IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/lauspo/v97y2020ics0264837719304958.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Who is resilient in Africa’s Green Revolution? Sustainable intensification and Climate Smart Agriculture in Rwanda

Author

Listed:
  • Clay, Nathan
  • Zimmerer, Karl S.

Abstract

Under the banner of a "New Green Revolution for Africa," agricultural intensification programs aim to make smallholder agriculture more productive as well as "climate smart". As with Green Revolutions in Asia and Mexico, agricultural innovations (hybrid seeds, agronomic engineering, market linkages,and increased use of fertilizer and pesticides) are promoted as essential catalysts of agriculture-led economic growth. Intensification programs are now frequently linked to Climate Smart Agriculture (CSA), which attempts to build resilience and reduce greenhouse gas emissions while increasing crop yields. This article considers who and what is resilient in Africa’s Green Revolution. We report on a multi-season study of smallholder food producers' experiences with Rwanda’s Crop Intensification Program (CIP) and related policies that aim to commercialize subsistence agriculture while implementing CSA. . We suggest that there are fundamental limits to the climate resilience afforded by CSA and development efforts rooted in Green Revolution thinking. Our findings illustrate that such efforts foreground technology and management adjustments in ways that have reduced smallholder resilience by inhibiting sovereignty over land use, decreasing livelihood flexibility, and constricting resource access. We put forth that rural development policies could better promote climate-resilient livelihoods through: 1) adaptive governance that enables smallholder land use decision-making; 2) support for smallholder food producers’ existing agro-ecological strategies of intensification; 3) participatory approaches to visualize and correct for inequalities in local processes of social-ecological resilence Such considerations are paramount for meeting the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and building climate-resilient food systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Clay, Nathan & Zimmerer, Karl S., 2020. "Who is resilient in Africa’s Green Revolution? Sustainable intensification and Climate Smart Agriculture in Rwanda," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:97:y:2020:i:c:s0264837719304958
    DOI: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104558
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0264837719304958
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.landusepol.2020.104558?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Shahidur Rashid & Paul A. Dorosh & Mehrab Malek & Solomon Lemma, 2013. "Modern input promotion in sub-Saharan Africa: insights from Asian green revolution," Agricultural Economics, International Association of Agricultural Economists, vol. 44(6), pages 705-721, November.
    2. Jayne, Thomas S. & Mason, Nicole M. & Burke, William J. & Ariga, Joshua, 2018. "Review: Taking stock of Africa’s second-generation agricultural input subsidy programs," Food Policy, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 1-14.
    3. Matin, Nilufar & Forrester, John & Ensor, Jonathan, 2018. "What is equitable resilience?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 109(C), pages 197-205.
    4. Ingram, K. T. & Roncoli, M. C. & Kirshen, P. H., 2002. "Opportunities and constraints for farmers of west Africa to use seasonal precipitation forecasts with Burkina Faso as a case study," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 74(3), pages 331-349, December.
    5. Frank Ellis, 2000. "The Determinants of Rural Livelihood Diversification in Developing Countries," Journal of Agricultural Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(2), pages 289-302, May.
    6. Philip K. Thornton & Mario Herrero, 2015. "Adapting to climate change in the mixed crop and livestock farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa," Nature Climate Change, Nature, vol. 5(9), pages 830-836, September.
    7. Pedro Sanchez & Glenn Denning & Generose Nziguheba, 2009. "The African Green Revolution moves forward," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 1(1), pages 37-44, February.
    8. Clay, Nathan & King, Brian, 2019. "Smallholders’ uneven capacities to adapt to climate change amid Africa’s ‘green revolution’: Case study of Rwanda’s crop intensification program," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 1-14.
    9. Graeub, Benjamin E. & Chappell, M. Jahi & Wittman, Hannah & Ledermann, Samuel & Kerr, Rachel Bezner & Gemmill-Herren, Barbara, 2016. "The State of Family Farms in the World," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 1-15.
    10. Clay, Daniel & Reardon, Thomas & Kangasniemi, Jaakko, 1998. "Sustainable Intensification in the Highland Tropics: Rwandan Farmers' Investments in Land Conservation and Soil Fertility," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 46(2), pages 351-377, January.
