building small farmers resilience to climate change in

Building Small Farmers Resilience to Climate Change in Suriname

GCCA+ Suriname Adaptation Project

Funded by the European Union in collaboration with the UNDP Suriname.

AGENDA


• Projects

• Objectives

• Expected Results

• Protected agriculture structure

• Solar energy System

• Water reservoir

• Micro-irrigation systems

• Perone Hive Technology

• Strengthening Skills

• Summary Farmers Experience

PROJECTS

• Project Title: Reducing Farmer Vulnerability toClimate Change Impacts through the Promotion ofClimate Smart Agriculture Technologies inSuriname. Amount: USD 266,087; Duration 12-2016 – 11- 2018.

• Project Title: Promoting Sustainable Livelihoodsthrough the Utilization of Permapiculture forMangrove Rehabilitation in Coastal Communitiesin Suriname. Amount: USD 70,000; Duration 11-2018 – 07-2019.


OBJECTIVES

• OVERALL OBJECTIVE

To strengthen the resilience of the agriculture sectorto the negative impacts of climate change throughthe promotion and use of climate smart agriculturetechnologies.

• SPECIFICS OBJECTIVE

1. Reducing Farmer Vulnerability to Climate ChangeImpacts through the building of knowledge and skillsin the use and management of protected agriculturalstructures and rain water harvesting systems forsustainable commercial vegetable production.

2. Promoting Sustainable Livelihoods through theUtilization of Permapiculture for MangroveRehabilitation in Coastal Communities in Suriname.


EXPECTED RESULTS

• Increase knowledge and skills of farmers, beekeepers, agriculture technicians and agriculture students in smart agriculture technologies.

• Increase knowledge and use of water harvesting and micro irrigation technologies by vegetable farmers particularly in the Weg naar zee Area.

• Increase sensitization and awareness in the agriculture sector, schools, and among national authorities on the impacts of climate change.

• Establishment of organizational frame works for improved Governance, management, and operational processes for farmers producers groups.


EXPECTED RESULTS

Weg naar Zee• Located on the Northwest of the Capital Paramaribo.

As the name suggests, it is on the Atlantic coast.

• Is one the main Vegetable producing areas of Suriname

• Population 16.037 (2012)

Coronie• Situated on the Coast

• Is one the main Honey producing areas of Suriname

• 65% of the countries beekeepers are located in this District


EXPECTED RESULTS

Design:

• Two (2) Doble Ridge Protected agriculture structure installed.

• Dimension: (45mx9mx7.5m)

Design functions:

• To increase Air circulation,

• To keep out pest and disease

• To better manage of the temperature and Humidity (misting system)

• Hydroponic production system (soil-less culture)

• Substrate Mixture (local) of river sand (20%) & Rice chaff (80%)

• 16 Kw Solar Power System –Zero netting

• Water Reservoir (12x20x2m- HDPE pond liner


MICRO-IRRIGATION SYSTEMS


• Leafy vegetables • Area 4000m2• Required less water

pressure

Micro Overhead sprinklers

irrigation system

• Fruit vegetable (tomato; Sweet pepper)

• Area 2000m2

Drip tube irrigation system

• Precision doses calculation of fertilizers

• Minimize nutrition loss by run-offs

Ferti –Irrigation system

PERONE HIVE TECHNOLOGY


Fabrication of Perone bee hives• 50 Perone Bee Hives Fabricated• Local materials

Bee management• Management of Perone bee hive technology• Wild Swarm catching

Preservation Technics• Burning of the Perone Bee hives (Charcoal)

Installation in coastal Mangrove forest• Increase Pollination• Protection of the mangrove forest

STRENGTHENING SKILLS

Open field Micro-irrigation and Crop management under Protected Agriculture Structures

• Hundred and twenty two (121) Farmers trained• Twenty Two (22) Agriculture extension officers

trained • Twenty one (21) students of the Anton de Kom

University • One (1) Knowledge exchange visit to CRESIAP,

Santa Anita, Jalisco, Mexico


STRENGTHENING SKILLS

Bee Husbandry, Perone Hive Fabrication and maintenance, mangrove importanc

- Thirty eight (38) Beekeepers trained in the fabrication of Perone hives.

