Agriculture in the Developing World - A Problem
On Tuesday, July 17, 2023, I went for an in-field visit to different farms in rural Egypt, between Cairo and Alexandria. The purpose of this trip was for researchers from Chemonics International to conduct interviews with farmers to gain an insider’s perspective on the struggles they encounter, how they respond to these struggles, and what knowledge they have about agriculture despite having limited access to technology. Through these insights, the researchers hoped to get inside the head of a farmer to craft tailored financial and technological solutions for farmers to combat the adverse effects of climate change in the agricultural sector.
As we approached the first farm, the landscape drastically changed from green hills to a dry, bare desert. Looking outside, the only color visible was beige. Beige and more beige. The numerous potholes on the road doubled the duration of the drive, as the driver had to slow down every 100 meters to avoid plummeting into a ditch. One could safely say that the terrain was indeed quite rough.
The first farm was medium-sized, consisting of 711 farmers, each owning 5 hectares. We greeted about five farmers, who showed us a room to sit and conduct the interview. The room felt like a sauna, but worse. Flies were swarming around me, from head to toe. I could sense that farming was physically a very grueling discipline just by sitting in the heat. Sweat was dripping from each farmer’s head. Flies were bombarding their faces, but unlike me (who was bobbing his head up and down every ten seconds to avoid the flies) the farmers were still as a statue, indicating their peace with the flies.
The farmers explained how the government subsidizes the irrigation system, with the entire farm operating on drip irrigation. However, in return, the farmers pay a small commission to the government. Shocked, I was happily surprised that the farmers are using water conservatively instead of just flooding the whole field to water their crops. In addition to irrigation, fertilizers are partially subsidized by the government, alleviating a small financial burden on the farmers. The farmers’ produce mainly consists of citrus fruits and mangos, with a small portion of the farmers also growing jalapenos, beans, and corn. While most of the crops are exported (because of the underdevelopment of the local market), the government buys corn from the farmers, which is then sold in the local market.
As the interview progressed, we wanted to gain an understanding of the collaboration among the farmers (or lack thereof). The farmers do not have a proper platform for communicating new methods they learn for farming. Sometimes over a cup of tea, they chat about it, but that is it. As a result, it is hard for the community to expand their knowledge outside of just each man trying a method for himself and seeing if it works. They need to adopt a more methodical approach, where they can communicate their newly-acquired knowledge efficiently and effectively, perhaps through an app. Additionally, in a sector like agriculture, precision is crucial for a good harvest, especially as climate change is making the weather increasingly unpredictable. Having a platform to measure and track how much of a substance it’s used, when it’s used, and how it’s used are the first steps in becoming more climate-resilient.
In terms of generating personal income, each farmer has his contract, which means that each farmer will get different prices depending on the quality of the crop and the price the broker sets. However, because farmers are worried that they won’t be able to find another buyer, they usually sell all of their harvests at once, eliminating the risk of a crop going to waste before it’s sold. This paradigm raises two key issues. First, the farmer is essentially cut off from the market. He doesn’t know what a reasonable price is for his crops. He is at the mercy of the broker. In addition, the farmers don’t have any sort of technology to track whether or not their produce is meeting the export standards. While most of these small-hold farmers are illiterate, they struggle to understand these standards on paper.
Concerning climate change, farmers are already adopting innovative solutions. For example, they figured out that in the summer months, mango crops burn if they are planted in August. To address this issue, they have started planting their plants earlier on. Similarly, in the winter, they irrigate crops with warm water to prevent frosting. However, these approaches are focused on trial/error rather than a systematic and reliable approach to increase yields. By using statistics and data, the farmers can systematically track their progress and also keep a record of the amount of water, fertilizer, and pesticides used. Ultimately, with climate change, the end goal is to reduce the latter two substances in farming as it is harmful to the soil. In addition, farmers make themselves more attractive to investors if they can increase yields but also minimize fertilizer usage. The younger generations need to take the initiative into adopting more modern methods of farming which use modern technology, instead of relying on their parents’ ways, which will not stand the test of climate change. These young farmers should go to university, study agriculture, and come back to their village to show their families methods consisting of data analytics and climate-resilient methods that are proven to increase yields, rather than the old-school methods.
