Application of Geospatial Technologies for Environmental Degradation and Adaptation to climate Change in Western Sudan

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1 P a g e 1 THE UNIVERSITY OF KHARTOUM Application of Geospatial Technologies for Environmental Degradation and Adaptation to climate Change in Western Sudan Ahmed.H. I. Elfaig 1 and Eltaib S. Ganawa 1 The climate system is dynamic, complex and varies from one year to another and operates across a wide scale. Climate variability and climate change are intermingling terms, short term climate variability and long term climate change which refers to the shift in the mean state of particular climate variable (statistical distribution of climate variable change). In Sudan, particularly western parts of Sudan (Kordofan and Darfur states) characterize by sparse plants cover, low amount of rainfall, fragile environment, high rainfall variability, high water deficiency, frequent rainfall failure and prolonged drought. These indicators of climate variability and change coupled with the traditional production system caused have a tremendous environmental change and degradation in western Sudan. It is difficult to educate people to respond to the effects of climate change because the effects are long term, dispersed and cross many kind of boundaries. However, using geospatial technologies as a tool one can identify hazards, monitor them, and quantify the magnitude and effects of disaster in case of occurrence as well as climate change effects. The affected traditional producers have used their indigenous knowledge to cope with change in both agricultural production system and animals raising. However the coping mechanism adopted by the traditional producers contributed positively to the processes of environmental degradation as such, the paper suggested that the future research should focus: Construction of models to predict the future behavior of the climate based on climate variables. Using remote sensing techniques to help in evaluating the current situation and predicting the future trends. Coping strategies rather than prevailing adaptation and coping mechanism. The coping strategies should focus on both traditional agricultural production system and animal raising. Design of observation systems to monitor the climate system by using remote sensing systems for monitoring and assessment. Production of GIS database and climate models to visualize the variables of climate and accessing the digital data. 1 Faculty of Geographical and Environmental Sciences, University of Khartoum, Khartoum Sudan, E- mail taib123@yahoo.com and Elfaig@hotmail.com Key Words: Climate Change, Remote sensing, adaptation mechanism, coping strategies and Early warning system

2 P a g e 2 Enhancing Agricultural Production: Agricultural Efficiency Improvement in Sudan Amel Mustafa Mubarak and Salah Mohamed Elawad The agricultural sector will be a major source of sustained growth for the economy, particularly in light of the major macroeconomic and sectoral policy changes introduced by loss in oil return after separation of Southern Sudan. There remain substantial inefficiencies in agricultural production and marketing of the major crops and livestock producing subsectors specially for Small farmers. These inefficiencies should be addressed through increasing agricultural production by expansion of land under cultivation, and investment in agricultural technologies. Increase agricultural production by expansion of land primarily necessitates analyzing the economic and environmental costs of bringing such land under production that include the investment cost of infrastructure as well as the costs of human and animal disease control necessary to open these areas to farming, deforestation (with implications for global climate change) and loss of critical wildlife habitats. Investment in agricultural technologies by smallholders is often limited by financial constraints since smallholder farmers often lack the acceptable collateral needed to secure credit from financial institutions. The possibility of increasing production through improving technical efficiency by better use of farmers available resources and technology is another option. Literature on Efficiency in Sudan reveals that technical efficiency in the overall Sudanese agriculture is low. At the crop level, several studies have addressed the efficiency of crop production in Sudan. For instance, the technical efficiency of producing sorghum in western Sudan was estimated to be 0.65, while the technical efficiency of sesame production in Kordofan State was found to be Given the importance of wheat as one of the most important food crop and its contribution to food security in Sudan and as an import substitute, in 2008 the Department of Agricultural Economics, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Khartoum conducted many researches at M.Sc. level under the theme wheat technical efficiency to measure and evaluate the technical efficiency of wheat production in different areas in Sudan including Gezira Scheme, Rahad Scheme, White Nile Pump Scheme, Northern State, River Nile State.These researches have shown that the mean technical efficiency of producing wheat ranging between o.69 and 0.73 (Table 1) and that each region had unique factors that constraining wheat production. This mean that wheat production could have been increased by percent at the same level of inputs had farmers been technically efficient. Based on this background, further assessment and elaboration on the efficiency issue in different agricultural crops at different region in the Sudan is needed in order to reflect its particular importance and the benefits of exploiting the available and limited resources in the Sudanese agriculture to the policy makers and all concerned people. Table: Wheat Technical Efficiency in Different Region in the Sudan Author Region Mean Technical Efficiency El Moez Abdel Allah Gezira Scheme (2008) 0.73 Hamza Mohamed White Nile Pump Scheme (2008) 0.69 Hassan Hussein Rahad Scheme (2009) 0.70 Rama Abd Elkarim North of Gezira (2011) 0.69 Source: unpublished M.Sc. theses at Department of Agricultural Economics

