Site selectionin the Nicaragua VC

An Notenbaert, Jeannette van de Steeg, Isabelle Baltenbeck, Jane Poole

Impact Pathways Workshop & VCA Tools Workshop, Managua, August 2013

Huge heterogeneity in bio-physical and socio-economic context

Identify a small number of representative research locations: That capture the gradient of key variables provide opportunity for good research and impact

Site selection - rationale

Site selection - criteriaField Sites are selected using a combination of ‘hard’ and ‘soft’ criteria• Hard criteria

Based on maps of e.g. cattle density, poverty and market access

Implemented in a Geographical Information System (GIS)• Soft criteria

‘Ease of working’ Opportunity to double up with Field Sites with other

projects/programs Presence and capacity of partners Institutional actor presence and networks Resource availability – interest from other donors

Potential for impact Current practices

Multi-step procedure1. Define the target zone

Different types of markets in Nicaragua2. Decide what a site is

Municipality or cluster of municipalities?3. Spatial stratification and selection of ‘potential sites’

Based on the ‘hard’ criteria Representing the different contexts/environments Our proposal: cattle density, poverty, market access

4. Scoring of potential sites Based on the ‘soft’ criteria ‘Impact’ indicators and ‘ease of working’ indicators

5. Agreement on final set of sites Start implementation of the project

Different types of marketsLaF (milk, meat & fish for the poor by the poor) strata to consider Peri-urban (not in this case) Rural to urban Rural to rural

Define target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Different types of markets - 2Define target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Departments and municipalitiesDefine target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Why stratify into domains?Define target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

• To ensure representativeness and inclusiveness of the diverse environments

• To evaluate research processes etc. in different environments

• To facilitate lessons learning across the various VCs

• To facilitate scaling out of interventions

Spatial stratificationSpatial criteria:Cattle density → high density areasPoverty → high poverty areasMarket access → good vs. bad

access areas

Define target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

LaF strata to consider: Peri-urban Rural to urban Rural to rural

Cattle densitiesDefine target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Cut off value:60 head/km2

PovertyDefine target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Cut off value:50% of population

Market accessDefine target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Cut off value:4 hours

Cut off value:2 hours

Domains

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

Define target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Meat Value Chain(< 4 hours travel time)

Milk Value Chain(< 2 hours travel time)

Rural to rural markets

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

- Meat Value Chain -

Rural to rural markets

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

- Milk Value Chain -

Rural to urban markets

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

- Meat Value Chain -

Rural to urban markets

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

- Milk Value Chain -

Selection criteria

• The spatial criteria ALONE don’t have a high enough resolution to select field sites completely, so we combine them with soft criteria AND ‘ground-truthing’ (with stakeholders) to come up with the final selection

• Under ‘soft’ criteria we understand:Partners – presence & capacityOn-going research activities Proximity and comparability to other long-term research sitesInstitutional actor presence & networksResource availabilityOthers?....

Define target zone Site definition Spatial stratification Scoring of potential sites

Example criteria

CGIAR is a global partnership that unites organizations engaged in research for a food secure future. The CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish aims to increase the productivity of small-scale livestock and fish systems in sustainable ways, making meat, milk and fish more available and affordable across the developing world.

CGIAR Research Program on Livestock and Fish

livestockfish.cgiar.org

Pre-selected sites and domains

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

- Meat Value Chain -

Pre-selected sites and domains

Cattle densities, poverty, market access- in that order -

- Milk Value Chain -