Lunch seminar "The quest for organic resources in the context of integrated soil fertility management"

Traditional farming systems in sub-Saharan Africa depend primarily on mining soil nutrients. The African Green Revolution aims at intensifying agriculture through dissemination of Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM). We define ISFM as 'A set of soil fertility management practices that necessarily include the use of fertilizer, organic inputs, and improved germplasm combined with the knowledge on how to adapt these practices to local conditions, aiming at maximizing agronomic use efficiency of the applied nutrients and improving crop productivity. All inputs need to be managed following sound agronomic principles.'

A major challenge to implement ISFM practices is the lack or organic resources in farming systems under high population densities. Substantial research-for-development efforts have been implemented to address this challenge. Various options to produce these inputs are discussed and evaluated with a specific focus on dual purpose grain legumes that address simultaneously soil fertility constraints and farmer's immediate interests.