1.2 Contact details of resource persons and institutions involved in the assessment and documentation of the Approach

Name of project which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Approach (if relevant)

Soil protection and rehabilitation for food security (ProSo(i)l)

Name of the institution(s) which facilitated the documentation/ evaluation of the Approach (if relevant)

CIAT International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT International Center for Tropical Agriculture) - Kenya

1.3 Conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT

When were the data compiled (in the field)?

09/02/2023

The compiler and key resource person(s) accept the conditions regarding the use of data documented through WOCAT:

Yes

1.4 Reference(s) to Questionnaire(s) on SLM Technologies

2.1 Short description of the Approach

The Soil Fertility Improvement Cluster approach engages five or more farmers living in a village who share skills and labour to prepare and use improved compost as well as to demonstrate it to non-member of the group.

2.2 Detailed description of the Approach

Detailed description of the Approach:

The Soil Fertility Improvement Cluster approach engages five or more farmers living in a village who share skills and labour. Soil fertility improvement interventions in Kersa district of Jimma zone follows this approach. A cluster introduces diverse benefits to the participants including access to a package of inputs, and other benefits and services. Furthermore, it creates awareness and facilitates the adoption and diffusion of various soil fertility improvement technologies such as the preparation and use of improved compost. Kersa district, as one of the scaling out woredas for the Integrated Soil Fertility Management Project (ISFM+), strives to spread appropriate technologies against the growing issues of soil degradation, particularly soil acidity. The approach aims to promote collective learning and action where labour is shared amongst the participating farmers.
The district/Woreda Office of Agriculture’s Soil Fertility Improvement Unit organises annual training for 20 to 40 model farmers from different kebeles, of which five or more are located in the same village and can form a cluster. At the end of the training, the woreda office of agriculture donates a spade or other farm tool as an incentive to engage the participants in the preparation of organic fertilizers such as improved compost and vermicompost. Strict follow-up is carried out, with technical support provided by woreda development actors.
On top of the training organized on improved soil fertility by the woreda office of agriculture experts, a local NGO known as “FC Ethiopia” provides experience exchange visits to other parts of Oromia where improved compost was piloted. This technology involves different activities for the production of improved compost (described in detail as a Technology in the WOCAT database). Farmers' participation in training, exchange visits, collective learning and action, and lessons learning from the actual use of this organic fertilizer vis-à-vis using synthetic fertilizers motivates farmers to uptake and implement the technology. Land users like the simplicity of preparing the compost which takes less time than conventional compost preparation.

2.3 Photos of the Approach

2.4 Videos of the Approach

2.5 Country/ region/ locations where the Approach has been applied

2.6 Dates of initiation and termination of the Approach

2.7 Type of Approach

• recent local initiative/ innovative

2.8 Main aims/ objectives of the Approach

To learn and prepare improved compost in a group, and restore the increasingly growing problems of soil acidity, the main causes of soil degradation in the area.

2.9 Conditions enabling or hindering implementation of the Technology/ Technologies applied under the Approach

3.1 Stakeholders involved in the Approach and their roles

3.2 Involvement of local land users/ local communities in the different phases of the Approach

	Involvement of local land users/ local communities	Specify who was involved and describe activities
initiation/ motivation	interactive	SLM experts and extension workers provide technical support, and a group of farmers jointly learn and implement the technology.
planning	interactive	Extension workers engage in the planning process.
implementation	self-mobilization	Farmers are keen to learn and implement the technology via group steering and self-mobilization.
monitoring/ evaluation	interactive	Woreda SLM experts, extension workers, and farmers engaged in participatory evaluation and learning in a cluster.

3.3 Flow chart (if available)

3.4 Decision-making on the selection of SLM Technology/ Technologies

Specify who decided on the selection of the Technology/ Technologies to be implemented:

• mainly land users, supported by SLM specialists

Specify on what basis decisions were made:

• research findings
• personal experience and opinions (undocumented)

4.1 Capacity building/ training

Was training provided to land users/ other stakeholders?

Yes

Specify who was trained:

• land users
• field staff/ advisers

If relevant, specify gender, age, status, ethnicity, etc.

A few women farmers participated in the training among other men counterparts.

Form of training:

• on-the-job

Subjects covered:

Improving soil fertility using organic fertilizers, acid soil management, crop residue management, crop rotation, etc.

4.2 Advisory service

Do land users have access to an advisory service?

Yes

Specify whether advisory service is provided:

• on land users' fields
• at permanent centres

Describe/ comments:

Advisory service is often given at Farmers Training Center (FTC) and complemented by field visit and provision of on- the- spot technical support and counseling services.

4.3 Institution strengthening (organizational development)

Have institutions been established or strengthened through the Approach?

