people, potentially with a particular of business – large, medium and small) may not be possible. view and from an educated and professional subset. Likewise A questionnaire can be produced with the software from taking a sample of a youth basketball team may not be the best Google Docs, which is able to provide ‘answers’ or feedback to way of estimating the height of 18-20 year old males! the respondents. In some circumstances, it may be useful to Sample size for a specified reliability give information to your respondents in return for providing some focused answers to questions. Simple, cost-effective, This involves defining the margin of error. Typically, a margin online surveys may be very useful, but I have drawn attention of error of around 3 percent for an estimated percentage is to a number of limitations. acceptable. Thus the reliability of the estimate ranges from +/- 3 percent. The margin of error is affected by sample size, There are also limitations in other aspects. Websites are visited declining as sample size increases. However, as sample size by people and so unless the person is on a sampling frame increases to over 500 units within a group there is little further and has been sent the link and only allowed to send one gain in accuracy from increasing the sample size. In cases response then these ‘so-called’ surveys have a potential to be where there are finite and smaller total populations, it is still quite biased. We may assume we have collected 100 answers useful to calculate the sample size for the appropriate estimate in a survey and then discover only 15 individuals actually of error. If a survey is for descriptive purposes, for example to answered, in which case these data are meaningless. characterise a region, a smaller than optimal statistical sample In tertiary education, courses are evaluated by students who size may be used due to cost. Descriptive statistics typically voluntarily respond to online course surveys. Typically, students reported include totals, proportions, means, ranges and only respond if they are disgruntled or particularly satisfied. standard errors of the estimates. Since lectures are not compulsory, students can respond even if Question construction and aligning our result to other they do not attend! Attendance at face-to-face lectures is surveys dropping over time. Response rates in Australian universities had fallen from 40 percent in 2007 to 30 percent in 2010 When planning questions, we can be informed from questions in (Alderman et al, 2012). Chalmers (2011) has also raised concerns other surveys. Using similar age groups or demographic factors about low response rates in student surveys in Australia. These we can align our results with recent surveys in similar topics. We scores are often biased, unrepresentative, and can be used for do not have to re-invent questions; however, it is important to decisions that do not relate to their original purpose. have an objective question (eg a survey on the use of alcohol should ask about levels of consumption without using subjective Human resource departments like to use in-house surveys for terms). Opinion surveys should allow a range of responses from employment satisfaction. One issue is that the data are stored negative to positive and also allow a neutral position. The on the server of the software (often in the USA), and may lead respondents should be allowed to refuse a question. We can code to privacy and data problems if outside the jurisdiction of the answers to have NA as not applicable or NA as not available (as business. Also, it is relatively easy to tell who has answered as in refused). It may be useful to have refused (R), not applicable the small number of respondents’ answers, their (NA) and don’t know (DK). There should be a response for each demographics, and level of employment, are collected. There situation. This reflects the nature of the data in a more useful and is no privacy or anonymity, unless the survey is collected subtle way. Pre-testing of questions is a good way to find possible independently, and response rates will be low if it is not responses for closed questions. independently administered. Care must be taken to distinguish between answers where multiple responses (to parts of a question) are allowed, as the Innovations to improve estimates totals will obviously sum to over 100 percent; and care is also required in reporting and plotting data. Schaeffer et al (2012) Gelman & Hennig (2017) discuss sampling from non-random remind us that a questionnaire should be carefully constructed samples by using computer-intensive methods such as to encourage participation by respondents. Hence attention resampling, and Bayesian modelling. I quote: “External

36 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 5

information can come in many forms, including [http://www.fao.org/docrep/015/i2680e/i2680e.pdf]. Accessed 20 February recommendations on what variables to adjust for non- 2018. representativeness of a survey or imbalance in an experiment FAO, 2017. World Food Programme for the Census of Agriculture 2010, or observational study”. The cost of sampling may be reduced Volume 1, Programme, concepts and definitions. [http://www.fao.org/3/a- i4913e.pdf]. Accessed 25 September 2017. if data are collected from mobile phones or digital apps in Gelman A. Hennig C, 2017. Beyond subjective and objective in statistics. technology or machinery. Currently the basic theory of Journal of the Royal Statistical Society, Series A, 180, Part 4, 1-31. sampling and its use in analysis cannot be improved upon. In [https://rss.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/rssa.12276]. Accessed 25 the future, we look forward to methodological innovations to September 2017. help us to cope with the increasingly large amounts of data Goldstein H, 2011. Multi-level Statistical Models. 4th edition. Wiley. available from non-traditional survey modes. We should HyLown Consulting LLC, 2018. Business Analytics, Statistical Solutions, Data always be aware of the nature of a particular study, its Intelligence. Atlanta, GA. http://powerandsamplesize.com/About/ Accessed 23 motivation, funding and especially its methodology. March 2018. Lohr (2011) has described methods for using multiple frames Lohr S, 2011. Alternative survey sample designs: sampling with multiple and multiple survey modes, and she states: “Multiple frame overlapping frames. Survey Methodology, 37(2), 197-213. surveys, in which independent samples are drawn from separate Queensland Government Statistician’s Office, 2015. Assessing survey data. frames, can be used to help meet some of these challenges”. She Queensland Treasury, Queensland, Australia.[http://www.qgso.qld.gov.au /about-statistics/analytical-methods/assessing-survey-data.pdf]. Accessed 28 describes several situations where the use of multiple frames may Sept 2017. reduce survey costs and improve efficiency of coverage for Ryan L, 2017. National poll vs sample survey: how to know what we really particular situations. Consequently the analysis is more complex, think on marriage equality. The Conversation. [https://theconversation and some aspects require more research. .com/national-poll-vs-sample-survey-how-to-know-what-we-really-think-on- marriage-equality-82450]. Accessed 25 Sept 2017. Scheaffer RL, Mendenhall, W, Ott RL, Gerow KG, 2012. Elementary survey Conclusions sampling. 7th edition. Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning. USA. Sedgwick P, 2015. Understanding the ecological fallacy. BMJ 2015; 351 doi: In this article, I aimed to provide a short introduction to the https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.h4773. use of the survey technique. In many ways, whether you are The Census Bureau, 2017. US Census Bureau site. working within development or not, the same principles apply. [https://www.census.gov/en.html]. Accessed 20 February 2018. The principles of survey design apply statistically in all research situations. Monitoring and evaluation can use surveys for impact or evaluation per se, although, this still requires a representative sample for the research question you are asking. Without careful thought to survey design, we may end up with inappropriate or biased designs which produce misleading data, waste resources and, more importantly, demonstrate a lack of technical integrity. Surveys are seen as a quick way of collecting information. I have not touched on the ethics or the legal aspects of surveys, but they are also relevant aspects of which to be aware. Many of the populations in which we are interested are increasingly suffering from survey fatigue. It is therefore imperative that, in order to collect data for quality and respected research outputs, we must attend to survey design, and use the surveys judiciously. References

Alderman A, Towers S, Bannah S, 2012. Student feedback systems in higher education: a focused literature review and environmental scan, Quality in Higher Education, 18(3), 261-280, DOI: 10.1080/13538322.2012.730714 Bartolucci F, Bacci S, Gnaldi M, 2016. Statistical analysis of questionnaires. CRC Press. Chalmers D, 2011. Student feedback in the Australian national and university context. In: Nair, CS, Mertova P, eds. Student Feedback: The cornerstone to an effective quality assurance system in higher education. Elsevier: Oxford, Chandos, 81-95. Chipasha H, Ariyawardana A, Mortlock M, 2017. Smallholder goat farmers’ market participation in Choma District, Zambia. African Journal of Food, Agriculture, Nutrition and Development, 17(1), 11691-11708. Etwire E, Ariyawardana A, Mortlock M, 2016. Seed delivery systems and farm characteristics influencing the improved seed uptake by smallholders in Northern Ghana. Sustainable Agriculture Research 5(2), 27-40. FAO, 2012. Guidelines for linking population and housing censuses with agricultural censuses with selected country practices. FAO

37 IAR News Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

International Agricultural Research News

exhibiting important features such as resistance to pests and Improving livelihoods diseases, high polyphenol content, ability to tolerate extreme environmental conditions, and short stature. They also exhibit a huge array of different pod shapes and sizes, and come in and safeguarding colours ranging from deep purple to bright yellow. Some even have small spherical green pods that could be mistaken for chocolate tomatillos. In collaboration with the Department of Agriculture of the United States (USDA), the collection is being DNA fingerprinted with the aim of identifying materials that are Introduction duplicates or that do not correspond to the original type. The international agricultural research centres are probably The CGIAR Centre Bioversity International has also had a best known for their work on improving the productivity, longstanding interest in cacao. In 1981, for example, quality and resilience of crops and farming systems that feed Bioversity, then called the International Board for Plant the developing world. Less well-known is their work to Genetic Resources (IBPGR), set-up the International Cacao improve the livelihoods of smallholders though research Working Group to oversee the conservation of cacao genetic focussed on non-food commodities. One such product diversity. In 2006, Bioversity, together with a large number of receiving significant research attention by several international partners, established CacaoNet, a global network of institutions centres is cocoa, the basis of the world’s favourite interested in cacao diversity (see http://www.cacaonet.org/). confectionery, chocolate. Among its many achievements, CacaoNet has developed a Statistics from the International Cocoa Organisation (ICO) Global strategy for the conservation and use of cacao genetic indicate that almost all cocoa is grown in developing countries resources, as the foundation for a sustainable cocoa economy of tropical Africa, Asia and Latin America. More than 75 (Laliberté B, compiler, Bioversity International, 2012). percent of global output comes from West Africa, and around Bioversity and CacaoNet also work with the University of 90 percent of world production comes from farms of less than Reading to maintain the International Cocoa Germplasm five hectares. According to the World Cocoa Foundation Database, which currently contains data on some 29,500 cacao (WCF), there are 5-6 million cocoa farmers worldwide and clones and lists the accessions maintained in more than 40 some 40-50 million people depend on cocoa for their living. major cacao genebanks (http://www.icgd.rdg.ac.uk/index.php). Cacao diversity Breeding cacao in Central America Cocoa is produced from the seeds of the cacao tree, Despite the extensive genetic diversity maintained in Theobroma cacao, a small evergreen that is native to Central international and national collections, the majority of the and South America. The Amazon basin is especially rich in cultivated cocoa crop is harvested from relatively few clones. cacao diversity and is home to many related wild Theobroma This narrow on-farm genetic base renders the crop highly and Herrania species. It is thus perhaps not surprising that vulnerable to pests, diseases and environmental threats. both of the world’s international collections of cacao are Recognising this, in 1996 CATIE initiated a genetic improvement maintained in the Americas; at the Cocoa Research Unit of the programme that has successfully bred a number of superior University of the West Indies (CRU/UWI), Trinidad, and at the cacao clones. Six of these are now being grown widely across Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Center Central America: CATIE-R1, CATIE-R4, CATIE-R6, CC-187, ICS- (CATIE) in Costa Rica. Both institutions maintain and provide 95 T1 and PMCT-58. All produce high yields of good quality unrestricted access to their collections under agreements beans and have tolerance to frosty pod rot disease caused by the signed with the International Treaty for Plant Genetic fungus Moniliophthora (previously Monilia) roreri, one of the Resources for Food and Agriculture (ITPGRFA). Since the most serious threats to cocoa production. In extensive trials, the seeds of Theobroma and Herrania are ‘recalcitrant’, ie are six clones produced on average three times more cocoa than unable to withstand desiccation and storage at sub-zero standard clones, and two of them, CATIE-R4 and CATIE-R6, were temperatures as can most ‘orthodox’ seeds, they are conserved selected among the best, top quality cocoas in the Paris Salon mainly as collections of living trees growing in the field. du Chocolat in 2009. In an 11-year trial, CATIE-R6 experienced CATIE’s International Cocoa Collection was established in only 5 percent frosty pod rot infection rate, compared to 75 Turrialba, Costa Rica, in 1944 as part of the strategy of the Inter- percent for the control variety. American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA) to With climate change already hitting coffee production in Central promote the conservation and distribution of germplasm of America, many coffee growers with farms below about 1,200 valuable tropical crops. Today the collection contains more than masl are switching out of coffee and into cocoa. The clones 1,200 clones of cacao, coming largely from tropical America. It developed by CATIE are playing an important role in this shift. includes samples of eight other Theobroma species and seven Development agencies such as Catholic Relief Services, Lutheran species of Herrania, the genus most closely related to World Relief and VECO Mesoamerica are providing substantial Theobroma. The collection is highly diverse, with many clones support for the spread of cocoa production, regarding the crop

38 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) IAR News

as an appropriate response to climate change and a useful vehicle from 2010 to 2020. for reducing poverty in the region. The project is developing and promoting improved production Combatting climate change in Ghana packages that include the selection and supply of improved Climate change is also projected to dramatically alter the clones and planting materials, more effective pest and disease landscape of cocoa farming in Ghana – currently the world’s management practices, better agronomic and soil fertility second largest producer after Côte d’Ivoire. Regions of the systems, and greater crop diversification. One major country that produce a significant share of cocoa today, like innovation introduced by the project is the grafting of Sunyani in the west of the country, are likely to become budwood from an improved clone onto the trunk or ‘chupon’ unsuitable for cocoa production by 2050 as a result of rising of a mature, unimproved tree. Scientists have been able to temperatures and changing rainfall patterns. show that this technique, coupled with regular pruning and the application of fertiliser, can result in 3-4 times more cocoa While new, more resilient clones will undoubtedly be part of per tree, just three years after grafting. the longer-term solution, replacing existing clones, even if suitable new ones were available now, would take at least 20 The project has established a network of Cocoa Village Centres. years. The search is thus on for effective answers that can be Owned and managed by young entrepreneurs, these small implemented more quickly. businesses are now delivering high-quality, improved planting material, agricultural inputs and training to local cocoa Responding to this challenge, the CGIAR’s Climate Change, farmers. By 2020, it is hoped that 10,000 farmers will have Agriculture and Food Security Programme (CCAFS), has access to services such as these. For more information see: worked with various partners to develop a project entitled http://www.worldagroforestry.org/downloads/Publications/PDF Mainstreaming Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA) practices in S/BL16023.pdf. cocoa production in Ghana. The project brings together the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the New Directors General for CIFOR and IWMI International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Recent months have seen new Directors General take up their Rainforest Alliance, Root Capital and the Sustainable Food Lab. appointments at both the Centre for International Forestry It seeks to assess the climate change exposure of various cocoa Research (CIFOR) in Bogor, Indonesia, and WorldFish in systems across Ghana and, together with key actors from the Penang, Malaysia. Ghanaian cocoa sector, develop locally relevant adaptation Dr Robert Nasi became Director General of CIFOR in November strategies. The overall aim is to help to ensure Ghana’s cocoa 2017. He is not new to CIFOR, having collaborated and worked crop thrives in spite of climate change and even contributes with the organisation for more than 20 years, most recently as to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Deputy Director General for Research. He is a French national Following field visits to cocoa-producing communities, and with a PhD in ecology from the University of Paris-Sud Orsay. discussions with local leaders and residents, different packages He has more than 30 years of experience in Africa, Asia and the of climate-smart practices have been formulated, taking into Pacific, undertaking research in ecology, botany, biometrics, account local climate predictions. Some farmers, for example, tropical forest management, and silviculture. He has authored may need to plant more shade trees to provide necessary cover or co-authored more than 300 scientific publications. for the cacao plants, while others may have no other choice Dr Gareth Johnstone, formerly the Country Director of but to switch to other crops. The work going forward will Myanmar for WorldFish, began his new role as the institute’s involve refining and testing these packages and promoting Director General on 1 January 2018. He brings to the position them in line with standards set by the Sustainable Agriculture more than 25 years’ experience in natural resource Network. By adhering to these standards, cocoa farmers can management with an emphasis on livelihoods, food and receive the famous green frog seal, a certification that enables nutrition security, small-scale fisheries and aquaculture. He them to command higher prices for their produce. has worked for, among others, the European Union, FAO, Revitalising Côte d’Ivoire’s cocoa sector UNDP and WWF. A UK national, Dr Johnstone has lived and The welfare of some 6 million people in Côte d’Ivoire, including worked in many countries including Cambodia, Indonesia, 800,000 farmers, depends on the cocoa industry. Although Mozambique, Myanmar, Sudan, Tanzania and Zambia. He overall production has risen significantly since 2000 – from holds a BSc in Zoology from the University of Sheffield, an MSc 1.2 million tonnes to 1.8 million tonnes – most farmers have in Environment Assessment and Evaluation from the London experienced declining yields and incomes, and many cocoa- School of Economics and Political Science, and a PhD from growing communities suffer from high levels of poverty and King’s College, London. malnutrition. Ageing trees, soil degradation, increased pest and disease pressures and a changing climate are all taking Geoff Hawtin their toll. Recognising the challenges, the World Agroforestry Geoff has served as Deputy Director General of the Centre (ICRAF), in collaboration with Ivorian institutions and International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry the confectionery manufacturer Mars Incorporated, is Areas (ICARDA) in Syria; Director General of the implementing a project entitled Vision for Change which aims International Plant Genetics Resources Institute (IPGRI) to help revitalise the cocoa sector. Mars Incorporated, (now Bioversity International) in Italy; and Director concerned about the global supply of the raw material and keen General of the International Centre for Tropical to establish sustainable production systems, is providing Agriculture (CIAT) in Colombia. He is currently a US$50 million to support the project over a ten-year period member of the CGIAR System Management Board.

39 Article 6 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Building on gender dynamics in household gardens to reduce malnutrition in Tanzania

Ralph Roothaert and Pepijn Schreinemachers

Ralph Roothaert works for the World Vegetable Centre in Arusha, Tanzania, and leads the Centre’s Flagship Programme – Healthy Diets. Ralph has worked in Africa for 21 years and in Southeast Asia for 3 years. He started as a development worker with the Voluntary Service Overseas in Nigeria, then worked as an agricultural scientist with the CGIAR (ICRAF in Kenya, CIAT in the Philippines, and ILRI in Ethiopia), before joining Farm Africa in Kenya, and Oxfam GB in Tanzania. [email protected]

Pepijn Schreinemachers is Flagship Programme Leader – Enabling Impact at the World Vegetable Centre and is based in Bangkok, Thailand. He coordinates the Centre’s work on scaling approaches, monitoring tools, knowledge management, and impact evaluation. Previously, he worked for the University of Hohenheim and was stationed in Thailand. He holds a PhD in Agricultural Economics from the University of Bonn and an MSc in Development Studies from Wageningen University.

Abstract might also contribute to women’s empowerment (Bushamuka et al, 2005; Patalagsa et al, 2015). These two international Low consumption of vegetables contributes to stunting and NGOs together with the Horticultural Research and Training anaemia among young children in East Africa. Household Institute (HORTI-Tengeru) are collaborating to scale household garden interventions can increase production and garden interventions to about 12,000 rural households in consumption of vegetables. This paper reviews gender aspects Manyara Region and Unguja Island in Zanzibar, United of recently completed household garden projects by the World Republic of Tanzania (Figure 1). The United States Agency for Vegetable Centre in Tanzania. Men and women were observed International Development (USAID) has funded the project for to apply different criteria for ranking their vegetable a period of 4 years from 2014-2018. preferences and consequently preferred different vegetables. Pre-intervention data on selling and buying vegetables showed that households preferred selling vegetables and then used the money to buy other kinds of vegetables and other goods. Household garden interventions need to be gender-sensitive because it is women who are largely in charge of them as well as food preparation, but the success of the intervention also depends on men’s support for this activity.

Introduction

In East Africa, average levels of vegetable consumption are quite low at only 59 g per capita per day (FAO, 2007) against a globally recommended amount of 200 g (WHO/FAO, 2003). Low vegetable consumption, and consequently low intake of the micronutrients these contain, in combination with high Figure 1. A women’s group in Kiteto District, in Tanzania, evaluating their levels of human disease, are important causes of malnutrition household garden. in East Africa where 42 percent of pre-school children are The intervention builds on a well-tested household garden stunted and 69 percent are anaemic (WHO, 2017). approach developed by the World Vegetable Centre, which has The experience of the World Vegetable Centre and other three complementary components: training in nutrition and international non-governmental organisations (NGOs), such health, training in garden production, and provision of support as Hellen Keller International, shows that well-designed systems (World Vegetable Centre, 2016). In Tanzania, the household garden interventions can rapidly increase the intervention particularly emphasises the use of traditional production and home consumption of vegetables among poor African vegetables such as amaranth, African nightshade, rural households (Olney et al, 2013, 2015; Schreinemachers spider plant, cowpea leaves, jute mallow and pumpkin leaves. et al, 2016). Other studies have shown that such interventions These vegetables are popular locally, are generally high in

40 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 6

micronutrient content (particularly the dark green leafy types), women the most important criteria were “seed availability and have a low incidence of pests and disease, and are relatively access”, “amount of disease/need for input”, “grows in local tolerant to climate stress. climate”, and “easiness to cook”. During project implementation Gender aspects are very important in household garden it was also observed that children preferred non-bitter varieties of interventions because women are usually in charge of traditional African vegetables such as amaranths and nightshades. managing these gardens. Hence the success of the project to increase home vegetable production and consumption largely Gender-sensitive intervention depends on decisions made by women. Yet, there are other factors that create challenges for women including their low approach literacy levels that impact on their self-confidence, and their limited decision-making powers both inside and outside the To address some of the gender-related challenges to increased household. More broadly, women are reported to have more vegetable production and consumption, the project started limited access to land, agricultural extension services, with village-level sensitisation meetings with men and women. agricultural inputs, and financial services than men These meetings involved discussions about malnutrition, (Slavcheska, 2015). healthy diets, and the nutritive value of traditional vegetables, and the value of household gardens for addressing malnutrition. Next, community-based male and female trainers were selected from each village to help disseminate good gardening practices using demonstration gardens for hands-on practice in establishing vegetable nurseries, preparing raised seed beds, managing pests, compost making and establishing keyhole gardens (a keyhole garden holds moisture and nutrients due to an active compost pile placed in the centre of a round bed). Field days, included cooking demonstrations, were held with both men and women at a time convenient for most women. The project developed several new recipes to enhance the taste and nutritive value of the vegetables grown while avoiding overcooking. The new recipes proved popular with men and women alike and the favourable response of men encouraged women to experiment Figure 2. A mixed farmer group in Babati District, in Tanzania, meets to more with the new cooking methods. discuss issues regarding access to resources. Women and men prefer different Consuming or selling? vegetables Farm households in Tanzania tend to prioritise selling over home consumption as vegetables can be an important source To gain more understanding of differences between men and of cash income (Figure 3). This was confirmed by the project women in household decision-making around vegetables, baseline study, which found that 90 percent of vegetables Ambrose (2016) carried out a study with project households in produced were sold and only 7 percent were consumed within Babati district of Tanzania (Figure 2). She interviewed four the household. Sales generated about US$ 20 over a one- groups of men and four groups of women to analyse why women month period. Women played an active role in the marketing choose to grow certain traditional African vegetables, how they and appeared to control the revenue. It is commonly grow and use them, and whether and in what way the preferences understood that they are more likely than men to spend this of men and women differ. Table 1 shows the vegetable preferences income on the general well-being of the household. The of men and women. The study noted differences in the criteria baseline study also showed that the average household spent used for this ranking. For men, “ease of access” to vegetables and US$ 15 per month on buying vegetables. The data showed that “cost of access” were the most important criteria, while for the quantity of vegetables bought was larger than the quantity

Table 1. Most popular home-consumed vegetables ranked by men and women.

Men Women 1. Jute mallow 1. Kale 2. Chinese cabbage 2. Tomato 3. Nightshade 3. Amaranth 4. Amaranth 4. Chinese cabbage 5. Kale 5. African nightshade

Source: Ambrose, 2016.

41 Article 6 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

consumption. Such interventions need to be gender-sensitive because it is women who are largely in charge of household gardens as well as food preparation, but the success of the intervention largely depends on the support given by men. Men, women and children also have different vegetable preferences. These preferences need to be reflected in the vegetable types included in the intervention.

