The World Bank/WBI’s CBNRM Initiative

Case Received: February 3, 1998

Author: Professor I. O. Akinyele, Food Basket Foundation International

Email: laolu.akinyele@skannet.com.ng

The problems of hunger and malnutrition continues to be a major factor in the overall well being of Nigerians especially the poor. It has been identified that during the raining season, bumper harvests are recorded by farmers and food availability is not a problem. However, due to lack of food storage, processing and preservation, post harvest losses are high and by the time the dry season is around, food insecurity is very high since many small scale farmers utilise the period to rest for raining season farming.

The characteristics of this period are low income for the farmers, accompanied by hunger and malnutrition which sometimes lead to the death of young children since food prices are also high.

The Food Basket Foundation International, (FBFI) an indigenous NGO working in Nigeria felt that it was possible for small scale farmers to cultivate their land all the year round if the current constraints can be identified in a participatory manner with the farmers to come up with solutions which they consider acceptable and workable. It was also felt that it would be possible to use the food production activity as any entry point for nutrition improvement programmes.

FBFI had discussions with FAO Regional Office in Accra and the Agrarian Reform and Institutions Officer concerning this problem and the possibility of funding and collaboration to increase dry season food production to generate additional income for farmers. The results of these discussions is FAO's funding of the project titled Development of Community Based Technology Transfer Centres in support of food production in Oyo State".

Basically, the centres were to become a local forum where small scale farmers can meet, discuss and learn about how to improve their farming practices. They are to attend field days, get access to information on new planting materials, identify plant diseases and their control as well as learning how to manage the locally available natural resources for increased food production and productivity during the dry season while generating additional income.

The overall goal was to develop multi-institutional approaches for small scale farmers to gain access to new and innovative technologies for increased production using self sustained local propagation techniques and participatory methods.

Water was recognised as the major constraint against food production during the dry season. Lack of access to information on techniques for successful dry season farming is another constraint. The important contextual factors here are economic (increased poverty during certain periods of the year) and social (food insecurity, reduced nutrition status and poor health during certain periods in the year).

The FAO funded project assisted FBFI to

1. assess the situation using participatory techniques to identify and analyse the key constraints and opportunities as well as the crucial areas for action;
2. plan and implement adaptive research operations and on farm demonstrations for testing new technological choices for possible replication/local propagation in farming communities;
3. promote multidisciplinary and holistic approach to small scale farmer's role in the food chain, in both on and off farm agricultural activities and other rural employment generation ventures;
4. improve linkages between farmers, extension agents, researchers and policy makers through collaborative initiatives at farm level and the collection, storage and dissemination of basic economic and technical information of interest to all stakeholders including agricultural market information;
5. introduce networking at various levels for sharing of knowledge and information among small scale food producers.

Through these participatory means, five community based technology transfer centres were established in 3 local government areas of Oyo State. Around each CTTC were organised farmer groups/clusters of 15 each for a total of 75 farmers. A demonstration plot was also established in each cluster to train and demonstrate various techniques for successful dry season farming. Each farmer in turn replicated the technique on his/her own farm for success. A tube well was dug at each CTTC to provide water for irrigation while implements (hoes, cutlasses, watering cans, boots and rakes) were provided for the farmers to assist their production activities.

The 5 locations chosen for the case study have tropical environment with the characteristic tropical rainfall patterns of two distinct seasons – the dry and the wet seasons. The rainy season starts in late March and ends in early November. The dry season falls between November and early March. The vegetation are typically forest or secondary forest. The clusters chosen had different topographical, soil and drainage situation but all are located near river valleys and on flood plains. All sites have gentle slopes and drains into adjacent streams which dry up in the dry season.

The soils at Akinyele Local Government Areas (LGA) sites are well drained while only the upper reaches of the flood plain at Egbeda LGA site could be classified as well drained. Towards the centre of the flood plain the soil is heavy and poorly drained which is characteristics of the hydromorphic soils of flood plains. No evidence of erosion problems at all the locations. Tillage operations are traditional with implements such as hoes, cutlasses and as such soil loss through erosion is minimal.

Normally, during the dry season, most farmers rest since they are unable to carry out full scale farming activities. The Egbeda LGA site people are conversant with large scale dry season vegetable production system but do not practice irrigation. They simply follow the water table towards the centre of the flood plain. Their system is such that a little piece of land is cleared, and planted. The crops are left to grow until the first weeding operation is due which is then meticulously done to minimize damage to the vegetables. Within a few weeks the vegetables are harvested four times within twenty days after which the plot is abandoned due to dryness and resultant caking up of the hydromorphic soil. The farmers then clean another small plot adjacent to the first one in the direction of the slope towards the centre of the flood plan. A shift is further made as in the first case until the whole of the hydromorphic plain is cultivated during the dry season or abandoned due to dryness. It was observed that in spite of the receding water table, farmers applied fertilizer either by spotting or by broadcast. The system has helped the farmers over time but it is had many disadvantages. For instance in the application of fertilizers, inefficient use of fertilizer by crops will result because there is lack of water to dissolve the fertilizer granules.

The succeeding weeds benefit from the fertilization subsequently. Similarly the tillage operational methods do not give room for proper soil pulverization to achieve good root penetration and hence further compounds the inefficient use of applied fertilizers. Finally, it was observed that a substantial part of the planted vegetables are left unharvested due to their poor state following the dryness of the area.

