Sustainable Rice Production Project (SRPP) PROGRESS REPORT 1 Website/Progress... · Sustainable Rice Production Project Progress Report 1 - 1 - 1. Outline of the Project 1.1. Background

Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security,

Sierra Leone

Sustainable Rice Production Project

(SRPP)

PROGRESS REPORT 1

March, 2018

JAPAN INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION AGENCY

RECS International Inc.

Project Location Map

River/stream

Main road

Bombali District

Kambia District

Port Loko District

District capital

ABC supported under

ICADEP

Legend

Koinadugu District

Tonkolili District

Moyamba District

Western Area

Rural District

Project Area:Bombali, Port Loko and

Kambia Districts

Rep. of Guinea

Makeni

Port Loko

Kambia

Bombali

Port Loko

Republic of

Sierra Leone

Photographs on the Project Activities

Baseline Survey

Capacity Development of Extension Workers

Capacity Development of FBO Farmers in IVS

Other Activities

Transplanting IVS development Harvesting

Training of MAFFS engineer staff on

topographic survey Survey on post-harvest processing

District Task Force meeting

Training on TP-R

Focus group discussion

Refresher course on TP-R

Selection of questionnaire survey

enumerators

Review workshop on monitoring of rice

cultivation

Key informant interview

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Progress Report 1

Table of Contents

Project Location Map

Photographs on the Project Activities

1. Outline of the Project ....................................................................................................................... 1

1.1. Background .................................................................................................................................... 1

1.2. Objectives and outputs ................................................................................................................... 1

1.3. Project area, counterpart organization and implementation structure ............................................ 2

2. Project Activities and Results Obtained ............................................................................................ 4

2.1. Preparation of the Project Implementation Setup .......................................................................... 4

2.1.1. Presentation and discussion of a work plan in the first period ............................................... 4

2.1.2. Establishment of the Project implementation structure .......................................................... 4

2.1.3. Procumbent of equipment ...................................................................................................... 4

2.2. Activities related to Output 1 ......................................................................................................... 5

2.2.1. Design and implementation of the baseline survey ................................................................ 5

2.2.2. Results .................................................................................................................................... 7

2.2.3. Selection criteria for model FBOs ........................................................................................ 20

2.3. Activities related to Output 2 ....................................................................................................... 21

2.3.1. Capacity Development of extension workers ...................................................................... 21

2.3.2. Capacity development of FBO farmers in IVS .................................................................... 28


2.4.1. Field survey on rice cultivation in IVSs in the target area of the Project ............................. 30

2.4.2. Review of the manual and the guideline for better disseminating the TP-R ........................ 30

2.4.3. Study on other rice cultivation techniques developed by various donors/institution ........... 32


2.5.1. Information sharing with other donors and NGOs for collaboration ................................... 33

2.5.2. Project PR ............................................................................................................................ 33

3. Issues to Be Addressed ................................................................................................................... 35

3.1. Issues and/or challenges to achieve the Project purpose ............................................................. 35

3.1.1. Technical issues .................................................................................................................... 35

3.1.2. Socio-economic issues ......................................................................................................... 35

3.1.3. Management issues on FBOs/ABCs .................................................................................... 35

3.2. Project Design Matrix (PDM) ..................................................................................................... 36

3.2.1. Definition / understanding of the Technical Package on Rice Production (TP-R) ............... 36

3.2.2. Logical sequence between Project purpose and outputs ...................................................... 36

4. Project Direction and Strategy ........................................................................................................ 37

4.1. Project direction ........................................................................................................................... 37

4.2. Project strategy ............................................................................................................................ 37

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5. Proposed Activities in the Next Phase ............................................................................................ 39

5.1. Detailed activity plan (Draft) ....................................................................................................... 39

5.1.1. Capacity development of FBO farmers in IVS .................................................................... 39

5.1.2. Development and introduction of facilitation measures to adopt the TP-R ......................... 39

5.1.3. Training on rice development in a third country .................................................................. 40

5.2. Modification of PDM .................................................................................................................. 40

5.2.1. Confirmation on the definition of the TP-R in the PDM ..................................................... 40

5.2.2. Adjustment of logical sequences between outputs and Project purpose .............................. 40

5.2.3. Setting of the target figures of Objectively Verifiable Indicators (OVIs) ............................ 40

List of Tables

Table 1 Aspects to be covered and survey methods .............................................................................. 5

Table 2 Target number of households of the questionnaire survey ....................................................... 7

Table 3 Schedules and coverages of the surveys ................................................................................... 7

Table 4 Division of labor in reproductive activities .............................................................................. 9

Table 5 Division of labor in IVS rice productive activities ................................................................... 9

Table 6 Mean values of the IVSs surveyed ........................................................................................... 9

Table 7 Operational conditions of rice milling machines installed in ABCs ....................................... 10

Table 8 Basic Information on FBOs .................................................................................................... 12

Table 9 Average size of group farms in 2017 ...................................................................................... 12

Table 10 Number of farmers, average area and revenue from major crops ........................................ 16

Table 11 Labor requirement per ha ...................................................................................................... 17

Table 12 Number of meal and rice consumed ..................................................................................... 19

Table 13 Proposed criteria for selection of FBOs ............................................................................... 21

Table 14 Number of participants in the TP-R introductory training ................................................... 22

Table 15 Result of the tests conducted before and after the training sessions. .................................... 22

Table 16 Evaluation of the training by the participants ....................................................................... 22

Table 17 Selection of the nursery site.................................................................................................. 24

Table 18 Programme of the first topographic survey training ............................................................. 27

Table 19 Roles of three parties in the Agreement ................................................................................ 28

Table 20 Results of rice yield survey in IVS of the four advanced FBO in Kambia ........................... 29

Table 21 Outline of the training on operation and maintenance of milling machine .......................... 30

Table 22 Main features of SRI ............................................................................................................ 33

Table 23 Rice related activities of donors/NGO and envisaged collaboration area ............................ 33

List of Figures

Fig. 1 Implementation structure of the Project ...................................................................................... 3

Fig. 2 Land tenure for the group farms of FBOs ................................................................................. 12

Fig. 3 Rice varieties used by FBOs ..................................................................................................... 13

Fig. 4 Utilization of the produce ......................................................................................................... 13

Fig. 5 Main activity of ABCs .............................................................................................................. 14

iii

Fig. 6 Facilities of ABCs ..................................................................................................................... 14

Fig. 7 Yield of IVS rice in FBOs in 2017 ............................................................................................ 15

Fig. 8 Three most important crops cultivated by the households ........................................................ 15

Fig. 9 Land tenure of the IVS rice fields used by the households ....................................................... 16

Fig. 10 Variety of rice .......................................................................................................................... 17

Fig. 11 Source of technical information .............................................................................................. 18

Fig. 12 Reason for keeping land uncultivated ..................................................................................... 18

Fig. 13 Reason for low yield ............................................................................................................... 19

Fig. 14 Month when the rice stocks ran out ........................................................................................ 19

Fig. 15 Staple food consumed after the stock of rice ran out .............................................................. 20

Fig. 16 Coping Strategy for Food Shortage ........................................................................................ 20

Fig. 17 Impacts of Ebola on farming activities ................................................................................... 20

Fig. 18 Different method of seed selection ......................................................................................... 24

Fig. 19 Nursery period ........................................................................................................................ 25

Fig. 20 Number of seedlings per hill ................................................................................................... 25

Fig. 21 Distance between hills ............................................................................................................ 25

Fig. 22 Number of days from sowing to harvesting ............................................................................ 26

Fig. 23 Example of revision of extension material.............................................................................. 31

Fig. 24 Quick reference chart of cropping calendar ............................................................................ 31

Fig. 25 Relationship among the Project purpose, the Project directions and the Project strategies .... 38

List of Appendixes

Appendix 1 Record of Discussion ................................................................................................ A-1

Appendix 2 PDM (version 1) ....................................................................................................... A-19

Appendix 3 Project work flow and schedule................................................................................ A-22

Appendix 4 Staffing and assignments .......................................................................................... A-23

Appendix 5 List of equipment procured....................................................................................... A-24

Appendix 6 Minutes of JCC meeting ........................................................................................... A-25

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Acronyms and abbreviations

ABC Agricultural Business Centre

BES Block Extension Supervisor

BRAC Bangladesh Rural Advancement Committee

CP Counterpart

DAO District Agriculture Officer

EPP Employment Promotion Programme

FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations

FBO

FEW

FFS

Farmer Based Organization

Frontline Extension Worker

Farmer Field School

FGD Focus Group Discussion

GAFSP

GIZ

Global Agriculture and Food Security Programme

German Agency for International Cooperation

GOJ Government of Japan

GOSL Government of Sierra Leone

GPS Global Positioning System

ICADEP Inclusive and Comprehensive Agriculture Development Programme

ICT Information and Communication Technology

IFAD

IFT

International Fund for Agricultural Development

Integrated Farmer Training

IVS Inland Valley Swamp

JCC Joint Coordinating Committee

JICA

KII

Japan International Cooperation Agency

Key Informant Interview

MAFFS Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security

NSADP National Sustainable Agriculture Development Plan

PDM Project Design Matrix

PO Plan of Operation

R/D Record of Discussion

SCADeP Smallholder Commercialization and Agribusiness Development Project

SCP Smallholder Commercialization Programme

SMS

SRDP

Subject Matter Specialist

Sustainable Rice Development Project

SRI

SRPP

System of Rice Intensification


TP-R

WAAPP

WAATP

Technical Package on Rice Production

West Africa Agricultural Productivity Program

West Africa Agricultural Transformation Program

WFP World Food Programme

Sustainable Rice Production Project Progress Report 1

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1. Outline of the Project

1.1. Background

Rice is a staple food in Sierra Leone consumed more than 100 kg per person per year in 2013 (FAOSTAT).

However, domestic production of rice (milled) does not meet the demand, and more than 300,000 ton of

milled rice was imported in 2014. In the meantime, 85 percent of small-scale rice farmers own less than 1

ha of farmland. Under such circumstances, enhancement of productivity and profitability of small-scale

rice farmers is an urgent issue to be tackled for food security and poverty reduction in the Country.

Until now, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), a Japanese semi-governmental organization

responsible for implementing bi-lateral technical and financial cooperation programs/projects to

developing countries, has implemented two technical cooperation projects in the agricultural sector since

2006 to Sierra Leone, especially in Kambia District, to contribute to the strengthening of food security in

the Country through the enhancement of the rice productivity.

In the light of the successful implementation of the previous project, “Sustainable Rice Development

Project (SRDP)” which ended in 2014, the Government of Sierra Leone (GOSL) requested to the

Government of Japan (GOJ) on an implementation of “Sustainable Rice Development Project Phase 2”

for continuous cooperation and support to the achievement of rice self-sufficiency. GOJ accepted the

request and entrusted JICA to implement the Project. In response to that, JICA conducted the Detailed

Planning Survey on the Project for confirming the Project components, necessary arrangements by GOSL

and JICA, and so forth, and the Record of Discussions (RD) on “Sustainable Rice Production Project

(SRPP) in the Republic of Sierra Leone” (the Project) was agreed to and signed by the Ministry of

Agriculture, Forestry and Food Security (MAFFS) of Sierra Leone and JICA.

1.2. Objectives and outputs

According to RD, Overall Goals and Project Purpose are as follows:

Overall Goals： 1) Rice productivity is increased in Inland Valley Swamp (IVS) in three districts

(Bombali, Kambia, Port Loko)

2) The improved Technical Package of Rice (TP-R) which is applicable for farmers

is disseminated to Farmer Based Organization (FBO) farmers in IVS countrywide

Project

Purpose：

The improved TP-R which is applicable for farmers is disseminated to FBO farmers

in IVS in three districts (Bombali, Kambia and Port Loko).

Project Purpose will be achieved through four outputs indicated below.


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Expected Outputs of the Project

Output 1： The situation of IVS rice farming in three districts is summarized.

Output 2： The rice cultivation and processing techniques of trained farmers are improved in three

districts.

Output 3： The improved TP-R which is applicable for farmers is utilized in FFS training for farmers.

Output 4： The improved TP-R which is applicable for farmers is recognized as recommended

cultivation techniques in countrywide. (Output 4 is aimed to achieve the overall goal.)

1.3. Project area, counterpart organization and implementation structure

The Project area

The Project covers the following three districts:

Bombali District (Population: 606,544; Area: 7,985 km2)

Kambia District (Population: 345,474; Area 3,108 km2)

Port Loko District (Population: 615,376; Area: 5,719 km2)

*Population is cited from Population and Housing Census, Summary of Final Results (2015).

