Need for integrated, multidisciplinary and international perspectives in research for agricultural development in Africa Thomas Rosswall, Chair CCAFS ABSTRACT The Millennium Development Goal 1, Target 3: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people who suffer from hunger , will not be met by 2015. In addition, we face a number of environmental challenges (MDG7). For example, climate change will worsen the conditions of African farmers, who are already vulnerable and food insecure. Scientific research must provide knowledge for the development of alternative pathways to reach sustainable development by jointly addressing MDG1 and 7. This necessitates a change in both what we do research on and how we conduct the research. Development and global change have been addressed, researched and funded as unrelated issues. We must develop a multifunctional perspective of agriculture to lead this development looking at how we can further strengthen the resilience of the farming systems, while ensuring increased productivity without major expansion of land. Farmers must also have access to markets and the rural community needs different livelihood options with focus on the smallholder farmers. It is also necessary with a food systems approach to address the scientific basis for food security. Agriculture should be analyzed in the context of ecosystem services looking at the ecological, economic and social basis for human well-being. Efficient decision support systems and general access to information are crucial components in order to escape poverty. By using a conceptual framework for research on ecosystem services for poverty alleviation will it be possible to bend the curves and change the direction.
Need for integrated, multidisciplinary and international perspectives in research for agricultural development in Africa
Jul 21, 2015
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Need for integrated, multidisciplinary and international perspectives in research for
agricultural development in Africa
Thomas Rosswall, Chair CCAFSABSTRACT
The Millennium Development Goal 1, Target 3: Halve, between 1990 and 2015, the proportion of people whosuffer from hunger, will not be met by 2015. In addition, we face a number of environmental challenges (MDG7).For example, climate change will worsen the conditions of African farmers, who are already vulnerable and foodinsecure. Scientific research must provide knowledge for the development of alternative pathways to reachsustainable development by jointly addressing MDG1 and 7. This necessitates a change in both what we doresearch on and how we conduct the research.
Development and global change have been addressed, researched and funded as unrelated issues. We mustdevelop a multifunctional perspective of agriculture to lead this development looking at how we can furtherstrengthen the resilience of the farming systems, while ensuring increased productivity without major expansion ofland. Farmers must also have access to markets and the rural community needs different livelihood options withfocus on the smallholder farmers.
It is also necessary with a food systems approach to address the scientific basis for food security. Agricultureshould be analyzed in the context of ecosystem services looking at the ecological, economic and social basis forhuman well-being. Efficient decision support systems and general access to information are crucial components inorder to escape poverty. By using a conceptual framework for research on ecosystem services for povertyalleviation will it be possible to bend the curves and change the direction.
Need for integrated, multidisciplinary and international perspectives in research for
agricultural development in Africa
Thomas Rosswall, Chair CCAFS
The Anthropocene
“We’ve now entered a unique century, the first in the 45 million centuries of Earth’s history, in which one species – ours –could determine, for good or ill, the entire planet’s future”.
