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Conceptualising farming systems for agricultural development research: Cases from Eastern and Southern Africa

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  • Whitfield, Stephen
  • Dixon, Jami L.
  • Mulenga, Brian P.
  • Ngoma, Hambulo

Abstract

In the context of broad scale system changes (e.g. climate change) and the prioritisation of impact-at-scale development, there is a particular need for farming systems research (FSR) to improve our understanding of the links between systems at multiple scales. Drawing on three empirical case studies of large-scale agricultural interventions in eastern and southern Africa, we highlight problems that arise from conceiving and justifying interventions on the basis of the simple aggregation of farms into large collective systems. We review changes in the approach and concepts of FSR and point to the value of farming systems concepts that go beyond these aggregations, and find ways to capture the multi-level system dynamics that link on-farm decision making to broader political, social, and environmental changes. Recent attempts at more accurately conceptualising the domain of FSR, and drawing distinctions between ‘farms’, ‘systems’, and ‘systems of farming’, represent a useful contribution to such work.

Suggested Citation

  • Whitfield, Stephen & Dixon, Jami L. & Mulenga, Brian P. & Ngoma, Hambulo, 2015. "Conceptualising farming systems for agricultural development research: Cases from Eastern and Southern Africa," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 133(C), pages 54-62.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:agisys:v:133:y:2015:i:c:p:54-62
    DOI: 10.1016/j.agsy.2014.09.005
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

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    2. Michalscheck, M. & Groot, J.C.J. & Kotu, B. & Hoeschle-Zeledon, I. & Kuivanen, K. & Descheemaeker, K. & Tittonell, P., 2018. "Model results versus farmer realities. Operationalizing diversity within and among smallholder farm systems for a nuanced impact assessment of technology packages," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 162(C), pages 164-178.
    3. Bisrat Haile Gebrekidan & Thomas Heckelei & Sebastian Rasch, 2020. "Characterizing Farmers and Farming System in Kilombero Valley Floodplain, Tanzania," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(17), pages 1-21, August.
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    5. Villano, Renato & Asante, Bright Owusu & Bravo-Ureta, Boris, 2019. "Farming systems and productivity gaps: Opportunities for improving smallholder performance in the Forest-Savannah transition zone of Ghana," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 82(C), pages 220-227.
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    7. Stephen Whitfield & Tim Benton & Martin Dallimer & Les Firbank & Guy Poppy & Susannah Sallu & Lindsay Stringer, 2015. "Sustainability spaces for complex agri-food systems," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 7(6), pages 1291-1297, December.
    8. Tian, Qing & Holland, John H. & Brown, Daniel G., 2016. "Social and economic impacts of subsidy policies on rural development in the Poyang Lake Region, China: Insights from an agent-based model," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 148(C), pages 12-27.
    9. Ola Tveitereid Westengen & Progress Nyanga & Douty Chibamba & Monica Guillen-Royo & Dan Banik, 2018. "A climate for commerce: the political agronomy of conservation agriculture in Zambia," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 35(1), pages 255-268, March.
    10. Morgan, Stephen N. & Mason, Nicole M. & Maredia, Mywish K., 2020. "Lead-farmer extension and smallholder valuation of new agricultural technologies in Tanzania," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).

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