3. Capacity Development for food security in Nicaragua

by
Sylvanie Jardinet, Food Security coordinator in Latin America, Acción Contra el Hambre

General context

In Nicaragua, the 2001 Livelihoods Survey estimates that 45.8 percent of the population lives below the poverty line and that 15.1 percent is extremely poor. Nicaragua is one of the economically most vulnerable countries in Latin America, with a per capita GNP for 2002 of approximately US$500. Even though poverty affects over half of the Nicaraguan population, it is not distributed equally amongst the various parts of the country. The province of Madriz, where the project was implemented, is located in North-Central Nicaragua, one of the most vulnerable regions in the country (7 of its 9 municipalities are listed as extremely poor).

Location of the province of Madriz

With a population of approximately 134 000 inhabitants and a population density of 76 inhabitants/km², Madriz is a province with a climate that is adverse to agriculture, with scarce rainfall (800 mm/yr on average), and is thus prone to suffering prolonged drought. Its topography is craggy, marked by steep slopes and only some 7 percent of the land is covered by forest. The majority of the population living in the province relies on agriculture as its main source of income; more than 89 percent of the usable land in Madriz territory is dedicated to agriculture. The drop in international prices for agricultural products, especially coffee, has only made matters worse. Based on this context, the following structural elements can be listed that add to the crisis in the Madriz province:

Unequal access for farmers to the assets necessary for production
Vulnerable production systems with an undiversified capitalization base that rests on virtually single-crop farming of basic grains and depends on cash for the sale of surplus production once the basic subsistence level has been obtained. In Madriz, 92 percent of individual farms use this traditional system of production.
Development policies badly directed, the majority of small and medium scale producers are excluded from the national policies. In Nicaragua, 63 percent of the poor and 75 percent of the extremely poor people live in rural areas.
The deterioration of international prices of food and with it the prices to the producers: as a result of the reduction of the agricultural prices, the low monetary income is insufficient to completely maintain and to renew the equipment and inputs and the productive capacity of the farmer is much more affected.

Since 2002, Action Against Hunger (ACH in Spanish) has been implementing a project with the reduction of poverty as the strategy of intervention. The project is based on agropecuarian diversification and alternative solutions to improve poor farmers' incomes and to reduce food insecurity. The diversification of production using irrigation systems is one of the alternatives of production developed in the project. The majority of producers cultivate a main production of coffee and basic grains such as maize and beans; introducing the cultivation of vegetables allows a diet diversification and consequently the reduction of food insecurity.

Brief description of the Capacity Development needs assessment study at the system/environmental institution/individual level

The needs assessment represented the first step in the planning and development of the project; it is a systematic process for establishing priorities and making decisions regarding the planning and development of the project. Decisions and priorities are based on information gathered from the communities. To collect the information for carrying out needs assessments, the technique of Rapid Rural Appraisal (PRA) was used in each of the communities determined in a first assessment undertaken by ACH using the criteria of vulnerability, poverty, food insecurity and malnutrition.

A PRA session in a community

The objective of the Rapid Rural Appraisal (PRA) was to know better the community, participants, demands of the community, and identification of possible production alternatives using in some cases an irrigation system. In this diagnosis, it is important to make distinctions between needs, wants and interests of population. Therefore, ACH extension staff undertook efforts to assess target population needs to ensure that they understood the meaning of needs, as something considered by all necessary to accomplish the development of the community. Also, by using PRA and participatory approaches, extension workers and farmers exchanged more knowledge and experiences and reached consensus on what is most needed by villagers. As a result, the farmers themselves were able to propose the most suitable solutions to their problems.

PRA consists of using several data collection methods to gather practical information on development issues in local communities quickly (Freudenberger, 1994). The PRAs performed in the communities, included interviews with key informants, review of secondary data sources, mapping exercises and semistructured interviews with groups and individuals.