References

Ambrose EV, 2016. Home gardening in agricultural development: A gender- based analysis on vegetable perception, values, and “home garden” agricultural development projects in rural Tanzania. Ithaca, NY, USA: Cornell Figure 3. African eggplants harvested from a household garden in Babati University, Honors Thesis. District are used for home consumption as well as selling. Bushamuka VN, de Pee S, Talukder A, Kiess L, Panagides D, Taher A, Bloem M, 2005. Impact of a homestead gardening program on household food of home-produced vegetables consumed. At least before the security and empowerment of women in Bangladesh. Food and Nutrition intervention, buying vegetables was an important way to Bulletin, 26(1), 17-25. diversify diets. FAO, 2007. FAOSTAT Database. Rome, Italy. United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization. [http://faostat.fao.org/default.aspx]. Accessed There is a trade-off between selling and consuming vegetables. November 2007. The project tries to influence households to prioritise home Olney DK, Pedehombga A, Ruel MT, Dillon A, 2015. A 2-year integrated consumption, and only sell the surplus production, through agriculture and nutrition and health behavior change communication awareness-raising of the nutritional benefit of vegetables and program targeted to women in Burkina Faso reduces anemia, wasting, and encouraging households to compare the costs and benefits of diarrhea in children 3-12.9 months of age at baseline: A cluster-randomized controlled trial. Journal of Nutrition 145(6), 1317-24. doi: consuming and selling. To quote one project participant, a 10.3945/jn.114.203539. grandmother of a large family in Kiteto district: “I usually buy Olney DK, Vicheka S, Kro M, Chakriya C, Kroeun H, Hoing LS Talukder A, et water to irrigate my home garden. I use 5 buckets of water in al, 2013. Using program impact pathways to understand and improve program the morning and 5 buckets in the evening. I pay Tsh 100 per delivery, utilization, and potential for impact of Helen Keller International’s bucket (about US$ 0.04), so that is Tsh 1,000 per day. It might Homestead Food Production Program in Cambodia. Food and Nutrition Bulletin, 34(2), 169-84. seem much, but if I don’t irrigate, I have no vegetables to eat. I would have to spend more than Tsh 1,000 to buy them from Patalagsa MA, Schreinemachers P, Begum S, Begum S, 2015. Sowing seeds of empowerment: effect of women’s home garden training in Bangladesh. elsewhere to feed my family. I am proud that I can provide my Agriculture & Food Security, 4:24. doi: 10.1186/s40066-015-0044-2. grandchildren with vegetables every day.” (Figure 4). Schreinemachers P, Patalagsa MA, Uddin N, 2016. Impact and cost- effectiveness of women’s training in home gardening and nutrition in Bangladesh. Journal of Development Effectiveness, 8(4), 473-88. doi: 10.1080/19439342.2016.1231704. Slavchevska V, 2015. Gender differences in agricultural productivity: the case of Tanzania. Agricultural Economics, 46(2015), 335-355. WHO, 2017. Nutrition Landscape Information System (NLiS). NLiS Country profile: Afghanistan. [http://apps.who.int/nutrition/landscape/report.aspx]. WHO/FAO, 2003. Diet, nutrition and the prevention of chronic diseases. Report of a Joint FAO/WHO Expert Consultation. Technical Report Series 916. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization. World Vegetable Center, 2016. The World Vegetable Center approach to household gardening for nutrition. Shanhua, Taiwan: World Vegetable Center. [http://avrdc.org/publications/medium-term-and-strategic-plans/]. Yahya HP, Xiaohui Z, 2014. Constraints to women smallholder farmers’ efforts in ensuring food security at household level: A case of Msowero Ward of Morogoro Region Tanzania. International Journal of Economics and Finance, 6(5), 47-55. Figure 4. Water availability and irrigation are important success factors for household gardens in northern Tanzania. Conclusion

In Tanzania, and East Africa as a whole, average quantities of vegetable consumption are much below the recommended levels considered necessary for a balanced and healthy diet. Household garden interventions, combining training in gardening and nutrition with necessary support systems, can rapidly increase household vegetable production and

42 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Opinions Page

(The views expressed here by individual members do not necessarily reflect those Opinions Page of the editors or the Tropical Agriculture Association) The Limits to Growth 2.0 Introduction the potential damage to the environment caused by intensive agricultural production. The Food and Agriculture Organisation In 1972, when many of us in the TAA were in the early years of (FAO) estimates that by 2050, the world will need 70 percent our careers, The Club of Rome published The Limits to Growth more food than is produced today. I think we can be pretty (Meadows et al, 1972), a prediction that the world would sooner confident about population numbers. This time round, however, or later run out of resources. A little earlier, in 1969, Sir Joseph there are very big regional differences in population growth rates. Hutchison had edited a book on a similar topic (Hutchinson et In Asia, generally population growth rates are expected to al, 1969), and a chapter in this book suggested that the world’s continue to slow down. The population growth rates in Latin population was expected to rise from just over four billion to America and much of Europe and Japan are actually falling. In seven billion by the turn of the century. The main concern of Africa, population growth rates are still very high, and likely to Sir Joseph, and the Club of Rome, was how to feed such a stay so for many years to come. The debate today is therefore massive increase in population given existing cereal yields very different from that of the 1970s in that it is a regional, rather globally. At the time, there was also a lively debate about damage than a global, problem. This is important to bear in mind as the to the environment caused by the use of agro-chemicals, edaphic, cultural, economic and political environment in much especially pesticides. Most of us read, and were convinced by, of Africa varies greatly from the rest of the world, and producing the scare stories in Silent Spring (Carson, 1962). more food in Africa will almost certainly require new, and as yet untested, technical, social, and political solutions. In the early 1970s, Norman Borlaug had shown the remarkable increased yield potential of the dwarf varieties of wheat he had bred at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement New ways of producing food Centre (CIMMYT) in Mexico, and at about the same time the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines The other big difference from the first debate this time round produced IR8 – the miracle rice. The increased yield potential is the apparent lack of new technology options to increase food of these new cereal varieties was due to their capacity to production substantially. There is talk, and some evidence, of tolerate much higher levels of fertiliser without lodging. radical new ways of producing food. These include such things However, there were doubts that the associated technologies as ‘vertical farming’ [Editor’s note: The next issue of the needed to exploit these yield potentials, especially the use of journal will be a special issue on ‘controlled environment irrigation and fertiliser, would be adopted rapidly enough in agriculture’, including vertical farming]. The main technical those parts of the world where the population was rising drawback to such systems is that they are really only suitable fastest. In the event, as we all now know, the demographers for vegetables and other leafy crops. Sergey Brin, the founder got their sums right, but the Malthusians were wrong about of Google, has financed a research project that took cells from modern technology adoption. a cow and cultured them in a nutrient solution to develop strands of meat that were then teased into a hamburger This can be attributed largely to Borlaug’s insistence that, in (Cooper, 2013). Tasters considered it had the texture of meat, India, seed of his new wheat varieties would only be made but little flavour. Experts think the technology will take available if the government began an intensive programme of another 10 years to fully develop, and the economics and social expanding the irrigated area, and the use of mineral fertiliser. The acceptance have yet to be proved. Trials are also underway to increase in food took time, but it has been substantial, especially develop the harvested products of photosynthesis using special in Asia. I recall visits to Bangladesh in the mid-1980s, and vats and sophisticated chemistry that do away with plant meetings with research scientists who were very worried about structures. Basically the idea is to copy in digesters the whether the national output of rice could be raised from 10 enzyme chemistry that takes place in plant cells, whereby million tonnes a year to the predicted need of 30 million tonnes water and nutrients are turned into starch, protein and other a year by the end of the century. Today, a combination of human nutrients. Such artificial plant product production increased irrigation, notably using ground water in the dry would, however, require massive amounts of energy to replace season, and adequate supplies of NPK, have enabled the country that provided by the sun for photosynthesis, and this could to more than triple annual rice production. well make it uneconomic. The science for both meat and artificial plant products, although very sophisticated, is Today’s Limits to Growth debate probably relatively easy to reproduce, and could provide a way of increasing global food production with no increased demand Today a ‘Limits to Growth’ debate has started again. The for land or production intensification. Problems of demographers tell us the world’s population will be over 9 billion acceptability, however, suggest some caution is needed in by 2050, and there are serious worries about food production and relying too heavily on such an approach. Consumers are

43 Opinions Page Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

remarkably fussy about what they eat. earlier debate, only this time the main environmental concern A recent Technology Quarterly (Economist, 2016) addressed is inorganic fertiliser use, not pesticides. Concerns about new ways of producing food. The main themes explored were pesticides have largely diminished as today’s products are a lot smart or precision farming: using computers to determine less toxic, and growing insect resistant GM crops, such as when and how much water or nutrients to apply to maximise cotton, has substantially reduced the global use of insecticides. crop growth and minimise costs. The main attraction of such In future, there would seem to be two main issues with regard systems is that they improve the efficiency of production, but to the intensification of production. The first is the scope to they do not result in significant yield increases. Genetic increase the irrigated area globally, and the second is the potential modification (GM) has revolutionised agriculture in much of for further intensification of production on both irrigated and the world. However, the main success of GM to date has been rain-fed farms. Globally, the scope for further expansion in the the development of specific traits, such as insect resistance, or area irrigated is limited, mainly because many countries are herbicide tolerance, rather than improved yield potential. An already fully exploiting their renewable fresh water resources. The exciting technology reported on, but still in the research stage, good news is that in sub-Saharan Africa there is significant is the introduction of C4 photosynthesis into rice. In theory, potential to increase the irrigated area, according to the this would increase yields by 50 percent, and while such a International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI, 2010). This development would mimic the achievements of the Green study indicates that investment in both large-scale and small- Revolution in terms of increasing output, it is still at the scale irrigation in Africa is potentially economically viable. drawing-board stage. There is also mention of the potential of new sophisticated means of gene manipulation, such as CRISPR/Cas9, that is much less haphazard and allows the Inorganic or organic fertiliser? accurate positioning of a transferred gene, and can facilitate the transfer of a single genetic nucleotide. However, while The second, and more controversial, issue is how to intensify work is ongoing for a range of crops, including wheat, nothing both rainfed and irrigated crop production. All are agreed that is as yet on the market. fertiliser use in Africa, whether inorganic or organic, is very low. The debate is about whether organic fertiliser can supply The fact is that, as of 2018, there is no dwarf cereal type sufficient nutrients to raise yields. In Asia there is no longer technology waiting to be adopted, so it looks like most of the any debate. In 2014, on average farmers in India used 165 increased food production over the next 30 years is going to kg/ha of mineral fertiliser annually (FAO, 2014). In Africa, the have to come from a combination of an increase in the area average annual usage in 2002 was 8 kg/ha on cultivated land cultivated, and further intensification. FAO statistics (FAO, (Morris, et al, 2007). This stark comparison alone suggests 2011) suggest that of the world’s total land area a total of 4.4 that there is tremendous scope to increase food production billion ha is suitable for cropping. In 1961, the cultivated area simply by using more inorganic fertiliser. It is true that was 1.4 billion ha, and by 2016 this had risen to 1.6 billion increasing the use of mineral fertiliser in Africa may cause hectares. The net increase, after allowing for some degraded some pollution of water courses. However, the amounts of land to be taken out of cultivation, is only 200,000 ha over 50 mineral fertiliser needed to feed Africa will remain well below years (on average 4,000 ha /year), during which the world has those used in Asia today, and no one is trying to stop Asian almost doubled the amount of food produced annually. FAO farmers using such fertilisers. It seems immoral to prevent statistics show that it took on average 0.45 ha to feed a person African farmers from doing what their Asian counterparts in 1961, but only 0.22 ha in 2006. This in turn is mainly due already do. to an increase in the area of irrigated land from 139 million ha in 1961, to over 300 million ha today. The problem with organic fertiliser is the volume required. Most compost has less than 1.5 percent nitrogen, and manure While the FAO does not provide a clear definition of ‘suitable had 2-4 percent. In comparison, urea, one of the most for cropping’ it is clear that most of the 4.4 billion ha with commonly used nitrogen fertilisers, is 46 percent nitrogen. potential for cultivation, over and above that already cultivated, Stephen Carr did some interesting work when he moved to is currently forested land, which accounts for some 3.7 billion Malawi after leaving the World Bank in the 1980s. At the ha globally. Indeed, much of the increased area of cultivation bottom of his compound in Zomba, he dug some deep pits and since 1961 has been in cleared forest areas. The largest forest filled them with vegetable waste which he turned over regularly areas are in central Africa and Brazil, and were these forests to to make into nicely broken down compost. He then tried to be felled and cultivated, the effect on the world’s climate would grow a crop of maize in the fields around his shamba, using almost certainly be devastating. This is almost certainly why only the compost as fertiliser. The crop failed and he gave up the FAO considers that the scope for expanding the area of his hopes for agro-ecological crop production in Malawi, and cultivated land globally is limited. concentrated instead on convincing the donor community to support a programme of ‘starter packs’ containing certified Sustainable intensification seed and a balanced ration of fertiliser and some agrochemicals. The scheme ran quite successfully for ten So, given the lack of new technology, and the limited scope to years from the mid-1990s. Dorward and Chirwa have reviewed increase the world’s cropped area, it seems, as suggested by the programme in some detail and conclude that it did lead to the Royal Society (Wheeler, 2017), that the necessary increase a substantial increase in maize production, but that the returns in production will have to come from sustainable to the investment of a national programme were marginal, due intensification. Here again there are some similarities with the to political interference and fraud, and the programme was

44 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Opinions Page

phased-out around 2010 (Dorward & Chirwa, 2011). What the very successful and the pessimists will query whether things will programme demonstrated without any shadow of doubt is that change in the future. I think there is reason to think that they maize grown on the poor soils of Malawi responds massively will, and for much the same reason the Green Revolution took to applications of inorganic fertiliser. off in Asia. In the Indian sub-continent, the political pressures Despite the evidence from Malawi, and indeed many other to prevent famine led to massive changes in agricultural policy. countries in Africa, there is a strong and growing lobby in the I think the same will happen in Africa, if we in the West address West promoting the idea of Low External (read mineral fertiliser a number of key issues. and agro-chemicals) Input Technology (LEIT). The high priest In the first place, the USA must stop the scandalous dumping of this movement is Jules Pretty (Pretty, 2010). This august of its excess grain in Africa through the World Food group appears to be convinced that organic production systems Programme. In the second place, donors must stop deluding are the best option in the future, as there is only passing reference themselves and their development partners in African to mineral fertiliser. Organic options may be the best for the governments that there are LEIT solutions to rising food health of the planet, but will not result in enough extra food demand. Thirdly, all effort should be made to encourage, not production! Such approaches are also, it seems to me, discourage, private sector investment in agriculture in Africa. increasingly popular in some quarters of TAA. The promoters of Again, this will call for a major donor refocus. The Department LEIT consider that it is particularly appropriate for resource-poor for International Development of the UK has dipped its toes in farmers who cannot afford to buy mineral fertiliser, and that it this water through its support for AgDevCo, a small investment conserves or does little or no harm to the natural environment. house that invests in agricultural enterprises in Africa. A Indeed, it is true that incorporating compost or manure does number of such investments have already been made by improve the nutrient and water retention capacity of a soil entrepreneurs from all corners of the world and while there considerably, albeit temporarily. However, there is also, albeit have been problems with some of these investments, with unstated, an anti-capitalist motive among some LEIT supporters. perseverance, many have been successful (Vadnal, 2017). Last, They believe that the profit-seeking mineral fertiliser industry but by no means least, those of us who are not LEIT fans need rips off poor African farmers. In fact, closer analysis of mineral to get our views more widely known, especially among so- fertiliser use in much of Africa shows that it is parastatal called development experts. marketing organisations and politicians who have made easy money from selling fertiliser, not the fertiliser manufacturers. In a carefully worded review of a number of LEIT initiatives, Tripp References found that there is no evidence that LEIT is suited to resource- poor farmers (Tripp, 2006). Furthermore, he suggests that, for Carson R, 1962. Silent Spring. Houghton Miffin. some, LEIT represents a set of hopelessly primitive and labour- Cooper Q, 2013. Artificial Food: Incredible. BBC Global News Ltd. intensive distractions. A web search brings up a number of Dorward A, Chirwa E, 2011. The Malawi agricultural input subsidy published papers and reviews extolling the virtues of LEIT, programme 2005-6 to 2008-9 International Journal of Agricultural including Yang (2014). This review of 115 studies comparing Sustainability, 9(1), 232-247 . organic and conventional farming claims that, on average, FAO, 2011. The state of the world’s land & water resources. FAO & Earthscan. Routledge ISBN 978-84971-326-9. organic yields were only 20 percent lower than conventional ones. However, no detail is provided on the crops grown or the FAO, 2014. Fertilizer consumption, India. [https://data.worldbank.org/ indicator/AG.CON.FERT.ZS?locations=IN] organic and industrial technologies compared. Hutchinson J, ed, 1969. Population and food supply. Cambridge University Press. Conclusions IFPRI, 2010. What is the irrigation potential for Africa? Discussion Paper 00993. To sum up, I think the world can feed itself in the future by Meadows L, Meadows DH, Randers J, Behrens WW, 1972. The Limits to the better use of existing agricultural technology, and the use Growth. A report for the Club of Rome’s project on the predicament of of more novel forms of food production, as and when they mankind. A signet book from New American Library. become economic and socially acceptable. In Asia, Europe and Morris M et al, 2007. Fertiliser use in African agriculture. Washington DC: the USA, there is limited scope to increase the overall area of The World Bank. land used for cultivation. There is, however, considerable Pretty J, 2010. The top 100 questions of importance to the future of global scope to improve irrigation efficiency by using more agriculture. International Journal of Agricultural Sustainability, 8(4), 219- 236. sophisticated systems of water application. Together with use The Economist, June 2016. Technology Quarterly: The Future of Agriculture. of conservation agriculture, precision farming techniques, and GM-derived better crop varieties in much of the world, food Tripp R, 2006. Is low external input technology contributing to sustainable agricultural development? ODI Natural Resources Perspectives 102. London, output increase will keep up with population growth and UK: Overseas Development Institute. dietary changes. Vadnal D, 2017. Personal communication. In Africa the situation will not be so easy. Much of the continent Wheeler T, 2017. Climate change and agriculture: risks and opportunities to food is unsuitable for crop or livestock production. However, there is and farming systems in the tropics. Agriculture for Development, 30, 58-60. plenty of potential to increase food production through the Yang S, 2014. Can organic crops compete with industrial agriculture? expansion of the area irrigated and the increased use of Berkeley News, 9 December 2014. Berkeley Food Institute. production inputs, in particular inorganic fertiliser. In the past, efforts to expand irrigation and input use in Africa have not been Charles Bevan

45 Article 7 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

A chicken in every pot

Alex Zieba

Dr Alex Zieba is a Professor of Philosophy and Humanities at Cegep-Heritage College in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. He is also Director and Vice President, Research and Development, of Mountain Lion Agriculture Sierra Leone Ltd (www.mlbr.org). [email protected]

Abstract Origins of the Green Revolution

Corn (maize) production in the USA has been promoted by Between 1920 and 1936 automobiles and tractors were government and big business. The Green Revolution in the popularised, and the USA began using increasing amounts of USA emanated from the increase in input subsidies in the chemical fertilisers. This was the start of the Green Revolution 1920s and 1930s. The result has been declining farm numbers still celebrated (in some places) today as a possible model for and increased control over agricultural production – especially the developing world. These years also overlap the Great of corn – by transnational companies. Over-production of Depression (1929-39), and are when the first farm subsidies corn has meant that farmers have been paid not to grow it and were introduced in the USA: the 1922 Grain Futures Act, the novel uses for it have been developed (including ethanol June 1929 Agricultural Marketing Act, and, as part of the New production, plastic food packaging and home heating). Deal, the 1933 Agricultural Adjustment Act, which was the first Reducing farmers’ power whilst bolstering the influence of to pay farmers to leave fields fallow and kill their livestock, in agribusiness can have negative social and economic effects and an attempt to reduce supply and increase price to an is not a model that should be exported to developing countries. economically sustainable level. The immediate consequence of the Green Revolution in the USA was economic and political crisis on farms. As farmers Introduction adopted new modes of production which required them to make capital investments, their numbers diminished, and they “A chicken in every pot” is a quotation that is perhaps one of lost democratic and social power. In 1920, family farms the most mis-assigned in American political history. Variously accounted for nearly a third of the USA population and 27 attributed to each of four presidents serving between 1920 and percent of the labour force; by 1940, this dropped to 18 percent 1936, it is most often associated with Herbert Hoover. In fact, (Anon, undated). Today, farmers account for less than 2 the phrase has its origins in seventeenth century France; percent of the labour force. Henry IV reputedly wished that each of his peasants would Initially, the Green Revolution seemed to be giving farmers enjoy “a chicken in his pot every Sunday.” Although Hoover access to new tools to produce more, and produce they did. never uttered the phrase, the Republican Party did use it in a Tractors allowed farmers to rapidly cultivate new ground, and 1928 campaign advertisement touting a period of “Republican using chemical fertilisers on land whose yields were prosperity” that had provided a “chicken in every pot (Figure diminishing nearly restored harvests to pre-industrial levels. 1). And a car in every backyard, to boot.” (Dictionary of These were not good yields on a per-acre basis compared to American history, 2003). the past, but when so much area was cultivated, the volume of harvested grain exceeded demand in a way that allowed declining yield per-acre and even diminishing food quality and topsoil erosion to be overlooked. Farm families, the icons of American history, were in financial trouble. How would the Republican Party appeal to this voter base, without alienating industrial workers, and solve the problems of demand for farm product and unemployment?

Figure 1. Hoover campaign badge from 1928. Corn-fed meat

What do chickens and engines have in common? Corn (note In these conditions, “a chicken in every pot” was the beginning that corn in the context of this article means maize – Zea of Federal meat-marketing. It was a political solution to an mays). Politics. A century of bad business hoping to subsidise economic problem that could win an election. Meat had been a its way to economic efficiency. And a dysfunctional model for luxury item, enjoyed by most only on Sunday (as King Henry the developing world. assumed), but the new ideology was that eating meat (and

46 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Article 7

driving cars) is what it meant to be American; “joining the silk that large corporations had paid to have alternate facts stocking class” was celebrated in the same campaign. disseminated, these alternate facts nonetheless motivated This new entitlement meant, amongst other things, that we consumers towards skimmed milk and low-fat dairy products, started feeding grain grown for human consumption to which resulted in stockpiles of ‘American cheese’ and butter. It livestock. In the past, we might have fed livestock spoiled also resulted in consumers trimming fat off their meat and grain, or fed grain in the last weeks of their life to sweeten the throwing it away, or discarding any fat rendered during cooking: meat, but growing grain rather than hay purposely to feed that is, they threw away the most concentrated end-product of grass-eating animals would have been extraordinarily wasteful. all this farming activity, from a calorie perspective, which would Before the machinery existed, it would not have even occurred require those calories to come from somewhere else. to most farmers to try it, because they would go broke or starve Faced with protests from both bankrupt farmers and a as a result. The tractor’s ability to cultivate, plant and harvest sympathetic popular culture (eg the FarmAid concert), President vast quantities in a short time hid this inefficiency, by moving Reagan once more paid farmers not to grow corn. It was cheaper, the suffering of industrial workers (miners, steel workers, oil economically and politically, to subsidise their farming income workers, for example) off the farm, where farmers were no than to find something to do with their product if they grew it, longer seeing teams of people plant and harvest manually, and or risk the public seeing more photos of rotting stockpiles. At it seemed cheaper to put gas in the tractor than maintain the same time, Reagan de-regulated the food-processing workhorses or oxen which needed to be fed year-round. industries. Pizza was widely marketed and popularised through For consumers, the ‘grain-fed’ label added appeal, you were fast food and frozen food companies at this time, as de-regulated eating luxury meat: meat that ate what you ate. It was not the producers had access to cheap cheese and subsidized flour. marker of low-quality factory-farmed meat that we now see it Tomatoes for the topping, the third major ingredient in pizza, as, but instead gave the impression that a grain-fed chicken were still being produced by impoverished, exploited and even had “joined the silk stocking class” too, moved up the food- enslaved workers in Florida (Esterbrook, 2011). chain along with the proletariat. Increasing the demand for grain-fed meat increased the demand GM corn for corn and wheat, which required cultivated land rather than care-free pasture for grazing. This, in turn, increased demand Reagan’s farmers used their subsidies to buy more land not- for tractors, seeds, fertilisers, and delivery trucks, all of which to-grow-corn-on (consolidating failed neighbouring family meant jobs, Republican votes from farmers and industrial farms), and bigger machinery not-to-grow-corn-with, which workers alike, and profits for growing agribusiness. It meant brought more subsidies the next year. These (subsidised) more demand for farm products, but from fewer farmers, so the investments set them up for their role in the next expansion existing farm vote saw both a market for its product and a limit of the corn industry: genetically modified (GM) corn, grown to competition from new farmers. for seed companies under contract, ultimately making farmers serfs on their own land – politically speaking. This relationship between grain, machinery and political economy acquired a life of its own. Grains grow best in large It began in the early 1990s by recognising patents on living fields, on relatively level, stone-free ground, which is what a organisms, with no public discussion or political debate, and tractor can prepare, and the large seeds could be mechanically then Government approving these genetically modified singulated and planted better than fine seeds, at least with early products for consumption after dubious, company-controlled machinery. However, today corn farmers in the USA receive testing and reporting. Readers in Europe and elsewhere should 90 percent of federal subsidies, because a century later it is remember that most of the food on our store shelves in North still not economically profitable to farm corn. We would not America is illegal in your countries. Necessary legislation and have needed to continue subsidising this mode of production compliance was accomplished by placing key figures from if it could sustain itself. But as sometimes happens, a agribusiness corporations in government positions, from bureaucracy put in place for an initial purpose may find a which they could approve their own policy proposals. The new means to keep itself going financially by expanding rather than regulatory structure transferred public rights from farmers to acknowledging failure. Finding new ways to use corn didn’t the seed company, preventing farmers from saving or breeding make its production economically stable, but marketers would the seeds they grew or determining their own farming continue to work hard to ensure the survival and expansion of practices (like how much of which fertiliser or pesticide to use their subsidised, state-supported businesses. By the 1980s, and when), hence making them ‘serfs’ on their own land. nearly everyone was eating grain-fed meat every day – vegetarians were considered to be weirdos – but there was still Corn for ethanol and packaging too much corn on the market. Ever-improving technologies, high interest rates, a USSR trade With supply still in excess, Canada and the USA next created embargo, and low grain prices, ground-down American farm laws requiring 5-10 percent of our gasoline to be ethanol made families in large numbers, amidst warehouses of rotting from patented genetically modified corn, amidst dubious American cheese (King, 1982). New ‘science’ in the 1970s claims about environmental benefits (Renewable Fuel determined that dietary fat led to high cholesterol and heart Standard Program, signed by George W Bush in 2005). These disease and recommended a diet high in carbohydrates (corn, are the first targets the US Environmental Protection Agency wheat) and lean meats (corn-fed). While we have more recently ever met; Obama ordered a further 6 percent increase on his learned that sugar and simple carbohydrates were the culprit and way out. This legislative structure mops up 40 percent of

47 Article 7 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

American corn and turns it into 12 percent of the gas sold in policies to developing countries as a solution to their problems. America. While corn provides the biomass for fuel and so In their time these policies may have been a solution to our seems environmentally friendly, it is planted and harvested problems, but required, and were part of, a new social contract with diesel tractors, and fed with fossil fuel-based fertilisers. (a ‘New Deal”). Encouraging developing nations to change New subsidies became available for farmers who adopted their laws to facilitate western agricultural technology without Monsanto’s version of ‘no-till’ farming. Farmers qualify for offering them the rest of ‘The Deal’ merely exacerbates global these subsidies if they have a no-till seed drill and a crop inequality by entrenching a low standard of living. The New sprayer, but no one checks to see if they have in fact stopped Deal offered participants more than chickens and cars: it tilling, or if they are instead discing to the same depths as included provisions for social welfare, health care, worker before, and so undermining the point of not tilling. Take a safety, minimum wages and education, as well as support for look when you drive by these farms in spring, and see if the national industry and defence, without which the subset of soil was in fact left undisturbed except for the seed drill ‘Green Revolution’ policies would be unsustainable and running through last year’s residue. insufficient to develop an economy. Maintaining a cheap food policy as a facilitator of the industrial economy required As with corn ethanol, environmental concerns are now used to constant intervention in the economy, through legislative market new corn products. Corn can be processed into pellets, frameworks and subsidies from more profitable sectors enabled for home heating: you might as well burn it. The new pellet- by the existence of low-cost food. stove feeds corn pellets and air at a controlled rate, consuming 2kWh a day of electrical energy, not required with the traditional Arguably, the relationship between engines, corn and politics wood stove, and eliminating the possibility of burning anything may have become an economic anachronism in the west as other than pelletised corn for those who install it. well. Constant intervention over the last century suggests that this sector will not support itself economically, and the Another example of the exploitation of environmental concerns difficulty in sustaining these efforts in North America points is biodegradable packaging, which uses corn as the source of to the need for a new social contract for us too. Economic starch or lactic acid for biodegradable plastics. In fact this realities are not what they were in the Industrial Age; perhaps means your lunch will require twice as much energy and crop the age of Expansion and Conquest is over. space as it did before (though you cannot eat the package), so it sells fossil fuels rather than saving them. Ironically, organic farmers entered this waste stream with organic corn packaging References and organic plastic mulches too, rather than moving us away from individual packages. Other plant products could be used Anon, undated. Growing a nation: the story of American agriculture. for plastics and for biofuels, some of which even make sense, [https://www.agclassroom.org/gan/timeline/farmers_land.htm]. Accessed but the acres of GM corn (mode of production with social January 2018. power) are already established, and it is the corn industry who Dictionary of American History, 2003. Chicken in every pot. are promoting these 'environmental' solutions to the problem [http://www.encyclopedia.com/history/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and- press-releases/chicken-every-pot]. Accessed January 2018. of what to do with all that corn. Esterbrook B, 2011. Tomatoland. Kansas City, USA: Andrews McMeel While this shift in mode of production and consumption Publishing. seemed, initially, in favour of family farms, it caused social Hilary J, 2012. The Hunger Games: How DFID support for agribusiness is power to move from these family farms to the ancillary fueling poverty in Africa. London, UK: War on Want. industries which had accepted responsibility for the initial [https://waronwant.org/sites/default/files/The%20Hunger%20Games%202012. bump in volume – the chemical and tractor companies (who pdf]. Accessed January 2018. were also auto companies). The number of farmers declined King SS, 1982. Warehouses bulge with surplus cheese, butter and dried milk. New York, USA: New York Times, July 6. [http://www.nytimes.com and the size of farms increased, as machinery replaced labour /1982/07/06/us/warehouses-bulge-with-surplus-cheese-butter-and-dried-milk. and profit per-acre fell, requiring many farmers to manage html[. Accessed January 2018. 1,000+ acre holdings today, yet struggle to make a profit. Martin-Prével A, Mousseau F, 2016. The Unholy Alliance: Five western donors Farmers have no political power now. In their stead, shape a pro-corporate agenda for African agriculture. Oakland, California, agribusiness corporations such as Monsanto, Syngenta, USA: The Oakland Institute. [https://www.oaklandinstitute.org/unholy- DuPont, have become a political force, globally and not just alliance-five-western-donors-shape-pro-corporate-agenda-african-agriculture]. Accessed October 2017. nationally. They are capable of enabling whatever legislation serves their interests (like ownership of seeds, the Plant Breeder’s Rights Act, and the prevention of labelling on products), both in the USA and abroad, because they now command more wealth than most nations (Hilary, 2012; Martin-Prevel & Mousseau, 2016).

