Improving post-harvest technology in Senegal

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1 Africa Rice Center Centre du riz pour l Afrique Afr car ce Key fact An innovative public-private partnership has led to the development of an improved rice thresher for the Senegal River Valley in order to improve the usable yield and marketability of rice, and lessen the load on women and children. Summary In the Senegal River Valley, haphazard harvesting and rudimentary post-harvest handling of rice led to post-harvest crop losses of up to 35 per cent. To combat the inefficiency of manual threshing, a partnership between the Africa Rice Center, national agricultural research systems and private sector organisations in Senegal developed an improved rice thresher, specifically for the region. Named after the three partners, the ASI has reduced labour requirements and eliminated back-breaking tasks for women, sped up post-harvest processes, produced a higher quality product and increased the marketability of local rice in the face of imports. More than 50% of the total paddy in Senegal is threshed with the ASI An impact study conducted in 2009 showed that ASI continues to be one of the most important improved post-harvest technologies for rice in the Senegal River Valley (SRV). More than 50 per cent of the total paddy produced in Senegal is now threshed with the ASI, and the proportion of grain threshed is increasing in neighbouring countries, where similar partnerships have developed machines to suit local needs and capacities. AfricaRice is now developing a small and affordable combine harvester. Facts & figures ASI was commercially released in 1997 and since then has become the most widely adopted thresher in Senegal. ASI has an output of six tonnes of paddy per day, compared to one tonne by manual threshing. The Votex thresher, also available in the SRV, requires six people to operate the machine efficiently for threshing, with an 85% separation rate. Another six to nine people are then needed to sift the straw manually to recover the remaining 15%, as well as to winnow and clean the threshed rice. In comparison, ASI requires six workers and, with a grain-straw separation rate of 99%, no additional labour is required for sifting and winnowing. An AfricaRice impact study shows that ASI continues to be one of the most important improved post-harvest technologies in the SRV. ASI reduces calendar constraints to double cropping. Variations on ASI have been released in Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Côte d Ivoire, Ghana, Mali and Mauritania. The ASI has a high internal rate of return (just under 50%) and benefit cost ratio of 2.3, although the initial price of the machine is high (US$5,000). 1

2 European funding The ASI thresher work was supported through unrestricted funding from Belgium, Denmark, the European Comission, France, Germany, the Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom. In addition, specific funding was provided by the UK s Department for International Development (DFID), the European Union, the Netherlands, France and Germany s Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ). Project milestones 1994: A survey conducted by AfricaRice reveals that poor post-harvest practices and machinery result in losses of up to 35 per cent and poor grain quality to mid-1997: National and international institutions work closely together to assess the relevance of IRRI s thresher and adapt it for local use. Substantial modifications are made, including doubling its capacity, making it more robust, increasing its processing power, and adding two wheels to make it a four-wheel version. 1997: Modified ASI prototypes are commercially launched in Senegal to 1999: The first prototypes for Burkina Faso, Mali and Mauritania are developed with national partners. 2000: The first prototype for Côte d Ivoire is produced and tested. 2003: The ASI is awarded the Grand Prix du Président de la République du Sénégal pour les Sciences (Special Prize of the President of Senegal for Scientific Research). 2009: An impact study conducted by AfricaRice shows that ASI continues to be one of the most important improved post-harvest technologies in the Senegal River Valley. 2011: Staff of the national agricultural programme of Chad, trained by AfricaRice, develop an ASI prototype adapted to the country : AfricaRice is using the ASI development and partnership model to further develop rice harvest and post-harvest technologies, such as a small combine harvester. 2012: Several AfricaRice projects with support from various donors (CIDA, AfDB, IFAD) train technicians from sub-saharan Africa in producing the ASI thresher. In Nigeria, one objective is to manufacture 1,000 ASI threshers by 2014 as part of the government s Rice Transformation Agenda. Costs and benefits A high internal rate of return (IRR) and benefit cost ratio (BCR) made the ASI extremely attractive for use in the Senegal River Valley, with an average purchase price of 2.8 million FCFA (US$5,000). Even at this price, which is several times the cost of similar non-adapted Asian machines, and taking a pessimistic view on seasonal performance, the ASI had an IRR of just under 50 per cent in the original financial analysis. When the ASI works 90 days, the BCR reaches 2.3, well above standard guidelines. The economic life of an ASI is assumed to be five years, with financing over three years, and a salvage value of 30 per cent of the purchase price. In practice, the ASI s real-life performance ensures the initial cost and debt charges can be readily paid off earlier. More information Africa Rice Center - 2

