3.1. Productivity improved due to the upscaling effort of chickpea winner varieties
The analysis of data collected from sampled farmers, using a m2 quadrant, showed that the mean grain yield (GY) of the upscaled varieties ranges from 2.53 t/ha for the Habru variety to 2.4 t/ha for the Arerti variety, with an average productivity of 2.47 t/ha for the upscaled varieties (Table 2). Varieties Habru, Ejere, and Dimtu gave GY of greater than 2.5 t/ha, which is higher than the regional as well as national average for chickpeas (ESS, 2022).
Table 2
Mean grain yield of upscaled chickpea varieties with range value sampled from beneficiary farmers in Ada’a district, east Shoa. The values are calculated from the three m2 quadrant sampled per farm during the 2022 cropping season.
Sn | Variety | Sample (N) | Mean GY (t/ha) | GY range (t/ha) | Δ |
1 | Arerti | 6 | 2.40 | 2.3–2.5 | * |
2 | Dimtu | 6 | 2.51 | 2.4–2.5 | ns |
3 | Habru | 6 | 2.53 | 2.5–2.6 | * |
4 | Ejere | 6 | 2.52 | 2.4–2.7 | * |
5 | Teketay | 6 | 2.44 | 2.4–2.5 | ns |
| Average | 6 | 2.47 | | |
Δ Variability analysis on variety performance across farmers; * significantly different at 5% significance level; ns = non-significant different at 5% significance level |
Triangulation on productivity improvement was performed by conducting a household survey during 2023 involving direct and indirect beneficiary farmers from the Ada’a district. About 86% of the surveyed beneficiary farmers of Ada’a district have noticed and reported an increase in grain yield because of accessing the winner varieties. Respectively eleven and three percent of the respondents have claimed no change and a decrease in GY after accessing the winner varieties (Fig. 2A). The yield gained because of growing the winner varieties ranges from 6.25 kg/ha to 125 kg/ha (Fig. 2B). Disaggregating the yield gain by respondents, 22 (21%) of the surveyed HHs have reported a GY gain of less than 25 kg/ha while the majority, 77 (74%), of the surveyed households, have reported a GY gain of between 25 and 75 kg/ha (Fig. 2B). On the other hand, a few farmers, about 4%, have reported a yield gain of greater than 75kg/ha because of growing the winner varieties of chickpea. Better productivity of the upscaled chickpea varieties could be associated with all or some of their traits presented in Fig. 3. About 98% of the respondents claimed that the genetic potential of the upscaled varieties could be the reason for their better productivity compared with the varieties they used to grow before. Similarly, it has been observed that better response of the varieties to farm management practices, resistance to diseases and pests and adaptability to the local growing conditions were among the major contributors to improved productivity of the varieties (Fig. 3). The deviation of the 14% HHs from reporting an increase in their farm productivity might be associated with their poor farm management practice or might have grown on highly marginal soil.
3.3. Household annual income and livelihood improvement indicators
The data collected on household annual income, premium price gained because of growing the winner varieties of chickpea, and indicators of livelihood improvement are presented in Table 4a-c. From our sample, 103 (85.8%) of the surveyed households have reported an increase in annual household income because of accessing the winner chickpea varieties with annual income ranging from 2500 to 181,000 Ethiopian birr (ETB) (Table 4a).
Table 4
Annual households’ income (a), reasons for income change of households growing the winner varieties of chickpea (b and c), reported factors contributing to increasing household income (d) by chickpea grower farmers in the Ada’a district of Oromia region.
