Download or read book The Contribution of Smallholder Irrigation Farming to Rural Livelihoods and the Determinants of Benefit Distribution written by Thinah Moyo and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 254 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Smallholder irrigation farming is potentially transformative to poor communities. Although previous studies have examined the relationship between smallholder irrigation farming and livelihoods in South Africa, little has been done to quantify the contribution and to examine how benefits from smallholder irrigation are distributed across different types of households. It is often assumed that the benefits flowing from irrigation farming will be distributed evenly among the irrigators. Furthermore, previous studies have focused on farmers operating on irrigation schemes to the exclusion of independent smallholder irrigation farmers. This thesis aims to examine the contribution of smallholder irrigation farming to rural livelihoods in South Africa, specifically the contribution of smallholder irrigation farming to improved household income and food security as pathways out of poverty for rural households. The study provides a more comprehensive analysis of the impact of smallholder irrigation farming on rural livelihoods by including independent irrigators. Specifically, the study addresses the following questions: How has smallholder irrigation farming contributed to household income and food security in the study area? Are household income and food security significant pathways through which smallholder irrigation farming contributes to rural livelihoods? To what extent does smallholder irrigation farming contribute to household income and food security? What factors determine benefit distribution among irrigators? The study was conducted in Mopani district in the Greater Tzaneen municipality of Limpopo Province of South Africa in 2013. Julesburg irrigation scheme, located in the former Gazankulu and Lebowakgomo homelands, formed the anchor of the study area. Data were collected through a survey of 180 rural households, 27 of which were smallholder irrigation scheme farmers, 35 smallholder non-irrigation scheme farmers (independent irrigators), 53 smallholder farmers practising home gardening and 65 other households that included dryland farmers and those who did not practise farming. The households were selected from villages in the vicinity of the irrigation scheme. Farming households represented three groups of farmers, namely, scheme irrigators, independent irrigators and home gardeners. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with the sampled households. Data analysis employed econometric regression models, semi-parametric propensity score matching techniques and the analysis of variance to compare livelihood outcomes between irrigating and non-irrigating households. Irrigation was the treatment and non-irrigators were used as a control group for propensity score matching. Results of the survey identified substantial differences in the capital base among home gardener, scheme and independent irrigator households. Households involved in irrigation farming had a stronger capital base in terms of natural, physical and financial capital. Differences in the capital base existed even if income flows from agriculture were not considered, suggesting that participation in irrigation farming positively affects the overall capital base of rural households. The results also provide sufficient evidence that smallholder irrigation farming makes a significant contribution to rural livelihoods through its effect on household income and food security. Irrigators were found to have a significantly higher household income and were more food-secure than their non-irrigating counterparts, suggesting that smallholder irrigation contributed positively to rural livelihoods. This provides a strong motivation for continued investment in smallholder irrigation farming in South Africa as part of a strategy to improve rural livelihoods and to grow the rural economy. However, the benefits from irrigation accrue unevenly for different types of farmers and, therefore, they are not equally successful. The main determinants of benefit distribution were: adequacy of source of water for farming, gender and marital status of the household head, ownership of transport means and access to financial services. The contribution of smallholder irrigation to rural livelihoods can be further enhanced by focusing on policies that enhance female participation in irrigation farming, equip farmers with entrepreneurial skills, encourage membership of associations and enhance the effectiveness of the associations to allow more farmers to participate in irrigation farming. As independent irrigators benefit more from smallholder irrigation farming, independent irrigation should be promoted as an option for expanding smallholder irrigation farming. Such policies should be integrated into the overall strategy of growing the rural economy within the National Development Plan of the country.

