Farming First looks at some examples of sustainable intensification in action (Taken from the Montpellier report: Sustainable Intensification: A New Paradigm for African Agriculture)
One Acre Fund
Farming First member, One Acre Fund was established in 2006 in Western Kenya by Andrew Youn. The organisation uses a market-based system to enable one-acre subsistence farmers, a group they refer to as the ‘forgotten poor’, to escape poverty. The model is built around five core principles:
1) Empowerment of local farmer groups, bringing them together to increase their negotiating power;
2) Farm education provided by field officers;
3) Capital, the provision of certified and environmentally-sensitive seeds as well as fertiliser;
4) Market facilitation, training on post-harvest handling and storage; and
5) Crop insurance.[i]
As of autumn 2012, the One Acre Fund has facilitated a tripling of raw harvest material per planted acre and a doubling of farm income per planted acre, after repayment.[ii]
[i]http://www.oneacrefund.org/how_it_works/program_model
[ii]http://www.oneacrefund.org/files/reports/OneAcreFund_SixMonthReport_Fall2012.pdf
Microdosing in Niger, Mali and Bukina Faso
Each microdose consists of a 6-gram mix of phosphorus and nitrogen fertiliser, which just fills the cap of a soda bottle—an item that is easy to obtain. The cap of fertiliser is then poured into each hole before the seed is planted. This technique equates to using only four kg/ha, three to six times less than used in Europe and North America, but still very effective. For example, millet yields increase by over 50% and crops are better able to absorb water.
The Zai System
Farmers first dig medium-sized holes (or zais) in rows across the fields during the dry season. Each zai is allowed to fill with leaves and farmers add manure, which during the dry months attracts termites; these create an extensive network of underground tunnels beneath the holes and bring up nutrients from the deeper soils.
The rainwater is captured in the zais which are sown with sorghum or millet seed. Water loss through drainage is limited by the manure and deep infiltration is made possible by the termite tunnels. Thus, even in the drought-prone environment of the Sahel, sufficient water capture is ensured.
Farmers have consistently reported greatly increased yields using this technique. In Burkina Faso, grain yield has increased 120% equating to around 80,000 tons of extra grain per year.[i] The labour in the first year is quite high, but after that farmers may reuse the holes or dig more between the existing ones.
A key factor in the spread of zai adoption was the student-teacher system led by the innovators of the technique to train farmers.[ii]