Sustainable Intensification of Key Farming Systems in the Sudano-

Sahelian Zone of West Africa

N. Karbo, F. K. Avornyo, H. K. Dei, B. Alenyorege, E. Osafo, S. Konlan, A. Fall

CSIR-ARI, UDS, ILRI

ACTIVITIES/OUTPUTSPlanning meeting and team

formationCore team for coordinationRegional teams for coordinationCommittee on planning for Regional workshop, training courseAreas for protocol development identified

Regional workshop on constraints and opportunities

for intensification of integrated crop-livestock systems

Proceedings

Technologies tested/generated

On-stationFalse yam for guinea fowls (8 feed formulations)False yam fro pigs (9 feed formulations out of which two were promising)

On-farmFeed supplementation under wet season management of small ruminants – 1 promising feed formulationSorghum spent malt for guinea fowls (cheaper feed formulation)

Best-bet technologies in milk hygiene and processing

Appropriate pasteurization equipmentPosters on milk hygiene, milk platform, salt wagashi, good wagashi, quesco blanco cheese and yoghurt

Capacity buildingTraining of implementers

Improvement in understanding of crop-livestock systemsBenefited from biometry training

Training of farmersSensitization on protocolDemonstration on feed formulation

Training of studentsDemonstration on feed formulationData collectionCrop-livestock systemsProtocol

DisseminationFarmer field visits (75 men and 42 women)Feed millers’ visit to project siteCommunity experience-sharing and learning (120 participants)Posters distributed (3,000)

ChallengesHarmonization gaps of the protocols due to limited information on socio-cultural settingsTime and area to coverManaging in the absence of a project vehicleSupport needed by farmers for technology/innovation uptakeHow to sustain the process/interventions – farmers are wondering if we will come back

LessonsTeam work contributed greatly to the achievementsRegional teams required monitoring due to peculiarity of data collection - without which project might have failed

Element of long term relationship, commitment and trust Wet season intervention is justified particularly for restrained animalsLand is an issue for intensification - In UER where crops are failing diversifying into livestock production for integration with crops can improve livelihoods

OpportunitiesCommunity members are more receptive and are organizing themselves into groupsSome feed formulations were promising and this provides an opportunity for scaling up – development of feed marketNew partnerships formed present an opportunity for future collaborations (internal and external partners)

Presence of milk groups presents an opportunity for the development of the dairy sector in northern GhanaAvailability of synthesized knowledge for uptake – proceedings, reportsWorking as a consortium for future projects

Thank you