Discussion

This mode of production has never been able to support itself economically, and so we who work in international development should re-consider exporting this package of

48 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Bookstack Bookstack

apple snails, and two papers on their threats After thirty years, genetically modified crops to ecosystems. Other papers in this section are still a very contentious subject, consider associated symbionts and diseases; particularly among non-government their response to abiotic stress (particularly organisations (NGOs). Ksenia Gerasimova cold tolerance); the role of proteins in the egg is not a biologist, but despite, or perhaps reserves of apple snails in defence against because of, this she has written a very predators and abiotic factors; the accumulation readable book. It is an excellent compilation of copper and other elements in apple snail; of a diverse range of views, organised and and their ecology and management. categorised under key conceptual paradigms. Throughout, she remains Biology and management of invasive apple The second section, Country-specific reports, impressively neutral whilst describing views snails contains seven new country reports from supporting and opposing GM crops, and Ravindra Joshi, Robert Cowie, Leocadio Malaysia, East Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, even when describing some of the most Sebastian (editors), 2017 Singapore, Ecuador, and the southern USA. extreme ideas and conspiracy theories. The final paper in this section is on the Philippine Rice Research Institute (PhilRice), behaviour and ecology of apple snails in In the Introduction, NGOs are defined and Maligaya, Science City of Muñoz, Nueva Ecija Argentina. classified – a far more complicated subject 3119, Philippines, 406 pages The final section focusses on the that one may think. What is noticeable is ISBN: 978-621-8022-23-2 (Softbound) Management and use of apple snails. Two the huge growth in NGO numbers in recent ISBN: 978-621-8022-24-9 (Hardbound) papers report on their management: a years (they are listed in Appendix 1), ISBN: 978-621-8022-25-6 (PDF) summary of managing invasive species from possibly due to growing concerns about According to the World Conservation the Invasive Species Compendium; and the globalisation, environmental degradation and Union, invasive apple snails (Pomacea spp) use of neem (Azadirachta indica) as a human rights – often NGOs are the most are one of the world’s 100 worst invasive potential biopesticide. The final three effective way of bringing pressure to bear on species. This new publication, edited by TAA papers consider uses for apple snails: their governments. The relationships between member Ravi Joshi and two colleagues, is an shells as a catalyst for biodiesel production; NGOs, networks and social movements are authoritative and comprehensive source of as animal feed; and in small-scale also explored; as are their activities and information on this poorly understood aquaculture. funding. The second object of the book, invasive species. It is a multi-authored genetically modified organisms (GMOs), Paul Harding compilation of new research, advances in more specifically, GM crops, are also defined. management, and updated country reports. The question “why do we need GM crops” is It follows an earlier book, edited by two of discussed. Answers include: as new solutions the authors (Joshi and Sebastian) in 2006, to old problems, and to produce more with entitled Global Advances in Ecology and less. Commercial GM traits, commercial GM Management of Golden Apple Snails. crops, and countries growing GM crops are listed. The alleged risks involved with GM Some seventy authors from around the crops are listed as: they could become world contributed to this tome of 406 pages, weeds, or transform genes to weeds, and the editors are to be commended on the final product. There are high quality develop new pathogens, and thus threaten global centres of crop diversity; in the wrong photographs and illustrations throughout. NGO discourses in the debate on hands, new, illicit, more powerful, and thus There are 22 chapters (or papers), arranged genetically modified crops in three sections. There are extensive lists of dangerous, recreational drugs may be Ksenia Gerasimova, 2018 references at the end of each chapter, and a developed; they can contaminate non-GM comprehensive index at the end of the book. Routledge, London and New York, x + 214 crops; and their unnatural nature. Finally, the pages Introduction considers the NGOs in the The first section, General aspects of apple snail debate and how to study them. It is clear Hardcover £75.45, Kindle edition £25.60 biology, contains nine papers, the first of which that “there are several bones of contention but summarises the systematics (classification), ISBN: 978-1-138-22389-9 (Hardcover) one big debate”. Interlinked smaller distribution and invasion history of apple snails. ISBN: 978-1-315-40350-2 (ebook) discussions include: human health risks, This is followed by a paper on identification of ecological consequences, land use,

49 Bookstack Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

ownership of seeds, regional food security, Regionalism and food sovereignty explains that equality. Women are seen as subordinated the interests of farmers, domination by big regionalism is a response to the larger and exploited in agriculture as they are in agri-corporations, ethical issues, and views processes of globalisation; and food society generally; they are an “internal on life. There are local and international sovereignty refers to the “right of each nation colony”. In this context, science and NGOs on both sides of the debate. It is a to maintain and develop its own capacity to technology are not considered to be gender very sensitive issue, as the author testifies produce its basic foods respecting local cultural neutral; and eco-feminists call for an from her own experiences of being bullied and productive diversity”. GM crops and approach that accepts women and nature and rejected as a result of trying to remain seeds, protected by intellectual property as the subject, and not the object, of neutral throughout her study. The author rights and patent protection, can therefore research. be seen as threatening food sovereignty of takes a socio-anthropological approach, and Part Two, Processing the debate, is about the both nations and individual farmers. uses an ‘emic’ (ie from within the social nature and creation of scientific knowledge, Interestingly, the author presents examples group) analytical methodology in order to and the political communication of public from Russia that demonstrate that the put her “at a distance from the political heat debate. It contains four chapters (8-11). public debate on GM crops in Russia reflects of the debate”, presenting the views of the Chapter 8, Different kind of science, describes that of Western nations. The sustainability participants in a “culturally relative manner” recent changes in science: ‘academic science’ discourse begins with the classical definition without judgement. is being replaced by trans-national of sustainability as “the ability to meet the Having set the scene, and defined the ‘corporate science’; an increasing role of civil needs of the present without compromising the parameters, the rest of the book is divided society in the social management of science; ability of future generations to meet their own into two parts. Part One, Discourses in the a decreased role of government. This has needs”. Sustainable development is debate, and Part Two, Processing the debate. resulted in concerns regarding public therefore sustainable (meaning ‘long-term’) Part One begins with an explanation of interest, regulatory regimes, intellectual economic growth with sustainable (meaning what ‘discourse’ is, and how to undertake property rights, and when corporations fund ‘responsible’) resource management. Whilst universities, of biased research. Civil society ‘critical discourse analysis’. In this study, new technologies such as GM crops are one is becoming more involved in doing and discourse analysis is done in three steps: means of producing more from less, they interpreting science, lobbying, and educating identification of the actors in the discourse could also create environmental problems the public – ‘activist science’. Lay people are (NGOs), classification of their concepts and for future generations. Whilst it can be ideology, and matching them with NGO argued that gene technologies protect getting involved with ‘citizen science’ by campaigns and actions. biodiversity, they can also be seen as a volunteering their time and funding. In discussions between scientists and lay Part One contains six more chapters, one possible threat to biodiversity. Arguments people, we often see rationality versus for each of the key discourse groups about the possible threats and benefits of emotionality, sometimes playing on fear. The identified by the author in the GM crop GM food to human health and the framing of the GMO debate in ‘Frankenstein debate. Nature fundamentalism (or ‘mystical environment are also presented. Similarly, rhetoric’ worked well for the anti-GMO environmentalism’), encompasses the there are both threats and benefits of GM activists. philosophy of Rudolf Steiner, which mixed crops to small farmers, economic spiritualism with agriculture in the development, social development and Chapter 9, Changing sides in the debate, ‘biodynamic’ movement; and the ideas of culture. begins by describing how difficult it is for the Florianne Koechlin on genes and gene The alterglobalist discourse arises from the public to obtain the relevant information, manipulation, and her insistence that plants anti-globalisation movement, which sees and then to make a rational choice in a have dignity, rights and consciousness. The globalisation (the ‘big idea’ of the late 20th complex political issue such as GMOs. colonial (and post-colonial) discourse is based century) as built upon dominance of global There is a wide spectrum of participants in on the idea that under colonialism capital, industrial complexes, and ideas the debate: scientists, civil society agricultural techniques were imported from inspired by neoliberal visions of nations as organisations, NGOs, activists, the media, developed to underdeveloped countries, resource pools and open markets operating politicians, policy-makers, businesses, farmers and indigenous knowledge was ignored. On without restrictions. It is driven by big and consumers, all with different interests. independence, underdeveloped nations had multinational corporations. Anti-GM Not surprisingly, many scientists and some a choice between returning to traditional activists of the alterglobalisation movement organisations choose to withdraw from the indigenous agriculture (Ghandi and Vandana naturally focus on the agricultural complex. debate. Sometimes, high profile participants Shiva in India, and Nyerere in Africa) and to In this context, genetic engineering, in the debate change their mind, and there deny Western knowledge and technology; biotechnology and GM seeds are seen as are examples given of changing from pro- or to use Western technologies to upgrade wresting control of the physical process of to anti-GMOs, as well as from anti- to pro- economic development (Calestous Juma). food production away from smallholder GMOs. Chapter 10, The global transfer of Both models aimed for independence from farmers. The final chapter in Part One is The ideas, explains how ideas spill-over from one their former colonisers. GM crops would feminist discourse. Eco-feminism derives country or region to another. For example, be rejected by the first model, and from feminism, which is the theory of the generally negative view of GMOs that embraced by the second. political, economic and social gender prevails in Europe has influenced African

50 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Bookstack

opinions via NGOs in the two regions. university research and teaching, and practical Ghana, Tanzania, Sudan and Swaziland – and Some see this as unethical, since food secure contributions to rural development through two important new biographies – of Europeans are compromising African efforts work with the FAO, the World Bank, and Anthony Smyth and Maurice Purcell. Many to feed their populations. international research organisations. He has TAA members feature, some of whom worked on all aspects of land resources have passed away. This book records their The final Chapter 11 is Conclusions. Of the development: soil survey, land evaluation, land achievements for posterity. The author six broad discourses, only two (post- use planning, and land policy. He is therefore acknowledges that similar accounts could colonialism and sustainability) allow well-placed to write this account, in which he be written of surveys in former French and arguments for both proponents and himself played a part, and to suggest lessons Dutch territories. opponents of GM crops. The other four for the present day. (nature fundamentalism, regionalism, Chapter 12, Maps, rocks, climate, plants and alterglobalisation and feminism) are used by This book is a revised second edition of the land use, provides short histories of GM opponents only. A useful table first edition, which was published in 2007. mapping, geological surveys, and the study summarises the six discourses, their major During the 30-year period 1950-1980, the of landforms, climate, ecological surveys, themes, participating organisations and greater part of the current and potential pastures and forests in tropical countries – partners, the original sources of their ideas, agricultural land in the tropics was surveyed, some or all of which were usually part of current representatives, campaigns and typically including the soil, climate, and land resource surveys. vegetation. The author considers this to be attitude to GM crops. The author concludes Chapter 13, From soil conservation to the “golden age of soil survey”. These surveys that “the use of emotional language and the conservation agriculture, has been rewritten. built on the early work of the pioneer confrontational, aggressive forms of debates It shows how soil erosion control evolved, surveyors between the wars. The first may entertain….., but it is not productive in via soil conservation and land husbandry, to edition emphasised the story of these terms of negotiating pragmatic, working conservation agriculture. This was due to surveyors and their surveys; this second solutions for the challenges of agriculture”. the recognition that we need to do more revised edition updates and expands the There is a need for a more balanced, less than prevent soil erosion, we also need to story, but focusses on the lessons for the biased and emotionally cool debate that retain the soil’s physical, organic and study of soils today. assesses the arguments both for and against chemical properties, and hence its sustained GM crops. Unfortunately, the author’s final Chapter 1, Setting the task, explains why we productivity. The new approach also thoughts are not optimistic: “the GM debate need land resource surveys, describes the emphasised the importance of talking with is not to arrive at a compromise or a balanced different types of soil surveys, and provides farmers, to get their point of view. solution….it represents an opportunity for potted histories of the early days of soil Expanded and updated is a section on different groups to voice their views…..and science in the UK and the tropics. Chapter assessing the relative degrees of soil and lobbying the political interests they support… 2, The pioneers, introduces the pioneer soil land degradation – today, monitoring soil …It is a rainbow with different colours and surveyors, most of whom worked between health is a major concern. attitudes, and it will be impossible to bring the two world wars, and summarises their Chapter 14 is Retrospect: the surveyors and them to one conclusion.” careers and achievements. The six pioneers Chapter 15 is Retrospect: the surveys. These of soil survey are Frederick Hardy, Arthur Paul Harding chapters document the men (and the few Hornby, Frederick Martin, AWR Joachim, women) and their work, drawing out Geoffrey Milne and Colin Trapnell. lessons for today. The final chapter is new, Chapter 3, Preparing the ground, explains how and is entitled The study of soils in the field: interest in soil surveying increased after the what is its role today? Nowadays, much soil Second World War, due to concerns about research takes place in laboratories, and few food security, soil erosion and population soil surveys are undertaken. This leaves the growth; and a desire to improve the welfare author uneasy, and he ponders the role of of poorer countries. Institutions such as the the study of soils in the field today. He Colonial Service, the Land Resources Division, concludes that it should still be relevant to international organisations and consultant monitoring soil health, particularly by Thin on the ground: soil science in the companies undertook the surveys, utilising interacting with farmers, and as specialist tropics, second revised edition new methodologies such as air photo support to agricultural advisory services. interpretation. Anthony Young, 2017 The book concludes with an extensive Land Resources Books, Norwich, UK, xiv + The next eight chapters describe the bibliography, a list of acronyms, an index of 350 pages, Paperback £22.50 surveyors and their work in East Africa, personal names, and a general index. West Africa, Central and Southern Africa, ISBN: 10-0995656606 Paul Harding (former student of Tony Malawi, the West Indies and Central ISBN-13: 978-0995656604 Young at the University of East Anglia) America, South Asia, and South-East Asia Professor Young is a long-time member of the and the Pacific. This second edition includes TAA. His career has been divided between additional material on four countries –

51 Bookstack Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

their wide-ranging access to multiple food However, the early state with its pyramidal sources, had a much healthier life and diet structure was fragile and prone to ‘collapse’ and they were beyond the pale as far as tax – the reasons for collapse were many and collection was concerned. The creation of varied. Diseases, are more able to easily states was therefore made possible by the proliferate where hosts (animals, plants and consolidation of communities in alluvial (or humans) are concentrated. Zoonotic loess) soils, with access to water for diseases are also able to develop where transport and irrigation, and the emergence people and animals are closely corralled of elites which, through taxation, bondage and trade means that diseases can be Against the grain: a deep history of the and slavery were able to exploit sedentary transmitted between distant communities, earliest states cereal and livestock producers to further whilst armies are a moving module of their own extravagant lifestyles. It is no infection. But it is the ecocide wrought by James C Scott, 2017 wonder, then, that our civilisation has not states, then and now, which poses the most Yale University Press, New Haven and London been a tale of steady progress from serious threat. Deforestation, salinity and barbarians to settled communities to great soil erosion are the result of placing Hardback, xvii + 311 pages. £20 states; but rather a history of state creation, unsustainable demands on the surrounding ISBN: 978-0-300-18291-0 over-exploitation, revolt, collapse and environment. The Euphrates river banks This book changes our view of the hunter- frequent ‘bolts for freedom’ by oppressed were deforested for timber, fuel and grazing gatherer leading a precarious life on the subjects. And all underpinned by cereal upstream of communities and this led to edge of existence, compared to the cereal grains which made the exploitation so erosion, siltation and the need to dredge farmer and livestock herder leading a much easier. irrigation canals; it also meant that settlements were more liable to experience prosperous, sedentary life with time for Scott takes us on a journey which starts increased flash flooding. There is also creative leisure pursuits. The opposite, with the hominids use of fire to sculpt the evidence that such ecocide aided the argues James Scott, has often been the case. landscape for their own advantage (eg to formation of malarial swamps. Over- Sedentary communities, based on lure grazing animals) some 400,000 years exploitation of natural resources, ecocide, is cultivating wheat and barley, developed first ago, and the abundance of food from suicidal for emerging states. in the rich alluvial deposits of Mesopotamia natural sources available to hunters and many thousands (>12) of years ago. They gatherers. It would have made no sense for Politicide was another major cause of state gave rise to states controlled by privileged early populations to forgo this abundance collapse. States scaled-up war and slavery elites in the same region much later, around and rely on a narrow bandwidth of and so squeezed the core for grain and 3,300 BCE. In the meantime, there was subsistence resources. Population men for the armies. The grain core – the much movement between sedentary and accumulations in rich river valleys, and golden goose – was killed by over- nomadic, pastoralist lifestyles and in fact the climate change, causing increased aridity and exploitation. No wonder then that state total hegemony of the state was only so favouring irrigation, made domestication collapse frequently offered freedom for consolidated in about 1,600 CE. This means of crops and livestock a gradual attraction subjects who were were pleased to join, or that state dominance has only been for the to ensure food supplies. But this came at re-join for this was a repetitive process, the last two tenths of one percent of our great cost, relying, as it does, on a slender barbarians prospering outside the state species’ political life. genetic foundation. A handful of crops, a system. few species of livestock and a radically The question then arises: ‘What was the This is an illuminatingly fresh analysis of the simplified landscape that had to be basis for the rise in elite power to form history of statehood and expounds on key constantly defended against re-conquest by states?’ The answer, in many cases, starts issues of relevance to us in modern times. excluded nature. Fragile states were with grain (principally wheat and barley in States can only survive at the expense of established where there was a Mesopotamia, but others, eg millet in the core producers – over-exploit the grain or concentration of taxable subjects on rich Yellow River basin, maize for the Inca, rice whatever other core, and rebellion and alluvial soils with good river transport and in the Yangtze catchment, were also used in collapse are likely to ensue. a good supply of slave labour to ensure similar processes). Grain is easy to assess, production, augment armies and build walls Brian Sims tax, store, transport and dole out when to keep barbarians out and subjects in. needed to feed armies and slaves. This is in Slaves are an essential (and disposable) stark contrast to root crops (eg cassava, proletariat for early states to force a yam and potato – although South America production surplus and undertake the most may be a special case here) which do not onerous work. The erection of the slave ripen simultaneously, are easy to store sector over the ‘grain module’ was an (hide) in the soil, are bulky to transport and essential component of a powerful state difficult to tax. and using slaves for hard labour kept the On the other hand hunter-gatherers, with core subjects subdued.

52 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Bookstack

magnet for enormous numbers of people localise aid has been shown as a significant from all over Africa, with many national and weakness in many aid programmes. Often international leaders with inadequate political the wrong development institutions use the courage to stand against this current. Benny wrong approaches and consequently success argues that we should be concerned for is limited. three prime reasons: firstly, we now live in a It is argued that the basic entry points for world of unrestricted market forces in which bringing about positive change in rural governments have less power than private Africa needs to be smallholder agriculture, corporations; secondly, a growing focus for supported by primary and vocational unrest in countries next door to Europe, education, and rural infrastructure to The famine next door: Africa is burning, which stands to be overwhelmed, if the support agriculture. Key issues to be the North is watching challenges of the South are not faced with resolved include: clarifying the institutional greater long-term realism. Thirdly, and Benny Dembitzer, 2018 roles of the major development bodies, perhaps the most persuasive reason for Ethical Events Ltd, UK including the World Bank and other financial concern, is that the rich world is present institutions, international and bilateral Paperback, 360 pages, £15.99, including P&P everywhere in the world today, through its government donors, ensuring they function businesses, banks, investments, media ISBN 978-0-9573823-1-2 in the interests of the South; NGOs need connections, IT services, embassies, Benny describes his book as an angry book, to be more courageous in their approaches, employees of bilateral and multilateral written by someone who has been privileged challenging their own governments to act institutions, expatriate workers, military to work for nearly 50 years across Africa and for the long-term interest of the poor and alliances, voluntary organisations, religious Asia and covering many of the experiences aligning themselves with the poorest, but institutions and tourists. With these in mind, through which he has lived. The book is making clear their ultimate aim of enabling the core argument in the book is that well- written with passion and from the heart and local development to emerge. meant development initiatives are frequently makes a plea for a better understanding of undertaken with insufficient local knowledge When it comes to improving agricultural issues that ‘experts’ often make more complex and understanding between developers and productivity, the challenge is not that nutrition, than they really are. Not everyone will agree the intended beneficiaries, or worse, by those water, sanitation or education, are more or with Benny’s views, but they will be recognised. with vested interests. less important. They are parts of the same As such the book deserves to be read by picture, which makes sense only when seen The book is divided into four sections. First, development professionals and policy makers. together. With agriculture placed at the the need for smallholder agriculture to be a The author states that he has seen very centre of a development and transformation key element of a strategy for change, and that little change and is shocked by the lack of agenda, this implies developing local in many parts of the world food is becoming improvement at grassroots level, with agriculture, improving soils and seeds, increasingly difficult to produce on soils that concerns why so many people in diversifying crops, empowering women, are becoming degraded, without access to developing countries, especially sub-Saharan finding the most appropriate techniques, better quality inputs, and with inadequate Africa are unable to move out of poverty developing agricultural education, and making knowledge of how to cope with the changing and food insecurity. The book points at an agriculture an integral part of that education. environment. Second, concerns with climate arrogance prevailing in the ‘development aid Localised development activities must be change within which the lives of the people world’ and amongst many professionals, undertaken by working with local people and of sub-Saharan Africa have to operate. Third, who think they know what poverty is and their priorities, ensuring as many farmers as misconceptions and growing chasms not only what poor people should do. It points also possible have access to education and between north and south, but also within at the hypocrisy of delegating important information. This implies encouraging local developing countries; and fourth, past failures development initiatives to commercial meetings and joint activities, with farmers’ field in development and appeals for justice and multinationals, which pursue their own goals schools and farming demonstrations playing change. The author points out that the rich of power and profitability. an important learning role. Savings and loan world determines the world’s priorities, mechanisms that rely on farmers choosing Benny makes a number of key points, having acquired the economic and political their own partners should be supported with including: sub-Saharan Africa’s GDP of US$2 muscle to do so. At the same time, it is cooperative structures in production and trillion being smaller than that of the UK at argued that one of the most disheartening marketing encouraged. New or rediscovered US$2.8 trillion; the North being elements of the fight against poverty is the appropriate technologies to suit local disproportionately more responsible for the artificiality and sterility of much of the current priorities are required. growing consequences of climate change debate at international level. With 32 UN with its greater impact on the South, where agencies, many duplicating each other, and an The author argues that state aid is one of the the poorest are already in the eye of a increasing number of non-State players, least effective ways to achieve improvement hurricane, with the coming together of private companies and voluntary bodies, and urges agreements within which local different forces that have been accelerating research and development has become a initiatives can be prioritised and promoted. over the last 50 years; Europe being a huge industry. An inability or reluctance to Organisations in the North need to work far

53 Bookstack / TAA Forum Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

more closely with one another and offer their serious gaps in many fields. For instance, controversial, but deserve consideration by joint practical experience and willingness to people who are trained in building services, both development professionals and policy operate at the grassroots level with not only as masons, carpenters, electricians and makers. Benny hopes that policymakers national, but particularly with local plumbers, can provide local skills and enable involved in rural and agricultural development governments. At the same time, developing individuals to set-up their own small in the South, particularly in sub-Saharan a healthy local private sector is essential. In businesses. In addition, the need to Africa, will also read and digest the concerns the long-term, communities will not be able encourage appropriate technology solutions and act on the suggestions made. to survive and develop unless they become seems to have been forgotten, and requires For further details on publication contact more entrepreneurial. There are few re-discovering and wider application. Benny Dembitzer at organisations from the North that offer Many of the observations, concerns and [email protected] training in technical subjects and this leads to suggestions in this interesting book are Jim Ellis-Jones TAA Forum

TAA 2017 AGM Report of the TAA 2017 Annual General Meeting Wednesday 13 December, 17.00 at the Royal Over-Seas League Club, London 1 Apologies Financial Year Amir Kassam, Ian Martin, Brian Sims. Proposer: Keith Virgo Seconder: Steve Vaux 2. Approval of Minutes of AGM held on Wednesday 9 Reappointment of Examiners for the Association - November 2016 at the University of Reading as presented Montpelier Professional of Dashwood Square, Newton in Agriculture for Development 30: Spring 2016. Stewart, Wigtownshire for next financial year. Proposer: Antony Ellman Seconder: Tim Roberts Proposer: Martin Evans Seconder: Linda Blunt 3. Matters Arising – None. 7. TAAF Review 4. TAA 2017 Review and 2018 Preview Presented by TAAF Chairman, Antony Ellman. Presented by TAA Chairman, Keith Virgo (included below). TAAF Presentation Remembrance of friends and colleagues no longer with us 2017 TAAF Awardee, Alison Stedman, gave a presentation Listed by General Secretary, Elizabeth Warham: entitled: Hidden practices for achieving water security and resilience in South African agriculture. D J Parsons Paul W P Davies 8. Progress on New TAA Strategy Ronald E Watts Treasurer, Jim Ellis-Jones, gave an update on the TAA W W Mckinlay strategic review process (included below). Sanjeev Vasudev Tim R Machen 9. Presentation of TAA Honours John R Goldsack Honours Panel Chair, Paul Harding, announced the L J Collings-Wells awardees, and TAA President, Andrew Bennett presented Mike Mortimer the awards (details included below). Roy Ward 10.Development Agriculturalist of the Year Presentation 5. Ex-Co Elections were held for: Dr Ajaz Khan presented on behalf of LendwithCARE David Radcliffe, Andrew Ward and Steve Vaux as (included below). Presidents’ Ex-Co Members. 11. AOB – None. Proposer: Terry Wiles Seconder: Paul Harding 12. Supper, Networking and Raffle. 6. Financial Summary Presented by Treasurer, Jim Ellis-Jones (included below): Elizabeth Warham Adoption of Audited Accounts for the 2016-2017 General Secretary

54 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) TAA Forum

Chairman’s 2017 Review and 2018 Preview

Welcome to the AGM and our annual reunion. This year we have Coordinator for the Branch. He and his team plan an Indian TAA reverted to a mid-December date, which we hope will enable more Newsletter. members to attend. As required by the Charities Commission, we TAA’s Journal. The tasks of producing Ag4Dev falls to dedicated have already prepared a report on activities of the TAA over the volunteers, under the leadership of Paul Harding. We are pleased period July 2016 to June 2017. This has been available on-line for to welcome Andy Ward to the editorial team and are seeking ways all to read at http://www.taa.org.uk/assets2/2017_trustees to out-source some of the routine production functions to ease _report_approved.pdf, and is to be signed-off by the AGM. the burden on the editors, and thereby facilitate the journal’s Today, I will briefly review key events since June 2017 and take a continuity. forward look. A major activity has been to develop a new strategy Website. In June, ExCo approved a quotation from our current – more about this later. Antony will update you on TAAF activities web developer (for about £3,000) to revamp and modernise our and then Paul will introduce this year’s TAA Honours recipient website. Good progress has been made and we hope to have a new, (Lendwithcare). The formal session will conclude with ‘cleaner’ site operating soon. presentations on behalf of our Development Agriculturalist of the Year, and by one of this year’s TAAF awardees. We can then relax Looking to next year. As everyone will be aware, we had decided and enjoy the reunion and supper. to take a new look at the Association’s future strategy. Jim Ellis- Jones agreed to mastermind the process, for ExCo. There has been I will now outline recent events under each of the sub-headings of much discussion on logical frameworks and SWAT analyses during the Trustees’ Report: the year, culminating in the design and launch of a questionnaire Membership. The Association presently (December 2017) has 455 survey by Ian Hill. ExCo plans to devote its March meeting to a individual and 27 institutional members. The latter include new moderated discussion of the future strategy. This will include members Capital Agri International and Gorta-Self Help Africa, and reviews of TAAF plans to strengthen post-award involvement by we expect East Malling Research to sign up shortly. An additional awardees and options for partial outsourcing of work on our 72 individual members are listed as ‘Donors’, due to under- journal. ExCo will consider ways to improve communications payments or lack of contact details. Members without full payment with our members and the outside world. We hope to have the for over two years are being removed from the database. new and improved website running early in the new year. In July, we had only 8 percent of membership ‘under 30’. We We plan to hold our 2018 Ralph Melville Memorial Lecture in the urgently need to increase this proportion if we are to be sustainable London area, with a speaker on Agri-Tech. The SW Branch has an into the future. Alex Tasker, as ‘Early Careers Officer’ on ExCo, is interesting range of talks set for their AGM in Exeter on 4th January, now exploring a mentoring service to link TAA expertise to an Agriculture and Environment tour of East Devon in July, and PhD/Post-Doc students in research organisations. We are also their annual RAU Cirencester conference on Food Chain Linkages exploring with the Royal Society of Biology the possibilities of on 18th October. East Anglia has a visit to a Vertical Agriculture initiating ‘Registered Developmentalist’ qualifications for early enterprise near Cambridge on 23rd February and a seminar on career members. reducing crop losses on 9th May in Cambridge. London & SE are planning more Curry Club Talks and more panel discussions are As always, everyone should be on the lookout for potential new envisaged by the APPG. Please check the ‘Events’ webpages. members – just send an email contact to Lin and she will do the rest! Acknowledgements. I would ask the membership to join me in expressing grateful thanks to our hard-working volunteer members Networking and information exchange. The SW Branch of the ExCo team – we need new ideas and younger blood, so I am conference at the Royal Agricultural University in mid-October delighted to announce that Steve Vaux, Andy Ward and David focussed on Rural Tourism. Margaret Mangheni (Makerere University) presented the Hugh Bunting Memorial Lecture at Radcliffe were enrolled today onto ExCo. We must also thank the TAAF committee, convenors of the UK Regional Branches and Reading University in November, on Integrating women and youth Organisers of our Overseas Branches. We also thank the many in climate-smart African agriculture. The London & SE Branch organised a prior visit to the University’s cocoa unit. members who have contributed ideas, posted news in Ag4Dev and participated in the Association’s activities throughout the year. India Branch. Girish Bhardwaj kindly agreed to take over as