    11. Carr, Edward R., 2019. "Properties and projects: Reconciling resilience and transformation for adaptation and development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 122(C), pages 70-84.
    12. Ellis, Frank, 2000. "Rural Livelihoods and Diversity in Developing Countries," OUP Catalogue, Oxford University Press, number 9780198296966.
    13. Krista B. Isaacs & Sieglinde S. Snapp & Kimberly Chung & Kurt B. Waldman, 2016. "Assessing the value of diverse cropping systems under a new agricultural policy environment in Rwanda," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 8(3), pages 491-506, June.
    14. Thornton, Philip K. & Jones, Peter G. & Alagarswamy, Gopal & Andresen, Jeff & Herrero, Mario, 2010. "Adapting to climate change: Agricultural system and household impacts in East Africa," Agricultural Systems, Elsevier, vol. 103(2), pages 73-82, February.
    15. Eakin, Hallie, 2005. "Institutional change, climate risk, and rural vulnerability: Cases from Central Mexico," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 33(11), pages 1923-1938, November.
    16. Jayne, T.S. & Mather, David & Mghenyi, Elliot, 2010. "Principal Challenges Confronting Smallholder Agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 1384-1398, October.
    17. Diao, Xinshen & Hazell, Peter & Thurlow, James, 2010. "The Role of Agriculture in African Development," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 38(10), pages 1375-1383, October.
    18. Lowder, Sarah K. & Skoet, Jakob & Raney, Terri, 2016. "The Number, Size, and Distribution of Farms, Smallholder Farms, and Family Farms Worldwide," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 87(C), pages 16-29.
    19. Van Aelst, Katrien & Holvoet, Nathalie, 2016. "Intersections of Gender and Marital Status in Accessing Climate Change Adaptation: Evidence from Rural Tanzania," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 40-50.
    20. R. S. Ritzema & R. Frelat & S. Douxchamps & S. Silvestri & M. C. Rufino & M. Herrero & K. E. Giller & S. López-Ridaura & N. Teufel & B. K. Paul & M. T. Wijk, 2017. "Is production intensification likely to make farm households food-adequate? A simple food availability analysis across smallholder farming systems from East and West Africa," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 9(1), pages 115-131, February.
    21. An Ansoms & Giuseppe Cioffo & Neil Dawson & Sam Desiere & Chris Huggins & Margot Leegwater & Jude Murison & Aymar Nyenyezi Bisoka & Johanna Treidl & Julie Van Damme, 2018. "The Rwandan agrarian and land sector modernisation: confronting macro performance with lived experiences on the ground," Review of African Political Economy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(157), pages 408-431, July.
    22. Dawson, Neil & Martin, Adrian & Sikor, Thomas, 2016. "Green Revolution in Sub-Saharan Africa: Implications of Imposed Innovation for the Wellbeing of Rural Smallholders," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 204-218.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Mohammed, Kamaldeen & Batung, Evans & Saaka, Sulemana Ansumah & Kansanga, Moses Mosonsieyiri & Luginaah, Isaac, 2023. "Determinants of mechanized technology adoption in smallholder agriculture: Implications for agricultural policy," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 129(C).
    2. Ferreira, João J. & Lopes, João M. & Gomes, Sofia & Nogueira, Elisabete & Dabić, Marina, 2024. "Nature's safecrackers: Decoding substitutability and protecting natural capital in innovation ecosystems SSA and MENA regions," Innovation and Green Development, Elsevier, vol. 3(4).
    3. Abyiot Teklu & Belay Simane & Mintewab Bezabih, 2022. "Effectiveness of Climate-Smart Agriculture Innovations in Smallholder Agriculture System in Ethiopia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-26, December.
    4. Huimin Wang & Yihuan Xu & Xiaojian Wei, 2023. "Rural Resilience Evaluation and Influencing Factor Analysis Based on Geographical Detector Method and Multiscale Geographically Weighted Regression," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-18, June.
