The CASFESA project tested conservation agriculture principles including minimum tillage, intercropping, and residue retention in Ethiopia over three years. Key results include higher maize yields and profits under minimum tillage compared to conventional tillage. Challenges to adopting conservation agriculture practices included competition for crop residues from grazing animals, limited suitable legume varieties, and weed problems under minimum tillage. Opportunities for expanding conservation agriculture included supporting structures for soil and water conservation that restrict grazing, and partnerships with input supply organizations. Continued research is needed on legume varieties and technologies suitable for maize intercropping systems in the region.

1. CASFESA Project
Results, Lessons, Gaps, Opportunities
and Challenges
Moti Jaleta, Tilaye Teklewold, Alemu Tolemariam,
Simegnew Tamir, Yeshiwas Tilahun and Habtemariam Asefa
23rd Febrauary2015
Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

2. Outline
• Background of the existing cropping
system
• Principles of Conservation Agriculture(CA)
• CASFESA project overview
• Main Achievements/Results/Lessons
• Challenges and Opportunities
• Summary

3. CA components and current farmer practices
• Zero/minimum tillage
• Crop association (intercropping/rotation)
• Residue retention or permanent soil cover

4. Current farm practices (from baseline survey)

5. District N Total maize area(ha)
Maize under
intercropping(ha) %
South Achefer 292 176.71 4.0 2
Jabitehnan 278 142.59 6.25 4
Total 570 319.30 10.25 3
South Achefer district = Main crop intercropped with maize = Rapeseed
Jabitehnan district = Main crop intercropped with maize = Common bean
Total maize area under intercropping(2012/13)
Current farm practices _intercropping

6. Season South Achefer Jabitehnan
2010/112011/12 2012/13Area rotated(ha)
%
Area rotated(ha)
%
Maize Maize Maize 55.89 31.63 42.88 30.07
Others Others Maize 54.94 31.09 37.65 26.40
Maize Others Maize 48.44 27.41 43.22 30.31
Others Maize Maize 17.44 9.87 18.85 13.22
Total area under maize(ha) 176.71 142.59
South Achefer district: Main crop rotated with maize = Finger millet
Jabitehnan district: Main crop rotated with maize = Pepper
Current farm practices _ Rotation

7. Minimum Tillage (one-Pass) with no
residue cover and mono-cropping
Conventional tillage
Both practices are not sustainable.
Tillage Practices
South Achefer: 28% of maize plots were
under by minimum tillage

8. Crop Residue Utilization
• No crop residue retention practices.
• Maize Stover has a multiple purposes- use competition
8

9. CASFESA Project
Goal: To Secure Household Food Security by Improving
Crop Productivity through CA Principles
 Operational in Ethiopia, Kenya and Malawi
 Funded by EU through IFAD
 Implemented with the collaboration of
CIMMYT,ARARI and District agricultural
offices.

10. What CASFESA Project did
• Randomly selected 15 treatment and 15 control villages
in both districts
• Set CA demo plots on plots donated by 2-hosting
farmers in each of the treatment villages
• Trained farmers and development agents on CA
practices (demo-plot management and record keeping)
• Provided seed and fertilizer (with agreement to
compensate for any yield loss due to technology
failure)

11. What CASFESA Project did
• Organized farmers’ field days where farmers
from treatment villages participate and inquire
on benefits and costs of CA
• Invited agro-dealers to field days organized in
their vicinity
• Continued similar activities for three years and
encouraged farmers to try the technology on
their own maize plots

12. Demo plots Design
1m 10 m 1m 10m 1m
Zero tillage +
intercropping
Conventional
tillage +
intercropping
10m
1m
Sole maize +
zero tillage
Sole maize +
zero tillage
10m
1m

13. Field Day Participants
District Sex 2012/13 2013/14 2014/15 Total
South Achefer
M 265 264 48 577
F 7 16 2 25
T 272 280 50 602
Jabitehnan
M 656 522 306 1484
F 49 152 122 323
T 705 674 428 1807

14. Farmers’ Field Days

15. Economic Return of CA Technologies
(South Achefer)

16. Items
Total plots
(N=590)
Min- tillage plots
(N=158)
Conv. tillage plots
(N=432)
Mean Mean Mean
Revenue
Revenue from maize production
(Birr/ha)a 8,833.22 10,739.93*** 8,135.86
Variable costs
Seed cost (Birr/ha) 487.89 648.84** 420.53
Fertilizer cost (Birr/ha) 3,811.11 4,619.12*** 3,515.59
Herbicide cost (Birr/ha) 233.91 898.71*** 0.00
Labor cost (Birr/ha) 1,467.16 1,145.10 1,584.95***
Oxen-days (Birr/ha) 705.84 278.32 860.47***
Total Variable costs
(Birr/ha)b 6,571.94 7,370.25*** 6,275.10
Gross margin (Birr/ha)(a-b) 2,216.73 3,229.74*** 1,846.23
Gross return on investment (Birr/ha)(a/b)
1.34 1.46 1.30
Gross margin analysis in maize production by tillage
Note: Average maize grain price was 4.00Birr/kg; opportunity cost of labor and oxen-power was assumed as 20 Birr/AE/day and 50
Birr/pair of oxen/ha, respectively.
***, **, and * are significantly different from the other group mean at 1%, 5% and 10%, respectively

17. Identifying Potential Recommendation Domains for CA
(Ethiopia)
• Total Area under cultivation: 17,792,600 ha
• High Biophysical potential and High Socioeconomic potential
821,006 ha (i.e., 4.6%)
Targeting is crucial!!
Source: Tesfaye et al. (2015). Environmental Management. 55(2):330-346.

18. Challenges
18
Free grazing vs. crop residue retention/management

19. Challenges (2)
Conventional Shilshalo/madager
– Not compatible with CA principles
– Not suitable for intercropping
– Reduce plant density
19

20. Challenges (3)
Limited availability of improved legume
varieties suitable to West Gojam zone
– Productivity
– Disease resistant
– Planting date of legume crops with
maize is not well identified/known.

21. Challenges (4)
Maize plant/seed is easily exposed to birds when rain stops for
long period after planting.
21

22. However, it’s best forage source during
the wet season for cut-and-carry feeding
practices.
22
Farmers’ field: South Achefer
Grass weeds are common problems
in Minimum tillage maize fields.
Maize plant_ Minimum Tillage

23. Improved seed + chemical fertilizer
+ minimum tillage
+ glyphosate + primagram + hand-weeding
Farmers’ field: South Achefer
Primagram doesn’t allow legume intercropping.

24. Opportunities
• The on-going soil and water conservation
structures/practices by MoA.
– Community by-laws restricted free grazing on
conserved plots.
• Existence of Cooperative Union/private agro-
dealers for input supply
• Prior introduction of zero tillage practice in
South Achefer

25. Summary
• CA is economically viable if farmers are given as
alternative technology.
• Current practices of minimum tillage has to be revised
in such away that it ensures sustainability.
• In order to scale up CA principles, institutional
arrangements meant for easing input accessibility and
affordability need to be improved .
• Continued research on CA principles specifically on
generating suitable legume crops technologies in the
area meant for maize intercropping.

26. 26
ThankS!