Survival in the Sahel An ecological and developmental challenge Edited by Klaus M. Leisinger and Karin Schmitt and the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) Ai-n " islnur The mandate of the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) is to assist developing countries in bringing about lasting improvements in the performance of their national agricultural research systems and organizations. It does this by promoting appropriate agricultural research policies, sustainable research institutions. and improved research management. ISNAR's services to national research are ultimately intended to benefit producers and consumers it developing countries and to safeguard the natural environment for future generations. ISNAR offers developing countries three tynes of service, supported by research and training: " For a limited number of countries, ISNAR establishes long-term, comprehensive partnerships to support the development of sustainable national agricultural research systems and institutions. * For a wider range of Lountries. ISNAR gives support for strengthening specific policy and nmanagement components within the research system or constikdent entities. * For all developing countries, as well as the international development community and othcr interested parties. ISNAR disseminates knowledge and information about national agricultural research. ISNAR was established in 1979 by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), on tie basis of recominendations from an international task force. It began operating at its headquarters in The II ague, [he Netherlands. on September I, 1980. ISNAR is a nonprofit. autonoous institute, international in character and apolitical in its illluingelinent. stal fing. and operations. It is financially supported by a [umber of the menbers ot the CGIAR, an informal group of donors thait includes countries, development banks, international organi/ations, and foundations. Of the 16 centers in the CGIAR system of interiiational centers, ISNAR is the only one that focuses specifically on instiltitional development within national agricultural research systems. The CIBA-GEIGY Foundation for Caoperation with Developing Countries was established in 1979 to channel and strengthen the efforts ofthe CIBA-GEIGY corporation ir: humanitarian assistance and to consult CIBA-GEIGY management on sustainable development issues. The Foundation's charity activities focus on the poorest segments of the population in dCveloping countries and include leprosy control and rehabilitation projects, agricultural rea:arch anild sustainable ari cultural devclopment projects, as well as gender-orie nted social developnent projects in Asia, Africa, and Latin A merica. To he able to deliver up-to-date consulting on development issues, the Foundation has established a development policy data base, does its own research on issues of sustainable development, and regularly takes part in developmient dialogues with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). international organizations, and scientific institutions. The CIBA-GEIGY Foundation operates independ, Jy from the CIBA-GEIGY commercial enterprise. Survival in the Sahel An ecologicaland developmental challenge Edited by Klaus M. Leisinger and Karin Schmitt and the International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR) kr7nr Copyright 0 1995 by the International Service for National Agricu!tural Research (ISNAR) and the CIBA-GEIGY Foundation for Cooperation with Developing Countries. All rights reserved. The fair use of this material is encouraged. Proper citation is requested. About the Editors KlausM. Leisingeris professor of development sociology at the Univer­ sity of Basel (Switzerland) and director of the CIBA-GEIGY Foundation for Cooperation with Developing Countries. Karin Schmitt is associated with the CIBA-GEIGY Foundation for Coop­ eration with Developing Countries, where she is concerned with, among other things, issues relating to women, the envircnment, and develop­ ment. Citation Leisinger, K.M., Schmitt, K., and ISNAR (eds) 1995. Survival in the Sahel. The Hague: International Service for National Agricultural Research. Original Title Iiberlebenin Sahel: eine ikologischeund entwicklungspolitischeHerausfor­ derung / hrsg. von: Klaus M.Leisinger; Karin Schmitt. - Basel; Boston; Berlin: Birkhauser, 1992. ISBN 3-7643-2710-3 AGROVOC Descriptors agriculture; research; natural-resources; women; sustainability; Sahel; Mali CABI Descriptors agricultural research; natural resources; women; sustainability; Sahel; Mali ISBN 92-9118-020-3 Contents Foreword ix Introduction 3 I. The Sahel 1 Geographic Outline 8 2 Historical Overview 11 3 Population 15 3.1 Demographicdevelopment 15 3.2 Populationdensity 