AGRIsmart - profile final FINAL

1 AgriSmart (Zambia) NGO registration number: ORS/102/35/5570 Head Office: 13 K Reedbuck Street,
Kabulonga, Lusaka PO Box 320017, Lusaka, Zambia Tel: +260-211-267493/4 Fax: +260-211-67495
AgriSmart Zambia Operations

AgriSmart Zambia is an established organization with a focus on Innovative Technology and Research
for Sustainable Development in agriculture. The main purpose of the organization is to conduct
research that will enhance the viability of small farms in Zambia. Small farmers are characterized by low
agricultural production and food insecurity, particularly among the rural poor. With increasing lack of
food and more complex life for rural dwellers, small scale agriculture is becoming a challenging
operation. Although useful agricultural information is constantly generated and is available in
agricultural research institutions, public, research and university libraries, and nongovernmental
organizations, rural farmers in Zambia do not readily access these information resources. This is partly
because much of this information is packaged in elitist formats that small scale farmers cannot use.
AgriSmart with the help of its partners analyze the complex environments and find solutions that will
lead to sustainable small scale agriculture. AgriSmart facilitate the use and sharing of agricultural
information effectively, leading to the optimal use of the resources at the small scale farmer’s disposal
resulting in improved food production, while reducing food and nutrition insecurity as well as rural
poverty.
Both women and men play critical roles in agriculture throughout the world, producing, processing and
providing the food we eat. Rural women in particular are responsible for half of the world’s food
production and produce between 60 and 80% of the food in most developing countries. Yet, despite
their contribution to global food security, women farmers are frequently underestimated and
overlooked in development strategies. AgriSmart address gender issues and focus on projects relating to
gender equality.
Introduction of new regulations on maximum pesticide residue levels and food hygiene, and private
food safety standards around the world threatened the livelihoods of millions of Zambians involved in
the fresh fruit and vegetable supply chain export sub-sector. Compliance by small-holder vegetable
producers was constrained by a combination of lack of technical know-how on the new international
and private food-safety requirements and standards, and inefficient extension system. In collaboration
with international and national public and private institutions, AgriSmart facilitate proper interpretation
and application of the requirements and standards by small-holder vegetable producers, targeting the
fresh produce export sub-sector. The objectives of AgriSmart are to promote good agricultural practices,
promote sustainable agriculture, promote optimal management of natural resources including solar,
management of soil and water to adapt to climate change, based on market first approach.

It was demonstrated that with efficient extension services, it is possible for smallholder vegetable
growers to adopt good agricultural practices that will foster production of quality vegetables with
acceptable global safety standards without jeopardizing quantities.
AgriSmart has successfully partnered with University of California, Davis, USA to implement programs
relating to nutrition of small holder farmers in the Zambia. In this initiative, AgriSmart will help produce
African Indigenous Vegetables in Zambia and facilitate consumption of the same. Also, AgriSmart has
been contracted to establish a Horticulture Innovation Regional Center for Southern Africa to serve
smallholder farmers in Zambia in partnership with UNZA.
AgriSmart was established by a think tank consisting of members from various institutions such as
Agribusiness in Sustainable Natural African Plant Products (ASNAPP); Rutgers University, USA; Purdue
University, USA; University of California, Davis, USA; United States Agency for International
Development (USAID) and other local organizations. The main source of funding for AgriSmart comes
from grants and direct investment. The most recent grant is from University of California, Davis, USA
relating to nutrition of smallholder farmers in Zambia. This grant links AgriSmart with Rutgers
University, Purdue University and Kenya Agricultural Research Institute. A second grant focuses on
establishing a Horticulture Innovation Regional Center for Africa, located in Southern Africa based in
Lusaka, Zambia. This regional center’s vision is to become one of the Horticulture Innovation Labs
Regional Centres (www.hortcrsp.ucdavis.edu) open to conduct trainings as well as introduce and
demonstrate technologies. This will be accomplished through conducting applied research from
production through postharvest handling, product development to reduce poverty, improve health.
Emphasis will be placed on nutrition and environmental and economic sustainability for smallholder
farmers through profitable current horticultural methods.
Marketing linkages have established with SPAR, Steers, Deboinairs, Sun International, Shoprite, Protea
Hotels, Nando’s, Tobasco and Fruit and Veg. We signed up about 75 MOUs with communities totalling
more than 5000 beneficiaries, 5 seedling propagation centers in three provinces and two greenhouses
innovation centers. We also established 75 mini innovations centers in the eastern province, Lusaka
province and the southern province, involving about 3000 small scale farmers with more than 10,000
beneficiaries. In Zambia, AgriSmart will work with COMESA, Syngenta MRI, ZABS and Comaco. Among
the beneficiaries, about 60% of them are women and 40% younger than 25 years old. Seedling
production units have established with the help of the communities, 90% managed by women.
The smallholder farmers have been experiencing declining yields due to land degradation.

