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2. What novel institutional partnerships and joint working arrangements have been developed for the implementation of Agenda 21?


Novel partnerships

France: National park partnerships

SUMMARY

Ten cases have been selected to illustrate the novel institutional partnerships and joint working arrangements developed to implement SARD

There are a number of important initiatives in the Parcs Naturels Régionaux that are seeking to reconcile local economic development with nature conservation. The common aspects of success in this field are that action occurs at a platform level, so allowing an integrated approach; that there is good negotiation and communication between the various local actors; and the contracts for farmers are voluntary. As the schemes are not imposed, but rather developed through an open and participatory process, farmers do not feel coerced.

Haute Chaumes and Haute Vallées Vosgiennes

The high pastures of the Vosges mountains, long sustained by farming, are under two particular pressures. Land use has intensified in some areas, leading to declining biodiversity, and at the same time land is being abandoned in other areas, leading to tree encroachment and again loss of conservation value. Technical committees were established by the park authorities to draw up a common land management policy with all the main stakeholders. Surveys were carried out with farmers. It was particularly important get everyone involved as the area falls between two regions and is under the control of many local authorities. Farmers have now entered into contracts to follow more sustainable farming practices, such as controlling livestock numbers, not using fertilizers, and not burning.

Marais du Cotentin et du Bessin

The marshes on the Cherbourg peninsula are of international ecological importance, but deterioration of the habitat is now widespread. Neglected wet grasslands turn to peat bogs, become waterlogged, the soils become acid, plant biodiversity falls, and the area becomes less attractive to agriculture. This encourages greater intensification on the remaining grasslands, the productivity of which is increasingly maintained with high fertilizer inputs. Aworking group was established with local and central government, farmers, conservationists, hunters and anglers. This conducted surveys and experiments with alternative practices. As a result, farmers now enter into contracts to use extensive farming practices that preserve the unique landscape.

® Source: Pretty (1998)

India: Indo-German Watershed Development Programme, Maharashtra

The IGWDPis an integrated environmental regeneration programme implemented by village self-help groups in the drought-prone state of Maharashtra. It is assisted by the German development agency GTZ and development bank KfW, and administered by NABARD (the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development) and the locally Watershed Organisation Trust. The programme works in partnership with 51 local NGOs and 77 village self-help groups, and has seen sustainable agriculture implemented on some 92 000 hectares, with the involvement of about 20 000 farm households. There has been a marked improvement in agricultural productivity (dryland yields up 250 percent; milk productivity (wells wet for more months per year; increased fodder grass production), which in turn has increased incomes and food security (household grain production up 40-100 percent), reduced seasonal migration, increased school attendance, and a led to a wider sense of hope and confidence amongst rural people. Many new village institutions have also been organized by rural people, including grain banks, womens groups, youth groups, credit unions, dairy cooperatives, and agricultural cooperative societies.

® Source: Lobo and Korchendorfer, Lucius (1998)

Kenya: Ministry of Agriculture catchment approach to soil and water conservation

Kenya has a long history of state intervention in both soil and water conservation and land management. Early approaches focused on providing cash payments to encourage farmers to construct the labour intensive measures such as cut-off drains and artificial waterways. By the late 1980s, it was clear that the conventional approach to soil and water conservation was unable to meet the prevailing environmental challenge.

The Government of Kenya recognized that the only way to achieve widespread conservation coverage was to mobilize people to embrace soil and water conserving practices on their own terms. All financial subsidies were stopped, and resources allocated instead to participatory processes, extension, training, tools and farmer trips. It adopted in 1989 the Catchment (or Area of Concentration) Approach. This is seen as a way of concentrating resources and efforts within a specified catchment (typically 200-500 hectares) for a limited period of time (generally one year), during which all farms are laid out and conserved with full community participation. Small adjustments and maintenance would then carried out by the community members themselves with the support of local extension agents.

