April 2004
News from Stakeholders
Farmers' Organizations
Civil Society Organizations' Survey
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Farmers' OrganizationsFor a better recognition of the contribution of women farmers to development
The majority of the world’s poor live in rural areas. Most of them are women and agriculture is their main source of income. To achieve the objectives set by the United Nations to reduce the number of people living in poverty by half by 2015, priority must clearly be given to taking the concerns and needs of women farmers into consideration in rural development, sustainable agriculture and agricultural research. Hampering the potential of this key player in society is tantamount to delaying the reduction of poverty and achievement of sustainable food security for all.
Even though the international community now recognises the important contribution made by women to food security and the fight against poverty, women farmers continue to be a marginalised group within the agricultural sector.
And yet, women farmers play a vital role in supporting the family unit and community by providing food for their families and ensuring their well being. In addition, they are key players in day-to-day agricultural tasks, the instigators of activities that generate non-agricultural income and the custodians of natural and productive resources. International decision-makers frequently make reference to these facts when addressing international conferences on the issue.
Gender inequality: an impediment to development
Women farmers still suffer from a number of gender-based inequalities in areas that are essential for agricultural production. Gender inequalities affect access to, and management of, natural resources (land and water) and productive resources (credit and agricultural inputs), opportunities for education and training, as well as access to agricultural services, technologies and markets.
These inequalities are due to the numerous obstacles confronting women farmers every day. These can be economic (lack of personal liquidity), legal (lack of a professional status, which restricts their access to agricultural services), or social and cultural (certain traditions, norms and social rules impede the autonomy of women). Such obstacles hamper development considerably, especially in view of the fact that the number of farms run by women is constantly rising.
This shortage of means prevents women farmers from achieving the same levels of profitability as their male counterparts. In consequence, to ensure adequate income for their families, some women are obliged to change their farming operating system and/or the selection of the crops. These adjustments can have significant repercussions, for instance a rise in food insecurity, production of crops with a lower nutritional value, adoption of environmentally harmful farming techniques, and a decline in activities that generate off-farm income resulting in the impoverishment of the family, just to mention a few.
Supporting women farmers
Removing these barriers would enable women farmers to exploit agricultural land more efficiently, adapt plans to farming operations more effectively, manage the environment better, ensure regular food production throughout the year, and motivate them to invest in land that is their own.
Recognising women farmers as agricultural professionals can take the form of regulations and a legislative framework giving them equal access to resources, services and jobs in the agricultural sector. However, the introduction of laws is not sufficient because their application depends on institutional, political and social factors that differ widely from one continent to another. Special attention should therefore be paid to the concrete implementation of such legislation and its practical consequences on the ground in order to remove these obstacles.
If women farmers are to play their full role in the agricultural sector, they need policies designed to protect their interests in addition of legislation to cover specific gender problems. Governments and farmers’ organisations have considerable responsibility in this matter.
First of all, a political and financial commitment by governments expressed through concrete action that reflects women farmers’ concerns has become a pressing issue. It is the duty of governments to fulfill the commitments they made in Beijing in 1995. They undertook to ensure that all national and international policies would be gender-balanced and that participation of women farmers in every stage of the formulation and implementation of government policies and positions. This kind of a commitment generates faster development, a higher level of food security and an improvement of social well-being and health. Governments should set up the framework required to strengthen the processes of participatory decision-making and foster the creation of genuine partnerships between all stakeholders.
Second, farmers’ organisations should serve as spokespersons to convey the recommendations of their women members to national and international bodies. Agricultural organisations and their elected leaders should therefore make political decision-makers aware of the valuable role played by women farmers in rural areas and take into account women specific concerns in the elaboration of agricultural policies.
At present, the power of decision and the ability of women farmers to influence national and international policies are negligible compared with their contribution to agriculture. Greater involvement on the part of women farmers in formulating the political positions of the farmers’ organisations representing them, as well as a more active participation in national and international debates and programmes, should lead to a better understanding of their specific requirements in the policies advocated.
Although the creation of groups of women farmers is a way of facilitating their participation in political and social discussions where their claims can be heard, this is not an end in itself. The main objective of these groups is the effective integration of women farmers in mixed structures so that they can defend their interests at all decision-making levels in the agricultural sector.
Furthermore, the specific needs of women farmers would be better understood if women in rural areas were not so frequently the invisible partners of development. Visibility in the media is a major component in the recognition and appreciation of the role women play in the agricultural world. With a view to promoting their contribution to society, it is necessary to introduce gender disaggregated statistics to illustrate the extent of their involvement in the development process and in the fight against poverty, and to introduce concrete measures adapted to the needs of women farmers. Setting up observatories on women farmers within national governments could be a first step towards studying their specific situation.