Counterpart organization

The MAFFS is the implementing body of the Project, and officers of the three district agriculture offices

as well as the headquarters in Freetown are the counterpart (CP) personnel of the JICA experts.

Joint Coordinating Committee

In order to facilitate inter-organizational coordination for the Project, a Joint Coordinating Committee

(JCC) was established. JCC is to be held at least once a year and whenever deems it necessary. JCC

reviews the progress, revises the overall plan when necessary, approves an annual work plan, conducts

evaluation of the Project, and exchanges opinions on major issues that arise during the implementation of

the Project for finding the solution.

Task force

A Task force was established in each of the three districts, which consists of the District Agriculture

Officer (DAO), Subject Matter Specialists (SMS) of various fields (extension, crops, agricultural

engineering, and monitoring and evaluation), and Training Officers. The Task force aims at making the

technical team in the respective districts, the members of which collaborate with each other to enhance

the efficiency of the Project under the supervision of the DAO.


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Implementation Structure

Implementation structure of the project is shown in Figure

Source: JICA-SRPP team (modified based on the RD of the Project)

Fig. 1 Implementation structure of the Project


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2. Project Activities and Results Obtained

2.1. Preparation of the Project Implementation Setup

2.1.1. Presentation and discussion of a work plan in the first period

In June 2018, the content of a work plan in the first period was explained to the officers of the three district

agriculture offices and researchers of Rokupr Agricultural Research Centre (RARC). In July 2017, a kick-off

meeting was convened on July 3, 2017 at the MAFFS. Following the presentation of a work plan by the Chief

Advisor of the Project, comments and concerns were raised from the participants and answers were given by

the JICA-SRPP team and an officer of JICA Field Office in Sierra Leone.

In the first JCC meeting on the Project held in August 2017, contents of a work plan of the Project were

presented by the JICA-SRPP team and the work plan was approved by the JCC (refer to Appendix 6).

2.1.2. Establishment of the Project implementation structure

(1) Project office and Project staff

The Project offices were established in Freetown, Makeni, Port Loko and Kambia. The office in Makeni

functions as a headquarters of the Project.

One local coordinator and seven (7) local field staff were employed by the JICA-SRPP team, to augment

implementation capacity of the Project.

(2) JCC

The JCC of the Project was formed and two meetings were convened in the first period of the Project. In

the first meeting in August 2017, a work plan and Project Design Matrix (PDM) of the Project were

shared with the participants. In the second meeting in February 2018, presentation of the Project

activities undertaken and results obtained in the first period as well as the proposed activities in the next

period of the Project were shared and discussed among the participants. Minutes of both meetings,

together with presentation materials and monitoring sheets of the Project are attached to this report as

Appendix 6.

(3) District Task Force

A district task force was formed in each district in November 2017. In the first meeting in November

2017, the following personnel were admitted as coopted members;

- BESs: members of Task Force

- National Federation of Farmers of Sierra Leone (NaFFSL) District Coordinator and the chairperson

of agriculture committee of the district/ local council: observers

In the second meeting in January 2018, it was decided that the district Task Force meeting is to be

convened every month and that monthly report on the Project activities and minutes of previous meeting

are to be submitted by SMS of monitoring and evaluation and SMS of extension, respectively. The third

meeting was held in February 2018 as scheduled.

2.1.3. Procumbent of equipment

A total of 35 units of motor bikes were procured by the JICA-SRPP team to facilitate the field activities of the

MAFFS extension workers in the three districts (Bombali, Port Loko and Kambia). Handing over ceremony

of motor bikes to MAFFS was held in August 2017 and the bikes were handed over to the users after

execution of agreement between Project Manager and each user.


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Office equipment including six (6) sets of PCs, three (3) printers, three (3) photocopiers, three (3) projectors

with office furniture have been procured for the Project offices established in the three districts. Other

equipment necessary for field activities like GPS loggers, survey equipment, moisture meters and digital

cameras have also been purchased (refer to Appendix 5).

2.2. Activities related to Output 1

<The situation of IVS rice farming in three districts is summarized.>

2.2.1. Design and implementation of the baseline survey

(1) Contents and methods of the survey

The baseline survey was conducted to capture the current situation of the target area, including

conditions of rice production in IVSs, status of livelihood of beneficiary farmers, as well as the situation

in which agricultural extension activities are carried out. It is thus to look into various aspects through

different survey method, as summarized in the Table 1 below.

Table 1 Aspects to be covered and survey methods

Thematic area Aspects to be covered Survey method

I. Agricultural development programs in Sierra Leone

a. Policies & strategies on

agricultural

development

a. National agricultural development plans & programmes

such as ICADEP, the progress of rice development

programme, budget allocations

Literature

b. Trends of assistance of

donors / development

partners

b. Projects/programmes of other donors / institutions

supporting in rice cultivation such as World Bank, IFAD,

WFP, FAO, BRAC

Literature & interviews

II. Socio-economic condition of rice farmers in the target area

a. Social situation a. Demographic compositions, human resources, nutrition,

living conditions, gender

Literature, interviews

& questionnaire

b. Economic situation b. Labour & employment, economic activities, income and

expenditure, access to and control over economic resources

Literature, interviews

& questionnaire

c. Impacts of Ebola Virus

Disease

c. Impacts on human resource, livelihood and farming

activities

Interviews &

questionnaire

III. Rice production and processing in IVS in the target area

a. Rice cultivation & farm

management

a. Rice farming system, cropping calendar, variety, seeds &

other inputs, use of tools, equipment & machineries, pests &

diseases, yield performances and constraints, requirements

and division of labor

Interviews &

questionnaire

b. Extension b. Extension approach, operational modality, capacity of

extension staff, potentials and challenges

Interviews &

questionnaire

c. Farmers organizations c. Experience, legal status, membership, assets, group farming

of rice, other group activities, affiliation to ABCs, external

supports and services obtained

Interviews &

questionnaire

d. IVS development d. Location, topographic conditions, water availability, extent

of physical development, technical potentials and issues,

cohesiveness of FBOs working in the IVS, capacity of

relevant engineering staff

Interviews & field

survey

e. Post-harvest processing e. Capacity and activities of ABCs, methods of milling and

parboiling of rice, marketing of rice, availability, utilization

& maintenance of equipment & machineries, experience of

and opportunities for training

Interviews, field

survey & questionnaire


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To capture all the aspects listed in Table 1, the following four types of surveys were implemented.

1) Literature review

As the preliminary step of the survey, literature review was conducted, in which various

already-existing resources including the reports of and materials developed by the foregoing SRDP,

the report of the detailed planning survey of the Project, population census and other reference

materials were thoroughly reviewed.

2) Qualitative surveys

Regarding agricultural production, extension, and the socioeconomic status, some qualitative

information collection such as Key Informant Interviews (KIIs) and Focus Group Discussion

(FGDs) were undertaken. To obtain general picture of communities, famers and their activities,

some key personnel of the district agriculture offices as well as the extension staff at the field level

were interviewed at first in the KIIs. They provided the Project with current conditions in general,

overall trends of production and livelihood in their areas of jurisdiction and communities. After the

initial round of KIIs, a series of FGD sessions in 7 locations (3 in Bombali and 2 each in Kambia

and Port Loko) were organized with FBO members to grasp general conditions of respective

communities and to identify the key challenges in their production and livelihood.

3) Field surveys

As it has been anticipated that some model of participatory IVS development with involvement of

farmers will be tried out in the Project, the baseline survey also included the situation analysis of the

IVSs in the target districts. From the list of existing IVSs, some potential IVSs were selected for

further survey based on the criteria, such as size of IVS, seasonal availability of water in the IVS,

the capacity of FBOs working in the IVS, physical accessibility to the location, and so forth. The

Japanese expert in charge, together with the relevant SMS (agricultural engineering), took lead in

these field surveys. Out of the direct field observations through ocular visits as well as through

vigorous discussion with relevant district staff, the current conditions of existing IVSs were grasped

and the potentials and challenges for future interventions were identified.

Another sphere of aspects to be captured through field survey was on the post-harvest processing,

for which a total of twenty-four (24) selected Agricultural Business Centres (ABCs) were visited by

another Japanese expert in charge, together with the district extension staff and the Project staff in

the respective districts. The current situation of ABCs, including the conditions of machineries,

operation and maintenance and activities of post-harvest processing and treatment by those ABCs

were observed, while interviews and information gathering through questionnaire were also

conducted, out of which various challenges and scope for future capacity building were identified. A

rice processing plant operated and managed by a private sector at suburbs of Makeni was also

visited and interviewed to grasp the rice milling business in the country for reference,

4) Questionnaire survey

Aside from these surveys mentioned above, the interviews survey with farmers using questionnaire

forms was also implemented to capture the quantitative information, some of which shall serve as

the benchmark data on the indicators to measure the achievement of the Project, stipulated in the

Project Design Matrix (PDM).

The number of farm households to be interviewed in the baseline survey was 1,200 in total, which

were derived from three districts in accordance with the ratio of total number of farmers engaged in

rice cultivation in IVS in each district as summarized in Table 2 below.


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Table 2 Target number of households of the questionnaire survey

Bombali Port Loko Kambia Total

No. of IVS farmers (*)

15,479 21,563 14,186 51,228

No. of Blocks 6 5 4 15

No. of Circles 48 40 32 120

No. of farmers interviewed 480 400 320 1,200

No. of FBOs interviewed 108 66 92 266

*Note: The number of IVS rice farmers is cited from the Report of Detailed Planning Survey, JICA, 2016.

For this questionnaire survey, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) was used, in

which the list of questions was then deployed as a mobile application to the smart phones of the

selected enumerators, who visited each household to administer the questionnaire and to input the

answers into the formats on the phones. To reduce possible mistakes in encoding, majority of the

answers to the questions were designed to be chosen from the given alternatives, while the farmers’

answers to any open question could directly be recorded by the keyboard of the phones. It was

confirmed that this method could not only reduce the time required for the interviews and data

encoding, but greatly contribute to improving the quality of the primary data from the field as well

as making the process of analysis more efficient.

As survey enumerators, BESs and FEWs in the three districts were mobilized and trained to

conduct field interviews. The field survey was conducted from the 4th to 20

th of December 2017.

During the survey period, each enumerator visited one to two FBOs as well as two to three farmers

a day for five days a week, and also conducted some data call-back to confirm any information that

was found to be controversial.

(2) Schedule and coverage of the surveys

The survey activities were carried out for a period of about six (6) months, starting with the initial

collection of literatures to be reviewed in September 2017, to the completion of the field survey on

post-harvest processing in February 2018. Details of the different surveys are as summarized in the

following Table 3.

Table 3 Schedules and coverages of the surveys

Type of survey Dates implemented Coverage

Qualitative survey

a. KIIs

b. FGDs

a. a. 26-28th Sep., 4-5

th & 9-12

th Oct. 2017

b. b. 4-5th, 11-12

th, & 16-18

th Oct. 2017

a. 42 Staff of DAO & 12 extension staff

b. 7 FBOs (3 in Bombali, 2 each in Kambia

and Port Loko)

Field survey on IVS

development 4-8

th & 20-22

nd Dec. 2017

26 Inland Valley Swamps (10 in Bombali, 10

in Kambia and 6 in Port Loko)

Field survey on

post-harvest

processing

22-24th, 29-31

st Jan. & 7-9

th Feb. 2018

24 ABCs (8 ABCs per district)

Private millers and operators

Questionnaire survey

a. Training

b. Orientation

c. Field interviews

d. a. 15-16th, 21-22

nd, 28-29

th Nov. 2017

e. b. 27th, 30

th Nov. & 1

st Dec. 2017

f. c. 4th-20

th Dec. 2017

• 1,200 households (480 in Bombali, 320 in

Kambia and 400 in Port Loko)

• 266 FBOs (108 in Bombali, 92 in Kambia

and 66 in Port Loko)

2.2.2. Results

(1) Major finding of statistical review and qualitative survey

The general conditions of livelihood and farming activities captured were in support of the trends

appeared in the statistics of the target districts. Major findings highlighted in the statistical review

included among others the following:

- Being predominantly in rural setting, there are challenges in living conditions including various


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facilities and amenities related to education, health and sanitation, as well as transportation and

communications,

- Educational attainment among population over 15 years remains low. Among the population over

15 years of age, 44% are with any form of education in Bombali, 43% in Kambia and 38% in Port

Loko, all of which are notably lower than the national average of 54%1,

- Access to the safe water also seems to be a challenge. More than 40% of the households in the

target districts obtain water for domestic use from unprotected sources such as streams,

unprotected wells and so forth2,

- Agriculture is predominant sector in the target districts. The majorities of the population, i.e. 72%

of total number of households in three districts, are engaged in agriculture, 84% of which are on

crop production3,

- The Food Consumption Scores (FCS) are referred to as a proxy measurement of food security of

households. In the statistics, all target districts recorded larger proportion of households than the

national average whose FCSs are ranked as “poor”, especially in Kambia (47%)4, and,

- The rice produced by farmers lasts for five (5) months in about 50% of the households in the

target districts, leaving them either relying on the purchased rice or altering the staple to other food

items5.

