Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-19.
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment she has made of the potential effect of agroecology on food production in the developing world; and if she will make a statement.
Grant Shapps
DFID supports a number of research programmes that assess the use of agroecology and sustainable intensification of agriculture, such as work with the International Institute for Environment and Development (IIED), and the Sustainable Agricultural Intensification Research and Learning in Africa. Research shows that yields improvements are context-based and can vary significantly, according to local agroclimatic potential, effective productivity levels and farmers’ investment capacity.
DFID believes agro ecological approaches have an important role to play in specific contexts, but does not prescribe technical approaches centrally. DFID supports a wide range of programmes with agro-ecological components, from soil and water conservation and land use management to climate resilience, conservation agriculture and agroforestry. These include, for example, The Adaptation for Smallholder Agriculture Programme (ASAP), and Building Resilience and Adaptation to Climate Extremes and Disasters (BRACED). The full range of our programmes can be found on our Development Tracker website.