This being said, it should not be forgotten that major efforts also have to be made by the women farmers themselves. They must be prepared to discuss their situation and give their views on national and international policies. Only sound and regularly updated training can enable them to promote their interests at working sessions with decision-makers.
With this in mind, facilitating the access of women farmers to knowledge, training, and general and technical information is necessary not only to improve their productive activities and optimise their use of natural resources, but also to raise their personal awareness as to their potential, contribution and needs. Furthermore, improving the general skills of women would have the additional advantage of transmitting knowledge to the next generation. This would be an invaluable asset for the rural community as a whole.
Thus, in order to ensure sustainable agricultural development at world level, it has now become indispensable for women farmers to understand the ins and outs of the policies governing them. They should also be able to rely on a basic institutional framework and political incentives to help them overcome obstacles to the economic survival of family farms run by women.
The purpose of agriculture is not only to produce food, it is also an essential component in the social, environmental and educational context. Women farmers have an important role to play at all these levels, whether it is to produce food, protect traditional forms of cultivation or help to develop rural areas.
A tool for international representation
Women farmers can count on support from the International Federation of Agricultural Producers (IFAP) to help them obtain recognition of their views and recommendations by top world leaders. Through its Standing Committee on Women in Agriculture, the goal of IFAP is to make the conditions and recommendations of women farmers known throughout the world, defend their interests at international level and strengthen their capacities by a more active participation at all levels of decision-making and representation.
In addition to the points mentioned above, IFAP women farmers recommend increasing the investments allocated to integrated plans for rural development, in partnership with local authorities, farmers’ organisations, and the private and public sectors. The Committee also encourages more public funding for research that could ultimately provide solutions to the current problems of women farmers. This should be undertaken in co-operation with the local populations in order to use appropriate technologies that are in keeping with their traditional knowledge.
Given the importance of their involvement in the agricultural and rural sector, women should be recognised as precious assets for rural communities, and we should all be aware of the countless results that could be achieved by investing in women farmers.
Fabienne Derrien
IFAP
Farmers' OrganizationsCTA joints forces with ZADI to further develop web-based question and answer services for the rural population
In the frame of the RUN project, ZADI has developed the prototype of a web-based question and answer service. The rural population uses it to raise agricultural questions that are answered by ARD experts. The decentralised service capitalises on the RUN e-Journal system that is used by rural population and experts to publish requests and information on the web. To switch demand from donors to the target group vouchers are handed out to the rural population. As a result the service is oriented towards demand. The rural population uses the vouchers to pay for the service. The demand driven system proved to be an efficient mechanism to promote the publication of local relevant information on the web and to assure equitable access to information. Moreover it permitted through networking the mapping of local expertise.
CTA and ZADI are now launching two pilot projects in Benin and Uganda to further develop the system by adding an online evaluation and controlling facilities. For further information please contact
Marc Bernard
RUN Manager
The Foundation for the Participatory and Sustainable Development of the Small Farmers (Foundation PBA)
The Foundation for the Participatory and Sustainable Development of Small Farmers of Colombia (PBA Foundation; PBA stands for its acronym in Spanish) is a not for profit entity, whose main objective is to contribute to the improvement of the living standard and to overcome the poverty conditions of the small farmers in Colombia, based on the development and application of sustainable technologies. Members of the Foundation include: some Colombian public entities such as the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, as well as the National Planning Department; international research centers such as CIAT; national research institutions such as CORPOICA and CONIF; national and regional universities such as Universidad Nacional, Universidad de Córdoba and Universidad de Sucre; and Local Participatory Groups of small farmers in many locations in the Colombian Atlantic Coast.
With resources coming from the Netherlands government and national counterpart contributions, the Foundation leads and carries out the Program of Agricultural Biotechnology for Small Producers. This program was started more than five years ago with the objectives of supporting farmers from the seven departments of the Colombian Atlantic Coast region in order to improve of their standard of living and quality of life, through access to modern technological tools that provide them with more sustainable, competitive and productive activities. The program's goal is to reach and benefit about 50.000 farm families that live on 155.000 hectares of land. The first phase was concluded in 2002 and the second phase which will last for four years, started in January 2003.
The small farmers of the Atlantic Coast are the soul of the Foundation, and they have an active and vital participation in all phases and aspects of the PBA, beginning with the selection of the problems that they want to overcome, to the follow up and assessment of the program and all of the projects. In the different zones where the program works, the small farmers form the Local Participatory Groups, which are responsible for carrying out the research, development and training activities within their own locations, and for the promotion and the creation of small farmers' enterprises that produce clean seeds and biological and organic inputs (Technology Based Enterprises or TBEs), as well as associative enterprises for crops transformation and commercialization. Women actively participate in all of these enterprises.
