Improving rural live-hoods through linking small holder
farmers to new growth markets in WANA region.
I. Background and justification
The rapid growth of the world population presents special challenges for the
agricultural sector. Farmers in developing countries are under increasing
pressure to fulfill the new market requirements of powerful supermarket chains
and agro industries, which demand product quality, volume and continuity of
supply. Most small scale farmers are facing low prices and a non stable market.
Furthermore, there is a misunderstanding of supply and market chains along with
a lack of know-how in targeting products and markets, coupled with a
non-efficient production and marketing systems due to lack of information.
The WANA Region countries have gone through decades of centralized economy
during which the agriculture extension programs were ineffective as they served
governments’ monopolized plans and rarely responded to farmers’ needs or catered
for their welfare. This situation resulted in a gap between knowledge, generated
or obtained technologies and applications.
Furthermore, organic food is a growing business with good long-term prospects.
Despite the heightened attention that organic agriculture has attracted during
the last decade, it still only accounts for a mall proportion of overall
agricultural land.
Market and supply chains in developing countries are characterized by low-scales
of response to market needs, the presence of too many intermediates between the
farmers and the consumer, and a lack of early warning systems against market
failures. It is then obvious that small scale farmers key concern is not only
agricultural productivity but also better market access with a minimum situation
of missed opportunities. Given existing or potential business opportunities
marketing chains must be modified so that all actors of the marketing chain and
supply benefit, particular small-scale farmers.
Currently and due to complexity of constraints, the livelihood of small and
medium scale farmers are threatened than ever as they are in a weak position
facing the challenges of the new world trends towards privatization, free
markets, trade liberalization and globalization. Such constraints include
inadequacy in the education system, less qualified experts, farmers’ illiteracy,
farming fragmentation and inadequate mechanisms of technology transfer just to
name a few.
With the collapse of the centralized economy comes on top of the constraining
list the consequential relative vacuum in extension and its weak linkage with
farmers causing the obvious failure of effective flow and exchange of
information, new technologies, problems and market exposures, real assessment of
farmers development needs and activating relevant and practical methodologies.
The certified and policy supported organic production area in general and in
particular in the WANA region countries vary widely in relation to growth rate
and total area and there were no clear or defined figures about the size of
production and total area of production. For many countries it is still
difficult to find precise and up-to-date figures on the state of organic farming
in individual countries.
Organic agriculture comes as one of the top priorities, specifically with
relation to food safety, diversification alternatives in agriculture production,
income-generation for small and medium-scale farmers and improves access to
regional and international markets, mainly through exports from developing
countries. Organic agriculture can also play a role in achieving WANA four
network's (Date Palm, cotton, Olives, medicinal Herbs) broad objectives of
poverty reduction, food security and sustainable development.
The desired situation is a gain in the efficiently of the marketing chain by
lowering costs of production and transaction, and an addition of the value in
the marketing chain by increasing consumer prices. There is also an urgent need
to establish a new beneficial marketing setting that involve different but
collaborative marketing chain actors with a complete trust in their daily
business. An important added value will result from the scales’ enhancement of
the management of marketing and supply chains with better informed decisions and
better marketing and export opportunities. The exact know-how of the market
needs, coupled with the transparency in the supply and market chains, will
certainly contribute to the adoption of fair prices for the small scale farmers.
Furthermore, the present project aims that in certain sub-sectors (olives,
dates, cotton, herbal plants), establish pilot and localized projects of
effective extensions and technology transfer systems and mechanism within the
WANA region through incorporating successful agricultural practices.
Once implemented, the present project will have a positive impact on the
approach of farmers, growers associations and communities to both market and
supply chains and will be well equipped to make the appropriate decisions on
products and markets. Another important change resulting from this project is
that policy markers will be able to take appropriate actions for the development
of the sub sectors.
Furthermore, traders, brokers, agents and distributors will have a clear
knowledge about the sub-sectors, yielding a better competitiveness and the role
of each sub- sector within the respective national economy will consequently be
strengthened.
Expected changes and improvements of the project's interventions will also
include:
- Qualified extensions and farmers.
- Strengthening linkages and trustworthy channels.
- Changing and improving cultural concepts and attitudes toward extension
workers.
- Improved productivity and quality.
Another aim is to activate the role of AARINENA networks and highlight the
important role they can play in disseminating information and exchanging of
success stories on the regional level.
As a conclusion, the present proposal aims to bring together key stakeholders,
in the development of profitable, equitable, and operational market and supply
chains that fulfill the consumers demand for fairly traded commodity (dates,
olives, cotton and medicinal plants).
