This manual is developed by a consortium consisting of four NGOs (Caritas Switzerland, Advance Afrika, Agency for Accelerated Regional Development, and Gulu Women Economic Development and Globalization) for the implementation of the Action for Livelihood Enhancement in Northern Uganda (ALENU) Project that is funded under the Development Initiative for Northern...

Striga species are noxious weeds that are widespread constraints to the production of staple cereal crops in semi-arid areas, principally attacking finger millet, maize, sorghum, and upland rice. They have been estimated to infest some 40 percent of the cereal producing areas of sub-Saharan Africa. Work by the DFID Crop...

Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L.), also known as peanut, is cultivated in the semiarid tropical and subtropical regions of nearly 100 countries in six continents between 40° N and S of the equator. In Southern and Eastern Africa, peanut is grown at an altitude of over 1500 m, with a rainfall...

A short-term forecasting model (now adopted and implemented by the South African Development Community- SADC), predicts the movements and breeding of the Red-billed Quelea bird in southern Africa. This is to enable better mobilization and targeting of control resources by national and regional agencies, and methods for monitoring effects of...

Traditionally, bamboo equipment has been used in sericulture. The main uses of bamboo in sericulture are baskets for gathering mulberry leaves, trays for feeding leaving to larvae, mountages for production of cocoons, trays for cocoon storage, stifling baskets for steaming of cocoons and some woven mats. The present study is...

La patate douce est très renommée en Afrique orientale car c’est une culture très résistante et robuste qui est riche en nutritifs et peut être consommée de différentes manières. Néanmoins elle est vendue à des prix sacrifiés et subis des pertes post-récolte. Il existe une technologie permettant à sécher la...

Groundnuts play a key role as a subsistence food source for poor people in the districts in northeastern Uganda, where the “Teso” system of agriculture is practiced. The crop is a valuable source of protein and oil and thus makes a significant contribution to people’s nutritional requirements. With a decline...

Le manioc est une culture très résistante et facile à cultiver. Bien que son utilisation n’est pas répandue en Afrique de l’Est, il a le potentiel de procurer des revenus supplémentaires, créer de l’emploi et servir de réserve alimentaire pour les périodes de pénurie. Toutes les parties de la plante...

Upland rice is an important cash crop in many areas of eastern and southern Tanzania, including Morogoro Rural and Kyela districts. Under continuous cultivation, rice yields have been in decline in recent years. This is associated with falling soil fertility and an increase in infestation by the parasitic witchweed, Striga...

Cassava (Manihot Esculenta Crantz) is the third most important source of calories in the tropics, after rice and maize. Millions of people depend on cassava in Africa, Asia and Latin America. It is grown by poor farmers, many of them women, often on marginal land. For those people and their...

Potato originated in the highlands of South America before Spanish explorers brought the plant to Europe in the late 16th century. Around the turn of the 20th century the plant arrived in Africa where potato has grown in importance over the last years (Biovision). Uganda is the 3rd largest producer...

Junior Farmer Field and Life Schools (JFFLS) are designed to empower orphans and vulnerable children aged approximately 12 to 18 years. JFFLS target communities where HIV/AIDS, conflict, displacement or other crises have interrupted the generational transfer of agricultural knowledge and life skills, and thereby threaten food and nutrition security. A...

The use of quality seeds along with other inputs and appropriate cultural management practices is recognized as the most cost-effective way of increasing crop production and productivity. In considering interventions that are likely to reverse the trend of recurring food shortages, seed security has been recognized as having the potential...

Africa is leading the world in cell phone finance. In Kenya in 2007, Vodaphone started M-Pesa for the mobile network operator, Safaricom. M-Pesa, (from “M” for mobile, and “pesa,” the Kiswahili word for money) offers simple financial services on the phone. Customers go to a small shop to exchange cash...

Ethiopia has experienced impressive agricultural growth and poverty reduction, stemming in part from substantial public investments in agriculture. Yet, the agriculture sector now faces increasing land and water constraints along with other challenges to growth. Ethiopia’s Agrifood System: Past Trends, Present Challenges, and Future Scenarios presents a forward-looking analysis of...

In light of the uncertainties surrounding the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, policy makers must ensure that national responses to the virus do not trigger a food crisis. The Covid-19 outbreak can shift the balance between food demand and supply, especially considering many countries having declared lockdowns and their borders closed. Countries...

The main target group is para-veterinarians involved in the development of small poultry farm at village level. The intention is that the paravets will extract from the manual the materials they need for training.

Rice is the second most important cereal crop in Tanzania after maize and the majority of rice farmers depend on it both for food and as a cash crop. However, highly competitive annual and perennial wild rice species have been identified as one of the important constraints to rice production...

Farm inputs such as improved seeds, fertilizers, and herbicides are conventionally packaged in large bag sizes that are beyond the financial means of small farmers. The technology demonstrates ways of mobilizing the private sector to make small quantities of appropriate inputs available in mini-packs. It also demonstrates novel ways of...

This is a story of hope and decolonisation in a time of crises. The Indigenous Bagungu People of western Uganda have lived along the shores of Itaka Mwitanzige (Lake Albert) since time immemorial. But for over a century, colonialism and globalisation have damaged and repressed both the Bagungu's traditional, Earth-centred culture and...