General Secretary: Technical Editors: Executive Committee members Elizabeth Warham Brian Sims and Elizabeth Warham President: Treasurer: Award Fund Chairman: Andrew Bennett Jim Ellis-Jones Antony Ellman Chairman: Membership Secretary: Institutional Members: Keith Virgo Linda Blunt Martin Evans Vice Chairman: Coordinating Editor: Website Manager: Paul Harding Paul Harding Keith Virgo

55 TAA Forum Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Honours Panel Chair: Agribusiness Group: TAA Caribbean; Paul Harding Roger Cozens Bruce Lauckner East Anglia: Land Husbandry Group: TAA SE Asia: Keith Virgo Amir Kassam Wyn Ellis London and South-East: Environmental Conservation: TAA South Pacific: Terry Wiles Keith Virgo Ravi Joshi North of England: Student members: TAA Zambia: John Gowing Alex Tasker Chris Kapembwa Scotland: International Coordinator: John Ferguson TAA India: Keith Virgo South-West: Girish Bhardwaj TAA Chairman Tim Roberts

Treasurer’s 2017 Annual Report and Accounts

TAA’s 2017 annual accounts (1st July 2016 to 30th June 2017), individuals and 6,535 family members have been assisted finalised by our external accountants, Montpelier Professional and 1,032 jobs supported. Detail can be seen at Limited, were presented and approved at the AGM on the 13th www.lendwithcare.org/groups/profile/tropical_agriculture_ December 2017. These are submitted each year to the association). Charities’ Commission together with the Trustees report and • Other charitable expenditure included £2,272 for events, www.taa.org.uk under the page on Finance can be viewed on £605 for ongoing maintenance of the website, £500 for the and Accounts. Key points include: All Party Parliamentary Group on Agriculture and Food for Income Development, and £260 for membership of the Royal Total income was £39,518, an increase of £7,329 over that of Society of Biology. 2016. This included: • Governance costs amounted to £2,247, slightly less than • Subscription income of £22,538, an increase on 2016 that in 2016. mainly due to the increase in membership fees. Funds available • Donations received for the Award Fund amounting to A surplus of income over expenditure of £5,243 was received. £13,404, an increase of £4,704 over 2016. These are greatly This compares with a small deficit of £460 in 2016. The total appreciated and thank you to the donors. funds available at the end of June were £64,010 of which • A tax rebate of £2,818 received from the Inland Revenue for £28,377 is restricted for TAAF and £35,633 unrestricted. ‘Gift Aided’ subscriptions and donations, almost the same Looking forwards as in 2016. A deficit of around £15,000 in 2018 has been budgeted, not • Other income included £688 from events, £17 interest and accounting for any donations. The major reason for the £53 miscellaneous items. budgeted deficit is due to TAAF awards being made from earlier Expenditure year donations restricted for TAAF. The main uncertainties for 2018 are income from membership subscriptions and TAAF Total expenditure in 2017 was £34,275 of which 93 percent donations. was charitable and 7 percent was governance expenditure. In both cases this was slightly more than in 2016 and comprised: Jim Ellis-Jones Treasurer • Agriculture for Development Journal costs of £11,686 for three publications produced during the year. This was less than last year since more members are opting for on-line publications. • TAAF approved 18 awards amounting to £14,500. Generous donations allowed more awards to be made than in 2016. • Since 2014 TAA has contributed £6,100 to LendwithCARE and together with loan repayments had funded 449 agricultural micro-loans for small entrepreneurs valued at £22,647, across 11 countries: Cambodia, Ecuador, Malawi, Pakistan, Palestinian territories, Philippines, Rwanda, Peru, Vietnam, Zambia and Zimbabwe. £16,522 has been repaid with £5,945 currently being repaid. 2,273

56 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) TAA Forum

TAA ACCOUNTS July 2016 to June 2017 2017 2016 Change Receipts Subscriptions £22,538 £19,580 £2,958 Award Fund donations £13,404 £8,700 £4,704 Other donations £0 £0 £0 Functions £688 £1,007 -£319 Inland Revenue £2,818 £2,812 £6 Bank Interest £17 £33 -£16 Miscellaneous £53 £57 -£4 Total receipts £39,517 £32,189 £7,329 Expenditure Charitable Journal £11,686 £13,509 -£1,823 Shows and functions £2,272 £3,051 -£779 Regional Subventions £205 £0 £205 Biology Society £260 £520 -£260 LendwithCARE £2,000 £0 £2,000 Award fund and expenses £14,500 £12,000 £2,500 UK Forum for All Parliamentary Group £500 £500 £0 Internet/web costs £605 £771 -£166 sub total £32,028 £30,351 £1,677 Governance Insurance £462 £455 £7 Accounting services £396 £360 £36 Executive Committee £1,374 £1,125 £249 Admin £15 £358 -£343 sub total £2,247 £2,298 -£51

Total expenditure £34,275 £32,649 -£145

Excess of receipts over payments £5,243 -£460 £5,703

Bank balance Opening balance £59,068 £59,528 Movement in the year £5,243 -£460 £64,311 £59,068 -£1,198 Closing balance £64,310 £59,068 Liabilities -300 -300 Total funds £64,010 £58,768 £5,242

57 TAA Forum Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Towards a new TAA strategy

During the last year, a number of activities have taken place • A new website due to be completed later this year. with a view to developing the future TAA strategy. This has • Ensuring the programme, timing and location of our events included discussions at executive and regional level, by the is appropriate for both our individual and institutional TAAF committee, and with institutional members by members’ needs and at the same time improving the telephone, as well as a detailed member survey. Results show publicity that flows from such occasions. that members value the journal, the website and email alerts. The value of TAAF was endorsed, but policy activities and • Options for maintaining the high standard of the journal working groups were regarded as less effective. Policy and are under consideration. Working Groups were regarded as lower priority, but should be • Options for ensuring TAAF continues into the future are supported. In considering the future, members favoured all also under consideration. activities continuing, but building on achievements. It was suggested that a secretariat be considered to publicise, Key issues as we move forward include: implement and manage activities, details to be developed by • Attracting and retaining younger members. teams led by ExCo. • Encouraging greater involvement of members in TAA’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats have leading/participating in activities. been analysed and a summary is presented in Table 1 below. • Prioritising USPs (journal + TAAF). There are clearly other opportunities, other than those shown • Affordability of a full- or part-time secretariat, with every in the Table 1, but there is a need to be realistic and consider £10,000 addition requiring a 40-50 percent fee increase. the challenges with which TAA is faced. Action already being taken includes: Jim Ellis-Jones

Table 1. TAA strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats. Strengths Weaknesses • Wide range of expertise and experience • Struggle to hold younger members who are too busy, other priorities, few work • USPs – journal and TAAF scheme opportunities • Public lectures – useful PR exercises esp • Activities undertaken by a handful of when linked to Institutional members over-stretched individuals • Increasing Branch activities • Difficulties in getting members to • Membership numbers stabilised – and contribute or participate new members joining Opportunities Threats Short term • Declining membership • Revamping the website • Declining member participation in TAA • Building on TAA’s unique selling points, activities the journal and TAAF • Re-looking at the programme of events and lectures to encourage greater participation • Improving PR /communication from events • Encouraging more members to champion activities, especially in working groups Medium term • Organising joint events with institutional members • Investing in a paid (part-time) secretariat • Establishing a basis for offering expertise to development organisations • Re-consider ‘Chartered status’ for members especially younger ones Longer term • Linking or merging TAA with other bodies (professional associations, universities, agribusinesses). This could include a joint secretariat and payment for services • Establishing a Trust Fund for TAAF

58 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) TAA Forum

TAA 2017 Honours

The TAA 2017 Honours were announced at the AGM meeting. The winner of the most prestigious award, the annual Development Agriculturalist of the Year (DAY), was CARE International-UK (CIUK) for “establishing (Lendwithcare) an innovative micro- finance scheme helping entrepreneurs in developing countries to lift themselves out of poverty” (Figure 1). CARE has been working on microfinance for more than two decades, pioneering Village Savings and Loan Associations in many countries around the world. These enable people in poor communities to save and borrow money, meaning they are better able to plan for the future and obtain loans to start or develop small businesses. The award-winning scheme, Lendwithcare (www.lendwithcare.org), was established in 2010. By September 2017, over £15 million of loans had been made, with the scheme operating across eleven countries: Zambia, Malawi, Rwanda, Zimbabwe, the Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam, Pakistan, Ecuador, West Bank and Gaza, and most recently Peru. Lendwithcare is a peer-to-peer lending relationship between people in the UK and people in developing countries. It is an innovative way of raising micro-finance to help entrepreneurs Figure 2. Dr Ajaz Khan receiving the DAY from TAA President, Andrew in developing countries to lift themselves out of poverty. Bennett. The 2017 Development Agriculturalist of the Year award was accepted by Dr Ajaz Ahmed Khan on behalf of CIUK (Figure 2). Dr Khan is Senior Micro-finance Adviser with CIUK. He holds a PhD in Development Economics and has almost three decades of practical field experience working as an agricultural economist in developing countries. He has helped to establish micro-finance organisations which now support tens of thousands of small-scale businesses. Dr Khan helped to establish and develop the award-winning Lendwithcare in 2010. Dr Khan’s acceptance presentation if included below.

Paul Harding Chair, Honours Panel

Figure 1. The 2017 Development Agriculturalist of the Year award.

Since 2014, TAA has made contributions of £6,100 to Lendwithcare. To date, 464 loans amounting to over £23,000 have been made to 2,327 individuals or small groups across the 12 countries. These have supported 6,720 family members and over 1,000 jobs. TAA receives regular updates on the use and progress of loans, which are posted on the Lendwithcare website. As loan repayments are made they are credited back to TAA. These have been used to provide further loans to entrepreneurs.

59 TAA Forum Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Development Agriculturalist of the Year presentation Lendwithcare: crowdfunding for micro-finance

CARE International was honoured to receive the 2017 choose to withdraw or re-lend to another micro- Development Agriculturalist of the Year Award from the entrepreneur. Only 7 percent of lenders have ever Tropical Agriculture Association for the Lendwithcare withdrawn funds, the majority simply recycle any project. This article is a summary of the presentation given repayments into new loans and often ‘top-up’ their at the award ceremony. It provides a brief introduction to accounts with extra funds. Lendwithcare, its achievements and challenges. How have we done so far? What is Lendwithcare? After a relatively slow beginning during the first twelve Lendwithcare is an online crowdfunding platform that months, Lendwithcare has grown quickly. It now has provides loans to micro-entrepreneurs in low-income nearly 46,000 lenders and attracts several hundred new countries. It was created in 2010 by the international lenders each month. This figure includes groups, such as development charity CARE International. At present, the Tropical Agriculture Association, as well as individuals. Lendwithcare works through local micro-finance partner Collectively, they have lent nearly £17 million to support organisations in eleven countries: Zambia, Malawi, approximately 75,000 small businesses (figures accurate as Rwanda, Zimbabwe, the Philippines, Cambodia, Vietnam, of the end of December 2017). As well as supporting the Pakistan, Ecuador, West Bank and Gaza, and most recently employment of the borrowers and their immediate families, Peru. The aim of Lendwithcare is to improve the lives of lenders have helped to create approximately 14,500 new poor people by providing them with loans to establish or jobs due to these businesses taking on additional develop small-scale businesses. Slightly over one-third of employees. Some of our micro-finance partner loans are to smallholder farmers. We believe that organisations have passed on the benefits of the interest- supporting small businesses helps create employment and free capital from Lendwithcare in the form of offering lower generate wealth as well as promoting self-reliance and interest rates to their clients, while others have extended independence in poor communities. Despite increases in their outreach to more geographically isolated the provision of micro-finance for the poor over recent communities or started supporting more innovative, and years, the World Bank estimates that around 2 billion potentially much more profitable ventures, such as people still do not use formal financial services and more community-based tourism in Ecuador. than 50 percent of adults in the poorest households are The repayment rate is presently over 99 percent. This is a unbanked. It considers financial inclusion as a key enabler remarkable achievement as some of our partners operate to reducing poverty and boosting prosperity in very challenging environments – for example, in recent (http://www.worldbank.org/en/topic/financialinclusion/ove years our partners have been affected by typhoons in the rview). Philippines, severe and prolonged drought in Malawi, and How does Lendwithcare work? flooding in Vietnam. After consulting with our partners, Lendwithcare has written-off a very small number of loans Anyone wishing to lend can visit www.lendwithcare.org for micro-entrepreneurs whose livelihoods have been and select a micro-entrepreneur to support. severely affected by factors outside their control. But Lendwithcare’s partner organisations are responsible for generally, our policy is to suspend loan repayments for appraising all applications, disbursing loans and collecting several months, without applying additional charges, for repayments. They also collect the information regarding borrowers who are facing temporary difficulties that, given each micro-entrepreneur, which is shown on the website. time, they can overcome. The minimum loan a lender can give is £15 and 100 percent of this goes to the micro-entrepreneur. The funds What about impact? are not transferred until a loan is fully funded. Loans are While the growth in numbers is impressive, our aim is to requested by both individuals and groups and generally improve poor people’s lives. To assess whether we are range from £200 to around £5000; although on a small making a difference, in 2015 we conducted a household number of occasions we have supported even larger loans. survey of 500 new clients and a group of non-clients in Lendwithcare does not charge any interest on the loan Pakistan. This was in collaboration with the University of capital it provides to its partner organisations. Instead, it Portsmouth and our micro-finance partner in Pakistan, relies mostly on voluntary donations from lenders and, to Akhuwat. Each interview consisted of a detailed a lesser extent, support from corporate donors to cover its questionnaire as well as the Poverty Probability Index (PPI), operating costs. Repayments from the micro- a poverty measurement tool developed by the Grameen entrepreneurs are paid into the lenders’ Lendwithcare Foundation (https://www.povertyindex.org/about-ppi). accounts as Lendwithcare credit, which they can then Two years later, in 2017, we re-interviewed the same clients

60 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) TAA Forum

and non-clients. as their numbers increased so did their donations – our Overall, clients reported very positive changes. In fact, 77 data indicates that almost two-thirds of lenders’ loans percent of clients stated that their living standards had include an additional donation. We continue to expand at improved, one-third mentioned an increase in income, and a modest rate but we hope to secure new corporate or 26 percent reported increased consumption levels. A small foundation support to enable us to invest in significant proportion (5 percent) indicated ‘no changes’ and just 1 growth. This includes exploring how we can develop fair percent listed lower incomes. There was a positive impact trade links with retailers in the United Kingdom for some on local employment. Whereas 69 percent of clients of the items, such as coffee, produced by the micro- reported working alone in 2015, this proportion had fallen entrepreneurs we support. to 54 percent in 2017. The PPI data enabled us to assess Ajaz Ahmed Khan changes in household poverty levels. On average, the Senior Micro-finance Adviser results point towards a reduction in the clients’ poverty CARE International levels, with a lower likelihood of client households being [email protected] considered poor in 2017 than 2015. Women saw the biggest changes in their poverty score, as well as those who were illiterate. We hope to interview the same micro- entrepreneurs for a third time in 2019. We are currently examining the results from similar surveys in Zimbabwe during 2016-17. The initial analysis indicates that the changes are much less positive than experienced by clients in Pakistan. This is unsurprising considering Zimbabwe has experienced significant economic and political turmoil over recent years, and highlights the fact that even well-designed and well- delivered financial services can sometimes have minimal impact. Lendwithcare will extend this research to other countries where we operate during 2018-19. What are our major challenges? We face two major challenges. The first is selecting appropriate local partner organisations to work with. They should have strong financial indicators to ensure both their own long-run sustainability and minimise the risk to our investment. Equally importantly, though, they should also possess a strong social development mission. In practice, this means that our partners provide non-financial services such as agricultural extension through demonstration farms and collective marketing of crops, as well as other financial services such as savings and insurance, in addition to loans. All partners must adhere to our code of conduct that includes a commitment to fair charges and ethical lending (https://www.lendwithcare.org/info/ about_us). We always undertake a lengthy due diligence process, which includes one or more visits to potential partners to analyse their operations in practice and to also speak with both staff and clients. Secondly, as Lendwithcare does not charge any interest on the loan capital to partner organisations, or deduct anything from the sums given by lenders, it means we do face a challenge in covering our operational costs. As well as receiving voluntary donations from lenders, initially Lendwithcare was subsidised by CARE International and also supported by organisations such as the Co-operative Group. In 2016, Lendwithcare finally became financially self-sufficient. The key was the growth in lender numbers:

61 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

News from the Regions TAA SW summer field visit to the Isles of Scilly, 10-12 July 2017 Introduction group from where their flowers go direct to supermarkets. Picking starts at the end of September, builds and peaks at This was not our usual conventional three-day agricultural Christmas, and then continues busy to mid-March. The bulbs field trip because there is so little agriculture (mostly are lifted every four years and sold, in effect, as a by-product horticulture) as we know it practised on these lovely islands of of the flowers. Diversification is a quest. only 6.32 square miles, which includes uninhabited rocks. But for all that the beauty, history and hospitality made it a most memorable and delightful visit. We stayed at St Mary’s, the largest island, and from there we made boat trips to two of the islands, Tresco and St Agnes. A feature of the climate is the lack of extremes. Temperatures seldom fall below 6˚C or become scorching hot in summer. Frosts are rare, and snow is even rarer. Salty Atlantic winds are frequent, so tree windbreaks are common (Figure 1).

Figure 2. Penny Rogers discussing flower production with TAA members (Photo: Paul Harding).

The only riding stables on the Isles of Scilly ceased to operate recently, so their daughter-in-law started riding stables of shire horses, which graze 20 extra acres which were acquired for the purpose. Tresco

Figure 1. Windbreaks around a herb garden on St Martin (Photo: Paul Harding). Tuesday was spent of the island of Tresco. Mike Nelhams, the curator, gave a fascinating presentation on the Tresco Abbey th century, the island’s main income At the beginning of the 20 Gardens (Figure 3). These unique gardens were started in came from very early season flowers, especially daffodils and 1834 by the then leaseholder Augustus Smith; his descendent narcissi, and early potatoes. However, with the advent of poly Robert Dorian-Smith succeeds him. As the Gulf Stream tunnels on mainland Cornwall, and flower imports from climate has a narrow temperature range, a unique recreation Kenya, this early advantage has been lost. Moreover, fields are of the Mediterranean type flora has been established. This flora too small for potato harvesting machinery. Some business features in a handful of other isolated areas of the world, such survives for narcissi cultivars unique to the islands. Picking as the Fynbos of South Africa. Many windbreaks are needed starts in October, three months ahead of Cornwall. Now, 85 because sea breezes are constant, and gales not uncommon. percent of the Isles of Scilly economy is linked to tourism. All trees are evergreens, with Monterey Cypress featuring regularly. The sheltered lower garden with tree canopy shade St Mary’s has the richest soil where the flora from the South Island of New Zealand and Chile are planted. The tree sheltered mid- Monday afternoon was spent on St Mary’s where we visited terrace has Mediterranean, Canary Islands and South American Penny Rogers and her family’s Flower Farm (Figure 2). They flora. The upper-terraces host Fynbos, Australian and Mexican have managed to survive and flourish by providing flowers flora. The gardens contain more than 4,000 species of plants. from a ‘cottage industry’ to the market, a special variety of The Valhalla Museum contains an extensive collection of narcissi, multi-headed, highly-scented and sold as unique to carefully restored figureheads rescued from the many the Isles of Scilly. The Rogers joined a mainland marketing shipwrecks in the local waters.

62 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Regions

but concede it protects the islands from the more vulgar aspects of tourism. Notably it prevents the widespread development of ‘second homes’, except for a few erroneously sold to owners immediately after World War II. Duchy tenancy agreements are for two generations. Fishing, mainly crab and lobster, for which there is a six mile limit, is not under Duchy control. Attempts are being made to diversify with other possibilities being researched. Plans to improve bee strains, which are currently varroa mite-free, and the establishment of a beekeepers association, are underway. Luke emphasised that biosecurity must be improved. All tenancy agreements state that flora and fauna must be GM free.

St Agnes

Figure 3. Mike Nelhams describing the Mediterranean flora of Tresco Abbey Wednesday was spent on St Agnes. The lighthouse in the Gardens (Photo: Paul Harding). centre of the island is the oldest lighthouse governed by Trinity House (created by Henry V111). It was built in 1680, and was Tourism funds the Abbey gardens, in which the ruins of the coal-fired. Its location in the middle of the island was not ideal. th original 12 century St Nicholas Priory can be seen. Mike After ten years, it was effectively replaced by Peninnis Head actually manages the entire island. Some 120 Limousin x lighthouse on St Mary’s. It finally ceased to operate in 1911. Devon cattle are kept for grass mowing purposes, not profit. Flower production ceased due to high transport costs. The We visited Lighthouse Farm (Figure 4), owned by Francis and hotel on the island was closed because it was considered to be Carol Hicks – one of eleven Hicks families in the Scilly Isles. attracting “inappropriate clientele”. Families are attracted to We were given an eloquent resume of the social history of St the 90 timeshare letting units, the income from which is Agnes, which again is a story of the decline of horticulture with reinvested in the island. The Heliport is being reinstated. only remnants hanging on, and the growth of tourism. The resident population totals 120, with primary The farm is 274 acres of mostly moorland. About 14 acres are schoolchildren weekly boarding on St Mary’s. Two Councillors worked; but there are many shelter belts, so only 10-12 acres attend the Isles of Scilly Council. Waste disposal is very well are cultivated. The Hicks said that they will be the last flower- organised and disciplined – all organic and food waste is growers on the island since there is no interest in horticulture processed in an anaerobic digester. All garden staff participate from others. They grow a wide range of narcissi, which helps in winter study tours to Europe, and few leave employment at spread the harvesting period. There is not enough good land the gardens because of the idyllic environment. Student to rotate, so eelworm is problematic. gardeners often express a wish to return to work permanently.

Discussions with Luke Humphries, Deputy Land Steward

After dinner in the hotel, Luke Humphries, the Deputy Land Steward for the Duchy of Cornwall, described the challenges and opportunities presented by the Isles of Scilly. A group of over 200 islands and rocks located 28 miles from Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly have been part of the Duchy of Cornwall since its beginning in the 14th century. Today the Duchy owns most of the land and nearly a third of the residential buildings on the islands. Luke oversees the daily management of the Scilly’s 4,000 acres, with the exception of Tresco, which is run by the Dorian-Smith family. Figure 4. Francis Hicks welcomes the group to Lighthouse Farm, St Agnes (Photo: Paul Harding). The Duchy, with HRH the Duke of Cornwall as patron, is custodian of the land, which is regarded as national capital. It The Hicks have diversified, with three letting chalets plus two has strategic control of the Harbour Authority, and roads and units for staff accommodation. Their current income is about quays are resurfaced by the Duchy, with an additional 23 miles 55 percent from narcissi and 45 percent from letting. Water is of roads funded by the EU. Superfast Broadband has been from untreated borehole supply. There are seven farmers on installed; but certain other infrastructure must be improved, St Agnes, and all but one has suckler cows, but to our surprise, including the water grid and the shortage of housing. no buying co-operative has been developed. Leaseholders find some aspects of Duchy control restrictive, After lunch in the Turk’s Head pub, we visited Troytown

63 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Farm, managed by Tim and Sue Hicks. Tim had no intention now very successful. A Red Ruby Devon bull is used to to take-over from his father, who grew narcissi and early produce calves for the Truro market. Spring-born calves are potatoes, but the 36 acre Troytown Farm tenancy became kept in a viewing pen throughout the summer as a visitor available just as Tim was leaving the Royal Navy in October attraction. Small paddocks are planted with a ryegrass/timothy 1982. Due to the advent of plastic covering for early crops in + clover mix, but because of the low pH of 4.9, clover does Cornwall, the traditional enterprises ceased and campsite and not last. Again, high hedges are prominent for windbreaks. It holiday cottages became their main source of income. was reminiscent of the days before WW11, when a farm of this The camping site and cottages are full from Whitsun until the size could support a family. Nevertheless, farming remains end of August. Drinking water is from an excellent quality part of the mix, albeit contributing only 10-15 percent of the borehole. The campsite lavatories are flushed, and the dairy profits. washed with seawater. When their son joined them, a second Following dinner in the hotel, the group met to discuss income was needed, so a small dairy herd of eleven Jersey x possible future directions for the TAA, as a contribution to the Friesians milkers was established to make ice cream, which is year-long strategic review of the Association.

TAA SW Conference: Sustainable tourism for development, the Royal Agricultural University, Cirencester, 12 October 2017 Conference report This conference was organised in recognition of the UN’s constrained by politics. An extended summary of the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development. presentation is provided below. Rural tourism constitutes around 37 percent of the total UK Dr Chris Murray, of Pennywell Farm in Devon, described The tourism industry, so several presentations concerned farm-based activity tourism business. Chris and his family agritourism in the UK. There were a total of eleven run a popular ‘tourism farm’. It was developed from bare land, presentations, as summarised below: with the aim of linking the public to the land, food production, Professor John Wibberley set the scene with an Overview of and how vital it is to respect its value. global tourism and agritourism, which is presented in full Keith Virgo, TAA chairman and Director of Village Ways, below. presented a co-authored paper entitled Improving lives and Dr Nicola Canon, principal lecturer at the RAU, presented livelihoods through responsible rural tourism: examples from Rural tourism: setting the scene from a British family India. This is included in full below. perspective. Dr Elizabeth Warham, TAA General Secretary, gave a paper Jonathan Brunyee, senior lecturer at the RAU, presented on Caribbean tourism experiences. Agritourism in the Regenerative agriculture and the role of agritourism. Caribbean is in its early stages and is poorly co-ordinated. The Jonathan stated that the linkage in the UK between rural agricultural sector is very run down, but there is great potential matters and development is fragmented. for agritourism. Simon Spooner, of ‘Westmoreland’, M5 Gloucester Services, David Mahungu, from the University of Nairobi and Tim presented a paper entitled Connecting agritourism to local Roberts, described The Kenya experience. David spoke of the food. The questions posed were: “how can there be a tourist plight of pasturalists – if the rains failed, their livelihoods on a farm? Is it ‘staged’ or can it be authentic?” Much of the collapsed. public have no idea where food comes from, so the aim of agritourism in the UK is to connect the public to food Professor David Hopkins, from the RAU, informed the producers. participants about The RAU ecology and conservation field programme. This is a programme to produce the next Colin Javens presented Developing a sustainable agritourism generation of ecologists. Most recently, a group of RAU enterprise in Sicily. During his travels in Africa and Australia, students researched and studied in Namibia. Colin has seen much land degradation, so he and his wife decided to do something about it. They bought a derelict site Ray Bartlett in Sicily, and with EU Development Funding, set about regeneration and developing agritourism. Clare Robbie, studying at RAU, presented Rural tourism as a strategy for sustainable rural development in Zimbabwe. Clare comes from Zimbabwe, where her parents farm in the north of the country. Development is so influenced and

64 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Regions

Overview of global tourism and agritourism History and development of tourism • Minimises negative environmental, social and cultural impacts; From the 18th century ‘Grand Tour’ made by European elites, • Generates greater economic benefits for local people and and the promotion by Dr Russell on sea water’s health benefits enhances the well-being of host communities, by improving (Sakula, 1995), tourism began in earnest in Queen Victoria’s working conditions and access to the industry; reign with the development of railways, along with George • Involves local people in decisions that affect their lives and Bradshaw’s Travel Guides. It was Thomas Cook of Leicester life chances; who, in 1841, organised an excursion to Loughborough that began ‘package holidays’. Travel thus became tourism, ever • Makes positive contributions to the conservation of natural more distant, aided by finance using American Express from and cultural heritage and to the maintenance of the world’s 1891. Tourism by motor cars began in 1880s/1890s and was diversity; followed by ‘Motor Camps’ in the USA. The first Michelin • Provides more enjoyable experiences for tourists through Guide to France was published in 1900, and 1937 saw the first more meaningful connections with local people, and greater of Billy Butlin’s ‘Holiday Camps’. However, still in 1986- understanding of local cultural and environmental issues; Indonesia, sewage ran down the beach in an otherwise pristine island; it was for this author a crisis alert. Now there are • Provides access for physically challenged people; around 1 billion tourist visits worldwide each year, and there • Is culturally sensitive and engenders respect between is now an impetus for ecotourism and more responsible tourists and hosts. tourism. Too much tourism has not benefitted local populations and has proved extremely resource-hungry. The Sustainable tourism for development can embrace agriculture UN Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development, 2017, is and vice versa for mutual benefit. indeed timely. Reference Tourism, agriculture and the Sakula A, 1995. Doctor Brighton: Richard Russell and the Sea Water Cure. environment Journal of Medical Biography, 3(1) 30-33.

