Self Help Africa - Annual Review 11-12 (US Version)

2010/2011

www.selfhelpafrica.org

ANNUALREVIEW

OUR VISIONAN AFRICA FREE FROM HUNGER AND POVERTY

Tending a field of beans, Zambia

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Self Help AfricA AnnuAl reVieW 2010

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Hunger in Africa is concentrated in rural areas, in the districts where smallholder farmers struggle to eke out a living from their land. It is here that generational hunger and poverty begins - children don’t eat enough because the family farm doesn’t produce enough, poor nutrition stunts these children’s growth and development, and their parents are simply too poor to improve crop production on their small farm.

Looked at from one perspective, there are many reasons for this hunger and poverty - farmers don’t have access to water, to good soil, to quality seed, to agricultural advice, to storage, to transport, to markets, to finance.

Everything, it seems, that developed world farmers take for granted is in short supply in Africa. Add to this the complexities of world food markets and trading regulations, and you’d be forgiven for wondering if there’s any point in trying to tackle this problem at all.

But at Self Help Africa, we look at it from another perspective. We know that small changes on a family farm can make a big difference. With just a small improvement in crop production, a family can be lifted out of hunger.

And when it comes to small changes, there is little as important as the seed.

Across Africa, farmers simply cannot improve crop yields because they are unable to get their hands on improved seeds. More than any other factor, what a farmer sows affects what she reaps.

For many years, Self Help Africa has concentrated much of its efforts on ensuring that farmers have access to better quality seed and to different varieties of seed. Much of this work takes place through cooperatives, where farmer members are taught to ‘multiply’ or grow more quality seed, which is then sold to other farmers.

It’s part science and part organisation, and it’s all just part of the solution for farmers in Africa. But our work in providing tens of thousands of farmers with access to improved seed is breaking the cycle of hunger and poverty for hundreds of thousands of their dependents.

This work would not be possible without the support of our donors. You are planting the seeds of hope across Africa. The journey starts with a seed, and ends, thanks to you, with a harvest.

It starts with a seed

Raymond Jordan

Letter from our CEO

Self Help AfricA AnnuAl reVieW 2010/11

locAtionSituated in the eastern ‘Horn of Africa’, ethiopia is landlocked, and bounded by Sudan in the east and by Somalia to its west.

HumAn DeVelopment inDex: (A comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standards of living for countries worldwide): 157 out of 169 countries ranked

populAtion: 90,000,000, of whom 83% live in rural areas.

economy: 85% of population are supported by small scale farming, 5% are employed in industry, and the remaining 10% in the service sector. ethiopia’s main agricultural crops are cereals, pulses, coffee, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, qu’at, cut flowers, livestock and

fisheries.

Agriculture accounts for almost 45% of GDp. the agricultural sector suffers from frequent drought and poor cultivation practices. coffee is critical to the ethiopian economy, with exports of some $350 million in 2006, but historically low prices have seen many farmers switching to qu’at to supplement income.

under ethiopia’s constitution, the state owns all land and provides long-term leases to the tenants; the system continues to hamper growth in the industrial sector as entrepreneurs are unable to use land as collateral for loans

life expectAncy At birtH: 56.2 years.

Self Help AfricA: has been working in ethiopia since 1984.

etHiopiA eritreA

locAtion: on the red Sea in the eastern ‘Horn of Africa’, eritrea shares borders with Sudan to the west, ethiopia to the south, and Djibouti to the east. eritrea gained its independence from a federation with ethiopia in 1992.

HumAn DeVelopment inDex: (A comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standards of living for countries worldwide) : eritrea is one of just a handful of countries worldwide not to have a HDi ranking. this is as a result of insufficient available data.


economy: 80% of the labour force are employed in agriculture. the remaining 20% work in

services and industry.

eritrea’s principal agriculture crops are sorghum, lentils, vegetables, corn, cotton, tobacco, sisal and livestock.