3 P a g e 3 The Contribution of Household Income Components to Poverty Reduction, Income Inequality, and Social Welfare in Sudan: the case of the River Nile State Eltahir Mohamed Nur 1 This paper seeks to amplify the relationship between poverty, rural livelihoods, and key policy areas. Under the state of rural poverty, agriculture alone cannot provide sufficient livelihood opportunities. Rural-Urban migration is not an option for everyone and where possible. Policy-makers may in any case prefer to limit the worst excesses of urbanization with its associated social and environmental problems. There is growing interest in rural non-farm income as research on rural economies is increasingly showing that rural people s livelihoods are derived from diverse sources and are not as overwhelmingly dependent on agriculture as previously assumed. In this study, it has been observed that fast agricultural deterioration in Sudan, coupled with the monetization of the rural economy, pushed the rural poor out of the farming sector in an attempt to augment meagre incomes from farming with incomes from non-farm activities. These non-farm activities, which gained relative importance over time, is a wide spectrum of activities ranging from begging to micro enterprises depending on the individual abilities of the poor to adjust to adversity. In household budget surveys incomes from some non-farm activities are not reported because these activities are not socially accepted. However, the unreported part of household income is eventually reflected in household expenditure and the difference between household expenditure and household income represents income from undeclared sources. The results show that 69 percent of the households sampled in the River Nile State gain incomes from socially rejected non-farm activities with average household per capita income of 737 Sudanese pounds. The results also show that household income component from undeclared sources reduced the incidence of poverty from 48 percent to 16.6 percent, the income gap ratio, from 0.44 to 0.19, income inequality among the poor, as measured by the Gini coefficient, from 0.28 to 0.10 and the severity of poverty from 28.5 percent to 4.6 percent. These results are indicative of the fact that the socially unaccepted non-farm activities are usually adopted by the ultra poor who are unable to overstep the entry barriers to socially accepted non-farm activities. Unlike the socially accepted non-farm activities, the undeclared activities, in spite of their significant contributions to poverty reduction and the improvement of income distribution among the poor, remain policy-empty because no one can enhance socially rejected practices to reduce poverty. One way out of this policy dilemma is to remove entry barriers to socially accepted non-farm activities so that the ultra poor can easily shift their coping practices from the socially unaccepted non-farm activities which are shameful to declare to the socially accepted non-farm activities. tahirnur@gmail.com 1 Professor of Economics, Faculty of Economics and Social Sciences, Khartoum University, Sudan Food Security Policy Research Dr Ali Abdaziz Salih and Dr Salah Mohamed Elawad

4 P a g e 4 Regarding food security policy we suggest a holistic approach that includes production, storage, consumption and food aid. The short and long term impacts exploring and assessing current micro and macro policies role and effects on food security are to be incorporated. Specifically the following issues are to be considered: Institutions dealing with food security dimension( availability, accessibility, stability and nutritional aspects): 1. Analysis and formulation of policies, strategies and plans cohesiveness with national objectives and inline with regional and international evolving requirements. 2. The role of agricultural. sector in achieving food self-sufficiency,increasing employment opportunities and reducing poverty in rural and urban areas 3. Production policies raising efficient resource utilization at agricultural programs and farm levels. 4. Research and development innovations and transfer of technology in enhancing food security situation for domestic and export market 5. Current and potential storage facilities and functions in stabilizing markets and prices motivating food production and ensuring food access to consumers. 6. Analysis of organizational set-up and capacity building of institutions involved in food security policies, planning, legislation, finance and implementation. 7. policies on food production and consumption risks and risk management (early warning measures, insurance and risk mitigation fund) Enhancing Agricultural Production in Sudan Hanadi I. El Dessougi Sudan is endowed with enormous and varied natural resources base (climate, soils, water resources, vegetation cover including rangeland and livestock, forests, fishery and wildlife). This varied natural wealth makes Sudan one of three countries in the world together with Canada and Australia that can achieve agricultural production levels sufficient to feed their population and contribute to reducing the nutrition gab in the world. This goal can only be achieved by rational utilization of these resources with provision of adequate inputs, investments, sound technologies and proper management for sustainable agricultural production. In addition to sufficient production, sustainable agriculture aims at protecting the natural resource base from degradation and maintaining the ecological balance to attain food security and poverty alleviation. Agriculture is the backbone of the national economy with about 80% of the people engaged in crop and animal production. This makes millions of people in the country directly dependent on natural resources for their livelihood and employment. The cultivable area in Sudan is estimated as 84 million hectares. Of these only 15 million ha are cultivated under rain-fed conditions and 1.68 million ha under irrigation, i.e. only about 20% of cultivable land is utilized. Sudan with its large area and diversified ecosystems reflects different types of land use. The population in the rural areas relies heavily on natural resources for subsistence. The intense pressure and demand on the available resources has led to severe land degradation and desertification, which poses a real constraint to achieving sustainable agricultural development. Practices such as overgrazing, deforestation, overcultivation, cultivation of marginal lands, irrational use of heavy machinery, bush removal and unplanned burning lead to continuous over mining of the land resources. In addition the civil war in the south of Sudan and Darfur has created very difficult socio-economic conditions and caused internal and regional migrations and displacement of people from war-affected areas. Thus multiple factors of climate, soil and irrational land use have contributed greatly to the current state of land degradation and resulted in various negative impacts e.g.: socio-economic livelihoods;

