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Co‐designing the transitions towards integrated market oriented mixed farming systems in semi‐arid Zimbabwe

OAR@ICRISAT

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Relation http://oar.icrisat.org/9210/
http://tropagconference.com.au/program.html
 
Title Co‐designing the transitions towards integrated market oriented mixed farming systems in semi‐arid Zimbabwe
 
Creator Homann-Kee Tui, S
Masikati, P
Dube, T
Voil, P D
Rodriguez, D
Van Rooyen, A F
 
Subject Agriculture-Farming, Production, Technology, Economics
 
Description In semi‐arid Zimbabwe, multiple constraints impact maize‐based crop‐livestock systems creating a
poverty trap. These barriers include low soil fertility, variable climates, weak knowledge support,
and lack of markets. Conventional technical options are insufficient to improve smallholder
livelihoods. Given the diversity in resource endowments and livelihood sources identifying
intensification options that fit circumstances remains problematic. In this paper we demonstrate
co‐designing approaches (i.e. with multiple stakeholders) for two sites i.e. Gwanda and Nkayi
districts, of contrasting agro‐ecological potential. We engaged low, medium and high resource
endowed farmers to (i) co‐design plausible improved scenarios that included incremental changes
‐ testing currently promoted technologies for crop‐livestock intensification and drastic change ‐
assuming that removing barriers will encourage investments towards resilient and profitable
farming; and (ii) We quantified benefits and trade offs from alternative integrated actions using an
integrated whole farm modelling approach (APSFArm‐LivSim‐TOAMD). At both sites incremental
change options improved food security through better‐integrated cereal‐legume‐livestock
systems; income effects were however limited. Drastic change options achieved more substantial
improvements in productivity, food and income generation: farmers set more land in use, with
more diversified forage, food and cash crops and adapted cultivars, organic and mineral fertilizer
application, small‐scale mechanization for ploughing and product processing and improved
livestock management. Packages tailored to farm situations had larger benefits on food security
and income than blanket applications. Recommendations that take into account the socioeconomic
context and policies are key and need to be communicated in more effective ways for
enabling more sustainable futures for smallholders in Zimbabwe.
 
Date 2015-11
 
Type Conference or Workshop Item
PeerReviewed
 
Format application/pdf
 
Language en
 
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Identifier http://oar.icrisat.org/9210/1/TropAg2015-33-34.pdf
Homann-Kee Tui, S and Masikati, P and Dube, T and Voil, P D and Rodriguez, D and Van Rooyen, A F (2015) Co‐designing the transitions towards integrated market oriented mixed farming systems in semi‐arid Zimbabwe. In: Tropical Agriculture Conference 2015: Meeting the Productivity Challenge in the Tropics, November 16 - 18, 2015, Brisbane Convention & Exhibition Centre, Australia.