Caractérisation des ménages producteurs de maïs en zone de savane sèche au Bénin

Des études antérieures ont prédis que le maïs deviendra une culture commerciale et assurera la sécurité alimentaire mieux que toute autre culture. Dans le Nord du Bénin par exemple, il vient en deuxième position après le coton en tant que culture de subsistance et de rente. Selon le Ministère de l’Agriculture, de l’Élevage et de la Pêche (1997-2005), les superficies emblavées ont augmenté de 583254 ha en 1997 à 714155 ha en 2004. Malheureusement, les rendements moyens ont stagné entre 1100 et 1250 kg/ha au cours de la même période. Cette faiblesse de la productivité s’expliquerait, entre autres, par la baisse de la fertilité des sols, l’utilisation de cultivars (semences, boutures etc..) inappropriés. Les paysans du Nord Bénin utilisent essentiellement des semences traditionnelles. Par contre, on reproche généralement aux variétés améliorées plus productives d’être très exigeantes en engrais minéraux et pesticides spécifiques souvent difficiles à acquérir et de présenter des qualités organoleptiques ne répondant pas toujours aux exigences alimentaires des producteurs. La sécheresse est perçue par les agriculteurs dans bon nombre de zones agro écologiques comme un facteur perturbateur de la production des cultures dont le maïs. Associée aux dégâts des ravageurs, elle hypothèque les rendements et la qualité marchande des produits. Les effets néfastes de la sécheresse continuent donc de réduire la production dans les différentes zones agro écologiques du pays, du fait de l’absence d’une large adoption de variétés tolérantes à ce facteur abiotique. Pour remédier à cette situation, le Centre international pour l’amélioration du maïs et du blé (CIMMYT) et l’Institut international d’agriculture tropicale (IITA) ont initié un projet de recherche sur le maïs tolérant la sécheresse. L’objectif de ce projet est de réduire la faim et d’augmenter la sécurité alimentaire et financière des paysans aux ressources limitées, à travers la création et la diffusion des variétés de maïs. Depuis son démarrage en 2007, de nouvelles technologies (variétés améliorées) sont en cours d’essais en station et en milieu réel. Ces variétés seront bientôt proposées à la vulgarisation. L’objectif de cette recherche est d’établir une situation de référence dans les zones d’intervention du projet DTMA en termes de niveau de vie des ménages, d’adoption des nouvelles variétés de maïs et d’adaptation aux catastrophes naturelles. Ce travail permettra de mieux apprécier l’impact des interventions du projet DTMA en fournissant une base de comparaison. Ce document présente la synthèse des enquêtes de base réalisées dans les communes de Kandi et de Tanguiéta dans le Nord Bénin avec 175 exploitations tirées au hasardL’enquête a confirmé le rôle prépondérant que joue le maïs dans la satisfaction des besoins alimentaire et financiers des populations de la zone. Cette étude a aussi permis de mettre en évidence les principales caractéristiques qui influencent et qui sont susceptibles d’influencer l’adoption de nouvelles variétés de maïs. L’un des principaux risques qui affectent les agriculteurs dans la zone d’étude est la fluctuation des prix de vente des récoltes. Pour pallier cette difficulté, les exploitants bradent prématurément leur production, recourent aux engrais minéraux et organiques, et diversifient leurs activités de production agricole. Les principaux chocs qui affectent la culture du maïs sont : les dégâts causés par les animaux (en divagation), la sécheresse, la forte hausse du prix des intrants, et la baisse spectaculaire du prix du maïs. Des efforts doivent être menés pour améliorer l’accessibilité et la qualité des semences, de même que la gestion de la fertilité des sols grâce à des technologies adaptées. Selon les paysans, le DMR est actuellement la meilleure variété améliorée. L’adoption des variétés améliorées semble être influencée par: l’appartenance aux associations, le genre, l’accès aux engrais chimiques (NPK, urée) et la taille de l’exploitation

Socio-economic factors and smallholder cassava farmers' access to credit in south-western Nigeria

