1. Key constraints • Drought • Poor soil fertility • Soil erosion • Low organic matter in intensified systems • Insect pests, diseases & Weeds • Overgrazing • Lack of feed resources for livestock • Lack of appropriate tools • Lack of processing technologies • Poor product quality • High post harvest losses • Poor storage facilities • Poor access to markets • Poor infrastructure • Inappropriate policies • Limited access to credit • Low labour productivity

2. Program goal & Purpose Goal • Food security and livelihoods enhanced, poverty reduced, and human nutrition improved and environment protected in West and Central Africa Purpose • To improve and intensify cereal-legume-livestock systems and promote their adoption in partnership with multiple stakeholders (farmers, consumers, the commercial sector, NGOs, NARES, and advanced research institutes) in west and central Africa.

3. outputs • Researchable issues in response to stakeholders’ needs formulated, targeted and prioritised through identification of key drivers of intensification • Management practices for the optimisation and stabilization of intensified production systems developed through enhanced understanding of soil processes, crop and weed interactions • System and end-user constraints and opportunities addressed through the development of high yielding, dual-purpose maize hybrids and open-pollinated varieties, soybean breeding lines, cowpea breeding lines, and promotion of improved varieties of other important crops in savanna

4. Outputs • Improved post harvest technologies, production and processing equipment for expanded utilization and commercialisation in food, feed and industrial sectors developed • Intensified, farmer acceptable cereal-legume and livestock systems developed, validated and promoted through participatory, integrated, income-generating crop, resource management, pre/post harvest, and IPM “best-bet” strategies • NARES ‘s capacity to generate and transfer technologies enhanced

5. Selected highlights for 2004