Since the conclusion of the ethiopian-eritrea war in 2000, the government has maintained a firm grip on the economy. As a result few private enterprises remain in eritrea. eritrea’s economy depends heavily on taxes paid by members of the diaspora.

erratic rainfall, poor soil quality, and limited access to inputs affect agricultural productivity, and recent harvests have been unable to meet eritrea’s food needs for the country.


Self Help AfricA: has been working in eritrea since 1995.

HORN OF

AFRICA

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

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ETHIOPIA//ERITREA

SoDo ii rDp

rurAl SAVinGS & creDit proGrAmme (ruSAcco)

AGriculturAl co-operAtiVe DeVelopment proGrAmme (AcDp)

Sodo ii is a rural development programme that is seeking to improve food production, crop diversification and income generation amongst close to 5,500 households in the Sodo region of Gurage district. communities are also being supported to combat soil erosion and land degradation, to have better access to water for drinking and irrigation, and to have a better access to services.

Self Help Africa’s ruSAcco programme promotes saving, and supports the development of micro-finance amongst primary cooperatives and cooperative unions, so that households can have access to credit to establish business enterprise and income generating activities. more than 31,000 mainly women members are receiving financial services through the programme, which is working with over 200 primary co-operatives affiliated to five co-operative unions – Awash, Keleta, ifa boru, yenetsanet fana, and Sidama chalala. the project is being implemented in collaboration with the local Government and regional and federal cooperative Agencies, and with donor and technical support from the irish league of credit unions foundation, and from terrafina micro finance.

Self Help Africa’s AcDp is working with farmers co-operative unions to promote measures to increase farm production, diversification and marketing of produce. the project is being undertaken in collaboration with the Southern region and oromia bureaus of rural development and agriculture, and the farmers unions of meki batu Vegetable and fruit Growers cooperative union; Walta farmers cooperative union; melik farmers cooperative union; raya Wakana farmers cooperative union; and Siko mendo farmers cooperative union – who represent a total of 17,500 farming households (approx. 100,000 people). the scheme is being supported by the european union and icco (the inter church organisation for development co-operation).

emni Haili rural development programme is working to improve food production and income generating activities amongst 20,000 households in 44 villages in the Debub region of Southern eritrea. the project is also supporting the strengthening of agricultural extension services, is promoting a range of early maturing seed varieties, and supporting the development of irrigated horticulture, agro-forestry and natural resource management.

emni HAili rDp

Gogne rural development programme is being implemented to support agricultural production and water conservation amongst 3,300 households in the low-lying Gash barka region of eritrea’s south-west, with a particular emphasis on early maturing crop varieties, livestock development, and the establishment of catchment water harvesting schemes.

GoGne rDp

elabared rural development programme is promoting water harvesting, early maturing crop, small scale horticulture, and livestock development amongst 5,000 farm households in the elabared district of Anseba region of eritrea.

elAbAreD rDp

KimirA WAter proJect rDp

Self Help Africa’s national beekeeping development programme is supporting the promotion of apiculture as an income generating activity amongst rural households in the mendefera, elabared and merhano regions of eritrea. more than 1,500 bee colonies have been reared and distributed to rural farm households, while over 400,000 tree seedlings to provide forage crops were distributed and planted, and 1,000 rural farmers have taken part in technical training in different aspects of beekeeping.

beeKeepinG rDp

Kimira Water is a micro-project that is aiming to improve access to water – for both human and livestock consumption, as well as for small-scale irrigation purposes, around Kimira village in the Afambo district of eritrea’s hot and dry Southern red Sea region.

ETHIOPIA

ERITREAsmall buttons denote districts where rural programmes are being undertaken, larger shaded areas where regional development activities are taking place


EAST

AFRICAlocAtion: eastern Africa, west of Kenya, east of the Democratic republic of the congo, and bounded by lake Victoria to the east.

