This Noragric Report was commissioned by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad)... more This Noragric Report was commissioned by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) under the framework agreement with UMB which is administrated by Noragric.
This research was undertaken in the agropastoral regions of Maradi, Tahoua and Tillabéri in Niger... more This research was undertaken in the agropastoral regions of Maradi, Tahoua and Tillabéri in Niger. The first study covered 900 households and assessed farmers production methods, income, household expenditure, gender issues and food security using four different indicators. The second study assessed causes for child malnutrition by combining a household survey (450 households) with measurement of the upper arm circumference of 1618 children aged 6 to 59 months from these households. A logistic regression analysis was used to identify the causes for malnutrition. The number of food-insecure months in the households were on average 3.54 months per year and 11.4% of the children belonged to the group defined as suffering from 'global acute malnutrition'. Cereal yields were below 250 kg ha-1 and only 33% of the households were able to sell any of their cereal harvest. The households spent 66% of their total expenditure on the purchase of food. Money spent on diversifying their n...
Sustainable Intensification to Advance Food Security and Enhance Climate Resilience in Africa, 2014
A study of the impact over the past 30 years of climate variability and change on smallholders’ f... more A study of the impact over the past 30 years of climate variability and change on smallholders’ farming systems and adaptation strategies was conducted in three villages of Iramba and Meatu Districts, Tanzania. Both districts involved in the study lie within a semi-arid zone. Crop failure and food insecurity are common characteristics to all three villages in the study. Personal descriptions of climate change and meteorological data confirmed that rainfall patterns have become increasingly inconsistent and unpredictable and that the length of dry spells has increased. Crop growing seasons have been shortened by 1 month or more. The availability of ground water, particularly from rivers, has increasingly become seasonal, compared to the situation in the 1970s and 1980s. These results have all impacted negatively on rain-fed agriculture and livestock production systems and increased the vulnerability of smallholder livelihoods, because of their high dependency on natural resources. Almost 80 % of the households in both study areas were characterized as poor. Households are becoming increasingly vulnerable to multiple factors including drought, price fluctuations, increased population pressure, loss of soil fertility and decreased productivity, scarcity of farm and grazing land, water and fuel wood shortages, loss of ‘ngitiri’, increased conflicts over pastures, crop and livestock diseases, male out-migration, and increased labor burdens on women. Responses to climate change impacts varied by the socioeconomic condition of households and gender. Coping and adaptation mechanisms to which farmers have resorted include selling labor, land leasing, shifts in crop and livestock systems, use of early maturing, drought and disease resistant varieties, small scale irrigation systems, gardening, increased use of crop residues as animal feed, diversification to off farm activities, and petty trade.
The Centre for International Environment and Development Studies, Noragric, is the international ... more The Centre for International Environment and Development Studies, Noragric, is the international gateway for the Agricultural University of Norway’s (NLH) seven departments, associated research institutions and the Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine in Oslo. Established in 1986, Noragric’s contribution to international development lies in the interface between research, education (MSc and PhD programmes) and assignments. Noragric Working Papers present research outcome, reviews and literature studies. They are intended to serve as a medium for Noragric staff and guest researchers to receive comments and suggestions for improving research papers, and to circulate preliminary information and research reports that have not yet reached formal publication. The findings in this Working Paper do not necessarily reflect the views of Noragric. Extracts from this publication may only be reproduced after prior consultation with the author and on condition that the source is indicated. Fo...
Sustainable Intensification to Advance Food Security and Enhance Climate Resilience in Africa, 2014
Neither the impacts of climate change on people nor the ways in which people respond to climate c... more Neither the impacts of climate change on people nor the ways in which people respond to climate change are gender neutral. Important gender differences exist regarding the implications of climate change for the lives of females and males of all ages. Gender inequalities and gender roles play a key role in determining the choice of adaptation strategies of both men and women. They may ultimately lead to changing gender relations. The amount of research and documentation on existing coping and adaptation strategies has increased, but rarely are these findings differentiated along gender lines, and they frequently fail to describe how adaptive strategies cause changes in gender relations. Using qualitative data from the Meatu and Iramba Districts in Tanzania, this study examined changes in gender relations in response to climate change. Findings show that men and women react differently to climate change, leading to changes in gender roles and relations to accommodate the impact of the phenomenon. The impacts of climate change are changing gender relations, which can be to the advantage or disadvantage of either gender category. However, it was found that changes in gender relations had more disadvantages for women than for men. Adaptation strategies utilized by both men and women have positive and negative outcomes, which either challenge or reinforce existing gender inequality.