Pioneering links between agriculture and tourism include Agriturismo in Italy, bed and breakfast (B&B) tourism on farms Further reading in the UK, and ‘Dude’ ranches in the USA. Cars gradually penetrated rural areas ever more deeply bringing visitors. The Bah A, 2014. Twelve years of responsible tourism development: lessons from first commercial trans-Atlantic passenger jet flew in 1958. The The Gambia. The International Centre for Responsible Tourism-West Africa UN World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) was established in (ICRT-WA),15 pp. 1975 (but was first mooted in 1925!). By 1990, there were over Goodwin H, 2016. Responsible tourism: using tourism for sustainable 400 million tourists worldwide, with 1 billion tourists/year by development. Goodfellow Publishers Ltd, Oxford, UK, 268 pp. 2016. Of these, 84 million went to France, and 8.9 million to McLaren D, 1998. Rethinking tourism and eco-travel. Kumarian Press, USA, the Republic of South Africa (RSA). In Tanzania, tourism 182 pp. accounts for 17 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and 38 percent of land is in National Parks. One of these, Serengeti Murray CJB, Wibberley MJ, Wibberley EJ, 2016. Agriculture and tourism: National Park, has 0.5 million visitors per year. Tourism farm-based activities business. Africa Farm Management Association Congress employs 1 in 12 of all workers globally, and UNWTO reckons 5 (AFMA10), Mauritius, November 2016. percent of climate change impact is due to tourism. Therefore, Naidoo P, Sharpley R, 2016. Local perceptions of the relative contributions of ecotourism, and greater responsibility for the impacts of enclave tourism and agritourism to community well-being: the case of tourism, are imperative. Agriculture and tourism have Mauritius. Journal of Destination Marketing and Management, 5 (1), 16-25. considerable unrealised potential for integration, not only as Phillip S, Hunter C, Blackstock K, 2010. A typology for defining agritourism. an income stream for farmers, but also for the educational and Tourism Management 31,754-758. www.safeagritourism.org/Integrating public benefit of people exploring sensitively-managed farms. Safety on Agritourism Farms. The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (www.unwto.org) named 8th November 2017 as World Tourism Dr John Wibberley Day. UNWTO has its headquarters in Madrid, Spain and Chair TAA SW branch developed its Global Code of Ethics for Tourism in 1999.

What is ‘responsible tourism’?

The Cape Town RSA Declaration of 2002 states that responsible tourism:

65 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Improving lives and livelihoods through responsible rural tourism: examples from India

Keith Virgo, Manisha Pande, Pooja Masoor and Dinesh Pande

Keith Virgo trained as a soil scientist, and for 22 years he worked for Hunting Technical Services, the Canada Department of Agriculture and WS Atkins. From 1986, he has spent much of his time in Nepal and India. In 2005, with Indian and UK colleagues, he established Village Ways Pvt Ltd to promote community-based tourism. He is still a Director of the company. Keith is also the TAA Chair, website manager, and Convenor of the East Anglia branch. [email protected]

Manisha Pande is the Managing Director, Village Ways, [email protected] Pooja Masoor is Coordinator, Village Ways, [email protected] Dinesh Pande is Director, Village Ways, [email protected]

[This paper was originally presented at the 6th Biennial ECHO Kumaon in the lesser Himalaya of Uttarakhand, India, are Asia Conference ‘Improving Lives’, Chiang Mai, Thailand, 3rd becoming de-populated through out-migration. A lack of local October 2017.] employment opportunities encourages most young men, on completing school, to leave their village to gain employment in the cities, government service or the military. They usually Abstract return later in life to their villages. This tradition has led to a remittance economy. A common feature of remote villages is a lack of employment opportunities that forces young people to out-migrate. This This results in a loss of cultural traditions and social structures, results in communities dominated by children and the old, a and a decline in the importance of farming as a means of decline in the social and cultural fabric, and a reduced pride in livelihood. Moreover, houses are abandoned, with a loss of rural life. Since 2005, Village Ways has formed partnerships with architectural heritage, and the traditional affinity of the people community groups in villages that have tourism potential, with their environment is eroded. The pressure to migrate is enabling them to build, own and manage guesthouses to host understandable, but many do not want to leave their villages discerning tourists, who provide income for the communities. and would stay if there were earning opportunities nearer This effectively combines social enterprise with commercial home. development. Uttarakhand has magnificent scenery, with huge potential for This paper identifies some of the benefits of tourism on the lives domestic and international tourism. However, most tourism and livelihoods of host villagers, based on detailed income income accrues to travel organisations or hotel chains. monitoring of individual beneficiaries and feedback from Villages are largely by-passed by the tourism industry: villagers communities. A primary benefit has been the generation of lack financial resources to participate directly, often selling supplementary incomes. Gender-disaggregated financial their land to outsiders and migrating. monitoring results show equitable distribution of tourism In response to this dilemma, Village Ways Pvt Ltd, was set-up income among members of communities. Such income enables in 2005 as a private Indian company, with Indian and UK people to return to live in their village and helps to reduce risks directors, to develop community-based tourism within hill of seasonally poor crop yields or low agricultural prices. Non- villages, in partnership with specially constituted village monetary benefits cited by communities include the ability to tourism committees. The target market was small groups of learn through communicating and sharing experiences with responsible travellers, who seek a holiday experience that outside guests. This has generated self-confidence, greater pride connects them with local people and rural life in a natural way in their village, and enhanced appreciation of the importance of and also supports the local economy. The aim was to help to their environment and wildlife, thereby reducing poaching and redress the erosion of traditional values and customs of conserving nature. Likewise, the democratic organisation of the communities and to raise awareness of their environment, village tourism committees and encouragement of women’s through creating a responsible tourism business viable from participation has improved governance and gender balance. the grass roots up. The aim was that a fair share of the tourism income would flow directly to the villagers as a supplementary Introduction income. The venture combined social enterprise with commerce, in which village committees are partners in the As with many villages in mountainous regions, those of operation and shareholders in the company.

66 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Regions

The Binsar Model repayment is required, which reduces risks to the VTEs. The committees do not allow ad hoc tipping: guests wishing to tip The pilot project commenced in villages around the Binsar do so on completion of their holiday and the money is Wildlife Sanctuary, near Almora, Uttarakhand. Virgo (2008) distributed openly at monthly PVS meetings. The VTEs agreed describes the early stages of development. The Sanctuary that only bookings made via Village Ways would be accepted. comprises beautiful forested terrain, with extensive views of Compensation rates for late cancellations were formalised. the Himalaya massif. Villagers lived in an uneasy relationship Local villagers are trained and equipped as guides to escort with the Forest Department, which manages the Sanctuary. each group of guests. They became ambassadors for their Farming was fraught by wildlife damage; and out-migration communities and successfully raised local awareness of for employment was common. One whole village was on the environmental issues. Village Ways provides regular training point of migrating, but the prospect of tourism motivated to VTE members in hygiene, cooking, housekeeping, and to them to stay. guides in ecology, local history, English/French languages and Over two years, Village Ways and the villagers evolved a suitable first aid. tourism model that would enable guests to walk between From inception, the intention was to limit tourist numbers to villages and stay overnight in village guesthouses. As in any provide supplementary income but without diverting community-based development, mobilising the villagers and communities from their basic farming livelihood. Over the recognising mutual benefits were keys to success. It was a eleven-year period, the Binsar villages have hosted 2,924 guest- steep learning curve for both sides. A fundamental intention nights, averaging 45 guest-nights per village annually. was that the villagers would be partners in the venture, and Using the successful Binsar model, Village Ways expanded to that all members of each community would have opportunities Saryu Valley in Uttarakhand, other states of India (Rajasthan, to share in the responsibility and benefits. Initial reluctance Karnataka, Kerala and Madhya Pradesh) and to Nepal, (Virgo, was overcome by patient negotiation. Village Tourism 2011). Minor amendments to VTE systems were made to suit Enterprise (VTE) committees were elected and established in local social conditions. Current holiday destinations can be each village, with an apex body (PVS) representing each VTE, found at www.villageways.com and administrative/ business to act as the overall decision-making, monitoring and aspects at www.villagewayspartnership.com. negotiating body, with a staff member of Village Ways as Secretary. Informal links were established with local A Village Ways Charitable Trust was established (2008) to administration (Panchayats). The VTEs were encouraged to spread benefits to communities in villages around those where ensure that participation was evenly distributed across all Village Ways was working. It has successfully developed households, with priority given to families below the poverty vocational training, created income-generating activities and line (BPL) and a reasonable gender balance. promoted women’s health awareness. The original concept was to renovate traditional-style village houses as community-owned and managed guesthouses. The Impact Assessment villagers failed to gain legal access to houses from absentee or multiple landowners and instead proposed building new Village Ways recognised that impact assessments were needed houses. Village Ways agreed to fund new houses, subject to to verify that intended benefits were reaching VTE basic design requirements (three twin bedrooms, modern communities and to identify where changes in approach may toilets and bathrooms, earthquake resistant beams and be necessary. traditional architectural styles). The VTEs had responsibility Ashley et al (2001) describe how tourism can have a broad for construction. They recruited local artisans and engaged range of impacts on poor communities, principally on financial voluntary labour from their communities. Construction and livelihood status (human, physical, social, natural capital, brought the villages together, to share skills and local materials. access to information), but that aspects of cultural values, Village Ways part-funded the capital cost of the guesthouses, optimism, pride and participation also need to be considered, 60 percent as a 30-year interest-free loan and 40 percent as as well as levels of exposure to risk and exploitation. The Pro- grant. Fittings, furnishings and fixtures were grant-funded. poor Tourism Partnership (2005) argued that an initiative can The villagers contributed time, labour and local materials. The be described as pro-poor only where it is possible to houses are owned and managed by each VTE, formalised in demonstrate a net benefit for particular individuals or groups. Agreements with each, with any subsequent change approved This means that beneficiaries need to be identified, as well as in meeting minutes. Each VTE arranges a team to manage any additional, initially unidentified, wider livelihood benefits. and operate their guesthouse (in rotation in larger Goodwin (2007) noted that despite a focus of responsible communities). They charge for guest stays at rates negotiated tourism on poverty reduction, there had been a lack of annually with Village Ways by the PVS. The rates cover food, beneficiary impact assessment. He identified a need for cleaning, fuel, maintenance, ground rent, portering and labour transparent methods of measurement and reporting of impacts costs, as well as contributions to a Village Development Fund to establish best practice, to meet the needs of funders and to support the wider community development. The VTEs practitioners and also to demonstrate impacts to the developed a formal invoicing system, based on guest-night community members. accommodation; Village Ways reimburses invoices on-line to Village Ways had been collecting anecdotal information on the VTE accounts. Loan repayments are deducted at 10 non-monetary impacts but lacked understanding of the percent of the guest-nights invoiced: if there are no guests, no monetary impacts. In 2010, with assistance from Prof Harold

67 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Goodwin of Leeds Metropolitan University, UK, an income villages (Dalar, Satri, Risal, Kathdhara, Gonap and Matkanya). impact monitoring system was developed, adopting a book- Measuring non-monetary impacts keeping approach to trace the flow of money to individual beneficiaries to capture and measure the contribution of the Anecdotal evidence was collated on non-monetary impacts in tourism enterprise in relation to other income streams, such the categories proposed by Ashley et al (2001). The evidence as remittances. Using Village Ways data, the monitoring derived from Binsar VTE feedback, committee meetings, system was refined by JUST report Global Ltd, leading to the villagers’ quotes and observations by Village Ways staff. launch of their ‘Yardstick’ sustainability reporting tool (https://yardstick.co.uk). With reliable and attributable data it Results and discussion was hoped that we could robustly defend the causal linkage between changes in livelihoods and the tourism intervention. Income impacts Initial analyses, presented at the London World Travel Market Materials and methods (JUSTreport Global, 2015), showed positive benefits of tourism income. The updated results presented here show a Two principal methods were applied to assess the impact of consistently high proportion of families involved in the VTEs rural tourism in improving the lives and livelihoods of the VTE (Table 1), that has changed little over the period. A lower figure communities: is recorded in the largest village of Kathdhara. • Monitoring income impacts • Cataloguing non-monetary impacts Measuring income impacts The method is based on allocating each village household and its members with a unique code. Each VTE committee uses these codes when recording payments to their members, such as the number of days a person had worked on the committee, the wage/day (which the committee mutually decides) and the amount earned by selling local produce for the guesthouse. Surveys commence with collecting each family’s details: the name, economic category (above or below poverty line – APL/BPL), since when they have lived in the village, their family members’ names and ages, their responsibilities on the VTE committee, and their earnings from any other work. During the survey, information is collected on equality of work distribution, amount of other income sources and who had joined or left the committee. This was easy to record because each person had already been given a code. At the end of each financial year, data are collated for each VTE and entered into the Yardstick software for analysis and graphical presentation to illustrate impacts of tourism income Figure 1, however, illustrates how the number of individuals at VTE level in relation to total village income, percentage of involved varies, with higher proportions engaged in smaller households involved with tourism, proportion of tourism villages. Figure 2 charts the changes in tourism-related income earned by females and the mean percentage of income income by family. This largely reflects the success of generated from tourism by Village Ways families. The data can marketing in attracting guests, as reflected in the mean family be consolidated for each VTE to show annual changes. Such income derived from tourism (Figure 3). Higher guest surveys have been introduced in all 22 VTEs in India and throughput in the initial years resulted in tourism accounting Nepal. For this study, the results focus on the six Binsar for up to 40 or 50 percent of family income: this has now

Table 1. Overview of Binsar Village Incomes (2017 data). Village Number of Families Annual Income (US$) Village Ways Income Total Involved % Villageg From As % total % Earned in VW Village Total VW village by Females Waysy income (VW) Satri 8 8 100% 6,405 812 13 23 Risal 9 7 78% 9,825 1,023 12 2 Dalar 10 10 100% 17,134 8,981 52 9 Gonaap 10 10 100% 3,795 1,700 45 41 Kathdhara 27 18 67% 11,757 2,201 19 27 Matkanya 6 7 117% 2,290 237 10 0

68 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Regions

stabilised around 10-20 percent. The apparent distortion of and the proportion has increased slightly (Figure 4). All income in Dalar (Figure 2) is discussed below. villages currently comprise at least 80 percent BPL people, In terms of poverty, most tourism income goes to BPL families apart from Kathdhara (23 percent), where only 40 percent of the VTE is BPL. Figure 5 indicates a reasonable gender

Table 2. Examples of non-monetary impacts recorded, Binsar VTE Cluster.

Human Capital % Traditional skills were nurtured by construction of traditional style houses. % Training, exposure visits and working in committees have imparted skills and knowledge to villagers which they can apply in other work in the hospitality business, locally or outside. % Training in hygiene has improved family health, guides trained in first aid apply their skills to villagers. % Women participate equally in committees, they have confidence to share opinions/make decisions in tourism work and within family.‘Due to the project we now have an equality of genders & age groups’. % Children and women have had greater exposure and gained confidence in trying to communicate with guests, acquiring some words of English. This has also motivated children to study more. % Acting as trainers within Binsar and in other VTEs in India has given villagers confidence. % ‘The work had made me a humble person, who has gained knowledge in work and humanity in person’. Physical Capital % Villagers own their guesthouses, repaying their loan element over 30 years. % VTEs have saved tourism income to maintain and improve guesthouses. % Village Development Funds from tourism income are used for wider community investments. % Paths are being repaired by committees to benefit guests and local people. Social Capital % The tourism income has encouraged younger villagers, who had migrated to cities, to return; others decided not to leave. Family life is strengthened and elderly are no longer left alone. % Social cohesion and sense of mutual support of the villagers has been enhanced by a common tourism interest and need to create links between villages. % The tourism business resulted in people of all six villages being more connected: now they have a strong bonding and unity. They discuss and seek solutions to any issues in the village or the Sanctuary. % Village organisations have developed capacity for planning, allocating responsibilities, financial management and conflict resolution. % Traditional caste barriers are eroding, due to the common need to look after guests. % ‘The trust and faith between the committees and Village Ways is the key for our business. Government policies changes after 5 years but our policies, clarity and transparency has not changed’. % ‘Village committee members, guides and Village Ways staff have had great respect for this project and, in mutual understanding, we have worked for many years – we hope it will be forever’. % ‘We do have professional and personal arguments on the committees, but we don’t allow these to affect the work of the committee’. Natural Capital % Villagers now see wildlife as an asset: Forest Department reports reduced poaching, timber smuggling, and more cooperation in fire prevention. Mind-sets changed: villagers now protect wildlife and forest. % The Guesthouse requirements have encouraged the growing of fresh local fruit and vegetables. Field husbandry has improved. % Tourism and farming seasons are compatible, agriculture, the primary livelihood source, continues in off-peak tourism periods. ‘Village Ways has benefited the villagers without disturbing their routine work, they still take care of their farms and cattle’. Access to Information % New training and exposure visits have given much knowledge and experience to the villagers and guides have ready information on wildlife, ecology, history, etc. % ‘We have gained a lot of knowledge, which has improved our work and the project has given a great support, due to which we are here in our village with our family’. % A guide observed: ‘Income is not everything, we have learned so much from interacting with guests and we are proud to show them our lives’. Cultural Values % Satri village has developed their song and dance skills for guests. % Local heritage recognised: Kathdhara villager opened museum to conserve artefacts to show to guests. Optimism % Residents of Satri were about to migrate en masse but decided to stay, attracted by the prospects of tourism income under Village Ways: ‘An answer to our dreams’. Pride & Respect % Villagers have developed a sense of pride in their traditions and life styles, through exposure to outsiders, with whom they are keen to share and learn. % Communities have earned wide respect through their participation in this Tourism Venture. Participation % ‘Everyone had an opportunity to speak and contribute. If this happened in all organisations, no one would be poor’ – Quote from a local visitor attending a Binsar villagers’ committee meeting. Exposure to Risk & Exploitation

% ‘Risks of fluctuating farm yields and prices can be attenuated by supplementary income from tourism’. % All guesthouse bookings are via Village Ways, avoiding exploitation by officials seeking to stay. % Compensation by Village Ways for late cancellations reduces financial risks. % VTEs repay Village Ways loans as a 10% cess per guest-night: if no guests, no repayment is expected.

69 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Village income from tourism is directly affected by annual variations in guest bookings and also on the ability of Village Ways to allocate guests fairly between villages. Non-monetary impacts The examples of non-monetary impacts (Table 2) are largely subjective but they indicate the wider benefits of responsible tourism. Most impacts relate to human and social capital, with communities earning respect. Villagers appreciate that the tourism work and supplementary income have enabled them to stay in their villages. Awareness of wildlife, and pride in village life and culture has been enhanced. Raising human capital through training and exposure has enabled guides to obtain tourism jobs elsewhere: this may be a negative impact for Village Ways but it has created opportunities for guides. Villagers appreciate that by adopting the community guesthouse approach, instead of homestays, guests and home-owners can retain their privacy, benefits can be shared more widely and jealousies are reduced. Moreover, the guesthouses represent new physical capital, and their community operation, as partners of Village Ways, has strengthened social unity. Conclusions

The committees and guides have developed their own institutional arrangements. Transparency has been maintained and the VTEs have provided mutual support to each other especially in interactions with the Forest Department and other government agencies. Members have acted as trainers in new ventures in other states and as host trainers for people on exposure visits to Binsar. The Binsar model has successfully built on the entrepreneurship of villagers to create what have become Village Tourism Enterprises (VTEs). balance. Between 25 percent and 40 percent of tourism-related The income impact has been positive, demonstrating equality income is paid to females in participating families. However, of distribution of tourism income across families, genders and Risal, Dalar and Matkanya (in 2016/17) appear less satisfactory, poverty levels. The transparency of the survey methods as discussed below. created ownership by villagers. Marketing is critical in attracting guests to generate tourism income: communities As Binsar villages are mostly small (Table 1), VTE member are discouraged by low bookings but appreciate that tourism, numbers and income values are also small. The results are like farming, has good and bad seasons. As intended, tourism therefore sensitive to small changes in the VTE teams has provided supplementary earnings but not replaced (numbers of members, BPL, gender etc). The Yardstick traditional village livelihoods, thereby avoiding over- database contains information on all individuals in each VTE, dependence on tourism and the risk of “ so it is easy to trace the reasons for apparent anomalies in the killing the goose that . The software proved to be a mean data. For example, the rapid decline in payments to lays the golden egg” Yardstick practical means for such monitoring. Moreover, its detailed females in Risal in 2014/15 (Figure 5), resulted from one database on individuals enables interrogation to explain female porter retiring. Likewise, when two APL families joined anomalies. is suitable for monitoring incomes in the Matkanya VTE in 2014/15, there was a drastic fall in ‘% BPL Yardstick small villages. However, it needs extending to include tourism payments’ (Figure 4). Similarly, in Dalar village, the income (taxis, porters, shops) of adjacent villages, which is not disproportionately high tourism income (Figure 2) reflects paid directly by the committees and therefore currently not inclusion of the salary of a villager who was employed full time included in the database. by Village Ways as ‘training officer’ but remained a member of the committee. Moreover, Dalar has produced five guides, Most non-monetary impact has been in developing social and which further boosted the tourism-related income. As the human capital, through good governance, transparency and training officer and guides were all male, relative payments to participatory community operation. Villagers appreciate the females has declined (Figure 5). Similarly, the varied values long-term partnership, compared to the short-time scales of for ‘% of family income from tourism’ (Figure 3) is often most development projects. The success of the Binsar model skewed due to changes in remittance and pension incomes by is recognised by the Uttarakhand State Government: Village family members. Ways was commissioned to prepare wider village tourism plans

70 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Regions

(Village Ways, 2016) and is empanelled for training other References tourism enterprises, in which the VTE members will be resource persons. Ashley C, Roe D, Goodwin H, 2001. Pro-poor tourism strategies: making tourism work for the poor, a review of experience. Pro-poor Tourism Report Acknowledgements No 1, Overseas Development Institute, London. Goodwin H, 2007. Measuring and reporting on the impact of tourism on poverty. In: Tribe J and Airey D eds. Developments in Tourism Research, Chap We thank the many members of Village Ways who have 5, 63-76. Elsevier. contributed, including our fellow Directors (H Pande, G JUSTreport Global Ltd, 2015. Monitoring local economic impact. World Travel Edgeley, R Kapur, R Hearn, L Edgeley), staff members (Kumer Market, London. and Virendra), the Binsar VTE members and guides. Special Pro-Poor Tourism Partnership, 2005. Annual Register. Pro-Poor Tourism thanks are due to Prof Harold Goodwin for advice on income Partnership, London. monitoring procedures, and to Jenefer Bobbin of JustReport Village Ways, 2016. Training and capacity development of local communities for analysis of the income data, using her cloud-based Yardstick for rural tourism: Districts Almora & Bageshwar, Final Report. Uttarakhand impact measurement and sustainability monitor tool. Tourism Development Board, Government of Uttarakhand, Dehradun. Virgo KJ, 2008. Community-based tourism in India: combining development with commerce. Agriculture for Development, 3, 22-26. Virgo KJ, 2011. Community-based eco-tourism: a social enterprise combining development with commerce. Cambridge University, Geography Department, International Development Course, Cambridge.`

Rural tourism as a strategy for sustainable rural development in Zimbabwe

It is hoped that Zimbabwe will soon emerge from a very and funded development in the community. This was also a troubled period and it will therefore require an effective strategy to combat poaching as the local community were national strategy for sustainable development going forward. responsible for looking after their own areas in conjunction The United Nations World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) with the support of private patrol units from CAMPFIRE. The declared 2017 the International Year of Sustainable Tourism United States of America was a significant economic for Development and this, together with the country’s rich contributor to the programme. However, the ban on ivory natural resource base and diverse cultural heritage, make it imports by the US government in 2014 had a detrimental potentially conducive to an effective sustainable rural tourism impact on the feasibility of the programme in certain areas strategy. In addition, it may be a tool to rejuvenate the which resulted in a reduction of revenue. Although the ban economy more widely, and to conserve and protect the went under review in 2017, it is yet to be lifted. Furthermore, country’s natural resources, while uplifting the economy of the negative perception associated with the country has rural communities. However, it is apparent that there are resulted in a steady decline in tourist arrivals over the last many challenges facing Zimbabwe in the implementation of a seventeen years. The lack of cash available in the economy, sustainable tourism model for rural development, and the together with the reluctance of foreign tourists and investors strategy adopted would need to be multi-faceted, as it is to invest in an unstable political environment, creates a major required to be implemented and to function in an hurdle as sustainable development initiatives in rural unpredictable political environment and erratic economy. communities require funding. For the first twenty years after independence in April 1980, Interestingly, this has not been the case with consumptive Zimbabwe was a highly sought-after tourism destination, and tourists as they are not as sensitive to political instability and became one of the most visited countries in Southern Africa. civil unrest. Consumptive tourism is when one form of Unfortunately, the political instability that ensued, and the tourism is favoured to the detriment of another, and includes long-term effects of the land redistribution programme, have exploitation activities such as trophy hunting, fishing or been crippling to the economy and the rural tourism industry harvesting of natural resources such as crocodile eggs. This has suffered. Since the year 2000, many rural tourism facilities has resulted in Zimbabwe’s rural tourism industry placing a have been forced to close as a result of the land redistribution very heavy reliance on a consumptive tourism approach as a programme, the subsequent decline in tourism arrivals, and strategy for sustainable development. Throughout the political high government taxes. The areas surrounding the once and socio-economic turmoil this model has continued to flourishing national parks are being severely degraded and their provide foreign revenue to sustain critical conservation natural resources exploited by a poverty-stricken population. activities. The chaotic fast-tracked approach to land redistribution has After years of hyperinflation, the effective adoption of the US caused some areas under the control of the Communal Areas dollar in April 2009 stabilised the economy. However, in doing Management Programme for Indigenous Resources so it made the comparative strength of the adopted currency (CAMPFIRE) to cease operations. Under the CAMPFIRE very high against that of neighbouring countries. This, programme, a restricted number of hunting licences to cull a together with the introduction of a 15 percent VAT on foreign certain percentage of the ‘big game’ wildlife were sold to tourist arrivals, has made the destination uncompetitive, and tourists, and the local villagers received the profits that enabled these factors have pushed tourists to choose alternative

71 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

destinations, further challenging the sustainability of the local perception is damaging to the country’s image and deters rural tourism industry. foreign visitors. In addition, the huge anti-hunting lobby The decreased numbers of visitor arrivals, and subsequent loss worldwide threatens the future sustainability of the of foreign currency, has led to increased unemployment and consumptive tourism model currently favoured by Zimbabwe. the re-establishment of the barter trade, in rural communities It is also evident that there is a desperate need to implement as well as in towns. This concept implies the direct exchange revenue-sharing schemes from non-consumptive tourism in of goods or services without the use of a financial intermediary. Zimbabwe. Non-consumptive tourism is recreational and This is detrimental to tourism, as the dependence on a barter includes wildlife viewing, however the perception of its low trade economy has a direct impact on the natural resource impact is often misconstrued. There is a prime opportunity base. The natural resource base is being depleted as people to develop public-private partnerships as many private cut down trees for firewood and kill animals for bush meat in conservation initiatives are already set-up in national parks as order to use these as a form of barter currency in exchange for branches of tourism establishments. This may be the way goods of services such as soap or transport. As tourism is a forward to bridge the social gap and foster good relations product consumed at source, if the natural resource base on between the various tourism stakeholders and facilitate the which the tourism industry relies no longer exists, there will regeneration of the economy and general upliftment of rural no longer be tourists. It is evident that the rural population is communities. now turning to the natural resource base to satisfy their basic The Zimbabwean Government has recently earmarked ‘special needs. economic zones’ for the 2017 International Year of Sustainable Furthermore, a sustainable rural tourism strategy relies on the Tourism for Development, to encourage the development of population being educated in sustainable practices and rural tourism. This creates an opportunity for foreign requires them to actively support it. However, what seems to investors to once again return and this capital injection will be the challenge in Zimbabwe is not in educating the youth, assist in rejuvenating the rural tourism industry. There is a but rather the older generation who are unwilling to change general agreement that, although the politics in Zimbabwe their traditional hunter-gatherer existence. have been negative, as the wheel turns, the country will once The lack of a coordinated government policy and discourse on again emerge as a massive tourist destination since it has the how best to benefit from Zimbabwe’s natural resources is not potential to offer a diverse tourism product. conducive to the implementation of an effective rural tourism In conclusion, it is clear that Zimbabwe is a ‘jewel’ with much strategy. It is clear that there is an urgent need for good to offer. There is huge untapped potential for non- management and strict controls by the authorities as a pre- consumptive tourism using the models adopted by other requisite for sustainable development. Furthermore, countries in East and Central Africa. This approach, if carefully corruption continues to create a major hindrance, as much of controlled and managed, would provide an extraordinary the revenue generated through park entrance fees is not opportunity for non-consumptive tourism, with the associated utilised efficiently and illegal activities often occur under the benefits for sustainable rural development. watch of the authorities. Negative publicity continues to affect the Zimbabwe tourism Clare Robbie industry and is fuelled by alarmist conservation activists MSc Sustainable Agriculture and Food Security student misreporting to sensationalise facts. The globally unfavourable at the Royal Agricultural University

London and SE, Curry Club talk, 25 May 2017 Ups and downs along the Seed Road

Michael Turner

Michael Turner has been involved in different aspects of seeds for over 40 years, mostly in the context of international development. He was Director of the postgraduate course in Seed Technology at the University of Edinburgh from 1979 to 1997. He then worked overseas, including five years at the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) in Syria and four years in Vietnam. He is now a freelance consultant.

