In their individual and joint efforts to address the problems of poverty, IFAD and its partner agencies in the NENA region are confronted by a large number of constraints, including:
• The natural resource base in both quantity and quality, in particular, the prevalence of
desert and semi-arid areas and the frequency of adverse climatic effects, especially
drought.
• The reliance of many farming systems in the NENA region on subsistence farming systems
and traditional crops.
• The increasing price volatility of agricultural commodities, particularly cereals and oilseeds,
causing greater uncertainty among farmers of traditional crops.
• Farm fragmentation, the small size of holdings and the limited role of farmer organizations.
The project experience of IFAD and recent ICARDA study results both suggest that the quandary posed by these limitations may best be resolved through innovation in farming systems and diversification in livelihoods. One promising avenue is the production and improved marketing of high-value crops (HVCs) of non-traditional horticultural types and the judicious use of herbal, medicinal and aromatic plants (HMAPs). Such an approach is consistent with the thrusts of IFAD’s strategy in empowering the poor and diversifying livelihoods, and it is rational in terms of exploiting the greater water use efficiency, the better economic returns and the capacity for value addition and employment creation associated with these crops and products.