Preliminary Findings from First Survey

RoundEmily McNulty

November 2014

Project: Policies and Institutions for Achieving

the Virtuous Food-Energy-Water Nexus in

Sub-Saharan Africa

Contents

1. Description of first survey round2. Micro-level overview of study area

• Food: Farm production, food security• Water: Irrigation practices, irrigation scheme

preferences, willingness to contribute to irrigation schemes

• Energy: Fuel sources, improved cookstove use, WTP for improved cookstoves

3. Upcoming research steps4. Discussion

2

Description of first survey round

3

Map of selected villages in Dedza

4

Micro-level overview of study area

5

Food: Crop production

• Average farm size: 3 acres (cultivated land)

• Positive skew (paddy rice and witches)

• 50th percentile is 2.5 acres

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0.1

.2.3

De

nsity

0 10 20 30 40(sum) PTAREA

Food: Crop production

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Crop Yields (in Kg) per Household

Crop Mean 50th Percentile

Maize 1071 720Sorghum 94 30Millet 133 128Irish Potato 477 360

Sweet Potato 590 375Cassava 865 720Beans 419 78Lentils 117 117

Paddy Rice 3030 1801Sugarcane 135 135Pigeon Peas 262 176Cotton 421 150Soy 274 176Tobacco 156 80

Groundnuts 4206 164Vegetables 162 80Fruit 350 350Cowpeas 350 137

Food: Dietary diversity scores

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• 10 food groups, roughly divided by nutrients provided

• Quick assessment (Kennedy, Ballard, & Dop, 2010)

• Household level• 24 hour recall period• Score is number of food

groups eaten

Food: DDS and legume consumption

9

• Average score = 5• Protein levels may be

a concern• Legume consumption

may increase with improved cookstove adoption (energy security)

• Unsatisfactory preliminary results for legume consumption need to check

conversion factors

Consumption Rates of Food Groups Among Households

Food group FrequencyCereals 96%White tubers, roots 57%Vegetables 86%Fruit 30%Meat 18%Eggs 13%Fish, seafood 19%Legumes, nuts, seeds 69%Milk, dairy products 12%Oils, fats 51%Sugar, sweets 37%

Spices, condiments, beverages 30%

Food: Shortages

• Is self reporting accurate enough?• Pride• Stunting• The Nsima Factor

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Food Shortages Experienced in Previous Year

Frequency Percentage of HouseholdsNot at all 50%

A few days per year 18%

Several days per year 16%

Several days per month 7%

Several days per week 10%

Water: Irrigation practices• Of the 300 HHs, 118 use irrigation• Improved irrigation may:

• increase yields (food security)• allow for consecutive harvests

in one year• free up labor for other activities

(time labor allocation)

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Use of Irrigation Technologies

Technology Frequency Bucket/watering can 69%Treadle Pump 4%Motorized Pump 2%Canal/gravity fed 19%Drip 0%Bound basin flood 5%

Top Reasons for Not Using an Irrigation Technology

Not enough water

Too time consuming

Too expensive

Lack of know-how

Bucket/Watering can X XTreadle pump X XMotorized pump X XCanal/gravity fed X XDrip irrigation X X XBound basin flooding X X

Water: Willingness to contribute to hypothetical irrigation schemes

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• Irrigation Management Transfer (IMT): two case studies in Likangala and Domasi (Nkhoma & Mulwafu, 2004)

• Farmers become the main stakeholders, take ownership over schemes: construct, maintain, manage

• Some difficulties in management transfer: what exactly are farmers willing to contribute?

Water: Willingness to contribute to hypothetical irrigation schemes

Preferred Technologies for Hypothetical Irrigation Scheme

Technology FrequencyMotorized pump 102Treadle pump 99Canal/gravity fed 40Drip irrigation 34Bound basin/paddy 8Bucket/watering can 1

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Willingness to Contribute* to Hypothetical Irrigation SchemeConstruction/Set-up Maintenance Management

Temporal Monetary Temporal Monetary Temporal Monetary

Technology

Unpaid labor

hours per week

Total (Kwacha)

Unpaid labor

hours per year

Annual (Kwacha)

Unpaid labor

hours per year

Annual (Kwacha)

Treadle pump 0 1000 60 1000 48 1000Motorized pump 12 1000 76 1000 50 1000Canal/gravity fed 7 1000 55 1000 36 600Drip irrigation 6 1000 64 1000 36 700

Bound basin/paddy 5 625 20 700 15 500*50th percentile

Energy: Fuel sources Main Fuel Sources

Frequency

Fuel Rainy Season Dry SeasonFirewood 95% 88%Charcoal 4% 1%

Crop Residues 2% 12%

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• Rural area: mostly firewood

• More charcoal used during rainy season

• Extension agents are promoting use of crop residues

Energy: Cookstoves and health

15

Stove Related Health Issues*

Affliction** FrequencyIllness with a cough 44%Cough with short, rapid breaths 20%

Cough affected ability to work 22%

*of those present in the same room as the stove while the fire is active**in the six months preceding the survey

• 7% of those present in the kitchen while fire was active had at least one eye infection in the six months preceding the survey (food security)

Photos by RocketWorks and Stefan Meyer, 2014

Energy: WTP for improved cookstoves

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• Clay stove will be sold for 1,200 kwacha

• Metal stove will be sold for 2,000 kwacha

Upcoming research steps

• Sales of improved cookstoves • More detailed analyses, regressions, socioeconomic

characteristics and their impacts on variables• Choice experiment analyses

• Improved cookstove pricing, fuel reduction• Fertilizer coupons or cash transfers conditional on

agroforestry adoption• Second survey round (May to June 2015)

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Discussion

Irrigation management transfer• What challenges are there?• Are there success stories yet? Elsewhere in SSA?Improved cookstoves• What does the future of ICS in Malawi look like? Is this a

political/donor fad?• What will it take for ICS producers to thrive in the free

market/without subsidy?

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Sources

Kennedy, G., Ballard, T., & Dop, M. (2010). Guidelines for measuring household and individual dietary diversity. Nutrition and Consumer Protection Division, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Retrieved October 10, 2014, from http://www.fao.org/docrep/014/i1983e/i1983e00.pdf

Nkhoma, B. G., & Mulwafu, W. O. (2004). The experience of irrigation management transfer in two irrigation schemes in Malawi, 1960s–2002. Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C, 29(15-18), 1327–1333. doi:10.1016/j.pce.2004.09.007