HumAn DeVelopment inDex: (A comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standards of living for countries worldwide) : 143 out of 169 countries ranked

populAtion: 34,612,000, of whom 87% live in rural areas

economy: 82% of the workforce is in the agricultural sector, 5% in industry, and 13% in the service sector, according to latest figures.

uganda has substantial natural resources, including fertile soils, regular rainfall, small deposits of copper, gold, and other minerals, and recently discovered oil.

coffee accounts for the bulk of export revenues. Since 1986, the government -has acted to rehabilitate and stabilize the economy by undertaking currency reform, raising producer prices on export crops, increasing prices of petroleum products, and improving civil service wages

the global economic downturn has hurt uganda’s exports, although GDp growth is still relatively strong due to past reforms, management of the downturn, and revenues from oil and taxes. instability in southern Sudan is the biggest risk for the ugandan economy in 2011 because uganda’s main export partner is Sudan and uganda is a key destination for Sudanese refugees.

life expectAncy At birtH: 53.2 years

Self Help AfricA : has been working in uganda since the mid-1990s.

locAtion: Kenya is a republic in eastern Africa, with borders with ethiopia, uganda, tanzania and Somalia, and with a coastline to the east to the indian ocean.


populAtion: 41,000,000, of whom 78% live in rural areas. Kenya has a rapid rate of urbanization however, with rural to urban migration growing at 4% a year.

economy: 75% of the labour force is employed in agriculture, with the balance in industry and the service sector.

the country’s principal agricultural produce is tea, coffee, corn, wheat, sugarcane, fruit, vegetables, dairy products and meat.

Although the regional hub for trade and finance in east Africa, Kenya has been hampered by corruption and by reliance upon several primary goods whose prices have remained low.

post-election violence in early 2008, coupled with the effects of the global financial crisis on remittance and exports, reduced GDp growth to 1.7 in 2008, but the economy rebounded in 2009-10

life expectAncy At birtH: 48 years

Self Help AfricA: has been working in Kenya since the mid-1990s.

KenyA

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

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uGAnDA

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UGANDA//KENYA KAyunGA rDp

ronGAi-GilGil rDpKumi buKeDeA rDp

increasing food production amongst 17,400 households, promoting diversification of household incomes, and promoting the participation of women in development activities are the primary objectives of the Kayunga rDp, which was started in central uganda in 2007. the project is also working to improve local access to hygiene and sanitation.

rongai & Gilgil rural development is aiming to enhance food production and livestock development, and access to water for 1,000 rural households in Visoi and lengenet areas of rongai, and provide training and support to rural groups and institutions in rongai and Gilgil division of nakuru District of Kenya’s rift Valley, so that they can diversify production, and successfully market produce

Kumi bukedea rural development project is seeking to increase agricultural productivity for 6,800 households in seven sub-counties in north eastern uganda. together with improving access to seed, to extension services, and to agricultural training and markets, the project also assists communities to access basic social services.

mArKet leD nAturAl reSource mAnAGement

Self Help Africa’s market led natural resource management programme is supporting households, schools and farmers associations in Gilgil Division, Kenya, to market nature based enterprises, develop commercial and multi-purpose tree nurseries, and promote the use of energy saving devices, as a means of rehabilitating and sustainably managing the natural environment of the region around Gilgil and elementaita in rift Valley province. 4,000 households have been supported with tree planting activities.

HiV/AiDS

‘HiV/AiDS Awareness & cVt programme’ is a scheme to reach out to most at risk groups, and support the provision of counselling, education and training to this group within the naivasha District of Kenya. training has been provided to 182 community educators, as part of an outreach programme that is targeting at risk groups including sex workers, bar and hotel hosts, prison inmates, uniformed officers and truck drivers in naivasha District. training and education has also been provided to more than 1,800 young people affiliated to 57 youth groups.

