Dhanush DineshGlobal Policy Engagement Manager

Photo: N. Palmer (CIAT)

Case studies on technology dissemination

Photo: N. Palmer (CIAT)

Outline

• Science informed policy for sustainable, scalable and farmer friendly climate smart agriculture technology with impact at scale to eliminate crop residue burning in India

• Climate-smart villages in Latin America

Science informed policy for sustainable, scalable and farmer friendly climate smart agriculture technology with impact at scale to eliminate crop residue burning in India

Dr ML JatPrincipal Scientist/Systems AgronomistInternational Maize and Wheat Improvement Center(CIMMYT)M.Jat@cgiar.org

Background

• Rice-Wheat Cropping system of the Indo-Gangetic plains of India cover around 10.5 million hectares.

• An estimated 23 million metric tons of rice stubble burned in October and November to prepare fields for subsequent wheat crop.

• Burning of crop residue a major cause of air pollution, in addition to soil degradation.

• Zero tillage (ZT) direct seeding offers a solution, but affected by large amount of loose residues in field.

Source: ABC News, 2-11-19

Solution

• Happy Seeder - a specialized no-till seeder, combines Zero Tillage seeder with a straw management unit.

• Shreds residues and deposits around the seeded row as mulch.

• Reduces evaporation losses, suppresses weed growth, buffers soil moisture and temperature, and facilitates a more efficient uptake of water and nutrients by plant roots.

• Reduces labour requirements for crop establishment by as much as 80%, irrigation needs by 20-25%, and herbicide use by as much as 50%.

Impact

• Reached 0.8 million hectares of adoption of happy seeder/zero tillage technology in the North- Western States of India within a year.

• An additional direct farmer benefit of Rs 900 crores compared to a burning option.

• Large public benefits of significant reduction in GHGs & PM 2.5, improving soil health, saving on water and contributing to SDGs.

• Approximately 13,000 happy seeder machines in operation in north-west India.

• Government support, including a special scheme of about Rs 1150 crores to support farmers for machinery, capacity development, knowledge sharing and awareness creation involving almost 100 public institutions including Krishi Vigyan Kendras (KVKs), ICAR institutions, State Departments of Agriculture, Agriculture Universities.

Climate-Smart Villages in Latin America

Deissy Martínez BarónRegional Program Coordinator –Latin Americad.m.baron@cgiar.org

Climate-Smart Village Approach

• A participatory approach• Tests technological and

institutional options for dealing with climate change in agriculture

• Scaling -up and –out the appropriate options

• Lessons for policy makers from local to global levels

Participatory Climate-Smart Villages in Latin America

• Located in Colombia (Cauca), Guatemala (Olopa) and Honduras (Santa Rita).

• CSA interventions include: Improved bean/maize varieties resistant to climate stresses/biofortifed. Low-cost weather station network. Climate-smart home gardens (circular, vertical, traditional). Organic compost for crop fertilization. Optimizer Hydraulic water pump. Rainwater harvesting and efficient irrigation mechanisms. Water reservoirs and efficient irrigation mechanisms. Crop management with crop rotation. Crop management with intercropping.

• Practices and technologies prioritized with farmers to address specific vulnerabilities.

Results

Lessons learned

• Local partners and social organization are key.• Alignment to local and national policy is important for long-term

sustainability and building local capacity. • Generate data, tools and documents in simple language and

accessible formats. • CSA should contribute to improvement of livelihoods through

income generation, increase of food security and local capacity building.

• South-south exchanges are key in disseminating knowledge and promoting scale-out of successful results.

www.ccafs.cgiar.org

Thank you