[Editor’s note: This article is based on a talk given to the demonstrated the contribution that improved varieties could London and SE branch in London on 25 May 2017. The topic make to higher yields of rice and wheat as part of a wider was addressed in the context of staple grain crops in husbandry package. Once a genetic gain has been made by developing countries.] plant breeders, it can be deployed over a large area and can benefit both large and small farmers equally. Seeds provide Introduction the vehicle (or bridge) for delivering that improvement from the research arena into practical agriculture through a series It is now half a century since the Green Revolution of activities that are sometimes referred to as the ‘seed chain’.

72 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Regions

The experience of the Green Revolution triggered an interest international companies, but that also proved to be optimistic. in the seeds of staple food grains that had been largely ignored With high staff numbers and depreciating assets these were during the colonial era, when cash crops and plantations were unattractive acquisitions, except perhaps for their large storage the main focus of attention. The story of seeds in development facilities. In many countries, the private sector did enter the began around the early 1970s, and still continues; in fact it has market in response to changing policies but mostly as come back into political focus in recent years with the subsidiaries of established foreign companies, sometimes with increasing concern about food security at both national and local partners where these were present. It was more difficult global levels. We all understand that “seeds are a fundamental to encourage new entrants to the seed market because of the input to crop production”, and we have heard those words capital investment required and the need to offer a range of countless times, but that does not mean that supplying seeds varieties, although in some cases, existing processing facilities to farmers is a straightforward task. The seed chain requires a carried out contract cleaning of seed for start-up companies range of activities and good coordination to work effectively, to reduce their costs. and several external factors can affect its overall structure and Another trend that emerged in the 1990s was a more holistic performance. analysis of the ‘seed system’ – in other words, how do farmers obtain their seeds for each sowing season? This led to a The journey recognition of the role of the informal seed sector, comprising farm-saved seed and the various trading or exchange The pioneering seed projects of the 1970s were almost always mechanisms that exist at the community level. The ‘formal implemented through ministries or parastatal agencies, and sector’ that was promoted by early seed projects is they put in place the key components of a national seed characterised by large-scale planned production, mechanised programme, together with relevant staff training. There was processing, and marketing in sealed, labeled units which carry a strong focus on production, generally replicating the large- some form of quality assurance, typically in the form of an scale processing facilities that were available from countries official certification label. The informal sector lacks these with a more industrial agriculture. However, that approach organisational supports but it may still have advantages in required good management and maintenance to function terms of reliability, and of course lower cost. Indeed, the effectively and those qualities were often lacking. reputation of a good local seed producer may count for more It was assumed that, once available, there would be a rising than a certification label within a certain geographical area. demand for these improved seeds and they would become an In virtually all countries, including those with a fully-developed ‘engine of development’. In practice, these government commercial agriculture, there is still a partition of the seed agencies were generally inefficient and not well-suited to supply between the formal and informal sectors, but their making quick management decisions, which are required in relative contributions vary widely according to crops that are seed production because of the vulnerability of the product grown and the prevailing farming system. In practice, the both before and after harvest. In addition, marketing was a informal seed sector is still the default supplier for the majority problem and often depended on direct price subsidies or of farmers and crops in developing countries. This applies coercive linkages to credit; short-term political objectives by particularly in more remote and marginal areas and for poorer government also clouded the picture. In the light of these farmers who do not have the resources (or see the need) to negative experiences, many donors lost interest in seeds during purchase seed every year. Moreover, rice, wheat and most the 1980s and most of those parastatal bodies are either dead, grain legumes are strongly self-pollinating so there is little or surviving in poor condition with substantial government genetic deterioration between generations; the major threat to support. seed stocks comes from seed borne diseases and the physical On the positive side, it should be recognised that the generous mixing of varieties, particularly after harvest. Extension training awards provided by those early projects created a cadre services have responded to this reality by recommending that of qualified professionals who have had lasting impact in their farmers replace their seed of these crops every three of four home countries and elsewhere. Many who were trained for years to minimise these risks, although this is only a broad public sector jobs subsequently pursued careers in private generalisation. They may also offer advice on how to maintain companies. Sadly those opportunities are no longer available seed quality from one season to the next. Of course, the to train the next generation; the three international masters emerging private sector may question the logic of advising programmes in seed technology – at Edinburgh University, farmers how to keep their own seed! Massey University (NZ), and Mississippi State University – all The shining exception in the global seed portfolio is maize, closed at the end of the last century and have not been replaced which being a cross-pollinator, is difficult to maintain as a pure with anything of comparable scope and depth. variety stock and is very amenable to hybrid technology. This When the trend towards privatisation arrived in the 1990s, means that F1 hybrid varieties can bring uniformity and vigour there was a popular cry for governments to withdraw from to a highly variable crop and, crucially for companies, the direct involvement in seed production. The guiding principle opportunity to sell seed on a regular basis and ensure reliable was that government should create a favourable regulatory cash flow. This in turn enables investment in breeding and environment in which private companies could establish and the resulting varieties are therefore proprietary, provided the flourish. This remains a good policy approach but there are parent lines can be kept secure. In countries where maize is still constraints. There were expectations that parastatal an important part of the farming system, it energises the entities could be sold off or become part of joint ventures with private seed sector, with hybrids of sorghum, pearl millet and

73 News from the Regions Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

sunflower also making a useful contribution. Hybrid cotton advantage. The challenge for governments is to allocate their has been a key driver in India. Hybrid seed is much more limited resources in a way that achieves maximum impact on costly, but this is offset by the potential yield gain, provided the seed system. This requires policy decisions about the that these farmers are connected to a marketing system for division of responsibilities between the public and private their crops. sectors. Another sensitivity is the extent to which seed supply, In contrast, self-pollinating crops typically show a peak of sales and the breeding of varieties, should be dominated by multi- when a new variety is introduced, followed by a rapid decline nationals whose marketing strategies are unpredictable. There as the variety becomes assimilated within the informal sector is an understandable desire by governments to promote and farmers save their own seed. However, this means that domestic companies as part of a diverse seed industry. the private sector does not participate actively in marketing Regulatory functions belong naturally to the government or these unprofitable self-pollinated crops, or in the less official agencies, but some routine tasks associated with quality productive areas that are costly to service. Therefore, the control can still be devolved to third parties, provided they are expectation that the private sector should take over seed supply monitored. This prompted FAO to prepare its ‘Quality Declared was also simplistic; there remains a social context that should Seed’ scheme as a more flexible approach to quality control be addressed in other ways if all farmers are to benefit from the that enables producers to take on more of the routine work, genetic improvements that plant breeding can provide. This but still within a supervised framework. Production and calls for creative solutions to seed supply. marketing are best done by commercial entities, but they will One approach is to encourage small-scale enterprises that can only do this if it is possible to achieve a reasonable return on produce and sell seed at reasonable cost within a defined investment and if they are confident that the market for both harvested crops is stable. It is very difficult to sell geographical area. Such enterprises have the advantage of seeds and seeds to subsistence farmers. Strengthening markets and being able to respond to farmers’ specific requirements in value chains have been major themes in agricultural terms of varieties, pack size and cultural advice in a way that development for the past decade and this is a valuable support a national organisation would find difficult. However, a good to the seed industry. management system is still required to ensure effective control of seed stocks and cash flow. These are key issues in any seed business because of the seasonal nature of sales and the risk The role of seed policies that unsold stocks may deteriorate before the next season. In fact a ‘stand-alone’ seed business is vulnerable to many To guide this transition process, some governments have different challenges and can be ruined by one bad season. prepared a seed policy that establishes the broad management Adding seed activities to existing rural enterprises provides principles and ensures consistency in decision-making among greater financial security and the possibility of complementary the various actors. FAO has supported several of these policies marketing efforts. and there is now a body of experience regarding their Cooperatives can play an important role in reducing the cost formulation, scope and style. Key issues addressed include: of seed by using their own members as seed growers and • organisation of plant breeding and early-generation seed sharing the profits of seed sales. They may also arrange field production, including mechanisms for the private sector to demonstrations and provide extension support to promote the market public varieties under licence; adoption of improved varieties and husbandry packages. • guidelines for the testing, registration and release of new Unfortunately cooperatives have a history of government varieties; local varieties and landraces may require different intervention and disruptive interference in many countries, criteria for registration; and for that reason may be regarded with suspicion by farmers • management and funding of the quality assurance/control Many NGOs have taken an interest in seed provision, system, including delegation of some tasks to accredited particularly for poorer farmers, using community-based bodies or individuals; approaches. Although consistent with their philosophy of supporting the most vulnerable farmers, these well- • registration of seed companies and other suppliers, intentioned initiatives were often subsidised to achieve including measures to recognise local enterprises and short-term impact rather than long-term sustainability. It is community-based initiatives; better to adopt a more lean commercial approach from the • measures to promote investment in the seed sector, for start in order to avoid a culture of dependency that can be hard example offering favourable tax regimes for new companies, to change at a later stage. Governments have also been guilty provided they satisfy some basic criteria; of supplying seed at highly subsidised prices (or even free of charge) as part of relief programmes, which often continued • education and capacity-building related to seeds, not only long after the emergency had passed. The possibility of in a scientific context but also linked to agribusiness unexpected government intervention in the seed market has management and input supply; a very negative effect on the private sector and emphasises the • status of genetically-modified varieties, although this often need for coordination and dialogue among all stakeholders. involves other ministries and may cause complications; As a general comment, seeds remain a sensitive issue in many • participation in regional organisations that aim to facilitate countries and governments would like to find the best way to the legitimate movement of varieties and seeds across develop a diverse and viable seed sector in which different national borders. entities can contribute according to their comparative

74 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) News from the Region / TAAF Newss

Genetic resources do not figure in the above list, and some countries, and it is a serious threat to the development of a may consider this an omission, but widening the scope of the reputable seed industry, besides being a potential disaster for policy makes it more difficult to achieve a consensus among individual farmers. In the past, seed laws were intended to the stakeholders. Genetic resources are an upstream input to raise the overall standards of seed quality in the market and to plant breeding and there are enough issues to address in the protect farmers from suppliers who did not comply. There core agenda of delivering new varieties and quality seed to were relatively few prosecutions. The phenomenon of fake farmers. seed often involves the deliberate printing (and even Clearly some elements of the policy, such as quality control importation) of counterfeit packaging for grain, which is and variety registration, are usually covered by an existing seed presented as quality seed, including the application of seed law and some may ask why a separate policy document is treatments to aid the deception. Clearly more severe measures needed. However, the law should deal primarily with issues are required to deal with this problem, which is more aligned that are enforceable, whereas the policy is a broad umbrella, with organised crime. providing guidance on the best path for development of the seed sector. It should be respected rather than enforced. Conclusions Ideally the policy should precede the law, but in practice that is seldom possible and changing existing legislation can be a Seeds fulfill two distinct roles in agricultural development. slow process. Despite this limitation, the policy can still First, they are an essential mechanism for delivering new, indicate the ‘direction of travel’ for the seed sector and the legal improved varieties from research so that all farmers can benefit framework may be adjusted over time. from the products of plant breeding. Second, they are a One additional benefit of preparing a seed policy is that it component in the input supply system that can function in provides an opportunity for consultation with a wide range of those areas and crops that are part of a commercial network, stakeholders, and enables the key issues to be discussed openly but only if certain economic criteria are satisfied. In this in a way that is seldom done with laws. Once approved, the context, sustainability is achieved by ensuring that a business policy should be monitored on a regular basis by an model can be achieved for companies, cooperatives or any independent high-level group, such as a ‘National Seed other trading entity. Developing a viable seed industry to carry Council’. This enables a strategic oversight of the seed sector out this function depends on a number of factors, including to be maintained and constraints to be flagged to the Ministry the crop portfolio, the farming system, and the extent to which or other relevant bodies. Holding an annual seed forum for a market operates with the necessary finance and the key stakeholders may be justified during a period of rapid infrastructure. Governments should make every effort to change and a major review of the policy should be undertaken support the development of a truly commercial seed industry, every four or five years to reflect progress and changing but they must also recognise that there are limits to this circumstances. To summarise, the policy should be regarded approach where the informal seed sector will continue and as a living document and a management tool. alternative approaches to seed supply may be required. A clear policy framework can guide decision-making and provide a As an illustration of these changing circumstances, the sale of mechanism for monitoring progress along the seed road. fake seed has become a major concern in recent years in many TAAF News

Fifteen MSc students who received TAAF awards for overseas peers and to experienced members of TAA, as well as revival of fieldwork in April 2017 have completed their degrees and connections between young professionals via social media submitted reports to TAAF. Summaries of six of these reports which have not yet taken-off. are included in this issue of the journal. Funding for these activities, as well as for future awards, is still James Alden, a TAAF awardee in 2015 and joint recipient of the being sought. Generous contributions have been received this Young Development Agriculturalist of the Year honour in 2016, year from Wye College Agricola Club, a Bill Reed family legacy, has joined the TAAF Committee and has helped with and individual TAA members, all of which are greatly preparation of this issue of TAAF News. appreciated. Paul Baranowski, like James a TAAF awardee in 2015 and joint Antony Ellman and James Alden recipient in 2016 of the Young Development Agriculturalist of the Year honour, has also joined the TAAF Committee and is co-ordinating initiatives to encourage past and present TAAF awardees to maintain a long-term engagement with TAA. Ideas that are being considered include an annual conference at which each year’s awardees will present their work to their

75 TAAF News Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

James Giles, MSc Environmental Technology, Imperial College Climate policy and agriculture in Vietnam: obstacles to a climate-ready policy framework Vietnam's agricultural sector requires a robust policy response to overcome the profound challenges posed by climate change. As one of the countries deemed to be most adversely affected, Vietnam must juggle the competing demands of adaptation to ensure food security, and mitigation to meet nationally and internationally agreed targets for emissions reduction, whilst continuing to pursue poverty reduction measures for the rural poor. Responding to such challenges is complex and plagued with barriers. If not addressed, constraints of governance and the current Figure 1. Exploring the countryside around Hanoi. policy framework may act to frustrate Vietnam's response. between national and local policy objectives. The contrast In collaboration with the International Centre for Tropical between the rigid ministerial structure and the cross-cutting Agriculture (CIAT), I set out to identify the barriers currently nature of climate change created overlaps and policy faced. The aim of this research was that, through inflation, swamping local authorities. Non-Government understanding the current barriers, steps can be taken to actors lacked a platform to engage in the policy process, overcome them, creating an effective enabling environment despite the increased role of development partners and for future climate policy. The first step was to map the climate finance in guiding the policy direction. Government structures, processes and policy framework. The study identified a number of intervention points through Following that, I conducted 25 semi-structured key which improvements could be made for future climate policy. stakeholder interviews, including policy makers, Government These include: a more holistic approach to donor officials, international organisations, research institutes, the engagement, improved systems for data and information private sector, and NGOs. Finally, a follow-up survey was sharing, a more inclusive policy drafting process, employed to validate and quantify the observations from the implementation and budget planning at all stages of the interviews, asking respondents to rate the barriers, identified policy process, and improved monitoring and evaluation. through the interview process, according to severity and The TAAF award allowed me to spend the duration of my difficulty to overcome. thesis term (3.5 months) in Hanoi, fully immersing myself Institutional barriers such as ‘finance’, ‘inter-Ministry in the workings of Vietnam. Through this I was exposed to collaboration’, ‘enforcement’ and ‘information-sharing’ were areas that were key to my project, whilst also gaining further found to be more detrimental than those at a farm level, experience working with CIAT. This not only allowed me to namely ‘finance’, ‘habit’ and ‘technical capacity’. Policy is meet with and interview key stakeholders, which was critical created by central Government in ‘silos’, with non-lead to the project’s success, but it also allowed me to attend Ministries, Provinces and non-Government actors under- conferences and explore the rural areas of Vietnam on which represented. Budget consideration and implementation my study was based (see Figure 1). I am extremely grateful planning was also found to be limited. The top-down to the TAAF for making this experience possible: it has approach to policy-making is misaligned with the recent resulted in my being offered a position to stay in Vietnam and move towards decentralisation, creating a disconnect to continue my work with CIAT.

Niall O’Donoghue, MSc Environmental Change and International Development, Sheffield University Impacts of large-scale land investments on forest communities: a Cameroonian case study I travelled to the forested region of south-west Cameroon (Figure 2) for eight weeks to explore the impact that a large- scale oil palm investment is having on livelihoods and access to land for local communities, and the consequences it has for the forests that form their natural heritage, cultural identity, and primary source of income. It aimed to contribute to discourse around the potential of large, commercial agri-developments to provide developmental benefits and to raise agricultural productivity sustainably in the aftermath of the 2008 food crisis.

It was found that while there were a number of potential Figure 2. Niall with his guide and translator.

76 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) TAAF News

benefits to the project, namely market creation and and qualitative geographical research firmly into reality. I infrastructural development, they fell short of expectations hope that my work is of value to the NGOs who supported and were unevenly distributed among stakeholders. The me throughout, that it informs the future activities of the concession of vast tracts of land for oil palm estates has company, and that it helps local communities in discussing resulted in environmental degradation, and the vulnerability this definitive issue and securing the benefits and protections of the Cameroonian land tenure system to abuse appears to they need from their national government and the businesses have led to incidences of dispossession and encroachment. visiting their land. The experience has cemented my desire This research experience equipped me with a range of to be a researcher in the field of sustainable agriculture, and practical skills that I hope to employ in further research, and to seek new ways to understand and empower those at the brought abstract concepts found across development studies forefront of the global struggle for environmental justice.

Alice Stedman, MSc Water Security and International Development, University of East Anglia Hidden practices for achieving agricultural water management and resilience: the limitations of mainstream narratives The aim of my study was to understand how narratives around achieving water security and agricultural resilience play out in South Africa, in the context of poor national governance and changing water availability. In collaboration with the Institute of Natural Resources in Pietermaritzburg, I examined a case study of water use on irrigated citrus and avocado farms in Limpopo Province (Figure 3). Figure 3. Listening to avocado farmers talk at a study group. through a mutual learning process around what constitutes Research revealed ‘hidden’ or ‘alternative’ local practices and agricultural water security and resilience at the farm and dynamics which are not discussed in the literature, including catchment levels. As part of a wider research project relating the buffer found in the unused water allocation of a large area to the resilience of fresh fruit and vegetable systems to water- of farmland and ‘excessive’ or contentious water licensing. related shocks such as drought, my dissertation assisted in These findings are important as they highlight the necessity making sense of a wealth of information and data collected of understanding local contexts, rather than prescribing ‘one- on group field trips, which will hopefully be built upon by size-fits-all’ methods for improving agricultural resilience. others as the project develops. Furthermore, issues around allocations and licensing of water I am incredibly grateful to the TAA for the financial support use demonstrate the vital role of governance in agriculture, and guidance provided throughout the research process. I and how it can potentially hinder positive progress in terms have no doubt that the experience, knowledge and skills that of coping with drought and other pressures. I gained in South Africa will help me on my way to pursuing I believe my research was and is beneficial to local farmers a career in agricultural water management or a related area.

Angèle Cauchois, MSc Water Science, Policy and consumption by urban and peri-urban agriculture in an Management, Oxford University emerging metropolis of sub-Saharan Africa. Measuring urban and peri-urban agriculture’s More generally, this project contributed towards cementing contribution to the provision of sanitation services in my profile as a multidisciplinary professional, able to address emerging metropolises: evidence from Accra, Ghana. issues of urban and environmental planning in a holistic Wastewater re-use in urban agriculture is a ubiquitous fashion, and to move fluidly from social-sciences oriented phenomenon in cities worldwide. However, studies projects to highly technical ones, in a developing country quantifying the practice are conspicuous by their absence. context. This study used remote sensing techniques and the FAO-56 approach to determine the contribution of urban and peri- urban agriculture to the provision of sanitation services in Accra (Ghana). It was found that at least 26 percent of the total wastewater produced daily in Accra was used for irrigation purposes in urban and peri-urban farming (Figure 4). In a context of widespread failure of conventional water treatment systems, these findings have important implications for planning. It also suggests that remote sensing could be used as a tool for effective monitoring of urban farming sites. It is believed that this study is one of the first systematic studies of wastewater Figure 4. An irrigation pond in the Dzorwulu Area, Accra, Ghana.

77 TAAF News Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Fred Pilkington, MSc Conservation Science, Imperial College A rapid forest inventory and impact assessment of resource use within the forests of Dashtijum Nature Reserve, Tajikistan Conducting ecological fieldwork and social research in Dashtijum Nature Reserve, Tajikistan was an exceptionally enjoyable and valuable experience. The scenery was stunning with dramatic snow-covered peaks looming over lush river valleys (Figure 5), and the local community were the most generous and friendly people I have ever come across. The aims of my study were to determine the structure, composition and diversity of the forest’s tree species, to evaluate the magnitude and spatio-temporal pattern of anthropogenic disturbance and forest resource use within the reserve, and to use regression and machine learning Figure 5. Fred and the mountains of the Dashtijum Nature Reserve, Tajikistan. modelling to identify significant and important drivers of demonstrates a disregard for grazing laws, which I believe to biotic diversity from disturbance and topographical variables. be an institutional problem throughout the community I found that most fruit and nut trees were sustainably caused by the inter-family co-management of livestock harvested and the most highly-valued trees were managed grazing. This issue was exacerbated by ephemeral most effectively. The forest was well-managed and laws commercial herders observed to be operating in the area. regarding the harvesting of forest resources were respected. My study provides a baseline of the state of the forest which Factors such as well-defined laws, reinforced by cultural will be used in subsequent years as a comparison. taboos with respect to resource extraction, and significant Additionally, Flora and Fauna International (FFI), through autonomy to enact and enforce these laws, contributed to whom the research was made possible, will use my novel success. Other factors influencing progressive local-led forest inventory methodology to ground truth a full forest management were the relatively small sizes and homogeneity inventory that they will conduct later in 2017. Personally, I of communities, which trust the local authority to deliver had never conducted social research or forest ecological appropriate management and restoration activities. fieldwork and I now feel confident in both data collection Harvesting and livestock pressure on forest resources were methodologies. This study also enhanced my grasp of GIS increasing, and grazing was found to be the main threat to software and modelling, as well as giving me valuable the ecosystem services of the reserve. Most households experience in budgeting, logistics and human resource admitted to illegally grazing their livestock in the forest. This management.

Jack Jenkins-Hill, MRes Anthropology, University College the final state frontiers. Using a range of research methods, London such as participant observation and key informant What are the impacts of overlapping and competing interviews, triangulated with participatory action research politico-legal institutions on natural resource tools such as participatory mapping and Venn diagrams, I governance in Myanmar’s uplands? sought to uncover the places where state and non-state governance systems overlapped and the impacts on resource Myanmar’s frontier areas are occupied by a vast collection of access that this had. disparate ethnic groups, who rely on shifting cultivation and forest resources for livelihoods, and follow customary tenure My research found that spaces of managerial overlap resulted systems to secure access to those resources. In recent years in a range of diverse and dynamic outcomes. In some cases, there has grown a greater presence of state institutions in the these spaces are characterised by conflict and resistance, as uplands, which also exercise territorial control over land and pre-existing authorities attempt to reassert their authority forests through a number of government departments and over resources. In other cases, however, institutions may local administrators. My research project sought to cohere, as existing authorities adapt to new dynamics of investigate the processes through which state and customary power. Further still, where locations are brought fully under institutions compete for control over resources, and the the purview of state institutions through processes of implications that this has for resource access and territorialisation, pre-existing institutions may lose authority management in Myanmar’s borderlands. completely as a new set of actors take their place. The dynamic processes through which state formation manifests In order to achieve these objectives, I carried out my study itself are important in understanding how resources are in southern Chin State and the Naga Hills (Figure 6). This governed in contexts with multiple authorities. provided an interesting comparison, as while southern Chin State lies close to Myanmar’s political centre and as such has This was a very formative process for me, as it required me been largely incorporated into the state, the Naga Hills are to give careful consideration to ethical dilemmas, to develop located on the periphery of the country and represent one of a strong and robust theoretical framework, and to employ a

78 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) TAAF News / Reminiscences and Reflections

conveying experiential, visceral and emotional contexts, and the power this has when it is triangulated with in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. I also learned the uses and shortcomings of participatory methods, which can be useful in building trust with research participants, encouraging less confident members of the community to participate, and enabling research participants to set parameters around the research. However, these processes can be easily dominated by more powerful members of a community. The project has also been a valuable process for the people who participated. Several research participants told me that the research process has helped them to reflect on the ways that they use resources and the strengths and weaknesses of their customary systems. Some also said that the research Figure 6. Jack and the village priest in Parat village, the Naga Hills. process had created an impetus for them to strengthen their governance systems, providing a space for them to reflect on flexible and inclusive set of research methods for exploring the positive and negative aspects of both government and my research questions. Through this experience I learned customary resource governance institutions. the value of participant observation in understanding and Reminiscences and Reflections

From soils to livelihoods David Radcliffe

David Radcliffe has spent his career as a soil surveyor with Hunting Technical Services, a land resource specialist with FAO and a rural livelihoods adviser with DFID, interspersed with periods of work as a freelance consultant. He has been a TAA member for more than 20 years and is currently a member of the Executive Committee.