UGANDA

KENYA


SOUTHERN

AFRICAlocAtion: Zambia is a southern African republic situated to the east of Angola and south of the Democratic republic of congo.



economy: 85% of the workforce is employed in agriculture, 6% in industry and 9% in services. Zambia’s principal agricultural crops are corn, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sunflower seed, vegetables, flower, tobacco, cotton, cassava, and sugar cane.

poverty remains a significant problem in Zambia, despite a stronger economy. Zambia’s dependency on copper makes it vulnerable to depressed commodity prices, but record high copper prices and a bumper maize crop in 2010 helped Zambia rebound quickly from the world economic slow-down in 2008.


Self Help AfricA: Has been working in Zambia since 1985.

locAtion: the republic of malawi is a landlocked country that is bounded by Zambia and mozambique in southern Africa, and is bounded for almost its entire eastern border by lake nyasa (malawi).

HumAn DeVelopment inDex: (A comparative measure of life expectancy, literacy, education, and standards of living for countries worldwide) :153 out of 169 countries ranked


economy: 90% of the workforce is employed in agriculture, with 10% working in local industry and services. the country’s principal agricultural produce is tobacco, sugarcane, cotton, tea, corn, potatoes, cassava sorghum, pulses, groundnuts,

macadamia nuts and livestock. Agriculture has benefited from fertiliser subsidies since 2006, and accounts for more than one-third of GDp and 90% of export revenues. the performance of the tobacco sector is key to short-term growth as tobacco accounts for more than half of exports. the economy depends on substantial inflows of economic assistance from the imf, the World bank, and individual donor nations

malawi faces many challenges however, including developing a market economy, improving educational facilities, addressing environmental problems, and dealing with the rapidly growing problem of HiV/AiDS.


Self Help AfricA: Has been working in malawi since 1995.

mAlAWi

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

ZAmbiA

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ZAMBIA//M

ALAWI more

litetA rDp

mSumbAnKHunDA rDp

SeeDfS proJect

more - nortH WeSt proVince

SeeDfS proJect

SeeDfS proJect

more - WeStern proVince

Self Help Africa’s more is the rural enterprise programme in four districts in Western and north Western provinces. more worked with 4,100 household to improve crop, vegetable, livestock and honey production and access to markets. Self Help Africa worked with Keepers Zambia foundation and the project was mainly funded by the european union.

liteta project is working to improve food production, agricultural practices and management of natural resources amongst 2,000 households in chibombo District in Zambia’s central province. the project is supported by uK big lottery fund and Development fund of norway, and is being implemented by local partners opAD (organization for the promotion of meaningful Development through Active participation).

KAlembo rDp

local seed growers are being supported to produce and distribute high quality certified seed varieties to 8,000 households, a further 500 households are being assisted with horticultural production, and 600 farm households in livestock breeding. Self Help Africa is assisting and collaborating with 47 local development committees and agencies in Kalembo District.

the Seed entrepreneurship for economic Development and food Security (SeeDfS) project is designed to enable 100,000 rural small-scale farmers in Zambia to produce and distribute their own locally produced good quality seed. the project is taking place across ten districts – in six of the countries provinces, and is being undertaken in collaboration with local development partners - mthilakubili Sustainable Agriculture project (mK-SAp); eastern province farmers cooperative (epfc); organization for promotion of meaningful Development through Active participation (opAD); Keepers Zambia foundation (KZf) and nirAS Zambia. the project is being funded by the european union.

8,500 farming households are being assisted in a programme that supports crop diversification and livestock development, while rural farming communities are being assisted in promoting rural enterprise development, and mechanisms that can help to link farmer-producers to market, and to add value to their surplus agricultural produce.