The table below shows different tools used during PRA in the project:

Tools	Concepts
Transect	Transects were drawn up of villages to show different local use of land and resources and to highlight potential problems and opportunities.
Participatory mapping	Set of tools that allows to quickly obtain a global synthesis of the resources and the local conditions and also to know and to locate the different types of socio-economic groups existing in the community
Seasonal calendars and activity profiles	Seasonal constraints and opportunities are diagrammed month by month throughout the year. Daily patterns of activity are similarly explored by charting typical activities for each hour of the day, amount of effort, time taken, and location of work. These have been compared for men, women, the elderly, the young and others.
Time lines and local histories	This tool allowed identification of changes in the past and possible changes in the future in activities and conditions of the communities. An analysis of the reasons for changes and their effects on the community could be also done with elements obtained.
Venn and network diagrams	With Venn diagrams, real linkages, interactions and distance between groups, individuals and institutions are represented.
Wealth rankings and social maps	Wealth ranking is used to identify local indicators of wealth and to classify household according to relative wealth or wellbeing. Fairness aspects are analyzed and it facilitates the understanding of the social structure of the community.
Brainstorming	With a focused group a brainstorming was organized where villagers through presented their ideas, problems and solutions. The most important ideas were listed and ranked in order of priority by the villagers themselves.

In each community, participation of villagers was important, with an average of 44 families participating per community.

PRA confirmed the findings of the first assessment achieved by ACH during the identification of the project and its related activities. Promotion of diversification of the production, with new crops adapted to the area (vegetables, fruits, etc.) represented in the majority of the cases an alternative solution. The use of an irrigation system, when the technical conditions are suitable, allows for an increase in the yield and production of some specific crops, once the water constraints have been eliminated. The related needs identified were training in irrigation systems and in market gardening; however, as regards capacity building, the farmers did not see organizational support as a need within their community.

When the alternative of the irrigated crops was selected, a feasibility study (technical study) was carried out to verify the possibilities of implementing an irrigation system. Then, a focus group was organized to discuss the implementation of the systems and to identify the organizational needs. A list of workshops was elaborated that answered on one hand the training and technical assistance requested by the producers and, on the other hand, the needs and problems identified with the PRA.

Synthesis of steps taken for the Capacity Development Strategy/Programme design and implementation

First of all, after the feasibility study and before starting the implementation, an agreement of coordination between local actors and organizations is signed to avoid duplicating the work.

The capacity development strategy designed covered two main fields of action, the first one related to the organizational capacities and the second one to the specific technical issues.

With a sustainable common irrigation system which uses a common water source, the organization of the farmers is essential. The ACH team accompanied groups in the organizational process to strengthen cohesion within the groups involved in water management and to ensure the maintenance of the system.

Some meetings were carried out to organize working groups and to identify the community promoter in charge of the relation between the groups of farmers and the ACH extension team. The promoter was responsible for coordinating all the activities related to the installation, operation and maintenance of the system and also activities related to the diversification of the production.

To begin each group organized themselves for the construction of the irrigation system and planned the training with the ACH extension team. Training and technical assistance corresponded to needs and problems identified in the first stage with the PRA and to their demands; they were implemented during the construction of the systems and continued once the systems were built to accompany the producers.

To ensure this training, the ACH team wanted to specialize and followed a theoretical and practical training on irrigation organized by the FAO SPFS Programme (Special Programme for Food Security). The next table shows the common training program developed in the whole community, some specific training and technical assistance were mapped out in function of the situation, context and specific needs of farmer groups. Eighty percent of the topics in the training sessions were taken from suggestions proposed by producers during the PRA activity and 20 percent were selected by ACH technical staff according to the necessities identified when visiting the communities. Training sessions were based on theory but also practical cases.