a) Did the Household's income increase because of accessing crowdsourcing winner varieties? |
No | Yes | Respondents number (percent) |
17 | 103 |
b) What are the reasons for no increase in your annual income? | Income (ETB) increase range |
Failure of the varieties to perform | 2500–20000 | 26 (25%) |
Low productivity | 20001–40000 | 31 (30%) |
Disease pressure | 40001–60000 | 4 (4%) |
Luck of trust to grow the varieties | 60001–80000 | 4 (4%) |
The same income generated as growing other varieties | 80001–100000 | 9 (9%) |
| 100000–120000 | 14 (14%) |
120001–140000 | 13 (13%) |
> 140000 | 2 (2%) |
c) Why did your annual income increase? | |
Market demand for the varieties | 101 (98%) |
Reduced production cost | 86 (83%) |
Increased production volume | 98 (95%) |
Diversified income sources (pulses, cereals, straw) | 98 (95%) |
d) How many of the factors contributed to the increase in household income? |
Farmers reported 2 of the factors | 4 (4%) |
Farmers reported 3 of the factors | 21 (20%) |
Farmers reported 4 of the factors | 78 (76%) |
The current results have shown that the production of chickpeas in the Ada’a district is a rewarding business even though this business has collapsed due to disease pressure in the past. About 29 (24.2%) of participant farmers have reported an annual income of greater than 100,000 ETB or 1791.158 USD at an exchange rate of 1$ = 55.8298 because of accessing and growing the winner varieties on a hectare of land. Acceptance of the varieties in the market, the increased production volume of chickpeas, and diversification of income were the main reasons for the increase in annual household income (Table 4c). Reduction of production cost, as chickpeas do not require much agricultural inputs, was also claimed to contribute significantly. We have seen that a combination of the factors contributed to the increase in annual income as most farmers, 76%, have reported all four factors are contributors to their income increase (Table 4d).
The surveyed participant farmers unanimously responded that a premium market price is obtained for growing the winner varieties of chickpeas (Fig. 4A), with price gain ranging from 1–25 ETB/kg of grain. This might be due to the wider acceptance of these varieties by the local market (Table 4d) to use the winner varieties for seed and also due to the attractive quality attributes of the upscaled varieties (Table 5) ranging from appropriate maturity time (60%) to good color for market (84%). About 60% of the respondents reported a price gain of 6–15 ETB/kg of grain harvested from the upscaled varieties while about 23% of them reported a price gain of 16–25 ETB/kg from a sale of the winner upscaled chickpea varieties. The increase in farm productivity and household income because of the higher market price for their produce has been perceived to influence the livelihood of the grower households (Fig. 3B). According to 85.83% of the surveyed households, growing upscaled varieties of chickpeas helped farmers to start financial saving in banks. Over 79% of the surveyed households have noticed that growing these varieties improved their household nutrition and increased household assets. Similarly, over 50% of the respondents claimed that they afforded better schools for their children, accessed better healthcare facilities, and owned properties in a nearby town, Bishoftu.
Table 5
Attributes of the upscaled chickpea varieties farmers claimed for their preference over the other varieties they used to grow in Ada’a district of east Shoa zone.
Quality attributes of the upscaled chickpea winner varieties | No. of respondents claiming the quality attributes = 86 | Percent share* |
Good color for market | 84 | 98% |
Better taste | 77 | 90% |
Better cooking quality | 81 | 94% |
High and palatable straw | 72 | 84% |
Higher local market price | 78 | 91% |
Cultural values | 69 | 80% |
Maturity time | 60 | 70% |
* Percentages can overlap for the respondents were allowed to choose multiple answers.
3.3. Discussions
Ada’a district is among the major chickpea producers in the east Shoa zone together with Gimbichu, though other districts like Adami Tulu and Jiddo Kombolcha also have good potential (Gemechu et al. 2023). The productivity of chickpeas in the Ada’a district is higher than its average in the Oromia region and the national productivity (ESS 2022) which implies the importance of the district for chickpea production. However, its production is challenged by low productivity of landraces, poor farming practices, and biotic and abiotic stresses, among others (Chichaybelu et al. 2021; Addisu et al. 2023). Of the common diseases affecting the productivity of chickpeas, Ascochyta rabei, Fusarium Oxysporum, and Rhizoctonia solani are recognized as significant economic constraints to chickpea production in Ada’a district (Bekele et al. 2019). The focus group discussion conducted with Ada’a farmers to identify the crop types to upscale to Ada’a district by Bioversity International and Oromia Seed Enterprise in 2020 enabled us to know the abandonment of chickpea production because of root rot diseases, mostly those mentioned above. Participant farmers affirmed that chickpea production was abandoned in their kebele because of these diseases pressure.
