https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3002-210X
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ABSTRACT
There is a need for scaling-up agroecology to promote sustainable agriculture at global level. Although, recent studies show that agroecological approaches can achieve both high yields and profits compared with conventional systems, the performance of other socioeconomic indicators remains unknown. This study has two objectives (i) identify the main characteristics of small-scale producers who represent the target-groups of the SDG 2; (ii) provide a comparison between push–pull and conventional farming systems of maize production to explore and possibly implement sustainable systems. In collaboration with Biovision Africa Trust, a participatory assessment framework was implemented in Western Kenya. Twenty-three farmers were selected and data were analysed showing that the push–pull contributes to social/cultural and natural/ecological capitals. In particular, push–pull farmers are more focused on socially oriented groups (75%); moreover, they cultivate smaller plots (1.9 ha) compared to conventional farmers (3.1 ha) without showing a reduction in profitability. The benefits of adopting push–pull system indicated by farmers (e.g. diminished Striga weed) are consistent with the advantages reported in relevant scientific literature. Considering the explorative nature of this study, the article makes a key contribution by pointing towards important questions for future research on agroecology in Sub-Saharan African countries.
Acknowledgements
We would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments and suggestions.
Disclosure statement
No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).
Notes on contributors
Raffaele D’Annolfo is a PhD in the Economics of Agro-Food System at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore and a member of the Italian Association of Agricultural and Applied Economics. He held a Master’s degree in Economics and Social Science (3+2 years) at theUniversità “La Sapienza” and is graduated with a second level Master’s degree in Development Economics and International Cooperation at the University of Rome “Tor Vergata”. He has several years of work experience in the field of research and development sector and collaborated with different international organizations (e.g. FAO) and NGOs in Ireland, Italy, Argentina, Ecuador and Uruguay. His main areas of interest are development economics, agroecology, rural poverty, livelihood assessment, social and economic analysis.
Barbara Gemmill-Herren is an Associate Faculty at Prescott College, Prescott, Arizona, USA and a Senior Associate to the World Agroforestry Centre, supporting the United Nations’ work on agroecology and true-cost accounting in agriculture. She was Delivery Manager for Ecosystem Services and Biodiversity at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), responsible for work on Ecosystem Services in Agricultural Production, and Agroecology. She was a project team member of the Committee on World Food Security of the UN, High-Level Panel of Experts Report on “Agroecological and other innovative approaches for sustainable agriculture and food systems that enhance food security and nutrition”.
David Amudavi is the Director of Biovision Africa Trust and Coordinator of the Ecological Organic Agriculture Initiative for Africa. Dr Amudavi has a wide range of experience within the agricultural sector. Prior to joining BvAT he was a senior lecturer at the Egerton University in the Department of Agricultural Education and Extension. He has supervised many graduate students and published widely in international journals, contributed to book chapters, and presented several research papers at national and international conferences. He has also been involved in several international consultancies relating to livelihood improvement, technology transfer among smallholder farmers and strengthening of agricultural extension systems in Sub-Saharan Africa for various international organizations. David holds a PhD in Adult and Extension Education with minors in Developmental Sociology and Natural Resource Management (NRM) from Cornell University in the USA; MSc in Agricultural Science from The University of Melbourne University, Australia, and a BSc, in Agricultural Education and Extension from Egerton University, Kenya. Dr Amudavi was a postdoctoral fellow with ICIPE’s Push-pull project: “Creating smallholder led growth through ‘push-pull’ technologies in Eastern Africa”.
Hudson Shiraku, an environmental scientist, a blogger and a writer is a Project officer at the Biovision Africa Trust (BvAT) in charge of the Farmers’ library; www.infonet-biovision.org. He has over 10 years of professional knowledge and experience in application of environmental considerations in agricultural projects management in Africa. Shiraku’s multidisciplinary experience is spread in the domains of research, project cycle management, monitoring and evaluation, Climate Change adaptation and mitigation strategies, Environmental Impact Assessment and Audit, ICT for Development, content creation and management and creative writing. Shiraku has made conscious efforts to contribute towards improving the farmers’ welfare by using his environmental expertise in bettering agriculture. To complement his excellent skills in team management, project/program coordination, interdisciplinary research, he also attended ‘formal’ management and leadership training/courses.
Mariacristina Piva, PhD in Economics, is Full Professor of Economic Policy at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Italy. She was Research Economist at the International Labour Organization (ILO) in Geneva. She has published her research in the fields of economics of innovation, industrial organization and labour economics in many refereed academic journals including Research Policy, Regional Studies, Small Business Economics and Contemporary Economic Policy. In addtion, she serves as referee for many international journals.
Lucas Garibaldi is the Director of the Research Institute on Natural Resources, Agroecology and Rural Development (IRNAD, UNRN-CONICET). His research focuses on topics such as agroecology, ecological economics, ecological intensification, pollination, and nature’s contributions to people. He participates in inter-governmental scientific-political platforms, works with several associations of farmers and beekeepers, integrates institutional representations, and shares his research in different media, among other activities. He has travelled all the continents participating in numerous conferences and workshops, and generating important ties of cooperation. Dr Garibaldi’s work aims to contribute towards a predictive science that allows preventing socio-environmental problems and proposing solutions.