Theme 2: Multifunctional landscapes for increased food security

Smallholder farmers are vulnerable and have many times difficulty in achieving sustainable food production, structural agricultural development and economic growth, particularly in the extensive dry areas where rain-fed system are dominating.

Policies for sustainable development

These systems are often integrated with a mixture of trees, crops and animals. Policies for these regions need to increasingly be up-scaled from the field level to science-based understanding of multifunctional landscapes to include trade-offs and synergies with other goals. This is central to achieve i) sustainable intensification and development, and ii) enhanced resilience in times of disturbances, and especially to climate change and its unreliable rainfall (reduced quantity, increased intensity) and higher temperatures (especially medium and maximum).

Theme 2 is interdisciplinary and covers all cross-cutting issues of the programme (sustainable intensification of agriculture, the central role of women and young people in agriculture, and access to markets and value chains).

Read about some of our projects below.

The theme has four components in focus:

1. Land, trees and water
2. Drivers and trends
3. Up-scaling and markets
4. Food security from the landscape perspective

The work will be conducted through science-based syntheses and analyzes, and aims at making better use of the opportunities for knowledge exchange between Sweden and the countries of the South and between low-income countries. In addition, two intensive courses for young researchers will be given. This theme will be conducted in close collaboration with the other three themes in the programme.

Exchange scholars

An important part of AgriFoSe2030s activities is to transfer knowledge with exchange scholars. Here, you can read interviews with scholars, and find more information on researchers from Theme 2 that has taken part in an exchange:

• Dr. Bonaventure Ntirugulirwa, Research fellow at the Rwanda Agriculture Board (RAB) participated in a research exchange to Gothenburg University during April-May 2017. During the exchange he gathered experiences to continue his research project on selection of native tree species for multifunctional landscapes supporting food security in ecological regions of Rwanda.
• Dr. DVP Prasada, Senior lecturer at the Faculty of Agriculture, University of Peradeniya, Sri-Lanka, was in September 2018 enrolled with a south-south exchange as invited researcher to the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in the Philippines. During the exchange, Dr. Prasada investigated adaptation to ecosystem stresses for rice paddy cultivation, in terms of management practices that support multifunctionality of paddy systems.
• D. Leimona Beria, Ecosystem Services Scientist at ICRAF Indonesia, participated in an exchange to Chalmers University of Technology during mid-January to mid-February 2019. The purpose with the stay was to exchange experiences and collaboration for her project on improving smallholder’s resilience to climate and socio-political shocks using ecosystem services schemes through co-investment with others, particularly government and the private sector. During the exchange she also participated in several seminars regarding her work with developing the ASEAN Guidelines for Agroforestry.
• New South to South research exchange “-In Bangladesh, the scope of agroforestry is vast”
  Dr Md Shafiqul Bari,researcher from the Department of Agroforestry and Environment, Hajee Mohammad Danesh Science and Technology University in Bangladesh
• Research exchange to promote policy instruments for improved food production
  Dr. Celestin Ukozehasi, a plant physiologist at the University of Rwanda
• What happens to food supply when agroforestry parklands degrade?
  Hugues Bazie, lecturer at Ouagadougou University in Burkina Faso
• Up-scaling organic homegarden agroforestry can play a great role in improving livelihoods
  Kassa Teka, Associated Professor at Mekelle University, Department of Land Resources Management and Environmental Protection in Ethiopia
• What are you passionate about? – “Fish farming!”
  Geraldine Matolla, lecturer at the Department of Fisheries and aquatic sciences, University of Eldoret in Kenya
• AgriFoSe2030 researcher visit home gardens in Sri Lanka
  Eskil Mattson, researcher at the Centre for Environment and Sustainability (joint centre by Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg) in Sweden
• Dr Mureithi from University of Nairobi – AgriFoSe2030’s first visiting scientist
  Stephen Mureith, researcher the Department of Land Resources Management and Agricultural Technology, University of Nairobi in Kenya