In qualitative survey through KIIs and FGDs, following points were highlighted in relation to rice

production in IVS:

- All of the target districts have IVSs, which are concentrated in some areas, not evenly dispersed.

- Rice cultivation in IVS is an important enterprise while farmers also produce other crops. The

farmers engaged in IVS rice production prefer IVS rice to upland rice because of the potentials of

double cropping and higher yields obtained in the IVSs.

- The yield performances of IVS rice reported by farmers participated in FGDs ranged from 0.6 to

1.5 Mt/ha as the farmers cannot afford/avail fertilizers, while the yield could reach to 2.4 Mt/ha if

fertilizer could be applied.

- Common challenges of rice cultivation in IVS raised during KIIs and FGDs include:

Water control (drainage) in the plots in the swamps

Difficulties in obtaining inputs, especially quality seeds, fertilizers and agro-chemicals

Lack of knowledge on / exposure to improved cultivation techniques

Shortage and/or high costs for labour

As for the extension approach, Farmer Field School (FFS) has extensively been conducted, while some

extension workers pointed out during the KII some challenges in conducting FFS as follows:

- Duration is too short for some crops,

- Meeting schedules are not match with critical production stage,

- Existing materials, brochures and handouts are not made available for field activities,

- Materials for demonstration are not distributed on time, and,

- Attendance is often affected at peak farming period by their engagement in activities for other

1 Comprehensive Food Security and Vulnerability Analysis (CSFVA), 2015 2 Population and Housing Census: Summary of Final Results 2015 3 - do - 4 CSFVA, 2015 5 - do-


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crops.

Also, various constraints in carrying out extension activities in general were voiced out such as:

- The newly recruited volunteers are yet waiting for formal employment processes to be realized,

- The volunteers need to be equipped with proper knowledge and adequate skills as extension staff,

and,

- Mobility has chronically been a challenge, due to the limited provision of means of transportation,

wide geographical coverage, poor conditions of feeder roads, heavy rains in the rainy season and

so forth.

The qualitative survey also explored current status and issues of gender relations through the activity

profiling, such as division of labor and decision making. There are distinctive patterns of division of labor

observed both in reproductive and productive activities as indicated in the following Table 4 and Table 5.

Women are the main doers of the reproductive activities with partial assistance from other members of

household, and it should be noted that men are involved in these activities to lesser extent than other

household members do. As for IVS rice production, on the other hand, men are the main workforce, while

women also contribute a lot. FGD discussions revealed that women’s participation in rice production is

impeded by the heavy burden of reproductive activities, which may typically be exemplified in the cases when

any external laborers are mobilized, women have to stop working in the field in order to cook for them.

Table 4 Division of labor in reproductive activities

Source: Results of FGDs, SRPP, 2017

*Note: The scores were the sum of the points given to main doer (2 points) and regular assistant (1 point). “Others” mean other

members of household, such as children and dependent youths.

Table 5 Division of labor in IVS rice productive activities

Source: Results of FGDs, SRPP, 2017

*Note: The scores were the sum of the points given to main doer (2 points) and regular assistant (1 point). “Others” mean other

members of household and/or laborers.

(2) Major findings of the field survey on IVS development

The field survey on IVS development covered a total of twenty-six (26) IVSs that were proposed for

further study, the basic information of which are as summarized in the following Table 6.

Table 6 Mean values of the IVSs surveyed

District No.

of

IVS

No.

of

FBO

Mean Value of IVS Basic Information (each FBO)

No. of

Households

FBO Members Potential Are (a)

Irrigable Area (Cultivated Area)

Rainy Season (b) Dry Season (c)

Male (nos.)

Female (nos.)

Total (nos.)

(ha) (acre) (ha) (acre) Rate (b/a)

(ha) (acre) Rate (c/a)

Bombali 10 25 33.8 18.1 19.0 37.1 5.4 13.5 4.7 11.5 85.7% 3.4 8.4 62.2%

Kambia 10 10 23.0 18.3 12.2 30.5 11.0 27.1 7.9 19.5 72.0% 2.9 7.0 26.0%

Port Loko 6 6 46.9 29.1 20.4 49.5 5.4 13.4 5.4 13.4 100.0% 4.0 9.8 73.2%

Source: Data obtained through field survey, SRPP, 2017

Fetching

water

Collection of

firewood

Cooking

meals

Washing

utensils

Washing

clothes

Cleaning of

the house

Taking care

of children

Taking care

of the sick &

elders

Maintenance

of house

buildings

Community

meetingsTotal

Men 0 0 2 0 1 3 11.5 16 28 23.5 85

Women 22 22 28 14 24 23 28.5 26 11 18.5 217

Others(*) 20 17 12 28 17 16 2 0 3 0 115

Activities

Extent of

involvment

ActivitiesDrainage

clearing

Land

Prepara-

tion

Bund

making

Sowing /

nursery

manage-

ment

LevellingTrans

plantingWeeding

Fertilizer

applica-

tion

FencingBird

scaring

Harvest-

ing

Thresh-

ing

Winnow-

ingDrying Bagging

Storage

manage-

ment

Parboil-

ingMilling Total

Men 30 29 29 26 26 27 8 25 12 19 28 23.5 6 7 26.5 33 1 1 357

Women 8 3 5 15 11 11 28 4 3 7 10 13.5 30 29 12.5 9 32 29 260

Others(*) 4 10 8 2 5 4 6 4 3 17 4 2 6 6 3 0 9 12 105


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Most of the IVSs have already been developed by various projects and programmes, such as GAFSP,

ASREP, PLADP (Port Loko Agriculture Development Project by the government of Sierra Leone), LFM

(Linking Farmers to Market) etc., and the constructions of these IVSs were supervised either by MAFFS

or private companies.

In Bombali and Kambia, the most of irrigation facilities were constructed in these IVSs between 2010-17,

while in Port Loko, some were constructed in 2015-16, and others were constructed in 1990s. There

were a lot of abandoned or undeveloped paddy fields in these IVSs, and the irrigation facilities were also

found to require rehabilitations.

In these IVSs, the irrigation water was supplied by one or combination of two among three (3) type of

sources, i.e. i) the spring water, ii) the seepage water from the forest and iii) the inflow from upstream.

The amount of irrigation water seemed to change depending on seasonality, topography, stretch of forests

in surrounding area, geological conditions, extent of river basin (catchment area) and so forth.

There were some marshy areas in these IVSs the soil found on the ground of which may not be suitable

for cultivation or construction. These marshy areas tended to spread at poor drainage areas and the

topsoil contained the decayed straws and weeds (organic matter). The clay and sandy soil found in IVSs

have been used as the embankment material. The quality of the embankment structure seemed to have

been affected by improper practices such as the mixture of the organic matter and the construction

method (insufficiency in control of water content of soil and, compaction etc.).

In most of the IVSs, it was also found that internal bunds need repair, maintenance or to be newly

constructed. Some fields also seemed to need the land leveling, raising or upgrading of the canal bank.

FBO farmers reported that they have been suffering from water shortage in dry season, poor drainage,

lack of seed and fertilizer as well as shortage of workforce.

During interviews with farmers, it was also noted that the most of the past IVS development initiatives

were executed by mobilizing contractors thus without much involvement of beneficiary farmers.

Therefore, neither farmers nor MAFFS staff are well experienced in participatory IVS development.

Concurrently, FBO farmers do not have sense of ownership of the facilities as they have not participated

in IVS development works.

As for the technical capacities of the relevant MAFFS staff, it was found out that there have not been

sufficient opportunities of technical training, thus there are pressing needs to enhance knowledges and

skills in engineering in general, including basic skills of topographic surveys and IVS development

planning.

(3) Major finding of the field survey on post-harvest processing

Present operational conditions of rice milling machines at Agricultural Business Centres (ABCs) in the

target area of the Project are shown in Table 7.

Table 7 Operational conditions of rice milling machines installed in ABCs

Item / District Kambia Port Loko Bombali Total

ABCs surveyed by SRPP team 8 8 8 24

In which rice milling machine is working as of date of survey 6 4 0 10

Type of rice milling machine

Engelberg type 7 6 6 19

In which the machine is working 6 4 0 10

One-pass type 1 2 2 5

In which the machine is working 0 0 0 0

Source: Data from the field survey as of January to February 2018, SRPP


- 11 -

The main reasons why the rice milling facilities are not in operation were roughly divided into the

following three (3) aspects.

1) Machines are broken down or parts are not available, machines cannot be operated.

In response to this situation, surveyor asked why repair is not available, and got the following

responses from ABC.

- Even if an ABC requested repair, no service man came due to the remoteness of its location.

- Even if an ABC contacted and requested repair to the district office of MAFFS, it is only

answered “Please contact the technical service man”.

- Contact addresses etc. of spare parts dealers or repairing service shops are not known.

- Because there are no personnel with appropriate maintenance and repair skills of machines in

ABCs, proper equipment management has not been possible. This caused many failures which

ABCs could not cope with.

- At the beginning of the delivery of the rice milling machines, technical lecture meeting was

held by inviting persons in charge of ABC, but at the workshop, the session on “rice milling

method” was held only for two days. In that case, lectures on “maintenance and repair method”

and practical training with actual handling of the machines were not conducted. As a result,

there is no person in charge who are equipped with the maintenance and repairing techniques.

- Since rice milling operation is a seasonal work which does not continuously employ the rice

mill workers, it is not possible to stably secure experienced operator throughout the year.

2) Some ABCs are located far from the villages where constituting farmers reside. As a result,

constituting members do not use the Centre.

If any farmer wants to process his/her paddy at ABC, he/she has to carry the paddy stored in the

house to the ABC facility, and after milling, the milled rice has to be brought back to the house. It

takes considerable transportation expenses to process paddy at ABC, and it is better to ask private

rice miller in the village near the house.

This problem seemed to be caused by inappropriate basic installation plan of the ABCs themselves,

and even if the rice milling machine is repaired in future, it can’t be thought that the farmers will

come back. It is necessary for stakeholders to consider how such ABC will be handled in the future.

3) Inactivation of the ABC, due to lack of abilities, negligence etc. of the ABC board members.

Due to the lack of capability and negligence of the ABC's board, all the functions of some ABCs

including milling machine operation and meeting room utilization for FBO members have not been

active. Since these ABCs did not actively operate the machines and other facilities, maintenance

was also neglected, and as a result, the equipment was left being unable to operate.

In ABC, the board members election is usually held once every two years. In case if the ABC

operation before the election is favorably recognized by the members, the board members will

usually be re-elected, but if the operation is unfamiliar or there is an opaque accounting process, all

board members will often be replaced by the election. Such cases of ABCs were also found during

this survey, in which the board members were totally replaced at the end of last year. In the event of

the change of all board members, no handover concerning the operation etc. has been done at all.

In addition, there was a point that the records of equipment itself or rice milling activities etc. were

not remained at all. It is necessary to make strict handover of administration work at the time of

change of board members.


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(4) Major findings of the questionnaire surveys

Questionnaire survey was composed of two parts, i.e. FBO survey and household survey, results of

which are separately presented in the following.

1) FBO survey

a. Basic profile of FBOs

About 17% among 266 FBOs surveyed, i.e. 46 FBOs, were headed by female representatives,

while the remaining 220 were with male heads. Regarding the educational background, 38% of

the FBO heads never attended any type of educational institution, while only 16% completed

secondary or proceeded above.

Basic information on the surveyed FBOs is summarized in Table 8, including the average

number of FBO members and proportion of women. In Bombali and Kambia, the number of

members was 30 and 40 respectively, while in Port Loko, the number was 50, higher than in

other two districts. Women occupied a half of the members on average in Bombali, while, the

proportion was slightly lower with 45% in Kambia and Port Loko.

Regarding the registration of FBOs, the majority of FBOs are registered either to MAFFS or

District Council (or both). However, 22% of FBOs were not registered to any institutions.

The last column in Table 8 shows how many months have passed since the FBOs were founded.

FBOs in Kambia and Port Loko were founded six years ago on average, while in Bombali, an

average operating period of FBOs was seven years.