Download or read book Women and small scale irrigation A review of the factors influencing gendered patterns of participation and benefits written by Bryan, Elizabeth and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Small-scale irrigation is expanding rapidly in parts of the world, especially sub-Saharan Africa, offering smallholder farmers an opportunity to improve their livelihoods, diets, and resilience to climate change among other benefits. Growing research focuses on the potential for small-scale irrigation to offer a pathway for women’s empowerment, yet the factors conditioning the relationship between small-scale irrigation and women’s empowerment are not well understood. The evidence tends to be scattered across context-specific case studies that focus on targeted outcomes, without distinguishing between technology types, scales, or approaches to irrigation systems or technologies. This paper synthesizes the issues related to gender and small-scale irrigation using a conceptual framework that highlights the linkages between elements of women’s empowerment and small-scale irrigation. Because gendered dynamics with small-scale irrigation play out differently depending on the scale of irrigation and the technologies used, this paper applies the framework to examine case studies across a typology of small-scale irrigation systems. The case studies cover a range of farming and livelihood systems in which women’s roles and gender relations vary, highlighting the importance of the opportunity structure or context in which irrigation takes place. This paper then draws lessons on the various ways in which small-scale irrigation, gender relations, and women’s empowerment interact and highlights areas where research gaps remain.

Download or read book Farming Systems and Poverty written by John A. Dixon and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2001 with total page 424 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A joint FAO and World Bank study which shows how the farming systems approach can be used to identify priorities for the reduction of hunger and poverty in the main farming systems of the six major developing regions of the world.

Download or read book Water resources and irrigation development in Ethiopia written by Seleshi Bekele Awulachew and published by IWMI. This book was released on 2007 with total page 82 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Irrigation programs / Water use / Reservoirs / Lakes / River basins / Water potential / Water resources

Download or read book Water Distribution Within Smallholder Irrigation Schemes in Tanzania and Its Implications for Economic Inequality written by Ana Manero and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This thesis investigates the linkages between water supply and economic inequalities within smallholder irrigation schemes, with particular focus on Tanzania, as a key example of a developing, agrarian economy in sub-Saharan Africa. In developing countries, income inequalities are critical for poverty reduction as they determine how economic growth is distributed and, thus, to which extent the poor benefit relative to everyone else. On a global scale, and in sub-Saharan Africa in particular, poverty is most prevalent in rural areas where agriculture is the main source of livelihoods. Irrigation development is recognised as a key strategy for rural poverty reduction, although a growing body of literature questions its implications for equity and social justice. While this topic is addressed from various perspectives in the literature, there is a gap among empirical studies. Specifically, the linkages between irrigation water supply and economic inequalities at small scales have received limited attention. To research this need, this thesis carries out quantitative, qualitative and policy investigations on two smallholder irrigation schemes in southern Tanzania. The data originates from structured household surveys, semi-structured interviews with key informants, direct infrastructure observations, maps of the irrigation schemes and documentary sources. The thesis is organised as follows: First, inequality analyses using the Gini coefficient and the Theil index are used to calculate the level and decomposition of income inequalities within six smallholder irrigation schemes in sub-Saharan Africa. Next, qualitative investigations uncover irrigators' perspectives about the association between water supply and economic inequalities within the two Tanzanian schemes. Third, multiple regression analyses evaluate the relative impact of water supply and farm location (as well as other variables) on irrigated crop income and production within smallholder irrigation schemes. Finally, an investigation of Tanzania's water and irrigation institutional framework highlights current policy shortfalls and possible strategies targeting greater equity of irrigation water supply. This thesis' findings show that high levels of income inequality exist within agricultural communities in Zimbabwe, Tanzania and Mozambique, and that such disparities are not properly considered by development polices based upon national statistics. In particular, within smallholder irrigation schemes, inequities in water supply affect economic inequalities in multiple ways, some of which - for example erosion of human capital and social stratification - are not adequately noted in previous literature. Household characteristics and farm location are also shown to be important for irrigated crop incomes and yields. While typically regarded as a good water management practice, the transfer of responsibilities to the local level is shown in this study to be problematic for traditional irrigators. Instead, in the pursuit of greater equity of water supply, participatory process should be considered based on six key equity aspects: quantity; reliability; obligations; benefits/externalities; decision-making; and land rights. Overall, this thesis contributes the international development and inequality literature by providing a deeper understanding of: a) the effect of irrigation water supply on economic inequalities; and b) which water policies might be changed to reduce water supply inequities within traditional irrigation systems. These findings are important to respond to rural poverty in Africa, as it is at the local scale that poverty, growth and inequality interventions can be most effective. Importantly, because a large part of the world's rural population seeks pathways out of poverty, it is critical to ensure that income-enhancing strategies, such as irrigation, do not result in aggravated economic disparities and a barrier to sustainable human development.

