Your search found 22 records
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H050219)
(3.18 MB)
Agricultural innovation scaling approaches tend to be empirical but do not sufficiently take into account the complex realities of ‘softer elements’ such as people, supply chains, markets, financing mechanisms, policies and regulations, professional knowledge, power relations, incentives and history. As a consequence, scaling initiatives often do not produce the desired impacts and, in some instances, may even produce undesirable impacts.
Designing scaling strategies that are adaptive to context and available resources requires an understanding of the enabling environment in which the scaling processes are embedded. This can be achieved by conducting an analysis to identify enablers and hinderers influencing farmers’ adoption of irrigation and water management technologies and introducing measures to ensure success. The tool described in this working paper provides implementers with a structured guide to carrying out this analysis in a specific context.
2 Minh, Thai Thi; Schmitter, Petra. 2020. Co-identification of value chain-based pathway for scaling of irrigation technologies and services: cases in Basona Worana and Lemo woredas in Ethiopia. Nairobi, Kenya: International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI); Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 29p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050262)
(0.58 MB) (590 KB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050333)
(2.02 MB)
Value chain analysis has been widely used as a diagnostic approach to identify and address complex issues across value chains in an agricultural development context. While comprehensive, the method is primarily qualitative and static in nature, it has limited capability in capturing the dynamic interactions between components from production to consumption and their linkages within a complex system. The application of system dynamics in value chain analysis has the potential to address the limitations. We conducted a systematic literature review to synthesise the underlying reasons behind the application of system dynamics in value chain analysis and understand how it has been operationalised. Results show that the primary reasons why system dynamics is used in value chain analysis were improved ability in capturing the feedbacks, dynamic behaviours and time delays, modelling the dynamics of governance and roles of support systems over time, incorporating multiple causal factors, and measuring performance and policy interventions over time. This can be broadly attributed to the need to improve the analytical rigour of value chain analysis. The applications of system dynamics in value chain analysis varied according to the agricultural commodities analysed, the modelling process followed, dynamic complexity modelled, and the scope of the value chain components analysed. We discuss the contributions, limitations, and opportunities for future improvements. A preliminary framework is proposed to improve the application of system dynamics in value chain analysis.
4 Kafle, Kashi; Songsermsawas, T.; Winters, P. 2021. Impacts of agricultural value chain development in a mountainous region: evidence from Nepal. Rome, Italy: International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). 33p. (IFAD Research Series 65)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050432)
(1.65 MB) (1.65 MB)
This analysis investigates the potential mechanism and the practical significance of the impacts of agricultural value chain development in a geographically challenging rural area of a developing country. We use data from a carefully designed primary survey administered in the hill and mountainous region in Western Nepal. Using the inverse probability weighted regression adjustment method, we show that linking small-scale producers with regional and local traders can help increase agricultural income. We unpack the potential mechanism of the impact pathway and show that the increase in agricultural income is a consequence of higher agricultural revenues, owing to a higher volume of sales at lower prices. We argue that value chain intervention in rural areas, where land is not fully exploited, can lead to acreage expansion or crop switching, which eventually results in higher supply at lower output prices. The positive impact on household income is practically significant in that it translated into improved food security, dietary diversity and household resilience. These findings are robust to various specifications. Targeted value chain interventions that strengthen and stabilize small-scale producers’ access to markets can contribute to rural poverty reduction via an increase in agricultural income.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050408)
(1.76 MB) (1.76 MB)
Voluntary sustainability standards (VSSs) in global production networks (GPNs) have grown significantly in prominence. Existing research largely assumed that VSSs create linear upgrading outcomes for all GPN actors and has studied VSSs from the point of adoption in the GPNs, rather than a broader range of stages in their lifecycle. To address these limitations, and building on literature around power and agency in GPNs, we develop the constellation of priorities (CoP) model to unpack the diverse and often diverging boardroom (Northern lead firm) and local (Southern supplier) priorities involved in such standards. Through in-depth fieldwork on horticulture in Kenya and cocoa in Nicaragua across the VSS lifecycle, we find significant divergences in priorities between farmer groups in both countries and lead firms in the UK and Germany. We demonstrate analytically and empirically that diverging priorities coupled with power asymmetries produced contestations, leading to simultaneous economic and environmental downgrading, and social upgrading.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050625)
(2.64 MB) (2.64 MB)
Digital technologies enable small-scale farmers to reduce some constraints to participate in Agriculture Value Chains (AVCs). Small-scale farmers face significant challenges and barriers to adopting digital technology. This study contributes to the literature on digital development in three ways: present the economic, political, and social factors affecting digital adoption in the AVCs; highlight the implications for governance and institutional challenges;adds knowledge to the analytical value of the Choice Frameworkto study digital technology adoption. This paper after identifying more than 100 papers and articles, uses a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) aligned with Cooper’s [(2010). Research synthesis and meta-analysis: A step-by-step approach (5th ed.). Sage] approach to examine 52 articles published from 2014 to 2019, ultimately selecting the most relevant 36 studies. The study uses the Choice Framework that operationalizes the Capabilities Approach (CA) as a theoretical window for this research. Papers were classified into four different categories: economic; political; social factors; institutional/governance. The findings show: - the role of the state in governance and institutional support is critical to facilitate the collaboration and participation of different actors;-the importance to develop a comprehensive localized developmental implementation framework that can support the adoption of digital solutions to support small-scale farmers. Limitations for this study are highlighted and areas for further research are suggested.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: IWMI Record No: H050720)
(978 KB)
This report examines social equality aspects related to resource recovery through solid waste composting and wastewater irrigation. The report shows that women are represented in greatest numbers at the base of the recycling chain, most often as informal waste pickers and as sorters of recyclables with limited access to resources and upward mobility. Despite a wide gender gap in the solid waste and sanitation sectors, women play a key role in both municipal waste reduction and food safety where irrigation water is unsafe. Analyzing the gender dimension is important for understanding household responses to recycling programs, differences between the formal and informal sectors as well as along the waste-to-resource value chain from collection to treatment and reuse. The report stresses the important role of women in household waste management, including waste segregation, and the power of women-dominated waste picker associations, where the informal sector plays an essential role alongside the formal sector.
