CGIAR Research Programs
Africa’s livestock producers are bucking a trend, by proving resilient to climate change and generating huge economic benefits for their nations and regions, say researchers in a book published today by the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED) and SOS Sahel. It shows how pastoralism is a major economic player and contributor to many … Continue reading
The water level of the river Nile – crucial to the economy in many parts of Uganda, Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia – is dropping. Film-maker Andrew Johnstone follows the course of the Nile to discover how climate change is already affecting the river’s farming communities. View the video … (The Guardian) Continue reading
Climate has been central to much of the work of the CGIAR centres, variable and uncertain weather being one of the greatest challenges to small-scale farmers and other resource managers. New technologies and knowledge resulting from this work include hardier crops and better ways to manage trees, livestock, water, soil and fish. The CGIAR Challenge … Continue reading
Things Fall Apart Things have quickly fallen apart in this particular drought in the Horn’s vast drylands because of a toxic mix of underlying factors. Land Use Among the things not being redressed are land-use policies and practices that fail to account for population increases and thus are restricting herders to ever smaller, drier and … Continue reading
…David Nkedianye, a researcher at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Kabete, said greenhouses are threatening to edge the pastroalists out of their traditional lands. “The water issue is a very controversial one. How do you extract so much water for greenhouse agriculture in an arid area where one of the key concerns is … Continue reading
The stresses of climate-induced crop failures could be avoided if more small farmers in Africa also raised livestock, say researchers. Climate change will result in a 10–20 per cent drop in yield for crops such as beans, maize and millet in Africa’s drylands by 2050, researchers from the Kenya-based International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and … Continue reading
This report by Moti Jaleta, Berhanu Gebremedhin and Dirk Hoekstra of ILRI on Smallholder commercialization: processes, determinants and impact was released on 2 June, 2009. This paper reviews the literature on smallholder commercialization. It explores the conceptual developments in smallholder commercialization, methodological advancements in measuring the degree of agricultural commercialization at household level, and the … Continue reading
This Publication by ILRI on Mapping a better future: how spatial analysis can benefit wetlands and reduce poverty in Uganda was released on 25 May, 2009 This publication presents results of a study carried on Ugandan abundant natural wealth. Its varied wetlands, including grass swamps, mountain bogs, seasonal floodplains, and swamp forests, provide services and … Continue reading
ILRI Clippings 