Open Access JournalRésumé Facteurs socio-économiques et accès au crédit des petits producteurs de manioc dans le sud-ouest du Nigeria L'accès au crédit est un facteur important pour l'augmentation de la productivité agricole. Le modèle " Tobit" a été utilisé pour évaluer les facteurs qui influencent l'intensité de l'accès au crédit des petits producteurs de manioc du sud-Ouest du Nigeria. Les données primaires utilisées ont été collectées, auprès de 856 ménages, lors d'une enquête conduite par l'International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) en 2011. Les résultats du modèle empirique Tobit indiquent que seules sept des 11 variables sont statistiquement liées à l'intensité de l'accès au crédit. Cependant, seules les variables cheptel, production totale de manioc, valeur monétaire des actifs productifs du ménage et taille du ménage ont une influence positive et statistiquement différente de zéro sur l'intensité de l'accès au crédit. L'augmentation de ces variables permettrait d'augmenter le montant du crédit auquel un agriculteur pourrait avoir accès. Les politiques qui mèneront à l'amélioration de la diversification par l'élevage, l'augmentation de la production de manioc et l'accumulation d'actifs des agriculteurs sont recommandées pour cette région. Abstract Access to credit is an important factor in the attainment of agricultural productivity increase. We adopted a Tobit model to assess the factors that influence the intensity of rural smallholder cassava farmers' access to credit in Southwest Nigeria, using primary data collected from 856 rural households by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) in 2011. The results of the empirical Tobit model indicate that seven out of the 11 variables included in the model are statistically related to the intensity of access to credit. However, only total livestock unit, cassava output, monetary value of the households' productive assets and household size are positively and statistically significant. This implies that increase in output, diversification of households' income sources into livestock production and accumulation of assets are important variables that have the potential to enhance farmers' access to larger amounts of credit. Therefore, policies that will lead to improve farmers' outputs and/or increase diversification and assets accumulation are recommended for this region

Will farmers intend to cultivate Provitamin A genetically modified (GM) cassava in Nigeria? Evidence from a k-means segmentation analysis of beliefs and attitudes

Open Access JournalAnalysis of market segments within a population remains critical to agricultural systems and policy processes for targeting new innovations. Patterns in attitudes and intentions toward cultivating Provitamin A GM cassava are examined through the use of a combination of behavioural theory and k-means cluster analysis method, investigating the interrelationship among various behavioural antecedents. Using a state-level sample of smallholder cassava farmers in Nigeria, this paper identifies three distinct classes of attitude and intention denoted as low opposition, medium opposition and high opposition farmers. It was estimated that only 25% of the surveyed population of farmers was highly opposed to cultivating Provitamin A GM cassava

Characterization of maize producing households in the dry savanna of Mali

Maize is one of the three most important staple foods in Mali. Zones in the country with high potential for producing maize are limited to areas where the probability of drought risk is between 20 and 40%, meaning that recurring droughts have long handicapped maize production. In an attempt to alleviate drought stress on maize production, a household survey was conducted in the two Local Government Areas of Bougouni and Koutiala, both in the Sikasso Region, during the 2007/2008 production period. These two districts were selected following an environmental characterization of drought zones in Mali. The survey was mainly oriented towards maize based farming systems. Six sample villages were selected within each of the two districts. The sample population was defined as maize farming households. A total of 150 households were randomly selected and interviewed with structured questionnaires. Interviews were conducted by trained enumerators using a formal household survey. The purpose of the study is to provide both quantitative and qualitative feedback from farmers to researchers and to the B&MGF on the impact that improved maize varieties developed in the past have had upon the livelihoods of households and to provide a detailed database for the projection of expected outcomes with the deployment of new drought tolerant maize varieties under the B&MGF drought tolerant maize project. Both qualitative and quantitative analyses were used to extract from our set of variables those orthogonal linear combinations of the variables that best captured the common information. Most successful was the one proposed by Filmer and Pritchett (1998; 2001) called the Principal Component Analysis (PCA). To assess the variables affecting the adoption of improved maize varieties, the Tobit model was used. The results show that 99% of household heads are male. The size of a household is 22 persons, on average. About 47% of the household’s members are available for farm work. About 59% of household heads are illiterate, an important factor concerning the adoption of new technology. These household heads make decisions about 84% of farming activities; 86% of the households involved in the study belonged to at least one farmers’ organization in order to have easy access to inputs

Vulgarisation de la methode du triple ensachage pour le stockage ameliore du niebe en zone sahelienne du Nord Cameroun: enjeux et perceptions paysannes