KAronGA rDp

Self Help Africa and local development partners KrAAD and focuS are working to strengthen agricultural extension services through a farmer to farmer approach for over 2,250 rural farming households, and promoting a range of crop diversification and income generating activities amongst 7,500 households in northern malawi.

the project for the reduction of poverty (prop) and food Security & nutrition for Vulnerable Households project (fSSp) seeks to reduce poverty levels amongst 5,000 poor rural households in Zambia’s eastern province, and also to improve food security, livelihood and coping capacity of people infected and affected by HiV/AiDS in mwinilunga and Kabompo districts. the work focuses on community enterprise development, expanding access to financial services, improving basic business skills, and strengthening the capacity of partner organisations. Activities include the promotion of small-scale out-grower schemes and producer groups, technical support to develop and market produce, community based micro-finance, and business training. Half of the households participating in the scheme are female-headed.

prop/fSSp

ZAMBIA

MAL

AWI


WEST

AFRICAGHAnA

burKinAfASo

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

togo

ghana

kenya

burkinafaso

zambia

malawi

toGo

locAtion: togo is located in western Africa, flanked on the east and west by benin and Ghana respectively, and on the north by burkina faso. it has a narrow coastal strip to the Gulf of Guinea.



economy: this small, sub-Saharan Africa economy suffers weak economic growth and depends heavily on

both commercial and subsistence agriculture, which provides employment for 65% of the labor force. Some basic foodstuffs must still be imported, while cocoa, coffee, and cotton generate about 40% of export earnings, with cotton being the most important cash crop.

togo is the world’s fourth-largest producer of phosphate. economic growth prospects remain marginal however due to declining cotton production and underinvestment in phosphate mining.


Self Help AfricA: has been working in west Africa since 2008

locAtion: Ghana is situated in western Africa, bordering the Gulf of Guinea, between cote d’ivoire and togo.



economy: 34% of the workforce is employed in agriculture, 24% in industry, some of which is agri-processing, and 41% in the service sector. A majority of the population in the far north, where Self Help Africa works, are supported by small-holder agriculture.

Ghana is well endowed with natural resources and agriculture accounts for roughly one-third of GDp and employs more than half of the workforce.

Gold and cocoa production and individual remittances are major sources of foreign exchange. oil production at Ghana’s offshore field began late last year and is expected to boost economic growth.

in 2009 Ghana signed a three-year poverty reduction and Growth facility with the imf to improve macroeconomic stability, private sector competitiveness, human resource development, and good governance and civic responsibility. Sound macro-economic management along with high prices for gold and cocoa helped sustain GDp growth in 2008-10.


locAtion: burkina faso is a landlocked west African country situated north of Ghana, and south of mali, on the fringes of the Sahara Desert.



economy: 90% of the labour force are involved in agriculture, and 10% in the industrial and services sector.

burkina faso is a poor,

landlocked country that relies heavily on cotton and gold exports for revenue. the country has few natural resources and a weak industrial base.

Since 1998, burkina faso has embarked upon a gradual privatization of state-owned enterprises and in 2004 revised its investment code to attract foreign investment. As a result, the country has seen an upswing in gold exploration and production. by 2010, gold had become the main source of export revenue.


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burKinA fASo

toGo

GHAnA

AGriculturAl DeVelopment proGrAmmeSelf Help Africa’s Agricultural Development programme is working to improve agricultural production for more than 2,500 households in more than a dozen villages in Zondome, bazèga, Kourritenga, boulgou, Doulougue, central east, and bam provinces of burkina faso. Work is being undertaken in collaboration with local partners per (projet ecologique et reboisement) orGAnic (organisation pour une nouvelle initiative communautaire) and AScDiS (Association de Solidarite communautaire pour un Developpement integre au Sahel).

proGrAmme for poVerty reDuctionSelf Help Africa’s programme for poverty reduction (ppr) is being undertaken in tune, tajoare and Kpendja districts of northern togo to assist 2,500 farm households with increasing food production and diversification of food production. together with activities to improve agricultural development, the project is working to enable rural women to develop income generating activities, and to improve community access to safe and clean drinking water.

bolGAtAnGA - poVerty reDuction proGrAmmeSelf Help Africa is working in collaboration with trAx Ghana in Dachio and pelunga areas of bolgatanga in northern Ghana to improve food production, and restore degraded farm land in the region. the project is developing local community based farm advisors to support project activities, and is promoting a range of alternate crops including groundnuts, soy bean and fruit tree production.