Table 8 Basic Information on FBOs

District Number of

members

Proportion of

women

Proportion of FBOs

registered by MAFFs (%)

Months after the

date of Foundation

Bombali 30 0.50 64.8 90

Kambia 40 0.45 80.3 72

Port Loko 50 0.45 67.4 72

Average 41 0.47 69.5 80

Source: Questionnaire survey, December 2017, SRPP

Among 266 FBOs, 260 had some group farm in IVS where members of FBOs were collectively

engaged in rice cultivation. The average size of group farms of FBOs in three districts was 2.46

ha as shown in Table 9. The average size of group farm of FBOs in Bombali was 2.8 ha, larger

than that in other two districts.

Fig. 2 indicates the type of land tenure of the group farms of FBOs. In Kambia, the majority of

the land is rented, while in Bombali and Port Loko, the land is often acquired by permission

from chiefs or personally owned by FBO heads.

Table 9 Average size of group farms in 2017

District Average size of group farm (ha)

Bombali 2.8

Kambia 2.0

Port Loko 2.4

Total 2.5



Fig. 2 Land tenure for the group farms of FBOs


- 13 -

b. Characteristics on IVS rice farming

Fig. 3 indicates the various rice varieties used in the IVS group farms by the surveyed FBOs. In

Kambia, the most commonly used variety was NERICA L19, while varieties with local names,

origin of which are not known, were most popular in Bombali and Port Loko.

Fertilizer was used by almost a half of all the surveyed FBOs. The most common type of

fertilizer was 15:15:15, although the other types such as 0:20:20, 20:20:0 and urea were also

used to a certain extent. Source of fertilizer was predominantly MAFFS as expected, but

interestingly, around 25% of FBOs in Kambia district answered that they obtained fertilizer by

purchasing from input providers. Use of organic fertilizer seems rather exceptional as more than

90% of the surveyed FBOs did not use any organic matter as fertilizer.

Fig. 4 illustrates how FBOs dealt with the produce obtained from their group farms. Nearly 80%

of FBOs set aside some part of harvested rice as seeds for the next season, and 40% distributed

rice or loan to members. Sale of the proceeds from group farms seems yet to be common as only

30% of FBOs were engaged in marketing of rice.

Source: Questionnaire survey, December 2017, SRPP Source: Questionnaire survey, December 2017, SRPP

c. Activities and financial management of FBOs

In more than 80% of the surveyed FBOs, group work for farming activities in the group farms

was conducted more than once a week. Regarding a general meeting, more than 90% of the

surveyed FBOs held a meeting at least once a month and about 50% met once in two weeks or

more frequently.

About 30% of FBOs have received some kind of training in the past two years, the majority of

which was on farming techniques organized by MAFFS or NGOs.

Regarding the financial management of FBOs, nearly 40% of FBOs have utilized credit in 2017,

and around 70% among them had access to credit in kind, mainly seed and/or fertilizer loan.

Almost a half of the FBOs also had group savings which were derived from the contributions by

members or income from selling the produce from group farms. However, over 60% of FBOs

did not have bank accounts, which is somewhat surprising considering that FBOs are supposed

to open the bank accounts when they are registered.

d. Satisfaction on FBOs

More than 95% of the FBO heads answered that they are satisfied or very satisfied with their

FBOs. For those who are not, one of the major reasons for dissatisfaction was insufficient

support from external institutions in terms of inputs such as seeds and fertilizer.

Fig. 4 Utilization of the produce Fig. 3 Rice varieties used by FBOs


- 14 -

e. Relationship with ABC

About 35% of surveyed FBOs belonged to ABCs, and 20% among them answered that any of

their members were not included in the ABC board. Fig. 5 shows the main activity of ABCs that

the surveyed FBOs belonged to. The most common activities were post-harvest related activities

including milling and storing. Marketing of rice and training of FBO members also seem to be

significant activities. Activities classified as “Others” include cleaning of ABC facilities and

provision of fertilizers.

Fig. 6 shows the availability of facilities at ABCs and accessibility to those facilities by the

FBOs. The commonly available or existing facilities included drying floor, grain store,

mechanical thresher, rice harvester and rice mill. For instance, drying floors were physically

available at the ABCs for 84% of the survey FBOs, but they were accessible for only 51% of

FBOs. These figures clearly imply that even if certain facility is physically available, whether it

is accessible for FBOs is a different story. Possible reasons for this gap can be the far distance

between the locations of the FBOs and those of the ABCs, poor management of ABCs which

allows some facility to be monopolized by a few members, or the lack of capacity to fully utilize

the facilities as members often do not know how to use the machines. These causes of low

access to the available facilities were also highlighted in the field survey on post-harvest

processing as described in the previous section 2.2.2 (3).

As to the satisfaction with the ABCs, 40% of those FBOs that belonged to ABCs answered that

they were dissatisfied with ABCs. Most of the reasons for dissatisfaction was centered on the

lack of access to ABC facilities and poor management.


2) Yield assessment

Separately from FBO interview surveys, the results of which have been presented in the section

above, the yield assessment was conducted for 57 FBOs, among which 17 are in Bombali, 15 in

Port Loko and 25 in Kambia. In the assessment, the Project staff visited the FBOs after harvesting

and weighed the produce together with the FBO members from January to February in 2018.

The average yield of all the 57 FBOs was 1,557kg/ha. The distribution of the yield performances in

the three districts is shown in Fig. 7 below. 75% of the yield data in Bombali, Kambia, and Port

Loko lied in the range of 115~1,349kg/ha, 1,549~2,449kg/ha, and 496~1,719kg/ha, respectively. As

shown in the figure, average yield of 2,175 kg/ha6 in Kambia was significantly higher than in other

two districts.

6 However, it should be noted that yields in Kambia were the figures calculated based on the amount of produce per area

of 25m2 unlike in other two districts where all produce was weighed, which may have raised the figures higher than

actual yields.

Fig. 6 Facilities of ABCs

Fig. 5 Main activity of ABCs


- 15 -

3) Household survey

The household survey was conducted for a total of 1,200 households, composed of 480 households

in Bombali, 320 in Kambia and 400 in Port Loko.

a. Basic profile of the surveyed households

The average household size was 9.8 persons. 60% of the households belonged to the

predominant ethnic group of Temne, but those belonged to Limba and Loko also occupied

significant part especially in Bombali district. Among 1,200 households, 24% were headed by

female household heads, while 76% had male heads. The average age of household head was 45

years old. On average of three districts, more than 50% of the household heads never attended

school, while only 6% have finished the secondary education or proceeded above.

Fig. 8 summarizes the crops chosen by the surveyed households as “three most important crops”

cultivated by them. As the target respondents of the baseline survey were the farmers engaged in

IVS rice farming, almost all farmers selected IVS rice as one of the most important crops. Other

important crops cultivated by farmers included groundnut, cassava and upland rice. Vegetables

were also regarded as an important crop especially in Port Loko district. The following Table 10

indicates the average area devoted to and annual revenue from the major seven crops with the

number of farmers who mainly cultivate those crops. In terms of the area, IVS rice had the

largest area with nearly 1 ha on average. The highest annual revenue per crop was derived from

the sales of vegetables followed by cassava.

Fig. 7 Yield of IVS rice in FBOs in 2017

Source: Yield survey, January and February 2018, SRPP

Fig. 8 Three most important crops

cultivated by the households



- 16 -

Table 10 Number of farmers, average area and revenue from major crops

Crops Number of Farmers who

mainly cultivate the crop7

Average Area of the crop

(ha)

Average Annual Revenue from

sales of the crop (Le)

IVS Rice 1,195 0.94 594,628

Upland Rice 296 0.74 643,500

Maize 51 0.40 434,722

Groundnut 437 0.63 571,923

Cassava 417 0.70 668,007

Sweet potato 114 0.44 416,007

Vegetables 226 0.42 937,700


Fig. 9 illustrates the land tenure for the IVS rice field used by the surveyed households. The land

was predominantly owned through inheritance. If the cases of “Family clan owned” are included,

nearly 70% of the households had access to the land through kinships. On the other hand, 25%

of the households rented or leased the land. Purchase of the land seems to be rather exceptional

as a way to access the land. The average time spent by a farmer to reach to the IVS rice field was

28 minutes on foot.

It should be noted that 40% of the households answered that they had separate land for women,

and the average size of the land was 0.5 ha both in IVS and upland. There seemed to be different

trends among districts regarding the land type and crops grown in women’s land. Majority of

women who were provided with separate land in IVS were growing rice in Kambia district,

while, women with separate land in Bombali tended to grow root crops in upland fields. In Port

Loko, they were likely to grow rice and vegetables both in IVS and upland.

b. Characteristics on IVS rice farming

The average area planted with IVS rice in the rainy season of 2017 was 0.96 ha.

The detailed labor requirement for five major activities of rice farming, i.e. land preparation,

transplanting, weeding, harvesting and threshing & winnowing, is indicated in Table 11. The

table shows the average number of people engaged in the activity, number of days spent on the

activity and multiplication of these two factors which is known as “Man-days” in one hectare of

land. Land preparation was found to be the most labor-intensive and time-consuming. Despite of

the general perception of weeding as very cumbersome and labor-intensive work in rice farming,

it turned out, as shown in the table, that not many man-days were spent on this activity compared

to other activities like transplanting and harvesting. Besides, nearly 50% of households did not

7 This is the number of farmers who select that crop as the three most important crops among others they cultivate.

Therefore, number of farmers for IVS is not equal to 1,200, as five farmers regard other crops more important than IVS

rice even if they are engaged in IVS rice farming.

Fig. 9 Land tenure of the IVS rice fields

used by the households



- 17 -

even conduct weeding and average frequency of weeding was 0.8 times, which implies the lack

of recognition about the importance of this undertaking.

Table 11 Labor requirement per ha

IVS rice farming activities Number of people engaged

in the activity

Number of days spent on

the activity

Man-days

Land Preparation 32 9.3 298

Transplanting 20 4.9 98

Weeding 12 5.8 70

Harvesting 21 4.3 90

Threshing & Winnowing 14 3.0 42


Fig. 10 shows the variety of rice used in the

three districts. Some improved varieties such

as NERICA L19 and Pa Kiamp (ROK 34)

were cultivated by a significant number of

households, but locally named varieties were

predominantly used by the majority of

farmers. Some popular varieties included Pa

Kambia and Pa Gbassay, both of which were

used in all three districts.

Seed source varies depending on the variety.

NERICA L19 was mostly obtained from

MAFFS, and ROK24 was likely to be provided by donors. Pa Kiamp, buttercup and other

varieties were predominantly obtained through purchasing from or exchanging with other

farmers.

With regard to the use of fertilizer, only 33% of the households had access to fertilizer, the type

of which was, in most cases, NPK 15:15:15. Fertilizer was mainly obtained from MAFFS’s

fertilizer programme but purchasing from input providers was also observed especially in

Kambia district. Usage of organic fertilizer remained to be rather exceptional as it was used by

only less than 10% of the households.

As for the pests and diseases, rodents and birds were reported as the major two issues in the

three districts especially during the ripening stage.

The average yield of IVS rice in 2016 was 575kg/ha8. Harvested rice was used predominantly

for household consumption, but 47% of the surveyed households was also engaged in sale of

rice. Among those who sold rice, 67% sold through traders who came and bought their rice at

the farm gate, while 22% carried the rice to the market to sell by themselves. The average

distance to the market was 10 miles. Among those who carried rice by themselves to the market,

46% walked to the market, while 46% used commercial transportation. Predominant sources of

marketing information were traders and other farmers. When asked about the most important

factor for selling rice at a higher price, 67% of the households pointed out the better quality,

while 15% thought the necessity of processing and 13% counted on the importance of better

8 It is important to note that this figure was based on the farmer’s perception of the yield of 2016, which had unavoidable

limitation in terms of the data accuracy. Besides, this figure was calculated with conversion rate of one bushel for 28kg,

which may bet controversial as it is often pointed out that the actual weight of one bushel can vary a lot among different

localities.


Fig. 10 Variety of rice


- 18 -


Fig. 12 Reason for keeping land uncultivated


Fig. 11 Source of technical information

taste of rice.

As for the post-harvest handling, 37% of the households stored rice in the bedroom/living room

in the house. Those who have access to separate storage facility was only 12% among all.

Almost all the farmers experienced the post-harvest losses caused by pests.

Double cropping was still not very common as only 20% of the households were engaged in

IVS rice cultivation in the dry season.