Download or read book The Asian Green Revolution written by Peter B.R. Hazell and published by Intl Food Policy Res Inst. This book was released on with total page 40 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Organic Agriculture Environment and Food Security written by Nadia Scialabba and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2002 with total page 264 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Organic agriculture is defined as an environmentally and socially sensitive food supply system. This publication considers the contribution of organic agriculture to ecological health, international markets and local food security. It contains a number of case studies of the practical experiences of small farmers throughout the world (including India, Iran, Thailand, Uganda and Brazil) who have adopted fully integrated food systems, and analyses the prospects for a wider adoption of organic agriculture. The book also discusses the weakness of institutional support for nurturing existing knowledge and exchange in organic agriculture.

Download or read book The Role of Smallholder Farms in Food and Nutrition Security written by Sergio Gomez y Paloma and published by Springer Nature. This book was released on 2020-01-01 with total page 253 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This open access book discusses the current role of smallholders in connection with food security and poverty reduction in developing countries. It addresses the opportunities they enjoy, and the constraints they face, by analysing the availability, access to and utilization of production factors. Due to the relevance of smallholder farms, enhancing their production capacities and economic and social resilience could produce positive impacts on food security and nutrition at a number of levels. In addition to the role of small farmers as food suppliers, the book considers their role as consumers and their level of nutrition security. It investigates the link between agriculture and nutrition in order to better understand how agriculture affects human health and dietary patterns. Given the importance of smallholdings, strategies to increase their productivity are essential to improving food and nutrition security, as well as food diversity.

Download or read book Importance of irrigated agriculture to the Ethiopian economy capturing the direct net benefits of irrigation written by Fitsum Hagos and published by IWMI. This book was released on 2009 with total page 42 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Irrigation development has been identified as a means to stimulate economic growth and rural development in Ethiopia. However, little attempt has been made to quantify the contribution of irrigation to national income. Using data from selected irrigation schemes, representing small, medium and large-scale schemes of modern or traditional typologies; the present coverage and planned growth of irrigation, actual and expected contributions of irrigation to the national economy were quantified following the approach of adjusted gross margin analysis. Our results show that irrigation yields 219.7% higher income compared to the rainfed system while its current and future contribution to agricultural GDP is estimated to be about 5.7 and 12% although irrigation covers about 5 and 9% of the total cultivated land area, respectively.

Download or read book SMALL SCALE FAMILY FARMING IN THE NEAR EAST AND NORTH AFRICA REGION written by Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2018-08-09 with total page 185 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This report provides an overview of a study conducted in the NENA region in 2015-2016 in partnership with FAO, CIRAD, CIHEAM-IAMM and six national teams, each of which prepared a national report. In the six countries under review in the NENA region (Egypt, Lebanon, Morocco, Mauritania, Sudan and Tunisia), agriculture is carried out primarily by small-scale family farmers, the majority of whom run the risk of falling into the poverty trap, largely due to the continuous fragmentation of inherited landholdings. As such, the development of small-scale family farming can no longer be based solely on intensifying agriculture, as the farmers are not able to produce sufficient marketable surplus due to the limited size of their landholdings. An approach based strictly on agricultural activity is also insufficient (as small-scale family farms have already diversified their livelihoods with off-farm activities). In fact, developing small-scale farming cannot be achieved by focusing strictly on t he dimension of production.

Download or read book Food Security Policies in the SADCC Region written by Mandivamba Rukuni and published by . This book was released on 1989 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book A History of Farming Systems Research written by Michael P. Collinson and published by Food & Agriculture Org.. This book was released on 2000 with total page 452 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book provides a detailed history of farming systems research (FSR). While it includes the application of FSR to developed country agriculture, its main focus is on FSR in its original role, with small scale, resource-poor farmers in less developed countries. There are some 40 contributions from nearly 50 contributors from 20 countries, illustrating both the diversity and yet the coherence of FSR. The five parts of the book cover: (1) FSR - understanding farmers and their farming (FSR origins and perspectives; understanding farming systems); (2) the applications of farming systems research (FSR in technology choice and development; FSR in extension and policy formulation); (3) institutional commitment to FSR (FSR: some institutional experiences in national agricultural research; dimensions of the organization of FSR; training for FSR); (4) FSR: the professional dimension (regional and international associations; FSR and the professional disciplines); and (5) cutting edge methods, abiding issues and the future for FSR.

