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The aim of this research was to contribute to a better understanding of rice farmer’s poverty of Office du Niger (ON) in Mali at village-level. Data were collected through survey with 110 head family farms in the village of Dogofiri. Quantitative data were analyzed using descriptive statistics. Multiple linear regression models were used to analyze the main determinants of poverty. Results indicated that the factors of physical capital and human capital as well as government policy have a significant influence on the poverty of family farms through production, age, family size, education and health support, agricultural credit and water fees. Policies aimed to improve the family farm’s income and boosting rice production to alleviate poverty ought to be based on these factors.

International audience; AbstractRecommendations for crop management are based on agronomic diagnoses of yield determinants at plot scale usually without the farmers being involved in the evaluation process. Farmers may consequently not apply the recommendations that do not account for their own perception of yield determination. We assumed that (i) farmers have their own perceptions of yield determination; (ii) it is possible to access these perceptions through individual discussions with farmers; (iii) subsequent group discussions allow knowledge to be exchanged between farmers and a common viewpoint to be reached; (iv) agronomists can use this common viewpoint as a basis for building improved solutions in collaboration with the farmers. In this study, we used participatory methods to identify and discuss the visual references the farmers consider the crop growth as indicators to forecast the yield of their plot and the drivers they think affect these indicators. The study was conducted in two sites in the Office du Niger irrigated rice scheme in Mali and comprised three steps: (i) individual discussions with rice producers about their perception of how yield is determined, (ii) group discussions to share their individual perceptions and reach a common viewpoint, (iii) analysis of these perceptions. Seven production indicators and 29 factors that may affect these indicators were identified. The three mains indicators used by farmers were tiller abundance, hill density, and grain weight per panicle. Crop practices and constraints may prevent farmers from achieving high yields, such as a delay in the supply of fertilizers or in crop establishment. They had a complex perception of yield determination that was often close to agronomic knowledge. Here we demonstrate for the first time that farmers in the Office du Niger scheme have technical knowledge to which extension services could refer to provide relevant advice and tools for managing their constraints and improving yield.

In many African countries, food security is now more valued by agricultural policies than ever before. Since WAEMU (West African Economic and Monetary Union) regards the irrigated area of the Niger Office in Mali as the “rice bowl” of West Africa, this agricultural area has thus become at the heart of regional economy and politics. In this context, agricultural development programs are multiplying, leading to the “new green revolution” supported by international organizations, donors and a number of foundations. These development projects are usually managed by foreign private investors and benefit from large-scale land allocation. This model of agricultural and commercial development has been criticized as a form of land and water grabbing. It raises questions with regards to its role in securing the population’s food supply and the future of small family farms. The role of small farming in food security was recently reaffirmed during the “International Year of Family Farming” (2014). La sécurité alimentaire constitue plus que jamais une priorité dans les politiques agricoles de nombreux pays d'Afrique. Considéré par l’UEMOA (Union Economique et Monétaire de l'Afrique de l'Ouest) comme " le grenier à riz" Z de l’Afrique de l’Ouest, la zone irriguée de l'Office du Niger au Mali, se trouve de ce fait au cœur d'enjeux économiques et politiques régionaux. Dans ce contexte, des programmes d'aménagement à vocation agricole se multiplient de façon à mener " la nouvelle révolution verte " prônée par les organismes internationaux et les bailleurs de fonds et soutenue par un certain nombre de fondations. Menés par des investisseurs privés, pour certains étrangers, ils bénéficient d'attributions foncières à grande échelle. Interprété comme une forme d'accaparement des ressources en terre et en eau, le développement de cet agrobusiness pose question quant à sa vocation à sécuriser l'approvisionnement alimentaire des populations et quant à l'avenir des agricultures familiales dont le rôle en matière de sécurité alimentaire a été réaffirmé à l'occasion de " l'Année Internationale des Agricultures Familiales " (2014). 在许多非洲国家，如今粮食安全比以往任何时候都更加受到农业政策的重视。由于WAEMU（西非经济和货币联盟）将驻马里的尼日尔办事处的灌溉区视为西非的“饭碗”，这一农业区因此成为区域经济和政治的核心问题。在这种背景下，农业发展计划正在成倍地增加，从而引领由国际组织，捐助者以及若干基金会鼎力支持的“新绿色革命”。这些发展项目通常由外国私人投资者管理，并从大规模的土地分配中受益。这种农业与商业发展模式被批评为一种对土地和水资源的攫取。因而有关这些发展项目的真实作用的问题格外显著，尤其在确保人口粮食供应和小型家庭农场的未来发展等方面。最近举行的“国际家庭农业年”（2014年）重申了小型农场在粮食安全方面的作用。