More than 50 Local Participatory Groups (LPGs) have been formed and operate throughout the 7 departments of the Atlantic Coast so far. They comprise 153 municipalities, 300 communities of small producers and six women groups. Representatives of the small producers in the Regional Committee are elected to these LPGs, with 14 representatives of the farmers sitting in this Committee (2 from each coastal department) as are researchers responsible for the main projects. The LPG's proposals and actions are presented at the Regional Committee, where the program's activities in the region are coordinated and the working priorities are defined. Likewise, the farmers that will represent them in the National Steering Committee are elected by the Regional Committee.
The Foundation does not directly carry out research activities, it contracts them out to groups that are better trained and equipped to develop and implement them, with the specific requirements that the projects developed develop, implemented, assessed and followed up in a participatory manner. The main implementers are CORPOICA, CIAT, the Biotechnology Institute of the Universidad Nacional and the Universidad de Córdoba and Sucre.
The program works mainly on participatory methodology development, development and promotion of cleaner and more sustainable production technologies, such as production and planting of clean seeds for plantain, cassava and yam, as well as the production and application of biological and organic inputs. The Foundation recently started work on organic farming, integrated management of soils and water, including preservation plowing and green fertilizers utilization, and the development of agro forestry production systems. These activities are briefly described as follows:
Production of clean plantain, cassava and yam seeds
The first projects started were the production of clean plantain, cassava and yam seeds, given the fact that the small farmers determined that one of the most severe problems that they had was the poor quality of the planting materials. A participatory assessment of local and introduced varieties was made at the beginning. Based on that, eight varieties of each one of the three crops were selected to start with the clean seeds production projects through the meristem culture and in vitro propagation. Special emphasis was placed on the development of technologies that would allow local multiplication of these initial materials, in such a way that the work in the laboratory could be combined with that in the local nurseries and the horticultural techniques in order to increase production reduce costs and enhance small farmers' participation in the process.
The Foundation has already developed the participatory methodologies and protocols required to produce clean and high quality plantain, cassava and yam seeds, having as a basis, tissue culture (initial materials) methods, multiplication processes under insect-proof nucleus greenhouses with controlled environmental conditions (super elite seeds) and mass local multiplication for the production of elite and basic seeds. These last stages are carried out in Technology Based Enterprises owned by organized small producers and in local mesh-houses and nurseries of the Local Participatory Groups. These seeds are for sale and distribution among the small farmers. It is thanks to these seeds that the small farmers can get rid of their dependency on infected seeds, plant seeds that are free of pests and diseases and substantially reduce or eliminate the use of agricultural chemicals. This way they do not only obtain higher yielding and better quality crops, but preserve the environment and promote the farmers' entrepreneurial activity by producing and selling clean and competitive seeds at the same or lower prices than those of the traditional seeds that are infected and have low productivity. These projects that have already started in different locations of the Atlantic Coast are being enlarged to cover all the small producers that plant these crops.
In the case of yams, which are orphan crops in the technological field, the Foundation started a genetic improvement program. Part of this program includes the strengthening of the existing germplasm banks, molecular characterization of numerous varieties through an agreement with the University of Frankfurt that enabled a Colombian researcher to work at that Institution for a year learning the relevant methodology which he and a Colombian small producer later used to select at IITA in Nigeria, 41 yam varieties resistant to anthracnose that are being introduced to Colombia. They both seized the opportunity to learn about the technical progress that IITA has made with that particular crop.
The results obtained with the clean seed are significant. In plantain, for example, yield increases of 52.3% have been achieved in common plantain (Hartón Común), going from 12.8 to 19.5 tons per hectare. Nevertheless, if the comparison is made between the Hartón Común planted by the producers with the introduced varieties, the increases are much higher, because with the Africa variety, yields of 23 ton/ha have been achieved, and with the FHIA 21, 43 ton/ha. With regards to cassava, the yields in the most important varieties increases between 32 and 88% with the use of clean seeds.