Only 154 households (13%) among all respondents heard of the TP-R, most of whom were

concentrated in Kambia district where previous two JICA projects were implemented. Among

the 154, 131 farmers actually tried to apply some techniques of TP-R such as planting of 2-3

seedlings, and 130 farmers confirmed that it was helpful in increasing the yields. There was one

(1) farmer who was not satisfied with the TP-R stating that another technique such as SRI was

better for him.

Farmers obtained the technical information on farming mainly from extension officers and other

farmers in the same village as shown in Fig. 11. It also became clear that FBO did not really play

its role as a hub to disseminate technical information, which might be addressed as one of the

spheres of intervention by SRPP.

Regarding the agricultural extension services, 64% of the surveyed households received direct

visits by extension officers during the cropping season in 2017 while 36% did not. More than

30% were not satisfied with extension agents, pointing out that they have not been visited by

extension officers frequently enough. It should be noted that not a few people felt that their

needs and concerns have never been considered by extension systems and programmes, and that

some even had no idea on what the extension was all about.

It was found that 48% of households kept some part of their land uncultivated. Fig. 12 illustrates

the distribution of reasons why they kept some land uncultivated. Lack of inputs, labor, and tools

are the most frequently raised reasons for leaving their land idle. It was also revealed that

fallowing land in order to replenish soil fertility was not very common in IVS unlike in upland

farming. Ill health of the family members was also likely to inhibit making full use of the

available land.

Farmers’ perception on the reasons behind their low yield is summarized in Fig. 13. Lack of

inputs, such as fertilizer and seed, and low soil fertility are considered as major causes for the

low yield.

There was a significant difference among the districts in terms of the access to the credit. In

Kambia, 83% of households used credit, while only 44% did in Bombali. The most common


- 19 -

reason for not using credit was inexistence of

institution which gives loans to them. For

those who used any loan, the most popular

creditor was the trader.

About 90% of the surveyed households

belonged to FBOs, and more than 95% of

these FBO members were either satisfied or

very satisfied with their FBOs. For those who

were not satisfied, the primary reason was the

insufficient leadership of the FBO heads.

c. Food security

Table 12 shows the number of meals and amount of rice consumed per day per person in the dry

and rainy seasons. It clearly indicates that farmers had to reduce the number of meals and

amount of food in the rainy season compared to the dry season.

Table 12 Number of meal and rice consumed

Season Number of meals per day Number of buttercups of rice

consumed per person per day

Dry season 2.0 0.91

Rainy season 1.4 0.65


As to the self-sufficiency of rice, 91% of the

households stated that their production of rice

was not enough for the household

consumption throughout a year. Fig. 14

illustrates the month in which the rice

produced by the households ran out.

Irrespective of the difference of district, rice

was likely to be out of stock in July and

August, which is in the middle of the rainy

season.

During the past 12 months, 92% of the

households experienced any hunger period9. The pattern of the timing of hunger period was very

similar to the one seen in Fig. 14, implying the majority of farmers suffered from food insecurity

from July to September, when their stock of rice ran out.

Fig. 15 illustrates the trends of alternative staple food, i.e. what farmers ate after their stock of

rice has run out. Among those who were not self-sufficient in rice of their own produce, 87%

consumed the purchased rice and 11% consumed cassava instead of rice.

Fig. 16 illustrates the different strategies farmers took to cope with the food shortage. The most

common measure was to reduce the amount of food and the number of meals, which was also

highlighted in Table 5. Borrowing money and selling livestock or possessions also seem to be

important resorts.

9 Hunger period is defined as a time when there are serious difficulties producing or purchasing enough food to feed all

household members.


Fig. 13 Reason for low yield


Fig. 14 Month when the rice stocks ran out


- 20 -


d. Impacts of Ebola Virus Disease

Ebola Virus Disease (hereinafter referred to

as “Ebola”) which initially occurred in

2014, in Guinea, eventually spread into

Sierra Leone, having caused tremendous

damages in the entire country. This baseline

survey also covered some Ebola-related

topics in order to assess its impact on

farming.

Around 90% of households stated that their

farming activities were negatively affected by

Ebola. Fig. 17 highlights the activities which

became difficult due to Ebola. Majority of the households admitted that it was difficult to go to

the field physically as well as to collect sufficient labor during Ebola, probably due to the ban on

free movement and people’s fear against the infection.

Almost all the farmers asserted that, during Ebola, the price of inputs, selling and purchase price

of rice were all higher than normal years, which implies the occurrence of an inflationary

disturbance in the markets in the rural areas.

More than 90% of households experienced food shortage due to the Ebola outbreak. The coping

strategy during Ebola was also surveyed and the result indicates that the proportion of people

who took measures that were more serious than ordinary coping strategies such as selling

livestock or other possessions and consuming seeds was higher than in usual food shortage,

which strongly implies that the food insecurity experienced during Ebola was severer than

normal years. For instance, the proportion of those who consumed seeds in Bombali district

during Ebola reached up to 14%, which was two times higher than in the usual year. As

consumption of seeds should directly affect the availability of seeds in the next cropping season,

it is surmised that the adverse effects of Ebola on livelihood of those who had to consume seeds

were probably prolonged than the actual period of Ebola epidemic itself.

2.2.3. Selection criteria for model FBOs

The criteria for selection of FBOs are to be set based on the results of the baseline survey. The selected FBOs

will be the beneficiaries of the Project, who may, in later stage, also serve as “models” to further disseminate

the TP-R to the other FBOs and farmers in the communities. The selection criteria are used to assess and rank

Fig. 15 Staple food consumed after the

stock of rice ran out

Fig. 17 Impacts of Ebola on farming activities

Fig. 16 Coping Strategy for Food Shortage



- 21 -

and/or score the FBOs from various viewpoints, covering the four (4) aspects shown in Table 13 below.

Table 13 Proposed criteria for selection of FBOs

Aspects Criteria

1) Feasibility of Project

interventions Physical, organizational and technical feasibilities to maximize the effectiveness of

the intervention of the Project, e.g. existence of group farms operated together

among the members, regular undertakings of group work, etc.

2) Management capacity

and cohesiveness of

FBOs

The capacity to manage the members, assets and activities in carrying out the field

activities of the Projects, including leadership, cohesiveness among members,

conflict resolution, etc.

3) Potentials for further

dissemination of TP-R

Positioning of the FBO in terms of potential influences over and linkages with

other groups and institutions, e.g. accessibility, comparative advantages,

experiences of coordination with external entities, etc.

4) Sustainability of FBO

operations

Capacities and resources to be a basis for stable and continuous operations of the

FBO, e.g. physical and financial assets, securing of inputs for group activities, etc.


<The rice cultivation and processing techniques of trained farmers are improved in three districts.>

2.3.1. Capacity Development of extension workers

In order to achieve the Output 2 in the PDM of the Project, farmers of target FBO/ABC are to be trained the

TP-R and processing techniques by extension workers or outsourced professionals.

(1) Training of the extension workers on TP-R

1) Introductory training

The SRPP started three years after the completion of SRDP, the previous JICA project during which

the current TP-R was developed. During the implementation period of SRDP, the TP-R was

disseminated to a limited number of FBO farmers of the Kambia district by a few staff of Kambia

DAO only. It means that the TP-R has not been known even to the extension workers in the target

area of the Project, and that the capacity of the extension workers to disseminate the TP-R to the

farmers has not been built up.

In consideration of such a situation, it was decided to conduct an introductory training session of the

extension workers on the TP-R in the beginning of the Project period. Two days classroom training

courses for extension workers on the introduction to the TP-R were then carried out in July 2017 at

each of three DAOs in the Project area. A JICA Expert with two well-trained extension workers of

the Kambia district led the sessions as lecturers.

During the session, the following themes were taught:

- Yield components and growth stages of rice plant,

- Farming plan and cropping calendar (incl. exercise),

- Nursery and transplanting,

- Land development and land preparation,

- Fertilizer management and water management,

- Other issues (pest and diseases, harvest and post-harvest handling), and

- Seed production.

For each theme, PowerPoint presentation materials were prepared and explained during the session.

The printed presentation materials were distributed to the participants at the end of the session.


- 22 -

A total of 141 extension workers including 28 female workers attended the training sessions as

shown in Table 14.

Table 14 Number of participants in the TP-R introductory training

District Participants

Male Female Total

Bombali 32 8 40

Port Loko 41 18 59

Kambia 40 2 42

Total 113 28 141

Source: JICA-SRPP team

Results of the training were measured by comparing the two tests: initial test before the training and

achievement test after the training. The positive results were obtained as shown in Table 15.

Participants in Bombali showed the highest achievement in understanding the TP-R while the

scores in Kambia showed the minimum achievement.

Table 15 Result of the tests conducted before and after the training sessions.

District Number of

examinee

Initial test Achievement test

Average Max Min Average Max Mini

Bombali 34 6.8 8.2 3.6 9.1 10.0 6.4

Port Loko 55 6.2 9.1 0.9 8.2 10.0 3.6

Kambia 37 6.5 10.0 1.8 7.6 10.0 2.7


The participants appreciated the training in many aspects when they evaluated the session. The

results of the evaluation by the participants are shown in Table 16.

Table 16 Evaluation of the training by the participants

District Evaluation items

Training text, materials Lecturer Management (time, venue)

Good Fair Bad Good Fair Bad Good Fair Bad

Bombali 89 11 0 83 17 0 72 28 0

Port Loko 98 2 0 93 7 0 93 7 0

Kambia 97 3 0 92 8 0 89 11 0

Average 95 5 0 89 11 0 85 15 0

Note: Average is the simple average of three districts although the number of participants differed.


The participants thought that, among all themes they learnt, land development and land preparation,

fertilizer management, farming plan and cropping calendar, nursery preparation and transplanting,

and seed production are more of the importance than others.

They wanted the Project to repeat the same training, to conduct practical training in the field, to

extend the training duration, to distribute training materials, and to provide another specific session

on calculation of seeds and fertilizer, etc.

2) Refresher course on TP-R

After the monitoring of FBO rice farming in IVS in the rainy season was completed, one-day

refresher course on the TP-R was conducted for the extension workers in February 2018 at the three


- 23 -

DAOs. In this course, monitoring results were briefly reviewed to confirm that not many farmers in

the target area of the Project have practiced the farming techniques recommended in the TP-R.

The refresher course focused on the basic principles of the TP-R highlighting the importance of

timely farming practices in order to provide rice plants with favorable growth environment

throughout the growth period.

Three yield components which determine yield, growth stages of a rice plant, and their relationships

were reviewed first, and the preparation of cropping calendar referring to the growth stages of rice

plants was explained to remind the extension workers that each farming practice has its specific role

to enhance the growth of rice plant and that it will be more effective if it is made at specific growth

stage.

Participants practiced the cropping calendar preparation by splitting themselves into groups. After

the practice, each group made presentation to explain how they prepared the calendar.

Finally, several important farming practices were explained with pictures taken during the previous

project period by comparing good practices with bad ones.

The number of participants was 50 in Bombali, 31 in Kambia, and 46 in Port Loko, respectively.

(2) Monitoring on rice cultivation by FBOs in IVS

After the introductory training on the TP-R was conducted, FEWs were deployed to the field to monitor

the rice cultivation practiced by farmers in the target areas. The main purpose of this monitoring was to

grasp the differences between their current farming and the recommended practice of the TP-R. Besides,

it was also expected to contribute to the capacity building of FEWs as they could have ideas on the issues

to be addressed to enhance the yield through observing the growing process of rice and recording the

farmers’ practices.

FEWs were instructed to select 2 FBOs in their respective circle of coverage and to regularly visit the

farms of these FBOs to record the farmers’ practices in a monitoring sheet. The monitoring sheet

consisted of series of questions on IVS rice cultivation practices from sowing to post-harvest. For

questions regarding the critical techniques such as the condition of the nursery site, depth of transplanting,

number of seedlings per hill, and water condition of the IVS, FEWs were instructed to record the

information based not on the farmers’ answer but on the direct observation with their own eyes.

At the end of January 2018, in order to collect monitoring sheets and analyze the results, the review

workshops were conducted in the three districts. A total of 184 monitoring sheets were collected, in

which 61 are from Bombali, 47 from Kambia and 76 from Port Loko. In this workshop, FEWs were also

instructed to identify FBOs engaged in the second cropping of rice during the dry season, and in the

TP-R refresher training mentioned in the Section (1) 2) above, the monitoring sheets for the dry season,

which were slightly modified from the previous version used in the rainy season, were distributed to the

FEWs to be collected possibly in next May.

Among all the monitored FBOs, only 17% answered that they had any knowledge on the TP-R. The rate

was higher in Kambia, as 37% of farmers knew the TP-R, compared to 8.3% and 12.5% in Bombali and

Port Loko districts respectively, reflecting the fact that the TP-R was initially developed in Kambia

district. However, the majority of FBO farmers have not yet had any knowledge on the TP-R, which is

the exact challenge that the Project is going to address in the next four years.

