Scalling Up Approach

The scaling up model bring people of common interests together in order to achieve a common goal. The people/organisation include farmers, vegetable marketers, vegetable producers, food processors, farm input sellers, the government, high/secondary schools, universities, research institutes.

In order to extend technological innovations from Microveg to our audience, we use two major approaches

  1. Innovation Platform
  2. Satellite Dissemination Approach
  3. .

Innovation Platform (IP)

The IP approach involves working with multiple actors for consensus building. The core role of IPs is to improve coordination and collaboration along the value chain, which is expected to result in more efficient and equitable linkages. The IP is based on the thesis that improved interactions, through dialogue along the value chain could help to forge linkages among stakeholders which could result in enhanced communication and information exchange to address common challenges. In summary, the hypothesis behind the Innovation Platform Approach is that cooperation among stakeholders and actors enhance adoption and scaling up while Satellite Dissemination Approach relies on information and capacity building (training, demonstration, information) etc to reach the same goal.

Satellite Dissemination Approach (SDA)

The SDA is a linear extension model where the research team disseminates a set of innovation through the extension system. Among the tools in SDA are the group training in technology extension, participatory research and development such as Farmers Field Schools (FFS), demonstration trials and community-based outreach through farmer collective action. Demonstration trials and exchange visits among actors were used extensively as major tools for effective dissemination during scaling up implementation.

Improvement in People's Life

In scaling up MicroVeg technologies, we focus on improvements in peoples' lives through:

  • Enhanced production of indigenous vegetables to generate more income and live better life, resulting in poverty reduction.
  • Increased access to food and protein sources and generally diversified nutritious diet.
  • Improvement in women's access to and control over productive and farming resources, and
  • Building capacity of a pool of young champions in vegetables production enterprise through the Young Vegetables Scientists Club (YVSC).

Relations to Farmers and Stakeholders

Our team followed the under-listed procedures to gain the confidence of the farmers and other stakeholders.

  • Identification of vegetable farmers and farming communities.
  • Series of visits to the farming communities and markets to create awareness of the project and request for their cooperation.
  • Training of project technical and field staff on scaling up activities and necessary operations.
  • Setting up of demonstration sites for SDA in collaboration with the farmers and communities
  • Identification of actors/stakeholders involved in vegetable value chain for IP (vegetables producers, seed sellers, farm input sellers, financial institutions, transporters, vegetables marketers, government ministries, processors and industries).

Target Reached

The dissemination of indigenous vegetable technologies had reached 41 districts in Nigeria and 13 in Benin, directly involving 37,223 farmers (45% female) who have recruited an additional 93,526 farmers (~50% female) to participate in the demonstrations as indirect beneficiaries from the project.

The demonstration farmers have commenced vegetable production during the dry season in November 2016. Farmers reported that the benefits of the field visits and training include:

  1. Deeper knowledge of fertilizer management especially now that fertilizers are not affordable due to high prices caused by inflation. This micro-dosing technology is considered most valuable for cost saving,
  2. Better understanding of vegetable field management including breaking of seed dormancy, appropriate seeding density, weed and pest management, irrigation water management and record keeping.
  • Series of meetings on benefits of IP and signing of agreements with the IP groups.
  • Launching of the Innovation Platform at selected locations.
  • Setting up of Innovation Platform (Establishment of location of IP activities in cells, clusters and allocation of responsibilities) and Functioning of IPs (Making IPs function effectively)