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The research presented in this paper stems from a collaboration between researchers in the Benin Republic, Nigeria and Canada who are examining the opportunities to enhance the sustainable production of under-utilized indigenous vegetables through the micro-dosage of synthetic fertilizer. Because micro-dosing is a labour intensive technology, and is time sensitive in application, we sought to better understand how the availability of labour, as affected by changes in cooperative networks, might affect adoption and scaling up opportunities. The systems of cooperative labour described in this paper reflect the culture and traditions of the Betammaribe people, residing in the village of Koumagou B in northwest Benin. Our results indicate that cooperative labour systems among the Betammaribe are in transition and are being influenced by seasonal migration, the financial demands of formal education, the use of oxen by those with relative wealth, and off-farm employment. These pressures have led to the atomizing of Koumagou B households and a concomitant decline in the availability of cooperative labour. Interventions designed to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers must not inadvertently perpetuate social and economic inequalities or disadvantage those most vulnerable. It is this possibility that warrants careful consideration as we contemplate the benefits of adopting and scaling-up new agricultural technologies in the future.

Various agricultural techniques have been developed as components of food security interventions, but their effectiveness in addressing food insecurity in part depends upon the effectiveness of these techniques in fulfilling farmers’ objectives. This paper presents the results of research that examined the constraints that limit the adoption of microdosing by farmers in northwest Benin. The results of farmer field trials indicate that on average, microdosing produced lower yields and proved less profitable than recommended levels. In addition to reduced profitability, numerous institutional constraints were identified that further limit adoption. These constraints include poorly functioning input markets, inefficient distribution systems, limited affordability and credit constraints, liquidity constraints, and government policies that limit cross-border access to inputs as well as the prioritization of fertilizer for cotton production over food crops.

Soil degradation and low crop productivity negatively affect the food security of smallholder farmers in West Africa. Various agricultural techniques have been developed as components of food security interventions, but their effectiveness in addressing food insecurity in part depends upon farmers’ abilities to adopt these techniques. In this paper we present the results of a social network analysis that tracked the flow of information on fertilizer microdosing from our Project Research team (PRs) to Demonstration Farmers (DFs), and from DFs to other Village Farmers (VF) in the village of Koumagou B in northwest Benin. Our findings indicate that both adoption and project awareness of microdosing were low following two years of field trails. Overall, the DFs failed to spread information or promote learning over the trial period, with only 3 of 20 DFs diffusing knowledge to a significant degree (i.e., out-degree >5). After 2 years of trials, the efforts of PRs and DFs were insufficient to mobilize the network to adopt the microdosing technique.

Challenges and Opportunities in Estimating the Value of Goods and Services in Temperate Grasslands — A Case Study of Prairie Grasslands in Manitoba, Canada