The following are some of the areas where relatively large gaps were observed between farmers’ current

practices and the recommended actions in the TP-R which need to be highlighted.


- 24 -

1) Planning of the farming

TP-R recommends farmers to prepare the cropping calendar before starting the actual farming work

to ensure that each activity will be done on time. It should be developed on paper so that farmers

can easily refer to when necessary. Among 184 FBO farmers, only 20 farmers were observed to

have a cropping calendar. The proportion of those who prepare the calendar was higher in Kambia

with 18%, in comparison with 8.5% in Bombali and 9.3% in Port Loko district.

2) Land preparation

Land preparation for rice cultivation consists of brushing followed by clearing, digging, puddling

and leveling. Among these activities, the TP-R puts an emphasis on the importance of leveling, as it

enables a uniform environment for rice plants to access water and nutrients. According to the

monitoring, however, only 54% conducted leveling, implying the lack of recognition on the

importance of this activity.

3) Sowing and nursery

Before sowing, selection of seeds is necessary to ensure the healthy growth of the seeds. Major

methods of seed selection are sorting, selection of water and germination test, and combined use of

three methods are highly recommended.

Among surveyed FBOs, 59% conducted any

sort of seed selection and the rate of Kambia

was higher with 67% compared to 54% in

Bombali and 58% in Port Loko. Fig. 18

illustrates the different method of seed

selection conducted in the three districts. It is

clearly shown that the germination test was the

most commonly used method irrespective of

the district, while sorting and water selection

should be promoted as also important methods

to be combined with germination test.

When making the nursery bed, it is important to select the open area where the plant can easily

access the sunlight rather than under the shade of big trees. During the rainy season, the nursery

should be developed at the ground which is rather drier than other places in order to avoid the water

immersion. On the other hand, during the dry season, the wet place should be selected so that the

plant can absorb sufficient water. As this monitoring was conducted during the rainy season, the dry

and open site was the most suitable option for nursery. Table 17 shows the summary of the selection

of the nursery sites. Although, the majority of farmers selected open sites and dry nursery, there

were some who developed nursery bed at the inappropriate locations.

Table 17 Selection of the nursery site

Open Site Under Shade

Dry Nursery 138 11

Wet Nursery 23 1

Source: JICA-SRPP based on the monitoring results, 2018

4) Transplanting

The timing of transplanting, in other words, the nursery period, is an important factor determining

the growth of the plant after transplanting. TP-R recommends using seedlings of 2-3 weeks when

tillering starts at 4-leaf age. Use of older seedlings is not recommended as they need a longer time

Fig. 18 Different method of seed selection



- 25 -

to recover from the shock of being uprooted. Fig. 19 shows the nursery period of monitored FBOs,

which clearly indicates that farmers tended to use seedlings of older age than three weeks.

The TP-R instructs that transplanting should be done with 2-3 seedlings per hill at a distance of

about 20cm, but the majority of farmers tended

to plant more seedlings per hill with closer

distance than recommended as shown in Fig.

20 and Fig. 21. For those farmers, practices of

the TP-R would be quite helpful as the number

of seedlings per area would be reduced which

eventually saves the cost for inputs. In Kambia

and Port Loko, a few farmers planted one

seedling per hill, which is assumed to have

been guided by other projects which promoted

the System of Rice Intensification (SRI).

Source: JICA-SRPP based on the monitoring results, 2018 Source: JICA-SRPP based on the monitoring results, 2018

5) Application of fertilizer

The recommended dose of fertilizer application in the TP-R is N:P2O5:K2O=40:40:40 kg/ha taking

into consideration the limited availability of fertilizer in this country in general. Among the

monitored FBOs, only 37% stated that they used fertilizer. The most frequently used fertilizer was

N:P2O5:K2O =15:15:15, but 20:20:0, 0:20:20 and urea (46:0:0) were also used by some farmers.

Among those who used fertilizer, the average quantity of N, P2O5, and K2O applied was 24.6, 21.0,

and 21.2 kg/ha respectively, which were considerably lower than the recommended dose. Use of

organic fertilizer seemed to be exceptional as only 7% applied it.

6) Weeding

Weeds compete with rice plants for sunlight, nutrition and water. Besides, they grow faster than rice.

Therefore, weeding especially at an earlier stage of their growth is recommended in the TP-R.

However, weeding in IVS did not seem to be a common practice especially in Bombali and Port

Loko district as 60% and 72%, respectively, in these districts did not weed at all, while in Kambia

70% stated that they did weeding at least once. The importance of weeding as a crucial activity for

obtaining higher yield should extensively be disseminated by the Project.

7) Harvesting

The average yield of monitored FBOs was 594kg/ha based on the interviews with farmers, but there

was a significant difference among districts. The average yield in Kambia was 1,030 kg/ha, which

Fig. 19 Nursery period

Fig. 20 Number of seedlings per hill Fig. 21 Distance between hills



- 26 -

was twice as higher than 419 kg/ha in Bombali and 435 kg/ha in Port Loko. It might be understood

that these FBOs in Kambia were advanced in terms of farming practices such as preparation of

calendar, seed selection and weeding as discussed in the sections above, which was reflected in the

higher yield as a consequence.

Fig. 22 shows the number of days from

sowing to harvesting. It can be seen that in

Kambia the duration was generally shorter

than in other two districts with 145 days

on average in comparison to 176 and 171

days in Bombali and Port Loko

respectively. As the TP-R has been

developed to be most effective with the

cultivars with shorter growth duration, it

might be necessary to recommend the use

of cultivars with shorter duration

especially in Bombali and Port Loko.

8) Post-harvest handling

Regarding the post-harvesting, the TP-R recommends use of a tarpaulin mat to prevent

contamination with impurities when drying, but 20% of farmers still dried the grains on an empty

ground, which should be improved. Regarding the storage, the TP-R instructs to keep the storage

place free of fallen grains, garbage, and/or cloths in order to avoid the damage caused by pests, but

according to the monitoring results, only 32% of farmers had separate storage facility and 34%

stored rice in the rooms where they slept, which is a challenge to be dealt with to reduce the

post-harvest losses.

(3) Training of MAFFS engineering staff at district level on surveying and IVS development planning

Water control is one of the most important preconditions to optimize the effect of the TP-R in IVS. To

realize this condition, IVS development is essential. However, not many IVSs in the target area of the

Project have so far been developed. Even if IVSs have been developed, structures have been destroyed or

mal-functioning due to inadequate planning and/or poor maintenance.

While the engineering section of MAFFS is responsible for the planning, designing and supervision of

the IVS development works, its staff did not seem to have enough experience in those works. Without

developing their capacity, appropriate IVS development cannot be executed.

In order to assess their capacity in IVS development, a five-days training course on topographic survey

for IVS development planning was organized in December 2017 at Makeni, Bombali, for six (6) staff

who belong to the agricultural engineering section in three DAOs in the target area of the Project. The

whole training was conducted by a JICA Expert in charge of participatory IVS development10

.

1) Programme of the training

The training session, consisting of theoretical training in classroom and practical training in the field,

was conducted according to the programme as shown in Table 18.

10 Another three-days training session was organized for five staff of Bombali DAO including the group leader of the

engineering section, who could not attend the five-days session.

Fig. 22 Number of days from sowing to harvesting



- 27 -

Table 18 Programme of the first topographic survey training

Date Contents of Training Venue *

11th Dec.2017

(1st day)

AM 1) Lecture on topographic survey (explanation of training schedule,

leveling survey method and equipment etc.)

MAFFS office

2) Survey training at mountain trail (leveling survey) Field in Makeni

PM 3) Exercises for survey data analysis MAFFS office

4) Survey training at mountain trail (leveling survey) Field in Makeni

12th Dec.2017

(2nd

day)

AM 1) - ditto - Field in Makeni

PM 2) Exercises for survey data analysis MAFFS office

13th Dec.2017

(3rd day)

AM 1) Exercises for drawing (longitudinal profile) MAFFS office

PM 2) - ditto - Ditto

14th Dec.2017

(4th day)

AM 1) Survey training at swamp (leveling survey for canals) Binkolo Swamp

PM 2) Lecture on the topographic survey (application of the leveling

survey, plane survey method etc.)

MAFFS office

15th Dec.2017

(5th day)

AM 1) Survey training at swamp (leveling survey for canals, plane survey

for paddy field)

Binkolo Swamp

PM 2) Lecture on topographic survey (application of leveling survey) MAFFS office

* MAFFS office: MAFFS Bombali District Office in Makeni

For the training session, a training manual which covers all the survey related subjects was prepared

and distributed to the participants.

2) Result of topographic survey training

a) Skill of equipment handling

The participants learned the handling method of the survey equipment. However, it took long

time for them to install and adjust the equipment, and the mistakes in reading of the grade rod

(observation value) as well as in recording of the field note (observation result) were

occasionally observed.

It was thus considered that they need to gain more survey experiences using the survey

equipment so that they could conduct more accurate survey work through efficient

observation.

b) Data analysis and drawing

Basic analysis of leveling survey doesn’t require high calculation skills, and it is not difficult to

learn the conventional calculation method. On the other hand, the geometric view requires

deep understanding of a series of survey work, especially the data analysis and the drawings.

Because there is a linkage between the data analysis and the drawings, the geometric view and

image will prevent the mistakes on the calculation and drawing.

The results of the exercise in the training indicated that the participants required to gain more

survey experiences and to learn about the geometric view on the survey work.

c) Capacity of IVS Survey Work

From the results of the exercises on leveling survey (canal and drainage) and plane survey

(field lot of paddy) in IVS, it was found that the participants did not have enough knowledge/

experience to plan and design irrigation facilities, which seemed to have contributed to their

weak understanding on the meaning and the aim of topographic survey.

(4) Findings and issues pertaining to the capacity development

1) Capacity of extension workers on the TP-R

Through a series of classroom training on the TP-R as well as field monitoring of IVS rice at FBO

farms, capacity of extension workers on the TP-R is being built up. However notable differences in


- 28 -

the level of understanding of the TP-R among the extension workers were found, mostly due to the

difference in the attitudes during the training session and monitoring of FBO farms.

2) IVS development planning

Through the training session on topographic survey, it was found that MAFFS staff of engineering

section at district level had insufficient knowledge and experience in survey and planning on IVS

development, including handling of tools and equipment, data analysis and drawing in general.

Among the training participants, there was large difference in the levels of understanding on survey

and calculation, which hampered efficient and smooth training. Various training courses may be

planned in accordance with the different levels of staff’s capacities.

The DAOs also face serious insufficiencies in terms of tools for design and drawings such as

writing materials, calculator, ruler, protractor, drafting board, drafting paper and computer and so

forth.

2.3.2. Capacity development of FBO farmers in IVS

(1) Support to advanced FBO farmers in IVS in Kambia district

To maintain the high level of cultivation techniques which could be a model for other FBOs, SRPP

continued supporting four (4) outstanding FBOs which had been trained on the TP-R during the period

of SRDP in Kambia. They are: Tamemsu FBO and Tawopaneh FBO in Gbinleh Dixon chiefdom, and

Kamuyu FBO and Tawakaltu FBO in Masungbala chiefdom.

At the beginning of the rainy season cropping of 2017, The Project, MAFFS Kambia DAO, and each of

the four FBOs agreed upon and signed on an Agreement which provided the roles and responsibilities

each party should play and take as shown in Table 19.

Table 19 Roles of three parties in the Agreement

FBO farmers MAFFS Kambia SRPP

Rice cultivation Adoption of TP-R in

IVS condition to obtain

optimum yield

Regular visit to FBO farms

to provide necessary advice

on TP-R

Conduct yield survey

Provide technical guidance

on TP-R to MAFFS

extension workers

Conduct yield survey

Maintenance of

IVS

Keep IVS in good

condition to control and

manage water

Provide FBO farmers with

farm tools procured by

SRPP to maintain IVS field

properly and cultivate rice

Procure farm tools for FBO

farmers

Fertilizer Apply fertilizer timely

with adequate quantity

Provide FBO farmers with

recommended dose of

fertilizer as loan

Procure recommended dose

of fertilizer on TP-R

Repayment of

loan

Repay two bags

(50kg/bag) of paddy per

one bag (50kg/bag) of

fertilizer received from

SRPP as loan

Collect loan (in kind) from

FBO farmers at harvest time

Procure fertilizers for next

season cropping


It was also agreed that seeds were to be procured by each FBO not supported by either MAFFS Kambia

or SRPP. At the harvesting time, MAFFS Kambia and the Project conducted yield survey, the results of

which are as shown in Table 20.


