Crop productivity in southern Africa is limited by poor soil nutrient status. Local farmers crop highly depleted old soils with little external support for inputs and markets, and few resources of their own. These circumstances have led to widespread low input and output farming now characterized by nutrient mining, low productivity, food insecurity and non-sustainability. In response, agricultural research and development has increasingly focused on the generation and use of a range of technologies to better manage smallholder agricultural resources. Best Bet soil fertility technology options now available include area and end-use specific mineral fertilizer recommendations, conditional fertilization based on rainfall for maize, lime amendments, improved cattle manure and compost systems, annual grain legumes, green manure rotations and intercrops, improved fallows, beneficial trees in croplands, biomass transfer systems and nutrient use efficient cereals. Specific examples are presented of mucuna green manure in combination with mineral fertilizer, groundnut-maize rotations, and pigeonpea/maize intercrops, which have short-term financial benefits plus important productivity and sustainability benefits over 10+ years. These technologies were extensively tested with smallholder farmers on their spatially and temporally diverse farms, to maximize use and benefits. Information and promotion activities are described that have been moderately successful in encouraging farmer use of the Best Bets. Greater adoption will depend on appropriate input supply policies to support farmer investments in soil fertility and provide markets for products.

Socioeconomics Program

Text in English

0503|AL-Economics Program

INT2341