Participatory methods imply shifts of initiative, responsibility and action to rural people themselves. Interdisciplinary teams drawn from various government departments work for about a week in the catchment. These teams often include officers from MALDM, as well as those from other departments and ministries, including Education, Environment, Fisheries, Forestry, Public Works, Water Development, and Health. They sometimes include staff of local and international NGOs who are actively working in the catchment. Following the Rapid Catchment Analysis phase, a Catchment Conservation Committee of farmers is elected as the institution responsible for coordinating local activities. A Catchment Report serves as a baseline document for planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation, and for coordinated action by extension professionals based at Divisional and District level.

The Catchment Approach brings significant benefits over the individual farmer approach. The number of farms fully conserved each year in Kenya with various SWC measures has risen with the Catchment Approach from 59 450 (with doubts about sustainability) in 1988 to some 100 000 in the mid-1990s. The process of implementation of the Catchment Approach itself has varied according to the human resources available and differing interpretations of the degree of participation necessary to mobilize the catchment community (Pretty et al, 1995). The impacts vary according to the quality of the interaction between extension staff and local people. When participation in planning and implementation is interactive, the impacts are substantially greater than when participation is simply consultative.

In an interactively planned catchment, an interdepartmental participatory rural appraisal is conducted to launch the catchment, which includes a baraza for presenting back findings and developing joint plans. The catchment committee is freely elected, and includes both men and women. After the catchment has been completed, the committees tend to remain active and committed to maintenance and replication. In conventionally planned catchments, the baraza is held mainly for publicity purposes, the catchment committees are more frequently selected by local leaders, and women rarely participate. The committees tend to become inactive soon after intensive contact with extension staff ends.

® Source: M. Mbote and J.K. Kiara, Soil and Water Conservation Branch, Ministry of Agriculture, Nairobi

United Kingdom: The North York Moors National Park Farm Scheme, North Yorkshire

The NYM National Park receives some 10-12 million visitor-days each year. In recent years, there have been major environmental changes, with the amalgamation of farms and a sharp decline in employment opportunities. The National Park Committee had been working on a small scale with farmers during the 1980s on projects such as tree planting, drystone wall repair, bracken control and woodland management, but realized it needed to take a more coordinated approach. The NYM Farm Scheme was launched in 1990, with support from the National Park budget.

The NYM Farm Scheme seeks to encourage sensitive land management whilst maintaining farm viability. At present it works with farmers within selected dales. Management agreements are developed with each farmer. These aim to guarantee the conservation of landscape, wildlife and historic features in the National Park, whilst creating new environmental benefits; maintain the rural fabric of the dales; restore and conserve vernacular farm buildings; stimulate the rural economy and creating jobs; and ensure that farmers still have flexibility in their land management decisions.

The scheme is offered to all farmers in a designated area, and by 1996 there was a 90 percent uptake amongst eligible farmers. The personal contacts between staff of the scheme and local farmers is seen as crucial to long-term success, and peer pressure amongst local people helps to keep support high. The management agreements are for five years, are individually tailored, and make provisions for maintenance and management payments. The Farm Scheme has resulted in a marked improvement in the landscape (particularly farm buildings and walls), as well as improving farm incomes and raising farmers' awareness and knowledge of conservation. A recent survey of visitors who regularly walk the landscape showed that they had recognized the changes and valued them. Altogether, sixteen new jobs have been created for the 110 farm agreements - equivalent to one for every seven farms.

® Source: Pretty (1998).The Living Land

Social groups and federations

Colombia: Comité de Investigación Agrícola Local (CIAL) in Colombia and seven other countries of Latin America

Many Latin American countries have reduced investments in agricultural research and extension, and so it is increasingly critical that research is decentralized and devolved to farmers themselves. The CIALs (or local agricultural research committees) are social and institutional mechanisms promoted by CIAT to develop and expand participatory and adaptive approaches to agricultural research, and to fill the gap left by the retreating state. Some 249 CIALs have been formed in eight countries: in Colombia, the CIAL programme has worked with 4 000 farmers in about 50 communities. The aim is to improve agroecosystem productivity and health, extend the capacity of poor communities to solve agricultural problems, and take advantage of new economic opportunities.

