Weed Dynamics during Transition to Conservation Agriculture in Western Kenya Maize Production

Weed competition is a significant problem in maize (Zea mays, L.) production in Sub-Saharan Africa. Better understanding of weed management and costs in maize intercropped with beans (Phaseolus vulgaris, L.) during transition to conservation agricultural systems is needed. Changes in weed population and maize growth were assessed for a period of three years at Bungoma where crops are grown twice per year and at Trans-Nzoia where crops are grown once per year. Treatments included three tillage practices: minimum (MT), no-till (NT) and conventional (CT) applied to three cropping systems: continuous maize/bean intercropping (TYPICAL), maize/bean intercropping with relayed mucuna after bean harvest (RELAY) and maize, bean and mucuna planted in a strip intercropping arrangement (STRIP). Herbicides were used in NT, shallow hand hoeing and herbicides were used in MT and deep hoeing with no herbicides were used in CT. Weed and maize performance in the maize phase of each cropping system were assessed at both locations and costs of weed control were estimated at Manor House only. Weed density of grass and forb species declined significantly under MT and NT at Manor House and of grass species only at Mabanga. The greatest declines of more than 50% were observed as early as within one year of the transition to MT and NT in STRIP and TYPICAL cropping systems at Manor House. Transitioning to conservation based systems resulted in a decline of four out of five most dominant weed species. At the same time, no negative impact of MT or NT on maize growth was observed. Corresponding costs of weed management were reduced by $148.40 ha-1 in MT and$149.60 ha-1 in NT compared with CT. In conclusion, farmers can benefit from effective and less expensive weed management alternatives early in the process of transitioning to reduced tillage operations

Research capacity building integrated into PHIT projects: leveraging research and research funding to build national capacity

Background: Inadequate research capacity impedes the development of evidence-based health programming in sub-Saharan Africa. However, funding for research capacity building (RCB) is often insufficient and restricted, limiting institutions’ ability to address current RCB needs. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation’s African Health Initiative (AHI) funded Population Health Implementation and Training (PHIT) partnership projects in five African countries (Ghana, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zambia) to implement health systems strengthening initiatives inclusive of RCB. Methods: Using Cooke’s framework for RCB, RCB activity leaders from each country reported on RCB priorities, activities, program metrics, ongoing challenges and solutions. These were synthesized by the authorship team, identifying common challenges and lessons learned. Results: For most countries, each of the RCB domains from Cooke’s framework was a high priority. In about half of the countries, domain specific activities happened prior to PHIT. During PHIT, specific RCB activities varied across countries. However, all five countries used AHI funding to improve research administrative support and infrastructure, implement research trainings and support mentorship activities and research dissemination. While outcomes data were not systematically collected, countries reported holding 54 research trainings, forming 56 mentor-mentee relationships, training 201 individuals and awarding 22 PhD and Masters-level scholarships. Over the 5 years, 116 manuscripts were developed. Of the 59 manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals, 29 had national first authors and 18 had national senior authors. Trainees participated in 99 conferences and projects held 37 forums with policy makers to facilitate research translation into policy. Conclusion: All five PHIT projects strongly reported an increase in RCB activities and commended the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation for prioritizing RCB, funding RCB at adequate levels and time frames and for allowing flexibility in funding so that each project could implement activities according to their trainees’ needs. As a result, many common challenges for RCB, such as adequate resources and local and international institutional support, were not identified as major challenges for these projects. Overall recommendations are for funders to provide adequate and flexible funding for RCB activities and for institutions to offer a spectrum of RCB activities to enable continued growth, provide adequate mentorship for trainees and systematically monitor RCB activities. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12913-017-2657-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Research capacity building integrated into PHIT projects: leveraging research and research funding to build national capacity

