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[Departement_IRSTEA]Eaux [TR1_IRSTEA]GEUSI [ADD1_IRSTEA]Gestion intégrée de la ressource et des infrastructures; International audience; Agriculture in developing countries will have to transform and increase production by an estimated 70% in order to meet demands by 2050. Although well-managed commercial farms offer little manoeuvring space for increasing agricultural water productivity, smallholder farms usually operate at low input costs and therefore provide ample opportunities to reduce the potential yield gap through agricultural intensification. The aim of this paper is to analyse and compare yields and water productivities obtained in field and modelling experiments in Ethiopia (maize, garlic, onion), South Africa (tomato) and Tunisia (tomato, potato, wheat). Innovative agricultural practices were introduced on smallholder farms: irrigation scheduling and NPS Zn fertilization in Ethiopia; high-yielding cultivar, drip irrigation, mulching and organic amendments in South Africa; and crop water modelling in Tunisia. In general, crop yields increased up to eight times with innovative practices compared to current conventional farming practices. Crop water productivities were fairly stable within the same experiments, but increased with innovations, indicating that intensive farming can be more environmentally sustainable than conventional farming. Intensive farming systems in a resource-rich environment (high radiation levels, relatively fertile, deep and well-drained soils), combined with technology transfer and capacity building could be seen as viable strategies to secure food for smallholders and communities in African rural areas, as well as to improve water utilization in water-scarce catchments.

SI; International audience; Boosting the productivity of smallholder farming systems continues to be a major need in Africa. Challenges relating to how to improve irrigation are multi‐factor and multisectoral, and they involve a broad range of actors who must interact to reach decisions collectively. We provide a systematic reflection on findings from the research project EAU4Food, which adopted a transdisciplinary approach to irrigation for food security research in five case studies in Ethiopia, Mali, Mozambique, South Africa and Tunisia. The EAU4Food experiences emphasize that actual innovation at irrigated smallholder farm level remains limited without sufficient improvement of the enabling environment and taking note of the wider political economy environment. Most project partners felt at the end of the project that the transdisciplinary approach has indeed enriched the research process by providing different and multiple insights from actors outside the academic field. Local capacity to facilitate transdisciplinary research and engagement with practitioners was developed and could support the continuation and scaling up of the approach. Future projects may benefit from a longer time frame to allow for deeper exchange of lessons learned among different stakeholders and a dedicated effort to analyse possible improvements of the enabling environment from the beginning of the research process. © 2020 The Authors. Irrigation and Drainage published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Commission for Irrigation and Drainage

Irrigated agriculture is adapting to viability challenges due to water contamination from mining in various ways. We explore the option of using crops that are able to tolerate the impacts of such water contamination as a short term adaptation strategy. We present a framework which enables the selection of crops suitable for irrigated production using mining contaminated water. The framework identifies key factors that should inform crop selection; and these include crop adaptation to climatic conditions, contaminants present in water, crop tolerance to contaminants, crop use and accumulation of toxic metals. A proposed process for screening and selecting a crop is described. Although considered a partial analysis due to incomplete and non-standardised information on crop tolerance levels, the framework narrows down choices which can be assessed in more detail or with field trials. The framework shows that interventions beyond the farm level are necessary to support the use of contaminant tolerant crops as a strategy for adapting to water contamination from mining. However, key questions regarding the risks associated with alternative crops and difficulties in selecting suitable crops remain.

Green economic principles call for a broadening of the scope of mine planning and operations to incorporate sectoral diversification as a formal part of the life cycle of mines. In this opinion piece we argue that sectoral integration of mining holds promise to improve the long term business resilience of the mining sector. We explain this notion for the case of diversification to agriculture in South Africa. The challenge is certainly not unique to South Africa and whilst the mining sector has become more socially and environmentally conscious, it remains a challenge world-wide. Ample opportunity remains for innovative interventions that go beyond mitigating risk of the post-mining landscape, towards socially and economically inclusive development solutions. It is hoped that this contribution ignites more debate on finding new ways to develop the complex relationships between sectors into mutually beneficial and cooperative coexistence based on true sectoral integration, so as to improve the long term sustainability of developing economies.

Achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) depends on partnerships between stakeholders from government, the private sector, civil society, academic and research institutions, and internati...

The pivotal role of small-scale farming in a green economy is well articulated at the theoretical level. However, the practical aspects of green economy implementation in the general agricultural context are unclear. Green economy projects cannot be implemented based on green economy principles alone using a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach; but should be tailored to specific contexts. This chapter covers the practical realities of green economy implementation through analysis of the practices and experiences of small-scale vegetable farmers in South Africa. Case studies were used to understand the broad socio-economic and biophysical operating environment and the specific conditions on individual farms. Factors such as employment and livelihood provision, marketing and capacity building, production practices and the crops grown were analysed for each farm. These aspects were assessed for alignment with green economy principles and South Africa’s green economy aspirations. Production methods are a critical factor as farms which use organic production methods are better aligned with environmental green economy principles than farms which use conventional production methods. All the farms produce food, market produce and provide employment; and are aligned with several socio-economic green economy principles. Green economy implementation should be informed by practical realities on the ground and build onto compatible practices where these occur; and identify and introduce alternatives to practices which are not compatible with green economy ideals.

The green economy is a multidimensional concept which aims to address social, economic and environmental issues and to achieve multiple objectives. Although the term ‘green economy’ is often interpreted in a narrow environmental sense; many of the principles of a green economy address socio-economic imperatives and human well-being issues. In order to realise the potential benefits of a green economy and to achieve agricultural objectives, green economy implementation in the agriculture sector has to fully consider the socio-economic environment and its implications for agriculture at a practical level. Implementation should be informed by socio-economic factors which include green economy principles; local and national development issues and global factors. Local realities such as poverty, inequalities, peoples’ rights and unemployment have to be addressed in green economy implementation. Relevant global factors such as trade in agricultural commodities and activities on financial markets which affect the welfare of farmers and the viability and sustainability of agricultural enterprises are central to green economy implementation; as are opportunities and challenges presented by the rapidly changing technological context including disruptive emerging technologies. An appropriate enabling environment comprised of suitable policies , legislation and governance arrangements is also crucial. This chapter discusses socio-economic factors that have to be accommodated at project implementation level.

Currently, green economy literature lacks practical techniques and tools to inform implementation in specific sectors, including agriculture. There is need for practical, hands-on materials to provide clear guidance on green economy implementation. Operationalising the green economy requires contextual information that builds a broad understanding of what the concept entails; and operational information that provides process-level guidance on how to actually run a project. Contextual understanding enables informed application of the concept to any project situation; while process-level information is critical for minimising doubts in project implementation. Implementation entails integrating and acting on diverse factors, including green economy principles, sector-specific issues, local development issues, and global concerns. Integrating these different factors in a systematic way to ensure that projects meet agricultural and green economy imperatives is challenging. This chapter presents a green economy project implementation framework which integrates theoretical aspects of a green economy presented in Chaps. 1– 3 of this book, with practical aspects presented in Chap. 4. The framework includes a process for consolidating all the issues that are relevant to a project into a number of manageable considerations; and a methodical process for applying these considerations in a way that i ntegrates agricultural objectives and green economy principles.

This chapter synthesises green economy implementation issues from previous chapters, covering the farm (project) and policy levels, including general implementation recommendations for the agriculture sector. Full understanding and correct interpretation of the green economy concept, based on its fundamentals and what these mean in an agricultural context; within specific cultural, political, and socio-economic settings is required for successful implementation (realization of social, economic and environmental benefits). An enabling environment comprising appropriate policies, infrastructure, resources and institutions is critical. Green economy initiatives should address real life issues and should respond appropriately to global factors such as changing climatic, technological and marketing conditions. Agriculture has a central role in human well-being through its direct role in food production, livelihood provision, and impacts on the environment; and green economy initiatives should therefore optimise production, protect the environment and improve socio-economic outcomes. Sustainable production practices are well- placed to achieve green economy ideals. Small-scale vegetable production enterprises have the capacity to meet environmental and socio-economic green economy ideals and could effectively drive green economies. Green economy implementation entails considering and translating large volumes of information into coordinated actions and processes which enable methodical synthesis of information and its translation into actions that facilitate achievement of green economy ideals.