Flood recession farming is as an important supplement to rainfed agriculture in West Africa. Ever... more Flood recession farming is as an important supplement to rainfed agriculture in West Africa. Every year, large areas are flooded along riverbanks and temporary lakes. When water recedes from the flooded areas, farmers plant crops. This study describes the flood recession farming in the Yelimane district of Kayes region in Mali and assesses different ways to intensify the system. The use of external inputs in this system is minimal. Field experiments were undertaken over two years to test crop establishment methods, soil tillage, increasing plant density, use of organic and mineral fertilizer, and improved varieties. These technologies increased sorghum yield as compared to the control in the following descending order: Seed priming + fertilizer (77.1%), NPK + organic fertilizer (74%), seedling transplantation + micro fertilization (61.3%), improved varieties (49%), mounding (34%), and urea application (24.9%). The technology seed priming in combination with mineral fertilizers was p...
Go to AGRIS search. NORAGRIC working paper (2003). Poverty and environmental degradation in the d... more Go to AGRIS search. NORAGRIC working paper (2003). Poverty and environmental degradation in the drylands : an overview of problems and processes. ...
... Hermansen, A., Amundsen, T., Taksdal, G., Dragland, S., Synnevåg, G., Flønes, M. and Sundheim... more ... Hermansen, A., Amundsen, T., Taksdal, G., Dragland, S., Synnevåg, G., Flønes, M. and Sundheim, L. (The Norwegian Crop Research Insti-tute (NCRI), Plant Protection Centre, Department of Plant Pathology, Høgskoleveien 7, NO-1432 A, s, Norway, NCRI, Saerheim Research ...
This Noragric Report was commissioned by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad)... more This Noragric Report was commissioned by the Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (Norad) under the framework agreement with UMB which is administrated by Noragric.
This research was undertaken in the agropastoral regions of Maradi, Tahoua and Tillabéri in Niger... more This research was undertaken in the agropastoral regions of Maradi, Tahoua and Tillabéri in Niger. The first study covered 900 households and assessed farmers production methods, income, household expenditure, gender issues and food security using four different indicators. The second study assessed causes for child malnutrition by combining a household survey (450 households) with measurement of the upper arm circumference of 1618 children aged 6 to 59 months from these households. A logistic regression analysis was used to identify the causes for malnutrition. The number of food-insecure months in the households were on average 3.54 months per year and 11.4% of the children belonged to the group defined as suffering from 'global acute malnutrition'. Cereal yields were below 250 kg ha-1 and only 33% of the households were able to sell any of their cereal harvest. The households spent 66% of their total expenditure on the purchase of food. Money spent on diversifying their n...
Sustainable Intensification to Advance Food Security and Enhance Climate Resilience in Africa, 2014
A study of the impact over the past 30 years of climate variability and change on smallholders’ f... more A study of the impact over the past 30 years of climate variability and change on smallholders’ farming systems and adaptation strategies was conducted in three villages of Iramba and Meatu Districts, Tanzania. Both districts involved in the study lie within a semi-arid zone. Crop failure and food insecurity are common characteristics to all three villages in the study. Personal descriptions of climate change and meteorological data confirmed that rainfall patterns have become increasingly inconsistent and unpredictable and that the length of dry spells has increased. Crop growing seasons have been shortened by 1 month or more. The availability of ground water, particularly from rivers, has increasingly become seasonal, compared to the situation in the 1970s and 1980s. These results have all impacted negatively on rain-fed agriculture and livestock production systems and increased the vulnerability of smallholder livelihoods, because of their high dependency on natural resources. Almost 80 % of the households in both study areas were characterized as poor. Households are becoming increasingly vulnerable to multiple factors including drought, price fluctuations, increased population pressure, loss of soil fertility and decreased productivity, scarcity of farm and grazing land, water and fuel wood shortages, loss of ‘ngitiri’, increased conflicts over pastures, crop and livestock diseases, male out-migration, and increased labor burdens on women. Responses to climate change impacts varied by the socioeconomic condition of households and gender. Coping and adaptation mechanisms to which farmers have resorted include selling labor, land leasing, shifts in crop and livestock systems, use of early maturing, drought and disease resistant varieties, small scale irrigation systems, gardening, increased use of crop residues as animal feed, diversification to off farm activities, and petty trade.
