Abstract: Purpose – The adoption of climate-smart agricultural practices (CSAPs) is important for sustaining Indian agriculture in the face of climate change. Despite considerable effort by both national and international agricultural organizations to promote CSAPs in India, adoption of these practices is low. This study aims to examine the elements that affect the likelihood and intensity of adoption of multiple CSAPs in Bihar, India. Design/methodology/approach – The probability and in...
Abstract: Diversité génétique des variétés traditionnelles de niébé [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walp.] au Sénégal : étude préliminaire Des missions de collectes ont été organisées dans les principales régions de production du niébé au Sénégal dans le but d’obtenir des informations sur la diversité morphologique et moléculaire au sein des variétés traditionnelles de niébé. Ces missions ont permis de réunir 58 accessions. Deux classifications des accessions collectées ...
Abstract: Transaction costs are pervasive barriers in agricultural supply chains as they exclude farmers from profitable markets. Identification of these costs without reliance on proxy variables and their effects on smallholder profitability has not been empirically analyzed. The Heckman 2-step model was used to assess the effects of magnitudes of these costs on farmer profitability. Indirect monitoring and negotiation-related transaction costs had significant, positive, association with se...
Abstract: This paper examines the relationship between chemical fertilizer adoption and agricultural productivity in Ethiopia. Our results suggest that average returns to fertilizer adoption are high. Further, we find substantial heterogeneity across farm households in returns to fertilizer adoption, with comparative advantage playing a significant role in the adoption decision of farmers. While the adoption decision of farmers was largely rational, fertilizer use across plots was sub-optima...
Abstract: The performance of entomopathogenic fungi in pest control is usually affected by both biotic and abiotic factors. This study aimed to determine the effects of various temperatures (15, 20, 25 and 30 ◦C) on conidial germination, mycelial growth and conidial density and virulence to the melon fly Zeugodacus cucurbitae of three selected isolates of Metarhizium anisopliae. The three isolates, ICIPE 18, ICIPE 30 and ICIPE 69, had previously been selected in laboratory bioassays. Perce...
Abstract: Animal food sources provide human beings with minerals considerably in adequate quantities. Fish is an indispensable reliable source of nutrients, as aquaculture is a sector that is fast growing and which provides 50% of the world’s fish production. However, fish production is hampered by the increasing costs of feeds due to the ever rising cost of fish meal, an integral component of fish feeds. Substituting fish meal with cheap, yet highly nutritious ingredients in fish feeds is...
Abstract: The maize stalk borer, Busseola fusca, is an important Lepidopteran pest of cereal crops in Central, East, and Southern Africa. Crop losses due to B. fusca feeding activity vary by region, but can result in total crop loss in areas with high levels of infestation. Genomic resources provide critical insight into the biology of pest species and can allow for the development of effective management tools and strategies to mitigate their impact on agriculture. To this end, we sequenced...
Abstract: Stem borers have been reported as the most injurious insect pests of rice among the insects that attack rice crop globally. Management of stem borers has been relied on the us e of synthetic insecticides but has been ineffective due to the cryptic nature of the attack, disruption of environment and unaffordability to purchase insecticides by small- scale farmers. The attempts to control insects have changed over time from chemicals to natural control methods. Among the various natu...
Abstract: Demonstrating how agricultural research contributes to development outcomes is difficult but necessary given competing demands for scarce resources. This article summarises an adaptation of the “theory of change” approach and lessons derived from its application to improve the design and implementation of an agricultural research for development programme for greater impact. It was applied to Maziwa Zaidi, a programme that tested integrated interventions to catalyse the transfo...
Abstract: The performance of the agricultural sector in many developing countries has been rated as belowaverage, in particular the staple cereal crops whose productivity is limited by both biotic and abioticfactors. Furthermore, underperformance by the agricultural sector has in part been attributed to theinability of women to access resources, yet they represent a crucial resource in agriculture and the ruraleconomy through their roles as farmers and entrepreneurs. These challenges can be ...
Abstract: We estimate the impacts of a bundle of integrated pest management (IPM) practices on mango yield, mango net income, insecticide use, human health and the environment, using recent household survey data of mango growers in Kenya. We employ a multinomial endogenous switching treatment regression model with an ordered probit selection rule to establish counterfactual outcomes. Our results indicate that IPM-adopting farmers have higher mango yields and mango net income, and also use lo...
Abstract: Aim: To quantify current and predict future distribution of the citrus greening pathogens “Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus” (Las) in Africa and “Candidatus Liberibacter africanus” (Laf) globally. Location: Africa. Methods: Three species distribution models (MaxEnt, BIOCLIM and Boosted Regression Trees) were used to predict the current and future potential distribution of Las in Africa, and the potential global distribution of Laf, using long-term bioclimatic variables. Tw...
Abstract: The fruit fly species, Ceratitis rosa sensu stricto and Ceratitis quilicii, are sibling species restricted to the lowland and highland regions, respectively. Until recently, these sibling species were considered as allopatric populations of C. rosa with distinct bionomics. We used deep Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology on intact guts of individuals from the two sibling species to compare their transcriptional profiles and simultaneously understand gut microbiome and host ...
Abstract: Intra- and interspecific interactions within communities of species that utilize the same resources are characterized by competition or facilitation. The noctuid stemborers, Busseola fusca and Sesamia calamistis, and the crambid stemborer, Chilo partellus were the most important pests of maize in sub-Saharan Africa before the recent “invasion” of fall armyworm (FAW), Spodoptera frugiperda, which currently seriously limits maize yields in Africa. This new pest is interacting wit...
Abstract: Whitefly-transmitted cassava mosaic begomoviruses (CMBs; family Geminiviridae; genus Begomovirus) are viruses with bipartite genomes (components referred to as DNA-A and DNA-B) containing a conserved (between the two components) non-coding sequence known as the common region (CR) required for DNA replication and transcription (Fondong,2013). CMBs cause cassava mosaic disease (CMD), a major limitation to cassava production in sub-Saharan Africa. In Kenya, CMD is associated with the ...