Background: Inadequate research capacity impedes the development of evidence-based health programming in sub-Saharan Africa. However, funding for research capacity building (RCB) is often insufficient and restricted, limiting institutions’ ability to address current RCB needs. The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation’s African Health Initiative (AHI) funded Population Health Implementation and Training (PHIT) partnership projects in five African countries (Ghana, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zambia) to implement health systems strengthening initiatives inclusive of RCB. Methods: Using Cooke’s framework for RCB, RCB activity leaders from each country reported on RCB priorities, activities, program metrics, ongoing challenges and solutions. These were synthesized by the authorship team, identifying common challenges and lessons learned. Results: For most countries, each of the RCB domains from Cooke’s framework was a high priority. In about half of the countries, domain specific activities happened prior to PHIT. During PHIT, specific RCB activities varied across countries. However, all five countries used AHI funding to improve research administrative support and infrastructure, implement research trainings and support mentorship activities and research dissemination. While outcomes data were not systematically collected, countries reported holding 54 research trainings, forming 56 mentor-mentee relationships, training 201 individuals and awarding 22 PhD and Masters-level scholarships. Over the 5 years, 116 manuscripts were developed. Of the 59 manuscripts published in peer-reviewed journals, 29 had national first authors and 18 had national senior authors. Trainees participated in 99 conferences and projects held 37 forums with policy makers to facilitate research translation into policy. Conclusion: All five PHIT projects strongly reported an increase in RCB activities and commended the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation for prioritizing RCB, funding RCB at adequate levels and time frames and for allowing flexibility in funding so that each project could implement activities according to their trainees’ needs. As a result, many common challenges for RCB, such as adequate resources and local and international institutional support, were not identified as major challenges for these projects. Overall recommendations are for funders to provide adequate and flexible funding for RCB activities and for institutions to offer a spectrum of RCB activities to enable continued growth, provide adequate mentorship for trainees and systematically monitor RCB activities. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1186/s12913-017-2657-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users

Use of rubric in assessment to support learning

The study involved an intervention on use of rubrics in assessment with an aim of empowering teachers and students with skills and knowledge that would facilitate implementation of assessment for learning strategies to promote student engagement in learning. This was conducted by adopting quasi experimental design and quantitative approach that involved administering of pretest and posttest to the treatment and control group and the results analyzed using t-test analysis to establish the effect of intervention. A total of 40 students from two form three classes that formed treatment and control group by random selection, participated in the research, with control group having 18 participants and treatment group having 22 participants. The study showed that use of rubric in assessment enhanced student engagement in learning, hence significant improvement in performance was realized. In addition, the findings revealed that use of rubric during classroom instructions improved teacher’s pedagogical skills and as a result student engagement in learning improved

Farmers Willingness to Pay and the Sustainability of Irrigated Maize Production in Rural Kenya

This paper evaluated farmers willingness to pay for irrigated maize production using field level data collected through a cross sectional survey. The results showed that 78% of the farmers were willing to pay more than the men willingness to pay of 3,082. This was above the average payment that farmers were making. It was also noted that willingness to pay increased with increase in irrigation rates. Labour, tail end farms, and enforcement of scheme level rules and regulations will enhance willingness to pay. Efficient factor use is an important factor influencing the amount paid for irrigation. Although the economic value of water was found to be greater than the willingness to pay implying that irrigated maize production is sustainable, irrigation services in Kenya are highly subsidized by the government. We therefore recommend farmer training, empowering water user associations to help enforce irrigation management processes as a way of enhancing farmers’ willingness to pay. On sustainability of irrigated maize production, we recommend that market forces be allowed to establish the price of irrigation services

Can irrigation be an answer to Kenya’s food security problem?

Irrigation development is one strategy the government can use to improve food security in Kenya. Lessons from irrigated maize production studies show that it is profitable and that Galana Kulalu food security project has the potential to produce about half of the country’s food requirement contributing significantly to food security and the GDP through the incomes earned. However, high costs due to inefficient use of fertilizer, water and land are the major cost factors that have caused doubts and low level engagement in irrigated maize production. It is thus recommended that efficient use of land, fertilizer and water under both intensive and extensive maize production under irrigation, would contribute to lowering the unit cost of production and lead to increased food production

Rural poverty and input use efficiency in smallholder dairy farms in western Kenya

