Use of innovation platforms in addressing soil fertility challenges: experiences from rural Zambia

Abstract

Low soil fertility has been recognized as one of the challenges contributing to low crop productivity in Zambia. In order to address this challenge, the government, the private sector and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) have promoted the use of Soil Fertility Management (SFM) technologies such as agroforestry, animal manure, compost, intercropping of legumes, and minimum tillage. In recent years, Innovation Platforms (IPs) have been used as a means to promote farmer participation in appropriate technology identification and development. This is done to enhance technology adoption and rural development in general. In Zambia, there has been little or no documented experiences or lessons learnt in the use of IPs to address any agricultural problem. Therefore, this paper, attempts to fill this information gap by providing information on the experiences in the use of IPs to address low soil fertility challenges in Zambia’s Kasama and Chipata districts. An IP was established in each district with members drawn from different organizations. The objective of the IP was to provide a platform for discussing and disseminating information in order to enhance the awareness of low soil fertility issues and available appropriate SFM technologies. The experience with the use of IPs showed that IPs are a platform were farmers participated freely in identifying and prioritizing soil fertility challenges. Farmers also participated in proposing solutions and developing an action plan to address the challenges.