Agroforestry World
A simple farming technique is proving effective in staving off food shortages in Kenya The female farmers of Makueni County in southeastern Kenya rarely expect to triumph over their parched, unpropitious soils. A pick, a spade and a...
Agroforestry practices, involving contour planting of high value fruit and timber trees are a potential option for halting and reversing land degradation, improving ecosystem functions and enhancing the profitability of farming systems.
The potential of the right trees as eco-efficient options for farmers is demonstrated through the work of projects such as the ICRAF led multi-partner effort known as the Trees for Food Security Project (T4FS). T4FS targeted two key agro-ecologies: highland humid and lowland semiarid areas in Ethiopia and Rwanda, eventually scaling out lessons learned to similar agro-ecologies in Burundi and Uganda. The aim was to demonstrate evidence and select the most appropriate options for thirty thousand farmers across representative contexts in the rural regions where an estimated 10 million people are facing acute food insecurity.
by Catherine Ky-Dembele and Ake Mamo In the drylands of Mali, adoption of tree based food banks is creating big impressions in farmers’ lives. When we think of food security, it is specters of food shortage and bags...
The technical guide is an essential tool for extension efforts promoting rural development and the protection of the environment or land, who are interested in promoting agroforestry in North Kivu province. The technical manual (in French the Guide technique d’agroforesterie pour la selection et la gestion des arbres au Nord-Kivu) helps people to select and manage trees in the area around the Park.
In a paper just out in the journal Ecology and Society, a new unified theory of empowerment reveals what is needed for local communities to become the future forest managers in Kenya. The key is to devolve the...
By Lua Hoang Thi and Ake E Mamo Son tra, aka the H’mong apple, taorung, maccam, or macsamcha depending on whether you are in Vietnam, India, Myanmar, or some southern provinces of China, is an indigenous fruit...
By Ake Mamo and Philippe Vaast ‘Chocolate has begun a journey from being very loved and very common, like beer, to being very loved and a good deal less common, like Bordeaux.” said Mark Shatzker of Bloomberg,...
Humans love them, herbivorous animals thrive on them, the earth benefits from their presence, but not enough are being grown. From the vegetarian platters of Ethiopia, to Githeri in Kenya, Saka Madesu in the DR Congo and neighbouring...
One small change of words is a giant leap in the effectiveness of agricultural research and development. The race is on to find sustainable ways of producing enough food to feed the world over the next three to...