V2 PAR PROCESS: GHANA AND BURKINA FASO

Team composition

Ghana Team Burkina Team

Agronomist ‐1 ARINutritionists‐2 ARIEconomists‐2 UDS,ARIAgro‐climatologist‐1 SARI

AgronomistNutritionistsEconomistsAgro‐climatologist

ILRI, IWMI, WUR

Process of PAR designPRA  Team

Getting startedIPs Looking for things to try

PAR TeamDesigning experiment

Secondary dataCommunity 

identification and entry

Identification of constraints

ToolsCommunity workshops

QuestionnaireTeam meetings

Trainings

Analysis of constraintsPrioritizationRain water 

management strategies

Technical and institutional constraints understood

ToolsIP meetingsPair wise rankingGroup 

discussions

TreatmentsNumber of farmer experimenters identified

Resources, roles and time frameOther studies identified

PAR protocolindicators

ToolsIP meetings

Team meetings

Process contd.

Design of PARSustaining process

Trying outData collection Monitoring

Analysis

IP

Sharing  ressultsLearning

Identified institutional constraints and possible action

Constraints ActionsHigh cost of fertilizers IP to discuss, feed 

evidence‐based studies to IPs

Bushfires IPs to discussInadequate knowledge in handling agro‐chemicals

Training (MoFA),NGOs and agro‐chemical companies

Inadequate storage facilities

IPs to discuss communal storage facilities

Identified technical constraints and possible solutions

Constraints Technological solutionsDrought Use of Tied ridges and 

contour bundsLow soil fertility Use of organic and 

inorganic manureLack of animal feed in dry season

50% and 100% crop residue harvest  and feed strategies developed

Animal diseases/mortalities

Prophylactic treatment of small ruminants

THANK YOU!

Please stay for more on the AR protocols

V2 ACTION RESEARCH PROTOCOL: GHANABACKGROUND

Innovation platforms, took roots from theParticipatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and were builtaround key crop‐livestock value chains in the Lawraand Tolon/Kumbungu districts. They identifiedconstraints, opportunities and strategies at variouslevels along each value chain, and these formed thebasis for formulating, in a participatory approach,the PAR protocol.

Objectives of the PAR

The objectives of the PAR, which are similarto the research questions are:Which are the best integrated rainwatermanagement strategies and how would theywork in each recommendation domain?Will integration of organic and inorganicfertilizer for maize‐soybean intercrop,supplementary feeding and prophylactictreatment lead to increased farmproductivity and profitability?

Hypothesis

Better integration of crop‐livestock and rainwater management increases overall farmproductivity and profitability

Design of the experiment

Of the constraints identified at IP which requiretechnological solutions the project communitiesagreed to use the following interventions:Contour bundsTied ridgesApplication of organic and/or inorganic fertilizers toexperimental plotsSupplementary feeding of small ruminantsProphylactic treatment of small ruminants

Issues addressedRainwater managementSoil fertility improvementLivestock feeding

The treatments

Treatment

Soil water management

Soil fertility management

Supplementaryfeeding

Tied ridges

Contour bunds

Organic manure4t/ha

InorganicfertilizersNPK 15‐15‐15, SA

50% crop residue harvest (Gp. 1farmers)

100% crop residue harvest(Gp. 2 farmers)

T1

T2 √ √ √ √

T3 √ √ √ √

T4 √ √ √ √ √

T5 √ √ √ √ √

ALL FARMERS WILL SOW MAIZE/SOYBEAN INTERCROP

Order of experiment

AgronomicNumber of farmer experimenters‐16/locationPlot size‐0.5acre/farmerCompletely randomized block designSubplots 15Measuring 10mx10m3 replicates

Livestock feeding experiment

T1: Free range (farmer practice)T2: Confinement + cereal‐legume residue T3:  Confinement + cereal‐legume residue +concentrate

