Tropentag, September 16 - 18, 2015 in Berlin, Germany "Management of land use systems for enhanced food security – conflicts, controversies and resolutions"

Diversifying Agriculture for Balanced Nutrition through Fruits and Vegetables in Multi-storey Cropping Systems (NutriHAF-Africa)

University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF), Germany

Abstract

In the framework of the “Research Cooperation for Global Food Security and Nutrition" funded by the BMEL, the NutriHAF-Africa project explores and integrates appropriate fruit and vegetable crops into multi-storey cropping systems to increase (micro-) nutrition security in order to diversify and intensify agriculture and thus to reduce pressure on natural habitats in biodiversity hotspots in Ethiopia and Madagascar. NutriHAF is a research and capacity building project. The research will enable poor male and female smallholders to increase sustainably their agricultural productivity and species diversity by integrating fruits and vegetables into existing multi-storey cropping systems. This is achieved by increasing knowledge about appropriate fruits and vegetables for multi-storey cropping systems and by improving knowledge on food behaviour and adoption constraints. Capacity building will increase the awareness and knowledge of farmers, consumers and decision takers about balanced diets, nutritional values of different foods, fruit and vegetable production and processing, food preparation and quality.
The project consortium consists of thirteen partners from Germany and Africa that are partly research organisations, partly international, regional and national research and development networks and partly capacity building and implementing organisations.

Outlook
The research results will be analysed and processed to serve as a generic approach that can be extrapolated to similar regions and areas in Africa, supported by practical information material and checklists for appropriate (indigenous and other) fruits and vegetables in multi-storey cropping systems and guidelines how to best introduce nutrition-sensitive agricultural innovations.

Keywords: Biodiversity, diversification, multi-storey cropping systems, nutrition-sensitive agriculture, research cooperation, Sub-Saharan Africa

Contact Address: Detlef Virchow, University of Bonn, Center for Development Research (ZEF), Walter-Flex-Str. 3, 53113 Bonn, Germany, e-mail: d.virchowuni-bonn.de