Factors Influencing Adoption of Conservation Agriculture in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

The agricultural sector in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is still struggling to cope with its post-independence political and structural instability. From 1961 to 2000, the DRC experienced a decrease of 34% and 37% in daily caloric intake and protein intake, respectively. The DRC’s agriculture sector, led by women (who are the core of subsistence farming), is now being targeted as a potential pathway out of poverty through sustainable development programs. Empowering farmers to increase productivity by educating them to use conservation agriculture (CA), a more sustainable alternative to the traditional slash-and-burn agricultural practice, could contribute to reducing vulnerability, alleviate food insecurity, and fight poverty while being ecologically sustainable. This study assesses the impact of the “Improving Agricultural Productivity through No-Tillage Agriculture” program in the DRC from 2009 to 2012. This program targeted vulnerable women who were victims in some capacity of the Congolese War. Training on the sustainable CA practice was provided to 8,290 farmers in the Maniema province of the DRC. The program goal was to increase agricultural productivity and sustainability through CA adoption by improving crop yields and soil management and decreasing deforestation caused by slash-and-burn. Findings suggest that the location of the farm (being in the savannah or forest), training, having accessed to credit, belonging to a farmers’ group, and being a vulnerable female, all drove adoption to varying degrees and directions. Vulnerable women, the target for this project, were found to be less likely to adopt CA. From this study’s findings, targeting vulnerable women who are part of a farmers’ group may increase the number of vulnerable women who would adopt CA in the future. The results of this study provide future CA projects with important information on what the drivers of adoption are and what the perceived benefits of adoption by adopters. From these two important pieces of information, future research and CA projects in the DRC can more precisely focus on specific groups of producers based on location, gender, and other social characteristics to both increase adoption of CA and market the specific benefits producers are looking for more efficiently

International Rice Outlook: International Rice Baseline Projections 2022-2032

Rice prices in Asia increased since the Summer of 2022 mainly due to worries about a reduction in rice production in India caused by an abnormal monsoon season (Fig. 1). The upward trend in export prices solidified after India implemented a 20% export tariff on brown and milled long-grain rice, and a complete ban on exports of broken rice, in September 2022 to curve down exports and release the pressure on domestic rice prices. India’s rice export prices increased since then and proportionally to the value of the export tax. The latest estimates put rice production at 128 million metric tons (mmt) in 2022/2023, only slightly below the record-high production of 129.5 mmt in 2021/2022. The export prices out of Thailand and Vietnam increased 14% and 16% between September 2022 and April 2023 in accordance with the higher export prices of India (Fig. 1). Despite the export tariff, India remains the most competitive supplier among the top Asian exporters. The U.S. export price for long-grain rice has been consistently above that of other Asian exporters, but the gap widened even more in 2022 after two consecutive short U.S. crops

International Rice Outlook: International Rice Baseline Projections 2022-2032

Rice prices in Asia increased since the Summer of 2022 mainly due to worries about a reduction in rice production in India caused by an abnormal monsoon season (Fig. 1). The upward trend in export prices solidified after India implemented a 20% export tariff on brown and milled long-grain rice, and a complete ban on exports of broken rice, in September 2022 to curve down exports and release the pressure on domestic rice prices. India’s rice export prices increased since then and proportionally to the value of the export tax. The latest estimates put rice production at 128 million metric tons (mmt) in 2022/2023, only slightly below the record-high production of 129.5 mmt in 2021/2022. The export prices out of Thailand and Vietnam increased 14% and 16% between September 2022 and April 2023 in accordance with the higher export prices of India (Fig. 1). Despite the export tariff, India remains the most competitive supplier among the top Asian exporters. The U.S. export price for long-grain rice has been consistently above that of other Asian exporters, but the gap widened even more in 2022 after two consecutive short U.S. crops

Responses to cultural diversity in Botswana’s schools: links between national policy, school actions and students’ civic equality

