CIP WORK SO FAR AND THOUGHTS ON 2013 AND BEYOND

CRP Dryland Systems meeting,

Kumasi, GhanaTed Carey

March August 1-2, 2013

What does CIP bring to CRP Dryland Systems?

2012 Groundwork

• CIP started to engage with CRP Dryland Systems in W. Africa (March)

• Regional Inception workshop – Ouagadougou (July)– New friends, colleagues, and questions– In Ghana, there was interest in intensification of

pig – crop systems. Sweetpotato fits in well– Sweetpotato and potato are important or have

potential at many of the benchmark

2012 Groundwork

• Sweetpotato survey done at Ghana Benchmark sites by CSIR-SARI scientists John Bidzakin and Kwabena Acheremu– PRA/RRA (2 villages at Wa, 2 at Tolon-Kumbungu and 2 at

Bawku)– Planting material, markets, pests (weevils) seen as

important– Gender disaggregated problem tree

• Multiplication work started at same sites– MOFA and NGO/CBOs partners– Emphasis on Orange fleshed Cultivars

2012 Other work

• Complementary VC study contracted by B&MGF (end of 2012, early 2013)– Ghana, Burkina Faso, Nigeria (Overlap with benchmark sites in

each country). Supposed to do Mali as well, but didn’t come off. – Increasingly important commercial crop (5 to 10 years);

interesting potential for animal feed, particularly by larger producers.

• Dry season multiplication work (enterprise approach) started at benchmark sites sites in Ghana– MOFA and NGO/CBOs partners– Emphasis (perhaps mistakenly, on OFSP)

2012 Groundwork • Contribution of crop modeling to our work? • Capacity to study root system architecture in

relation to management (and possibly genetic improvement) – Purchase of root scanner and software– Visit by colleague from Louisiana State U– Linkage with WASCAL for Ph.D. thesis research

topic

June 2013 visit to Soukouraba, Burkina Faso

June 2013 visit to Soukouraba, Burkina Faso

2013 Workplan/thoughts

• CIP will invest for dryland systems in W. Africa. – Allocating 60K (operational cost) to W. Africa

• Trying to understand how to appropriately engage in the region, across sites. – 2013 work will likely be conducted by and with

partners at Ghana action sites, with additional contributions in Burkina Faso

Thank You