Training	Developed subjects	Time
Manual of irrigation training Nº 1 “General concepts of Irrigation and Installation of Irrigation System”	Relation between Soil,	1 hr
	Soil
	Water
	Plants
	Irrigation	30 min
	What is Irrigation?	30 min
	When do I have to irrigate?	30 min
	How much do I have to irrigate?
	How do I irrigate?
	Types of irrigation	1 hr
	Sprinkler irrigation
	Row irrigation
	Drip irrigation
	Accessories that compose an Irrigation System	90 min
Manual of irrigation training Nº 2 “Characterization of the Area of Irrigation and Location of the spring catchment”	Characteristics of the area	90 min
	Types of water sources	1 hr
	To measure	90 min
	Construction of the intake	90 min
Manual of irrigation training Nº 3 “Installation of the pipeline and the Irrigation System”	How is water conducted to the plot?	3 hrs
	Installation of the Irrigation System	150 min
Manual of irrigation training Nº 4 “Operation and Irrigation System”	Operation and Irrigation System	30 min
	Maintenance of the Irrigation System	90 min
	Disassembling of the armed irrigation system	1 hr
	Disassembling of the installed irrigation system	90 min

This activity is part of a large programme of interventions: some community leaders were trained in justice and conflict resolution, they received training on themes such as law and management of natural resources, and also participated in workshops about local management of natural resources. It is important to link technical and organizational aspects with conflict resolution; indeed, the majority of the conflicts which exist in the communities are related to the management of natural resources such as the access to water which in a common irrigation systems can occur.

Self-construction of an irrigation system with technical assistance of ACH extension team

Materials used during irrigation training

ACH has coordinated the implementation of the project with the municipality but since it concerned capacity development, the technical team was coordinated with the UNAG (National Farmers Union), whose role is to give technical backstopping to farmers.

Problems and difficulties encountered while implementing and successful experiences

In order to ensure a good technical level, ACH team was especially advised by the SPFS programme; therefore, in the design and implementation of the technical part of the capacity development programme, ACH did not face major problems and difficulties. The training and technical assistance given were well oriented and adapted to the level of the beneficiaries.

Some difficulties were encountered at the technical and design of the irrigation system levels, which had direct repercussions on the sustainability of the irrigation system.

At the technical level, difficulties reside in the availability of a water source in the village and the ownership of the source. Designs of irrigation systems have been adapted consequently in each context and especially in function of the existing relationship between beneficiaries and the owner of the water source. An agreement between one of the beneficiaries and the owner of the water source has to be generally signed in order to allow the implementation of the systems.

This agreement, according to the cases, specified that the owner give the water access to other members of the group (individual irrigation system) or in addition to the access to water, loaned, for the benefit of the group, a plot to cultivate in common with a common system of irrigation. These are the solutions found to face the problem of availability and access to the water source for irrigation. The level of organization of the community or the farmer group was and is essential to attain the desired impact.

Successful experiences are related mainly to this last point, namely: the level of organization. In reference to technical results, they are very positive, production increased and an impact on the food security of the families has been noticed.

Systematization allowed ACH to measure the impact of the project, to learn lessons and to reorient the programme in the second phase:

92.2 percent of beneficiaries agreed that the irrigation system and diversified production system allow an improvement in the economic situation: with a better food availability and a reduction in the loss of harvest (76 percent).
The majority think that the training (100 percent) and technical assistance (94.2 percent) were good.
At the end of the project, in reply to the question “How would you solve any problems related to the maintenance”, 47.6 percent answered that they can solve it themselves, 48.5 percent said that they can solve it within the community and 3.9 percent think they have to find help outside.
Difficulties in knowledge transfer have been noted:
- Low academic level does not facilitate the transfer of knowledge.
- Groups of beneficiaries participating in the training are large and make the process of learning more difficult.
- Communities are distant from the meeting center which has had an impact on the level of participation.

In spite of the difficulties, producers were motivated to learn more about irrigation systems and they did their best to take part in the training sessions organized.

