Prioritizing options for multi-objective agricultural development through the Positive Deviance approach

Area of Science:

• Agricultural Development
• Rural Livelihoods
• Sustainable Farming Systems

Background:

• Agricultural development requires balancing food security, income, and environmental sustainability.
• Household heterogeneity necessitates tailored strategies, yet existing diversity may offer solutions.
• Trade-offs between development objectives pose challenges for selecting effective practices.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and test an adapted Positive Deviance approach for identifying multi-objective agricultural development practices.
• To uncover locally viable livelihood strategies from high-performing rural households.
• To inform targeted recommendations for diverse farming households in comparable resource contexts.

Main Methods:

• Quantitative survey of over 500 rural households in South-Eastern Tanzania.
• Identification of 54 'positive deviant' households excelling across food security, income, nutrition, environmental sustainability, and social equity.
• Qualitative interviews with a sub-sample to identify specific 'deviant' practices contributing to superior outcomes.

Main Results:

• Positive deviant households demonstrated superior food security and slightly better social equity compared to similar households.
• Fourteen uncommon, locally viable practices were identified as plausibly contributing to outstanding household performance.
• The Positive Deviance approach successfully identified practices linked to multi-dimensional household success.

Conclusions:

• The adapted Positive Deviance approach is effective for identifying context-specific agricultural practices that enhance multiple development objectives.
• Empirical observation of high-performing households can guide the development of sustainable and equitable agricultural solutions.
• This method provides a framework for leveraging local knowledge and diversity in agricultural development planning.