Five chickpea varieties identified for disease resistance and other important traits identified through crowdsourcing trials in the southwest Shoa zone were introduced to the Ada’a district (Table 1). The use of crop diversity plays a pivotal role in smallholder farmers' ability to cope with and adapt to shocks. Shifting crop varieties and diversifying the crop portfolio are common risk-reduction strategies (Makate et al. 2022). The use of high-yielding, disease, and pest-resistant, and other abiotic stress-tolerant varieties, coupled with improved crop management practices, is an indispensable approach for increasing chickpea productivity and production (Bekele et al. 2019). As crop management practice, adjusting the planting date was included as a package of upscaling. Adopter farmers were advised to delay planting of the upscaled chickpea varieties to late August to early September from the traditional mid-August planting time in the area.
Variety selection and planting date adjustment are reported as effective mechanisms for reducing yield loss attributed to various diseases in chickpeas. For instance, Berket and Habtamu (2023) recommended delaying the planting date and growing variety Mastewal to maximize chickpea yield and minimize the effect and progression of fusarium wilt at chickpea growing areas in north Shoa. On station and on field trials conducted in east shoa indicated that the adjustment of chickpea planting to early September increased grain yield by 35% under rainfed conditions (Bezuneh 1975; Bejiga and Tullu 1994). In fact, sowing date adjustment greatly varieties from place to place. For instance, planting of chickpeas can be done early in July in moisture stressed lowland areas or when planted on sandy soils types (Korbu et al. 2020; Ali and Terefe 2023). In general, planting time is determined by the condition of abiotic and biotic stresses, soil type and agroecological conditions of the target area. Bilate et al (2018) reported that sowing of chickpea at mid- September was superior to that planted at mid Augst and early October in Meskan district of southern Ethiopia with grain yield advantage of 64% and 67%, respectively. The higher grain yield of mid-September planting of this study was due to availability of favorable soil moisture and less intensity of disease pressure.
The upscaling of crowdsourcing winner varieties of chickpeas has increased farmers’ varietal portfolio, farm productivity, and household income, and improved households' livelihoods. The average varietal portfolio of Farmers’ access to varietal diversity ensures stable production of a crop (Nalley and Barkley 2010), improves productivity (Gotor et al. 2021), and hence, ensures food security. Varietal portfolio effectively addresses location-specific emerging challenges and farmers’ preferences (Bishaw and Alemu 2017). Thus, increasing crop genetic diversity is a noble adaptation strategy in agriculture; especially for marginal environments and vulnerable areas to climate-related risks (Gotor et al. 2021).
As Ethiopia is the top producer, consumer, and exporter of chickpeas in the world (Chichaybelu et al. 2021), increasing the varietal portfolio of this crop is uniquely necessary for Ethiopian farmers; to utilize the rich resources, gear towards sustainable quality seed system and create stable production of the crops in the face of the current climate change impacts. Sample data collected and analyzed for the various upscaled chickpea varieties confirmed that their grain yield ranged from 2.3 to 2.6 t/ha (Table 2) showing that they perform higher than the national average of about 2 t/ha (ESS 2022). The upscaled varieties are in a similar range of productivity even if Arerti was dominantly disseminated in the Ada’a district (Table 3). High grain yield is the most perceived farmers’ preferred trait worth considering that perhaps underpins better adoption (Semahegn et al. 2021). It has been observed that 86% of the beneficiary farmers sampled and surveyed reported an increase of farm productivity after adopting the upscaled varieties (Fig. 2A). Empowering farmers to evaluate and select varieties through participatory methods such as crowdsourcing and assessing their feedback on the performance of varieties could accelerate the dissemination and adoption of selected varieties, which the classical variety development scheme lacks (Begna 2022). Furthermore, the upscaled chickpea varieties posse attractive preferential qualities such as market attracting seed color, better taste, better cooking quality, cultural values – among others (Table 5). Semahegn et al. (2021) have reported that higher grain yield potential, resistance to rust diseases and adaptation to drought and heat stress were among the most perceived farmers' preferred traits to adopt improved bread wheat.