My career has gone through several phases: I started out as a international development drove me to specialise in soils. I soil surveyor with Hunting Technical Services, broadened my won a studentship from the Overseas Development perspectives to land evaluation and project management with Administration (ODA) to continue in this direction, but FAO, and eventually became one of DFID’s rural livelihoods deciding that I lacked any tropical experience I was sent to advisers, with a broad remit to advise on rural development Aberdeen to study for a Master’s degree in soil science, where strategy and programmes. My last substantive assignment I worked with Dr FitzPatrick. From Fitz I gained a healthy with DFID was a secondment to the EC in Brussels, where I scepticism for conventional wisdom, such as the then current advised DG DEVCO on strategy and programming on direction of soil classification exemplified by the Seventh agricultural research for development. Approximation (later the Soil Taxonomy) of USDA. My career path was fortuitous rather than planned. As a soil surveyor one spends long periods in the ‘real field’, often in Mainly underground remote areas where marginal groups face day-to-day My ODA studentship did not result in the expected job offer challenges to secure their livelihoods. Insights from this period but I did obtain a temporary job with the (then) Land were invaluable in shaping my approaches to managing Resources Division (LRD) of ODA in Tolworth, where I was projects and to my advisory roles with DFID and the EC. inducted in the Land Resource Studies that I still find to be an It all started at Bangor University, where I graduated with a excellent source of reference today. There were no current degree in Biochemistry and Soil Science. I found biochemistry opportunities for overseas postings with LRD at the time and just as interesting as soil science, but my emerging interest in I was rescued from this desk job by Keith Virgo (now the TAA

79 Reminiscences and Reflections Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Chair), who interviewed me for HTS, and catapulted me into much through my career. my first real soil survey job, where I worked with Ian Baillie FAO was a global centre of excellence on soils and land and Keith surveying three areas for smallholder cocoa resources in the 1970s and I had already developed links with development in south western Côte D’Ivoire (Figure 1). I their Land and Water Development Division (AGLS) when stayed with HTS for six years, working on soil survey working with HTS. In 1979, I was fortunate to be offered a assignments in Nigeria, Iraq, Côte D’Ivoire, Indonesia and post as land evaluation specialist in Mozambique, where I Somalia. This was excellent and varied experience, usually spent two and a half years in Angonia District of Tete Province. working in small multi-disciplinary teams with agronomists, Mozambique was a doctrinaire Marxist country at the time that economists and engineers. Living in fairly basic conditions I arrived (1979), but started to move to a more pluralistic encourages camaraderie and I still remain in touch with some economy, unfortunately too late to prevent the civil war that HTS colleagues today. consumed the country for several years. Bulgarian technical assistance to the local state farm was promoting peaches and apricots, with Slivovitz as a by-product. I tried to focus on maize and beans as targets for land suitability assessment. Mozambique was becoming increasingly insecure in the early 1980s and I moved to Papua New Guinea as Land Use Agronomist on the Southern Highlands Integrated Rural Development Project, which was supported by a World Bank loan. Conventional wisdom was that this is a perhumid region in which soil differences are suppressed due to the dominance of rainfall in pedogenesis. Closer inspection proved this not to be the case. Deep well drained soils in valley bottoms and imperfectly drained soils on steep slopes are not what one would normally expect. This unusual toposequence could be explained by the fact that deep layers of volcanic ash had settled in the flatter areas, but Gleysols had developed on the sides of ridges underlain by shales and mudstones where ash had not Figure 1. Soil survey team on my first job. TAA members may recognise my boss seated on Land Rover (1973). settled. All in all, the PNG highlands have a fascinating range of soils and agricultural systems, and I was lucky enough to Apart from providing a healthy balance of intellectual and inherit a research budget that enabled me to collaborate with physical effort, soil survey offered, and I expect still offers, some CSIRO, the Queensland Department of Primary Industry and real technical challenges, not all of which have been addressed Waikato University (New Zealand) in elucidating the chemical by current research. For example, many soil classification and physical properties of Andisols (Allbrooke & Radcliffe systems dealt inadequately with alluvial soils, which are usually (1987); Moody & Radcliffe (1986); Radcliffe & Gillman (1985)). the most important soils in irrigated agricultural development projects. HTS colleagues, including Derek Holmes and Stan Western, had pioneered a system for classifying alluvial soils in the Indus plains of Pakistan (Holmes & Western, 1969). I had the opportunity to develop this further, working with Stan in Iraq, and later as the senior soil scientist in Nigeria. The essence of this system is that soil layers are classified by texture. The sequence of layers is a function of cycles of geomorphological deposition and relates to relative topography – an important factor in irrigation command, and to available water-holding capacity and permeability, important in determining irrigation frequency and drainability, respectively. A classification based on layers defined by soil texture provides a good basis for classifying land according to suitability. There are limits to career progression as a soil surveyor and I realised at an early stage that the people whose voices carry the most weight in decision-making are the economists. While not wanting to renege on my discipline I decided that I should at least become economically literate. During a soil survey in Somalia, I spent hours conducting infiltration and hydraulic conductivity tests on Solonetz on former marine deposits. Incredibly slow readings provided time and opportunity to read Price-Gittinger’s Economic Analysis of Projects, which was a good start, and I followed this up later with a week’s course on economics for non-economists at UEA. My perceptions of power relations between professional cadres has not changed Figure 2. Sumatra 1984: soil survey for transmigration in old rubber plantation.

80 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Reminiscences and Reflections

Broadening out from a land perspective

After a spell soil surveying in Indonesia on transmigrasi projects (Figure 2), I was back with FAO again, first as a land evaluation specialist in Ethiopia and later managing a series of projects in Botswana. Here, the project team finalised the Soil Map of Botswana, which was followed up later by a national map of land suitability for rainfed agriculture. Land suitability assessment was carried out by modelling crop performance based on relationships between external variables and intermediate and ultimate products. The model was particularly sensitive to water- holding capacity of fine sandy soils. We designed the project Land Figure 3. Definitely not the tropics: Badakhshan, January 2004. Use Planning for Sustainable Agriculture (LUPSAD), which government. I was assigned by DFID to build a rural livelihoods focused on producing land use plans at the district level in programme in the country, including the identification of Botswana, taking account of both technical analysis and alternatives to cultivation of opium poppies. I moved out to consultation with communities and local authorities. I rounded Kabul from 2003-2005. This was probably the best period to be off these assignments with a trip to the International Congress in Afghanistan as there was real enthusiasm among Afghan of Soil Science in Acapulco, in 1994, where the Botswana land Government ministers and officials, and the development suitability map was presented (Radcliffe & Tersteeg, 1994). community, that something could be achieved. I was involved After completing my contract in Botswana, I settled back in the in the design and oversight of two area-based programmes – in UK working as a freelance consultant. My work as Chief Badakhshan with the Aga Khan Foundation and in the central Technical Adviser with FAO served me well as a base for a highlands with FAO – and at that time was able to travel freely in significant broadening of experience. I was soon engaged by FAO the project areas. We also designed and set-up RALF (the again for short inputs into interesting projects on agro-ecology Research in Alternative Livelihoods Fund) which was in China and on land tenure in Eritrea. These were interspersed administered by the International Centre for Agricultural with a return to some real soil survey work in Ethiopia and inputs Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), and which channelled into World Bank projects on the National Environmental Action support to a number of projects implemented by NGOs and Plan in Armenia and on woody biomass assessments in Ethiopia research institutions across the country. For a time I was and The Gambia. Although globetrotting has its attractions, I assigned to the British Embassy Drugs Team in Kabul, dealing was attracted by the apparent continuity offered by DFID, who with alternative livelihoods for poppy growers. Promoting were expanding their staffing in the wake of the Labour Party alternatives to opium poppy is more complex than crop election victory in 1997. After answering an advert in The substitution. Opium value chains are highly sophisticated and Economist for Senior Renewable Resource Advisers I received a farmers become locked into credit and other obligations that phone call during an assignment in Asmara requesting me to often determine their livelihood strategies. attend a selection interview. Then on to India where I had oversight of a well-established and highly successful rural livelihoods programme, largely focussed on poor and disadvantaged communities in Andhra Pradesh, From land to livelihoods Orissa and Madhya Pradesh. These state-based programmes have lifted millions above local poverty lines and pioneered approaches I started my life as a UK civil servant having spent a good half of such as participatory development of watersheds and support to my career in the field, working as an implementer of projects. Panchayat Raj institutions and Integrated Tribal Development This experience has been very helpful in stepping to the ‘other agencies, which have informed major programmes of the Federal side’, as a representative of a donor, shifting responsibilities from Government of India and State governments. I was in India at implementation to design, supervision and monitoring, as well the time of the Gleneagles Summit and the Stern Review and as policy. Spending the first five years working from a London there was a big push to make climate change a political priority. base provided good orientation for my new role, although I was India is a major contributor to greenhouse gas emissions, hardly deskbound. I made several trips to Ethiopia, mainly to although these are very low on a per capita basis. A vast number monitor NGO projects in food insecure areas, including some of Indians, mainly the rural poor, are extremely vulnerable to the where I had worked with FAO ten years earlier. I next advised on impacts of climate change such as floods and drought. I gained DFID’s programme in Eastern Europe and Central Asia where accreditation to DFID’s environment cadre and as Senior various projects were supporting rural communities to carve out Environment Adviser I was involved in the policy debate and in sustainable livelihoods in the post-Soviet economy. DFID had identifying projects to support climate change adaption and an excellent team working on this programme and we achieved access to carbon markets. India was a challenging but very good results. Russia in February required a different packing list rewarding place to work. I found that it takes time to get to grips to my more familiar trips to the tropics, as well as some new and with the sheer scale of the country – some Indian states are more unfamiliar challenges. populated than any African country, excepting Nigeria. I was very A major development challenge from 2002 was the dependent on my Indian colleagues and their knowledge of local reconstruction of Afghanistan following the defeat of the Taliban institutions in making progress, but DFID’s rural livelihoods

81 Reminiscences and Reflections Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

programmes were generally successful in improving the lot of who were able to punch with more weight. There is no doubt in poor people in some of the poorest areas of the country. For my mind that we are better off ‘in’ – actively involved in shaping example, see Independent Commission of Aid Impact (2013), European agendas and participating fully in research DFID’s Livelihoods Work in Western Odisha, ICAI Report 18. programmes.

A focus on research for development Epilogue

I went to Brussels in 2009, initially on a two-year contract, but I ended up spending six years there. I was on secondment from DFID to the EC, supposedly to strengthen the Directorate General for Development and Relations with African, Caribbean and Pacific States (as it then was) in agricultural research. While never being a specialist researcher I had had substantial dealings with the agricultural research community during my earlier career. My main task was to maintain the case for EC funding to international agricultural research, including to the CGIAR, other international research centres, African regional and sub-regional organisations and challenge funds to support research consortia. These were interesting times. CGIAR was in the throes of a major reform, and although European donors were among the strongest supporters of reform, a lot of time was spent in Figure 4. Out of retirement? ASAP project review, Rwanda, 2016. hammering out consensual positions on governance, funding arrangements and research priorities. This period saw the birth Looking back, I am very fortunate to have had such an of 15 new CGIAR Research Programmes based on complex interesting and varied career, which I hope is not quite over partnerships between CGIAR centres and other research and yet. I can look back on some positive developments, all of development institutions, and I participated in meetings of the which have been the results of team efforts in which I played (then) CGIAR Fund Council at which the concepts and details of a part of varying magnitude. However, it is also interesting to these programmes were thrashed out. There was also an active reflect on the failures, or on what went wrong due to forces debate about the role of the Global Forum on Agricultural majeures. I was lucky enough to catch some countries, such Research (GFAR) and of African regional and sub-regional as Mozambique, Papua New Guinea, Eritrea, and Afghanistan organisations such as the Forum for Agricultural Research in when they were on a wave of positive momentum following Africa (FARA). One legacy of my time at the EC was a strategy independence, or ‘liberation’ in the latter case. With the which defined future support to agricultural research for exception of Mozambique, all of these countries are in a more development by the Directorate General for International problematic state than was the case when I worked there, Cooperation and Development (EC: DGDC – EuropeAid, 2014). largely due to conflict or failures of governance rather than to any technical constraints to development. The area under Brussels is a long way from the field, and there were only a couple opium poppy in Afghanistan in 2014 was about the same as it of occasions when I got beyond the meeting rooms and spoke to was when I was there in 2004 (Mansfield, 2016). some real farmers. Nonetheless, the job had its rewards and there are things that would not have happened without my personal support. My previous experience of living and working in rural References settings in the tropics helped me understand some of the challenges faced by projects in the field so that I was better able Holmes DA, Western S, 1969. Soil texture patterns in the alluvium of the lower to argue the case for programmes where this was justified. EC Indus Plains. Journal of Soil Science, 20, 23-37. support was essential in enabling the Sub-Saharan Africa Allbrooke RF, Radcliffe DJ, 1987. Physical properties of Andepts from the Challenge Programme to run to completion, in enabling GFAR Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea. Geoderma, 41, 107-109. to develop a multi-year strategy and secure funding for its Moody P and Radcliffe DJ, 1986. Phosphorus sorption by Andepts from the implementation, and in enabling the expansion of successful Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea, Geoderma 37, 137-147 programmes by CABI, ICIPE (the International Centre for Insect Radcliffe DJ, Gillman GP, 1985. Surface charge characteristics of volcanic ash Physiology and Ecology) and CGIAR centres. The Commission soils from the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea, Catena Supplement 7. was one of the consistent funders of the CGIAR research programme on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security, Radcliffe DJ, Tersteeg JL, 1994. Land evaluation and yield reliability. A national case study from Botswana. Proceedings of the 15th World Congress of Soil in which I took a close personal interest. Science, Acapulco. 6b, 194-195. International Society of Soil Science/Mexican Society of Soil Science, Chapingo, Mexico. It is interesting to reflect on Brussels in the context of current political debates. I left with a positive impression of the European Commission: Directorate General Development and Cooperation – EuropeAid, 2014. Research and Innovation. Food and Nutrition Commission and the robustness of its procedures, and enjoyed Security/sustainable agriculture. Brussels. working in multi-national teams with shared objectives. I was Mansfield D, 2016. A State built on sand. How opium undermined influential in Commission decisions at my technical level, even Afghanistan. Hurst and Co, London. though as a secondee from the UK I did not have formal status as an official of the Commission. I knew many British officials

82 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Institutional Members’ Page

Institutional Members’ Page

We are pleased to welcome Vrutti (www.vrutti.org) as a new financial and market linkages, training on good practices in Institutional Member of the TAA: agriculture, soil, water and livestock. Vrutti encourages farmers to produce and move towards responsible farming, About Vrutti using sustainable inputs and practices. Vrutti is mentored by Social Venture Partners and Mindtree. Vrutti is a centre for sustainable livelihoods, enhancing Some of its funders include Godrej Agrovet Ltd, Social Venture people’s wellbeing through knowledge, innovation and Partners, Edelgive Foundation, Azim Premji Philanthropic transformative actions. It is headquartered in Bangalore, India Initiative, NABARD (National Bank for Agriculture and Rural and was established in 2002. It is a part of the Catalyst Group Development), Small Farmers Agribusiness Consortium (Catalyst Management Services, Swasti and GREEN (Ministry of Agriculture, Government of India), and Foundation), established in 1994 by a group of management Department of Agriculture (Government of Karnataka). professionals from IRMA (Institute of Rural Management Vrutti brings a combination of expertise and experiences in Anand) which has been contributing towards empowering livelihood programme field implementation (Figures 1 and 2). poor and marginalised communities across India and other We work with over 130,000 farming households; over 50 developing countries. Vrutti focusses on livelihoods. women-owned businesses and over 100 Farmer Producer Vrutti believes that ‘sustainable livelihood approaches’ can be Organisations – Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises a great lever to address poverty, marginalisation and inclusive (MSMEs); and over 120,000 women and transgender persons development which need to be customised to address different who are socially excluded and vulnerable to HIV; over 500 forms of marginalisation, people’s needs, aspirations and the micro, small and medium enterprises, and about 40,000 local context. Our focus is on rural communities, who are marine fisherfolk. dependent predominantly on farm-based livelihoods. Most of Vrutti looks at people’s livelihoods in a comprehensive way, the areas fall under rainfed conditions; and most of the farmers looking at domains beyond just income; and strongly works are small-scale producers (with marginal, small land holdings, through community-led interventions such as Self-Help or landless). Most of the producers can be classified as either Groups (SHGs) and Federations, Farmer Producer ‘poor’ or ‘vulnerable poor’. Socially, many in the northern Organisations, Joint Liability Groups, Cooperatives, etc. states come from scheduled tribes and backward communities, and most in the south backward and scheduled caste communities. Vrutti in its model covers both men and women; it looks through the lens of ‘family as an enterprise’. Vrutti works towards building wealthy, resilient and responsible smallholder farmers through a variety of farm and non-farm initiatives across India. Vrutti works in seven states: Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Figure 1. Effective farm advisory support to small and marginal farmers –System Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Maharashtra. of Rice Intensification (SRI) – Vrutti. Vrutti strongly believes in collaborative impact and building Vrutti also supports many organisations in the livelihoods ecosystem solutions that address the needs of people in a sector in strengthening their strategies and capacities in holistic way. Through its ‘3-Fold Model’ Vrutti has impacted impacting and scaling interventions. Vrutti has been both a over 120,000 smallholder farmers, established 90-odd producer member and co-creator of networks and contributes to policy- companies and continues to support them. making both at state and national levels. Vrutti has partnered Vrutti supports farmers with the services that they need to with Mindtree in co-creating IGotCrops as an effective digital prosper. Services include capacity and institutional building, platform to augment the 3-Fold Model, and with Social Venture

83 Institutional Members’ Page / Obituaries Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Partners to leverage expertise in business modelling and scale We believe in the entrepreneurship orientation and potential thinking. of the farmers, and nudging the same to achieve the impact. We are trying to address the key gap of lack of integrated services (end-to-end) which is appropriate to the farmers, through establishing a sustainable eco-system that enables collaborative actions for collective impact. As such we are also working with multiple stakeholders.” Comments from N Raghunathan, Co-founder of Vrutti “In a constantly changing scenario with multiple Figure 2. Custard apple supply chain development – Mahanadi Farmers Producer opportunities and new challenges emerging, it is important to Organisation, Chhattisgarh. continuously support smallholders in ensuring the best for Comments from Pramel Gupta , CEO Vrutti them from every opportunity. Building an ecosystem that combines strengths of ‘government-private-community’ to “We are working to improve the livelihoods of the small ensure integrated solutions and sustainability of benefits is farmers in this country. We are trying to create a model (3- critical.” Fold) which can become a national asset. Our focus is on building wealthy, resilient and responsible farmers – making Pramel Gupta them successful entrepreneurs, and sustained job creators. CEO, Vrutti Obituaries

Professor Mike Carr graduates. At Silsoe, he formed a strong alliance with Melvin Kay in developing courses and research programmes on 1943-2018 irrigated agriculture, bridging the disciplines of engineering and agronomy – and from which hundreds of students from UK and overseas have benefitted. He went on to become Professor of Agricultural Water Management, Head of Natural Resources Management, and Dean of the Faculty at Silsoe College. In 1980, he became a founder member of the UK Irrigation Association. In 1999, he retired from Silsoe – now the University of Cranfield – and has since devoted his time to consulting on tea and coffee research, editing the Journal of Experimental Agriculture, and writing papers and books, despite coping with Mike was an eminent irrigation agronomist, who will be ill-health. remembered for his thorough and practical approach to irrigation research and development, for his books and other publications, Since retiring, he has published a trilogy on Advances in by his former students for his rigour, but by everyone for his Irrigation Agronomy, the first was on Plantation Crops in humour and fortitude in coping with ill-health. 2012, the second on Fruit Crops (2014), and his final book was on Tea Agronomy (2016), all of which are available from Educated at King Edward VI School, Stratford upon Avon, Cambridge Press. In each of these publications, Mike managed Mike went on to study Agricultural Sciences at Nottingham to bring together information and experience from a wide University. In 1966, he took up an appointment in Tanzania range of sources, and to present the evidence in an accessible with the East African Tea Research Institute in Mufindi, to and practical format. carry out research into the irrigation of tea. His initial ground- breaking work on tea water requirements and irrigation was I will remember Mike from my DFID days for enjoyable and the theme of his PhD thesis. His findings have had a major informative visits to his work in Tanzania, to Silsoe to meet impact of tea irrigation and production systems and have the international students, and for his willingness to provide contributed to East Africa being the world’s largest exporter of support and advice often at short notice. His books are a black tea. legacy that will bring benefits to many for a very long time. In 1975, following a short appointment in the early days of Our condolences go to Mike’s family. maize research in the UK at Wye College, Mike moved to Silsoe Andrew Bennett (drawing in information provided by College to teach irrigation agronomy to international post- Melvin Kay)

84 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Obituaries

Michael N Harrison of South American types which he thought would be useful in Kenya, brought them back and top-crossed them with Kitale 1925-2016 Composite 2. The cross between the locally adapted KS2 and Michael Harrison was born on 19th July 1925 in Otley, then one particular accession, Ecuador 573, yielded 40 percent attended Manchester Grammar School, and won a scholarship more than KS2; this good crossing value was a major to Reading University, graduating with a degree in Agricultural breakthrough which could be exploited very quickly. Botany in 1945. His first post was as a Technical Officer in In order to spread the work to the main African maize-growing seed production, at the National Institute of Agricultural areas, an Assistant Maize Breeder, Ted Hazelden, was recruited Botany, Cambridge. in 1959 and posted to Kakamega, where he undertook much In 1947, he joined the Colonial Service in the Sudan, where he maize extension liaison work, as well as running the breeding established a new research unit with three graduate staff, to work trials. Simultaneously, Mike had progressed more quickly than on range management, grazing development and water supplies. forecast with the classical hybrids, and by 1961 he realised that He took part in the Jonglei/Nile water conservation study, and in the first hybrids would be ready for commercial introduction an ecological survey including forestry aspects. His thorough by 1963. It would therefore be necessary to set-up a and wide-ranging work in ecological classification and grasses is completely new organisation to produce hybrid seed. still much appreciated and utilised in the Sudan. During UK Fortunately, there was a small commercial seed company in home leaves he went to various scientific meetings, at one of Kitale, set-up by local farmers in 1956 to produce seed of which he met Marianne; she had graduated as a doctor in improved grasses for livestock farmers. In 1963, this Kitale Germany, and then obtained a post in Wales. After they married Seed Company (KSC) recruited a dynamic new young Dutch in September 1952, she joined him on his safaris all over Sudan, manager, Wim Verburgt, who became very keen to get involved enjoying their simple, rugged life-style, despite the lack of basic in this new ‘hybrid’ venture. He and Mike organised 25 Kitale amenities and civilised comforts, and the first two of their four farmers to start hybid maize seed production in 1963. Each sons were born then. farmer grew 4 ha, and they all had to learn how to plant the male and female parents in separate lines, and to de-tassel the When Independence reached Sudan in 1955, they left, and female lines religiously every day. Careful growing and Mike obtained a posting to Kenya, as the first full-time maize harvesting was essential, along with good processing and research worker. In Kenya, the Colonial Government had set- packaging in the KSC factory. up research units for the main plantation crops: coffee, tea, pyrethrum, sisal, wheat and barley; in 1955, these crops were Mike also worked hard to get the Seed Section of the grown mostly on large-scale European estates and farms in the Agriculture Department to set-up regulations and standards White Highlands. Most of the African population of about 7 for hybrid maize seed, and an inspection system to ensure that million depended on maize. Although it was the staple food the seed-growers were complying with the standards. These crop not only of Kenya, but also of most of Eastern Africa, only maize seed rules had to go through Parliament, in order to be a small amount of ad hoc research had been done on maize, brought into law. All these developments were taking place at thus Mike was starting off with a fairly blank canvas – and the same time as Kenya’s Independence was being virtually no experience in this crop! inaugurated, and it required a tremendous effort on Mike’s part to keep pushing all these things forward, while many of the He and Marianne were posted to the Agricultural Experimental old personnel in the Government were leaving and being Farm at Kitale, in Western Kenya, the heart of the best replaced by new Kenyan staff . European maize area, where the large commercial farms produced good yields from open-pollinated farmers’ varieties. Although Mike’s efforts were concentrated on his breeding Kitale, at 1,890 m altitude, has an average temperature of 18.5˚ programmes, he was always aware that the new hybrids would C, and favourable rainfall averaging around 1,140 mm per need to be grown better to enable their higher yield potential to annum, in one long season from late March to November. be realised, and that this would necessitate considerable Mike surveyed the existing types and varieties grown in Kenya, improvements in agronomic practices. Through his contacts selected the best adapted local types, and embarked on a with the Rockefeller Foundation (which supported CIMMYT), he classical hybrid breeding programme, using several obtained funds to recruit a Maize Agronomist, and I was posted st generations of self-pollination to produce inbreds, which were to Kitale on 1 June, 1963. I was new to this crop, but quickly then crossed to find superior combinations which could be became involved, initially with Mike’s maize variety trials in the replicated to make higher yielding hybrids (and composite main maize areas, and then with the seed production. I set-up varieties such as KS2, Kitale Composite 2.) He forecast this various agronomic experiments, including fertiliser/plant would produce commercial hybrids in 15 years. However, he population trials at key locations. However, a visit to research soon realised that the Kenya maize was only a very small stations in Yugoslavia and Hungary during my leave in August sample of the huge range of genetic diversity which had 1965 opened my eyes to the need to obtain reliable data about evolved in Central and South America – in ecological the relative importance of the main agronomic factors affecting conditions very similar to Kenya. He contacted maize breeders yields in different areas of Kenya. at Ames, Iowa, in the US Corn Belt, and at the International In brief, we set-up District Husbandry trials, incorporating the Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT), in Mexico, six main factors (time of planting, plant populations, genotype and obtained support and funding to visit these centres of of seed, weed control, phosphate fertiliser at planting, and excellence, where he made vitally important contacts. From nitrogen top-dressing). Each factor was at either a low level, CIMMYT’s vast gene bank, he was able to pick out a good range representing unimproved farmers practice, or at a high level,