    5. Li, Qi & Li, Kai, 2021. "Re-examining the Effect of Social Embeddedness on Technology Diffusion from the Perspective of Scale Differentiation— A Case Study from China," 2021 ASAE 10th International Conference (Virtual), January 11-13, Beijing, China 329394, Asian Society of Agricultural Economists (ASAE).
    6. Karolin Andersson & Katarina Pettersson & Johanna Bergman Lodin, 2022. "Window dressing inequalities and constructing women farmers as problematic—gender in Rwanda’s agriculture policy," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 39(4), pages 1245-1261, December.
    7. Foyuan Kuang & Jiatong Li & Jianjun Jin & Xin Qiu, 2023. "Do Green Production Technologies Improve Household Income? Evidence from Rice Farmers in China," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(10), pages 1-15, September.
    8. Cheng, Xin & Chen, Jia & Jiang, Shiwei & Dai, Yan & Shuai, Chuanmin & Li, Wenjing & Liu, Yue & Wang, Chaofan & Zhou, Min & Zou, Lianghui & Zhang, Pan & Kang, Xiwen, 2021. "The impact of rural land consolidation on household poverty alleviation: The moderating effects of human capital endowment," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 109(C).
    9. Aline Nkurunziza & Dorine Intwarinkase Mutaganzwa & Willy Marcel Ndayitwayeko & Jacques Nkengurutse & Beth A. Kaplin & Irene Teixidor Toneu & Noelia Zafra-Calvo & Aida Cuni-Sanchez, 2023. "Local Observations of Climate Change and Adaptation Responses: A Case Study in the Mountain Region of Burundi-Rwanda," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(2), pages 1-14, January.
    10. Si, Ruishi & Lu, Qian & Aziz, Noshaba, 2021. "Does the stability of farmland rental contract & conservation tillage adoption improve family welfare? Empirical insights from Zhangye, China," Land Use Policy, Elsevier, vol. 107(C).
    11. Mikhail Miklyaev & Glenn Jenkins & David Shobowale, 2020. "Sustainability of Agricultural Crop Policies in Rwanda: An Integrated Cost–Benefit Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-21, December.
    12. Litao Feng & Zhuo Li & Zhihui Zhao, 2021. "Extreme Climate Shocks and Green Agricultural Development: Evidence from the 2008 Snow Disaster in China," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(22), pages 1-22, November.
    13. Eleni Yitbarek & Wondimagegn Tesfaye, 2022. "Climate-Smart Agriculture, Non-Farm Employment and Welfare: Exploring Impacts and Options for Scaling Up," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(23), pages 1-22, November.
    14. Yasutaka Ozaki & Rajib Shaw, 2022. "Citizens’ Social Participation to Implement Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): A Literature Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(21), pages 1-18, November.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Clay, Nathan & King, Brian, 2019. "Smallholders’ uneven capacities to adapt to climate change amid Africa’s ‘green revolution’: Case study of Rwanda’s crop intensification program," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 116(C), pages 1-14.
    2. Anne Jerneck, 2018. "What about Gender in Climate Change? Twelve Feminist Lessons from Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-20, February.
    3. Sung Kyu Kim & Fiona Marshall & Neil M. Dawson, 2022. "Revisiting Rwanda’s agricultural intensification policy: benefits of embracing farmer heterogeneity and crop-livestock integration strategies," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 14(3), pages 637-656, June.
    4. Bryceson, Deborah Fahy, 2019. "Gender and generational patterns of African deagrarianization: Evolving labour and land allocation in smallholder peasant household farming, 1980–2015," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 113(C), pages 60-72.
    5. H.M. Tuihedur Rahman & Gordon M. Hickey, 2020. "An Analytical Framework for Assessing Context-Specific Rural Livelihood Vulnerability," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 12(14), pages 1-26, July.
    6. Wegenast, Tim & Richetta, Cécile & Krauser, Mario & Leibik, Alexander, 2022. "Grabbed trust? The impact of large-scale land acquisitions on social trust in Africa," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).
    7. Matthys, Marie-Luise & Acharya, Sushant & Khatri, Sanjaya, 2021. "“Before cardamom, we used to face hardship”: Analyzing agricultural commercialization effects in Nepal through a local concept of the Good Life," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 141(C).
