The goal of this sample proposal is to improve the productivity of crop-livestock production system by integrating all important components of pulses in mixed farming systems with purpose to enhance the adoption rate of improved varieties of faba bean, lentil, and chickpea along with the recommended production technologies through knowledge empowerment, technology intervention and input supply. This proposal envisages promotion of improved pulse production technologies along with best bet varieties as a package among the smallholder farmers . The pulses technologies to be promoted in the cool highland areas are best bet varieties of faba bean, chickpea, and lentil in rotation and as intercrop with cereals, integrated nutrient management involving Rhizobium inoculation and phosphoric fertilizers, integrated pest management, and weed control practices including hand weeding and pre-emergence application of herbicides and timely field operations. A farmer’s participatory seed production program will be established to meet the local seed demand in the region. Conservation agriculture involving minimum tillage, crop rotation and weed management will also be demonstrated for its role in mitigation of severe topsoil erosion in cultivated highlands through interventions at the individual farm level. If you want to design your own proposal to improve the productivity of crop livestock production. This sample proposal is for you.
Background & Justification
Pulses, which occupy ~13% of cultivated land and account for ~10% of the agricultural value addition, are critical to smallholder livelihoods in Ethiopia as these crops play a critical role in agricultural production, economic growth through income generation and food security. Among the pulses, faba bean, field pea, chickpea, lentil, and grass pea are categorized as highland pulses and grown in the cooler highlands. These crops contribute to smallholder income, as a higher-value crop than cereals, and to diet, as a cost-effective source of protein that accounts for approximately 15% of protein intake. Moreover, pulses offer natural soil maintenance benefits through nitrogen-fixing, which improves yields of cereals through crop rotation, and can also result in savings for smallholder farmers from less fertilizer use. Earlier studies reported feed resources to be the major bottleneck to livestock production in the highlands of Ethiopia. Legumes are also very important in the Bale farming system to break the mono-culture wheat based system that is always suffer from new races of rust damage to the crop. Therefore, crop residues of these crops offer a major source of feed and forage in the predominant crop-livestock system of Ethiopia. While pulses are grown throughout the country on 1.36 million ha with 1.95 million tons production (Table 1), their cultivation (70-90%) is concentrated in the highlands of xxxx regions. From 1994/95 – 2008/09, rates of production growth for chickpea, faba bean, and lentil in Ethiopia were 12, 7, and 15%, respectively. For each crop, the rates of production growth outpaced rates of growth in cultivated land, suggesting parallel gains in productivity.
Table 1. Area, Production and productivity of pulses in Ethiopi
In spite of spectacular productivity gains in the past, the current productivity of pulses falls significantly below the demonstrated potential. For example, current yield of pulses is 1.4 tons per ha which can be increased to 2.5 tons per ha with the adoption of improved varieties and appropriate production technologies like agronomic and pest management practices. This gain in productivity would not only increase smallholder income by 40 to 70% per ha, but would also ensure greater food security through meeting domestic pulse demand. At the farm level, pulses productivity is below potential mainly due to low adoption rate of improved varieties, non-availability of quality seed of improved cultivars, unawareness of farmers about the improved varieties and technologies, and limited use of modern agronomic practices and production inputs.
