> the diversification of income streams can de-risk agricultural activities and reduce the risk of loan defaults

I'm glad to see more and more africans thinking like this. So many of us just focus on maize maize maize and don't realize that we are ruining our soils by simply planting one crop. This is how our grandparents and their parents used to do things back in the day. But because we viewed European ways as superior we have forgotten the best ways to treat the land. They used to grow multiple crops and thrived because of it. It's the natural way to grow things -- you can't find a forest with just one type of plant or even just fewer than 10 different plants. It's the natural way to grow things and our grandparents knew this.

It also makes economic sense. If one crop fails, then you still have many more to fall back on. Never put all your eggs (or crops) in one basket. More of farmers need to learn this.