Environmental, Social and Economic
Sustainability of Family Farms in the Dry Areas
International Consultation on Family Farming
M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation (MSSRF), Chennai, INDIA
6 August, 2014
Mahmoud El Solh
Director General
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas

Outline
 Dry areas and family farming: the
challenges ahead;
 Environmental, social and economic
sustainability of family farming are very
much interrelated;
 What science can do & what ICARDA is
doing to support family farming?
 Examples of research achievements to
enhance environmental, social and
economic sustainability of family farms in
the dry areas;
 Looking ahead and conclusions.

Dry Areas and Family Farming:
The Challenges Ahead

The Dry Areas
Dry areas cover 41% of the earth’s surface, and are home to over
2.5 billion people – and the majority of the world’s poor.
About 16% of the population lives in chronic poverty,
particularly in marginal rainfed areas.

The People of the Drylands
• 800 million poor and vulnerable people depend on
agricultural systems for food security and livelihoods
• Economically and politically marginalized
• Population growth in drylands highest in the world
• Population distribution skewed to the young
• High rates of unemployment
• High rates of urbanization
• Dependency on off-farm or non-farm income
• Women provide a significant portion of the work needed
on family farms
• 75-80% of food comes from small farmers out of which
family farming constitute a large proportion

Much of the Agriculture in the Dry Lands
Depends on Smallholder Family Farms
 This involves the hard work of the rural men, women
and children working in all areas of agriculture:
croppers, pastoralists, forest dwellers, fishers and
herders
 They derive a significant portion of their income from
farming, involve members of the family in managing the
farm and rely predominantly on family labor (IFAD 2014)

This is why it is essential to ensure the
environmental, social and economic
sustainability of family farming
&
The timeliness of the International Year
of Family Farming
&
The timeliness of International Consultation
on Family Farming Organized by
M.S. Swaminathan Research Foundation
(MSSRF)

Abiotic Constraints
Facing Family Farming in Dry Areas
 Physical and economic
water scarcity
 Rapid natural resource
degradation and
desertification/land
degradation
 Groundwater
depletion
 Drought & heat
 Salinity
 Climate change
-10
-20
-30
-40
-50
-60
-70
-80
m
Decrease of the Souss
aquifer level in Morocco
1982 1985 1988 1991 1994 1997 2000 2003 2006

Challenges associated with climate change facing
family farming
 Rising temperatures: higher
temperatures will reduce crop
productivity
 Increased frequency of droughts
 Excess rainfall/flooding
 Milder winter
 Increase in the areas affected by
salinity
 Changes in crop cycles (shorter
growing season)
 Newly emerging pests and diseases
 Salt water intrusion in coastal areas

Biotic Constraints
FungiS Dailsienaisteys Insect Pests
Weeds/Parasitic Weeds

Inputs and Socio-Economic Constraints
 Insufficient technology available and extension services
 Seed availability/quality
 Availability of fertilizer
 Timely control and availability of pesticides for weed
and pest control;
 Mechanization affordability/access to suitable small
machinery
 Availability of credit to farmers
 Price fluctuation
 Access to markets: local, regional & international
11

Further Challenges to the Drylands: Inadequate
Policies and Insufficient Institutions
 Inadequate agricultural
policies for sustainable
agricultural development
 Insufficient investment in
agricultural research and
development

Environmental, Social and Economic
Sustainability of Family Farming
are Very Much Interrelated

Environmental Sustainability
of Family Farming
– Environmental sustainability of family farming
can be obtained by helping family farms to
conserve and ensure the sustainable use of
natural resources on their farms, namely water,
land and biodiversity.
– Thus, research must focus on enhancing water
availability, water productivity and water use
efficiency; building soil productivity fertility and
combating land degradation; and conserving
biodiversity through sustainable use.

Social Sustainability of Family Farming
Social sustainability of family farming can be achieved
through:
– Generating more employment opportunities for family
farming members;
– Empower women and strife for social equity;
– Attract youth to agriculture by making agriculture an
attractive profession: intellectually challenging and
economically rewarding;
– Improving infrastructure in rural areas and providing
institutional services;
– Improving livelihoods by improving quality of life, not
just more income.

Economic Sustainability of Family Farming
Economic sustainability of family farming can be
achieved by generating more income through:
– Having higher productivity;
– Creating more job opportunities;
– Producing high value crops;
– Producing added value products;
– Reducing production costs;
– Improving post-harvest handling;
– Linking farmers to markets;
– Providing opportunities for micro-credit to small
enterprises.