Increasing agricultural productivity depends on the adoption of modern technology that involves the use of modern improved technical embodied inputs. However, farmers have different production decisions and ability to source and use the available inputs. In a study among smallholder dairy farmers in Western Kenya to establish their input use levels using profit maximizing method and marginality principles in making decision, the levels of use of land, capital, concentrate and labor were analyzed. The study found that land, capital, concentrate were underutilized while labor was excessively used. It was concluded that the large size of unskilled labor force was the cause of high poverty among the rural population. This is because farmers prefer using cheap unskilled labor that is not highly productive leading to low output from the dairy farming. The other three expensive factors are underutilized. It was thus recommended that poverty can be reduced through improvement of labor skills through training and farmer education on use of modern production technology packages would encourage their use and lead to increased agricultural production. Based on Say’s law the demand for skilled labor would lead to a decline of unskilled labor force in the rural areas due to increasing better wage rates and thus a decline in the levels of poverty

Soil Carbon and Nitrogen Mineralization and Crop Parameters in Typical Maize-Bean Intercropping in Western Kenya

Smallholder farmers in western Kenya who plant maize (Zea mays L.) intercropped with beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) face many challenges associated with nutrient-poor soils and weather-related crop failures. In regions where temperatures are favorable, crops are grown twice per year during long and short rainy seasons and in other regions, once per year during one long growing season. Growing crops two times per year necessitates frequent land preparation using inversion-type tillage. Little is known about the impact of current tillage-intensive crop management on annual soil organic matter (SOM) recovery. The aim of this study was to assess changes to soil carbon (C), nitrogen (N) and crop performance in typical maize-bean production during long rainy season (LR), short rainy season (SR) and a fallow period (FP) in areas where crops are grown one time (Trans-Nzoia) and two times per year (Bungoma). The two locations were sampled three times per year for a period of three years. Soils were analyzed for potentially mineralizable nitrogen (PMN), ammonium (NH4), nitrate (NO3), water filled pore space (WFPS), nitrous oxide (N2O), methane (CH4) and carbon dioxide (CO2). Results demonstrated significantly greater PMN, NH4 N2O and CO2 during SR in Bungoma compared with LR and FP suggesting high C and N mineralization caused by warmer temperatures and high frequency of tillage. Soils in Trans-Nzoia also showed elevated NH4, NO3 and N2O during the same period but the magnitude of these changes was much lower compared with Bungoma. Mineralization negatively impacted annual SOM renewal and crop production as further demonstrated by low soil total C and N and cumulative crop yields in Bungoma. Planting edible cover crops, reducing tillage and using manure should become a necessity to support sustainable crop production. Particular attention should concentrate on designing appropriate management strategies for SR season in Bungoma

Weed Dynamics during Transition to Conservation Agriculture in Western Kenya Maize Production.

Weed competition is a significant problem in maize (Zea mays, L.) production in Sub-Saharan Africa. Better understanding of weed management and costs in maize intercropped with beans (Phaseolus vulgaris, L.) during transition to conservation agricultural systems is needed. Changes in weed population and maize growth were assessed for a period of three years at Bungoma where crops are grown twice per year and at Trans-Nzoia where crops are grown once per year. Treatments included three tillage practices: minimum (MT), no-till (NT) and conventional (CT) applied to three cropping systems: continuous maize/bean intercropping (TYPICAL), maize/bean intercropping with relayed mucuna after bean harvest (RELAY) and maize, bean and mucuna planted in a strip intercropping arrangement (STRIP). Herbicides were used in NT, shallow hand hoeing and herbicides were used in MT and deep hoeing with no herbicides were used in CT. Weed and maize performance in the maize phase of each cropping system were assessed at both locations and costs of weed control were estimated at Manor House only. Weed density of grass and forb species declined significantly under MT and NT at Manor House and of grass species only at Mabanga. The greatest declines of more than 50% were observed as early as within one year of the transition to MT and NT in STRIP and TYPICAL cropping systems at Manor House. Transitioning to conservation based systems resulted in a decline of four out of five most dominant weed species. At the same time, no negative impact of MT or NT on maize growth was observed. Corresponding costs of weed management were reduced by $148.40 ha(-1) in MT and$149.60 ha(-1) in NT compared with CT. In conclusion, farmers can benefit from effective and less expensive weed management alternatives early in the process of transitioning to reduced tillage operations