The lessons learnt that we can draw from the experience are:

Alternatives of production offered with an irrigation system allowed increasing the production during the drought season, diversifying production and diet and consequently have an impact on the reduction of food insecurity. It is also a solution which promotes the rational use of water and which is very compatible with sustainable management of natural resources.
A certain weakness in the organization of the groups can be noted: groups are very dependent on the promoter of the group and on the ACH technician. A doubt can be raised as for the sustainability of the system and the organization of beneficiaries when ACH leaves the community. Indeed, the irrigation systems were built at the request of groups of farmers, and only the technical possibilities of construction were studied. An irrigation system is foremost a social construction where human groups, communities and individuals collectively define modalities of access to water, as well as obligations and rules that all must fulfill to maintain and conserve the access to this resource. This complex reality has not been considered. Common irrigation systems were installed with an individual production purpose although in Nicaragua, access to water is considered an asset and the ownership individual; however, legally water is the property of the State. The group has negotiated an agreement with the owner of the spring, who gives access to water to the other producers without any contribution (payment in kind or in cash). These agreements are weak; they are effective as long as ACH is present but afterwards? Access to water is often the expression of social and/or economic status, and the sustainability of the agreements is not assured.
Action Against Hunger is currently providing technical assistance to these farmers who have become strongly dependent on this support. Normally, this technical assistance should be provided by UNAG, however the capacity of this national organization is not sufficient to ensure an adequate support. The topic of sustainability and the organizational capacity is an even greater challenge given the lack of public structures capable of giving occasional technical assistance.
In order to improve this point, the sustainability of the organization and consequently of the irrigation system, the following can be proposed:
- Strengthening the organization of the farmer group and the management of the irrigation system.
- Strengthening the capacity of UNAG to allow the farmers greater access to occasional technical support when needed.
- Creation of an irrigation committee responsible for the supervision of the management, technical maintenance, and the collection of funds for future maintenance.
- To avoid future conflict of interest, the community and groups of farmers have to discuss and consent upon the management of collective infrastructures as well as its legal statute for the medium and long term.
This activity, diversification of production through irrigation systems, is part of a large programme of ACH intervention in the province of Madriz which approaches production, environmental aspects and local management of natural resources aspects, with the same strategy, the reduction of poverty. Some community leaders have been trained in legal themes and conflict resolution; the project has to take greater advantage of the potential created, these individuals represent a benefit for the community, as they can help in the good management of the irrigation systems.

Conclusions

In terms of capacity development, the programme has to focus more on the organizational aspects. In the first two years of the project, training and technical assistance were concentrated on the production topics and the technical part of irrigation systems.

In order that the system of irrigation has real impact on food security, the diversification of production and consequently the reduction of poverty, it is important to incorporate in the capacity development themes which in a first instance are not seen as essential, but which are fundamental for the sustainability. Focus should be placed on subjects such as the organization of farmers, market aspects, monitoring of the production, water management, land tenure, etc. Sustainability is also strongly linked with access to natural resources and productive assets. Discussions have to be organized at the local level to study possible decisions of local management.

The next two years of the project foresee a consolidation of all aspects which enable a greater sustainability of diversified production systems using a common irrigation system, such as:

Special interest in the organizational support to the farmer groups.
Training in covering the aspects of market, planning, monitoring production and management of natural resources (legal aspects and local organization).
Promoting discussion in the community to ensure sustainability of the solution chosen (irrigation system) and the good management of natural resources. Also, promoting discussion in the community to reflect upon the importance of good management and organization to achieve a shared and equitable benefit for the community.

References

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Acción Contra el Hambre. (2003). Modulo de riego №3. Managua: Acción Contra el Hambre

Acción Contra el Hambre. (2003). Modulo de riego №4. Managua: Acción Contra el Hambre

Apollin, F. & Eberhart, C. (1998). Metodologías de análisis y diagnósticos de sistemas de riego campesino. Quito: CAMAREN - CICDA - RURALTER

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