Mr Zinsou Bernus Djigbe1, Mr Rodrigues V. Cao DIOGO1
1University Of Parakou, Parakou, BENIN REP
Biography:
Zinsou Bernus DJIGBE, a young and ambitious Ph.D. student from the Republic of Benin in West Africa, is currently pursuing his doctoral studies at the esteemed University of Parakou. His impressive academic background in Life Sciences includes a Bachelor's degree from Université National des Sciences Technologies Ingenieries et Mathematics Abomey (UNSTIM) and a Master's degree in Soil Science from the University of Ilorin. Zinsou's Ph.D. research focuses on assessing carbon dynamics, nutrient availability, and productivity in cashew-based agroforestry systems in Northern Benin. Through his work, he aims to contribute to the development of sustainable land management strategies in his country
Examine farmer's perception of integrating cattle rearing into cashew-crop agroforestry, with emphasis on farmers' socioeconomic status and resource management: Evidence from households using TAPE
Abstract:
The study focuses on promoting sustainable agricultural practices in cashew agroforestry systems in Benin's Tchaourou Sud-Borgou Zone. Integrated-crop-livestock-forestry (ICLF) systems are being promoted as a means of sustainable agricultural intensification. However, there is a lack of evidence regarding the resilience of cashew-based agroforestry systems, especially in cashew high-production regions where soil fertility loss is prevalent. To address this, the study selected 208 mixed farms in four villages in Tchaourou. The farms integrated cashew plantation intercropping and livestock into their production systems. The farms were assessed using the FAO-designed TAPE (Tools for Agro-ecology Performance Evaluation) tool to analyze their agroecological performance as well as to evaluate farm diversity.
The results showed that overall, the farms had low agroecological performance, with only three out of ten dimensions meeting or exceeding the threshold of 50%. The agroecological performance did not significantly differ between regions. The study identified three main classes of farm diversity: 22 farms in an incipient transition phase (10.57%), 2 agroecological farms (0.96%), and 184 non-agroecological farmers (88.46%).
These findings highlight opportunities for agro-ecological transition within each identified cluster.
Keywords: Agroforestry; grazing cattle; land availability, farming system, manure