This paper uses the sustainable livelihoods framework to explore the contribution of smallholder production to food security in some sub-Saharan African countries and relates it to the South African case. Noting that many of the world’s hungry are smallholder farmers, it is clear that food insecurity is closely linked to...

The project has supported the Volta Mango Growers Association (VOMAGA). This report presents the results of a survey among a sample of the mango farmers on the impact of the project. The report first gives an introduction to the mango sector in Ghana and the project partners and activities. Subsequently...

The FAO project “Increasing incomes and food security of small farmers in West and Central Africa through exports of organic and fair-trade tropical products” has supported the Ekumfi Atwia WAD Organic Farmers Association (EAWOFA) and its exporter Weya Agricultural Development/African Foods Ltd (WAD). This report presents the results of a...

Welcome to Dimitra Newsletter No. 16! This issue is devoted – as all our newsletters are – to the empowerment of women and men living in rural areas. FAO’s efforts in the Great Lakes Region highlight the fact that Farmer Field Schools can be instrumental in addressing a range of...

Among the experiences shared in this newsletter, we would like to focus on Dimitra and its partners’ work in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the field of rural radio and participatory communication. A rural radio and listeners’ club project, conducted in South Kivu province with SAMWAKI and GTZ-Santé, is...

This paper assesses the current rural development practice against the main trends in recent rural development thinking, based on evidence from four country case studies. While much progress has been made in understanding the need to look beyond only agriculture for the promotion of productive activities in rural areas, and...

This case study presents the status of conservation agriculture in Ghana. It is one in a series of eight case studies about conservation agriculture in Africa, which were developed within the framework of collaboration between CIRAD (French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development), FAO (Food and Agriculture Organization of the...

Smallholders in Ghana, as elsewhere, are widely considered to be the largest as well as the most vulnerable component of the rural sector. Ghana professes national development objectives of reducing rural poverty through the increased productivity and commercialization of smallholder agriculture. As a starting point for more detailed discussion of...

IMF and World Bank liberalisation policies have had an uncertain impact on African economies and their agricultural sector. Despite some improved macro-economic data these liberalisation measures had a negative impact on smallholder farmers and their right to food. The shift in the EU-ACP partnership during the 1990s away from preferential...

The need to focus on women farmers' productivity, which can be an effective engine for social change, has become increasingly clear in sub-Saharan Africa. Women have a significant role in farming and post-harvest activities in most countries in the region. Nevertheless, a complex set of rights and obligations reflecting social...

This is the 11th Dimitra newsletter. Our last edition was replaced by the distribution of the Dimitra CD-ROM. Many of you took time to return the short survey we enclosed with it and we would like to thank you for this valuable feedback. We have also received numerous messages telling...

Rural livelihoods in many parts of sub-Saharan Africa are under considerable stress. Economies and the political environment are experiencing a period of significant transformation, and poverty is endemic. Agriculture remains at the core of rural livelihoods and farm power (from human, draught animal and tractor sources) is a crucial input...

Over the past decade, Africa and other developing regions have been in the midst of tremendous changes. Market liberalisation and governmental decentralisation policies have interfaced with globalisation and urbanisation trends to dramatically transform social, political, economic and cultural lives. Agriculture can no longer remain behind-serving only to meet subsistence food...

The People, Land Management and Environmental Change (PLEC) project is a largely farmer-driven demonstration project consisting of five ecosystem clusters and spread over eight countries: Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, China, Papua New Guinea and Brazil. PLEC was initiated in 1992 by the United Nations University (UNU) as an international...

In the winter of October 1999, as part of a programme of ICSF, three persons converged on the Treasure Guest House in Accra, Ghana. They came from three very distinct parts of the world, each bringing along a different baggage of culture and upbringing. What they shared, however, was a...

In this issue, we conclude with the last two presentations of our local partners with a description of CREDIF, covering North Africa, and of POSDEV, covering a number of countries in West Africa. Ruth Ochieng, from Isis-WICCE in Uganda, presents the work undertaken by her organisation, which strives to empower...

In the present issue, a large proportion of the columns will be been devoted to the Reflection and Self-Evaluation Workshop held in Brussels on 16-18 October with the partners of the Dimitra Project. We hand over to the partners, who have drawn up two documents on the proceedings of the...

"Nature et Faune" is a quarterly international publication dedicated to the exchange of information and scientific data on wildlife and protected areas management and conservation of natural resources on the African continent. The current issue of "Nature et Faune" covers the outcome of a study carried out for FAO on...

"Nature et Faune" is a quarterly international publication dedicated to the exchange of information and scientific data on wildlife and protected areas management and conservation of natural resources on the African continent. Within the context of its information and training programme on Wildlife management, FAO, in conjunction with the University...