Their participation in maintaining and improving land resources require identifying some factors that
could act as incentives. The farmer incentives have generally revolved around marketing related factors.
It would be worthwhile to determine whether the incentives entailed by proximity to market, input and
output prices can also have any effect on farmer decision to adopt conservation practices in Zambia.
Moreover, farming systems have been determined by location. It is important therefore, that some
insight is gained into what role location factors would play on farmer’s choice of conservation practices.
Equally important is the realization that farmers are always trying technologies. Our objective is to
introduce technologies that can be adopted by smallholder farmers with limited resources.
The extent to which agricultural research has reduced poverty has become an increasing concern of
policymakers, donors, and researchers. Until recently, poverty reduction was a secondary goal of
agricultural research. The primary focus was on increasing food supplies and reducing food prices, a
strategy that was successful in increasing the yields of important food staples. When increased
productivity is combined with increased agricultural employment, lower food prices, and increased off-
farm employment, agricultural research can be credited with significant reductions in rural poverty.
However, these benefits do not necessarily materialize, and thus it is essential to understand how
agricultural technologies influence and are influenced by the diverse livelihood strategies, vulnerability
context, relations of gender and power, and other conditions of the poor. Our projects identify factors
that should be understood at an early stage such as the priority poor people put on managing risk; the
types of social differentiation (gender; class; ethnicity, etc.) that will affect the uptake and impacts of
technologies; the variety of traits that farmers value; and the role of agriculture in livelihood strategies.
With regard to methodology, the case studies underscore the need to consider direct and indirect
impacts and to avoid restricting analysis to only impacts that can be easily quantified. Mixing disciplines
and research methods are essential to achieve efficiency.
Establishing market linkages and supporting private rural enterprises require a new set of policies,
instruments and means of engagement between the public and private sectors, with appropriate
support from external donors. The resources that AgriSmart brings to bear can be used to help establish
an enabling policy and institutional framework for rural private-sector development. These resources
can also finance critical public goods and services so that private-sector markets can be made to work
more efficiently and on terms more favourable for the rural poor. AgriSmart can also leverage additional
resources from the private sector through its catalytic role in mobilizing funds, its willingness to partner
with others, and its efforts to explore new and innovative ways to enhance the impact of its operations.
AgriSmart’s comparative advantage lies mainly in its experience in working with the rural poor through
its projects and programmes, its participatory and bottom-up approaches to development,

and its willingness to take risks and explore innovative means to help the rural poor lift themselves out
of poverty. AgriSmart’s strategy for the private sector capitalizes on this comparative advantage and
applies a bottom-up approach in working with this sector. In essence, AgriSmart – through its projects
and programmes – will support or partner with the private sector only if and when this is to the benefit
of its target group, the rural poor. AgriSmart introduce environmentally sustainable income generating
activities such as drip irrigation through solar pumps and rainwater harvesting for irrigation.
AgriSmart is cognizant of the human rights based approaches in agriculture development. It utilizes four
concepts to promote human rights within its organization. The first concept requires staff to be familiar
with the human rights framework, not only for its own sake but to be able to conduct a human rights
analysis that will enable the establishment of human rights objectives whose implementation can then
be measured against human rights standards and norms. The second focuses on the basic human rights
principles of equality and nondiscrimination as the broad overall objective of the development effort, as
well as on participation and inclusion, and accountability and the rule of law. The third concept requires
strengthening the capacities of rights-holders to claim their rights and of duty bearers to meet their
obligations. The last principle, therefore, requires a comprehensive claim-holder analysis. Integration of
a human rights-based approach into all AgriSmart’s activities and projects are in line with the common
standards. We intensified in-house coordination of human rights activities, ensuring a more effective
contribution to the advancement of all human rights. We also increased awareness and knowledge on
the part of AgriSmart’s staff of human rights standards, major challenges to human rights and human
rights-based programming.
Rural women make up the majority of the world’s poor. They have the world’s lowest levels of schooling
and the highest rates of illiteracy. In all developing regions, female-headed rural households are among
the poorest of the poor. To better empower women agricultural producers to reach their potential,
AgriSmart promotes women’s leadership in agriculture, fosters policy changes that increase women’s
access to land and other assets, and strengthens women's access to financial and extension
services. AgriSmart encourages women to play a decisive role in food security, dietary diversity and
children’s health. While men grow mainly field crops, women are usually responsible for growing and
preparing most of the food consumed in the home and raising small livestock, which provides protein.
Therefore, most of the vegetable production and marketing is managed by participating women within
AgriSmart.

