Appropriate technology for sustainable food security:

CONTENTS: Brief 1. Overview / Per Pinstrup-Andersen Brief 2. Farmer-Based Agro-Ecological Technology / Jules Pretty Brief 3. Conventional Research-Based Technology / Prabhu Pingali Brief 4. Modern Biotechnology / Calestous Juma Brief 5. Modern Technology for African Agriculture / Jennifer Thomson Brief 6. Information and Communcations Technologies / Nuimuddin Chowdhury Brief 7. GIS, GPS, and Remote Sensing / Uwe Deichmann and Stanley Wood Brief 8. Alternative Energy Sources / R. K. Pachauri and Pooja Mehrotra Brief 9. Food Irradiation / Morton SatinTechnology., Technological innovations., Food security., Sustainability.,

ICT Update 78: Building resilience for family farming

ICT4Ag is a bimonthly printed and on-line magazine (http://ictupdate.cta.int) and an accompanying e-mail newsletter published by CTA. This issue focuses on building resilience for family farming

A Review on Internet of Things (IoT) and Its Applications

Internet of Things is growing at a fast pace with new devices getting connected all the time. The wireless sensors are a good way to integrate them in the IoT concept and bring new experiences to the daily life activities. IoT is a sort of communication network which connects various things. The IoT is intelligently connected devices and systems which comprised of smart machines, Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and sensor network technologies. As this technology is growing rapidly, an enormous amount of data is generated, stored and that data is being processed into useful actions that can command and control the things to make our lives easier and safer. This paper aims to provide an overview of Internet of Things (IoT) and its smart applications

Information and Communication Technology Roles in Agricultural Value Chain Promotion Among Peri-Urban Women Farmers in Imo State, Nigeria

Farmers do not make/maximize profits when they stop at the production level only. To make more profits, they need to add value to their products. This paper examines the roles of ICTs in promoting agricultural value chain among women farmers who reside in the urban fringes of Imo State. The specific objectives were to identify value chain information needs of women farmers; ascertain ICT devices used by the women farmers and determine perceived roles of ICTs in promoting agricultural value chain. A total of 250 women farmers were randomly selected and interviewed using questionnaire complimented with oral discussion. Date collected were analyzed using descriptive tools such as percentages, mean and standard deviation. Results showed that respondents need agricultural value chain information on production and storage as shown by 98% response, marketing/business development (100%), financial services (98.8%), processing/packaging (88%), transportation/trading/distribution (93.6%). The following information devices/sources played vital roles –radio (84%), mobile phones (100%), television (62%), newspaper/magazines (55.4%), extension agents (49.6%) among others. On the roles of information sources/devices in value chain promotion, ICT device/sources provide information on time of planting, availability of seeds/input, reducing time of business transactions, financial services provision and market prices among roles

Public Service Delivery: Role of Information and Communication Technology in Improving Governance and Development Impact

The focus of this paper is on improving governance through the use of information and communication technology (ICT) in the delivery of services to the poor, i.e., improving efficiency, accountability, and transparency, and reducing bribery. A number of papers recognize the potential benefits but they also point out that it has not been easy to harness this potential. This paper presents an analysis of effective case studies from developing countries where the benefits have reached a large number of poor citizens. It also identifies the critical success factors for wide-scale deployment. The paper includes cases on the use of ICTs in the management of delivery of public services in health, education, and provision of subsidized food. Cases on electronic delivery of government services, such as providing certificates and licenses to rural populations, which in turn provide entitlements to the poor for subsidized food, fertilizer, and health services are also included. ICT-enabled provision of information to enhance rural income is also covered

Numerical modelling of moisture motion in heterogeneous soils using 1D-MIRBF method