BURKINA FASO/TOGO/GHANA

BURKINA FASO

GHANA TOGO


Surveying a crop of upland rice, Uganda

Can Africa feed itself?

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The short answer is yes.

To many observers, it seems as if the battle to end hunger in Africa cannot be won. In 1990, over 150 million Africans were hungry; by 2010, despite hundreds of millions of dollars in aid in the interim, that number had risen to almost 240 million.

Today, one third of people in sub-Saharan Africa are chronically hungry, and rising food prices during 2010 and into 2011 are likely to push that figure higher.

That paints a bleak picture - of human suffering and of government failures.

But there is hope. While food production has grown globally by 145% over the past 40 years, African food production has fallen by 10% since 1960 . This is where Africa’s future food security lies - in gaining ground that it has lost to the rest of the world - and in the process sparking sustainable economic development.

There are many reasons for Africa’s agricultural failure, but the main one is lack of investment. For decades, the world ignored African agriculture, and it shows. Just 4% of the continent’s crop land is irrigated, compared with almost 40% in South Asia. Quality seeds are expensive and in short supply. Access to

markets is difficult, storage after harvest is poor and farming knowledge is limited. This can all be fixed, but it will take sustained investment.

Investing in African agriculture makes sense from an economic standpoint - food aid typically costs more than $250 for each metric ton of cereals delivered in rural areas, while smallholder farmers can produce the same amount locally for $100 or less .

Small increases in agricultural investment can make a massive difference not only to food security, but also to the local economy. In sub-Saharan Africa, agriculture directly contributes to 34% of GDP and 64% of employment . According to the World Bank, growth in agriculture is at least two to four times more effective in reducing poverty than in other sectors.

African governments have pledged to increase their own investments in agriculture - to at least 10% of national income - while donor governments have also promised to increase their supports. In some cases, those promises are starting to be delivered.

Across Africa, smallholder farming communities hold the key to Africa’s future food security and economic growth.

Today, one third of people in sub-Saharan Africa are chronically hungry, and rising food prices during 2010 and into 2011 are likely to push that figure higher.


Will new farming technologies end African hunger?

Ploughing with oxen in Ethiopia

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There’s a saying - ‘When you’ve seen one farmer in Africa, you’ve seen one farmer in Africa’ - that reflects the diversity of agricultural practices across the continent. Different climates and different soils have produced a wide range of farming practices based on many different food staples, livestock and fishing.

The one factor that unites many of these farmers is their poverty. Most of the 80 million smallholder farmers in Africa live on less than $2 a day, and they are caught in a poverty trap. Unable to invest additional resources into their farms, they are condemned to a cycle of poor harvests and low incomes.

For many developed world commentators, the solution to poor agricultural productivity depends on new seeds, including genetically modified seeds, together with the application of large amounts of chemical fertilizers.

For Africa’s smallholder farmers, however, investing heavily in these new ‘farm inputs’ is wishful thinking. Most farmers use locally-sourced seed, which is very often an older, lower-yielding variety. The seed is saved from season to season, allowing subsistence farmers to plant with minimum investment. Buying new hybrid or GM seed every season - because this

seed cannot be saved - is not something that most poor farmers can afford.

African farmers also use very low quantities of fertilizer - just 10% of the world average of 100 kilos per hectare . Part of the reason for this is because fertilizer is so expensive - high transportation costs mean that fertilizer in Africa is two to six times the average world price. For most farmers, organic fertilizer – using crop waste and what local livestock produce - is a much more affordable option.

For Self Help Africa, the question is not GM or traditional seed, organic or chemical fertilizer; it’s what solution can farmers afford. Our experience suggests that low-cost inputs - whether seeds or fertilizers - are most sustainable for smallholder farmers.

The one factor that unites many of these farmers is their poverty. Most of the 80 million smallholder farmers in Africa live on less than $2 a day


Grinding maize in the traditional manner, Togo

Why are women so important for African agriculture?

