expanding agriculture and food security activities in ... - part - usaid

support research and the expanded use of improved technologies that will directly support the USAID
program. The Sudan Productive Capacity Program is a capacity building program funded by the EC,
already on-going in one USAID targeted state (Western Equatoria). It provides funds for constructing
local government offices, vehicles and equipment. The USAID project will benefit to a more limited
degree from the Microfinance Facility which could address some finance needs of petty traders. The
Livestock project will revitalize the animal health worker system and provide laboratory support and
capacity building to GOSS, and will rehabilitate livestock markets and stock routes. The USAID program
can build on these interventions once they are implemented, and work to develop private sector skills in
business and marketing along the livestock value chain.
A more detailed description is found in Annex 1.
4. CURRENT SITUATION
The following section describes what the team has observed and learned during its brief time in country
about smallholder production and marketing.
It is clear that Southern Sudan is still in the early years of recovery, with many Sudanese only recently
returned in the Equatoria States. Returnees are struggling to re-start their lives as productive members of
their communities. NGO resettlement programs have played an important role in this process as they
provide seeds and tools to help kick start these households’ agricultural livelihoods. However, many of
the youth have lost farming skills or are not interested in farming; it is predominantly the older generation
who have the knowledge and drive to start farming
Land. It is estimated that 90% of Southern Sudan’s land is arable, with close to 50% being high potential
for agriculture. While to date, there appears to be little problem with the traditional and customary land
allocation system, several experts expressed concern that increasing numbers of settlers moving into
Southern Sudan could strain this system. In addition, GOSS at national and state level are encouraging
commercial investors to develop more land for agriculture (including forestry). Opening up of new land
poses potential threats to sustainable use of the resource base, and it will be critical for GOSS to develop
an approach to undertake and implement land use planning to avoid degradation of the natural resource
base. The USAID project on land tenure will begin laying basis for that process to start.
Related to land use is the extensive charcoal making activities throughout the areas the team visited.
Depletion of forest cover will be a major concern as rural populations increase and as agriculturists
expand area under cultivation to meet food needs and produce for the market. Local government officials
typically expressed priority for expanding land under cultivation as the first step towards increasing
production, and did not place emphasis on increasing productivity to achieve the same objective.
The right to use land within a village is linked to the customary kinship structure which is still practiced
and works effectively. There is a system of customary “chiefs of land” at all levels of society (family,
village, boma and payam) responsible for distributing land and resolving conflict. The chiefs are also
responsible for regulating the use of the common land reserved for grazing, fishing, hunting and
gathering, etc. Land use rights for agricultural land are transferred from generation to generation within a
family. However, once there is clear evidence that a family no longer utilizes a plot, then it returns to
common property. Where possible, chiefs have returned the same plots of land originally vacated by IDPs
– if not; a similar piece of land is allocated. The uncultivated land generally requires a considerable
amount of land clearing work and, if needed, villagers would gather together to help a family to prepare
new fields. (IFAD SSLPP Working Paper on Agriculture)
EXPANDING AGRICULTURE AND FOOD SECURITY ACTIVITIES IN SOUTHERN SUDAN 18