All CIALs develop their own research topics, and so there is no common impact. The social learning and institutional process is, however, similar. CIALs incorporate four or more farmer researchers elected by their community to conduct experiments for the benefit of the all local farmers. Technical supervision is given by external technicians and agricultural scientists. Regional groupings of CIALs hold annual meetings to share findings, and increase cross-community interaction. As CIALs mature, so does the generalized social capital in communities at large. Many CIALs invest in wider community activities, such as basic milling equipment, or in rotating credit funds. There have been many improvements to yields - maize typically up from 820 kg/ha to 1 400 kg/ha following adoption of agro-ecological approaches.

In communities with CIALs, some 30 percent of households suffer food shortages during August-September, whereas 50-65 percent are insecure in communities without CIALs. The greatest benefits appear to be for the poorest households. A wide range of different technologies have been developed, including rearing of guinea pigs, reintroduction of wheat cultivation, live barriers, IPM in potatoes, organically-produced sugar patties, agroforestry, use of green manures, mulches, and the establishment of small food enterprises. There are many important challenges, not least in finding ways to ensure that groups are able to mature and develop, rather than fall away after initial successes.

® Source: Ann Braun, CIAT, Braun (2000)

Japan: Consumer cooperatives link to farmers

Food cooperatives are an important way to get good food to urban groups with no direct access to farms and the countryside. Direct links between consumers and farmers have had spectacular success in Japan, with the rapid growth of the consumer cooperatives, sanchoku groups (direct from the place of production) and teikei schemes (tie-up or mutual compromise between consumers and producers). This extraordinary movement has been driven by consumers rather than farmers, and mainly by women. There are now some 800-1 000 groups in Japan, with a total membership of 11 million people and an annual turnover of more than US$15 billion. These consumer-producer groups are based on relations of trust, and put a high value on face-to-face contact. Some of these have had a remarkable effect on farming, as well as on other environmental matters.

The largest and best-known consumer group is the Seikatsu Club, a consumer cooperation union and recipient of the Right Livelihood Award in 1989. This has a membership of more than 210 000 households organized into 26 000 hans, or local branches, all over Japan. It was set up in 1965 by housewives in Tokyo, who wanted to find a way of avoiding the high price of milk. Their idea was to band together and buy milk directly from farmers. Over the next few years, they also began to purchase a range of food free of pesticides, clothes and cosmetics wholesale. Club members then began to take care of distribution themselves.

In the late 1970s, a new headquarters was set up in Setagaya and the first Seikatsu Club housewife was elected to local government the following year. Although 37 members have now entered local politics, the Club seeks a much deeper change, aiming to seek to empower each and every member with a voice and role in participatory politics. Historically isolated in the home, this has given strength and new opportunities to women. The turnover of the Seikatsu Club alone is now 40 billion yen (US$320-350 million) and it employs 905 full-time staff.

® Source: Pretty (1998). The Living Land; and <http://iisd1.iisd.ca/50comm/commdb/desc/d08.htm>

Kenya: Community Mobilization against Desertification (C-MAD) programme

The C-MAD programme works in a 'low-potential' part of South Nyanza, western Kenya. The programme area has a single rainfall season, and the land is badly degraded due to overgrazing and deforestation. The project began as a straightforward tree-planting effort, expanded to incorporate soil conservation, soil fertility and organic farming methods, and now focuses on whole farm improvements. The social processes incorporate participatory learning methods, farmer-based research groups, strengthening community and village groups, and collaboration with government and non-government research and extension agencies.

It works with about 500 farmers in some 1 000 hectares, who have seen maize yields improve from about 2 to 4 t/ha. Income has also increased for many farmers following the cultivation of fruit (citrus, orange, mango, pineapple). The project reports increased local employment through growth in demand for on-farm labour. The cultivation of vegetables in home gardens has further improved domestic food security. The project also reports reduced child mortality and improved health and nutritional status.

® Source: Peter Omondi, C-MAD

Senegal: Federation of Senegalese NGOs (FONGS)

The FONGS was established in 1978 by government to give greater voice to village-based associations concerned with input procurement, collective food production, processing and marketing. At the beginning of this decade, the FONGS included 24 regionally-based associations made up in turn of 2 000 village groups with a membership of 400 000. Some 1.5 million people in all are thought to be positively affected by grassroots association activities (about 20 percent of the national population).