3 Manual rice threshing is labour-intensive and is mainly carried out by women Manual rice threshing is labour-intensive and back-breaking, and is mainly carried out by women farmers. In the Senegal River Valley (SRV) - the principal zone for irrigated rice in Senegal - haphazard harvesting and rudimentary post-harvest handling were identified in the mid-1990s as major constraints; field surveys by researchers, in collaboration with farmers, identified post-harvest crop losses of up to 35 per cent. These losses were compounded by inefficient threshing, which produced damaged and split grains that were more susceptible to storage damage and were of a lower marketable value. The surveys also revealed other constraints, such as frequent shortage of labour during harvest and post-harvest periods and the unsuitability of existing harvesting and threshing systems that were too costly, time-consuming, or labour-intensive during peak labour demand. Consequently, paddy sat in the field for weeks or even months waiting to be harvested and threshed, resulting in a loss in quality and yield due to exposure to the elements and shattering. Expensive combine harvesters proved to be unreliable and the only available small-scale thresher in Senegal failed to effectively separate grains from straw. However, as a result of an innovative partnership forged between national The use of the ASI thresher considerably reduces the grain losses associated with manual threshing and the drudgery. It also lessens the need for labour for threshing operations. However, it would be fantastic if we could have some day a self-propelled ASI, as now it has to be towed by a bullock cart or a tractor. Ousmane Sall, farmer, Ndieurba village, Senegal and international research and extension organisations, local artisans, farmers organisations, and the private sector, an improved rice thresher for the SRV was developed. In 1994, an Asian rice thresher was sent by the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) upon request by the Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice). Named ASI after the three main partners - AfricaRice, the Senegal River Valley National Development Agency (SAED) and the Senegalese Institute of Agricultural Research (ISRA) - the thresher went through several adaptations to ensure that it met the requirements of producers and women rice farmers engaged in threshing activities. Substantial modifications were made to the original thresher, including doubling its capacity, making it more robust by using sturdier material, increasing its processing power, and adding two wheels to make it a four-wheel version. ASI was commercially released in Senegal in 1997 and since then has become the most widely adopted thresher in Senegal, having a major impact on the rice production chain. A study showed that, with six workers, ASI has an output of six tonnes of paddy per The ASI has become the most widely adopted thresher in Senegal 3

4 day, compared to one tonne by manual threshing and four tonnes by Votex, an alternative small-scale thresher available in the SRV. Moreover, with a grain-straw separation rate of 99 per cent, no additional labour is required for sifting and winnowing compared to Votex, which has a separation rate of 85 per cent. In other words, ASI reduces labour requirements, eliminating one of the most back-breaking tasks for women and children and freeing up family labour for other useful tasks. ASI speeds up the post-harvest process, allows production of a higher quality product with less grain damage, and increases the marketability of local rice in the face of imports. A high internal rate of return and benefit-cost ratio make the ASI extremely attractive for use in the SRV. With an average purchase price of 2.8 million FCFA (US$5,000), ASIs are generally bought by farmers associations and richer farmers. Even at this price, which is several times the cost of similar, non-adapted Asian machines, and being pessimistic about the tonnage of rice that will be threshed, the ASI s net revenues are more than double the revenues for the Votex. ASI reduces labour requirements Recognising its immense value for the country as a technical solution that is acceptable to everyone in the rice-growing community, including women, the Grand Prix du Président de la République du Sénégal pour les Sciences (Special Prize of the President of Senegal for Scientific Research) was presented to the ASI thresher team in Our collaboration with AfricaRice helped us to develop prototypes based on ASI for our country. We have now developed several types of threshers for various crops. Ramadan Madani, agricultural engineer, Institut Tchadien de Recherche Agronomique pour le Developpement, Ndjamena, Chad In 2009, an impact study conducted by AfricaRice in Senegal showed that ASI continued to be one of the most important improved post-harvest technologies in the SRV, helping farmers cope with labour scarcity. More than 50 per cent of the total paddy produced in Senegal is now threshed with the ASI. The ASI also helps reduce calendar constraints to double cropping and provides local employment in artisan workshops and agroindustry. The ASI helps reduce calendar constraints to double cropping and provides local employment As ASI s popularity grew among the rice farming community and its impact continued to ripple outward and change the lives of rural households, the experience in Senegal was successfully extended by AfricaRice to several West African countries (Burkina Faso, Côte d Ivoire, Ghana, Mali and Mauritania), where each country further adapted the machine to suit its own specific conditions and released it under different brands. ASI has recently spread to Cameroon and Chad. Here, local artisans, trained by AfricaRice and partners, were inspired to develop a series of modified prototypes for sorghum, millet and groundnut. 4