Environmental, Social and Economic Sustainability of Family
Farming are inter-related: The Vicious Circle in Dry Areas

What Science Can Do & What ICARDA is Doing
to Support Family Farming?

What Science and Technology Can Do
to Help Family Farming?
 Genetic improvement for higher yields,
resistance to diseases and pests; higher
nutrient content; drought tolerance and crops
adapted to shorter growing seasons;
 Enhancing sustainable use and management
of natural resources: water, land and
biodiversity;
 Improving market access (inputs and outputs)
and moving into value chains and added
value products for increaseing income and
improving livelihoods;
 Strengthening policies and
community/institutional frameworks.

What is ICARDA Doing to Support Family
Farming in the Drylands?
 ICARDA is focusing on science and technology to enhance
livelihoods of resource-poor farmers and family farming in
dry areas.
 It is leading the CGIAR Research program on Dryland
Agricultural Production Systems (CRP 1.1) to unleash the
productive potential of small farmers and family farms in the
drylands:
 In low potential and marginal drylands: helping family farms
to develop strategies and tools to minimize their risk and
reduce their vulnerability
 Higher-potential drylands regions: supporting farming
families to sustainably intensify their agricultural production
systems

Map of Action Site of Dryland Systems
CGIAR Research Program (CRP)

Dryland Systems CRP
Bringing practical solutions to family farms in the dry
areas for improved livelihoods and food security
through large scale action research
 Involving partners & stakeholders across the
research for development continuum;
 Promoting relevant technologies, knowledge
and policies;
 Following an integrated systems approach to
ensure synergy;
 Focusing on women and youth empowerment;
 Targeting five regions.

Examples of Research Achievements to
Enhance Environmental, Social and Economic
Sustainability of Family Farms in the Dry Areas

Examples of Research Achievements to Enhance Environmental, Social
and Economic Sustainability of Family Farms in the Dry Areas
 Crop Improvement for yield potential
& for abiotic and biotic stresses;
 Improving water availability and
management & grey water use;
 Intensification & diversification of
cropping systems;
 High value crops, protected
agriculture and added value products ;
 Integrated livestock/rangelands/crops
production systems & added value
dairy product in marginal dry areas.

Crop Improvement for Higher Yield Potential
& Abiotic and Biotic Stresses

Improved varieties released to farming community
 High yield potential
 Agronomic traits: e.g. earliness, canopy architecture
 Tolerance to abiotic stresses:
• Drought
• Heat
• Cold
• Salinity
 Resistance/tolerance to biotic stresses
• Diseases
• Insect pests
• Parasitic weeds

Wheat Crossed with Wild Relatives: Synthetic
Wheat, tolerance to excessive drought
Yield
t/ha
% recurrent
parent
Cham 6*2/SW2 1.6 147
Cham 6*2/SW2 1.5 138
Cham-6 1.10 100
Attila-7 1.3 Parent
Variety
Yield of “synthetic derivatives” compared to parents
under drought stress. (Tel Hadya 2008 -- 211 mm)

Yields (kg/ha) of promising durum wheat genotypes
under rainfed (RF) and supplemental irrigation (SI)
12000
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
Mean (kg/ha)
Max(kg/ha)
Rf (321 mm) Rf+SI (321+70 mm) Fvrbl+SI (524+70 mm)
RF = Rainfed; SI = Supplemental Irrigation
11 t/ha
6/t/ha
3.7t/ha
RF (321 mm) RF+SI (321+70 mm) RF+SI (524+70 mm)

Yield potential of recently improved durum wheat
Yield potential of newly developed durum genotypes
at ICARDA durum breeding program
16000
14000
12000
10000
8000
6000
4000
2000
0
Miki1 Ouaserl Ouasloukos Ouaserl Aghrass2 Amedakul1 Haurani (Landrace) Korifla (Impr)
Kg/ha

Drought tolerant chickpea variety survived 2007
drought in Turkey
‘Gokce’ chickpea
variety is used on about
80% of the chickpea
production areas (over
550,000 ha). With a yield
advantage of 300 kg/ha
over other varieties, and
world prices over USD
1000/t, this represented
an additional USD 165
million for Turkish
family farms in 2007
alone.
Kabuli chickpea, ‘Gokce’, developed by Turkish national scientists and
ICARDA scientists, has withstood severe drought in Turkeyand produced
when most other crops failed in 2007.