The Centre for International Environment and Development Studies, Noragric, is the international ... more The Centre for International Environment and Development Studies, Noragric, is the international gateway for the Agricultural University of Norway’s (NLH) seven departments, associated research institutions and the Norwegian College of Veterinary Medicine in Oslo. Established in 1986, Noragric’s contribution to international development lies in the interface between research, education (MSc and PhD programmes) and assignments. Noragric Working Papers present research outcome, reviews and literature studies. They are intended to serve as a medium for Noragric staff and guest researchers to receive comments and suggestions for improving research papers, and to circulate preliminary information and research reports that have not yet reached formal publication. The findings in this Working Paper do not necessarily reflect the views of Noragric. Extracts from this publication may only be reproduced after prior consultation with the author and on condition that the source is indicated. Fo...
Sustainable Intensification to Advance Food Security and Enhance Climate Resilience in Africa, 2014
Neither the impacts of climate change on people nor the ways in which people respond to climate c... more Neither the impacts of climate change on people nor the ways in which people respond to climate change are gender neutral. Important gender differences exist regarding the implications of climate change for the lives of females and males of all ages. Gender inequalities and gender roles play a key role in determining the choice of adaptation strategies of both men and women. They may ultimately lead to changing gender relations. The amount of research and documentation on existing coping and adaptation strategies has increased, but rarely are these findings differentiated along gender lines, and they frequently fail to describe how adaptive strategies cause changes in gender relations. Using qualitative data from the Meatu and Iramba Districts in Tanzania, this study examined changes in gender relations in response to climate change. Findings show that men and women react differently to climate change, leading to changes in gender roles and relations to accommodate the impact of the phenomenon. The impacts of climate change are changing gender relations, which can be to the advantage or disadvantage of either gender category. However, it was found that changes in gender relations had more disadvantages for women than for men. Adaptation strategies utilized by both men and women have positive and negative outcomes, which either challenge or reinforce existing gender inequality.
Flood recession farming is as an important supplement to rainfed agriculture in West Africa. Ever... more Flood recession farming is as an important supplement to rainfed agriculture in West Africa. Every year, large areas are flooded along riverbanks and temporary lakes. When water recedes from the flooded areas, farmers plant crops. This study describes the flood recession farming in the Yelimane district of Kayes region in Mali and assesses different ways to intensify the system. The use of external inputs in this system is minimal. Field experiments were undertaken over two years to test crop establishment methods, soil tillage, increasing plant density, use of organic and mineral fertilizer, and improved varieties. These technologies increased sorghum yield as compared to the control in the following descending order: Seed priming + fertilizer (77.1%), NPK + organic fertilizer (74%), seedling transplantation + micro fertilization (61.3%), improved varieties (49%), mounding (34%), and urea application (24.9%). The technology seed priming in combination with mineral fertilizers was p...
Go to AGRIS search. NORAGRIC working paper (2003). Poverty and environmental degradation in the d... more Go to AGRIS search. NORAGRIC working paper (2003). Poverty and environmental degradation in the drylands : an overview of problems and processes. ...
... Hermansen, A., Amundsen, T., Taksdal, G., Dragland, S., Synnevåg, G., Flønes, M. and Sundheim... more ... Hermansen, A., Amundsen, T., Taksdal, G., Dragland, S., Synnevåg, G., Flønes, M. and Sundheim, L. (The Norwegian Crop Research Insti-tute (NCRI), Plant Protection Centre, Department of Plant Pathology, Høgskoleveien 7, NO-1432 A, s, Norway, NCRI, Saerheim Research ...
Uploads
Papers by Gry Synnevåg