5 P a g e 5 decline of land productivity; food production shortage; resource based conflict; decline in environmental quality; decline of rangelands and pastoral resources; shifting of sand dunes and desertification. Sudan suffers from serious brain drain that has impacted negatively on technological base, scientific know-how, technical and educational capacity, leading to substantial capacity building requirements. The current policies, especially in the agricultural sector, are increasing land degradation and leading to impoverishment of the rural communities. This is manifested in the expansion of crop cultivation even in marginal areas at the expense of forests and rangeland. This should be tackled in a way that balances the need for intensified crop production for food security and increase the areas of forests and rangelands. A second issue is the crucial issue of land tenure and land use. There is a clear need for a proper land use plan that caters for the needs of all land users. A Third issue is the current levels of governance (local, state and federal) which has generally adverse effects on the natural resources of the country. Key areas for future research to fill vital gaps include socio economic studies to describe and evaluate existing agricultural systems, define constraints and develop appropriate methods to alleviate them; studies on land tenure systems and their role for optimum utilization of natural resources. Land and water management, integrated crop/livestock production systems, improved crop rotations sustainable land use systems, agro forestry, organic farming, efficient nutrient cycling, integrated resource management, underground water to ascertain the actual figures for the reserve and the replenishment rate and efficient water harvesting techniques and evaluation of traditional irrigation systems. Research on animal husbandry should include performance of indigenous breeds under optimum management conditions, studies on optimum nutrition, mineral deficiencies and the economics of mineral supplementation, impact and costs of control of diseases, assessment of the efficiency of new management systems and need to improve processing of animal products. Livelihoods enabling environment challenges and opportunities Dr Abubker Ibrahim Hussein, University of Khartoum Sustained livelihood activities are the drive to sustaining peace. Livelihood essentially revolves around utilization of resources such as land, crops, labor, knowledge, cattle, money, social relations, etc. But these resources cannot be disconnected from the issues and problems of access and changing economic circumstance per se. Hence, the focus is to study the economic and social development and the priority is to achieve community rehabilitation and economic sustainability and to ensure community peace and prosperity. Sources of growth approach to the analytical work are captured in several parts and in the key areas: macroeconomic review of the economic sourcing include, fiscal management, revenue streams, and development and investment policies. Emphasis is put on the agricultural sector reviewing and analyzing policies regarding the development of the agricultural sector. Moreover, the study investigated the communities access to finance. The study adopted qualitative participatory social assessment (PSA). The main techniques used for the data acquisition are: Focus group discussion (Government and private institutions); Semi-structured interviews with key persons (both in public and private sectors); and Market analysis (Records and interviews). Key main issues for agriculture and forestry include: low productivity; inadequate capital and budget; inadequate trained staff; lack of policy and legal framework; pest outbreaks; conflict between pastoralists and farmers; environmental degradation; and reduction of productivity of labor in agriculture sector due to urbanization, migration and petty trade. However, key main issues for animal resources and fisheries comprise: animal diseases; lack of policy, legal framework and law enforcement; lack of transport facilities; lack of operational budget; and inadequate training of staff. In a recent survey of private sector in Sudan, data perception reflected a dire need to reform key cross cutting investment areas namely: Power Generation/

6 P a g e 6 electricity; Infrastructure/ roads and transport means; Access to Finance; Access to Land; and Institutional and administrative capacity to administering tax, customs and land allocation. The conflict and the lack of developmental policies denied the state the chance to reach its potential. Were poor services and poor infra structure combined with the week human capital denied the communities of the state to achieve their leading roles. It was evident that after the signing of the CPA the state started to emerge and show its potentials and the policy of redistribution of the agricultural lands allowed for the participation of the communities in the agricultural development yet the poor infra structure, basically roads and market access played as an additional factor that restricts the development of the state economy specially the part that engage the contribution of the community through the traditional livelihoods strategies. If that is to be improves the needs to be considered. Investment in basic infrastructure to ensure equitable access for and integration of all communities and areas. Basic infrastructure is a determining factor for development and peace and one that needs to be address before any other development interventions takes place. Of particular importance is the construction of paved roads and feeder roads to link remote productive areas with state and national markets. This will require the improvement of the provision of basic services. Provide skills for employment and access to financial services to alleviate the high unemployment rate in the state, especially among youth. This is essential both to ameliorate livelihood opportunities and to promote stability and reintegration of war affected groups.