- Seventy one (71) Beekeepers, bee enthusiast and Tertiary level students trained in management of honey bees using Perone hive technology.

- One (1) knowledge exchange visit for a Queen Rearing and Bee Instrumentation Training Workshop (St. Lucia)

- Wild swarm capture and Perone Hive installation


Protected Agriculture/Micro-irrigation

• Growth substrate of rice chaff and river sand (substitutes traditional practice of burning of rice chaff which cause CO2 emissions)

• Growth substrate can be reused for open field soil amendment for amelioration upon replacement

• Rain water harvesting for irrigation• Reduced water consumption through micro-

irrigation to 85 to 100 % efficiency versus average 60 % other methods and reduced postharvest cleaning

• Reduced use of pesticides/weedicides due to soilless culture and protected cultivation environment

• More efficient use of fertilizers through hydroponics system which reduces leaching of agrochemicals into soil and groundwater sources

• Reservoirs with protective lining protects stored irrigation water from contamination by salt water intrusion.

• Reduces crops losses due to reduced incidence of weed (ground cover); reduced incidence of pests and disease (fully enclosed structure); reduced impact of environmental factors due to controlled environment (sunburn), nutrient and moisture deficiency disorders and chemical injury.

• Breaks reliance on crop seasonality• Decrease fossil fuels consumption. - excess to grid

Permapiculture/Mangrove Rehabilitation• Waste lumber from the local timber industry

can be utilized to manufacture Hives (non reliance on imported materials)

• Perone Hive creates more favorable environment for bee populations and less intrusive husbandry practices over traditional Langstroth Hives thereby maintaining healthier Hives and potentially increasing populations

• Increased bee pollinator services to coastal mangrove forests and nearby agricultural farms

• Promotes ownership of responsibility of protecting mangrove forests by coastal communities due to tangible benefit of viable sites for honey production

• Provides in situ high value economic activity from green economy for coastal communities.

• Capture and relocation of wild swarms from residential zones instead of destruction by Fire Department


Positive agroecological practices/benefits P

SUMMARY FARMER’S EXPERIENCE: Protected Structure/Microirrigation


Comparison of harvest and postharvest

Protected agriculture structure

Open field

Harvesting time 12 months Average 3 monthsWeekly fruit set/plant Higher LowerQuality of fruit No sunburn Sunburn presentFertilizer Plants react faster Plants reacts slowerWashing harvest fruit Not necessary Washing RequiredYield per plant Higher LowerTaste Sweeter Slightly bitter

SUMMARY FARMER’S EXPERIENCE: Permapiculture


Comparison of Perone and Langstroth beehive

Perone Bee hive Langstroth beehive

Harvesting time More Bee wax Less Bee wax Bee behavior Less aggressive More aggressiveHive management Less interference Required interferenceHoney comb Free built Induced to built a

certain mannerMaterials Beehives Fabricated with local

source materialsAdditional materials needs to be imported

Cost of Fabrication 25% less to build 25% more to build

SUSTAINABILITY OF INTERVENTIONS


Establishment of Producer Organizations: Vereniging Duurzame Ontwikkeling Weg naarZee -(65 members); Cosu Imkers Vereniging Wroko Was Wasi- (30 members)

Replicate permapiculture activities in other costal mangrove communities. (Ongoing)

Replicate the Protected Agriculture structures to other Farmers and other regions of Suriname. Conduct targeted long-term research on crop agronomy, post harvest variables, and agrometeorological variables [ time to harvest; yield per plant, flowering and fruit set; temperature; humidity; substrate durability and performance; nutrient consumption] (Ongoing).

QUESTIONS??


building small farmers resilience to climate change in

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