Assessment of the Development of Agricultural Initiatives for USAID/Yemen April 2004 Assessment of the Development of Agricultural Initiatives for USAID/Yemen Conducted by the ARD-RAISE Consortium December 2003–January 2004 ARD, Inc. 159 Bank Street, Suite 300 Burlington, VT 05401 (802) 658-3890 www.ardinc.com TABLE OF CONTENTS Acronyms ……………………………………………………………………………………………….iii Executive Summary 1. The Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation and Its Restructuring...................................iv 1.1 Agricultural Extension.....…………………………………………………………………………..iv 1.2 Agricultural Research..... …………………………………………………………………………..v 1.3 Agricultural Credit and Finance…………………………………………………………………..vi 2. Agricultural Development Needs in Five Governorates .......................................... .….vii 2.1 Who Are the Poor Farmers in These Governorates? ………………………………………...vii 2.2 Crop Marketing ……………………………………………………………………………………vii 2.3 Livestock Marketing ……………………………………………………………………………....ix 2.4 Livestock Feed and Forage ……………………………………………………………………...ix 2.5 Role of the MAI at the Governorate Level ……………………………………………………...x 2.5.1 Agricultural extension.............................................................................................. xi 2.5.2 Veterinary services and medicines.......................................................................... xii 3. Gender Roles, Constraints, Needs, and Opportunities.................................................xiv 4. Donor Support of Agriculture..........................................................................................xvi Main Report 1. Introduction—Objectives and Approach Followed in the Assessment .........................1 2. The Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation and Its Restructuring....................................2 2.1 Background and Introduction ……………………………………………………………………...2 2.2 The MAI, the Aden Agreement, and A21A ………………………………………………………2 2.2.1 Redefinition of MAI policies and objectives ..............................................................3 2.2.2 Revised strategies and programs.............................................................................4 2.2.3 Restructuring agricultural field services....................................................................5 2.2.4 Reorganizing MAI human resources ......................................................................10 2.2.5 Restructuring the MAI budgeting process ..............................................................11 2.3 Implications of Decentralization on MAI Structure …………………………………………….12 2.4 MAI's Relationship to the Agribusiness Sector and Academia ………………………………12 2.5 Synthesis of Findings and Recommendations …………………………………………………13 3. Examination of the Agricultural Sector, with Focus on the Five Governorates ……..17 3.1 Yemen’s Agricultural Sector ……………………………………………………………………..17 3.1.1 Structure and trends...............................................................................................17 3.1.2 Irrigation, water, and agricultural policy..................................................................20 3.1.3 Neglect of rain-fed irrigation and small-scale livestock production.........................21 3.1.4 Agribusiness...........................................................................................................23 3.1.5 Agricultural credit and finance ................................................................................26 3.2 Current Situation and Constraints in the Five Governorates …………………………………28 3.2.1 Characteristics of the governorates........................................................................29 3.2.2 Problems reported by farmers and herders in these governorates ........................30 3.2.3 Who are the poor farmers in these governorates?.................................................32 3.3 MAI’s Management System at the Local Level ………………………………………………..33 3.3.1 Agricultural extension .............................................................................................33 3.3.2 Veterinary services.................................................................................................34 3.3.3 Agricultural research ..............................................................................................34 3.3.4 Seed multiplication .................................................................................................35 Yemen Agricultural Sector Assessment i Table of Contents 3.3.5 Natural resource projects .......................................................................................35 3.4 Availability of Supportive Infrastructure …………………………………………………………36 3.5 Farm Product Marketing ………………………………………………………………………….37 3.5.1 Crop marketing.......................................................................................................37 3.5.2 Livestock marketing................................................................................................38 3.6 Agribusiness ……………………………………………………………………………………….38 3.6.1 The private sector...................................................................................................38 3.6.2 Agricultural cooperatives ........................................................................................41 3.7 Universities and Agricultural Education ………………………………………………………...42 3.8 Sources of Finance and Credit ………………………………………………………………….42 3.9 Synthesis of Findings and Program Opportunities ……………………………………………43 3.10 Veterinary Services and Medicines ……………………………………………………………48 4. Gender Roles and Needs ..................................................................................................50 4.1 Gender Roles in Agriculture and Livestock Production ……………………………………….51 4.1.1 Women ...................................................................................................................51 4.1.2 Men ........................................................................................................................51 4.2 Gender Constraints and Their Implications for Women’s Development …………………….52 4.2.1 Literacy and education ...........................................................................................52 4.2.2 Obstacles in marketing and obtaining inputs..........................................................52 4.2.3 Technical constraints that fall more directly on women..........................................53 4.2.4 Missing: Technologies that meet women’s specific needs.....................................53 4.2.5 Participation in groups and community decision-making .......................................53 4.3 Program Opportunities ……………………………………………………………………………55 4.3.1 The MAI, agricultural extension, and the RWDGD.................................................55 4.3.2 Technologies that address the needs of women....................................................56 4.4 Synthesis of Findings and Recommendations …………………………………………………56 5. International Financial Institutions and Other Donor Programs...................................59 5.1 The World Bank …………………………………………………………………………………...59 5.2 The FAO ……………………………………………………………………………………………60 5.3 The UNDP.…………………………………………………………………………………………61 5.4 The European Commission ……………………………………………………………………...61 5.5 France ……………………………………………………………………………………………...62 5.6 Germany …………………………………………………………………………………………...62 5.7 The Netherlands …………………………………………………………………………………..62 5.8 Arab Donors ……………………………………………………………………………………….63 5.9 Observation and Recommendations ……………………………………………………………63 Documents Reviewed ………………………………………………………………………………..65 Annex 1: Statement of Work Annex 2: People and Organizations Visited Annex 3: Workshop Questions Annex 4: Aden Agenda (Technical Paper) Annex 5: Food Balance Sheets Annex 6: Focus Group Questions and Issues Discussed Annex 7: Field Survey Annex 8: Constraints and Program Opportunities Annex 9: Trade Policy and Agriculture Annex 10: Project Proposal Outline, RWDGD Yemen Agricultural Sector Assessment ii ACRONYMS A21A Agenda for 21st Century Agriculture ACU Agricultural Cooperative Union AFPPF Agricultural and Fisheries Production Promotion Fund AREA Agricultural Research and Extension Authority ASC Agriculture Services Corporation CACB Cooperative and Agricultural Credit Bank CGIAR Consortium for International Agricultural Research DOI Directorate of Irrigation ERADA Eastern Regional Agricultural Development Authority FAO Food and Agriculture Organization GASC General Agricultural Services Corporation GDPM General Directorate of Planning and Monitoring GOY Government of Yemen GSMC General Seeds Multiplication Corporation HDI Human Development Index ICARDA International Center for Agricultural Research in Dry Areas ICRISAT International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics IDA International Development Association IF Integrated Framework LSBs Livestock Sale Barns M&O Maintenance and operations MAI Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation MIS Management information system MOF Ministry of Finance MWE Ministry of Water and Environment NGOs Non-governmental organizations NRADA Northern Regional Agricultural Development Authority NWRA National Water Resources Authority RADA Regional Agricultural Development Authority RWDD Rural Women Development Department RWDGD Rural Women Development General Directorate SFD Social Fund for Development UNDP United Nations Development Programme WFP World Food Programme WUAs Water User Associations Yemen Agricultural Sector Assessment iii EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: KEY FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS This