Climatic trends, risk perceptions and coping strategies of smallholder farmers in rural Uganda

Smallholder farmers in Uganda face a wide range of agricultural production risks, with climate change and variability presenting new risks and vulnerabilities. Climate related risks such as prolonged dry seasons have become more frequent and intense with negative impacts on agricultural livelihoods and food security. This paper assesses farmers’ perceptions of climate change and variability and analyses historical trends in temperature and rainfall in two rural districts of Uganda in order to determine the major climate-related risks affecting crop and livestock production and to identify existing innovative strategies for coping with and adapting to climate-related risks, with potential for up-scaling in rural districts. The traditional coping strategies that have been developed by these communities overtime provide a foundation for designing effective adaptation strategies. Drought, disease and pest epidemics, decreasing water sources, lack of pasture, bush fires, hailstorms, changes in crop flowering and fruiting times were the major climate-related risks reported across the two districts. Farmers use a wide range of agricultural technologies and strategies to cope with climate change and climate variability. Mulching, intercropping and planting of food security crops were among the most common practices used. Other strategies included water harvesting for domestic consumption, other soil and water conservation technologies and on-farm diversification. Farmers often use a combination of these technologies and practices to enhance agricultural productivity. The average maximum temperatures increased across the two districts. Trends in average annual rainfall showed mixed results with a general decline in one district and a relatively stable trend in the other district. Perceived changes in climate included erratic rainfall onset and cessation, which were either early or late, poor seasonal distribution of rainfall and little rainfall. Farmers also reported variations in temperatures. Farmers’ perception of changing rainfall characteristics and increasing temperatures were consistent with the observed historical climatic trends from meteorological data

Village Baseline Study: Site Analysis Report for Kagera Basin – Rakai, Uganda

The village baseline study of Kyengeza village in the CCAFS site Kagera Basin – Rakai in Uganda took place from 4 to 6 July 2011. Study participants are aware that their food security depends on protecting and appropriately managing natural resources. Nonetheless, there is a general decline in the state of natural resources such as rivers, lakes and forests, and the current use of the same resources is not sustainable over time. The main drivers of such changes in the region are population growth and government policies that have privatised forests and other natural areas previously managed by the village, effectively disempowering the community. There are more organisations operating beyond the locality than those operating in the community. The external organisations started delivering food, tools, medicines and other resources in response to HIV/AIDS. Their ability to mobilise resources, however, is undermining self-help capacity within the village, which is not conducive to sustainable rural development. Radio and organisations are the most frequently used sources of information for agricultural decision- making. There is a relatively active information network compared to other CCAFS sites, and a fair amount of consultation with all kinds of sources of information. This may be linked to high levels of uncertainty associated with climate change and food security

Opportunities for feeding forages to pigs in Uganda

Pigs can play an important role in risk diversification and livelihood security of many smallholder and poor households in Uganda. Women and youth/children provide most of the pigproduction labour, especially for forage collection, feeding and watering; and they are responsible for about 90% of pigs produced in Uganda. In the smallholder production systems practised both in rural and peri-urban areas, a variety of forage species are traditionally used for pig feeding, the majority of them being gathered for several hours every day. Overall, there is an overreliance on feeding crop residues, ‘weeds’ and forages both through collection and scavenging/ tethering, usually not meeting the nutritional requirements of pigs, which results in slow growth rates. Data on feeding pigs in Uganda were collected during focus group discussions and key informant interviews in three districts, Masaka, Mukono and Kamuli, during the years 2013–2014. In Uganda, there has been generally limited research on pigs and pig systems, while forage research has traditionally focused on feeding ruminants. A comprehensive literature review on feeding forages to pigs in the tropics revealed that it is mainly animal nutritionists who concern themselves with nutritional effects of forages on the animals and their suitability as pig feeds; aspects of integrating cultivated forages into crop-livestock production systems, labour requirements, gender issues, and economic returns are essentially not considered. Despite the widely recognised constraint of insufficient animal feeds, especially during dry seasons, adoption of cultivated forages in the tropics has been generally slow, and hindering factors have not been fully understood. Some cultivated forages show nutritional attributes suitable for pigs, technically making them an option to supplement pigs with farm-grown forages instead of purchased concentrates. A paradox of feeding forages to pigs in Uganda has been identified, though, that suggests a decreasing use potential of forages along a gradient from extensive (mostly rural) to intensive (more urban) smallholder systems, whereas CIAT’s Tropical Forages Program presumes an increasing forage adoption potential along a gradient from subsistence- to marketoriented smallholder systems. Investigating this paradox carefully may help better understand reasons and conditions of smallholders under which cultivated forages may be adopted or not

Cellular immune activation in cerebrospinal fluid from ugandans with cryptococcal meningitis and immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome.