This article examines nation-state policies that have prioritized toleration of diversity over recognition through comparative case studies of three junior secondary schools in Botswana. Through data collected in observations, focus groups, interviews, and Participatory Action Research, we demonstrate how the schools, which varied in the ethnic composition of their students, teachers, and surrounding communities, responded differently to the reality of their multicultural student bodies. Two followed national policies closely, while the third crafted school level policies adapted to its student population, yet tightly constricted by national policies and curriculum. In all three schools, students of ethnic minority backgrounds experienced varying degrees of shame, discrimination, and a sense of exclusion from the nation and found little recourse to discuss and address these experiences within the structures of their schools. We argue that schools could better develop students’ capacity for equal citizenship were they supported by national education policies and curriculum to recognize the cultural, historical, and linguistic diversity of Botswana’s ethnic minorities explicitly in schools

Pathways toward Peace: Negotiating National Unity and Ethnic Diversity through Education in Botswana

This study examines how education can disrupt threats of conflict, specifically in the presence of ethnic diversity. We present a historical analysis of Botswana, using methods of process tracing drawing on documents, in-depth interviews, and Afrobarometer survey data. Post-independence Botswana engaged in redistribution of educational access across ethnic groups and promotion of common civic principles of social harmony. At the same time, it constructed through schools ethnically-based national identity, which excluded many minorities. Lack of recognition for ethnic minorities remains a persistent challenge, yet it exists in a context of high commitment to unity and the nation-state, even among minority groups, which may have allowed recent dissent to happen peacefully. The paper defines mechanisms by which educational redistribution and recognition can disrupt resource-based and identity-based inequalities that often lead to conflict. This model holds promise for conflict avoidance and mitigation in multiethnic states globally

The role of the whitefly, Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius), and farmer practices in the spread of cassava brown streak ipomoviruses

Cassava brown streak disease (CBSD) is arguably the most dangerous current threat to cassava, which is Africa's most important food security crop. CBSD is caused by two RNA viruses: Cassava brown streak virus (CBSV) and Ugandan cassava brown streak virus (UCBSV). The roles of the whitefly Bemisia tabaci (Gennadius) and farmer practices in the spread of CBSD were investigated in a set of field and laboratory experiments. The virus was acquired and transmitted by B. tabaci within a short time (5–10 min each for virus acquisition and inoculation), and was retained for up to 48 hr. Highest virus transmission (60%) was achieved using 20–25 suspected viruliferous whiteflies per plant that were given acquisition and inoculation periods of 24 and 48 hr, respectively. Experiments mimicking the agronomic practices of cassava leaf picking or the use of contaminated tools for making cassava stem cuttings did not show the transmission of CBSV or UCBSV. Screenhouse and field experiments in Tanzania showed that the spread of CBSD next to spreader rows was high, and that the rate of spread decreased with increasing distance from the source of inoculum. The disease spread in the field up to a maximum of 17 m in a cropping season. These results collectively confirm that CBSV and UCBSV are transmitted by B. tabaci semipersistently, but for only short distances in the field. This implies that spread over longer distances is due to movements of infected stem cuttings used for planting material. These findings have important implications for developing appropriate management strategies for CBSD

First report of Ugandan cassava brown streak virus on cassava in Democratic Republic of Congo

Open Access Journa

Cassava brown streak disease: historical timeline, current knowledge and future prospects

Cassava is the second most important staple food crop in terms of per capita calories consumed in Africa and holds potential for climate change adaptation. Unfortunately, productivity in East and Central Africa is severely constrained by two viral diseases: cassava mosaic disease (CMD) and cassava brown streak disease (CBSD). CBSD was first reported in 1936 from northeast Tanzania. For approximately seventy years CBSD was restricted to coastal East Africa and so had a relatively low impact on food security compared to CMD. However, at the turn of the 21st century CBSD re-emerged further inland, in areas around Lake Victoria and it has since spread through many East and Central African countries, causing high yield losses and jeopardising the food security of subsistence farmers. This recent re-emergence has attracted intense scientific interest, with studies shedding light on CBSD viral epidemiology, sequence diversity, host interactions and potential sources of resistance within the cassava genome. This review reflects on 80 years of CBSD research history (1936 – 2016) with a timeline of key events. We provide insights into current CBSD knowledge, management efforts and future prospects for improved understanding needed to underpin effective control and mitigation of impacts on food security