Ghana

This policy note shows to what extend mechanization efforts from Bangladesh can be used as an example for these transformations in Ghana and Nigeria. The notes elaborates on the experiences of a p Past efforts in these countries have mostly focused on the styles of machinery used in western countries or Latin American countries, where average farm sizes are much larger. In Bangladesh recent fast growth in agricultural mechanization has spread among smallholder farmers that own an average of 0.5 hectares. »

This paper (PDF) in Agriculture & Food Security focuses on how households cope with food shortages and how these food coping strategies vary along the urban–rural continuum. In peri-urban and rural areas, gathering of wild food and selling of charcoal was widely practiced, while in urban areas, most households tended to reduce the number of »

This report by FAO shows the nature of the impacts of climate change on, and vulnerabilities of fisheries in different parts of Africa, to identify current and potential coping mechanisms/strategies as well as biophysical and social characteristics/attributes that increase resilience to these impacts. The report consists of five chapters. Each chapter includes observations on the adaptive capacity of the social-ecological system and concludes with observations on the potential role of fisheries management institutions to reduce vulnerability to climate change. »

elaborates on the linkages between women’s engagement in farming and nutrition within rural households. Many studies have shown that one way to improve nutrition among rural households is to increase women’s engagement in farming since increasing women’s control of food production and their power to make decisions, leads to better nutrition for their families. However, increasing women’s time in agriculture may also have adverse effects on their own and their families’ nutrition, taking time away from nutrition-improving domestic work such as preparing food, feeding, childcare, collecting water and firewood, and engaging in good hygiene and sanitation practices. »

The working paper (PDF) by the CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS), aims to provide insight into how we can use novel approaches to scale up research findings on climate-smart agriculture (CSA) to meaningfully address the challenges of poverty and climate change. The approaches described include those based on value chains and private sector involvement, policy engagement, and information and communication technologies and agro-advisory services. The paper draws on 11 case studies to exemplify these new approaches to scaling up. »

This article in Food Policy Journal examined the relationship between household-specific producer–consumer food price differentials and rural household cropland allocation between food and high-value crops. The authors tested the hypothesis that cereal price bands induce a shift of resources away from high-value crop production, making smallholders appear unresponsive to price incentives. »