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In Kenya, women constitute 75% of the agricultural work force, farming mostly for subsistence. However, only 1% of women in Kenya own the land on which they work.

In Africa, the hand that rocks the cradle also tills the fields.

In addition to caring for children and the elderly, collecting firewood and carrying water, women produce up to 80% of Africa’s food on small farms. Yet, they receive as little as 5% of the supports to do it.

If African agriculture is underperforming, one of the reasons is because women do not have equal access to the resources and opportunities they need to be more productive. Just five percent of farm advice services around the world go to women , while they receive less than 10% of the credit directed to smallholders.

In Kenya, women constitute 75% of the agricultural work force, farming mostly for subsistence. However, only 1% of women in Kenya own the land on which they work.”

Closing this ‘gender gap’ would generate significant gains for the agriculture sector and for society. If women had the same access to productive resources as men, they could increase yields on their farms by 20 to 30 per cent.

This could raise total agricultural output in developing countries by up to 4 percent, which could in turn reduce the number of hungry people in the world by up to 17 percent.

In Africa, that would mean over 40 million fewer people going hungry every day. Equal treatment for women farmers will not be achieved overnight, as it involves challenging firmly-entrenched beliefs about a woman’s place in society, particularly in respect of land ownership. But progress is being made and sustained, particularly where small improvements in supports to women farmers have resulted in dramatic changes to family incomes.


Three generations, at work in the fields, Zambia

Does the smallholder farmer have a future?

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In the developed world, farms have gradually become larger as farmers benefit from increased mechanisation and economies of scale. Across Africa, however, small farms are the norm and in many countries they are getting smaller.

Some commentators view this as a problem, equating small farms with poorer productivity. In fact, small farms have several advantages over large farms - they can be more efficient, they employ more people and they’re better at reducing poverty and increasing food security.

Many studies have shown an inverse relationship between farm size and land productivity. Small farms are more productive even though they have less capital invested in them. This is critical for Africa, where capital is scarce relative to labour.

Many types of farming enjoy few economies of scale, and so the greater availability of family labour on small farms then creates a distinct advantage. Because labour is relatively cheap, small farms can use labour-intensive methods rather than capital-intensive machines.

In poor, labour-abundant economies, not only are small farms more efficient, but because they also account for large shares of the rural poor, small farm development can be a “win-win” proposition for growth and poverty reduction. Asia’s green revolution demonstrated how agricultural growth that reaches large numbers of small farms can transform rural economies and raise enormous numbers of people out of poverty.

Small farms also contribute to greater food security, particularly in areas with poor infrastructure where high transport costs mean that locally produced foods are cheaper in many cases than food which is grown elsewhere.

In time, African farms are likely to begin to consolidate, following the pattern experienced elsewhere in the world. For the foreseeable future, however, the small farm will continue to be critical to Africa’s economic growth.

In time, African farms are likely to begin to consolidate, following the pattern experienced elsewhere in the world.


Fundraising News

Self Help Africa is grateful to the many groups, individuals and organizations who lent backing and funding support to our work around the world during 2010.

Charity giving has come under considerable pressure in the current global economic recession, yet Self Help Africa’s fundraising portfolio strengthened, and recorded growth in a number of key areas during the year.

We have benefited from enormous support and goodwill from our supporters in the United States and Europe. Amongst the highlights on the 2010 fundraising calendar was our inaugural US Ball – an event that attracted close to 350 friends to a function in New York, and generated very significant revenues for our programs.

The ‘Change-Maker’s Ball’ was held at Chelsea Piers in Manhattan, and was MC’ed by Bloomberg TV presenter Margaret Brennan, and addressed by a range of speakers including former Irish and British Lions Rugby Star and Self Help Africa Ambassador Dennis Hickie.

Also during the year, the bars and restaurants of Stone Street in lower Manhattan donated a percentage of their profits from the annual Streetfest to Self Help Africa’s water development activities in Togo.