In the present paper, we develop an efficient and accurate numerical approach based on one-dimensional-moving integrated radial basis function (1D-MIRBF) and fully implicit modified Picard method for simulating fluid movement in heterogeneous soils governed by the highly non-linear Richards equation. The major advantages of the proposed 1D-MIRBF method include (i) a banded sparse system matrix that helps reduce the computational cost; (ii) the Kronecker Delta property of the constructed shape functions, which helps impose the essential boundary conditions in an exact manner; and (iii) high accuracy and fast convergence rate owing to the use of the IRBF approximation. The performance of the present method is demonstrated through several 1--D and 2--D soil infiltration problems. Numerical results obtained are in agreement with other published results in the literature. This solver for moisture motion in soils will be incorporated into a surface-water-flow solver to handle the surface irrigation problem

Strengthening accoutability in public agricultural extension services : a case study from Uganda

A well-managed and accountable agricultural extension service can play an essential role in realizing food security and improving rural livelihoods. However, for the majority of the developing countries, establishing an accountable agricultural extension system remains a challenge. Public agricultural extension services, in particular, have been highly criticized for weak accountability of field agents to both their supervisors and their clients. Public agricultural extension systems often deploy large numbers of field agents in geographically dispersed, remote areas, which makes supervision difficult. Typically, there is also a lack of resources and of robust mechanisms to enable both the supervisors and beneficiaries to adequately follow up the activities of the field agents and provide feedback, which contributes to problems of absenteeism of field staff. Due to resource constraints, central managers also face challenges to supervise the agricultural extension managers, who are the supervisors of the field agents. Taking Uganda as a case study, this thesis explores the use of new mechanisms for addressing these long-standing challenges of creating accountability in public agricultural extension services. The thesis had three objectives: (1) To design a diary for agricultural field agents, which should facilitate planning and supervision of agricultural extension service provision; (2) to assess the potential of different versions of this diary for strengthening accountability in public extension services; and (3) to analyze the performance of agricultural extension managers. To meet the first two objectives, three versions of a diary for agricultural field agents were designed. The first version was a diary in a paper format, which was specifically designed to match the system of planning and reporting applied in Ugandas public extension service. This version was then transformed into an electronic version of the diary (e-diary), which resembled an electronic questionnaire. Based on the assessment of these two diary versions, an improved e-diary was developed, which comprises a smartphone application to be used by the field agents, and a web-based system that allows extension supervisors to review the data entered by the field agents and provide them with feedback. Moreover, the system was designed in such a way that it is possible for extension supervisors to collect information from the beneficiaries for verification. For the assessment of the three different versions of the diary, a qualitative participatory research approach was applied. Data on the experience with using the diary was collected through a combination of focus group discussions and individual face-to-face interviews. The content analysis method was applied to analyse the data. The results suggest that a diary for agricultural field agents has a unique potential to strengthen accountability in public agricultural extension services. This is achieved through improving planning, reporting, monitoring and evaluation of extension activities and through reducing absenteeism as well as enabling of beneficiary feedback. The findings further indicate that, for the following reasons, an electronic version of the diary is more effective in strengthening accountability than a paper version: An e-diary can make use of the Global Positioning System (GPS), which allows extension supervisors to verify whether field