The program Knowledge Networking Towards Enterprising Agricultural Communities or simply the K-AgriNet program, is a strategic approach to modernize the agriculture sector and accelerate rural development by bridging the digital divide. The program was funded by the e-Government Fund of the Commission on Information and Communications Technology (CICT) and a collaboration of four institutional players in the agriculture sector
This publication capitalizes on the experience of scientists from the North Africa and Near East countries, in collaboration with experts from around the world, specialized in the different aspects of greenhouse crop production. It provides a comprehensive description and assessment of the greenhouse production practices in use in Mediterranean climate areas that have helped diversify vegetable production and increase productivity. The publication is also meant to be used as a reference and tool for trainers and growers as well as other actors in the greenhouse vegetables value chain in this region.
The new edition of this annual publication (previously published solely by IFOAM and FiBL) documents recent developments in global organic agriculture. It includes contributions from representatives of the organic sector from throughout the world and provides comprehensive organic farming statistics that cover surface area under organic management, numbers of farms and specific information about commodities and land use in organic systems. The book also contains information on the global market of the burgeoning organic sector, the latest developments in organic certification, standards and regulations, and insights into current status and emerging trends for organic agriculture by continent from the worlds foremost experts. For this edition, all statistical data and regional review chapters have been thoroughly updated. Completely new chapters on organic agriculture in the Pacific, on the International Task Force on Harmonization and Equivalence in Organic Agriculture and on organic aquaculture have been added. Published with IFOAM and FiBL
An increasing number of African smallholders are moving from subsistence farming to selling at least part of their output. To shift successfully to a more commercial footing they need a lot more than the production advice traditionally provided by extension services. They need to understand how markets work. They also need advice on postharvest handling, help with business planning and marketing, assistance with organization, information on prices, links to buyers and credit, help with contracts and standards, and many other types of assistance. These agricultural business development services are provided by a mix of private companies, NGOs, cooperatives and government agencies in what is called a pluralistic extension system . Farmers and other clients such as input stores, small-scale processors and traders get some services for free, paid for by donors or the government. Others are subsidized: the farmers pay part of the cost. For still others, the farmers must pay the full cost. That leads to questions of sustainability (what happens when the donor s money runs out?), accountability (whom do the service providers listen to: the farmers, or the source of the funds?), and inclusiveness (how to ensure that women, the poor and disadvantaged get the services they need but cannot afford?). This book describes the two dominant approaches to providing services: supply-driven (where the funder decides what services should be offered), and market-driven (where more emphasis is put on market forces). It looks at how 12 business service providers from across Africa run their businesses. It describes the seven different business models that they pursue, and examines the features of each one. Based on their experiences, it proposes a new, needs-driven approach, which aims to overcome the shortcomings of both the supply-driven and the market-driven approaches by taking the needs of clients as a starting point for policy and action."
"Smallholder farmers are the stewards of more than 80 percent of the world's farms. These small family businesses produce about one-third of the world's food. In Africa and Asia, smallholders dominate the production of food crops, as well as export commodities such as cocoa, coffee, and cotton. However, smallholders and farm workers remain among the poorest segments of the population, and they are on the frontline of climate change. Smallholder farmers face constraints in accessing inputs, finance, knowledge, technology, labor, and markets. Raising farm-level productivity in a sustainable way is a key development priority. Agribusinesses are increasingly working with smallholder farmers in low- and middle-income countries to secure agricultural commodities. More productive smallholders boost rural incomes and economic growth, as well as reduce poverty. Smallholders also represent a growing underserved market for farm inputs, information, and financial services. Working with Smallholders: A Handbook for Firms Building Sustainable Supply Chains (third edition) shows agribusinesses how to engage more effectively with smallholders and to develop sustainable, resilient, and productive supply chains. The book compiles practical solutions and cutting-edge ideas to overcome the challenges facing smallholders. This third edition is substantially revised from the second edition and incorporates new material on the potential for digital technologies and sustainable farming. This handbook is written principally to outline opportunities for the private sector. The content may also be useful to the staffs of governmental or nongovernmental development programs working with smallholders, as well as to academic and research institutions."--
It is impossible to imagine the modern world without sensors, or without real-time information about almost everything—from local temperature to material composition and health parameters. We sense, measure, and process data and act accordingly all the time. In fact, real-time monitoring and information is key to a successful business, an assistant in life-saving decisions that healthcare professionals make, and a tool in research that could revolutionize the future. To ensure that sensors address the rapidly developing needs of various areas of our lives and activities, scientists, researchers, manufacturers, and end-users have established an efficient dialogue so that the newest technological achievements in all aspects of real-time sensing can be implemented for the benefit of the wider community. This book documents some of the results of such a dialogue and reports on advances in sensors and sensor systems for existing and emerging real-time monitoring applications.
