Improving Livelihoods in Dry Areas

Abstract

ICARDA and its partners have developed a range of improved technologies for smallholder agriculture in dry areas. They offer significant improvements over current farmer practice, require only minimal investment, and deliver tangible economic benefits. Adoption has been encouraging, but the impacts could be multiplied several-fold by linking these technologies to IFAD development projects. This document highlights a few of the many innovations that are currently available – tested, proven and ‘ready to go’. • New crop varieties to improve food security and nutrition; • Low-cost methods to manage water and other natural resources; • Livestock technologies to improve animal nutrition, health and productivity; • Integrated approaches to strengthen climate change adaptation; • Technologies for intensification and diversification of production systems.