agents actually conducted the activities that they indicate in the diary. Thus, an e-diary enables remote supervision, which reduces the time and costs of supervision. An e-diary also facilitates real-time reporting, which enables near real-time supervision, thereby increasing the frequency of supervision. However, the first e-diary version that resembled an electronic questionnaire had drawbacks, since it focused on data collection and had limited opportunities for feedback and interaction between the extension agents and their supervisors. However, the final e-diary version, which combines a smartphone app with a web-based system, made it possible to address this limitation. Expectedly, the assessment also revealed some limitations regarding the e-diary. Some of the users were initially apprehensive about the e-diary due to their limited experience with the use of smartphones. Consequently, the implementation of the e-diary necessitates intensive training of the users, which should not be underestimated. The results also showed that the use of the e-diary was affected by inaccessibility to electricity. Therefore, promoting the use of solar chargers or power banks in areas with poor electrification is recommended. Moreover, limited network coverage implies that the e-diary needs to be programmed in such a way that data can be entered off-line. Furthermore, the findings suggest the need to combine the implementation of the e-diary with incentives, such as awards of recognition. In view of the essential role that extension managers, as the supervisors of the field agents, play for accountability, an analysis of their performance was included as the third objective of the thesis. To meet this research objective, a quantitative research approach was applied. The main data source was the extension management system that was set up by the Ugandan Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industries and Fisheries (MAAIF). This system provides data on the timeliness of the submission of work plans and reports by the extension managers, which makes it possible to calculate measurable indicators of managers performance based on their expected roles and responsibilities. In addition to preparing descriptive statistics of such performance indicators, econometric models were estimated, using additional data from secondary sources on variables, which were hypothesized to influence the managers performance. The descriptive statistics of the performance indicators showed that the majority of the extension managers were not able to meet the performance requirements of MAAIF. The econometric analysis made it possible to identify factors that were associated with performance. The amount of the extension grant provided to the district and the ratio of extension workers to households were found to be key factors. The findings led to the recommendation to improve the performance of the extension managers through capacity building, especially in management, and through setting-up a strict performance monitoring system, to which the use of the e-diary could contribute. It was also recommended to increase funding to the districts and improve the ratio of extension workers to households so as to provide better working conditions and incentives to extension staff and their managers. Overall, the thesis indicates that diaries, especially electronic ones, in combination with monitoring systems for extension managers, offer a unique and largely underutilized potential to address entrenched problems of ensuring accountability in public agricultural extension services. It was also pointed out that additional accountability mechanisms will be useful to further strengthen accountability, in particular mechanisms that allow the beneficiaries of the extension service to provide direct feedback on the quality of service provision. The thesis also highlights the potential of using digital tools for strengthening both upward and downward accountability in public extension services. The findings of the thesis are likely to be relevant not only for agricultural extension services but also for other public services, such as rural health care and education, which face similar problems of managing large numbers of field agents in geographically dispersed, remote areas, where effective supervision is an inherent challenge.Ein gut geführter, verantwortlicherund rechenschaftspflichtiger landwirtschaftlicher Beratungsdienst kann eine wesentliche Rolle bei der Verwirklichung von Ernährungssicherheit und