Order of experimentation

For the raining season flock management will be Monitored.Feeding trials will start from January to AprilNumber of farmer experimenters‐6/locationTotal no. of sheep/location‐30All animals will be given prophylactic treatment

Response variablesNet grain yield (maize and soybean)Soil nutrient content (moisture, pH. NPK, C etc.)Crop residue yield (bulk DM, stem/leaf ratios)Cost of productionSmall ruminant manure yield (quantity, quality),housing managementFeed intakeWeight gains, total gain, growth rateFeed conversion ratio

Mortality rate

Statistical analysis

Each response variable will be subjected tostatistical analysis using the GENERAL ANOVAof GENSTAT RELEASE 10.3 DISCOVERYEDITION 4 with 5% level of significance

Field activities to dateActivity Start date Status RemarksFarmer /AEA training on protocol

15/04/2012 Completed

Soil sampling 14/05/2012 CompletedProcurement of seed material

20/05/2012 Completed

Ploughing 04/06/2012 Completed

Field layout (marking out subplots)

10/06/2012 Completed

Weighing out organic manure

12/06/2012 Completed

Field layout (tied ridging & contour bunds)

12/06/2012 Completed

Sowing at  Tolon/KumbunguDistrict

25/06/2012 Completed Lawra district not started‐no rains

Field layout demonstration at farmer training

Tied ridges demonstrated on the ground at farmer training session

Field layout demonstration to project farmers

Soil sample collection

Soil samples 

Weighing of organic manure

Contour bund

Tied ridges being made

Tied ridges being made

Women putting manure into pans

Tied ridges 

Women carrying head pans full of manure to the fields

THANK  YOU!Please don’t go away. Stay for more from Burkina 

Faso!

V2 ACTION RESEARCH PROTOCOLBurkina Faso

33

Background: 

Research protocol builds on :• PRA• IPs meetings with regard to crop and livestock value chains 

The action research addresses the constraints linked to water, crop and livestock management.

34

Objectives: ▪ Assess agricultural production (crop yields, animal weight gain), water productivity and nutrient flows in smallholder crop‐livestock farms of the Volta Basin, for different levels of integration, different agroecological zones and different levels of access to rainwater management technologies;

▪ Assess trade‐offs in using water for crops or for livestock, through alternative uses of crop residues.

35

Hypothesis(i) Agricultural production (crop yields, animal weight gain and 

milk production), water productivity and nutrient use efficiency are higher in farms where water, crops and livestock management are integrated in a sustainable manner.

(ii) The increase in agricultural production (crop yields, animal weight gain and milk production), water productivity and nutrient use efficiency due to integration has greater impact on food security and farmers livelihood in water scarce areas compared to areas with higher access to water. 

36

37

38

FACTORS STUDIED

RHT: Stone rows; Stone rows + Zai; grass strip; control

Fertilization: Mineral fertilizer, OM+fertiliser; control

Animal feeding: Pasture+crop residues; pasture+crop

residues+industrial by‐products; pasture (control)

Crops: cereal; legume (improved seeds)Animals: sheep; goat12 farmers per village (4 villages per district, 2 districts)Plot size: 0.25 ha per crop type

39

MeasurementsSoil: Bulk density, pH, nutrients (NPK), OM, texture, field capacity, wilting point.

Climate: rainfall, air Temperature, air humidity, radiation, wind speed.

Manure & Compost: nutrient contents, water content 

40

MeasurementsCrop: planting date, fertilizer application date, harvesting date, yield, biomass production, nutrient contents, forage quality.

Livestock: weight gain, feed water content, deaths, sales, births, quantity of crop residues fed.

Pasture: floristic composition, herbage yield, forage quality, nutrient contents.

41

MeasurementsEconomic evaluation: date and nature of farming activities, labour, costs and benefits, market information (prices and outlet). 

42

STATISTIC ANALYSISANOVA ; multivariate analysis, correlations

Using GENSTAT

43

THANK YOU!

44