The project is on shrubs, which could be part of the answer to reversing rangeland degradation over a wide area. And, from 6-10 February, ICARDA and national scientists from a wide area will draw up a plan of action for the next few years.
Overgrazing by small ruminants- sheep and goats- has caused serious loss of topsoil and consequent wind erosion in many parts of the world. The result has been desertification, causing rangeland to become unproductive, and deserts to encroach on marginal land. It has also cut the supply of grazing for livestock, with severe consequences for pastoralists and farmers in general; and is cutting the number of forage and pasture crop species growing in the wild.
"Desertification and degradation can be blamed on livestock, but it is not that simple," says ICARDA pasture ecologist Dr Ahmed Osman. "Sheep and goats are an integral part of the farming system and of people's livelihoods.
"They won't, and can't, go away. So we have to find ways both to protect the soil and biodiversity, and to restore the carrying capacity of the land."
Dr Osman believes that part of the answer lies in saltbush shrubs such as Atriplex canescens, Atriplex halimus, Salsola vermiculata and Atriplex nummularia. ICARDA has been working on these for some time, and is encouraged by their combination of feed potential with low water requirement. So when the CGIAR, ICARDA's parent body which supports 16 Centers worldwide, mounted a system-wide livestock initiative, ICARDA, in collaboration with ICRISAT, proposed a shrubs project, Production and utilization of multi-purpose fodder shrubs in West Asia, North Africa and West Africa. This was accepted. It is to draw up the plan of action for the project that 34 scientists are holding a workshop at ICARDA this week.
Participants will come not only from ICARDA's sister centers, such as ILRI(1), ICRISAT(2) and ICRAF(3), but from the national programs of some of the countries where desertification is a matter of great concern. So there will be participation from Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger and Senegal, as well as from countries with close links with ICARDA, such as Morocco, Jordan and Tunisia.
"Shrubs won't bring about miracle solutions to rangeland degradation, or desertification," says Dr Osman. "But there are no miracles in agricultural research, anyway- just steady progress. And we are seeing progress from shrubs.
"We have been working with the national program in Syria on their rangeland reserves project. The objective is to enclose areas of degraded rangeland that are in dreadful condition- no great loss to farmers- and plant shrubs. When these reserves come to maturity after five years or so, they are opened to pastoralists at critical times of year when when no other sources of feed are available. The saltbush shrubs provide feed, and the pastoralists support the project by paying "grazing rent". The pastoralists gain because that rent is nothing like as much as they would pay for fodder at that time of year.
"The sheep need to adapt. The salt content of these shrubs is high. Moreover their water requirement will rise. But there is definite potential."
The scientists will spend much of the workshop period swapping experiences and ideas, and a concerted approach should emerge. ICARDA has already discussed shrubs development with the national programs, having consulted with them on the original project proposal in a meeting in Tunis last year.
1. International Livestock Research Institute, based in Nairobi,
Kenya.
2. International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics,
Andhra Pradesh, India.
3. International Centre for Research in Agroforestry, Nairobi,
Kenya.