Why
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Objective: To establish the extent to which HIV/AIDS has affected agricultural labour supply and livelihoods of Bondo people and how labour saving qualities of conservation agriculture could be exploited to mitigate the impact.
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What
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Intervention: Capacity building in conservation agriculture understanding and practice for frontline extension staff and
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Farmer assessment of labour saving aspects of CA to help shoose what best fits their farming situation
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With whom
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Partnerships: The selection of the sites was guided by the Bondo TCP officials and staff from the Ministry of Agriculture from the District office. In each site, Farmer Field Schools were used as entry points to the study area. RELMA and FAO supported the study and training respectively. KENDAT conducted the survey with the assistance of an HIV/AIDS (Uganda) experienced expert and an anthropologist.
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How
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Methodology:
Two different communities of areas known to be grossly affected by HIV/AIDS pandemic were selected. The study was aided by key informant interviews among stakeholders, based on a carefully constructed questionnaire. Through interviewing families, important information bearing on farm level activities was gathered, including farm management, cultivation techniques, crops grown and animals reared. Labour productivity and practices affected by HIV / AIDS were discussed. Some of the observations were better clarified at a representative Focus Group Discussion (FGD). The FGD was conducted following a day training of extension officers and farmers representatives, followed by a second day of field demonstration of conservation agriculture equipment and practices.
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How much
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Benefits and Impact: A majority of the households interviewed (90%) had sold property to cope with the death or illness of household members. 83% had sold animals and especially cattle. The proceeds were used to cater for funeral bills (53%), pay medical bills (43%), school fees (33%) and to buy food (23%). Only one household interviewed was forced to sell land to buy food for the family.
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Time line
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The study took place in April 2003 in synergy with the multi-sectoral FAO supported Technical Corporation Project (June 2002-Dec 2003). Further capacity building and empowerment is continuing.
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How is this different from standard interventions?
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It is not a matter of telling about the situation but taking real action to change the situation.
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Capacity building is hand-on reflection of the technologies and how to apply them.
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CA is a win-win approach where the land, crop and farmer gain, producing more for less!
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Enabling factors
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HH level: Desperate families have smiles on their faces under the worst of situations. There is positive attitude to be exploited with intervention action.
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Community level: Farmer Field School Approach has shown real promise elsewhere and is new but gaining ground in Bondo.
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Organisational / Institutional level: There are several NGOs and projects working in the area (DANIDA, CARE, FITCA, WINROCK International etc.) with synergetic interventions as well as some degree of duplication of efforts
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Policy level: The food security Concept Note under the new (5 moth old) government is out to address labour shortcomings and HIV/AIDS
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Constraining factors
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HH level: Financial and food shortages as well as loss of energy, will and hope for a people who are least informed of technological possibilities, now and in the past. Resource backing is urgently needed.
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Community level: Lack of central development structures through which assistance and interventions can be coordinated. Community aides to the study were shocked to realize the situation in their own. Social issues like wife inheritance and slaughtering of oxen at funerals need to be challenged.
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Organisational / institutional level: Lack of coordinated effort. VCTs are working but testing is still grossly unavailable. Patients need to be told of their situation so that they can eat better and live longer, as well as avoid spreading the infection.
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Policy level: National structure for addressing the problem, through which urgent and serious attention to widows and orphans can be channeled sustainably. Not condoms alone but labour saving technologies that increase productivity.
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Additional ideas or potential improvements
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Enhanced support of FFSs, including farmer to farmer learning through exchange visits.
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Strengthen the FFSs with substantial credit (more than currently allocated) to be able to purchase equipment.
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Capacity building for local artisans to produce the equipment locally.
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Support and coordinate the efforts of NGO for resource efficiency and enhanced impact in the short term.
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Support nutrition scheme for orphans
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Scaling up / scaling out: implications
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As labour is the key constraint in the households interviewed there is an urgent need for strategies to help these desperate smallholder farmers. The strategy will have to merge short-term food aid with longer term introduction of technologies and practices.
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Labour gaps are real, the most able farm workers are the most affected.
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Population is falling.
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Conservation agriculture is indeed a good answer to the labour question, as well as more yields and food per unit of land .
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The problem is how to overcome the initial cost of moving from conventional to conservation farming.
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It will be a while before CA is common practice, but it can be done with stern intervention action (practices, techniques or technologies).
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Access to equipment is a local as well as a national challenge needing redress.
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