II. Project description
Development goal
To establish a comprehensive data collection, analysis and reporting systems for
all stakeholders of the targeted commodities (dates, olives, cotton and
medicinal plants), with an aim of building national capacity in the field of
market, extension and organic farming orientations.
A better preparation and an action mode for all stakeholders in the market and
supply chains of the four sub-sectors is another important goal of the project.
This will consequently enhance the livelihood options for the small scale
farmers. The development goals are summarized here below:
-Integration of developments efforts among stakeholders of sub-sector
commodities.
-Capacity building of human resources (extensionists and farmers).
-Better utilization and management of natural resources.
-Better understanding of market needs.
-Enhance competitiveness capability through quality improvement.
-Involve Farmers in decision making on extension and development.
-Introduction, intensification and optimization of organic production,
environmental protection and the promotion and supporting the access of Networks
country members organic products to local, regional and international markets.
Purpose
The main purpose is to assist the sub-sectors (dates, olives, cotton and
medicinal plants) to correctly respond to market needs and enhance their
competitivenesses. There is an urgent need to identify and evaluate all
organizational options that provide effective and equitable linkages between the
small-scale sector of developing countries (farmers, processors and traders) and
alternative domestic and export oriented markets.
The project has the specific purpose of the increased involvement of AARINENA
Countries in promoting Organic Agriculture. The introduction of organic
agriculture could offer diverse benefits, such as income generation, natural
resource conservation, food self-sufficiency and social development. Other
purposes of the project are:
-Activate the role of extensionists to become productive members of the
community.
-Melt the accumulated ice in the relationship between farmers and extensionists.
-Train farmers to become semi-extension workers to introduce farmer to farmer
extension.
-Improve farmers’ livelihood and alleviate poverty.
As a result of AARINENA networks involvement in this project in selected
sub-sectors (olives, dates, cotton, medicinal and herbal plants), through the
supporting of certain case studies in the region and organizing the information
management approaches, the proposed project will also be a good opportunity for
AARINENA countries to develop new production and extension methods and access
new markets. Networks and their partners will get the support to the
dissemination of phytosanitary rules and regulations needed to access the main
northern markets , setting up local or regional certification programmes,
initiating new or supporting existing capacity building programmes as well as
promoting the exchange of experiences and information between the participated
countries.
Outputs and principal activities to achieve each output
The present project is build around the following three main components:
- Market orientation for project's networks;
- Pilot innovation extension and technology transfer; and
- Utilization and enhancement of organic agriculture in the AARINENA region.
Hence the present project's outputs and respective activities will be presented,
accordingly:
a. Market orientation for project's networks
a1. Expected outputs
- Real and exact data and knowledge about market and supply chains, as well as
other aspects of the sub-sectors, is available for use by research and
development institutions.
- Major constraints and opportunities for the sub-sectors are identified along
with the corresponding solutions and recommendations yielding to the preparation
of respective programme proposals for the decision-makers.
- A methodology of mapping and characterizing market and supply chains as the
basis for identifying key points of interventions is to be developed for each of
the four sub-sectors (dates, olives, cotton, and medicinal plants).
- The profitability and competitiveness of selected market chains for each
commodity (dates, olives, cotton, and medicinal plants).
- A management of these supply and market chains and their respective support
services, will be available and periodically updated.
- Lessons learned, good practice and regulatory recommendations have been drawn
up based on the analysis of selected crops (dates, olives, cotton, and medicinal
plants) and the respective field experiences.
a2. Principal activities and research methodology
- Conduct a study for the selected commodity (i.e: dates) to evaluate and
synthesis suitable cases / experiences, methodologies, approaches and tools.
- Identify potential actors / stakeholders / institutions of the different
market and supply chains with their activities, interests, ideas and problems.
- Organizing several fora , using a combination of virtual and actual meetings,
for bringing together the identified stakeholders with the objective of:
• Documenting and exchanging experiences;
• Developing the conceptional frameworks;
• Prioritizing mechanisms for equitable / sustainable mainstream of products and
markets;
• Identifying situations where these mechanisms can be implemented; and
• Methods for monitoring and evaluation of these experiences.
- Implementing of the mechanisms agreed in 3, with adopted outcomes, through the
launching of feasibility studies, business plans for new supply and market
chains arrangements and the establishment of innovative support systems.
- Analysis of obtained results and development of appropriate extension
materials (manuals, guides, CDs, web sites,…) for dissemination.