This proposal envisages promotion of improved pulse production technologies along with best bet varieties as a package among the smallholder farmers in the Bale highlands of Ethiopia. The pulses technologies to be promoted in the cool highland areas are best bet varieties of faba bean, chickpea, and lentil in rotation and as intercrop with cereals, integrated nutrient management involving Rhizobium inoculation and phosphoric fertilizers, integrated pest management, and weed control practices including hand weeding and pre-emergence application of herbicides and timely field operations. A farmer’s participatory seed production program will be established to meet the local seed demand in the region. Conservation agriculture involving minimum tillage, crop rotation and weed management will also be demonstrated for its role in mitigation of severe topsoil erosion in cultivated highlands through interventions at the individual farm level in targeted areas. We will also assess farmers’ current pulses management practices, determine the technical and socioeconomic factors affecting the adoption of pulses technologies, and draw implications for research, extension, and policy. Therefore, the project is built on three major interventions:
Demonstration of improved varieties and production technologies: ABC in association with XXXX has released several high yielding varieties of major pulse crops (20 faba bean, 26 field pea, 16 chickpea, and 12 lentil) and recommended associated crop management practices for Ethiopian farmers. These varieties, if used with recommended production packages, have the potential to increase pulse yields two to three fold. The merits of these varieties have been confirmed by nationwide technology demonstration programs conducted throughout the country with farmers, researchers, extension agents and other stakeholders. While agronomic practices such as the sowing time, fertilizer and insecticide applications, crop rotation, and weeding and harvesting are critically important to achieve optimum productivity, many farmers are unaware of their benefits. Improved varieties and production technologies to be demonstrated in the highlands of Ethiopia are as follows:
Augmenting seed supply and other production inputs: Access to production inputs is a key step in bridging the yield gap between current and potential production. Crop production under the diverse agro-ecological conditions in Ethiopia requires quality seeds of improved varieties that could fit these ecologies. The existing national breeding and seed multiplication capacity is not sufficient to address the critical seed shortages for new varieties at the national level. The state-controlled seed system is characterized by limited production of crops and varieties, unreliable seed quality, and late delivery. For instance during the 2004/05 season, the supply of improved varieties channeled through the formal system fell short of the estimated demand from the regional bureaus of agriculture by 73% in pulses. Less than 2% of the cultivated area is sown to improved varieties mostly due to the high price of improved seeds and the preference of farmers to grow traditional landraces. Farmers participatory seed production will be taken up to adequately supply the needs of small holder farmers at affordable price. Phosphates and other fertilizers will be supplied to farmers, along with knowledge on how to use them effectively.
Capacity building of farmers and extension workers: Another general constraint affecting pulses production in Ethiopia is the lack of effective links between research, extension, education and farmers. Improvements have been made through the creation of the Research, Extension and Farmers Linkage Advisory Council (REFLAC) as one forum for this type of knowledge transfer; however, there remains significant room for improvement in coordinating different stakeholders at all levels. Research technologies and their use largely remain out of the reach of extension workers and smallholder farmers. Concerted government spending in extension has established over 8,500 Farmer Training Centers (FTCs) and trained 63,000 Development Agents (DAs) from 2002 – 2008. This will be critical resources to use for promoting improved pulses technologies and knowledge among the small holders. The proposal will organize hand-on training to participating farmers and knowledge empowerment of extension workers on pulses production technologies and quality seed production of improved varieties through farmers’ field visits, farmers’ day, training modules and trainers’ training approaches. In addition, awareness training will be given to farmers on climate smart agriculture save storage practices of grain and demonstrate model storage structure.
Target Areas
While pulses are grown throughout the country during the main season (June to December) their production during Belg (small rainy season-April to August) is in the Bale highlands. Therefore, the project envisages promotion of improved pulses production technologies in the Bale highlands of XXXX region of Ethiopia.
Beneficiaries and Expected Impacts
The major beneficiaries will be smallholder farmers whose livelihood depends on crops and animals. Traders, agro-industries and exporters will also benefit from the improved production of pulses in the region. Expected impact will be increased farm income and livelihoods of rural people with improved nutritional status of the population. We also expect positive impact on natural resource conservation, environmental protection, improved soil health and sustainable growth of cereal based agriculture.
Project Goal, Purpose & Outputs
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- Goal: The overall goal is to improve the productivity of crop-livestock production system in the Bale highlands of xxxx region by integrating all important components of pulses in mixed farming systems.
