#ms08: Agriculture - Households using the Promoted Practices

Hunger is most prevalent in remote regions of the world where people typically draw their food and livelihoods from the natural environment. In these areas, sustainable and resilient agriculture and improved natural resources management (NRM) are key instruments to fight hunger and poverty and achieve nutrition security. Such measures can support smallholder farmers in cultivating higher-yield and more nutritious crops while preserving natural resources. Hunger is most prevalent in remote regions of the world where people typically draw their food and livelihoods from the natural environment. In these areas, sustainable and resilient agriculture and improved natural resources management (NRM) are key instruments to fight hunger and poverty and achieve nutrition security. Such measures can support smallholder farmers in cultivating higher-yield and more nutritious crops while preserving natural resources.

The #ms Agriculture indicator assesses the number of households who started, and for at least one harvesting season (6 - 12 months depending on the geography), continued to follow the sustainable and resilient agriculture/land management practice(s) promoted by WHH (or partners/the project).

Collect the following data by conducting individual interviews with a representative sample (WHH sampling guidelines) of the households targeted in your project.

Questions should be addressed to one member of each sampled household, namely the person (adult) who is responsible for agriculture and land management and who received input and/or trainings from WHH/partners/the project.

The indicator requires a baseline and comparison value(s) to yield meaningful information on project outcomes. At minimum, data should be collected as part of both a baseline and an endline survey. Additionally, a mid-term data collection is optional.

• More information: #ms08 Agriculture Handbook (EN)
• External resources: USAID-BHA Handbook Part I 2021 (EN); USAID-BHA Handbook Part II 2021 (EN)

Disaggregate the data by gender, wealth, location and other relevant criteria

This is a 'Measuring Success' (#ms) indicator. It is obligatory for all WHH projects to integrate all #ms indicators that align with the project context, with a minimum requirement of utilizing at least one indicator (and implementing one #ms qualitative tool).

1) Data can be collected at any time of the year, but baseline and endline data collection should always be undertaken at the same time of the year and in line with seasonal calendars in each context (e.g., rainy season, harvest season). When planning the timing of the baseline survey, try to consider the anticipated timing of the endline survey.

2) For this indicator it is crucial to have a clear understanding of the promoted agriculture/land management practice(s) and a project-related definition of what it means to ‘use’ it/them – what exactly needs to be done, how, with what materials, for what purpose, for how long. Based on this definition, assess whether the promoted agriculture/land management measure(s) is/are used ‘correctly’.

3) Enumerators should attend an in-depth practical training session before collecting data. Points to emphasize:

• Before starting data collection, the definitions of the promoted agriculture/land management practice(s) and what it means to ‘correctly use’ them should be well documented and shared with the enumerators!
• In addition to survey skills, training should provide enumerators with a good technical understanding of the promoted agriculture/land management practice(s) and knowledge of sustainable and resilient agriculture/land management practice(s) in general.
• Enumerators should verify positive responses by asking more specific questions or making observations about the agriculture/land management practice(s) in use.
• Enumerators should ask respondents who denied having used the promoted practice(s) why they don’t use them.