Biological and Organic Inputs Production
The Foundation has developed and/or adapted organic fertilizers production techniques such as mycorrhizae and biofertilizers based on Efficient Microorganisms (Bioles), organic fertilizers such as Vermicompost and Bokashi fertilizers, biological pesticides such as Bauveria bassiana, according to the characteristics and needs of the different ecosystems and of the different crops. The aim of this activity is to have an integrated crops management (ICM) as well as of the pests and diseases that affect them, in order to reduce or eliminate the use of chemically synthesized fertilizers and other agricultural chemicals. The results obtained are satisfactory because they showed increased yields and decreased production costs. The Foundation is working on scaling these projects up and out throughout the Caribbean Region, in such a way that they may reach all the existing Local Participatory Groups (LPG), and those that will be created during the Program's expansion phase.
Organic Production
The PBA Foundation has recently started works in organic agriculture, which tend to create one first cluster of organic plantain production in one of the LPG's and to carry out a training activity throughout the Atlantic Coast to allow replication of the first cluster's experience. The aim is to reproduce projects, infrastructures and organic agriculture methodologies in many locations of the Atlantic Coast, for plantain as well as other crops. The first training courses have already been given in the region, and some farmers and researchers associated with the program attended courses in Ecuador.
Soil and Water Sustainable Management
The Foundation recently started working in the area of sustainable soils and water management. These activities will initially be concentrated on preservation plowing, cover crops and the utilization of green fertilizers. The first training activities for farmers' leaders, researchers and technicians have already started in three LPGs for demonstration purposes. The aim is to replicate this experience in many locations of the PBA that are interested in carrying out similar projects.
Development of agro forestry systems
The PBA Foundation is now carrying out research projects in the fields of adaptation and promotion of productive agro forestry systems, that contribute to the preservation of the environment., in order to preserve and use agricultural and forestry biodiversity available in the Atlantic Coast, and which provide the possibility to diversify farm incomes for the small farmers organized within the LPG. The agro forestry strategy of the PBA Foundation is an essential part of the Program's second phase and meets the needs and initiatives of the small farmers.
Training for producers, researchers and technicians
Besides the above-mentioned participatory research activities, the Foundation has carried out intensive training activities with the small farmers, researchers and technicians. This work has included training in technical and methodological aspects, entrepreneurial and organization issues as well as in personal growth (building values, self confidence, leadership), whose objective is to assist in the farmers' education in order for them to be able to lead their own development processes. One hundred and twenty three (123) technological training events attended by more than four thousand producers one fourth of whom were women, have been carried out to date. See the following table.
| Events | Producers | Women | |
| Plantain | 63 | 1.923 | 215 |
| Cassava | 28 | 1.218 | 171 |
| Yams | 32 | 891 | 117 |
TOTAL |
123 |
4.032 |
503 |
The joint work carried out by technicians and researchers with the small producers has demonstrated in the practice that research can indeed be oriented towards obtaining technological products that contribute to improve production, and as a consequence of that, also improve the living standards of the small producers, and that they, instead of being reluctant to changes, are eager to innovate when they know and understand the characteristics and advantages of the technologies with which they have been actively working. Thanks to their participation, the technologies generated and the technologically obtained products are rapidly adopted and no special results transfer and dissemination phase appear necessary.
Likewise, the participatory methodology and training have allowed the small farmers to gain confidence in their capacity to test, new technologies, and to contribute to solving specific problems, develop their own initiatives, and even initiate tests and experimentations on their own, thus enriching research processes and outputs.
Thanks to this approach, they have been able to reduce costs and increase the local efficiency and scaling up capacity in the following areas: production of clean plantain seeds and their multiplication, using technologies for breaking apical dominance. The LPG carried out this particular activity by mimicking the damage produced in the plant by the screw worm; solving the problem of bare root the cassava through the utilization of super elite seeds coming from the nucleus greenhouses to obtain high levels of rooting, development and survival in the local mesh-houses; some other LPGs, through the use of mini sections, can now multiply Cassava super elite seeds, induce development in controlled rooting banks to obtain elite seeds and plant them in the field, with bare roots, obtaining high survival percentages; the development of methodologies for the production of organic fertilizers, using larvae as degraders and transformers of organic material for compost production.
Strengthening the regional research capacities has been a constant purpose of the Foundation. It invested a significant amount of resources of the PBA's phase 1 in the following activities: endowment and adaptation of Plant Tissues Culture Laboratories in the research centers of Caribia and Turipaná (CORPOICA) and in the Universities of Córdoba and Sucre; building of modern nucleus insect-proof greenhouses for plant hardening and controlled multiplication in the above-mentioned two research centers; building and endowing the Regional Diagnostic Center in the Universidad de Sucre for future certification of seeds and biological inputs; building two local plants (Dibulla and los Córdobas) and two regional plants for the production of Mycorrhiza as well as two local and two regional plants for the production of earth worms' manure; and in building a local plant for the production of formulated biofertilizers based on Efficient Microorganisms (Bioles), and on Bokashi organic fertilizers. Likewise, it has given a lot of importance to the consolidation, strengthening and training of the local and regional researchers' groups.
