Category Archives: Agriculture

Africa / Agriculture / East Africa / Ethiopia / Film and video / ILRI / Innovation Systems / IPMS / Markets / Value Chains

An innovation story: Irrigated banana value chain development in Ethiopia

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This innovation story narrates the experience of the Improving Productivity and Market Success (IPMS) project on innovative banana value chain development in Ethiopia. The project introduced banana production systems in the district for the first time in 2005. IPMS together with the stakeholders provided support along the banana value chain on production, input supply and … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / CCAFS / Climate Change / Event / Film and video / ILRI / Interview / South Asia

Models predicting agricultural impacts of climate change: How good are they for Africa and South Asia?

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Ox Cart Crossing a Flooded Plain, painting by Ivan Alvazovsky, 1897 (source: Wikipaintings). On 21 Feb 2012, from 14:30–15:30 (Central European Time), a video seminar will explore how current climate models for agricultural impacts perform in Africa and South Asia. The research in this study was coordinated by Phil Thornton, an agricultural systems analyst with … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / Animal Production / Animal Products / Botswana / Cattle / Dairying / East Africa / Innovation Systems / Kenya / Livestock / Report / Southern Africa / Uganda / Value Chains

Multi-stakeholder innovation in Africa: Dairy and beef cases feature in new report from FARA

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The Forum on Agricultural Research in Africa just published a new report on agricultural innovation in sub-Saharan Africa: experiences from multiple-stakeholder approaches. The report draws together case experiences across Africa with an ‘integrated agriculture research for development (IAR4D) approach’ that brings together multiple actors along a commodity value chain to address challenges and identify opportunities … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / Crop residues / Crop-Livestock / East Africa / Ethiopia / Event / HUMIDTROPICS / ILRI / Intensification / Livestock / Livestock Systems / Project / Research / South Africa / West Africa

Experts meet in Addis Ababa to design new agricultural research project for Ethiopian Highlands

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Around 60 experts are meeting at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Addis Ababa on 30th and 31st January to plan an exciting new research project that aims to transform agricultural systems in the Highland of Ethiopia. As in many part of Africa, farming systems in the Ethiopian Highlands are a mix of crop … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / Capacity Strengthening / East Africa / Ethiopia / ILRI / Innovation Systems / IPMS / Knowledge and Information / Markets

Increasing capacity for knowledge-based smallholder agriculture in Ethiopia

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This working paper by Tesfaye Lemma Tefera, Azage Tegegne and Dirk Hoekstra of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), on Capacity for knowledge-based smallholder agriculture in Ethiopia: Linking graduate programs to market-oriented agricultural development: Challenges, opportunities and IPMS experience was released by ILRI in January 2012. Graduate programs in agriculture and allied disciplines in Ethiopia are expected … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / Capacity Strengthening / Research

Strategic partnerships needed to build African scientific capacity for agriculture

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A report from the Center for Strategic and International Studies provides an overview of agricultural science cooperation within the African research system; the university system; and the role of partnerships with the private sector. The report identifies four key approaches: Focus on Problems. Achieving results will require serious focus. Focus on the most real and … Continue reading →

Africa / Agriculture / Crop-Livestock / Farming Systems / Ghana / HUMIDTROPICS / ILRI / Intensification / Mali / Project / Research / West Africa

Transforming African agricultural systems through sustainable intensification: Project design workshops

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As part of the US government’s Feed the Future initiative to address global hunger and food security issues in sub-Saharan Africa, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) is supporting three multi-stakeholder agricultural research projects to sustainably intensify key African farming systems. Based in three priority agro-ecological zones, the three projects are focused on sites … Continue reading →

Agriculture / Animal Breeding / Animal Diseases / Animal Production / Biodiversity / Biotechnology / Ethiopia / ILRI / Indigenous Breeds / Livestock / Sheep / Small Ruminants

Researching trypanotolerance in indigenous cattle breeds of Ethiopia

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Between 15 and 17 November 2011, scientists, experts and development practitioners from the Ethiopian Ministry of Agriculture, universities and non-governmental and international organizations gathered in Addis Ababa to share research results on trypanotolerance in indigenous local cattle breeds in Ethiopia (Sheko, Abigar, Horro and Gurage) and experiences with community-based sheep breeding. The Sheko breed got … Continue reading →