An increase in varietal portfolio accompanied by increased varieties productivity plays a significant role in boosting smallholder farm household income and ultimately paving the way to attain household food and nutritional security (Tilaye et al. 2023; Jaleta et al. 2018). The annual income of beneficiary farmers growing the winner chickpea varieties ranged from 2500 to 140,000 ETB, a much higher income than growing the other varieties of the same crop (Table 4). The upscaled winner varieties of chickpea were found, both through metric data and survey data, to perform well at Ada’a even though chickpea production has been challenged by root rot diseases. The analysis of collected metric data showed that the grain yield of the upscaled winner varieties of chickpea ranged from 2.4 t/ha for Arerti variety to 2.53 t/ha for Habru variety (Table 2). The surveyed farmers not only reported increment per se for GY but also have pinpointed the underlying causes for the increment in grain yield (Fig. 3) ranging from the genetic potential of the varieties to their resistance to pests and diseases. Greater than 80% of survey participant farmers claimed that the high productivity of the upscaled chickpea varieties is presumably associated with their genetic potential (98%), low input requirements (80%); better response to farm management (92%), resistance to pests and diseases (88%) and their adaptability to the local growing conditions (91%). The understanding of the farmers’ insight of the performance of the varieties is believed to contribute to better adoption of the varieties which the classical variety development scheme lacks (Begna 2022). These traits of crops are among the most perceived farmers’ preference traits under marginal production conditions where crop production is constrained by biotic and abiotic stresses (Semahegn et al. 2021; Tekalign et al. 2016).
The access to adaptable and good performing crop varieties ensures farm households productivity, income, and overall livelihood (Bowles et al. 2020; Ibrahim et al. 2012; Khonje et al. 2015). Farm income is to audit both monetary and non-monetary income obtained from farm operation. Survey participant farmers claimed that their annual farm household income increased within a range of 2500 ETB to over 181,000ETB because of growing crowdsourcing winner varieties of chickpea (Table 4a). The larger variation in farm households’ annual income could be associated with the variety accessed and difference in farm management across the farm households (Dercon and Christiaensen 2011). Better annual income because of growing the upscaled varieties presumably associated with their reduced inputs (fungicide, pesticide, and fertilizer), which reduced production cost and the high yielding potential of the varieties. Besides, the upscaled chickpea varieties have higher market demand compared to other varieties of chickpea in the area (Table 4c; Table 5). It has been observed that the majority (> 80%) of farmers growing the upscaled varieties are earning between 6 and 25 ETB more price per sale of a kilo gram of chickpea compared to those growing the other chickpea varieties (Fig. 4a). A higher market price premium is usually paid for variety type, seed color and size of seeds, which is highly affected by biotic and abiotic stresses (ICRISAT 2013). Participatory engagement of farmers in evaluation and selection of crop varieties increase farmers adoption of developed varieties which improve their agricultural production and productivity, household income and overall living standard and consequently reduce poverty. Lower rate of agricultural technology adoption affects these household welfares (Kaliba et al. 2018; Alwang et al. 2019). Hence, the adoption of improved agricultural technology is a precondition for improving the living standards of the rural poor. The access to the upscaled crowdsourcing winner varieties has improved the livelihood of farm households in Ada’a district (Fig. 4B). It has been claimed by survey participant farmers that growing the upscaled varieties have helped them to increase their saving (85.83%), increase household assets (81.67%), improved family diet (79.17%), better household healthcare (59%) and affordability of sending children to better school for better education (55%). Verkaart et al (2016) inferred that adoption of improved chickpea varieties in Ethiopia has increased grower’s household income and reduced poverty and cultivation of improved chickpea varieties as a promising pathway for rural development in Ethiopia.
The future of food and nutrient security of the world population is partly dependent on the resilience of crops to climate change effect thereby contributing to the enhancement of crop production and productivity and improved livelihood. Varietal technologies coupled with crop husbandry (sowing date adjustment) restored chickpea production in Ada’a district where its production was almost abandoned because of the severe incidence of fusarium wilt and root rot diseases. The access to adaptable crop varieties enables farmers to sustain their farm productivity and reduce challenges of food security (Benitez-Alfonso et al. 2023). At this point in time, climate change is projected to escalate the frequency, intensity, spatial dimensions, and duration of extreme weather events, exacerbating the threat to the production and productivity of all major crops. This calls for better access by smallholder farmers to agricultural technologies that perhaps underpin resilient crop production to manage such climatic hazards. Having accessed the winner varieties of the upscaling experiment the target farmers realized farm resilience that can be conspicuously explained by the much higher grain yield of the varieties and better performance under stress conditions.