Presentation made by Andy

1. Dr. Andrew McDonald
CSISA Phase II – India Country Coordinator, Objective 1 / 2 leader
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT)
Odisha Partners Meeting
Bubaneshwar
July 10, 2012

2. Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia
Project Goal: To increase food and income security at scale in
South Asia through sustainable intensification of cereal-based
systems.
Metrics of success: marked crop productivity increases, income
generation for > 6 m farmers by 2019…
Four countries: India, Bangladesh, Nepal, Pakistan
Two donors: USAID, BMFG
Duration: Phase I: 2009-12; Phase II: 2012-15
The Challenge: catalyzing durable change
with millions of small and medium-scale
farmers

3. Agriculture can be transformed….
Agronomic Revolution
The rice revolution in South America (management gain 2 t / ha, )
Variety revolution
(semi-dwarfs – 2 t / ha)
350 new varieties released
Yield ton/ha
Peter Jennings, FLAR, 2005
Creation of FLAR
.......................1968 1995 2002......................

4. Why aren’t improved technologies
adopted?
KNOWLEDGE
CAPITAL
ACCES
S
LABOR
RISK
Are technologies matched to needs of smallholders?
Are key messages reaching farmers?

5. Drivers of change in S. Asia Agriculture
• Cereal demand projected to: double by 2025, quadruple by
2050?
• Land, water, energy, labor scarcity
• Increasing production costs
• Resource loss and degradation (land, water, soil)
• Risks and uncertainty
o High temperatures, drought, inundation
o Less predictable climate systems

6. CSISA-supported technical innovations
CSISA technical Water Labor Soil Climate Yield Profitability
productivity scarcity degradation resilience
priorities
Conservation *** ** *** *** * ***
agriculture (CA)
Site-specific nutrient ** ** ** ***
management
Scale-appropriate *** ** ** ** ***
mechanization
Laser land leveling *** * * ***
Elite germplasm ** ** *** **
System intensification * ** *** ***
(more crops/yr)
Post-harvest storage ***
Improved livestock ** *** ***
feeding

7. Production-ecologies are distinct
in cases over small distances
Drought , overuse of groundwater, acid soils
Seasonal inundation, flash
flooding
Temperature / drought stress,
arsenic
Limited-source surface
irrigation
Floods, cyclones, and tidal
surges, salinity across the
coastal belt

8. Addressing non-technological
barriers
that impede innovation
Needs-based irrigation with AWD can
reduced irrigation water use for rice.
BUT…
Business model for pump rental mus
favor conservation. (in BD they don’t

9. How do farmers make decisions?
Fundamental research gaps on conception of risk, behavioral
science, etc.
Literacy / numeracy
What information is valued, actionable, and profitable?
When must it be provided?
Matching the tactic and tool
to the audience…….

10. Remembering the simple things
Good agronomy pays large dividends
More precise approaches needn’t be sophisticated to be
successful
Uniform placement of fertilizers:
10 -15% yield gain

11. Not by technology alone…
Release of elite seeds
?
Wide-spread cultivation of elite seeds

12. CSISA: A ‘big tent’ initiative
Integrating disciplines and organizations
• Participatory development of sustainable, productive, and
economical agricultural management technologies
• Future-oriented process-based research (e.g. net GHGs,
NUE, WUE, models simulations)
• Development of high-yielding and stress-tolerant cereal
varieties (wheat, rice, and maize)
• Strategic partnerships (public + private sectors) to increase
the scale and longevity of interventions
• Strengthen markets and business development, especially
SMEs.
• Capacity building through training and scholarship
• Policy analysis and evidence-based advocacy

13. Defining impact pathways: a key
element for project planning

14. CSISA will not succeed by acting alone…..
but partnerships have to be based on:
• Clear value proposition to motivate the participation of
all partners
• Joint ownership and commitment to success
• Timelines for action
• Coordination of activities along common impact pathway

15. What’s new in Phase II?
• Shift in geographic focus to Eastern India and Bangladesh
• More $ resources to support key activities in Bihar and
new investments in Odisha, including flexible funds to
be managed jointly with NARES through state-level
‘Advisory and Investment Committees’. These funds will
support innovation and new thinking, and close gaps
where other investments are lacking.
• Explicit focus on forming and supporting strategic
partnerships

16. Key challenges, priority geographies, strategic
entry points
• Rainfed / high-risk production systems
• Flash flooding, stagnate flooding
• Depleted / acidic soils
• Low cropping intensity
• Weak seed systems
• Poor market integration
• Limited mechanization
• Rural labor dynamics
POTENTIAL PARTNERS + PRORITY AREAS FOR COLLABORA

17. INNOVATION + DURABLE PRODUCTS + SUPPORT TO CHANGE A
OPERATIONAL MODEL FOR GOING TO SCALE IN CSISA PHASE II

18. Thank You
MANY ROADBLOCKS….
MANY ROADBLOCKS…. BUT PLENTY OF INGENUI