    8. Lori M. Hunter & Sheena Murray & Fernando Riosmena, 2013. "Rainfall Patterns and U.S. Migration from Rural Mexico," International Migration Review, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 47(4), pages 874-909, December.
    9. Giller, Ken E. & Andersson, Jens & Delaune, Thomas & Silva, João Vasco & Descheemaeker, Katrien & van de Ven, Gerrie & Schut, Antonius G.T. & van Wijk, Mark & Hammond, Jim & Hochman, Zvi & Taulya, God, 2022. "IFAD Research Series 83: The future of farming: who will produce our food?," IFAD Research Series 322005, International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
    10. Zack Guido & Sara Lopus & Kurt Waldman & Corrie Hannah & Andrew Zimmer & Natasha Krell & Chris Knudson & Lyndon Estes & Kelly Caylor & Tom Evans, 2021. "Perceived links between climate change and weather forecast accuracy: new barriers to tools for agricultural decision-making," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 168(1), pages 1-20, September.
    11. Quandt, A. & Kimathi, Y.A., 2017. "Adapting livelihoods to floods and droughts in arid Kenya: Local perspectives and insights," African Journal of Rural Development (AFJRD), AFrican Journal of Rural Development (AFJRD), vol. 1(01), June.
    12. Mutenje, Munyaradzi & Kankwamba, Henry & Mangisonib, Julius & Kassie, Menale, 2016. "Agricultural innovations and food security in Malawi: Gender dynamics, institutions and market implications," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 240-248.
    13. Tanui, Joseph & Groeneveld, Rolf & Klomp, Jeroen & Mowo, Jeremiahs & Ierland, Ekko C. van, 2013. "Explaining investments in sustainable land management: The role of various income sources in the smallholder farming systems of western Kenya," 2013 Fourth International Conference, September 22-25, 2013, Hammamet, Tunisia 161275, African Association of Agricultural Economists (AAAE).
    14. Call, Maia & Gray, Clark & Jagger, Pamela, 2019. "Smallholder responses to climate anomalies in rural Uganda," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 115(C), pages 132-144.
    15. Enock Warinda & Dickson M Nyariki & Stephen Wambua & Reuben M Muasya & Munir A Hanjra, 2020. "Sustainable development in East Africa: impact evaluation of regional agricultural development projects in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda," Natural Resources Forum, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 44(1), pages 3-39, February.
    16. Ken E. Giller & Thomas Delaune & João Vasco Silva & Mark Wijk & James Hammond & Katrien Descheemaeker & Gerrie Ven & Antonius G. T. Schut & Godfrey Taulya & Regis Chikowo & Jens A. Andersson, 2021. "Small farms and development in sub-Saharan Africa: Farming for food, for income or for lack of better options?," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 13(6), pages 1431-1454, December.
    17. Nilsson, Pia & Backman, Mikaela & Bjerke, Lina & Maniriho, Aristide, 2019. "One cow per poor family: Effects on the growth of consumption and crop production," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 114(C), pages 1-12.
    18. Katherine A. Snyder & Emmanuel Sulle & Deodatus A. Massay & Anselmi Petro & Paschal Qamara & Dan Brockington, 2020. "“Modern” farming and the transformation of livelihoods in rural Tanzania," Agriculture and Human Values, Springer;The Agriculture, Food, & Human Values Society (AFHVS), vol. 37(1), pages 33-46, March.
    19. Mikhail Miklyaev & Glenn Jenkins & David Shobowale, 2020. "Sustainability of Agricultural Crop Policies in Rwanda: An Integrated Cost–Benefit Analysis," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(1), pages 1-21, December.
    20. Makate, Clifton & Angelsen, Arild & Holden, Stein Terje & Westengen, Ola Tveitereid, 2022. "Crops in crises: Shocks shape smallholders' diversification in rural Ethiopia," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 159(C).

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:lauspo:v:97:y:2020:i:c:s0264837719304958. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Joice Jiang (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.journals.elsevier.com/land-use-policy .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.