der Verbesserung ländlicher Lebensgrundlagen spielen. Für einen Großteil der Entwicklungsländer bleibt es jedoch eine Herausforderung, ein gut geführtes landwirtschaftliches Beratungssystem zu etablieren. Insbesondere öffentliche landwirtschaftliche Beratungsdienste wurden wegen der geringen Rechenschaftspflicht derBerater sowohl gegenüber ihren Vorgesetzten als auch gegenüber ihren Kunden stark kritisiert. Öffentliche landwirtschaftliche Beratungssysteme setzen oft eine große Anzahl von Berater/-innen in geografisch großen und abgelegenen Gebieten ein, was deren Überwachung erschwert. Typischerweise fehlen auch Ressourcen und robuste Mechanismen, die es sowohl den Vorgesetzten der Berater/-innen als auch den Landwirt/-innen ermöglichen, die Tätigkeiten der Berater angemessen zu verfolgen und Feedback zu geben. Das trägt zu Problemen von Abwesenheit der Berater/-innen bei. Aufgrund von Ressourcenengpässen ist es auch fürdie Manager der Beratungsdienste im Ministerium auf der zentralen Ebene eine Herausforderung, die Manager der auf der Ebene der Distrikte zu beaufsichtigen. Am Beispiel von Uganda wird in dieserFallstudie die Verwendung neuer Mechanismen zur Bewältigung deranhaltenden Herausforderung untersucht, Rechenschaftspflicht in öffentlichen landwirtschaftlichen Beratungsdiensten zu schaffen. Die Arbeit hatte drei Ziele: (1) die Entwicklung eines Tagebuchs für landwirtschaftliche Berater/-innen, das die Planung und Überwachung der landwirtschaftlichen Beratungsdienste erleichtern soll; (2) die Bewertung des Potenzials verschiedener Versionen dieses Tagebuchs zur Stärkung der Rechenschaftspflicht bei öffentlichen Beratungsdiensten; und (3) die Verwendung digitaler Daten zur Analyse der Leistung der Managerder landwirtschaftlichen Berater auf Distrikt-Ebene. Um die ersten beiden Ziele zu erreichen, wurden drei Versionen eines Tagebuchs für landwirtschaftliche Berater/-innen entworfen. Die erste Version war ein Tagebuch in Papierform, das speziell auf das Planungs- und Berichtssystem des öffentlichen Beratungsdienstes Ugandas abgestimmt wurde. Diese Version wurde dann in eine elektronische Version des Tagebuchs ("E-Tagebuch") umgewandelt, die einem elektronischen Fragebogen ähnelte. Basierend auf der Bewertung dieser beiden Tagebuchversionen wurde ein verbessertes E-Tagebuch entwickelt, das eine Smartphone-Anwendung für die Berater/-innen und ein computergestütztes System umfasst, das es den Managernder landwirtschaftlichen Beraterauf Distrikt-Ebene und auf der zentralen Ebene ermöglicht, die von den Beratern erfassten Daten zu überprüfen und ihnen Feedback zu geben. Darüber hinaus wurde das System so konzipiert, dass es den Berater/-innen möglich ist, Informationen von den Landwirt/-innenaufzunehmen, die den Beratungsdienst in Anspruch nehmen. Damit können die Manager des Beratungsdienstes zur Überprüfung auch direkt bei den Landwirt/-innen Anfragen stellen. Für die Bewertung der drei verschiedenen Versionen des Tagebuchs wurde ein qualitativer partizipativer Forschungsansatz verwendet. Die Daten über die Erfahrungen mit der Nutzung des Tagebuchs wurden durch eine Kombination aus Fokusgruppen-Diskussionen und individuellen Einzelinterviews gesammelt. Zur Analyse der Daten wurde die Methode der Inhaltsanalyse angewendet. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass ein Tagebuch für landwirtschaftliche Berater/-innen ein einzigartiges Potenzial hat, die Rechenschaftspflicht in den öffentlichen landwirtschaftlichen Beratungsdiensten zu stärken. Dies wird erreicht durch eine Verbesserung der Planung, Berichterstattung, Überwachung und Bewertung von Beratungsmaßnahmen, durch die Verringerung von Abwesenheit und durch die Ermöglichung von Feedback durch die Landwirt/-innen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen zudem, dass aus folgenden Gründen eine elektronische Version des Tagebuchs die Rechenschaftspflicht effektiver stärkt als eine Papierversion des Tagebuchs: Ein E-Tagebuch kann das Global Positioning System (GPS) nutzen, das es Managern der landwirtschaftlicher Berater/-innen ermöglicht, zu überprüfen, ob sich ein/-e Berater/-in tatsächlich am im Tagebuch angegebenen Ort befand. Damit ermöglicht ein E-Tagebuch eine Fernüberwachung, was den Zeit- und Kostenaufwand für die Aufsicht reduziert. Ein E-Tagebuch erleichtert zudem das Echtzeit-Reporting und somit eine zeitnahe und effizientere Aufsicht. Die erste E-Tagebuch-Version, die einem elektronischen Fragebogen ähnelte, hatte jedoch Nachteile, da sie sich auf die Datenerfassung konzentrierte