Article in French. Summary in English.The study reveals the stakes of the triple baggingmethod, assesses farmer perception about thistechnology and identifies the factors determiningtheir perception. One of the most limiting factors ofcowpea production is the storage. To solve thisproblem, Purdue University Improved CowpeaStorage Project introduced in 2010 in Cameroonthe PICS bag technology without chemical. Thesurvey revealed that pilot farmers were satisfied ofthe use of this technology. An assessment ofeconometric model pointed out an evidentcorrelation between socio-economic factors and thelevel of satisfaction of pilot farmers. Some variablesinfluenced significantly the probability of beingsatisfied, namely: the farmer experience in cowpeacropping, annual area covered by cowpea crops,the use of PICS bags without chemical, healthprotection and the potential use of PICS bags tostore other crops. Farmers are willing to adopt thistechnology for the storage of cowpea. A furthersurvey must be done in the future to assess thereal adoption rate and the impact of this technologyin this zone

Mid-term and cost-benefit study of smallholder farmers in Striga-Infested maize and cowpea growing areas of Northern Nigeria

The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) provided a 4-year financial support to the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and other partners in 2011 to adapt and intensively promote proven integrated Striga management strategies in cowpea and maize farming systems in northern Nigeria and western Kenya, with the active participation of farmers, community-based organizations, extension workers, policy makers, and researchers. The objective of the project is to improve the livelihoods of over 25 million smallholder farmers in the immediate impact zones of the project in northern Nigeria (15 million) and western Kenya (10 million) in the long term by developing and implementing a robust “ Striga threat reduction strategy” that identifies and strategically promotes scientifically proven technologies that work on smallholder farmers’ fields and which have direct effects on stopping Striga emergence, reducing the Striga seed bank in the fields, improving soil fertility, and increasing crop yields. The management technologies being promoted in Northern Nigeria range from cultural practices such as crop rotation of maize with soybean which stimulates Striga to germinate but which later dies in the absence of the maize host to latch onto; and using Striga-resistant maize and cowpea varieties. The ISMA project is expected to end in 2015, thus, it is pertinent to carry out a mid-term evaluation of the project with respect to adoption and benefit-cost analysis of the Striga management technologies among farming households in the project areas and make a comparison with non-intervention areas. In Nigeria, the Integrated Striga Management in Africa (ISMA) project was implemented in Kano and Bauchi states, both located in the savanna agroecology of northern Nigeria. The mid-term evaluation will provide the basis to present ISMA’s achievement to policy makers, NARES, private sector partners, the BMGF, and other development partners. The result will also guide the scaling-up and scaling out of the project to other parts of the savanna ecological zones of northern Nigeria. It is within this context that the study was planned. The objectives of the study were to..

Vulgarisation de la méthode du triple ensachage pour le stockage amélioré du niébé en zone sahélienne du Nord Cameroun: enjeux et perceptions paysannes

Diffusion of the Triple Bagging Method to Improve Cowpea Storage in the Sahelian Zone of North Cameroon: Stakes and Farmer Perceptions. The study reveals the stakes of the triple bagging method, assesses farmer perception about this technology and identifies the factors determining their perception. One of the most limiting factors of cowpea production is the storage. To solve this problem, Purdue University Improved Cowpea Storage Project introduced in 2010 in Cameroon the PICS bag technology without chemical. The survey revealed that pilot farmers were satisfied of the use of this technology. An assessment of econometric model pointed out an evident correlation between socio-economic factors and the level of satisfaction of pilot farmers. Some variables influenced significantly the probability of being satisfied, namely: the farmer experience in cowpea cropping, annual area covered by cowpea crops, the use of PICS bags without chemical, health protection and the potential use of PICS bags to store other crops. Farmers are willing to adopt this technology for the storage of cowpea. A further survey must be done in the future to assess the real adoption rate and the impact of this technology in this zone

Measuring the impacts of adaptation strategies to drought stress: the case of drought tolerant maize varieties

Article purchasedThis study measured the impacts of drought tolerant maize varieties (DTMVs) on productivity, welfare, and risk exposure using household and plot-level data from rural Nigeria. The study employed an endogenous switching regression approach to control for both observed and unobserved sources of heterogeneity between adopters and non-adopters. Our results showed that adoption of DTMVs increased maize yields by 13.3% and reduced the level of variance by 53% and downside risk exposure by 81% among adopters. This suggests that adoption had a “win-win” outcome by increasing maize yields and reducing exposure to drought risk. The gains in productivity and risk reduction due to adoption led to a reduction of 12.9% in the incidence of poverty and of 83.8% in the probability of food scarcity among adopters. The paper concluded that adoption of DTMVs was not just a simple coping strategy against drought but also a productivity enhancing and welfare improving strategy. The results point to the need for policies and programs aimed at enhancing adoption as an adaptation strategy to drought stress in Nigeria and beyond