- Development of an action plan (follow-up project) for each commodity for
scaling out of successful experiences and diffusion of recommendations of all
stakeholders including policy makers.
The project will focus on market and supply chains of the selected commodity
(dates, olives, cotton, and medicinal plants) in the respective growing
countries of the AARINENA region. Successful cases / projects per commodity will
be selected during the characterization study and initial partner / stakeholder
meetings based on agreed criteria, including their potential for mainstreaming
in market and supply chains.
b. Pilot innovative extension and technology transfer
-Improved farmers’ quality and representation: for the pilot project to be
successful it should have a cultural content to improve farmers’ awareness of
the importance of collaborative work. This can be achieved through encouraging
the formation of farmers’ organizations in sub-sector commodities and
strengthening recent emerging ones which reflect actual farmers’ interests. Such
organizations will provide a platform for better interaction with extensionists
and thus promote farmers self-esteem and their role as developers of technology
and will to some extent resolve the fragmentation pattern through collective
purchases of production inputs and introducing economics of scale.
-Build effective and integrated farmers-extensionists relationship: to improve
extensionists’ knowledge and foster farmer to farmer extension, in the pilot
project selected extensionists from government extension agencies will be
reassigned on loan basis to FOs and trained intensively with farmers’ leaders on
specific sub-sector commodities. The training will cover areas not exploited by
the existing system such as social science, community mobilization, human
resources development, problems analysis and solving, organic farming,
biological control and IPM, promotion of small scale farmers through value
addition, marketing and collective market information, the use of IT as an
important channel of securing and disseminating information, natural resources
management, socio-economic impacts, integrating environmental considerations
into the development equation, training farmers to improve their technical
abilities.
-Better and effective production systems, better quality and safe products: the
interaction frame of the project will expose actual farmers’ needs which will be
effectively addressed by the trained extensionists and farmers’ leaders will
exchange information on good practices of low cost technologies which will
facilitate appropriate application of acquired knowledge.
-Better procedures and methodology for technology generation, transfer and
monitoring: previously discussed creative approaches to identify and resolve the
problems of the ineffective current extension systems in the WANA region, recent
successful extension systems developed locally or in collaboration with
international agencies in the region or other regions of similar conditions such
as in central Asia and Africa which can be adopted and cooperative systems in
developed countries.
-The provision of utilizing the advanced IT techniques.
-Introduction of incentives for extension personnel from donors at the
initiation of the project followed by FOs financing as they will benefit from
the new system. Cost recovery might be an option as farmers need to be convinced
they are making a profit.
c. Utilization and enhancement of organic agriculture
in the AARINENA region:
Output 1: Information about the current situation in the concerned countries
regarding market and organic production of olives, dates, cotton, medicinal and
herbal plants is collected, and analyzed.
Output 2: Organic Agriculture in selected sub-sectors (olives, date palm, and
cotton, medicinal and herbal plants) in the targeted countries is strengthened.
Output 3: Participation and capacity in the structures and membership of
AARINENA networks is improved.
Output 4: The potential of organic agriculture in regard of social,
environmental, and economic benefits is recognized.
Output 5: Organic marketing is improved at all levels in AARINENA countries
(local, regional and export marketing).
Output 6: Advisory strategy, including consultancies and development agencies,
for AARINENA countries with an emerging sub-sector (olive, date palm, and
cotton, medicinal and herbal plants) organic products is developed and
implemented.
Innovative nature of the project
The present project will directly build on already existing networks (dates,
olives, cotton, and medicinal plants) as well as on the ongoing national and
regional projects. There are also several case studies already implemented of
various organizations and agencies.
The innovative approach of the present project will be based on combining both
horizontal and vertical analyses for each commodity with the possibility of
having a model per network that can be generalized immediately after its
successful trial.
Another innovative characteristic of the project is the participatory approach
of growers, processors, extension specialists, and traders that are all aware of
demand and requirements of the respective markets.
The new and innovative approaches of the project will also use:
-Changing of social and cultural attitudes toward extension activities and
extension specialists, semi-privatise the extension system, specialized agencies
and specialists rather than general ones.
-Integrate development efforts of farmers and extensionists into a team work
pattern is to be considered as an innovative approach.
-The scaling and development of domestic organic food markets which is essential
for the sustainable growth of organic agriculture and for sustainable rural
development in general.
-There is a need for the development of a balance between growth in organic
agriculture and the demand for organic products. This true knows that not all
producers in developing countries can export their organic products to a few
markets in the North.
