Focus on: Water in agriculture |
Every drop counts for Africa's agriculture
The challenge of managing Africa's water more efficiently and allocating it more fairly was one of the topics for discussion at the recent Every Drop Counts conference. Some of the measures discussed are difficult and controversial but, when every drop counts, Africa needs to consider all the tools at its disposal. read article |
Conserving wetlands through smallscale agriculture
In Northern Zambia, Wetlands International teamed up with local NGOs to encourage small growers back into seasonal wetlands. This new approach is explored in research from the International Water Management Institute which suggests that agricultural encroachment may be far less damaging to wetlands than many had feared. read article |
Driving change in water use amongst India's cotton farmers
A groundbreaking study has revealed that cotton farmers in India are able to significantly reduce their pollution of surface and groundwater by adopting organic and improved farming practices. read article |
Latin America's water funds: downstream users invest wisely
Water users in many Latin American countries are paying into new funds to protect watersheds upstream, driving initiatives to support lower-impact farming and herding practices. read article |
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GFAR: Research innovations |
Precision farming - sustaining agricultural productivity in India
In Tamil Nadu, farmers have been trained in precision farming - precise delivery of inputs such as water and fertiliser - to address a range of constraints including groundwater depletion, escalating input costs and lack of labour. read article |
Building resilient community fisheries in Cambodia
Tonle Sap, in Cambodia, is one of the most productive freshwater fisheries in the world. But managing water for food and income also means harnessing the full value of these fisheries for local communities. By joining competing stakeholders, a WorldFish initiative has contributed to strengthening resilience in local livelihoods, while reducing the risk of broader social conflict. read article |
Water harvesting technologies increase productivity in Jamaica
In the dry south of Jamaica, around 50 farming families have adopted water saving technologies, including mulching, gravity fed drip irrigation and solar water pumps. read article |
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Developments |
Tsetse control to fight hunger in Ethiopia
In some parts of Ethiopia, a combination of drought and trypanosomiasis had wiped out the livestock of many smallscale farmers. But after attending training to learn about eco-friendly farming and livestock practices, many farmers have turned their farms around. read article |
Carbon trading spurs Tanzania's hunters and gatherers to conservation
In Tanzania's Yaeda Valley, Hadzabe hunter gatherer communities are protecting their savannah woodlands from encroachment by slash-and-burn farmers through a Payment for Ecosystem Services scheme. Eleven safari companies have already bought carbon credit certificates in order to offset their emissions. read article |
Traditional forecasting to help small farmers
Indigenous weather forecasting techniques, practised by traditional rainmakers in the Banyore community in western Kenya, are helping scientists in Kenya to develop more reliable systems for predicting the weather. read article |
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Points of view |
Agriculture and the green economy: the view from Rio+20
Delegates at the Rio+20 Earth Summit discuss the notion of the green economy, and the role of agriculture in achieving it.They review progress made in sustainable agricultural development since Rio '92 and describe the challenges and opportunities for the future. read article |
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In pictures |
Senegal: melons by the million
In northern Senegal, the village of Mbeur Beuf leases land for production of high quality, orange-fleshed melons, destined for European markets. Local crop farming has also benefited, thanks to a regular water supply, and young people are staying on in the area, attracted by regular income and better services. read article |
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My perspective |
Ken Giller
Professor Ken Giller, technical advisor to the Africa Soil Health Consortium, is concerned by a tendency to promote blanket solutions to transform African farming, which fail to account for the complex and varied constraints smallholders face. read article |
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Country profile |
Rwanda
Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa. The majority of people live in rural areas and farm small hillside plots, although urbanisation is increasing at over four per cent a year. read article |
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GFAR updates |
GFAR present a selection of brief news items based around recent international and regional events and meetings concerned with agricultural innovation and its implications in development. read article |
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News brief |
Recent news, including research on mapping African farm management systems by gender, a new programme to protect floodplains and boost farm and fisheries productivity, and work to to step up the fight against counterfeit seeds in East and Southern Africa. read article |
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Book reviews |
Reviews of some of the latest agriculture and rural development publications. The lead review for this edition is Food and the City by Jennifer Cockrall-King. read article |
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