A low-cost participatory development approach for rice cultivation in inland valleys
Sander Zwart, Worou Soklou
Africa Rice Center (Cotonou)
Felix Gbaguidi
Cellule Bas-Fond (Porto Novo)
Assimiou Adou Rahim Alimi
This presentation will show an alternative to ‘traditional’ investment projects for
agricultural development of inland valleys
‘Traditional’ investments project develop:
- Concrete structures including canals, weirs, divers, etc.
- Stone dams Bottlenecks
- Short project period - Slow process (tenders) - Low quality of works
Requirements for sustainable implementation: - Strong farmers organization
- Continued support (from extension agencies) - Land tenure arrangements
Smart-valleys development approach • Simple
• Participatory • Low-cost
• Easy to replicate
5 steps approach in which farmers are participating
1. Sensitization of farmers 2. Land clearing
3. Design of the system
4. System implementation 5. Rice cultivation
WUR – AfricaRice workshop
SMART-IV project:
Countries: Benin and Togo
Partners: ITRA (Togo), Cellule Bas-fonds (Benin) Environ.: inland valley rice production
Time: 2009-2014
Donor: Ministry of Agriculture (MAFF) in Japan Target: Establish demonstration sites
Facilitate adoption Assess impact
2011 – development and demonstration sites Parakou Glazoué Ouinhi Kpalimé Notsé Kara
2012 – development and demonstration sites Parakou Glazoué Ouinhi Kpalimé Notsé Kara
2013 – development and demonstration sites Parakou Glazoué Ouinhi Kpalimé Notsé Kara
2013 – development and demonstration sites Parakou Glazoué Ouinhi Kpalimé Notsé Kara GRED farmers farmers
Benin Providing training Technical backstopping Support fundraising Providing training Developing sites Coordinate development activities
Implement new projects with Smart-valley approach
Togo
+ other NGO’s
Building capacity
Development of training set (end of 2014): Instruction guide + Field guide + Educational video
Providing training to:
- Rice farmers (site development)
- Field technicians of extension services and NGO’s (guiding farmers in development)
- Leader farmers (guiding other farmers) - Trainers (training of new trainers)
Demonstration sites developed, but now….
1. Long-term support and capacity building to farmers, extension staff and NGOs
2. Slow, step-by-step introduction of new agricultural practices and tools to farmers (participatory evaluation)
3. Strengthening farmer organization and linking them to the rice value chain
The way forward
1. Long-term support and capacity building to farmers, extension staff and NGOs
• Training package and discussion video being developed
• Trainings organized for field technicians, on the approach, but also sustainable introduction of field machinery (powertillers, mechanic
The way forward
2. Slow, step-by-step introduction of new agricultural practices and tools to farmers (participatory evaluation)
• Extension officer and field technicians are being trained in good agricultural practices
• Farmers in demonstration sites are exposed to GAP
• Farmers in demonstration sites participate in evaluation of mechanic weeders & powertillers
The way forward
Participatory evaluation of mechanic weeders
The way forward
3. Strengthening farmer organization and linking them to the rice value chain
Multi-Stakeholder Platforms to link producers to input dealers, rice buyers/millers, banks, extension services
Foire de la connaissance des
technologies rizicoles d’AfricaRice
Septembre 1-2, Abomey-CalaviSmart-Valleys – une approche de développement participative et peu coûteuse Atlas des bas-fonds – évaluation du potentiel de développement
RiceAdvice – conseil localisé au producteur en matière de gestion des éléments
nutritifs
Plateformes multi acteurs – amélioration de l’accès des producteurs à la chaîne
de valeur
Motoculteurs – adaptation locale pour supporter les utilisations multiples ARICA – nouvelles lignées de variétés de riz
Désherbeuses mécaniques – réduire la main-d’œuvre dans la production rizicole Étuveuses USD – qualité améliorée et énergétique
Batteuse ASI – batteuse de grande capacité pour du riz propre