• yes, a little

Specify the level(s) at which institutions have been strengthened or established:

• local

Describe institution, roles and responsibilities, members, etc.

Farmers cluster (soil fertility improvement group). Member farmers jointly learn the technique of producing organic fertilizers, SLM practices, and sharing labor during the time of applying the fertilizer to the farm.

Specify type of support:

• capacity building/ training

4.4 Monitoring and evaluation

Is monitoring and evaluation part of the Approach?

Yes

Comments:

The monitoring and evaluation are conducted by Woreda SLM experts and seldom with member of the woreda administration and the land users.

If yes, is this documentation intended to be used for monitoring and evaluation?

No

Comments:

As the district/woreda is one of the scaling up woredas for the ISFM+ project, it may/may not be used for the documentation.

4.5 Research

Was research part of the Approach?

No

5.1 Annual budget for the SLM component of the Approach

If precise annual budget is not known, indicate range:

• 2,000-10,000

Comments (e.g. main sources of funding/ major donors):

Actually, specific data for operational data is not available at the level of the compost production cluster since the training and exchange visits were organized by the woreda office of Agriculture and an NGO. Of course, there are huge labor costs spent by land users to access the feedstock. Also, materials/accessories and farm tools cost for compost production was not precisely accounted for.

5.2 Financial/ material support provided to land users

Did land users receive financial/ material support for implementing the Technology/ Technologies?

Yes

If yes, specify type(s) of support, conditions, and provider(s):

Material support during the training such as farm tools (spade/fork) only.

5.3 Subsidies for specific inputs (including labour)

• none

5.4 Credit

Was credit provided under the Approach for SLM activities?

No

5.5 Other incentives or instruments

Were other incentives or instruments used to promote implementation of SLM Technologies?

Yes

If yes, specify:

The woreda SLM/Soil Fertility Improvement unit sometimes purchase surplus organic fertilizer produced by land users to promote them consistently produce and use to restore their soil fertility and address threat of degradation.

6.1 Impacts of the Approach

6.2 Main motivation of land users to implement SLM

6.3 Sustainability of Approach activities

Can the land users sustain what has been implemented through the Approach (without external support)?

• yes

If yes, describe how:

Farmers enjoy the benefit accrued from the production and use of improved compost. It improves soil fertility and mitigates the effects of soil acidity on the best use of synthetic fertilizers. Also, land users are enjoying the sale of surplus production. At least about 0.5 tons of compost is harvested from a pile which increases the cumulative production of as many heaps as possible.

6.4 Strengths/ advantages of the Approach

Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities in the land user’s view
The approach is based on preliminary training, exchange visit, motivation, and technical support.
It promotes mutual learning at the local level and allows other stakeholders to learn from the pilot activities.
As it is less labor-demanding and matured shortly compared to conventional compost making, it has a high rate of scaling opportunity.

Strengths/ advantages/ opportunities in the compiler’s or other key resource person’s view
It is an inspiring initiative in the middle of adversity relating to soil degradation so that land users learn from one another, and arrest the ongoing soil degradation.
The technology can be easily scaled up as the district is located in high biomass production areas that serve as a source of feedstock to produce more compost as compared to the other part of the country where there is huge competition for multiple uses of crop residue as an ingredient for compost making.
Farmer clusters promote collective learning, labor sharing, and transferring knowledge and skills to other land users as peer learning has groundbreaking effects over centralized advisory services associated with conceptual than practical showcasing.

6.5 Weaknesses/ disadvantages of the Approach and ways of overcoming them

Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks in the land user’s view	How can they be overcome?
All members of the cluster do not actively participate in collective action.	Promote the active participation of the member of the cluster by strengthening ties and labor-sharing traditions. Also, to engage family labor to cover the gaps.

Weaknesses/ disadvantages/ risks in the compiler’s or other key resource person’s view	How can they be overcome?
Limited stakeholders participation as it is not project-based and is being derived from the motivation and goodwill of Woreda soil fertility improvement unit experts and the model farmers who are members of the cluster.	Create more awareness of the approach. Also, the woreda needs to acknowledge and institutionalize such a beneficial approach that strives to promote collective action against the growing issues of land degradation.

7.1 Methods/ sources of information

7.2 References to available publications

Title, author, year, ISBN:

CLUSTER FARMING AS NEW APPROACH IN ETHIOPIA. Dejene Mamo. 2019. Conference: Academic presentation

Available from where? Costs?

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/347976115_CLUSTER_FARMING_AS_NEW_APPROACH_IN_ETHIOPIA

7.3 Links to relevant information which is available online

Title/ description:

Collective Action in Rural Communities

URL:

https://resources.uwcc.wisc.edu/Research/AFRI_final_report_full.pdf