Food Legumes Family Farming In Ethiopia
improved livelihoods of the resource-poor

Research Impact: Food Legumes in Ethiopia
Field visits involving policy makers
Alemaya lentil variety widely adopted
in Ethiopia for high decortication
quality
Increase in production
2000/01 - 2009/10:
• Lentils: 3 times
• Faba Bean: 40%
• Chickpea: 60%
Increased production and
decortication processing in lentil
provides employment in rural areas

Family Farming
An Example in Pulse Cultivation in India
Family members are involved in lentil harvest
Grasspea harvest by family members

Control of Insect Pests
Resistance/Tolerance to Hessian Fly in Wheat
Hessian Fly
Resistant Variety
in Morocco
Hessian fly causes economic damage in North
Africa and North Kazakhstan
Resistant lines

Resistance to Rust Diseases in Wheat
Released varieties resistant to
black stem and yellow rust in
Ethiopia
Resistances to new races of
yellow rust in West Asia

Examples on
Environmental Sustainability of Family Farming:
Improving Water Availability and Productivity & &
Sustainable Use and Management of Water Resources

Enhancing Water Productivity, Management
and Water Productivity
 More efficient irrigation systems: enhancing water
productivity through both modernization of irrigation
systems and improving the efficiency of surface
irrigation
 Modifying cropping patterns towards high value crops
 Supplemental irrigation
 Water harvesting: macro- and micro-water
catchments & contour planting
 Deficit irrigation
 Watershed management

Afghanistan:
• Water harvesting sites established;
• Technology of sub-surface irrigation used in Afghanistan for the
first time.
ACHIEVEMENTS (2009-2011)
Water management in dryland farming

Exchange experience about waste/greywater
re-use (Gaza and West Bank)
18 family farms (women and men) along with project team visited Jordan to exchange
practical knowledge on waste/greywater use in irrigation

Field-days and awareness sessions for the safe
use of treated grey/wastewater in irrigation
 15 field days were conducted I
 West Bank and Gaza attended by
165 farmers
 Brochures on safety and
productive use guidelines were
distributed

Sustainable Intensification & Diversification
of Production Systems
& Added-Value Products

The three pillars for integrated approach for
sustainable agricultural development
Sustainable
Natural resource
management and
inputs
Crop & livestock
genetic improvement
Integration at field
and farmers levels
Socio-economic & policy,
and institutional support

Sustainable Intensification of Broad Wheat Production –
Improves varieties, Water management and inputs Raised-Bed Planting

FP: furrows irrigation FlP: flat bed irrigation RBP: raised bed irrigation

Raised-Bed Planting

9
8
7
6
5
4
3
2
1
0
Yield (t/ha) Water
consumption(000m3/ha)
Raised bed
Flat surface
WUE(kg/m3)
Egypt: Sharkia Province
Advantage of raised bed planting
Average of 2011 and 2012
30 % increase in grain yield
25 % saving in irrigation water
72 % increase in WUE

Small-scale mechanized raised-beds
systems for water savings
Key Benefits
 Saves water by 20%
 Reduces seed rate by 50%
 Decreases production cost by 25%
 Reduces planting time by 88%
 Increases crops yields by 15-25%

Diversification of Production Systems
Using High-Value Crops

Promotion of improved
technologies for producing value-added
products for higher income
for family farms and rural
communities in the
intensified/diversified integrated
crop/rangeland/livestock production
systems

Indigenous dryland fruit trees are
good examples: olives, figs, dates,
palm, pomegranate, pistachio,
almonds, etc.

Diversification of Production Systems with Medicinal Plants:
processing, value addition and more income

High Value Crops & Protected Agriculture

Soilless
Culture
Increased
yield per unit
of water,
space and
energy
Protected
Agriculture

Protected Agriculture for Family Farming
Diversifies production and diets; generates employment
And more income, improves water use efficiency
Afghanistan
Yemen
Jordan

High-Value Crops More Income For Family
Farming
Labor-intensive fruit and vegetables for food &
nutritional security and more income
• A low-risk bridge from subsistence to
better livelihoods

Afghanistan Minister of Agriculture inspecting
mint production in a greenhouse

Added Value Products in Durum Wheat:
WNADIN IFAD Project

Pasta: Traditional Processing
1. Semolina is mixed with
water and salt
2. Mixture is kneaded to a
pasta dough
3. Pasta dough is rolled on
large wood tables to
make dough.
4. Dough flattened in thin
form and cut in long
threads.
5. Pasta threads are hung on
line for sun drying.
6. After drying, the pasta
threads are stored in jars

‘Burghul’: Traditional processing
1. Boiled,
2. Cooled,
3. Dried,
4. Moistened,
5. Peeled (sometimes the peeling process is omitted),
6. Dried again,
7. Cleaned by winnowing,
8. Milled, and
9. Graded to different sizes.