16 3.3 Employment structure 17 3.4 Urbanization 18 3.5 Economic and social development 20 4 Agricultural Production 23 4.1 Developments in food production since 1960 23 4.2 Socioeconomic limitingfactors in the development of agriculture 24 5 Climate and Natural Resources 27 5.1 Climate 27 5.2 Water 32 5.3 Soils 33 5.4 Vegetation 34 6 Environmental Degradation 37 6.1 Preservationof the environmentas a human right 37 6.2 Loss of biologicaldiversity 39 6.3 Desertificationanr' the consequencesfor ecosystems 44 6.4 Human interventionsin natureand desertification 51 7 Women and the Struggle for Survival 61 7.1 Productionandreproductionin a 100-hour working week 62 7.2 The exodus ofmen 64 7.3 Disintegrationof thefamily structure 65 7.4 A new self-awareness 68 7.5 The struggleagainstthe desert 69 7.6 The demands of women 70 8 Sustainable Development 73 8.1 Nongovernmental organizations 78 8.2 The needfor more collaboration 82 9 Problems in Sub-Saharan Africa to Be Addressed by Agricultural Research 85 9.1 Introduction 85 9.2 The role ofagriculturalresearch 87 9.3 Cnnstraintsto agriculturalresearch 93 9.4 Solutions 98 Notes 103 II. Mali: A Typical Sahelian Country 1 Geography and Ethnic Composition 115 2 The Economy 121 ,j The Political Situation 125 4 Environmental and Sociopolitical Problems 129 4.1 Issues to be solved 129 5 Agriculture 135 5.1 Mali's naturalenvironment and its potential for human use 135 5.2 Agriculturalpolicy and its effect onfood production 146 5.3 The importanceof seed varieties infood production 148 5.4 Millet 150 5.5 Sorghum 152 5.6 Traditionalmillet and sorghum processingmethods 153 5.7 Millet and sorghum: supply anddemand 155 5.8 Limitingfactors in millet and sorghum cultivation 157 6 Quality Seed for the Sahel 163 6.1 Resistat~ceand tolerancein relation to ecologicalfactors 165 6.2 Resistanceand tolerancein relationto biologicalfactors 165 6.3 The Station de RecherclheAgricole in Cinzana,Mali 167 6.4 Nutrition researchin Mali 171 6.5 Productionand distributionof selected seed varietiesin arid zones 172 Notes 177 III. Conclusion 183 Notes 189 Figures 1 The Sahel zone 8 2 Rainfall variability as a percentage of deviation from the long-term mean for the Sahel zone 29 3 Climate and the environment in northern Africa in the last 18,000 years 30 4 Erosion and population 53 5 Mali's climate zones 114 6 Mali's desert zone 137 7 Mali's Sahel zone 138 8 Mali's river basins 141 9 Mali's savanna zones 143 Tables 1a Population growth in the Sahel 16 lb Population growth rates (%; 1980-92) 16 2 Urbanization in the Sahel 19 3 Economic and social development in the Sahel 21 4 Wildlife habitat loss in the Sahel 41 5 Social disadvantages of women in the Sahel 64 6 Environmental protection technologies and their impact 80 7 Key data on Mali 123 8 Health profile for Mali 130 Appendix Tables 1 Blueprint of the technology pipeline of a private seed company compared with that of the Cinzana research station 203 2 Stages, objectives, tasks, and measures of progress in the Cinzana research station's technology pipeline 204 3 Detail of the 1993 technology pipeline of the Cinzana research station 206 Appendix Lessons Learned: A Private-Sector Foundation's Support to Developing-Country Agricultural Research 193 A New Venture in AgriculturalResearch 194 Establishment and Managementof the Project 195 Physical Establishment of the Station 197 Establishmentof an On-Farm Research Program 200 Research Planningand the Technology Pipeline 202 Research Results and the Technology Pipeline 205 The Evolving Role of the CIBA-GEIGY Foundation 210 Foreword The seriousness of the environmental and socioeconomic crises in Africa has been the subject of numerous meetings, con­ ferences, and publications. The case of the Sahel, plagued by civil strife, poverty, and hunger and natural calamities such as deser­ tification and droughts, has become a major challenge facing humankind today. The environment and the living conditions have continued to deteriorate in spite of heavy investments, in­ numerable plans of action, and new organizations and institu­ tions-a baffling puzzle, considering that worldwide our genera­ tion has experienced more technoiogicaJ breakthroughs than ever before. It may seem to those interested in the development of the Sahel that there has been only bad news about the region over the past two decades. This has led some to believe that there have been no success stories. Obviously, in spite of the overall gloomy picture, there have been successes. The question is why these cases, rare though they may be, have not been reported and shared among the African countries and the international com­ munity. Today's situation, the result of a combination of human behavior, poverty, illiteracy, rapid growth in populations,