The term ‘green economy’ is defined in several ways; and there could be confusion in what exactly it means. For green economy implementation, it is important to have full understanding of the green economy concept and its principles and other terms and concepts that are linked to it. This chapter highlights the origins, definitions, and principles of the green economy and its meaning in different cultural, political, and socio-economic settings. Agriculture is a key sector for a green economy and is the focus of this book. It is important to recognise the attributes that make agriculture particularly relevant to a green economy. Furthermore, since some agricultural practices are incompatible with green economy principles, the incompatibilities need to be analysed to get a balanced view of the place of agriculture in a green economy. The chapter ends by attempting to resolve potential confusion between green economy implementation in the agriculture sector and related concepts such as green agriculture, sustainable agriculture, conservation agriculture and climate smart agriculture; by showing how these different terms are distinct from and related to each other.

The biophysical environment is critical for agriculture and is a key consideration in green economy implementation. The green economy espouses low carbon development, conservation of natural resources, and minimising damage to the environment; whilst still meeting human needs. There are potential tensions and trade-offs between agriculture as a primary sector, which generally has negative impacts on the environment, and green economy environmental principles. Green economy projects have to address these tensions. Agricultural practices determine how agriculture impacts on the biophysical environment and agriculture’s socio-economic outcomes. Practices which undermine the integrity of the natural resource base pose risks to the environment and to long term agricultural productivity and sustainability. Agriculture can be compatible with green economy principles if it adopts practices which are profitable, sustain the environment; and deliver sustainable social benefits. This chapter discusses the biophysical factors that influence crop production including the impacts of crop production on the biophysical environment, climate challenges and their implications for green economy implementation. The alignment of agricultural practices with the environmental principles of a green economy, including making adjustments to and selecting practices and methods which are sustainable and based on agroecological principles; and therefore compatible with green economy principles are also covered.

Globally, there are social, economic and environmental challenges related to sustainable development; these challenges include climate change, the need to feed a rapidly increasing population, high rates of poverty and environmental degradation. These challenges have forced us to rethink the way in which development takes place, resulting in the emergence of the concept of a ‘green economy’. A green economy results in improved human well-being and social equity, while significantly reducing risks to the environment. It is based on principles which integrate social, economic and environmental considerations. South Africa has adopted the principle of green economic growth, and agriculture is one of the sectors that will drive this growth. Agriculture could address some of the sustainable development problems, but there are challenges related to resource availability, environmental impacts of agriculture and climate change. For agriculture to support a green economy it has to be productive, contribute to economic growth and not undermine the environment, social and cultural systems. The information base and policies required to support a green economy in general, and/or an agriculture-supported green economy have not yet been developed, as the green economy is an emerging concept in South Africa as well as globally. The generation of such information requires analysis and synthesis of green economy principles and agricultural imperatives into generic principles and practices for facilitating agriculture’s contribution to the green economy. In this paper, we conduct this analysis and synthesis and highlight the defining aspects of an agricultural green economy.

Agrarian landscapes in Makhado Local Municipality in the Limpopo Province of South Africa provide for the livelihood needs of diverse groups of people. Therefore, the demands that are made on these landscapes as well as the increasing environmental and socio-economic problems, require multi-functional landscape management. Decision- making is crucial to management, and understanding decision-making processes in these landscapes is pivotal to an integrated and coordinated management. This article seeks to understand the decision-making processes and their implications for the multi-functionality of agrarian landscapes in Makhado Local Municipality under two land tenure regimes, namely communal and restitution land. In order to make sense of the complex set of actors and institutions, their demands and needs as well as how decisions are being made in the end within the context of common property and common-pool resources, the article makes use of the Institutional Analysis and Development Framework (IAD). R...