Further afield, Global Ethic’s One Foundation has expanded its range of ordinary domestic products - to include soap, eggs and toilet tissue - from which profits are channeled to Self Help Africa’s programs. In 2010, its sales contributed over $150,000 for vegetable garden development, pit latrine construction and sanitation, and smallholder poultry enterprise development in Malawi.

A trans-African charity cycle undertaken by Dublin accountant Paddy Berkery raised over $20,000, while boat races, mountain climbs, farmer groups and a wide variety of other fundraising efforts continued to be vital for our program work across Africa. To all our supporters in 2010, we say ‘thank you’.

Paddy Berkery from Dublin is pictured in Tanzania, as he cycled the ‘Tour D’Afrique’

route from Cairo to Capetown in support of Self Help Africa.

Leah Baker, Crysie Philalithes and Hilary McMahon at the Change-Maker’s Ball in Manhattan last November

Climbing Mount Kilimanjaro in support of Self Help Africa

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Financial Report

The road to market, Malawi


Self Help Africa (Consolidated) - USDStatement of Financial Activities for the year ended 31 December 2010

unrestricted restricted 2009 funds funds total total uSD uSD uSD uSD

incoming resources Voluntary Income 2,065,860 812,750 2,878,610 2,775,130 Statutory grant income 342,407 6,170,819 6,513,226 7,704,906 Interest and other income 4,308 51 4,359 60,829 Total incoming resources 2,412,575 6,983,620 9,396,195 10,540,865 cost of generating funds 493,924 0 493,924 675,219 charitable activities 2,120,227 7,717,435 9,837,662 8,590,172 Governance costs 57,719 32,165 89,884 101,479 Total resources expended 2,671,870 7,749,600 10,421,470 9,366,870 net surplus/loss before transfers (259,295) (765,980) (1,025,275) 1,173,995 Gain on revaluation of assets 2,651 0 2,651 3,309 transfers between funds 97,515 (97,515) 0 0 net incoming/outgoing resources (159,129) (863,495) (1,022,624) 1,177,304 funds brought forward 1,810,847 1,872,955 3,683,802 2,589,427 Gain/(loss) on consolidation (117,128) (66,502) (183,630) (82,929) Funds at end of period 1,534,590 942,958 2,477,548 3,683,802

Actuals year to Date

22


Charitable activity (94%), Generating voluntary income (5%), Governance costs (1%)

Food Security (34%)Sustainable Rural Livelihoods (51%)Building Community Capacity (13%)Research, learning, advocacy (2%)

Irish Aid $4,043,166General Donations $2,318,821European Union $1,865,620Trust/Foundations/Others $1,168,588

1. HOW YOUR MONEY WAS SPENT

2. WHO ARE OUR MAJOR DONORS?

3. SHARE OF CHARITABLE EXPENDITURE

USASelf Help Africa Inc.41 Union Square West, Suite 631New York, NY 10003, USATel. +1 212 206 0847

ERITREAPO Box 9313,Asmara,Tel. +291 118 8382

ETHIOPIAKirkos SubcityAfrica AvenueH.No. 930/01P.O.Box 1204 Addis Ababa,EthiopiaTel. +251 115 522313

IRELANDAnnefield HouseDublin Road, Portlaoise,Co. Laois, IrelandTel +353 (0) 578 694034 KENYAPO Box 2248Code 20100,Nakuru,Tel. +254 O51 2212291 MALAWIPO Box B-495Lilongwe,Tel. +265 1750568

UGANDAPlot 14 B,Off Naguru 2 RdPO. Box 32249, Kampala,Tel. +256 414 286305

UKWestgate House, Hills Lane,ShrewsburySY1 1QU, UKTel +44 (0) 1743 277170 WEST AFRICA12 PO Box 315,Ougadougou 12,Burkina FasoTel. +226 50 36 89 60 ZAMBIA33 Cnr Joseph Mwilwa and Great East RoadRhodesparkLusakaTel: +260 211 236604

Documents

Self Help Africa - Annual Review 11-12 (US Version)