und nur begrenzte Möglichkeiten für Feedback und Interaktion zwischen den Berater/-innen und ihren Vorgesetzten hatte. Mit der endgültigen E-Tagebuch-Version, die eine Smartphone-Anwendung mit einem computergestützten System kombiniert, konnte diese Einschränkung jedoch behoben werden. Erwartungsgemäß zeigten sich auch einige Einschränkungen des E-Tagebuchs. Einige der Nutzer/-innen waren zunächst besorgt über das E-Tagebuch, da sie nur begrenzte Erfahrungen mit der Nutzung von Smartphones hatten. Die Umsetzung des E-Tagebuchs erfordert daher eine intensive Schulung der Nutzer/-innen, die nicht zu unterschätzen ist. Die Ergebnisse zeigten auch, dass die Nutzung von E-Tagebüchern durch eingeschränkte Verfügbarkeit von Elektrizität beeinträchtigt wurde. Daher wird empfohlen, den Einsatz von Solar-Ladegeräten oder Power Banks in Gebieten mit schlechter Elektrifizierung zu fördern. Darüber hinaus führt die begrenzte Netzabdeckung dazu, dass das E-Tagebuch so programmiert werden muss, dass die Dateneingabe offline erfolgen kann. Außerdem deuten die Ergebnisse darauf hin, dass die Umsetzung des E-Tagebuchs mit Anreizen wie Auszeichnungen kombiniert werden muss, um eine hohe Nutzungsrate des E-Tagebuchs zu erreichen. In Anbetracht der wesentlichen Rolle, die die Manager der landwirtschaftlichen Berater/-innen für die Rechenschaftspflicht spielen, wurde eine Analyse ihrer Leistung als drittes Ziel in die Arbeit aufgenommen. Um dieses Forschungsziel zu erreichen, wurde ein quantitativer Forschungsansatz angewandt. Eine wichtige Datenquelle war das Monitoring-System, das für das landwirtschaftliche Beratungswesen im Ministerium für Landwirtschaft, Tierzucht und Fischerei (MAAIF) eingerichtet wurde. Dieses System liefert Daten über die rechtzeitige Vorlage von Arbeitsplänen und Berichten durch die die Manager der landwirtschaftlichen Berater/-innen. Damit können messbare Indikatoren für die Leistung der Manager auf Grundlage der von ihnen erwarteten Rollen und Verantwortlichkeiten berechnet werden. Zusätzlich zur Erstellung deskriptiver Statistiken solcher Leistungsindikatoren wurden ökonometrische Modelle geschätzt, die zusätzliche Daten aus Sekundärquellen zu Variablen verwenden, von denen angenommen wurde, dass sie die Leistung der Manager beeinflussen. Die deskriptive Statistik der Leistungsindikatoren zeigte, dass die Mehrheit der Manager nicht in der Lage war, die Leistungsanforderungen des MAAIF zu erfüllen. Die ökonometrische Analyse ermöglichte es, Faktoren zu identifizieren, die die Leistung beeinflussten. Die Höhe des im jeweiligenDistrikt gewährten Beratungs-Budgets und das Verhältnis von Berater/-innen zu Landwirt/-innen wurden als Schlüsselfaktoren identifiziert. Die Ergebnisse führten zu der Empfehlung, die Leistung der Manager durch Kapazitätsentwicklung, insbesondere im Management, und durch die Einrichtung eines stringentenMonitoring-Systems zu verbessern.Dazu könnte die Nutzung des E-Tagebuchs beitragen. Es wurde zudem empfohlen, die Budgetsfür die Distrikte aufzustocken und das Verhältnis von Berater/-innen zu Landwirt/-innen zu erhöhen, um bessere Arbeitsbedingungen und Anreize für das Beratungspersonal und seine Führungskräfte zu schaffen. Insgesamt zeigt dieseStudie, dass Tagebücher - insbesondere elektronische - in Kombination mit Monitoring-Systemen für die Manager der Berater/-innen ein beachtliches und weitgehend ungenutztes Potenzial bieten, um die schon lange bekannten Probleme des Managements in öffentlichen landwirtschaftlichen Beratungsdiensten anzugehen. Es wurde zudem aufgezeigt, dass zusätzliche Mechanismen nützlich sein werden, um das Management weiter zu stärken. Dazu gehörten insbesondere Mechanismen, die es den Begünstigten des Beratungsdienstes, also den Landwirt/-innen, ermöglichen, direktes Feedback über die Qualität der Leistungserbringung zu geben. Die Studie zeigt außerdem das Potenzial der Verwendung digitaler Instrumente zur Stärkung des Managements im öffentlichen Beratungswesen auf, und zwar sowohl in Bezug auf die Manager als auch auf die Berater/-innen vor Ort. Die Ergebnisse der Arbeit dürften nicht nur für landwirtschaftliche Beratungsdienste, sondern auch für andere öffentliche Diensterelevant sein, wie etwa die Gesundheitsversorgung und das Bildungswesen im ländlichen Raum. Auch diese Dienste kämpfen mit ähnlichen Problemen beim Management einer großen Anzahl von Angestellten in großen und oft abgelegenen Gebieten, in denen eine wirksame Aufsichtdes im Feld eingesetzten Personals eine große Herausforderung darstellt