Lord Rees of LudlowPresident, the Royal Society of LondonEditorial in Science, 25 June 2010
UN MDG Summit 20-22 September 2010
"It is clear that improvements in the lives of the poor have been unacceptably slow, and some hard-won gains are being eroded by the climate, food and economic crises," UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon says in the foreword to the Millennium Development Goals Report
Millennium Development Goals
The number of undernourishedpeople is increasing, while we are constrained by:
NinePlanetary
Boundaries
Rockström et al., Nature, 461 472-475 (2009)
Trends in World Hunger
Rockström & Karlberg (Ambio 2010)
Human growth20/80 dilemma
Ecosystems60 % loss dilemma
Climate550/450/350
dilemma
Surprise99/1 dilemma
”The Quadruple Squeeze”
The Big Disconnect
Development and global changehave been addressed, researched,and funded as unrelated issues
A Question of Scale
Sachs et al. Nature 2010
28 September 2010 Agri4D
... and geographic diffrencesDifferences
Brazil Africa9
Global
IntegratedSiloed
Local
BusinessAs Usual
DevelopmentResearch
BusinessAs UsualGlobalChange
D4GΔDevelopment
for Global Change
Adapted from Sara Farley, The World Bank
The Opportunity
A Multifunctional Perspective of Agriculture
International Assessment of Agricultural Science and Technology for Development (IAASTD, 2009)
A Changing Focus over Time
Smallholder Farmers in Africa
African Agriculture• No other continent has been so closely
connected to smallholder farming• Smallholders account for more than 90% of
production• More than 400 million farms of less than 2 ha
operated mainly as family farms• 25% have more than 2 ha, 50% have 0.5-2 ha
and 25% have ½ ha or less• Agriculture employs more than 60% of the
working population and contributes more than 35% of GDP in most African countries
Assefa Adamassie (2010)
Main Elements of Food Systems
FOOD UTILISATION
FOOD ACCESS
• Affordability• Allocation• Preference
• Nutritional Value• Social Value• Food Safety
FOOD AVAILABILITY
• Production• Distribution• Exchange
GECAFS conceptual diagram
DRIVERInteractions
SocioeconomicDRIVERSChanges in:
Demographics, Economics,Socio-political context,
Cultural contextScience & Technology
GEC DRIVERSChanges in:
Land cover & soils, Atmospheric Comp., Climate variability & means,
Water availability & quality, Nutrient availability & cycling,
Biodiversity, Sea currents & salinity, Sea level
‘Natural’DRIVERS
e.g. VolcanoesSolar cycles
Environmental feedbackse.g. water quality, GHGs
Socioeconomic feedbackse.g. livelihoods, social cohesion
Food System ACTIVITIESProducing food
Processing & Packaging foodDistributing & Retailing food
Consuming food
Food System OUTCOMESContributing to:
Social Welfare
EnvironWelfare
Food Utilisation
Food Access
Food Availability
Food Security
Analysing Food Systems
From GECAFS
Ecosystem Change for Human Well-being
Tools Needed
1. Ecology:“what’s where?”
2. Economics:“what’s it worth?”
3. Policy & finance:“who pays and how?”
Chan, et al. 2006. PLoS Biology
19
Tools Needed
1. Ecology:“what’s where?”
2. Economics:“what’s it worth?”
3. Policy & finance:“who pays and how?”
Net Present Value($ / ha)
Mbaracayu, Paraguay
Five services• Carbon storage• Sust. hunting• Sust. timber• Pharmaceuticals• Existence
Naidoo and Ricketts. 2006. PLoS Biology
$/ha NPV
Tools Needed
1. Ecology:“what’s where?”
2. Economics:“what’s it worth?”
3. Policy & finance:“who pays and how?”
The Climate Change Challenge
• Climate change will worsen the living conditions of farmers, fishers and forest-dependent people who are already vulnerable and food insecure
• Rural communities ... face an immediate and ever-growing risk of increased crop failure, loss of livestock, loss of fisheries ......
• Hunger and malnutrition will increase
FAO 2009
Projected Impacts of Climate Change
Stern Review (2008)
The CGIAR Approach
Trends in Rainfall Variability; Sahel
WMO (2006)
What are the adaptation options?
We are asking for a wide range of agricultural sector actors to change their behavior, to innovate, under conditions of incomplete and un-integrated markets, assymetricinformation & missing insurance and credit markets
The Challenge
Greenhouse Gas Production from Different Sectors in 2008
UN FCCC (2008)
What are the mitigation options?
Poverty Alleviation through Mitigation
Payments for GHG services
GHG Measuring and monitoring system
Trade-offs and Synergies: Food and Carbon (FAO 2009)
Failings in Decision Support
• Being driven by science alone (i.e., no clear users)
• Targeting the wrong decision-makers as users, or the right ones in the wrong way
• Failing to work across scales, given much source work in local case studies
• Omitting to identify and use the modes of engagement and leverage points
Mark Stafford-Smith (2010)
Research shows four key factors related to escape of poverty:
CellphonesEducation of girls and women
Access to mass media
Improved physical access to towns
P. Kristjanson (2010)
Conceptual FrameworkEcosystem Services for Poverty Alleviation
DFID, NERC, ESRC, LWEC (2010)
Per Olsson, SRC, 2009
What Next?
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