- Purpose: The immediate purpose of the project is to enhance the adoption rate of improved varieties of faba bean, lentil, and chickpea along with the recommended production technologies through knowledge empowerment, technology intervention and input supply. It will also lay the ground for the project under preparation to take off by the following season.
- Objectives
- Identify and promote suitable high-yielding varieties adapted to various agro-ecological conditions in the Bale highlands of xxxx regions
- Develop and disseminate improved integrated crop management packages, including IPM, conservation technologies to increase production and farm income of crop-livestock production systems
- Develop seed production, storage and distribution systems to make small and marginal farmers self-reliant and self- sufficient in seed requirements
- Implement capacity development programs for different stakeholders
- Outputs:
- Improved cultivars with resilience to counter the effect of climate change and biotic stresses made available to growers
- Knowledge on appropriate production and protection technologies and cropping systems associated with pulses production demonstrated and delivered to growers
- Village-based seed enterprises established for production of quality seeds of farmers’ preferred varieties by self-help groups of farmers
- Capacity created will be utilized for transferring of improved varieties and production technologies by the Extension department for efficient delivery of research outputs to farmers
- Project results published and made available to different stakeholders for impact studies
Activities & Work Plan
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- Dissemination of available technologies: The popular varieties along with their production technologies will be demonstrated in five villages per district. A cluster of 20 farmers per village will conduct demonstrations on a large scale. Five districts in Bale highlands of XXXX region will be selected for project implementation.
- Varietal Development: Availability of high-yielding varieties to farmers is crucial. To achieve this objective, ABC international yield and screening nurseries of pulse crops will be evaluated for phenological adaptation, yield traits, disease reaction, and drought tolerance at all the research stations in the region.
- Sustainable seed production system: Village-based seed enterprises will be developed through farmers’ clubs/associations. Each popular variety will be grown by farmers’ groups with improved production technologies, and genetic and physical purity will be maintained.
- Capacity building: Human capacity development is extremely important and is a key aspect in the project. Farmers will be trained in groups (farmers’ research groups) on new innovative agro-techniques proposed. Village women will be involved in seed storage and value-addition activities. At the grassroots level, extension workers and NGO staff will be trained (trainer’s training) on improved technologies. FARM Africa will also give farmer participatory research approach training to DAs and other partners. It will also initiate discussion & sensitize on climate smart agriculture with farmers benefiting from the pilot project.
- Workshop, Field days, and Meetings: An inception meeting will be organized with XXXX, XXX and all partners including farmers’ groups, individual farmers to check -out the work plan. Field days will be organized at the maturity of the crops.
- Documentation of Activities: Reports, booklets, and flyers will be produced during the course of the project.
Indicators
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- Number of improved varieties and production technologies demonstrated in farmers’ fields and areas coverage
- Number of demonstrations conducted and farmers benefited
- Increase in productivity of pulse crops in adopted villages
- Number of elite lines with intended traits developed at ABC and evaluated in Ethiopia
- Number of VBSEs established and amount of seed produced
- Number of storage bins distributed and increase in profitability of growers
- Number of training conducted and number of extension workers and farmers trained
- Number of technical information published and communicated.
Project Management & Coordination
ABC will manage the fund and coordinate all the activities with its partners and will provide technical backstopping in planning, implementation, data collection, analysis and reporting. Training for development Agents, farmers and researchers will be organized. ABC –Ethiopia office follow day to day activities in managing the project in collaboration with XXXX and XXXX. All the technical backstopping required for each crop will be provided by the respective ABC breeders, IPM specialists and Seed technologist, Agronomists. XXXX will organize seeds of faba bean, lentil, and chickpea that were nationally released and suitable for Bale highlands. XXXX staff will provide information on varieties and their agronomic packages while XXXX will organize seeds of those varieties regionally released by the Agricultural Research Center. Agricultural Research Center will be also responsible to provide and prepare land and manage the seed multiplication and trial plots both at research center and farmers’ fields. Inception workshop will be organized as soon as project is approved to make use of this season.