- 29 -

Table 20 Results of rice yield survey in IVS of the four advanced FBO in Kambia


The yield shown in the table above was rather discouraging as compared with the ones obtained from the

same field during the previous project period. These low yields may be attributed to the following:

- Late supply of fertilizer which might retard the tillering,

- Much rainfall in the rainy season induced deep water condition,

- Low quality of seeds, especially those provided by MAFFS through WAAPP which procured

them from farmers of Nigeria (not certified), and

- Occurrence of diseases (rice blast) and insect (case worm) damage.

(2) Preparation of training plan on post-harvest handling

At the time of the rice milling machine setting, technical guidance was provided to the persons in charge

of ABCs, however, it was only two-day classroom session on rice milling method. Workshops on the

maintenance and repair method and practical training with the use of machines were not conducted.

Therefore, no person in charge had a chance to learn the techniques of maintenance and repairing.

Misunderstandings have often occurred that parts worn in the normal course of operation were

recognized as “broken” and the machine operation was stopped.

In order to solve those problems, it is necessary to implement a practical and technical training for staff

of ABCs on maintenance and operation of machines. Through the training, they would be able to obtain

practical skills on operation, maintenance and repairing of rice milling machines. The lecturers will be

selected from local manufactures of agricultural machineries and mechanics of agricultural machinery

importers by bidding. Bidders will be required to submit the training programme in accordance with the

guidelines provided by the Project.

The contents of the training are prepared based on the materials of the first JICA assisted project as

shown in Table 21.

Chiefdom Village FBO Variety Area (ha) Production (kg) Yield (kg/ha)

Gbinleh Dixon Masineh Tamemsu Buttercup 0.90 1,600 1,778

Pa Kiamp 0.50 1,000 2,000

NERICA L19 0.10 200 2,000

Mayenie 0.08 150 1,875

Ya Gbessay 0.02 60 3,000

Total 1.60 3,010 1,881

Masiaka Tawopaneh Buttercup 0.65 950 1,462

Pa Kiamp 0.40 600 1,500

NERICA L19 0.15 250 1,667

Total 1.20 1,800 1,500

Masungbala Laya Kamuyu NERICA L19 0.95 1,575 1,649

Pa Tholley 0.45 455 1,017

Total 1.40 2,030 1,448

Tawuya Tawakaltu NERICA L19 0.50 586 1,172

Buttercup 0.47 482 1,032

Tawakaltu 0.43 435 1,002

Pa Kambia 0.23 265 1,142

Total 1.63 1,768 1,083

Grand Total 5.83 8,608 1,475


- 30 -

Table 21 Outline of the training on operation and maintenance of milling machine

Subject Contents

I. General 1. Explanation of name and function of main sections of rice milling machine and diesel

engine.

2. Inspection before starting the milling operation; To confirm all bolts and nuts which fix the

milling machine and engine to the concrete base and confirm the V-belts between engine

and milling machine are tightened properly.

II. How to

operate the

machines

(How to mill /

How to process)

1. Inspection before starting the operation

1) For diesel engine: Make sure that the fuel, cooling water, lubricant oil etc. are adequate.

2) For rice milling machine: Make sure all of bolts, nuts and screws are tight.

2. Explanation during the operation of machine.

1) Measures to be taken at the startup of machine operation.

2) Adequate continuous operation method of rice milling machine, such as flow adjustment

valves for paddy and milled rice etc.

3) Measures to be taken during abnormal operation.

4) Measures to be taken at the end of the operation.

III. How to

maintain the

machines

Maintenance during the operation

1) For diesel engine

Make sure that pulley (bolt and nut) and drive belts (alignment) are fixed and adjusted

adequately. Always clean the engine and milling machine and surrounding floor.

Methods of troubleshooting during the maintenance work.

2) For rice milling machine

Make sure that pulley (bolt and nut) and drive belts (alignment) are fixed and adjusted

adequately.

Inject grease to bearings.

Methods of troubleshooting during the maintenance work.

IV. How to repair

the machines

1. Following troubles may be repaired by the operators after the diagnosis

1) Repairing of diesel engine

Cleaning of air filter

Bleed the fuel system

Cleaning of oil filter

2) Repairing of Rice milling machine

Replace or readjust of milling blade

2. In case the troubles occur other than the above, call the technical service man. Never

disassemble the engine by yourself, it might cause more serious trouble.

Note: All trainings are conducted through both lecture and practical skills.



< The improved TP-R which is applicable for farmers is utilized in FFS training for farmers.>

2.4.1. Field survey on rice cultivation in IVSs in the target area of the Project

Rice cultivation situation in IVSs in the three districts is generally the same. As most IVSs are not developed,

rice is grown under conditions without water control. Even in developed swamps, water control systems do

not function well as the capacity of main drainage is not enough in most cases.

Under such conditions where the financial capacities are limited and there is scarce opportunity to learn about

improved rice cultivation techniques, most farmers cultivate rice using conventional methods: inadequate land

preparation, transplant old seedlings, dense planting, scarce weeding, no fertilizer application, etc., with which

high yield cannot be expected.

2.4.2. Review of the manual and the guideline for better disseminating the TP-R

Manual and guidelines on the dissemination of the TP-R have not been shared with the extension workers at

the field level. Guidelines should properly be understood and explained to farmers. It is planned that on-farm


- 31 -

trials need to be conducted to remove the constraints or difficulties on the TP-R transfer which were identified

through the baseline survey and monitoring of rice cultivation. The results of trials will be reflected when the

guidelines are revised.

In addition, extension materials may need to be revised and developed as follows.

(1) Revision of extension material

Extension material developed by the previous SRDP is a useful tool when extension workers provide

technical guidance of the TP-R to rice farmers. However, it has been clear that the most of volunteer

FEWs have been less experienced in extension services and they may have difficulty in explaining the

techniques of the TP-R only with the pictures of extension material (without descriptive text guide on the

material). Therefore, the material will be revised by adding descriptions and/or main points of the TP-R

technique on the reverse side of the materials as shown in Fig. 23. Revised extension material will be

finalized based on the feedback from extension workers and rice farmers.

front side reverse side


Fig. 23 Example of revision of extension material

(2) Development of additional materials for TP-R dissemination

In order to explain the TP-R techniques to rice farmers in such ways that they can easily understand,

additional materials are required to be developed. A quick reference chart of cropping calendar was made

as one of the materials. A sheet of growth stage with farming practices by each rice variety can slide on

the calendar as shown in Fig. 24. By using this material, farmers can easily prepare a cropping calendar,

then determine the best date to plant and know the appropriate timing of each farming practice. Other

materials will also be developed as necessary. All the materials will be revised and finalized based on the

feedback from extension workers and farmers.


Fig. 24 Quick reference chart of cropping calendar


- 32 -

2.4.3. Study on other rice cultivation techniques developed by various donors/institution

(1) System of Rice Intensification (SRI)

The concept of SRI was originally developed in Madagascar for poor farmers who cultivated rice in

poorly drained lowland, which had resulted in very poor yield. In order to maximize the utilization of

resources and potential of rice plant, SRI is guided in principle by the following six practices:

a. Use of organic manures to replenish nutrient to the soil;

b. Transplanting young seedlings to accelerate initial growth of rice to produce more tillers;

c. Transplant one seedling per hill to realize its full tillering capacity;

d. Wider spacing between hills to encourage easy establishment of tillers;

e. Turning back the weeds into the soil; and

f. Intermittent irrigation to promote aeration in the root zone and accelerate decomposition of

organic matter;

However, after the introduction of this system worldwide, it has been modified in various countries/areas

to adapt to their environments. For example, the area where organic manures are difficult to find, they

depend on chemical fertilizer as improved SRI.

In Sierra Leone, the research institute (SLARI/RARC) and a NGO have tested SRI, the results of which

attracted higher yield with very high profitability. Another research carried out in 2013 under World

Bank financed West Africa Agriculture Productivity Project (WAAPP) also showed positive results.

RARC focuses on the following four principles in disseminating SRI to increase yield in Sierra Leone

condition11

.

a. Favor rapid and careful plant establishment through seed selection, through pre-germination

treatment and through careful raising of seedlings up to 2 leaves stage on raised nursery bed.

b. Reduce competition between rice plants through transplanting single seedling per hill, wide

spacing with 25 cm or more in line and grid pattern.

c. Create fertile soils rich in organic matter and soil microbes through the use of cover crop such as

Calopogonium mucunoides at 10 ton per ha incorporated into well puddled soils 2 weeks before

transplanting.

d. Manage water carefully, avoiding flooding and drought stresses through good levelling and

bunding, and through the use of mechanical weeder to aerate soil and incorporate weeds into soils.

It is found that principles of SRI are quite similar to the TP-R in pursuing rapid and careful plant

establishment, reduction of competition between rice plants, and careful management of water.

(2) Rice cultivation techniques developed by GIZ

German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) has started to conduct new activities of rice

development with introduction of SRI in Koinadugu, Kono and Kailahun districts as a part of the

Employment Promotion Programme (EPP III). Since the SRI developed by GIZ has unique features as

shown in Table 22, it is necessary to be studied on the advantages of the cultivation techniques in the

second period of the Project.

11

Samuel Soki Harding, and Nazir Mahmood; Assessing the suitability and profitability of the System of Rice

Intensification in Sierra Leone;


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Table 22 Main features of SRI

1. Use of pure rice variety 4. Each planting hill measures

25cm by 25cm (line planting)

7. 20% more yield than with traditional

method (from 600 kg/acre to 750 kg/acre)

2. Use of dense nursery with

mats

5. Transplanting only 1 seedling

per hill

8. Processing and selling jointly with other

farmers

3. Early transplanting after

12-15 days (2-leaf stage)

6. Seed rate per acre only about

3 kg

9. Effective seed preparation for next season

Source: GIZ


<The improved TP-R which is applicable for farmers is recognized as recommended cultivation

techniques in countrywide.>

2.5.1. Information sharing with other donors and NGOs for collaboration

After the Project would be completed, the TP-R is expected to be disseminated further throughout the country,

which is the overall goal of the Project. To seek for the possibility of disseminating the TP-R in collaboration

with other donor agencies and/or NGO, the Project has had information sharing on rice related activities with

various donors and NGO. The results are summarized and shown in Table 23.

Table 23 Rice related activities of donors/NGO and envisaged collaboration area

Organization Current rice related activities Envisaged collaboration area

World Bank WAATP: under formulation of the project. Dissemination of

rice production techniques developed by the previous project

(WAAPP).

SCADeP: to promote value chain of main crops including rice,

cacao, oil palm, etc. Seed rice production.

Capacity development (Dissemination

of the TP-R; Seed multiplication as a

part of the TP-R)

WFP IVS development and rehabilitation through Food for Work and

Food for Assets.

Participatory IVS development/

rehabilitation with the TP-R training

FAO FFS manual development covering 12 modules The TP-R training manual for FFS

GIZ IVS development with technical guidance of rice cultivation

under EPP (Employment Promotion Project) III covering

Koinadugu, Kono and Kailahun.

Improvement of facilitation technique

on training rice cultivation technique

and IVS development

BRAC Extension and support of agricultural production activities

including rice production.

IVS development with rice production

Capacity development of extension

workers on the TP-R


2.5.2. Project PR

(1) Project brochure

The Project brochure explaining the outline of the Project was prepared and distributed to concerned

personnel and organizations.

(2) Project newsletter

The Project newsletters have been issued periodically showing the main topics and updates of the Project

activities. Three (3) issues have so far been published in the first period of the Project.


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(3) Project Website

In order to present the Project activities as well as results, the Project website will be created in the

MAFFS’s website.


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3. Issues to Be Addressed

3.1. Issues and/or challenges to achieve the Project purpose

Based on the results of the baseline survey as well as of the monitoring of the rainy season rice cultivation, the

Project identified numerous issues to be addressed and problems to be tackled to achieve the Project ultimate

goal of enhancing rice yield. They are enumerated from various viewpoints in the following.

3.1.1. Technical issues

- FBO farmers in IVS have few opportunities to learn improved rice cultivation techniques.

- Although their main source of improved techniques is the extension workers, many of them are

volunteers, who are not officially employed, not paid or not properly trained.

- Mobility of extension workers has chronically been a challenge, due to the limited provision of means

of transportation, wide geographical coverage, poor conditions of feeder roads, and so forth.

- Water control is a problem in most IVSs, which are not developed, affecting critical cultivation

techniques such as proper depth of transplanting and efficient fertilizer utilization.