Defining an agenda is critical to a research process, and a transdisciplinary approach is expected to improve relevance of an agenda and resultant research outputs. Given the complexity of farming systems, farmer differences and the involvement of different stakeholders, as well as the expectations of research funders, what contributions can be made by different interest groups to the construction of an actionable research agenda that produces locally relevant yet original, empirical and transferable findings? In a case study of smallholder irrigation in South Africa, we analyze how, using a transdisciplinary approach, a balance can be struck between the priorities of different stakeholders in defining a research agenda. A transdisciplinary approach was interpreted to entail full participation of diverse stakeholders and integration of different issues as key features. Stakeholder participation was mediated through formal platforms: the Learning and Practice Alliance (LPA) and the Community of Practice (CoP). Farmers and local extension workers participated through the CoP, while other stakeholders, including the public and private sector participated through the LPA. A five step participatory process aimed at allowing stakeholders to fully understand issues, contribute to and validate the research agenda was followed, utilizing a combination of methods, including field observation, photography and discussion. We observed that farmer and researcher participation occurred along two main continua, which we define as a ‘participation matrix’ – one continuum relating to the contribution of knowledge and information, and the other to decision making. The participation matrix can be used as a reference framework for guiding the transdisciplinary definition of research agendas, to aid in balancing knowledge and priorities including local relevance, ownership, originality, and transferability of findings. We argue that the transdisciplinary process, mediated through structured stakeholder participation, open dialogue and continual validation by all stakeholders was time and resource intensive, but enabled each stakeholder group to contribute to the process distinctly, resulting in a research agenda that integrated different needs and expectations.

Development in South Africa is guided by the principle of sustainability, and this is underpinned by integration, which is the consideration of social, economic and environmental factors in decision making. Policies are in place at national and local government level to ensure integration. A key integration instrument at municipality level (the lowest unit of local government) is the Integrated Development Plan (IDP), a strategic planning tool meant to guide all planning and management in a municipality. At national level, the National Environmental Management Act, in particular its philosophy of Integrated Environmental Management (IEM) is supposed to provide guidance on sustainable development. In municipalities, communal natural resource management decisions are made at community level. There are no instruments to guide this decision making to ensure integration. This study analysed natural resource management decision making at community level, focussing on agricultural land use. The objectives were (i) to assess whether agricultural land use decision making incorporated integration principles and (ii) to assess applicability of the IDP and IEM as instruments for incorporating integration into community level decision making. Information was collected through a review of national and local government policies and interviews at municipal and community levels. Decision making was found to be focused on addressing social and economic needs with little consideration for the environment. The IDP had no relevance to community level decision making while the principles of IEM could be applied to incorporate integration into decision making.

The Southern African Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (SA f MA) evaluated the relationships between ecosystem services and human well-being at multiple scales, ranging from local through to sub-continental. Trends in ecosystem services (fresh water, food, fuel-wood, cultural and biodiversity) over the period 1990–2000 were mixed across scales. Freshwater resources appear strained across the continent with large numbers of people not securing adequate supplies, especially of good quality water. This translates to high infant mortality patterns across the region. In some areas, the use of water resources for irrigated agriculture and urban–industrial expansion is taking place at considerable cost to the quality and quantity of freshwater available to ecosystems and for domestic use. Staple cereal production across the region has increased but was outstripped by population growth while protein malnutrition is on the rise. The much-anticipated wood-fuel crisis on the subcontinent has not materialized but some areas are experiencing shortages while numerous others remain vulnerable. Cultural benefits of biodiversity are considerable, though hard to quantify or track over time. Biodiversity resources remain at reasonable levels, but are declining faster than reflected in species extinction rates and appear highly sensitive to land-use decisions. The SA f MA sub-global assessment provided an opportunity to experiment with innovative ways to assess ecosystem services including the use of supply–demand surfaces, service sources and sink areas, priority areas for service provision, service ‘hotspots’ and trade-off assessments.