1. Jimma Cluster Partnership: Achievements, Lessons & Way Forwards
Egata Sime
Facilitator for Change
ILRI-N2Africa Annual Partners Review and Planning Workshop
Lalibela Auditorium, ILRI Campus, Addis Ababa
27-29 January 2016

2. Presentation Outline Partnership Objectives Scope of the partnership
Achievements and Progresses
Lessons Learnt
Main Challenges
Way Forwards

3. Pillars/Strategic Objectives of the Partnership
Nurturing long-term sustainability of
Knowledge transfer /Capacity building
Legume technology dissemination
Efficient input supply chains
Market linkages

4. Scope of the partnership
Partners and main roles:
ILRI
Grant provision to Partner to support soybean technology dissemination activities
Facilitation and coordination of the partnership and organizing stakeholder forums
EIAR
Train stakeholders on legume technologies and dissemination approach
Conduct researches and provide technical supports for the partner on agronomic part FC
Organize and train smallholder farmers
Promote and scale up proved soybean technologies to wider smallholder farmers
OARI
Demonstrate soybean processing tools to smallholder soybean producing farmers,
Train stakeholders on the proper use of the tools
MBI
Multiply and supply effective legume inoculants to smallholder farmers
Train stakeholders on legume inoculation, and inoculant handling, storage and timely distribution techniques

5. Scope of the partnership…
Focus crop (Legume)
Soybean
Geographical area coverage
Tiro Afeta and Kersa Woredas of Jimma Zone
Total beneficiaries across the partnership period: -
Target: 361 farmers (250M, 111F)
Actual: 290 farmers (172M, 118F )

6. Achievements and Progresses
Capacity Building:
Researchers provided on job training to farmers on demo sites and the practices are shared for other farmers who are participated in adaptation trial
An internal exposure visit organized for 156 (65F) farmers to learn from demo (different treatments)
Field day organized to promote the production and consumption of soy bean in the locality [295 (138F) participants]
109 women trained on gender empowerment, leadership, and rural entrepreneurship
109 women trained on home based Soy processing and utilization (27 types of meals)

7. Achievements and Progresses…
On job training on demonstration trials at Decha Nedhi Kebele

8. Achievements and Progresses…
Experience sharing visit among learning groups

9. Achievements and Progresses…
Site visit and discussion on the field day

10. Achievements and Progresses…
Gender empowerment, leadership, and rural entrepreneurship training

11. Achievements and Progresses
Home based Soybean processing and utilization training and meal day

12. Achievements and Progresses
Dissemination
10 farmers participated in demonstration trail
Treatment 1:- sowing Only soya bean seed without other input/DAP and rhizobium/
treatment 2:- sowing soya bean seed with DAP only
Treatment 3:-sowing soya bean seed with rhizobium and DAP
Treatment 4:- sowing soya bean seed with rhizobium only
290 (118F) farmers participated in soybean adaptation trial around the demonstration for learning
Awareness on soybean production, bio- fertilizer application and utilization created through public media, field day and leaflets
Meal day organized and 359 participants took part and tasted the meal

13. Achievements and Progresses
Sample adaptation trial farm

14. Achievements and Progresses
Sample demonstration trial farm
-p +I
+p +I
-p –I Control
+p -I

15. Achievements and Progresses
Input supply
Seed : Gafo Burka Baso FO (14.5quintals)
Inoculums: Menagesha Biotech Industry (361 packet)
DAP Fertilizer: Multipurpose cooperatives (8.5quintals)
For demonstration trials, input supply was from JARC (seed 100kg, inoculum 24 packet, DAP 2kg and Urea 1.5kg)

16. Achievements and Progresses
Market Linkages
The FMOs linked to MBI for inoculant marketing
The cooperative linked to model farmers to collect seed and distribute for other farmers
Soybean marketing needs further commitment to link the producer to market.
Eg. Motivating local traders to participate in soybean trade

17. Achievements and Progresses
Key achievements: Analysis and Inference of Agronomic trials
On demonstration plot, Soybean inoculated with best N-fixer rhizobium strain known as MAR-1495 with ½ recommended NP fertilizer.
Soybean inoculated with best N-fixer rhizobium strain known as MAR-1495 alone had better growth and vegetative performance and correspondingly gave 70% and 65% yield advantage over the control plot respectively.

18. Achievements and Progresses
Seed yields of Soybean with and Without Inoculums
Location
Woreda
No of farmers
Participated
Soya bean Mean
Yield kg/ha
Men
Women
Control
–P – I
+P – I
+P + I
–P + I
Jimma zone
kersa 5
19.74
21.09
36.5
32.84
Tiro Afeta
16.78
19.75
25.67
27.57
Mean
18.26
20.42
31.09
30.21
Increase (%) over control
11.83 70 65

19. Achievements and Progresses
Straw yields of Soybean with and Without Inoculums
Location
Woreda
No of farmers
Participated
Soya bean Mean
Strew Yield t/ha
Men
Women
Control
–P – I
+P – I
+P + I
–P + I
Jimma zone
kersa 5
2.53
2.65
3.46
3.52
Tiro Afeta
2.18
2.32
3.22
3.34
Mean
2.36
2.49
3.43
Increase (%) over control 43 45

20. Achievements and Progresses
Soybean is a good crop to grow as intercrop with sorghum, and as a result the size of seed and productivity of sorghum increase due to the benefit of nitrogen produced by soybean.
Sample photo taken to show the difference of sorghum by product which was sown intercropping with soybean and alone

21. Lessons Learned
The involvement of all concerned stakeholder in the planning and implementation phase contribute a lot for the successful accomplishment of the planned activities.

22. Opportunities Identified
Existence of organized farmers and women.
Suitable whether condition for soybean production.

23. Main Challenges
Inexistence soybean trader in the surrounding local market
Inappropriate site selection problem and delayance of project start up
Variety selection problem
Delayance of budget release (some activity not implemented)
Pest and disease

24. Way Forwards
Joint planning on appropriate time with partner in cluster
Close working and discussing with N2 Africa for on time budget release
Jointly selecting soybean variety and demo sites
Searching reliable market for soybean and linking to farmers (focus on local market initiatives)

25. Putting nitrogen fixation to work for smallholder farmers!
Thank You !
Putting nitrogen fixation to work for smallholder farmers!