Climate Exchange

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griculture

Adapting to change

In Eastern Africa the impacts of climate change are threatening

smallholder farmers, many of whom farm on marginal land with

large variations in rainfall patterns. Maize and beans are staple crops

in these areas, as is the case across most of Africa. People depend

on these crops for their daily food and for cash income, but many

farmers are facing low yields because of declining soil fertility,

erosion and drought.

Helping these farmers adapt to reduced rainfall and drought

involves introducing a new system for growing staple crops. The

‘Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume cropping systems for

food security in Eastern and Southern Africa’ programme, funded by

ACIAR and led by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement

Center, is helping farmers test a system change encompassing

conservation agriculture, and intercropping improved varieties of

maize and legumes.

Crops are sown without ploughing and straw is kept in the field

to retain soil moisture and build soil fertility. Increasing the yields

of maize and legumes provides more food and gives farmers cash

for family needs.

The Liganwa Women’s Group in Western Kenya has been testing

the new approach to maize and bean farming for three seasons. They

have more than tripled their yield using the improved techniques.

Rather than ploughing their land, they have been spraying herbicide

and planting seeds directly into their fields. They maintain the stover

(remnants of harvested crops) on the ground as mulch to improve

the soil. The farmers no longer hand plough or weed their crops.

In mid-2011, the farmers celebrated the success of their maize and

legume crop. They were keen to share their experiences with other

farmers at a field day attended by hundreds of people who

came to hear how they are growing more and saving time.

Jane Jahenda Nyonje said the maize grew very well,

that she didn’t have any problems with pests and

disease, and that the yields increased. “The benefits of

conservation agriculture are that we don’t spend time

and money on ploughing and it’s very effective on the

weeds such as striga,” she said.

John Achieng of the Kenya Agricultural Research

Institute, who has been assisting the farmers with the

on-farm trials, said that while farmers in the areas

usually get a yield of two to three bags of maize (90

kilograms) per acre, with conservation agriculture they

have found farmers can get up to 20 bags of maize grain.

“In the case of beans, farmers are boosting their yields

from about 50 kilograms of grain per acre to up to 160

kilograms of grain per acre,” he said.

In a season where drought has affected many parts of

Kenya and the region, boosting yields this much is making

a huge difference to these women, providing food for their

families. Grain prices have rocketed up, so they could also

make handsome profits if they chose to sell their grain.

Food security remains a challenge for many of

the world’s poorest farmers. The ability to adapt to

climate change is a vital component in their hopes for

a better future. ACIAR’s research is helping to scale the

successes of Australian agriculture to allow smallholder

farmers to adapt new ideas, systems and crops, in the

face of climate change.

Farmers and project team inspecting a newly dug seepage pit in a Pogro village watershed, West Bengal

Image: ACIAR