85 Obituaries Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

representing current recommendations for better yields. These seminars were held to review progress, and as well as extension multifactorial trials, with 26 = 64 treatment combinations, staff, the Kenya Seed Company participated, along with the showed that the factors which had the biggest effect on their Kenya Farmers Association, fertiliser companies, and scientists own were early planting and hybrid seed; next in importance from the Kenya Agricultural Research Department. Ted were plant populations and weed control; with the fertilisers Hazelden was a key player, and he helped the Seed Company having lesser impact. However, there were very important and the Ministry of Agriculture to set-up the country-wide interactions between factors, which showed that choosing the hybrid maize seed distribution system, whereby small farmers correct combinations of factors was vital. For instance, all over Kenya could obtain certified hybrid seed in small bags, fertilisers had small effects when the other husbandry factors in good time, at affordable prices, within walking distances were at low levels, whereas fertilisers increased yields from their homes. Later, Ted joined the Kenya Seed Company considerably at the high levels of the other factors. Cost/benefit in Kitale, and played a major part in its rapid growth into a big relationships of the various treatments could be made for international company. many different combinations, simulating what farmers These concerted efforts resulted in a very rapid up-take of experienced in their own fields. From these trials, four specific hybrid seed by the large-scale growers, who, within two years, combinations were chosen for use in maize extension work, had switched over virtually 100 percent of their maize areas to in demonstration plots in many districts. These four specific hybrids. The small-scale farmers were not far behind, and treatments formed the ‘Maize Diamond Demo’ plots which within a few years their area of hybrids exceeded that of the became quite well-known in maize improvement efforts in the large growers. Mike had long envisaged that the small farmers late Sixties and Seventies. in the African areas could benefit greatly from the higher yield Mike was tremendously pleased with the results of these trials, potential of hybrids, and that they would be able to produce as they provided data to support what he had been preaching their food on a smaller area, thus freeing up some of their land for years, and also opened up new lines of research which could for other crops, which could bring in cash. In addition, the provide more information about practical improvements for increases in maize production outstripped the population farmers. They also impacted on other aspects such as seed growth – but only for about 25 years. production, and the management of breeding plots, including Mike was also much involved in the Specialist Committee for irrigation to enable seed to be multiplied more quickly. Agricultural Botany (SCAB), an East African group set-up by Mike was interested in comparing the different systems of the East African Agriculture and Forestry Organisation maize breeding for increasing yields, in order to find out which (EAAFRO), to bring together plant scientists and to develop ones gave maximum progress for minimum cost – a topic networks for sharing information and breeding material which was/is of great importance to maize breeders world- among Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. He expanded the maize wide. Many studies had compared a few of the main methods, part of this, and in the early sixties, East African maize research but at different times and places and conditions. Mike and meetings were initiated under EAAFRO auspices, with input some of the leading US breeders, such as Dr George Sprague from US AID/USDA, CIMMYT, the UK Colonial Office, and the in Iowa, wished to have a study comparing all the main Agricultural Research Departments of the three East African methods side-by-side under identical conditions. With help countries. By 1966, CIMMYT was planning to establish an East from the US Department of Agriculture and US AID, Dr Steve Africa Regional Maize Research Coordinator, based in Kenya, Eberhart was sent out to Kitale in 1964 to see if such a long- to expand its efforts in the region, and to try to spread Kenya’s term study could be set-up in Kenya, using the good crossing amazingly rapid progress to other countries. Mike was offered value of Kenya maize genotypes and the Latin American types, the post, and it seemed to offer him the attractive opportunity such as Ec 573. Steve was so enthused by the potential for of a wider sphere of activity. In addition, as an expatriate in such a project at Kitale, that he decided to come back to Kenya the new Kenya civil service, he could not advance any further and set-up the project himself. He moved his wife and family due to ‘Africanisation’, thus future career prospects were out to Africa, for four very rewarding, happy, and tremendously limited and uncertain. valuable years. A brilliant statistical geneticist, as well as He therefore accepted CIMMYT’s offer. The aim was to cover leading maize breeder, Steve not only set-up his own study, not only the other two countries in the East African but also introduced the latest systems of data-recording and Community (Tanzania and Uganda), but also Ethiopia, Zambia analysis, whereby all trials results were processed much more and Malawi, and East Zaire, Rwanda and Burundi. rapidly and efficiently on main-frame ICL computers in Unfortunately, regional politics were changing, and relations Nairobi. Steve provided a huge amount of help to all the maize between capitalist Kenya and socialist Tanzania were researchers in the statistical design and analysis of their trials, deteriorating. Kenya did not want to see its valuable hybrid and he also assisted many of the young Kenyan scientists to maize ‘asset’, and its precious improved breeding stocks, being get scholarships for further studies, including their PhDs. handed-over freely to other countries (especially Tanzania) – Festus Ogada was the first – he later took over from Mike as whereas CIMMYT was trying to promote and ease such head of Kenya Maize Research – and he was followed by Eliud transfers! In addition, Kenya tended to think that Mike still Omolo, and many more young local scientists. ‘belonged’ to Kenya, and did not like CIMMYT being his new During these very busy years, Mike always visited all the main boss! Mike was still ensconced in Kitale, where they now had maize areas every season, to see how his new products were four sons, and Marianne had a busy medical practice to run, performing, and he organised maize tours with the provincial as well as their farm. Sadly, by 1969, it seemed that Kenya did and district agricultural extension staff. Provincial maize not want to cooperate fully with CIMMYT, and even more

86 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Obituaries disruptively, the East African Community was steadily Dr W Ian Robinson disintegrating. Eventually CIMMYT decided to change its plan, and moved Mike to the new International Institute of Tropical 1945-2017 Agriculture (IITA) being set-up at Ibadan, Nigeria, to take charge of maize research there. The Harrisons had to sell-up, pack-up, and leave their beloved home and many friends in Kitale, in 1970. His great achievements in Kenya were marked by the award of the prestigious Bennet Prize, and an MBE from the UK Government. After eight years at IITA, Mike left Nigeria in 1978. He then did consultancy work as Chief Agronomist for Minster Agriculture, carrying out many assignments in various countries. On final retirement, he and Marianne sold their home in Reading and relocated to Eyemouth, south-east Scotland, where they enjoyed growing old near their sons and their wives, and lots of grandchildren. Alister Allen

We are sad to report that Dr William (Ian) Robinson, Roger S Tayler humanitarian, global specialist in agriculture and Director of 1929-2017 AA International Ltd, passed away in September 2017. Ian worked in agricultural development for over 45 years, in more than 70 different countries throughout Africa, the Middle East and Central Asia, often in marginal areas and conflict zones. For many years he used his expertise to help governments assess crop growth in some of the most difficult places in the world including Ethiopia, Chad, Mali, Sudan and Uganda. His extensive field experience provided him with an in-depth understanding of rural issues and food security concerns in semi-arid areas, which became his specialist subject. From 1967-1970, Ian undertook a PhD (University of Wales) in the mountains of Snowdonia in north Wales, taking charge Roger Tayler lectured in Crop Production for many years at the of a flock of sheep, some errant shepherds and a remote University of Reading, having completed his own education at cottage to investigate the effect of the environment on Welsh Seale-Hayne Agricultural College and the University of Reading. Mountain ewes. A post-doctorate career in agricultural Roger was the most genial and practically encouraging of tutors. development in the UK and overseas, extending to 47 years, His lectures were clear and grounded in reality. This was honed resulted in him completing several hundred short missions in by his living near the University Farm in Sonning, and his some of the most difficult and dangerous places on earth. engagement with the Crop Production Field Laboratory there. An assignment for the World Bank during a turbulent period He approached with gusto the opportunity to work on sorghum of West African politics in the 1980s, saw him working for two in northern Nigeria, linked to Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria. years in both Benin and Ghana, where he was present to This further stimulated his interest in tropical cropping systems witness more than one coups d’etat. and included work on legumes and oilseed crops, many also trialled at Sonning and tested as potential alternative combinable His approach to work was combined with an equally crops for the UK. Roger was ahead of his time in thinking about adventurous approach to his time off. Taking his growing possible climate change and, in any case, about the adaptability family on holiday to the disputed Kashmir region of India in of cultivars and ecotypes. He elucidated the essential physiology 1979 was matched only by an impressive ‘road trip’ that saw behind agronomic practices. On farm classes in winter, I recall him drive from Oman to Corfu in a Fiat 127 to meet up with him – bizarrely for rural England – wearing a beret in harsh his family, who had travelled there by more conventional weather rather than the more usual flat cap on the grounds, I means (aeroplane in this case), for another interesting summer think, that the wind couldn’t get under it since it had no peak! holiday. Roger, teamed with the late Dr Paul Harris, made a jovial pair in The mid-1980s saw Ian recruited by the British Council to the delivery of agronomy teaching. improve three agricultural colleges in Syria. Needing a car in Roger was the first person I saw wearing the TAA tie, soon after the Syrian capital, he completed another impressive road-trip, foundation of the Association, the meaning of which he was literally a ‘road to Damascus’ experience, as he crossed Europe delighted to explain to me! and the Balkans in a navy blue VW polo, driving from mid- Wales to Syria in less than a week. He brought the car back John Wibberley (who went up to Reading to read BSc via the same route, only for it to break down in Dover – Agriculture 50 years ago with Roger Tayler as his tutor!) possibly the most dangerous part of the whole trip.

87 Obituaries Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

By now, his technical expertise in the driest zones of the world His commitment to reducing rural poverty in the most had been recognised and rewarded with an invitation to help inhospitable countries in the world was total, evidenced by the establish, and later direct, the Centre for Arid Zone Studies missions he took on. But his work is only half the story – his (CAZS) at the University of Wales, Bangor. This started a new spirit, generosity and charm ensured that he made things chapter in his career, moving from working in the relative happen, whether at work or at play. comfort zones of unstable West African dictatorships, to active Although separated by continents and seas, sometimes for war-zones, where he once again set up and ran development many months at a time, his family, a wife of fifty years, four programmes to improve agricultural performance. boys and a girl, and their eventual rural home near For the first time, it unfortunately coincided with unwanted Aberystwyth, remained his priority. On returning from attention from the enemies of those benefitting from his work, Bhutan, Chad, Mali or Timbuktu, as well as vivid descriptions and he was fortunate to survive an attack on his team in of the places he had visited for work, Ian would bring back December 1989. Returning from a Crop and Food Supply cassettes featuring local musicians and occasionally, items of Assessment Mission on behalf of the UN, but under the ethnic dress. ‘Function over form’ was his mantra when it auspices of Oxfam UK, the team was intentionally land-mined came to sartorial choices for watching his children play sport, in no-man’s land between Eritrea and Sudan. Indirect claims and this would extend to him wearing Tibetan or even Afghan of further death threats from the Dergue (a Military Committee headgear when weather conditions required. Together with representing the Ethiopian Government at the time) against his vocal encouragement to whosoever of his offspring persons involved in such development activities in the region, happened to be playing rugby, football or hockey, it ensured resulted in a period of secondment for Ian, away from the that he was always noticed (both visually and audibly) arena. He was seconded to the Philippines (1990-93) for an throughout the playing-field touchlines of Mid-Wales. EC-funded project to establish five Agricultural Training With his five children grown up, it was his grandchildren who Centres. would also benefit from the wonderful gifts and stories that he In 1993, the end of the civil war in Ethiopia left a vanquished brought back from all his travelling. His children could then Dergue, an independent Eritrea and a new government in share long drinks into the small hours with him discussing Ethiopia, which opened the way for his return to the Horn and politics, sport and listening to his favourite music – gathered East Africa. During his 13 years at the CAZS, he was able to from far corners of the world. reinforce all the CAZS development and training activities in It is difficult, if not impossible, to identify a single clear legacy Africa and in conflict zones elsewhere. from all of his work, so perhaps it is best to remember who he In 2006, Ian set-up his own company – AA International – was rather than what he did. His easy charm, his kindness and which he ran for 11 years, with a small team, to improve the passion hid a fierce determination which really did ‘make lives of rural farming populations across impoverished regions things happen’. Those fortunate enough to have spent time of the globe. Under his guidance, the business prospered and in his company will never forget him. grew into an internationally-recognised organisation Tessa Robinson producing a range of tools, manuals and approaches to improving food security assessment and agricultural production in the world’s poorest countries. Most recently, he had developed his Pictorial Evaluation Tool (PET) into a unique and innovative software application for farmers and organisations to use in assessing crop yield and livestock condition in Uganda and across the African regions he knew so well. Born in Wokingham in 1945, the eldest of three boys to Bill and Barbara Robinson, who hailed from Glasgow and the East End of London, Ian began working as a part-time labourer on local farms from the age of eleven. At eighteen, he was a proficient tractor driver and herdsman, with good enough A- Levels from Windsor Grammar School, where he was Head Boy, to gain a place in Wye College, London University – the first of his family to do so. Encouraged by their parents, sport was a big part in all three of the boys’ formative years, with Ian excelling in local representative rugby, athletics and football teams, and much later in life, contributing colourfully to his own children and grandchildren’s progress in their chosen sports. His sporting interests continued at Wye College, where he played rugby and football, and also performed Shakespearian drama, and sang professionally in folk groups with his future wife, Faith.

88 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) Upcoming Events Upcoming events

Further information: TAA SEMINAR: IMPROVING https://www.elsevier.com/events/conferences/water-security RURAL LIVELIHOODS BY -conference REDUCING CROP LOSSES CEREALS 2018

Date: 9 May, 2018 Dates: 13-14 June, 2018 Details: The TAA East Anglia Branch Annual Seminar will Details: Join more than 24,000 farmers, agronomists and focus on reducing crop losses, especially in East Africa. The industry professionals for the arable industry’s leading event is being co-hosted by Cambridge University’s Global technical event. Food Security Initiative and CamPlantsHub. There will be two presentations and time for Q&A discussions. Venue: Chrishall Grange, Duxford, Cambridgeshire Further information: from East Anglia Convenor Further information and contact: http://www.cerealsevent.co.uk/welcome HE UTURE OF ONG ERM T F L -T THE NO-TILL SHOW AND XPERIMENTS IN E CONFERENCE GROUNDSWELL AGRICULTURAL SCIENCE 2018 Dates: 21-23 May, 2008 Dates: 27-28 June, 2018 Details: Conference organised by the Association of Applied Biologists to mark the 175th anniversary of the start of scientific Details: Groundswell’s mission is to promote an investigations at Rothamsted. Besides scientific presentations understanding of and disseminate factual information on no- and debates, the conference will include live streaming, flash till and regenerative agriculture within the UK. The talks, visits to the long-term experiments (LTEs) and the conference focuses on emerging methods of soil samples archive, and other activities. Sessions include the regeneration, reducing inputs and increasing profitability in unique contributions of LTEs to agricultural science; new arable and mixed farming situations. It is held on a working designs, methods and tools for LTEs; the mathematics and no-till farm in Hertfordshire, with speakers sharing their statistics of LTEs; and the progress and future viability of the experiences from around the world. Global Long-Term Experiment Network (GLTEN). Further information and contact: Venue: Rothamsted Conference Centre, Harpenden. http://www.groundswellag.com/ Further information: https://www.rothamsted.ac.uk/news/back-future#CONTACTS- TROPICAL AGRICULTURAL 1ST INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT - THE BASICS CONFERENCE ON WATER Dates: 23-27 July, 2018 ECURITY S Details: Course participants will gain an introduction to aspects of poverty and community development and an Date: 17-20 June, 2018 orientation to ECHO. They will also receive instruction on proven agricultural principles/practices and practical Details: The Conference will welcome academics, thinkers techniques, systems and technologies to meet agricultural and practitioners from around the world to present, discuss and nutritional needs of small-scale, impoverished farmers. and highlight key issues and directions for change from There will also be time for hands-on work on the farm, visits scientific and policy perspectives, including data needs and with staff, and study in the library. how data can be acquired, successful public and private sector business models in different settings, political opportunities Venue: ECHO Global Farm, Fort Myers, Florida, USA and obstacles, what the expressed human needs are, and where the knowledge gaps exist. Further information and contact: https://www.echocommunity.org/en/resources/9f61fc0f- Venue: Hyatt Regency, Toronto, Canada 2a57-4c5f-a693-2654bd5c65e3

89 Upcoming Events Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

LONDON PERMACULTURE UK DAIRY DAY, 2018 FESTIVAL, 2018 Date: 12 September, 2018

Date: 29 July, 2018 Details: UK Dairy Day brings together all facets of the dairy industry; farmers, students, breeders, geneticists, vets, feed Details: Workshops, talks, demonstrations, stalls and merchants and dairy equipment suppliers – plus professional activities for all the family. service providers, charities and colleges. Venue: Cecil Sharp House, Camden. Venue: The International Centre, Telford, Shropshire, TF3 4JH Further information: http://londonpermaculturefestival.com/ Further information and contact: http://www.ukdairyday.co.uk/ BBC COUNTRYFILE LIVE POTATO EUROPE

Dates: 2-5 August, 2018 Dates: 12-13 September, 2018 Details: A four-day family-friendly event, showcasing the Details: The exhibition includes presentation from around best of British countryside with live arena shows, talks and the world as well as the latest innovations: genetics resources displays of animals, livestock and farming in action, outdoor and species innovation, disease prevention and protecting activities and sports, exhibitors of fine quality products, cultivations, managing water, fertilisation, cross-breeding, including food, drink, artisan design and crafts. storage and preserving tubers. Practical demonstrations include harvesting, storage, optical sorting, etc. and technical Venue: Blenheim Palace, Woodstock, Oxfordshire. meetings cover current technical and economic issues. Further information: https://countryfilelive.com/exhibit Venue: Rittergut Bockerode near Springe, Germany Further information and contact: 21ST WORLD CONGRESS OF http://www.potatoeurope.de/en/visitors/ Julia Schmidt: +49 (0) 69 / 24788 - 369 SOIL SCIENCE (WCSS) [email protected]

Dates: 12-17 August, 2018 21ST INTERNATIONAL SOIL Details: The theme will be "Soils to feed and fuel the world”. The WCSS is the main event of the International Union of TILLAGE RESEARCH Soil Science. It takes place every four years and is open to all members of the IUSS and other participants. ORGANISATION CONFERENCE Congress Venue: Rio Centro Exhibition and Convention Centre, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. http://www.riocentro.com.br/ Date: 24 September, 2018 Further information and contact: http://www.21wcss.org/ Details: The Conference provides an opportunity to present Flavio Camargo - Vice-President research, share ideas and obtain new perspectives in soil and [email protected] tillage research that will meet the challenges of food security and climate change. There is also a four-day post-conference tour. ENTO 2018 - THE GOOD, Venue: Cité Universitaire, Paris, France THE BAD AND THE UGLY Further information: http://istro2018.webistem.com/ CROPTEC SHOW Dates: 29-31 August, 2018

Details: Advances in entomology are frequently driven by a Dates: 28-29 November, 2018 variety of factors beyond scientific exploration and interest. The conference seeks to address this by providing a platform Details: The CropTec show is for all farmers and agronomists for areas of entomology that are often overlooked or seeking the latest information on innovative methods to understudied and by discussing what can be learned from increase profits from crop production. As the UK’s leading these groups. technical and knowledge exchange event for the arable farming industry, this two-day show provides you with the Venue: Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, Lancs. ideal chance to explore ways to improve efficiency and reduce Further information: https://www.royensoc.co.uk/event/ento-18 unit costs of production. Venue: East of England Showground, Peterborough Further information: https://www.croptecshow.com/

90 Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018) 2018 Ralph Melville Memorial Lecture

NOTICE OF THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURE ASSOCIATION’S 2018 RALPH MELVILLE MEMORIAL LECTURE Game-changing technologies for the future farm Dr Elizabeth Warham FRSB Head, DIT Agri-Tech Organisation

Exploring the rapid development of new agricultural technologies and what this means for sustainable farming and global access to food in the future.

HOSTED with the All Party Parliamentary Group on Agriculture and Food for Development

VENUE: McMillan Room, Portcullis House, Houses of Parliament, 1 Parliament Square, Westminster, (Gate 4), SW1A 2JR London

DATE: Monday 11th June 2018

AGENDA commencing at 6:00 pm

Introduction by Andrew Bennett, President, TAA

Chair – Lord Cameron of Dillingham, Chair APPG

Followed by drinks and light refreshments closing at 9:00 pm

Elizabeth is Head of the Agri-Tech Organisation for the UK Department for International Trade, which champions the role of agri-tech in strengthening agri-business success in both UK exports and investment, and helping drive sustainable intensification of agriculture to provide global access to sufficient, safe and healthy food. Previously, as Head of the Food, Water and Environment Issues team in the Government Office for Science, she provided support to the Government Chief Scientific Adviser. She led the GO-Science Review of how the Department of Health manages and uses science to inform the development of policies. For the former Department of Trade and Industry Technology Programme she worked closely with technological sectors and their user industries in programme delivery. In the UK Department for International Development, she managed research programmes to develop appropriate technologies for different agricultural production systems in low and middle-income countries (Africa, Asia, Latin America and Caribbean). Her career started at the International Centre for Wheat and Maize Improvement (CIMMYT) in Mexico, in maize breeding, wheat pathology and seed health programmes.

Registration Please book your place at https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/taa-ralph-melville-memorial-lecture-new- technologies-for-farms-in-developing-countries-tickets-44299697588 or by advising the General Secretary at [email protected]

91 Important information for all TAA members Agriculture for Development, 33 (2018)

Important information for all TAA members Protection of members’ personal data

At the end of May 2018, data protection rules in the EU are changing, under the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR).

To make sure that we are as clear as possible about our holding of personal data, we would like to provide an overview of how we use any information that you share with us. Membership of the TAA, as a professional Association, is through an annual subscription payment. Information collected and stored by TAA is used only to enable the running of the TAA.

What membership information do we collect and why?

Qualifications and overseas experience are needed to verify membership suitability, and your address is used for communication, posting our journal (Agriculture for Development), and to enable communication specific to regional activities. Home and/or mobile telephone numbers are used if your address or role change, allowing us to contact you and ask for an update of your data. Year of birth and gender are optional, but are used to help identify the age range and gender ratio of members.

Members are provided with an individual membership number, together with a temporary password: both are needed to access the full website and the online journal. Individual passwords are set by members themselves and will NOT be viewable by TAA. In case of mislaid membership details then the Membership Secretary should be contacted to provide guidance on how to reset your password.

We will never sell the information you share with us or swap it with another organisation. We want you to know that you are always in control of your information and you can view and update your own personal data once logged onto the website.

News Alerts

Current members will receive regular news and alerts by email. They have the opportunity to opt out at the time of each posting or by visiting their membership profile on the website and clicking the opt-out button for News Alerts.

If you have any questions in relation to your personal data, please get in touch with the Membership Secretary by emailing [email protected].

Keith Virgo TAA Chairman

92 Registered Charity No. 800663

How to become a member of the TAA

If you are reading someone else’s copy of Agriculture for Development and would like to join, or would like to encourage or sponsor someone to join, then please visit our website at http://www.taa.org.uk/

Step One - Application: Applications can be made on-line at: http://www.taa.org.uk/membership Alternatively an application form can be downloaded, completed and sent to: TAA Membership Secretary, 15 Westbourne Grove, Great Baddow, Chelmsford CM2 9RT.

Step Two - Membership Type: Decide on the type of membership you require – see the details and subscription rates below:

Type of membership and annual subscription rate Full Individual Member (printed copies £50 Online Individual Member (online copies of Agriculture for Development) of Agriculture for Development) £40

Institutional Member (printed copies of £120 Student Membership (online copies of £15 Agriculture for Development and online Agriculture for Development) access for staff)

Step Three - Payment: Payment details are on the website with ‘Bank Standing Order’ being the preferred method since this ensures annual payment is made and is one less thing to remember!

Payment can also be made by bank transfer, on-line using PayPal, or by cheque. Bank details are available from: [email protected]

Step Four - Access to website and Journals: When application and payment has been received then the Membership Secretary will contact you with your membership number and log-in details for you to fully access the website and journals. The latest journal will be sent to full members.

For membership enquiries contact: [email protected] Committee

TAA Executive Committee UK Regional Branches OFFICE HOLDERS Scotland President: Andrew Bennett, Chroyle, Gloucester Road, Bath BA1 8BH. John Ferguson Tel: 01225 851489; 21 Pentland Drive, Edinburgh, EH10 6PU. email: [email protected] Tel: 07734249948, email: [email protected] Pettets Farm, Great Bradley, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 9LU. Chairman: Keith Virgo, North of England Tel: 01440 783413; email: [email protected] John Gowing, University of Newcastle upon Tyne, 1 Park Terrace, Vice-Chairman: Paul Harding, The Cliff, Stanyeld Road, Church Stretton, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 7RU. Shropshire SY6 6JJ. Tel: 0191 222 8488; email: [email protected] Tel: 01694 722289; email: [email protected] South-West General Secretary: Elizabeth Warham, TAA, c/o Montpelier Professional Tim Roberts, Greenways, 15 Marksbury, Bath, Somerset BA2 9HS Services, 1 Dashwood Square, Newton Steward, DG8 6EQ, UK. Tel: 01761 470455; email: [email protected] Tel: Mobile 07711 524 641, email: [email protected] London/South-East Treasurer/Subscriptions: Jim Ellis-Jones, 4 Silbury Court, Silsoe, Beds Terry Wiles, 7 Old Stocks Oak, Farnham Road, Liss, Hants GU33 6JB. MK45 4RU. Tel: 01525 861090; Tel: 01730 890228; email: [email protected] email: [email protected] East Anglia Membership Secretary/Change of Address: Linda Blunt, 15 Westbourne Grove, Great Baddow, Chelmsford CM2 9RT. Keith Virgo, Pettets Farm, Great Bradley, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 email: membership [email protected] 9LU. Tel: 01440 783413; email: [email protected] Institutional Membership: Martin Evans, 35 Cavendish Avenue, Cambridge, CB1 7UR. Tel: 01223 244436, email: [email protected] Specialist Groups Branches Coordinator: ‘Nathan’ Duraisaminathan Visvanathan, WS Atkins, Agribusiness Western House (Block C), Peterborough Business Park, Lynch Wood, Peterborough PE2 6FZ. Tel: 07834 507380, Roger Cozens, Coombe Bank, Tipton St John, Sidmouth, Devon email: [email protected] EX10 0AX. Tel: 01404 815829; email: [email protected] Early Career Membership: Alex Tasker Land Husbandry email: [email protected] Amir Kassam, 88 Gunnersbury Avenue, Ealing, London W5 4HA. Tel: 020 8993 3426; Fax: 020 8993 3632; Agriculture for Development Editors: email: [email protected] Coordinating Editor: Paul Harding, The Cliff, Stanyeld Road, Church Stretton, Shropshire SY6 6JJ. Environmental Conservation Tel: 01694 722289; Keith Virgo, Pettets Farm, Great Bradley, Newmarket, Suffolk CB8 email: [email protected] 9LU. Tel: 01440 783413; email: [email protected] Technical Editors: Brian Sims, Elizabeth Warham, Andrew Ward, Michael Fitzpatrick, Overseas Branches Charles Howie and Alastair Taylor, email: [email protected] TAA India: Girish Bhardwaj, 144 Abhinav Apartments, B-12 Vasundhara Enclave, New Delhi 100096; Tel: +91 1143 070984, Website Manager: Keith Virgo, Pettets Farm, Great Bradley, Newmarket, Mobile +91 98 918 74414; email: [email protected] Suffolk CB8 9LU. TAA Caribbean: Bruce Lauckner, c/o CARDI, PO Box 212, Tel: 01440 783413, University Campus, St Augustine, Trinidad & Tobago email: [email protected] Tel: +1 868 645 1205/6/7; email: [email protected] Award Fund Chairman/Enquiries: Antony Ellman, 15 Vine Road, Barnes, TAA SE Asia: Wyn Ellis, 4/185 Bouban Maneenin, Ladplakhad 66, London SW13 0NE. Tel: 0208 878 5882, Fax: 02088786588; Bangkhen, Bangkok 10220, Thailand. Mobile: +66 818 357380; email: [email protected] email: [email protected] The Cliff, Stanyeld Road, Church Stretton, Honours Panel Chair: Paul Harding, TAA Pacific: , Visiting Professor of Biology, University Shropshire SY6 6JJ. Ravi Joshi Tel: 01694 722289; of the Philippines, Baguio, 2600 Baguio City, The Philippines, email: [email protected] Mobile tel +63-919 955 8868/+63 998 578 5570 Vacancies Team Members: email: [email protected] Alan Stapleton, Michael Fitzpatrick, Bookie Ezeomah. TAA Zambia/Southern Africa: Chris Kapembwa, Plot 30 Kaniki, Ndola, email: [email protected] Zambia. Tel: +260 977 536 825, Email: [email protected] PUBLISHED BY THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURE ASSOCIATION (TAA) ISSN 1759-0604 (Print) • ISSN 1759-0612 (Online) TAA, Montpelier Professional Services, 1 Dashwood Square, Newton Stewart, Wigtownshire DG8 6EQ Web site: http://www.taa.org.uk

DESIGN, LAYOUT AND PRESS-READY FILES PRINTING TAA is a registered charity, Robert Lewin Graphic Design Altone Limited No. 800663, that aims to advance Tel: (01353) 722005 Tel: 01223 837840 education, research and practice in [email protected] [email protected] tropical agriculture. www.altone.ltd.uk