Codesign of agropastoral innovations through a model at farm scale. Case of cattle fattening

In agropastoral areas of West Africa, some farmers aim to intensify their farming systems. Action research in partnership (ARP) methods may support these changes through the use of modeling tools. The objective of this article was to analyze the relevance of the use of a simulation model at farm scale within an ARP framework to codesign agropastoral innovations. The study was conducted in Koumbia and Kourouma villages located in the west of Burkina Faso. The article analyzes results obtained by seven farmers who aimed at developing cattle fattening. Simulations of the project were carried out and compared to a baseline scenario corresponding to the practices implemented by farmers the year before the ARP. At the same time, the technical staff of the project provided the farmers with financial support to help them improve fattening cattle feed at full scale by introducing fodder crops and improving storage fodder capacity. Interviews and follow-ups were carried out to investigate farmers’ perception of the relevance of the model and to analyze their adoption of the proposed techniques. The farmers the most interested in the use of the model were those who lacked experience in cattle fattening. The model helped them assess the expected effects of this type of activity on the farm income, crop balance, and mineral crop balance. Follow-ups performed after the experimental phase showed that farmers carried on the activities simulated by the model and tested in the field. The study highlights the benefits from associating modeling with on-field experiments in order to facilitate the adoption of technical innovations by stakeholders