Conservation Agriculture in Southern Africa

1. Tracking its Adoption and Impacts,
Holiday Inn Hotel, Bulawayo,
Zimbabwe,
30-31 October 2014
Presentation by
Mark Lyimo, MAFC, Tanzania

2. Background
•Area under cultivation is about 13.9 mil ha
•Out of which 24% is done by animal
traction,
•14% by mechanical power and
• 62% by hand hoe
• This is done using conventional methods
•These contribute to high production costs

3. Background
• Use of mechanical tillage for seedbed
preparation and weed control has
induced:
- Deterioration in the quality of soil
- Decline in soil fertility.
- Destruction of soil structure
• Increased land management costs .
- In 1999 tractor ploughing was 25 USD
$/ha
- 2014 the cost of tractor ploughing has
escalated to 75 USD $/ha.

4. …cont’d
Conventional tillage results into
severe soil degradation

7. Some of the good things that happened in
2013/14…
•In 2013, Farm Mechanization & Conservation Agriculture
for Sustainable Intensification (FACASI) 4 years project was
launched in Arusha.
•The project is looking at exploiting synergies between
small-scale-mechanization and CA.
•Reduced soil inversion in CA systems reduces power
requirements - typically by a factor of two
•This makes the use of lower powered tractors such as two-
wheel tractors (2WTs) a viable option.
•The overall goal of the project is to improve farm power
balance, reduce drudgery, and minimize biomass trade-offs
in Eastern and Southern Africa, through accelerated
delivery and adoption of 2WT-based technologies by
smallholders.

9. CFU
 Conservation Farming Unit is promoting CA in the
Southern highlands and Cotton growing areas around
Lake Zone
 Demonstrations involving private sector tractor owners
demonstrate tractor drawn rippers compared to
conventional ploughing where famers and machinery
owners can see the difference in terms of fuel
consumption and time used is an operation with similar
field size
 This is quite fascinating as once farmers see the results,
tractor owners get direct contracts from the farmers for
their services.

10. ACT
 ACT is implementing the ABACO project
 ACT is also having a project for promoting CA with
trees.
 In this initiative, combining CA with trees (faidherbia
albida) for soil fertility.
 ACT in collaboration with the Ministry of Agriculture
Food Security and Cooperatives (MAFC)
successfully submitted a project to UNDP on
Reducing Vulnerabilities and Increase Long-Term
Climate Change Resilience at Local Level in the
Districts of Longido, Bahi and Iringa Rural.

11. Training and demonstration of CA

12. Tanzania Agriculture Climate Resilience
Action Plan
 ACRP) is a framework to identify and respond to the
most urgent impacts posed by climate variability and
climate change to Tanzanian agriculture.
 It responds to the directive of the National Climate
Change Strategy (NCCS), adopted by the The plan
is intended to provide Tanzania’s agriculture sector
and stakeholders with the necessary strategies to
meet the challenges of climate change
 Government of Tanzania in March 2013

13. NCATF
 The Task Force has just been formulated
this year with members from various actors
government, NGOs, farmer groups and the
private sector
 We intend to invite development partners,
large scale farmers and women groups
also to participate
 Already invitation letters have been sent we are
waiting for response

14. The Roles of The NCATF
 Coordinate the work of stakeholders with a national
perspective on CA and CSA development.
 Develop and run national projects related to CA
promotion
 Resource mobilization for national CA activities
 Capacity building and training in CA at a national level
 Identify and facilitate national and farm based research
on the local adaptation of CA principles
 Advocate and support national policy development to
encourage CA adoption
 Make linkages with the supply chain at a national level
 Develop and implement guidelines for NCATF members
and others seeking funding through the NCATF for CA
activities.

15. Introduction of Bio-Agtive® technology
•The Bio-Agtive is a method of using tractor emissions to
stimulate plant growth
•It is a growing "carbon farming" practice around the world.
•For 10 years research and development of the Bio-Agtive
Technology has been conducted and practiced on both
dryland and irrigated fields in countries such as Canada and
Australia
•Production is done without the use of conventional
fertilizers
•The technique reduces the need for fertilizers and produce
a healthier, often bigger yield, by assisting in the soil's
biological processes and enhancing root growth and
microbial activity.

16. Fieldmasters (T) Ltd
 Field Maters was awarded a grant from AECF (AGRA) to
develop BIOAGTIVE farming where tractor exhaust
smoke is used as fertilizer in the soil.
 This modern technology allows not to use completely
chemical fertilizers and replace it with tractor exhaust
smoke.
 An exhaust condenser is fitted to the tractor to cool the
hot exhaust smoke and then the cooled smoke is blown
into the soil with the seeds.
 This exhaust smoke is very beneficial to soil microbial
life, humus and fungi. It stimulates them to find nutrients
for the plants in exchange for plants sugars.

17. …cont’d

18.  This technology saves farmers money in expensive crop
inputs like chemical fertilizer, help the soil become more
healthy and when used with CA practices leads to sustainable
crop production and food security.
 The technology has been promoted in Tanzania for 3 years
and many farmers are happy with the results. The company
want to expand this climate smart technology to more tractors
in Tanzania and Africa for the future.
 There is a possibility for farmers who are using this technology
and following CA practices to become eligible to get paid
carbon credits as an additional income to their annual crops.
 Field Maters has introduced Bio-Agtive technology to wheat,
maize, barley, sorghum, safflower etc in some areas Arusha,
Manyara and Dodoma regions of Tanzania
 The success of this technology can encourage many people
to return to agriculture and in particular the young new
emerging farmers.

19. How does the system works?

20. Sub soiler set up for strip tillage for Bio- Agtive

21. The number of farmer practicing CA
 There is no reliable information on the current status
of CA in Tanzania
 It s estimated that, CA is now adopted by over
10,000 farmers across the country
 About 6,000 hectares are currently under CA in
Tanzania (mainly Nortern Zone, Lake zone, Southern
Highlands, Southern Zone and Eastern Zone).
 The NCATF is in the process of conducting a
baseline survey to determine the status of CA in
Tanzania

22. The ultimate goal is Soil cover
22

23. End
Thank you for your attention