Plant production

Favouring a Demonised Plant : Khat and Ethiopian smallholder enterprises

Upphovsperson:	Gessesse, Dessie
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, Agrarian Change, Property and Resources | Uppsala, Sweden
År:	2013
Ämnesord:	Ethiopia, Plant production, Drugs of abuse, Khat, Commercial farming, Small farms, Smallholders, Income, Livelihood

Khat is a plant native to Ethiopia that has been consumed over several centuries as a mental and physical stimulant. This report outlines khat’s role as a source of livelihood. Khat, dubbed a social ill by many, is at the same time part and parcel of the livelihoods of many others. With consumption of the stimulant spreading to many parts of Africa, Europe, North America, Asia and Australia, khat production has become a controversial global issue. In most European and North American countries khat is illegal. The debates so far focus on the consumption of khat and its allegedly harmful health ,economic and social effects. The argument here is that expanded khat production, driven by growing demand for the stimulant, is made possible through multidimensional links between producers, sellers and others. Today, khat production is part of the wider agro-silvi-pasture complex that characterises Ethiopian rural landscapes. At the farm level, khat shares space with food and tree crops and contributes cash to the household economy. The fact that its production is a smallholder venture andis expanding through a variety of farming systems indicates its importance to cultivators and their use of land. This paper is not exhaustive, but makes an exploratory attempt to highlight khat-related livelihood issues and seeks to contribute to the ongoing debates on the stimulant and to prompt further research.

Seeds for African peasants : peasants' needs and agricultural research - the case of Zimbabwe

Upphovsperson:	Friis-Hansen, Esbern
Utgivare:	Nordiska Afrikainstitutet | Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet
År:	1995
Ämnesord:	Zimbabwe, Southern Africa, Agriculture, Plant breeding, Seeds, Farming systems, Agricultural policy, Economic and social development, Sustainable development, Agricultural development, Agricultural research, Maps, Plant production, Växtproduktion

The book provides a comprehensive discussion about the role of agricultural seed in sustainable peasant agriculture and concludes by presenting new principles for sustainable poverty-oriented plant breeding.