-There are a number of successful cases of local market developments on all
continents. Experiences need to be exchanged, compiled and evaluated; effective
models and tools drawn up and disseminated in order to develop organic markets
in AARINENA country members, and lead to growth in organic agriculture.
Target beneficiaries
The present project will be of benefit to all stakeholders involved in the
production, processing and marketing levels, namely small and medium sized
scale-farmers, extension specialists, processors, traders, packers, food
production chains, manufacturers and also indirectly consumers.
Higher incomes will be ensured to the small-scale farmers, who are usually
cheated of their effort / real value of their products. Furthermore, there are
presently too many traders and only the appropriate ones will remain but with a
better off situation. The project will aim at more constant and sustainable
supply of merchandise with an improved quality which will consequently affect
positively the processors, packers and manufacturers. Affordable prices and
greater availability of products will directly benefit to the consumers.
Project partners (collaborating institutions)
Depending on which network(s) will be first selected for the implementation of
the present project, it is only then that collaborating institutions (per
country from and outside the region) will be identified. However, the liberty
was taken to adapt this part to the four sub-sectors.
- Ministries of Agriculture and specialized organic institutions in the AARINENA
member countries;
- National Agricultural Research Centers (NARCS and GFAR);
- Farmers Organizations;
- Private sector / factories and associations in AARINENA region;
- Consumer organizations in WANA region;
- National and regional institutions;
- Local community organizations, associations, producers’ organizations and
enterprises and their support institutions (public sector and NGOs).
Institutions that might participate in the extension
field could be:
-Current extension agencies and specialists: human resources, previous
experiences, field contacts.
-Farmers’ organizations, trade unions, NGO's: needs, model systems.
-Ministries of agriculture (MOAs) and NARS: resources, experiences,
infrastructure.
-Information technology agencies: tools, techniques, mechanisms, programs.
-AARINENA as a regional organization: exchange of knowledge and experiences.
However, AARINENA Networks (olive, date palm, Medicinal Herb plants and cotton)
member countries: Within each country the following institutions will
participate:
- Government institutions (GO): Harmonized rules and food control measures.
- Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs): Training, Information dissemination and
sustainable agriculture development.
- Farmers Organizations (FOs): Training, Information dissemination and
sustainable agriculture development.
- Research centers / National Agriculture Research Centers (NARs): Research and
training.
- Associations and rural communities (CSOs): Sustainable agriculture development
and information dissemination.
- Organic Agriculture movements and projects: Training and capacity building.
- Existing certified bodies or organizations (CB): Certification, communications
and exchange of experiences.
Institutions from outside the region that could
participate:
• Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO);
• Arab Organization for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID);
• Deutsche Gesellscha ft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ).
• Successful extension agencies such as USDA.
• International federation of Organic Agriculture Movements – IFOAM.
• German Technical Cooperation Agency (GTZ): Division 45-Rural Development.
• World Health Organization (WHO).
• The International Trade Center UNCTAD/WTO (ITC).
• The Technical Center for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA).
• The World Conservation Union (IUCN)-WESCANA Regional Office / Amman – Jordan.
Project Team & Convener
- Prof. Abdelouahhab Zaid (Team Leader) : General Coordinator of the DPGN;
Director of the Date Palm Research and Development Program ; Chief Technical
Advisor / UNDP ; P.O.Box. 81908, Al Ain, United Arab Emirates. Tel: +971 3
7832334, Mobile: +971 50 6633598, Fax: +971 3 7832472; E-mail: zaid@uaeu.ac.ae
- Mr. Mohamed El Kholy (Head of the team, Farmer, Olive NW Focal Point for Egypt
and Chairman of the coordinating board for 2005) elkholy49@yahoo.com
- Mr. Nabeel Abu-Shriha :Team Leader, Agronomist, AARINENA NGOs Focal point .
abushriha@mail.com / n_abushriha@hotmail.com (Head, Agricultural and
Environmental Projects Unit) Amman, Jordan.
Potential Donors
There is a need to contact all international donor agencies and bodies that have
interest in poverty alleviation, agriculture development and national capacity
building. (The following list is not an exhaustive one and additions are
welcomed).
- United Nations Development Program (UNDP);
- World Bank;
- United States Agency for International Development (USAID);
- European Community;
- Arab Fund for Social and Economic Development (AFSED);
- International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD);
- Islamic Development Bank (IDB);
- Arab Authority for Agricultural Investment and Development (AAAID); and
- Deutsche Gesellscha ft fur Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ).
Resources required to undertake the identified activities.