“Frike”: A Family Endeavor
 Stable food in WANA: made from early harvested green grains
of durum wheat
 Important source of income for rural families in marginal
areas
 Highly nutritious: high protein, fiber, vitamins (thiamin and
riboflavin) and minerals (Ca, Fe, Zn), low carbohydrate, rich in
prebiotic properties, low glycemic index.
 High value addition in established markets.
 High labor requirements: grains are harvested, parched,
roasted and dried---village industry. Involves the entire family.

Integrated Livestock/Rangelands/Crops Production
Systems & Added Value Dairy Products
in Marginal Dry Areas

Development of Integrated
Crop/Rangelands/Livestock Production Systems
By-products - feed blocks
On-farm feed production
Successful
Technologies
Flock management
Barley production Cactus & fodder shrubs
Natural pastures & rangeland management

Community Approach & Community Action Plans
for sustainable use of natural resources
Agro-Ecological Characterization
CCoommmmuunniittyy
Technologies
Modeliing
Modeling
SScceennaarriiii
Presentation to decision makers
Private sector
Other communities
Policy &
Property rights
Community Action Plan & Scenarios
Validation with community representatives
Presentation to decision makers

Successful Technologies in Farmers Fields
 Feed blocks using crop
residues and agro-industrial
by-products
 Improved rams
 Early weaning
 Improved barley cultivars
 Rotations of barley with
forage legumes

Adding Value:
Family Livestock Production

Value addition:
Improved milking and processing
Steps in research:
 Assess local knowledge and identify
problems with researchable solution
 Identify available technologies or
develop suitable technology
 Integrate the proposed solution with
the local knowledge
Example: Yoghurt processing in Syria
Problem: High acidity and weak texture
Solution:
 Yogurt with high viscosity that does not
collapse during transport
 Market price was 5 Syrian Lira more per
kg than the yogurt produced by farmers

Enhancing Family Livelihoods: Goat Management &
Feeding in Afghanistan & Pakistan
 200+ women received goats through IFAD
Project;
 Dairy hygiene and processing improved
skills and incomes of at least 600 women;
 3x benefits with supplemental feeding of
goats;
 2x benefit by improved feeding during
fattening;
 3x increase in kid survival due to
vaccinations;
 Improved growth through
crossbreeding of goats.

Value-Addition: Processing and Export of
Cashmere, Wool and Mohair
71
 Increasing the income of sheep and goat producers from fiber
production through improving fiber quality and market access
 Enhancing processing and organizational skills
 Developing fair trade export markets for locally produced yarn, clothing
and fiber handicrafts

Market analysis & Linking Family Farming to Market:
Goat production in Afghanistan
Findings:
 Informal & unorganised goat markets
with poor infrastructure and market
intelligence system.
 Goat producers can expect higher
benefits when they plan sales considering
live weight, market day, marketing place
and sex.
 Good market potential exists for cheese,
qurut, yoghurt and cashmere.
 Presentation of value added products for
marketing is poor - need improvement in
packing and grading.

Conclusions and Looking Ahead
 Supported by enabling policies and strong political commitment and
through targeted public and private investment in both research and
development, family farms can be environmentally, socially and economically
sustainable to enhance national economic national growth, food security and
improve livelihoods of the resource-poor in rural areas.
 Ensuring the environmental, social and economic sustainability of Family
Farming can also be the key to rural transformation. It is useful to recall the
example of Viet Nam, where strong pro-smallholder development activities
(many of which were focused on family farms) transformed the rural
landscape from a poor underdeveloped and food insecure country to a
country that is now exporting food and classified as lower middle-income.
• According to IFAD (2014): “the potential economic and social returns to
investing in family farms are enormous.” So let us all work towards this goal.

Thank you