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CIMMYT Ethiopia
Sustainable intensification practices, such as intercropping maize with grain legumes, are essential for smallholder farmers in southern Africa to address climate change and declining soil fertility. A study in Zambia compared different diversification strategies (single-row intercropping, strip cropping, and crop rotation) with sole maize. The results showed that while there were no significant differences in individual yields, intercropping systems provided important nutritional and economic benefits. However, these systems required more labor, which was not preferred by farmers. Soil organic carbon content and pH generally decreased without differences between systems. In summary, maize-legume intercropping can improve food security and agricultural benefits, although it requires more labor, which could be addressed with appropriate mechanization.