5 The ripples created by ASI continue to expand. AfricaRice is using the ASI model to forge a new partnership to further develop rice harvest and post-harvest technologies in sub-saharan Africa, including introducing and adapting a small, affordable combine harvester in the SRV. The adapted prototype, which is being tested, not only harvests small farm plots more quickly, but also provides threshed and bagged grain of high quality, making it more attractive to local traders. While this may replace ASI in some areas, for example in Senegal where combine The ASI has an output of 6 tonnes of paddy per day harvesters are already used, the ASI will continue to be used in areas, such as Mali, where most post-harvest operations are done manually. In July 2011, a number of rice stakeholders from sub-saharan Africa met to develop a road map for the sustainable mechanisation of the rice sector. They emphasised the value of small-scale, The important role that ASI plays should encourage government authorities to integrate it in their policies for distribution and for subsidy on agricultural equipment as part of the rice self-sufficiency program in our country. Oumar Kebe, farmer, Niandane village, Senegal locally adapted machinery that targets labourintensive activities, and recommended that governments test machinery through research and extension, before importing, to ensure its efficacy and durability under African farming conditions, and that capacity be built to develop a local manufacturing sector that is able to produce such farm machinery and provide after-sales support. References Africa Rice Center (2006) Africa Rice Center Annual Report : Forward in Partnership. Cotonou, Benin: Africa Rice Center. Africa Rice Center (2011) Lessons from the Rice Crisis: Policies for Food Security in Africa. Cotonou, Benin: Africa Rice Center. Diagne M., M. Demont and A. Diagne (2009) Adoption and Impact of an Award Winning Post- Harvest Technology: The ASI Rice Thresher in the Senegal River Valley, Contributed paper prepared for presentation at the International Association of Agricultural Economists Conference, Beijing, China, August Donovan C., K.M. Miézan, M.C.S. Wopereis, B.S. Diack and B. Douthwaite (1998) Technology Transfer from Asia to Africa Sets the Stage for Public and Private Sector Collaboration in New Technology in Senegal, International Rice Research Notes, 23 (2), pp Mohapatra S. (2012) The Little Machine That Could, RiceToday, 11 (2), pp Wopereis M.C.S., T. Defoer, P. Idinoba, S. Diack and M.J. Dugué (2008) Participatory Learning and Action Research (PLAR) for Integrated Rice Management (IRM) in Inland Valleys of Sub-Saharan Africa: Technical Manual. WARDA Training Series. Cotonou, Benin: Africa Rice Center. Wopereis M.C.S., K.M. Miézan, C. Donovan, A.M. Ndiaye and B. Douthwaite (1998) A New Senegalese Thresher/Cleaner Responds to Small-Farmer Post-Harvest Needs, International Rice Research Notes, 23 (2), pp

6 Contact Savitri Mohapatra Head of Marketing and Communications Africa Rice Center (AfricaRice) 01 B.P Cotonou Benin Tel This case study has been produced by WRENmedia, funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and implemented by the European Initiative on Agriculture Research for Development (EIARD). It is intended to share knowledge and promote more effective agricultural research for development (AR4D) policies and does not necessarily reflect the official position of EIARD or of individual EIARD members. WREN media on air... on line... in print... in person... 6