Download or read book Minimizing the Negative Environmental and Health Impacts of Agricultural Water Resources Development in Sub Saharan Africa written by and published by Iwmi. This book was released on 2007 with total page 35 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Download or read book Adaptation and Resilience written by Bonnie G. Colby and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2012-06-25 with total page 290 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In America's arid southwest, climate change will occur in the context of already-keen competition for water for agriculture, urban growth, electricity generation, water-based recreation, and environmental protections. This book explores the challenges that climate change and variability pose for water and energy managers and users, communities, and policy makers in the arid Southwest and demonstrates the application of economic methods to address these challenges. It provides valuable tools for both those interested in resource management and climate change, and those seeking to understand how economic methods can be used to analyze contemporary social problems and craft appropriate responses. The book considers both adaptation to long-term climate change and more immediate issues of water and electricity management in the face of inter-annual climate variability and drought. Thus, no matter what one's perspective on long-run climate change projections, the book provides useful lessons for some of the region's most pressing resource management problems.

Download or read book A Guide to Conducting Research written by MAGWA Simuforosa and published by Strategic Book Publishing Rights Agency. This book was released on 2015-11-10 with total page 182 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: A Guide to Conducting Research: A Student Handbook is a must-read for students in higher education institutions. The book is specifically aimed at undergraduate and postgraduate researchers. The information included will equip readers with an appreciation of research topics, designs, methods, and research reporting for academic purposes. The handbook can also be used as a tool by lecturers and professors who are either teaching research methods courses, or are supervising students doing projects, dissertations, or theses. The overall purpose is to provide students with the information and skills needed to complete a research report at the undergraduate or post-graduate level. The handbook comprises eleven chapters, each with an introduction, body, and a summary meant to enhance understanding of the text.

Download or read book State of Food and Agriculture written by Food and Agriculture Organization and published by Food & Agriculture Organization. This book was released on 2017-01-12 with total page 196 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Unless action is taken now to make agriculture more sustainable, productive and resilient, climate change impacts will seriously compromise food production in countries and regions that are already highly food-insecure. The Paris Agreement, adopted in December 2015, represents a new beginning in the global effort to stabilize the climate before it is too late. It recognizes the importance of food security in the international response to climate change, as reflected by many countries prominent focus on the agriculture sector in their planned contributions to adaptation and mitigation. To help put those plans into action, this report identifies strategies, financing opportunities, and data and information needs. It also describes transformative policies and institutions that can overcome barriers to implementation. The State of Food and Agriculture is produced annually. Each edition contains an overview of the current global agricultural situation, as well as more in-depth coverage of a topical theme."

Download or read book Agriculture Investment Sourcebook written by World Bank and published by World Bank Publications. This book was released on 2005-04-08 with total page 536 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Investing to promote agricultural growth and poverty reduction is a central pillar of the World Bank's current rural strategy, 'Reaching the Rural Poor' (2003). This 'Sourcebook' addresses how to implement the rural strategy, by sharing information on investment options and identifying innovative approaches that will aid the design of future lending programs for agriculture. It provides generic good practices and many examples that demonstrate investment in agriculture can provide rewarding and sustainable returns to development efforts. It is divided into eleven self-contained modules. Each module contains three different types of subunits that can also be stand-alone documents: I. Module Overview II. Agricultural Investment Notes III. Innovative Activity Profiles. The stand-alone nature of the subunits allows flexibility and adaptability of the material. Selected readings and web links are also provided for readers who seek more in-depth information. The 'Sourcebook' draws on a wide range of experiences from donor agencies, governments, institutions, and other groups active in agricultural development. It is an invaluable reference tool for policy makers, professionals, academics and students, and anyone with an interest in agricultural investments.