Error Modeling Radar Rainfall Estimation Through Incorporating Rain Gauge Data Over Upper Blue Nile Basin, Ethiopia

Accurate and precise measurements of rainfall from weather radar reflectivity data is essential to supplement the limited characterization of spatial and temporal measurements provided by insufficient network and density of rain gauges. While weather radar has high spatial and temporal resolution, it contaminated with various sources of errors due to the conversion of reflectivity to rain rate and the projectile rainfall motion. Error modeling improvement with the application of projectile rainfall motion correction is essential to improve the radar data. However, stile is not well documented for over the world as well as Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to generate an error model for weather radar rainfall estimation by incorporating gauge rainfall data over upper Blue Nile basin, Ethiopia. Projectile rainfall motion correction is considered on the data of reflectivity and rain rate to determine empirical error model parameter values. The model parameter values are found, multiplicative factor (a) was 55, the exponent factor (b) was 1.12, standard deviation of proportional error was 0.08 and standard deviation of random error was 0.07. The value of the total error varied from -0.45 to 1.16 mm and the domain of proportional error was greater than random error. After applying the projectile rainfall motion correction, the total error is reduced by 12%. In general, the assumption of projectile method is quite useful for improving the radar data over upper Blue Nile basin in Ethiopia as well as over the world. Hence, we wish to extend this method for other regions

Public-Private Partnerships (PPP) to promote legume value chains and to benefit smallholders: Experiences from ILRI-N2Africa

Bill & Melinda Gates Foundatio

Exploiting genetic variation from unadapted germplasm—An example from improvement of sorghum in Ethiopia

Societal Impact Statement The productivity of sorghum in Ethiopia has been largely limited by rain-fed condi- tions because farmers tend to use local drought-tolerant but low-yielding landraces, as high-yielding and late-maturing landrace cultivars risk failure due to drought. Addressing such issues often requires a far-reaching approach to identify and incorporate new traits into a gene pool, followed by a period of selection to re-establish an overall adaptive phenotype. The sorghum backcross nested association mapping (BC-NAM) population developed in this study increases the genetic diversity available in Ethiopian elite adapted sorghum germplasm, providing new scope to improve food security in a region known for periodic devastating droughts. Summary • As the center of diversity for sorghum, Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench, elite cultivars selected in Ethiopia are of central importance to sub-Saharan food security. Despite being presumably well adapted to their center of diversity, elite Ethiopian sorghums nonetheless experience constraints to productivity, for example, associ- ated with shifting rainfall patterns associated with climate change. • A sorghum backcross nested association mapping (BC-NAM) population developed by crossing 13 diverse lines preidentified to have various drought resilience mechanisms with an Ethiopian elite cultivar, Teshale, was tested under three rainfed environments in Ethiopia. • Twenty-seven, 15, and 15 quantitative trait loci (QTLs) with predominantly small additive effects were identified for days to flowering, days to maturity, and plant height, respectively. Many associations detected in this study corresponded closely to known or candidate genes or previously mapped QTLs, supporting their validity. • The expectation that genotypes such as Teshale from the center of diversity tend to have a history of strong balancing selection, with novel variations more likely to persist in small marginal populations, was strongly supported in that for these three traits, nearly equal numbers of alleles from the donor lines conferred increases and decreases in phenotype relative to the Teshale allele. Such rich variation provides a foundation for selection to arrive at a new “adaptive peak,” exemplifying the nature of efforts that may be necessary to adapt many crops to new climate extremes

Epilation for minor trachomatous trichiasis: four-year results of a randomised controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: Trachomatous trichiasis (TT) needs to be managed to reduce the risk of vision loss. The long-term impact of epilation (a common traditional practice of repeated plucking of lashes touching the eye) in preventing visual impairment and corneal opacity from TT is unknown. We conducted a randomized controlled trial of epilation versus surgery for the management of minor TT (fewer than six lashes touching the eye) in Ethiopia. Here we report the four-year outcome and the effect on vision and corneal opacity. METHODOLOGY/ PRINCIPAL FINDINGS: 1300 individuals with minor TT were recruited and randomly assigned to quality trichiasis surgery or repeated epilation using high quality epilation forceps by a trained person with good near vision. Participants were examined six-monthly for two-years, and then at four-years after randomisation. At two-years all epilation arm participants were offered free surgery. At four-years 1151 (88.5%) were re-examined: 572 (88%) and 579 (89%) from epilation and surgery arms, respectively. At that time, 21.1% of the surgery arm participants had recurrent TT; 189/572 (33%) of the epilation arm had received surgery, while 383 (67%) declined surgery and had continued epilating ("epilation-only"). Among the epilation-only group, 207 (54.1%) fully controlled their TT, 166 (43.3%) had minor TT and 10 (2.6%) had major TT (>5 lashes). There were no differences between participants in the epilation-only, epilation-to-surgery and surgery arm participants in changes in visual acuity and corneal opacity between baseline and four-years. CONCLUSIONS/ SIGNIFICANCE: Most minor TT participants randomised to the epilation arm continued epilating and controlled their TT. Change in vision and corneal opacity was comparable between surgery and epilation-only participants. This suggests that good quality epilation with regular follow-up is a reasonable second-line alternative to surgery for minor TT for individuals who either decline surgery or do not have immediate access to surgical treatment