Objectives
Research questions
Activities
Nutrition, food safety and value addition
1.1 Improving HH food and
nutrition security, particularly the
vulnerable groups (e.g. pregnant
women, children, sick people,
elderly etc,) through:
I. Increased availability, access
and consumption of diverse
nutritious food
II. Creating awareness and
demand for nutritious and
safe food
III. Improving capacity in good
nutrition practices
IV. Mitigation of mycotoxin
contamination
1. To what extent can community-based behavioral
change communication and community-based
behavioral change communication plus agricultural
based education of women improved HH food and
nutrition status?
2. Which combination of technologies can reduced the
vulnerability of HH to food insecurity, food toxin
(e.g. aflatoxins) and poor nutrition?
3. Which atoxigenic strains of A. flavous (aflasafe
technology) can reduce most effectively aflatoxins
contamination in maize and groundnuts?
4. To what extent the carry over effect of aflasafe
strains can reduce the frequency of toxin
contamination?
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Develop, test and disseminate training
material on nutrition and behavioral change
communication
Capacity building of women to improve
their knowledge on nutrition using
behavioral change communication (BCC)
approach
Improve HH nutrition through production
and consumption of nutrient dense crops
(vegetables, legumes), and livestock (sheep
and goat, pigs and poultry) and tree
products (fruits, leaves), especially by
women (AGB)
Compare the BCC and the AGB and both
BCC and AGB in improving HH nutrition
Sensitization and training on mycotoxin
management
Evaluate the aflasafe product efficacy and it
carry over effect on toxin mitigation
Objectives
Research questions
Activities
Nutrition, food safety and value addition
Reducing post-harvest loss and
improving shelf life through
better pre-harvest, harvest and
post-harvest practices
1. Which combination of technology packages can
reduce pre-harvest, harvest and post-harvest losses
and improve product quality and self life?
Improve the market value of
agricultural produce through
value addition thereby
increasing household income
and nutritional value
1. What are the promising value chain of agricultural
products that can be reinforced to increase small
household income and nutritional value?
2. What options/technologies or combination of
technologies can add value to crop and livestock
products to increase their marketability?
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Identify and document potential
technologies to reduce pre-harvest, harvest
and post-harvest losses and contaminations
Evaluate the cost effectiveness of the
existing technology packages for potential
adaptation or recommendation
Conduct a SWOT analysis to identify market
niches/opportunities of agricultural
products
Identify, evaluate and adapt
options/technologies or combination of
technologies to add value to crop and
livestock products
Promote institutional arrangement to
facilitate linkages between smallholder
farmers and private sector
Objectives
Research questions
Activities
Resilient production systems
Develop and enhance integrated
crop-livestock systems to
improve productivity,
profitability and reduce risks of
small holder farmers without
degrading the natural resource
base
1. What options or combination of options can we
develop/promote to improve the resilience of
farming systems?
2. What options or combination of options of
improved crops (cereals, legumes, vegetables), and
trees/shrub, livestock breeds and
agronomic/husbandry practices would increase
productivity and profitability of smallholder farming
as well as food security and reduce risks?
3. Which combination of soil, land and water
management practices would increase food and
feed yields without degrading the natural resources
4. Which integrated crops and livestock management
practices will conserve the natural resource base
(soil, land, water and plant biodiversity) and
improve productivity
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Evaluate and adapt improved crops,
trees/shrubs, livestock management
practices to intensify/diversify the farming
systems without degrading the natural
resources
Evaluate and adapt integrated crops,
trees/shrubs and livestock management
practices to conserve the natural resource
base (soil, land, water and plant
biodiversity) and improve productivity and
profitability
Establish and characterize watershed areas
to evaluate and adapt integrated soil water
and land management practices to increase
productivity and profitability, and maintain
the natural resource base
Objectives
Research questions Outputs
Activities
Markets, institutions and gender
1. Enhancing institutional
options to improve;
i. market access (both
agricultural inputs and
outputs),
ii. access to sustainable
intensification
technologies
1. What are the main impediments (institutional and
socioeconomics) constraints to markets access
(inputs and outputs) and to adoption of SI
technologies?
2. What institutional arrangements can be
promoted/developed to increase access markets
(input sand outputs) and SI technologies?
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To empower the vulnerable
groups (women and youth) for
equitable access to and control
of production assets (land,
labour, credits etc)
1. What are the gender differentiations on crops and
livestock production, processing and marketing?
2. To what extent can labor and time inputs of
vulnerable groups into pre-harvest, harvest and post
harvest activities be reduced through the use of
small scale machinery
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Assess the market efficiency of agricultural
products (inputs and outputs)
Identify, adapt and promote new
institutional arrangement to increase the
marketability of crops and livestock
products and link farmer to inputs and
outputs marckets
Assess the level of inclusiveness of women
and youth along the crop and livestock
value chains
Evaluate the labor productivity (labor use
efficiency) through the use of pre and post
harvest small scale machinery
Promote and empower vulnerable groups
in using small scale machinery
Objectives
Research questions
Activities
Development
To achieve impact at scale of
project interventions through
engagement with different
stakeholders via:
I. Inclusive R4D platforms
II. Strategic communication for
effective dissemination of
project outputs
III. Building/strengthening
synergies with leverage
opportunities with
development actors (NGOs,
private and public sectors)
IV. Effectively deliver
information and knowledge
and build capacity to scale
out and up proven
technologies
1. Who are the key actors at the community and
district levels that are required to be at the R4D
platforms?
2. What are the best and efficient delivery
channels/networks for information and
knowledge/products exchange to farmers and other
partners including the private and public sectors?
3. What is the efficient linkage and partnership with
the national authorities that will support and
facilitate the process of registration and licensing for
a dissemination at scale of mature products (e.g.
aflasafe)?
4. Research on outscaling?
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Identify and categorize relevant
stakeholders that can be engaged in
processes to address specific constraints
that farmers face.
Evaluate, validate and promote effective
delivery channels/networks for a smooth
exchange of information and
knowledge/products to farmers and other
partners including private and public
sectors
Registration and licensing of mature
products (e.g. aflasafe etc…)
Building effective and appropriate
partnership to enhance a dissemination at
scale of mature products (e.g. aflasafe
etc…)