SCALING UP AGROECOLOGY FOR FOOD
PRODUCTION: FARMER TO FARMER
EXPERIENCES
PRESENTED AT RIO+20
Wilfred Miga
PELUM ASSOCIATION
REGIONAL SECRETARIAT
17th June 2012
PRESENTATION OUTLINE
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Brief information on PELUM
PELUM’s take on agroecology
Agroecology Opportunities
Approaches to scale up agroecology
Farmer to farmer experiences
Challenges
Conclusion
Brief information on PELUM
• PELUM Association is a civil society member driven
regional network of over 207 civil society
organisations, operating since 1995.
• We are in 10 countries of Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho,
Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda,
Zambia and Zimbabwe.
• Very soon we will also be in Burundi, Ethiopia, South
Sudan and Swaziland
• VISION: Smallholder farming communities are selforganized and able to make choices towards an
improved quality of life that is socially, economically
and ecologically sustainable.
Brief information on PELUM cont.
• MISSION: To improve the livelihoods of smallholder
farmers and the sustainability of farming communities
by fostering ecological land use management.
• OUR VALUES: People centred-development;
Empowerement of land users; Environmental friendly;
Respect for indigenous knowledge; Self-criticism;
Creativity and innovation; Creation of impact; Gender
sensitivity; Transparence & Accountability ;
Sustainability and Integrated and holistic approach to
development
• Operational strategies: Information and
communication; Campaign, Advocacy and Lobby;
Agriculture Extension Services, Research and
Development; Learning and Networking; Gender and
HIV/AIDS mainstreaming
PELUM’s take on agroecology
• As PELUM Association we see agro ecology as a form
of agriculture that integrate natural, regenerative
processes; minimize non renewable inputs; relay on
indigenous knowledge of farmers; involves locally
adapted practices and encourages biodiversity.
• Our ELUM is a production system that sustains the
health of soils, ecosystems and people.
• It relies on ecological processes, biodiversity and
cycles adapted to local conditions, rather than the
use of inputs with adverse effects.
• ELUM combines tradition, innovation and science to
benefit the shared environment and promote fair
relationships and good quality of life for all involved
in the ecosystem.
Agroecology Opportunities
• Low cost-High benefit and therefore affordable
for our small scale farmers especially women
• Uses natural agricultural inputs that are
accessible
• Regenerative in nature (OPV seeds)
• Encourages biodiversity safety and therefore
sustainable
• Is traditionally and culturally rooted, hence easy
to disseminate
Approaches to scale up agroecology
• Farmer field schools through lead farmers
The community farmer field school is a result of ToT
that has a capacity building multiplier approach,
where each lead farmer targets 10-30 farmers.
MOBILISATION AND TRAINING
Approaches to scale up agroecology cont.
• Training, Mobilisation and awareness raising
Mobilsation and training of the farmers on cassava production
This approach takes on a bigger number of farmers at
a time and most theories are captured in these
sessions
Approaches to scale up agroecology cont.
• Holding traing with exhibitions
Approaches to scale up agroecology cont.
• Community seed production for seed
sovereignty hence food security through use of
regenerative OPV seeds
• Value addition and Market access; Once value is
added market linkages are created by bringing
together different players in the value chain.
• Networking of like minded organisations for best
practices sharing and strengthening common
voice for advocacy.
• Communication and information sharing
through publications, resource centers and esharing
Farmer to farmer experiences
• On-farm soil management, water conservation & harvesting
Farmers plant fodder on the boundary of the contour
to make the soil firm while at the same time
providing feed for the animals, adding nitrogen to
the soil and also providing mulching material
Farmer to farmer experiences cont.
• As a result of adopting mulching, farmers have
Testified to increased yield and ability to maintain
Productivity amidst harsh climate conditions.
Farmers dig a ditch (left & below
left), fit in a tapoline and then
introduce water weed to purify as
well as minimise water loss through
evaporation. A farmer from Masaka
district (below right) demonstrates
the use of a simple water pump to
draw water from the well to the
animals and for irrigation
Farmer to farmer experiences
Challenges of scaling up agro ecology
• Lack of support from Governments: Most African
governments have deliberately promoted
conventional agriculture at the expense of
agroecology.
• Interference and pressure from multinationals;
whose focus is maximizing profits through creation
of monopoly supply of high cost external agriculture
inputs.
• Research agenda geared towards conventional
agriculture: There has been deliberate negligence of
undertaking farmer participatory research to avoid
shading scientific proof that support agroecology.
Challenges of scaling up agro ecology cont.
• Organic products competitiveness: They are
integrated with inorganic products at the sales shelves
and in most cases not labeled to avoid their
competitive demand.
• Certification of organic products: It is very costly and
cumbersome and therefore unaffordable for small
scale farmers who accept less prices for products that
could earn better.
• Disorganized farmers in the communities as most
cooperatives are established as means of getting
inputs from the government.
• Un supportive policy environment for both
production and marketing.
Conclusion
• There is enough practical evidence that agroecology
is the way to go not only to sustainably feed the
world population, but also to raise the rural poor
household incomes.
• African governments and donor community have for
long supported conventional agriculture that has only
benefited the small number of commercial farmers
and multinationals dealing in agriculture inputs.
• It is now time that all stakeholders focus on
agroecology to eliminate perpetual hunger and hiking
food prices.
Agroecology can feed the world
THANKS FOR YOUR KIND ATTENTION