Publications

In West Africa, domestic investors acquire plots of farm land using their connections, powers and resources. Some policy makers view these investments as a shift towards agribusiness and state that these “new actors” will modernise and professionalize farming and smallholders are asked to make space. Who are those new actors, how did they obtain the land, under what conditions, and how are they investing? Why are authorities engaging in these land transactions and what are the consequences for local farming, rural livelihoods and the environment? This paper presents results of a 2010 survey on the acquisition of rural land by agro-investors in Benin, Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. It explores implications for agricultural “modernisation” and discusses local responses to regulate this phenomenon.

This analysis provides useful insights on (cow) milk value chain in Zinder region.

Como resultado de la caída de los precios de la industria del café, los mercados de cafés diferenciados son vistos como una vía para superar la pobreza. Sin embargo, los mercados diferenciados son más difíciles de penetrar por la calidad de los alimentos agrícolas y los estándares que se deben cumplir, generando así nuevos problemas para los productores. Este estudio de caso se desarrolla para identificar la problemática que enfrentan los pequeños productores en la zona de Marcala, departamento de La Paz, Honduras, que impide acceder a los mercados diferenciados.

This report presents the findings of a study conducted Nov-Dec 2012, in the traditional cattle keeping areas of Zambia. The focus on the study was on untapped milk originating from the traditional cattle sector, with the aim of ensuring a stable and reliable supply for processors in Zambia and an income to smallholder farmers. The overall objective was to provide a solid basis for making informed decisions about interventions in the traditional/smallholder dairy sub-sector related to improving production, animal husbandry practices and milk marketing. The study demonstrates that traditional cattle farmers can supply a substantial amount of milk to support demand in the country, as well as enhance the utilisation capacity of milk processors. Information from the report will be useful for NGOs, the Zambian government and donors, as it enables to identify gaps in the value chain which they can strengthen, and support income generation.

Capacity development is increasingly seen as the sine qua non sine qua non of successful development. Yet despite the growing commitment to show results, documented examples of its impact are hard to find. This paper went in search of available evidence and reviewed 29 case studies of capacity development from three development organisations. Its conclusion is that development organisations and donors need to move away from their narrow focus on accountability to a broader focus on mutual learning. They should also stop looking for the perfect measurement policy and start measuring instead.

This paper explores the construction of a sustainable and culturally appropriate model of indigenous territorial management through the case study of the experiences of the ‘Chiquitania’ region in Boliva and the role of SNV in this. Sharing these experiences should provide some guidelines for the construction of territorial management models in different cultural contexts.

The study identifies the following challenges faced by cattle trade in WCA : (i) Securing regional cattle trade within a rather unpredictable global setting (ii) Satisfy the dynamic regional demand through domestic production (iii) Reduce persisting bureaucratic hardship (iv) Improve the organisation of the regional cattle trade while taking into account the strengths of the traditional set-up (v) Improve the governance of local cattle markets (vi) Improve the position of small-scale pastoralists within the value chain (Study in French).

This REDD+ feasibility and scoping study is based on a short and condensed stakeholder consultation process with key agencies and officials of a series of government institutions, NGO’s and multilateral organizations. The constructive, critical and sometimes blunt insights, views and comments on REDD+ potential and feasibility in Bhutan are highly appreciated and are essential building stones of this report. The scope of this study is to keep momentum in introducing REDD+ in Bhutan and to asses the nations capacity and knowledge base, essential for compliance and voluntary market entrance, combined with an overall analysis if it is worthwhile to commit to the REDD mechanism, weighing its advantages and disadvantages, scoping the potential and possible impact and contribution to the development goals of RGoB. The study started with a stakeholder consultation of all key agencies and organisations from December 7 to 16 2010, seeking their expert knowledge and insights and benefited from the feedback of many stakeholders participating in the debriefing of the key findings and recommendations on December 20th 2010.

The goal of SNV-Latin America’s scenario project was to explore potential paths for economic development in Central America over the next 20 years with a particular emphasis on the models of organizing and supporting development initiatives. A scenario planning process was used to push beyond existing notions of roles, responsibilities, and solutions for development. With the help of nearly 70 participants from different sectors and countries, alternative models were more openly considered through interviews, research and workshops. The process was influenced by a key acknowledgment: that the region may have to respond to a very different set of global conditions outside the region, and newly emerging social and environmental conditions within the region, and as such, set different goals for development accordingly. To inspire scenarios that move beyond the conventional thinking, a number of broad “drivers of change” were identified by looking at social, technological,  economic, environmental and political dynamics that might cause disruptive shifts in regional conditions. These included: population growth, information and communications technologies, environmental degradation, and excluded groups. The combination of these and other drivers of change and uncertainties framed and informed the scenarios.

Summary of a desk and field study done by IRAM, with as main objective “to assess the SNV positioning choices in relation to its contribution to food security and -sovereignty in West and Central Africa countries”. Results were: Definition of key issues in food security for vulnerable actors; Establishment of relation between SNV position choices and food security strategies for vulnerable actors; Mapping of both successful household and community strategies as well as government policies securing access to food, which are relevant for SNV; Development of an analytical tool that can be used to measure the contribution/impacts on food security and food sovereignty. 

A pesar de los avances del sector hortofrutícola a nivel regional en la modernización y eficiencia de las cadenas de valor y en la implementación de modelos de integración y tratados de libre comercio, se sigue generando exclusión y pobreza. Miles de pequeños productores rurales no están articulados a las cadenas, no cuentan con acceso a mercados rentables, no tienen tecnología, tierra ni financiamiento. ¿Las Políticas Públicas Efectivas pueden ser parte de la solución?
Nadie ignora el rol que juegan las Políticas Públicas en el desarrollo de la competitividad de un sector ¿Pero cuáles son realmente los instrumentos vigentes y nuevos con los cuales cuentan los países de Centroamérica para facilitar el crecimiento económico y social de la actividad hortofrutícola? ¿Cuáles son las instituciones claves que la rigen? ¿Cómo estos instrumentos impactan favorablemente la agricultura centroamericana? ¿Qué falta para consolidar un entorno favorable adecuado en el sector?

Son algunas de las preguntas que el estudio pretende responder para ayudar a instituciones gubernamentales y privadas en la generación o consolidación de proyectos e instrumentos de apoyo al sector hortofrutícola en Centroamérica.

Agro-dealers are a inportant agriculture value chain actors. It is apparent that agro-dealers have an important part to play in input and output marketing. Agro-dealers are not novices in input and output marketing. However, agro-dealers are not a homogeneous group. They do have varying interest and capacities. Some are more inclined towards grocery marketing while others are general dealers; some are interested in transporting grain produce than purchasing and bulking. These capacities have to be developed and spread throughout the districts so as to maximise the potential of the value chains.

This report tries to profile the agro-dealers in the Mashonaland West and Central provinces of Zimbabwe so as to understand their positioning in the agriculture value chain.