8 Khadka, Manohara; Uprety, Labisha; Shrestha, Gitta; Minh, Thai Thi; Nepal, Shambhawi; Raut, Manita; Dhungana, Shashwat; Shahrin, S.; Krupnik, T. J.; Schmitter, Petra. 2021. Understanding barriers and opportunities for scaling sustainable and inclusive farmer-led irrigation development in Nepal. Kathmandu, Nepal: Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA). 92p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H050731)
(1.87 MB) (1.87 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051386)
(4.91 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051404)
(1.71 MB)
CONTEXT: Digitalisation impacts value creation and capture in all industries economic sectors. One of the somewhat less researched and less well-understood contexts is agriculture.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the impacts of digitalisation on value creation through four dimensions of the value chain – activities, flows, actors and governance – and analyse the implications of these changes for value capture.
METHODS: We conducted a case study on the upstream section of a farm's value chain, including the most relevant actors, and complemented it with secondary data from papers and gray literature.
RESULTS AND CONCLUSIONS: We found two important impacts: (i) value creation occurs increasingly through platforms operated by big players beyond the industry boundaries, and (ii) value capture by farmers depends on the competitive dynamics among these players, and on policies and regulations.
SIGNIFICANCE: The study addresses the four dimensions of the agricultural value chain, allowing a deeper understanding of its digital transformation. The paper also contributes to knowledge about the evolution of the industries involved by discussing the competitive dynamics. These views are relevant to guiding the strategic decisions of suppliers, farmers and policymakers.
11 Urfels, A.; Khadka, Manohara; Shrestha, Nirman; Pavelic, Paul; Risal, A.; Uprety, Labisha; Shrestha, Gitta; Dile, Y.; McDonald, A. J.; Pandey, V. P.; Srinivasan, R.; Krupnik, T. J. 2022. A framework for sustainable and inclusive irrigation development in western Nepal. Kathmandu, Nepal: Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA). 78p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051550)
(3.12 MB) (3.12 MB)
12 International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 2023. Inclusive agriculture: creating opportunities for women and youth in Mali’s irrigated vegetable value chain. Adaptive Innovation Scaling - Pathways from Small-scale Irrigation to Sustainable Development. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). 8p. (IWMI Water Issue Brief 21) [doi: https://doi.org/10.5337/2022.228]
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051582)
(1.24 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051679)
(1.05 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051828)
(3.34 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051895)
(3.60 MB)
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H051861)
(1.13 MB) (1.13 MB)
The large majority of extreme poor in the world lives in fragile states. Yet, despite the enormous importance of these areas for global poverty and food insecurity, there is relatively little research examining how agricultural value chains, crucial for assuring food security, respond and adapt to such contexts. This paper analyzes Myanmar’s rice value chain – its most important staple and biggest value chain – during the economic collapse and political instability caused by a military coup in early 2021. It relies on unique data collected with a large sample of rice retailers and millers before and after the coup. Despite many challenges in the rice value chain after the coup – most importantly linked to banking and transport – rice processing and trade continued, assuring availability of rice in most retail markets and illustrating the resilience of the value chain to such major shock. While processing margins were mostly stable, an increased distribution margin (between rice millers and retailers) led to 11 percent higher average retail prices after the coup, implying welfare losses of almost USD 0.5 billion for the country. Using a market-pair regression method, we further find that localized violence near sellers and buyers, distances traveled, and distance of vendors from borders are associated with significantly increased rice price dispersion between rice retailers and mills. Despite the amalgam of problems to address in such settings, prioritizing the easing of transport restrictions and facilitating cheap and safe spatial arbitrage of food products would likely help prevent further food price inflation, assure higher farm prices, and therefore improve welfare.