During the 1990s, farmers increasingly articulated concerns over the modern agricultural model that resulted in over-exploitation of natural resources combined with dependence on increasingly costly non-renewable inputs to boost productivity. At the same time, experiments with sustainable agriculture alternatives were on the increase. A national FONGS organized forum led to the emergence of a new platform bringing together all national federations - the National Council for Rural Dialogue and Cooperation (CNCR), with a membership of three million. In the past five years, CNCR has participated in policy development, established a technical support unit for farmers, and developed a new credit system based on farmers' savings.

Private sector and sustainable agriculture

Worldwide: Unilever plc and Sustainable Agriculture Initiative

More than two-thirds of the raw materials used by the food company Unilever come from agricultural crops and livestock, fisheries and other potentially renewable sources. They are among the world's largest users of certain agricultural raw materials such as tea, vegetables and vegetable oils. Since the mid-1990s, Unilever has been consulting with experts and engaging with suppliers, customers, consumers and business partners around the world to find a sustainable way forward for agriculture. This has led to the following definition of sustainable agriculture: "In our definition, sustainable agriculture is productive, competitive and efficient whilst at the same time protecting and improving the natural environment and conditions of the local communities."

Unilever explicitly supports the following sustainable agriculture principles:

® Producing crops with high yield and nutritional quality to meet existing and future needs, while keeping resource inputs as low as possible.

® Ensuring that any adverse effects on soil fertility, water and air quality and biodiversity from agricultural activities are minimized and positive contributions are made where possible.

® Optimizing the use of renewable resources while minimizing the use of non-renewable resources.

® Sustainable agriculture should enable local communities to protect and improve their well being and environments.

Unilever has initiated a series of projects around the world to measure the sustainability of its practices according to a set of 10 indicators. The aim is to understand and agree the ecological, social and economic conditions for sustainable agriculture. These will eventually contribute to the development of standards for sustainable agriculture. Their focus is on the underlying health and vitality of agricultural systems-in social, economic and environmental terms: "We believe that there needs to be a greater diversity of approaches to farm and plantation management. All agricultural systems have something to offer and we want to find out what works best under differing circumstances". Pilot projects are in tea, tomatoes, palm oil, peas and spinach. The ten indicators being used are: i) Soil fertility/health; ii) Soil loss; iii) Nutrients; iv) Pest Management; v) Biodiversity; vi) Product value; vii) Energy; viii) Water; ix) Social/human capital; x) Local economy.

® Source: Jan Kees Vis <[email protected]> <www.unilever.com>

South Africa: Bayer (Pty) Ltd and integrated production in deciduous fruit and vines

The case concerns the production of deciduous fruit and table and wine Grapes. The contribution was through participation by all parties whereby a system was created in which future use of new land is controlled and planning of new plantings and spray programmes and management systems geared to have a minimum detrimental effect on the environment. It involves approximately 165 ha of fruit and vines.

In the early 1990s, producers of fruit, grapes and wine in the Western Cape, became more aware of the need for environmental protection and human safety. An IP steering committee was formed and out of this an Ag Chem environmental group, made up from all role players in the industry from e.g. universities, exporters, coops, research institutes, beekeepers, the agricultural chemical industry etc. Written guidelines for pome and stone fruit, grapes and wine production were drawn up and a scoring system for spray programmes was developed to quantify this aspect. The Ag Chem group meets a few times annually and reviews the guidelines and related practises and codes new crop protection agents by consensus. An informal IPM group, including all role players, meets every 14 days for one hour during the growing season. Trends and topical subjects are discussed and if necessary action taken. Orchard monitoring courses are held for selected farm workers. Certificates are issued. They are trained to recognize and record the incidence of pests, diseases and beneficials. This information is used to optimize control measures. The most outstanding elements of the project include the cooperation of all the key stakeholders, the distribution of written guidelines for production and quantification of adherence, and the optimization of chemical control measures (reduction of sprays e.g. acaricides).

® Source: Bayer (PTY) Ltd.


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