The Digitalisation of African Agriculture Report 2018-2019

An inclusive, digitally-enabled agricultural transformation could help achieve meaningful livelihood improvements for Africa’s smallholder farmers and pastoralists. It could drive greater engagement in agriculture from women and youth and create employment opportunities along the value chain. At CTA we staked a claim on this power of digitalisation to more systematically transform agriculture early on. Digitalisation, focusing on not individual ICTs but the application of these technologies to entire value chains, is a theme that cuts across all of our work. In youth entrepreneurship, we are fostering a new breed of young ICT ‘agripreneurs’. In climate-smart agriculture multiple projects provide information that can help towards building resilience for smallholder farmers. And in women empowerment we are supporting digital platforms to drive greater inclusion for women entrepreneurs in agricultural value chains

Once and Future Gulf of Mexico Ecosystem: Restoration Recommendations of an Expert Working Group

The Deepwater Horizon (DWH) well blowout released more petroleum hydrocarbons into the marine environment than any previous U.S. oil spill (4.9 million barrels), fouling marine life, damaging deep sea and shoreline habitats and causing closures of economically valuable fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico. A suite of pollutants—liquid and gaseous petroleum compounds plus chemical dispersants—poured into ecosystems that had already been stressed by overfishing, development and global climate change. Beyond the direct effects that were captured in dramatic photographs of oiled birds in the media, it is likely that there are subtle, delayed, indirect and potentially synergistic impacts of these widely dispersed, highly bioavailable and toxic hydrocarbons and chemical dispersants on marine life from pelicans to salt marsh grasses and to deep-sea animals. As tragic as the DWH blowout was, it has stimulated public interest in protecting this economically, socially and environmentally critical region. The 2010 Mabus Report, commissioned by President Barack Obama and written by the secretary of the Navy, provides a blueprint for restoring the Gulf that is bold, visionary and strategic. It is clear that we need not only to repair the damage left behind by the oil but also to go well beyond that to restore the anthropogenically stressed and declining Gulf ecosystems to prosperity-sustaining levels of historic productivity. For this report, we assembled a team of leading scientists with expertise in coastal and marine ecosystems and with experience in their restoration to identify strategies and specific actions that will revitalize and sustain the Gulf coastal economy. Because the DWH spill intervened in ecosystems that are intimately interconnected and already under stress, and will remain stressed from global climate change, we argue that restoration of the Gulf must go beyond the traditional "in-place, in-kind" restoration approach that targets specific damaged habitats or species. A sustainable restoration of the Gulf of Mexico after DWH must: 1. Recognize that ecosystem resilience has been compromised by multiple human interventions predating the DWH spill; 2. Acknowledge that significant future environmental change is inevitable and must be factored into restoration plans and actions for them to be durable; 3. Treat the Gulf as a complex and interconnected network of ecosystems from shoreline to deep sea; and 4. Recognize that human and ecosystem productivity in the Gulf are interdependent, and that human needs from and effects on the Gulf must be integral to restoration planning. With these principles in mind, the authors provide the scientific basis for a sustainable restoration program along three themes: 1. Assess and repair damage from DWH and other stresses on the Gulf; 2. Protect existing habitats and populations; and 3. Integrate sustainable human use with ecological processes in the Gulf of Mexico. Under these themes, 15 historically informed, adaptive, ecosystem-based restoration actions are presented to recover Gulf resources and rebuild the resilience of its ecosystem. The vision that guides our recommendations fundamentally imbeds the restoration actions within the context of the changing environment so as to achieve resilience of resources, human communities and the economy into the indefinite future