17 Anbacha, A.; Mapedza, Everisto; Joshi, Deepa; Nigussie, Likimyelesh; Puskur, R.; Nchanji, E.; Mukhopadhyay, P.; Nortje, Karen; Enokenwa Baa, Ojongetakah; Jacobs-Mata, Inga; Zewde, Y.; Ketema, D.; Roothaert, R.; Lutomia, C.; Gartaula, H. N. 2023. CGIAR Initiative on Diversification in East and Southern Africa and CGIAR Initiative on Gender Equality: Stakeholder Consultation Workshop. Proceedings of the Stakeholder Consultation Workshop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 31 January 2023. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on Diversification in East and Southern Africa; CGIAR Initiative on Gender Equality. 22p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052223)
(1.12 MB)
A stakeholder consultation workshop was conducted by the CGIAR Initiatives on Diversification in East and Southern Africa (Ukama Ustawi) and Gender Equality on 31 January 2023 at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The workshop aimed to identify and address barriers that limit participation of women and youth and how these are addressed in an ongoing "Veggies for People and Planet" program at the World Vegetable Center. The workshop also sought to investigate existing opportunities and recommend possible integrated solutions for more equitable and inclusive value chain development.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052406)
(4.91 MB) (4.91 MB)
Developing countries in Africa face an unemployment crisis, with many unemployed youth. Agriculture has been identified as a strategic sector for employment creation targeted at youth, including those who may not have agriculture-related qualifications. However, various challenges limit the effectiveness of youth participation in the agriculture value chain. The study aimed to (i) determine youth awareness of agricultural value-chain opportunities, (ii) determine their perception of their role in the value chain, (iii) determine their perception of agricultural programs targeting youth and their opinions on who is responsible for attracting youth into agriculture and, (iv) to characterise the dynamics of youth empowerment in agriculture. Data was collected using focus group discussions and an online survey and analysed using SPSS and NVivo. Poor knowledge, low levels of awareness of agricultural value-chain activities and careers, and not meeting the minimum requirements for employment in processing and retail businesses were identified as key challenges. Most youth were interested in non-primary activities such as agro-processing, which are less labour-intensive and have a quicker return on investment than agricultural production. However, support services and programs for promoting youth participation in agriculture mainly focus on primary activities, signifying a mismatch between youth aspirations and current support. Understanding youth aspirations, perceptions and dynamics underpinning youth empowerment and participation in value chains is critical for promoting participation and formulating relevant and responsive policies. Additionally, improving access to information and building awareness of agricultural value chains is crucial in reducing barriers to entry. Policymakers should integrate agriculture and food systems knowledge into the primary education curriculum to promote youth awareness and evoke interest in agri-food system careers at an early age.
19 Greehy, P.; Enokenwa Baa, Ojongetakah; Nortje, Karen. 2023. Strategies for promoting Gender and Social Inclusion (GESI) in the agribusiness sector in Zambia: experiences from the field. Colombo, Sri Lanka: International Water Management Institute (IWMI). CGIAR Initiative on Diversification in East and Southern Africa. 17p.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052419)
(766 KB)
Building on the Reclaim Sustainability! (RS!) programme’s baseline studies and the Gender and Social Inclusion (GESI) Reports, and in partnership with CGIAR Initiative on Diversification in East and Southern Africa (Ukama Ustawi) through International Water Management Institute (IWMI), Solidaridad facilitated commodity specific voice amplification dialogues in Zambia focused on cotton and fruits and vegetables farmers. These GESI engagements were designed to form the basis for future programs around voice amplification, gender and social inclusion across agri-business value chains, policy, advocacy, and innovation acceleration The commodity specific dialogues used a co-design approach in order to construct end-user archetypes of typical audiences for program engagement. Over a two week period between November and December 2022, Solidaridad’s commodity teams, supported by the Network’s Gender Expert, visited cotton and fruits and vegetable farmers across Zambia in the following districts: Lusaka, Chongwe, Mazabuka, Chibombo, Kabwe,Mumbwa, Choma , Magoyi, Nyimba , Petauke and Katete. In groups of not more than 15 per community, the team engaged in dialogue with women (60), youth (3) and men (30) farmers, commodity relevant key informants, individuals in influential spaces and interest groups across the Cotton and Fruits and Vegetables value chains. This included government officials, market players such as Freshmark (Shoprite), Good nature Agro, Agricultural input aggregators, industry union representatives, policy makers, district agricultural officers, and most importantly, women smallholder farmers.
(Location: IWMI HQ Call no: e-copy only Record No: H052801)
(1.75 MB)
Despite the high potential of and strong demand for wider adoption of agricultural innovations in Ethiopia, scaling efforts have often been ineffective, and innovation adoption remains limited. Successful and sustainable innovation scaling requires co-identifying and co-developing best-fit solutions for farmers and other actors in the value chain. Bundling these solutions, such as solar-powered irrigation pumps, with pay-as-you-go financing has improved the enabling environment for adoption. Identifying the farmer segments interested in investing in such bundles and strengthening linkages along the irrigation value chains are essential for matching demand and supply and creating the conditions to reach scale.
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