AGRISMART SERVICES:
 Implementing partner on Agricultural projects;
 Managing training institutions / incubators;
 Supply technologies to the industry such as solar irrigation, drip technology, hi-tech crop
spaying, germ plasm, new varieties, drought tolerant varieties, conservation farming, climate
smart technologies, water harvesting, soil nutrient fixing varieties, solar dryers, greenhouse
production and crop production practices;
 Support the agricultural sector on food safety and minimum standards with it partnership with
leading universities and institutions (ZABS);
 Introduce Post-harvest technology to the industry to reduce post-harvest losses;
 Full value chain analysis with the support of leading universities;
 Research;
 Training on all crop production practices, post-harvest handling, food safety, business skills,
record keeping and capacity building;
 Market linkages;
 Supply contracts;
 Market research / assessment;
 Facilitate financing;
 Facilitate agro dealer linkages;
 Irrigation design;
 Baseline studies;
 Renewable energy.

AgriSmart Seedling greenhouses (Livingstone, Petauke, Katete, Chipata and
Lundazi)

Petauke Lundazi
Livingstone Katete

AgriSmart community open field production
Mukuni Village Mambova
Lusaka Chipata

Sinazongwe Lusaka
Lusaka Mukuni

GREEN HOUSE PRODUCTION
Chipata Chipata
Lusaka Lusaka

AgriSmart Zambia Solar Powered Irrigation
Background
 Traditional solar pumping systems cater for shallow boreholes and low capacities,
and are mainly used for far off cattle/game drinking water supplies.
 The current cost of electricity and future tariff increases have necessitated a more in-
depth look at the availability of equipment suitable for using renewable power.
 Sunlight is almost always available, and is free.
 Accredited solar panel manufacturers guarantee solar panels for 25 years through an
independent insurance agency.
New solar pumping system
 Making use of ordinary three phase motors and pumps, any application can now be
accommodated.
 Any size pump can be run from our solar system.
 Any duty can be accommodated, be it large capacity, or high displacement heads.
 Our system is suitable for borehole pumps (deep well), as well as surface (booster)
pumps.
 The new system developed makes use of a Variable Speed Drive (VSD), enabling the
pump to run for longer every day, because the sun’s radiation does not have to be at
the highest level for the pump to operate
 No inverters or batteries are required, as the solar energy (DC) is taken straight to
the VSD which converts it to 3 phase, 380 VAC current to run the pump’s motor.
 Special lightning arrestors and surge protection, as well as isolators and fuses can be
installed for protection of the system

Benefits of VSD Solar systems
 Off the shelf pumps, and three phase motors are used with this system.
 A standard Yaskawa VSD is used, with locally developed software.
 Spares and replacement equipment are always available.
 All equipment used are readily available in South Africa, and neighboring countries
The inclusion of solar power is the most effective, cost-efficient approach to ensure
long-term sustainability of local energy to operate the water pumping and irrigation
scheme. The normal breakdown and theft of generators, the high costs of operation,
maintenance and repair and the typical unreliability of generators in remote areas for
irrigation increase risk that would also be avoided with use of the proposed VSD solar
system which in contrast is easy to install and maintain.

AGRISMART IP
IP develop in collaboration with Rutgers State University, New Jersey, University of
Stellenbosch and UC Davis, California.
 Production Manuals ( Horticulture crops)

 Technical Training Manuals

 Safety Guides
 Post-Harvest Guides

 RESEARCH PAPERS

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