Integrated Pest Management – Dissemination and Impact, Volume 2 is a sequel to Integrated Pest Management – Innovation-DevelopmentProcess, Volume 1. The book focuses on the IPM systems in the developed countries of North America, Europe and Australia, and the developing countries of Asia, Latin America and Africa. One of the major impedimentsin the dissemination and adoption of the IPM innovation is the complexity of the technology and reaching the vast population of farmers especially in the developing countries. The IPM-innovation development process is incomplete without the diffusion and adoption of IPM methods by the end users, and through its consequences. In spite of all the efforts in the developed and developing countries, the adoption of IPM is still low with few exceptions. The book covers the underlying concepts and methodologies of the diffusion of innovation theory and the program evaluation; and reviews the progress and impact of IPM programs implemented in the industrialized, the green revolution and the subsistence agricultural systems of the world. Forty-four experts from entomology, plant pathology, environmental science, agronomy, anthropology, economics and extensioneducationfromAfrica, Asia, Australia, Europe,NorthAmerica and South America have discussed impact of IPM with an interdisciplinary perspective. Each one of the experts is an authority in his or her eld of expertise. The researchers, farmers’education,supportingpoliciesofthegovernmentsandmarketforcesarethe elements of the IPM innovation system to achieve wider adoption of IPM strategy in agriculture.
The Information and Communications for Development series looks in depth at how information and communications technologies are affecting economic growth in developing countries. This new report, the fourth in the series, examines the topic of data-driven development, or how better information makes for better policies. The objective is to assist developing-country firms and governments in unlocking the value of the data they hold for better service delivery and decision making and to empower individuals to take more control of their personal data. We are undoubtedly experiencing a data revolution in which our ability to generate, process, and utilize information has been magnified many times over by the machines that we increasingly rely upon. This report is about how the data revolution is changing the behavior of governments, individuals, and firms and how these changes affect the nature of development: economic, social, and cultural. How can governments extract value from data to improve service delivery in the same way that private companies have learned to do for profit? Is it feasible for individuals to take ownership of their own data and to use it to improve their livelihoods and quality of life? Can developing-country firms compete with the internet majors on their own turf and be even more innovative in their use of data to serve local customers better? Though the report is aimed primarily at government policy makers, it also has great relevance for individuals concerned about how their personal data is used and how the data revolution might affect their future job prospects. For private sector firms, particularly those in developing countries, the report suggests how they might expand their markets and improve their competitive edge. For development professionals, the report provides guidance on how they might use data more creatively to tackle long-standing global challenges, such as eliminating extreme poverty, promoting shared prosperity, or mitigating the effects of climate change. The report's chapters explore different themes associated with the supply of data, the technology underlying it, and the demand for it. An overview chapter focuses on government use of data and presentation of definitions. Part I of the report then looks at the "supply side" of the data sector, with chapters on data connectivity and capacity (where data comes from, how it is stored, and where it goes) and data technology (specifically big data analytics and artificial intelligence) and how this is contributing to development. Part II looks at the sector's "demand side," with a chapter on people's use of data and another that examines how firms use digital platforms in the data economy and how that contributes to competitiveness. Part III brings together the policy implications for developing-country stakeholders, with a chapter considering government policies for data, including data protection and privacy. A closing Data Notes appendix looks at statistical indicators associated with the use of data and presents the 2018 update of the Digital Adoption Index (DAI), a composite indicator introduced in the 2016 World Development Report: Digital Dividends.
This edited book is based on the papers accepted for presentation during the 2nd Springer Conference of the Arabian Journal of Geosciences (CAJG-2), Tunisia, in 2019. Major subjects treated in the book include geomorphology, sedimentology, and geochemistry. The book presents an updated unique view in conjugating field studies and modeling to better quantify the process-product binomial unusual in geosciences. In the geomorphology section, 24 papers deal with topics related to fault slip and incision rates, soil science, landslides and debris flows, coastal processes, and geoarcheology, and geoheritage. Under the sedimentology section, 34 papers including stratigraphy, and environmental, tectonic, and diagenetic processes, together with evolutionary, biostratigraphic, and paleo-environmental significance of paleontology are presented. Additionally, this section also contains papers on marine geosciences, from molecular proxies related to climate to geophysical surveys. Last but not least, the third section on geochemistry is composed of 26 papers that are focused on sedimentary geochemistry and mineralogical characterization, magmatic and metamorphic processes and products, and the origin and exploration of mineral deposits. This book resumes the current situation related to the abovementioned topics mainly in the Mediterranean realm. The volume book is of interest to all researchers, practitioners, and students in the fields of geomorphology, sedimentology, and geochemistry, as well as those engaged in environmental geosciences, soil science, stratigraphy and paleontology, geoarcheology and geoheritage, marine geosciences, petrology, metallogenesis, and mineral deposits.
The Egyptian desert can be a hostile place. Yet in 1977, Dr Ibrahim Abouleish founded a new agricultural and social settlement on seventy hectares of desert land in Belbes, 60 km north east of Cairo. The Sekem initiative was born.Dr Abouleish's goals were to build a new type of community. His vision was for a farm which grew biodynamic crops and plants out of the harsh desert sand. Where the workers and residents were given holistic primary health care. Where their children were well-educated in the sciences. A place which could sell its wares and be self-sufficient and self-sustaining. A place where Islamic religion and Western technology could come together in harmony.Nearly thirty years later and Sekem has gone from strength to strength. In 1981 it shipped its first medicinal herbs to the USA; by 2004, it oversaw a network of over 800 farms across Egypt and the Sudan, producing high quality organic crops, herbs, fruits and vegetables. Its mobile health units work with local rural populations and it has brought about real social change.This is the story of Sekem -- the original vision, the challenges and hard work, and the eventual successes -- in Ibrahim Abouleish's own words.Stunningly illustrated with colour photographs throughout.