A main concern of the Foundation has been the establishment of a wide network of alliances, agreements and collaborative works that provide knowledge and skills in the most advanced technologies to make them available to the small producers. At the international level, the Foundation has cooperation activities with the GTZ, the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), the Escuela Superior Politécnica del Litoral (ESPOL) in Ecuador, (Poli-technical Higher Education School of the Coast), Instituto de Investigaciones Agroforestales (IDIAF) (the Institute for Agro forestry Research) and the Secretariat of Agriculture of the Dominican Republic, the International Network for the Improvement of Banana and Plantain (INIBAP), the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture � IITA, The International Cooperation Center in Agronomical Research for Development (CIRAD), The International Research Center for Agro forestry (ICRAF), the International Agency of Atomic Energy (IAEA),The Honduras Foundation in Agricultural Research, (FHIA), University of Bath, University of Frankfurt, University of Louvaine, Cassava's Biotechnology Network (CBN) and the International Center for Sustainable Trade and Development (ICSTD).
At the national level, it has carried out joint activities with CORPOICA and the National Universities of Córdoba and Sucre, with the Colombian Agency for International Cooperation (ACCI), the Servicio Nacional de Aprendizaje (National Service for Apprenticeship) (SENA), COLCIENCIAS, von Humboldt Institute, Corporación Nacional de Investigaciones Forestales (National Agency for Forestry Research (CONIF), Corporación Colombia Internacional (CCI), the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (Productive Alliances for Peace Program - APP), Horticulture and Fruit Culture Fund, and the Peace and Development Program of the Magdalena Medio Region (PDPMM).
The impact generated with the new technologies in terms of yield and quality of the crops leads us to foresee an important increase in the small farmers' production. To prevent this increase from leading to marketing problems, the Foundation began to support them in their work. This way, it has assisted in the establishment of strategic alliances of small producers' associations with traders and processors; in the improvement of their work and of the infrastructures for selection, dehydration and primary processing of their crops, and in the diversification of the commercialization channels, aiming to serve the different market segments.
With the above briefly described activities, the Foundation has started to have some impact on the economic, technological and social development of the small farmers of the Colombian Caribbean Coast. Activities and approaches that are being carried out and used by the farmers themselves through the Local Participative Groups and the Foundation's Regional Committee. We strongly believe that these approaches are indispensable to advance social and economic plight of the farmers, and in the way, the Foundation is contributing within its means, to peace, poverty eradication, and preservation of biodiversity and the environment in Colombia.
Santiago Perry
PBA Foundation
IARCsStakeholder Committee on CP on Unlocking Genetic Diversity in Crops for the Resource Poor
At the request of the consortium of the Challenge Program on Unlocking Genetic Diversity in Crops for the Resource Poor, the GFAR Secretariat is coordinating the establishment of a GFAR Stakeholder Committee for the CP.
The Stakeholder Committee will serve as a neutral platform for inter-stakeholder dialogue on issues related to the various stages of CP development and implementation. Acting in an advisory capacity, it will serve as a link between the CP and the various stakeholder groups. Thus, it will facilitate the articulation, promotion and presentation of the views of various stakeholders to the CP management and governance structures in order to contribute to the policies, strategies, research priorities, and program activities of the CP.
In March 2004, the GFAR Secretariat launched a consultative process for nominations to the committee. Letters were sent to various GFAR stakeholders together with appropriate background information including the Terms of Reference (TORs) for the committee, and a request for multiple nominations from each stake stakeholder group. It is expected that members of the committee will have a combination of the following expertise: genetic resources management, broad development perspective, down to earth practical farming experience, legal background with some expertise in access, benefit sharing, patent issues, property rights, as well as private-public sector collaboration. Nominations were to be accompanied by curriculum vitae.
The GFAR Secretariat and CP Director, Dr. , will jointly screen the nominees. It is targeted that final selection will be made by 01 June 2004. Selected members will be informed, and the outcome widely shared. Following their selection, an orientation meeting during the CP's PSC meeting tentatively scheduled for the week of 11 October 2004 will be organized.
The idea to establish a Stakeholder Committee under this CP was endorsed by the participants to the CP Stakeholder Meeting in January 2003. This was further reaffirmed and during the CP Technical Planning Workshop and Program Steering Committee meeting held in August 2003. The European Commission pledged to provide resources for the functioning of this Committee, as part of its contribution to the CP.
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