- MAFFS staff lacks experience in topographic survey, basic skill in IVS development planning.

- Neither FBO farmers nor MAFFS staff are well experienced in IVS development.

- The operators of post-harvest machinery are not sufficiently trained in operation and maintenance of

the machines.

3.1.2. Socio-economic issues

- FBO farmers have difficulties in obtaining quality seeds as well as fertilizers due to their scarcity and/or

inadequate financial capacity.

- There are problems of shortage / high costs of farm labour due to competition.

- Women’s participation is said to be hampered by the heavy workload in reproductive activities

- Securing seed rice may be affected by food insecurity.

- Indebtedness during hunger period may also negatively affect the affordability of production resources.

3.1.3. Management issues on FBOs/ABCs

- Management capacities of farmers’ organizations need to be enhanced both at FBO and ABC levels.

- As FBO farmers have not participated in IVS development works, they lack ownership of the facilities.

- As some ABCs are located far from the villages where beneficiary farmers reside, it is not fully

utilized.

- ABCs’ capacities and experiences both in operation and maintenance of facilities and in organizational

management has limitations

- Necessary support to machinery operation and maintenance at ABCs by MAFFS district engineers

have not been done as planned.


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The above issues and challenges are inter-related each other to create another problem, which, in combined

manner, result in the low yield of rice. The project is expected to improve the situation by increasing the

adoption of TP-R through the capacity development of FBO farmers working in IVS.

3.2. Project Design Matrix (PDM)

The Project Design Matrix of the Project (PDM) was originally drafted in May 2016 as Version 0, which was

slightly modified as Version 1 in the first Joint Coordinating Committee held in August 2017. The current

PDM is structured with one (1) project purpose which is to be attained thought achievement of three expect

outputs, while there is another output to directly contribute to the achievement of the overall goals in addition

to the attributes by the Project purpose. The PDM also stipulates inputs and activities to achieve the outputs,

together with indicators to measure the extent of achievement of the Project and means of verification. As for

the numerical targets of some of these indicators, it was anticipated that they shall be set based on the results

of baseline survey which explores current situation of IVS rice farmers and their farming as well as extension

system in target area of the Project.

As a part of initial activities of the Project, the project direction and strategies has been examined through the

process of analyzing the results of baseline survey. In the process of the examination, several points regarding

the project design itself has come to the concerns for future discussions. Major issues related to the current

PDM center around the following two aspects.

3.2.1. Definition / understanding of the Technical Package on Rice Production (TP-R)

As the Project is aiming to extensively disseminate the TP-R in target districts, focus of the Project is to be set

on the higher adoption of improved techniques of rice production in IVS. At the end of the Project, the TP-R,

as the final output of the Project, shall be presented for nationwide dissemination, thus any modification or

revision to be made through the activities of the Project are to realize higher adoption of TP-R by the farmers

who are cultivating rice in IVS. In pursuit of higher adoption by farmers, some technical components of TP-R

shall be revisited to identify any possible facilitating measures or to introduce any enabling environments to

make the adoption of these techniques easier for farmers, while extension efforts shall also be enhanced to

promote farmers’ understanding on TP-R techniques and the benefits of application of thereof. These concepts

of TP-R should clearly be referred to in the descriptions of the PDM.

3.2.2. Logical sequence between Project purpose and outputs

The PDM is structured with logical inter-relationship among activities, outputs, project purpose and overall

goals. Activities should be the concrete means to realize the outputs, then outputs are to directly contribute to

the attainment of the project purpose, which would serve as an attribute to lead to the final direction the

project interventions, i.e. the achievement of the overall goals. In some parts of the current PDM, however,

some of the logical sequences are found somewhat unclear, which need to be revisited for possible

modifications and adjustment. In addition, some of the objectively verifiable indicators are found not to be

precisely corresponding to the outputs, project purpose, and overall goals of the Project, which shall also be

modified in line with the proposed revision of the narrative summary of the PDM.


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4. Project Direction and Strategy

4.1. Project direction

As discussed in the previous Chapter 3, there are a lot of issues and problems to realize the increase in rice

yield in IVS conditions, which is the ultimate goal of the Project. To achieve the goal, the Project is expected

to assist FBO farmers cultivating rice in IVSs in adopting the TP-R. To promote the adoption of TP-R by the

FBO farmers, there may be two directions: (a) to remove the constraints on adopting the TP-R; and (b) to

promote understanding of the TP-R and its benefit.

(a) To remove the constraints on farmers’ adoption of the TP-R

The TP-R is composed of many techniques, several of which such as levelling, water management and

fertilizer application, are said to be not easy for many rice farmers to adopt under their current situation. If

they continue to hesitate to adopt such techniques, yield increase cannot be expected. The Project tries to

increase the adoption rate of those techniques and others which have not been well-adopted by FBO farmers.

(b) To promote the farmers’ understanding on the TP-R and its benefit

In order for the FBO farmers to adopt the TP-R, opportunities to learn the TP-R should be increased.

Dissemination techniques by extension workers will be improved so that target farmers could find the TP-R

easy and beneficial.

In all the Project processes, extension workers of MAFFS are expected to play pivotal roles. Their capacities

have to be built-up so as to promote their understanding on the TP-R as well as to facilitate effective

dissemination of the TP-R by them.

4.2. Project strategy

Based on the project direction discussed above, the following strategies shall be adopted by the Project to

carry out the activities in the due course of Project implementation.

(a) To remove the constraints on the farmer’s adoption of the TP-R

Proper levelling contributes to the unification of rice growth after transplanting, which will facilitate the

recovery from planting shock and promote tillering. However, the levelling work is not easy if the farmers use

hoes only for this work. Special tools for levelling needs to be introduced.

Water management is possible only when an enable environment to control water is secured. Simple water

control structure will make it possible to manage water, which will contribute to the yield increase even

without fertilizer application.

Fertilizer application become more effective when water is properly managed. However, fertilizer is rather

expensive for farmers to afford. A revolving fund may be introduced to procure fertilizer for those who realize

the yield increase by adopting the TP-R techniques.

(b) To promote the farmers’ understanding of the TP-R and its benefit

In addition to FFS, i.e. the standard extension method of MAFFS, farmer-to-farmer extension will also be

promoted. Possibility of disseminating the TP-R through radio programme will also be considered and

explored.


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The relationship among the Project purpose, the Project directions and the Project strategies is depicted as

shown in Fig. 25.


Fig. 25 Relationship among the Project purpose, the Project directions and the Project strategies

Adoption of TP-R by FBO farmers

Promotion of understandingof FBO farmers on TP-R andits benefit

Removal of the constraintson the adoption of TP-R byFBO farmers

Capacity development of FBO farmers1) Theoretical training (classroom, mass media)2) Practical training (FFS, demonstration plots)3) Farmer-to-farmer dissemination

Development and introduction of facilitation measures1) On-farm trials (techniques to make TP-R

components easier to apply)2) Collective action for securing inputs and

resources (seeds, fertilizers, labors, IVS rehab./dev’t, Post-harvest activities)

Capacity development of extension workers1) TOT on TP-R2) Monitoring and review of field activities

Strategies

Project Directions

Project purpose


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5. Proposed Activities in the Next Phase

5.1. Detailed activity plan (Draft)

5.1.1. Capacity development of FBO farmers in IVS

(1) Selection of FBOs

Based on the criteria set based on the baseline survey results (see Sub-section 2.2.3.), a total of 24 FBOs

which would try out the TP-R demonstration will be selected as initial candidates to be model FBOs in the

three districts. Aside from the demonstration plot, seed multiplication plot will be established to purify their

seeds. On-farm trial plots will also be established to conduct trials using the selected fields of those FBOs.

The Project together with DAOs will prepare an agreement to be signed with each FBO to clarify the roles

and responsibilities of each party in implementing the activities of the Project.

Necessary tools and inputs in establishing and implementing demonstration plots will be provided by the

Project. Inputs like fertilizer will be provided on a loan basis. In the first year, one bag of rice will be repaid

for one bag of fertilizer provided.

(2) Capacity development of extension workers on the TP-R dissemination

To support model FBOs, extension workers will form groups which will be assigned to the model FBOs.

Then those extension workers will be trained on FFS facilitation to disseminate the TP-R. FFS plans will be

formulated, extension materials for FFS will be prepared, and demonstration plot establishment method will

be learned. Themes of demonstration will be selected so as to compare the improved cultivation technique

with the conventional technique. Monitoring of rice growth and yield survey in the demonstration plots will

be conducted.

(3) Capacity development of FBO farmers

The farmers of model FBOs will be trained on the TP-R through FFS. The group of extension workers

assigned to the FBOs, supported by the Project, will facilitate the FFS using the demonstration plots as well as

seed multiplication plots. Through FFS, the model FBO farmers are expected to understand the advantages of

the TP-R.

5.1.2. Development and introduction of facilitation measures to adopt the TP-R

(1) On-farm trials

Various trials will be carried out using a part of model FBO farms to increase the adoption rate of the TP-R

techniques. According to the results of the baseline survey, labor shortage was found to be one of the pressing

problems. Introduction of labor saving techniques including rotary weeder, leveling plate, sparse planting in

line, etc. will be tested.

(2) Collective action to secure inputs and resources

Securing inputs and resources like fertilizer, seeds, labors are always problems for majority of farmers.

Collective procurement of those inputs may be worth trying to save costs.

IVS development/rehabilitation will be implemented with the participation of FBO farmers so that they could

learn techniques on how to maintain canal and also raise their sense of ownership.

Training plan on the operation and maintenance of rice mills as well as record keeping will be prepared for the

operators of ABCs.


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Through those activities, management capacity of FBOs/ABC is expected to be strengthened.

5.1.3. Training on rice development in a third country

(1) Country: Madagascar

(2) Participants: About 20 in total, including policy maker, researcher, extension officer/workers, and

farmers.

(3) Schedule: 6 days excluding travelling days in September 2018.

(4) Programme (provisional):

1) Visit a JICA’s rice project (PAPRIZ Phase 2) to exchange views on the dissemination method of

rice cultivation techniques, effective cultivation techniques and tools, and issues if any.

2) Visit CFAMA (training center of agric. mechanization, another JICA project) to learn development,

production and dissemination of agricultural machineries and tools.

3) Visit rice fields where double-cropping is practiced to exchange views with farmers’ organizations

on development and maintenance of terraced rice field / nursery of rice/ line planting and rotary

weeder / difficulty in adopting techniques, etc.

5.2. Modification of PDM

As discussed in the previous section 3.2, the current version of the PDM of the Project is to be further revised

with possible modifications including the identification of proper target figures of the objectively verifiable

indicators to measure the achievement of the Project. Proposed revisions of the PDM shall be drafted and

presented for discussion at the 3rd JCC meeting to be held at the beginning of the second Period of the Project.

The possible modifications would mainly be on the following three (3) aspects.

5.2.1. Confirmation on the definition of the TP-R in the PDM

There is a reference in the current PDM to the “improved TP-R”, the definition of which is somewhat unclear.

As the Project purpose is extensive dissemination and higher adoption of the TP-R, any modification to be

made on TP-R may not always or necessarily lead to the “improvement” of yield performances, but rather to

promoting understanding of the benefits, and removing constraints for application of the TP-R. It is therefore

considered essential to revisit and modify the definition of the TP-R which will be presented as the final

output of the Project, as well as to revise the stipulation thereof in the PDM.

5.2.2. Adjustment of logical sequences between outputs and Project purpose

In the current PDM, logical inconsistencies are found in some parts of the narrative summary, especially in the

“means-end” relationship between outputs and project purpose as well as between the project purpose and

overall goals. In relation to those inconsistencies, some indicators were also found not to be corresponding to

the statements of the expected achievements. Hence the adjustment of logical sequences is required, along

with which appropriate indicator items shall be identified in addition to, or to replace, the existing indicators.

5.2.3. Setting of the target figures of Objectively Verifiable Indicators (OVIs)

It has been agreed upon at the initial planning exercise that the target figures of the indicators are to be set

based on the results of baseline survey. As the baseline survey data were consolidated and some benchmark


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figures are identified, the numerical targets of the indicators should be set wherever applicable in the PDM,

except for the qualitative indicators.

Appendixes

1 Record of Discussion

2 PDM (version 1)

3 Project Work Flow and Schedule

4 Staffing and Assignments

5 List of Equipment Procured

6 Minutes of JCC Meeting

Documents

Sustainable Rice Production Project (SRPP) PROGRESS REPORT 1 Website/Progress... · Sustainable Rice Production Project Progress Report 1 - 1 - 1. Outline of the Project 1.1. Background