In Akinyele LGA little is known about dry season vegetable farming when compared to Egbeda LGA. Few farmers who practice it do so very close to the streams on small pieces of land. Thus no particular system was in place at the time FBFI entered the area. The situation was the same in Ogbomosho LGA. Hence the need to ensure reforms in the process.

In line with the stipulated objectives and goals of the CTTC programme, concerted actions towards its implementation were initiated in a preliminary review meeting of the constituted project team in October 1997. Criteria were developed for defining and measuring innovative and appropriate institutional arrangements towards strengthening linkages between agricultural research, extension (Public/Private sectors), technology generation and transfer/adaptation processes and field applications by small-scale food producers. The established criteria were later used to design a questionnaire for the collection of information on the institutions/organisations involved in extension services delivery,technology generation and transfer, and other supportive activities such as credit facilities.

Scientists from the following institutions were selected to participate in the activities of the Community-Based Technology Transfer Centre (CTTC) for the clusters:

National Horticultural Research Institute (NIHORT)

Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO)

Institute of Agricultural Research & Training (IAR & T)

Oyo State Agricultural Development Programme (OYOSADEP)

National Stored Product Research Institutes (NSPRI)

Basic information was also obtained from farmers in the selected areas using participatory methods.

Through a participatory analysis of the key constraints and opportunities, the most crucial areas of action were identified with special attention to the catchment areas. Based on this, five clusters were selected, in Akinyele LGA (2), in Ogbomoso LGA (2) and in Egbeda LGA (1). The farmers demonstrated keen interest in the programme and participated actively in cluster formation but expressed disappointment that only one group was been formed in each cluster. It was explained that it was a case study and if found successful and other groups can be started in each cluster. All the farmers were found to have access to land as individuals and the communities donated land for the demonstration farms of the CTTC. However, priority areas in the food chain differ among farmers across the LGAs.

In Akinyele and Egbeda LGAs, the need to address agricultural production systems was identified as a\ priority. The pilot demonstration farm established at the first cluster head in Akinyele LGA was designed to concentrate on dry season vegetables, which was non-existent in the area. Also vegetables are the only crops that can be grown at this season. Thus, dry season vegetable farming was identified as a priority which would be facilitated by a tube-well-irrigation system to enhance all year round vegetable production.

In Ogbomoso South LGA, the problem of post harvest losses was identified as a priority. Although almost all the arable crops are affected by poor post-harvest handling. Vegetables, especially tomatoes and peppers were identified as crops requiring immediate attention. Little or nothing is going on in the various clusters with respect to their preservation/processing. Large quantities are being produced and like other horticultural crops, they mature during a short season, most of them simultaneously in quantities higher than local markets can absorb. During the harvest season, low prices cause farmers to refrain from selling their produce and the role of middlemen constitute a major hindrance in the marketing of their products. The market system operates in such a way that the middle men and not the farmers determine the prices at which the farmers sell their goods. These prices are usually ridiculously low compared with the cost of production, thus making many of the farmers to abandon their produce in the farm, out of frustration of low demand. This is coupled with lack of adequate transport facilities to enhance marketing of these products.

Thus the natural resource solar energy is being harnessed to dry the vegetables and peppers to reduce post harvest losses. The farmers have now being introduced to dry season farming using the tube well irrigation system for production.

Management and monitoring operations began after planting on the demonstration farm and the individual farms of group members. The farming implements supplied by the project was used in the operation while group members managed the tube well such that all the members were able to water their vegetables. Manure locally available was applied as the fertilizer instead of using commercial fertilizer while pest control was carried out through the of application cymbush.

Harvesting of vegetables started in December at Erunmu in Egbeda LGA while it started on 9th January 1998 in Akinyele LGA at the 2 clusters. Harvesting is yet to begin in Ogbomoso LGA.

The major outcome of this project is that five small scale farmer's clusters have been established and awareness of dry season vegetable farming created and emphasized as a major dry season operation that can help the finances of farmers. Some of the participating farmers have cultivated almost double the landsize of the demonstration farm on their own.

The idea of irrigation through the provision of water has opened the eyes of the farmers to a way of generating additional income for the farmers. The tedium involved with the use of watering cans has been noted as a constraint and against the next dry season efforts will be made to put a pump into the well so as to make the irrigation process easier.

Apart from the adoption of innovations by participating farmers, some other farmers who stood by to watch the demonstrations have been spotted carrying out similar operations on their own farms using the water from the tribe well provided to the cluster. This indicate that the idea has already been accepted by other farmers not involved with the current group and it would be possible to extend the programme to other farmer groups that will be formed during the new year in preparation for the 1998 dry season farming.

As part of monitoring, the video recording of the process and outcomes were made as well as photographs of other aspects. The video will be edited so it can be shown at an intercountry workshop to be held in FAO, Accra with 3 farmers from each cluster participating. It is expected that the workshop with the Ghanaian participants will enhance the learning experiences of the farmers. A field day was held with farmers from the 2 clusters in Akinyele LGA. They were taking to the Egbeda LGA cluster where they interacted with each other exchanging information on their experiences with the project.

The major lesson is that with the use of natural resources such as underground water and manure from livestock and poultry, it is possible to carry out successfully dry season farming. Another lesson is the fact that additional income can be generated from growing vegetables alone. This income was found beneficial by the farmers. These lessons learnt are replicable in other places and the participatory process adopted was of immense importance to the success of the programme. The need for a demonstration of technology being transferred was shown in this project in which the various activities shown to the farmers and found to be successful convinced the farmers that the use of manure was as good as commercial fertilizers and water from wells could be applied to boost production.