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Natural hazards have become more frequent and intense in the last few decades, increasing the often significant negative impacts on the gross domestic product of countries in southern Africa and undermining development efforts. Forecasts are negative as a result of climate change, which is increasingly linked to more frequent and [...]

Namibia, distinguished by its arid climate, faces recurrent droughts that challenge local farmers heavily reliant on extensive livestock farming and rangelands. Bush encroachment, characterized by invasive woody species, exacerbates this issue, reducing grass availability, impacting biodiversity, and posing a threat to livestock production. This project addresses these challenges through value [...]

The creation of commercialization opportunities for smallholder farmers has taken primacy on the development agenda of many developing countries. Invariably, most of the smallholders are less productive than commercial farmers and continue to lag in commercialization. Apart from the various multifaceted challenges which smallholder farmers face, limited access to extension [...]

Since the FAW outbreak began in 2016, the the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) has taken multiple actions to strengthen countries’ capacity to respond to FAW through Technical Cooperation Programme projects and other funded initiatives.

Conventional approaches to agricultural extension based on top–down technology transfer and information dissemination models are inadequate to help smallholder farmers tackle increasingly complex agroclimatic adversities. Innovative service delivery alternatives, such as field schools, exist but are mostly implemented in isolationistic silos with little effort to integrate them for cost [...]

This report unpacks and explores farmer-managed seed systems and their contribution to food and seed sovereignty, including the benefits they provide to farming communities as a part of their sociocultural, economic, spiritual and ecological livelihoods. The report highlights, exposes and explores how these systems work. It builds on reports of [...]

Rice production in United Republic of Tanzania is increasingly becoming important to the national economy. It is among the major sources of employment and income for many farming households. Rice is mainly produced by small-scale farmers. While Tanzania meets 98% of its own rice demand, rice productivity in the country [...]

This curriculum focuses on how to grow beans and other legumes for seed, since it is difficult to find a large selection of varieties available to plant that are good for the soil and eating. This guide also provides information on how to grow seed that can be sold through [...]

Key guidelines and advice on effectively and sustainably managing FAW include: Visit the field and look at the status of the crop: its health and signs of presence of the FAW. Farmers can take direct action by crushing egg masses and young larvae. FAW damage can look alarming, but maize plants have [...]