BACKGROUND: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is characterized by high fungal burden and limited leukocyte trafficking to cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). The immunopathogenesis of CM immune reconstitution inflammatory syndrome (IRIS) after initiation of antiretroviral therapy at the site of infection is poorly understood. METHODS: We characterized the lineage and activation status of mononuclear cells in blood and CSF of HIV-infected patients with noncryptococcal meningitis (NCM) (n = 10), those with CM at day 0 (n = 40) or day 14 (n = 21) of antifungal therapy, and those with CM-IRIS (n = 10). RESULTS: At diagnosis, highly activated CD8(+) T cells predominated in CSF in both CM and NCM. CM-IRIS was associated with an increasing frequency of CSF CD4(+) T cells (increased from 2.2% to 23%; P = .06), a shift in monocyte phenotype from classic to an intermediate/proinflammatory, and increased programmed death ligand 1 expression on natural killer cells (increased from 11.9% to 61.6%, P = .03). CSF cellular responses were distinct from responses in peripheral blood. CONCLUSIONS: After CM, T cells in CSF tend to evolve with the development of IRIS, with increasing proportions of activated CD4(+) T cells, migration of intermediate monocytes to the CSF, and declining fungal burden. These changes provide insight into IRIS pathogenesis and could be exploited to more effectively treat CM and prevent CM-IRIS

Timber management practices and timber species used by small scale furniture workshops in Uganda

A study was done in Kampala District, Central Uganda, to document the timber species and timbermanagement practices used in furniture workshops. A check list was used to document the commontimber species, their grades, moisture contents and related timber management practices in furnitureworkshops. Results showed that Albizia coriaria, Markhamia lutea and Chrysophyllum albidum werethe most common species while Khaya spp, Milicia excelsa and Olea spp were the least used speciesin the furniture workshops. Sixty nine percent of the furniture workshops lacked timber storage sheds,whereas only 3% had the recommended timber stacks. Majority (95%) of the carpenters in the furnitureworkshops did not season timber and hence the moisture content of the timber ranged from 31% to35%. Forty nine percent of the workshops exposed their finished products to environmental and weatherdeterioration. The commonest type of wood waste was planer shavings which were not utilised effectively.Since 97% of carpenters did not grade timber, the quality of their products was inherently poor. Thestudy concluded that several lesser known timber species were used for making furniture amidst verypoor timber management. The study recommends that the government of Uganda through its policyimplementingarms should create awareness programmes to carpenters on efficient timber managementpractices. Further research on physical, processing and strength properties of the documented speciesshould be undertaken so as to improve their utilisation

Effect of birth weight, exclusive breastfeeding and growth in infancy on fat mass and fat free mass indices in early adolescence: an analysis of the Entebbe Mother and Baby Study (EMaBs) cohort

Background: There is limited data from Africa on the effect of pre- and post-natal growth and infant feeding on later body composition. This study's aim was to investigate the effect of birth weight, exclusive breastfeeding and infant growth on adolescent body composition, using data from a Ugandan birth cohort. Methods: Data was collected prenatally from pregnant women and prospectively from their resulting live offspring. Data on body composition (fat mass index [FMI] and fat free mass index [FFMI]) was collected from 10- and 11-year olds. Linear regression was used to assess the effect of birth weight, exclusive breastfeeding and infant growth on FMI and FFMI, adjusting for confounders. Results: 177 adolescents with a median age of 10.1 years were included in analysis, with mean FMI 2.9 kg/m2 (standard deviation (SD) 1.2), mean FFMI 12.8 kg/m2 (SD 1.4) and mean birth weight 3.2 kg (SD 0.5). 90 (50.9%) were male and 110 (63.2%) were exclusively breastfeeding at six weeks of age. Birth weight was associated with FMI in adolescence (regression coefficient ?= 0.66 per kg increase in birth weight, 95% confidence interval (CI) (0.04, 1.29), P=0.02), while exclusive breastfeeding (?= -0.43, 95% CI (-1.06, 0.19), P=0.12), growth 0-6 months (?= 0.24 95% CI (-0.43, 0.92), P=0.48) and growth 6-12 months (?= 0.61, 95% CI (-0.23, 1.46), P=0.11) were not associated with FMI among adolescents. Birth weight (?= 0.91, 95% CI (0.17, 1.65), P=0.01) was associated with FFMI in adolescence. Exclusive breastfeeding (?= 0.17, 95% CI (-0.60, 0.94), P=0.62), growth 0-6 months (?= 0.56, 95% CI (-0.20, 1.33), P= 0.10), and growth 6-12 months (?= -0.02, 95% CI (-1.02, 0.99), P=0.97) were not associated with FFMI. Conclusions: Birth weight predicted body composition parameters in Ugandan early adolescents, however, exclusive breastfeeding at six weeks of age and growth in infancy did not

Gender and Artisanal and Small-Scale Mining in Central and East Africa: Barriers and Benefits

Artisanal and small-scale mining (ASM) on the African continent is increasingly the focus of global, regional and national efforts aimed at regulating the sector as part of larger initiatives to increase national benefits from mining, while also addressing problems seen as linked to this form of mining such as violence and conflict. Women’s significant participation in artisanal mining (estimated at 25-50% or more of artisanal miners) is largely overlooked in these efforts. This paper draws from r

The determinants of lipid profiles in early adolescence in a Ugandan birth cohort

Dyslipidaemia in adolescence tracks into adulthood and is an important risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Little is known about the effects of environmental exposures and early-life exposure to infectious diseases common to tropical regions on lipids. In 1119 early adolescent participants in the Entebbe Mother and Baby Study, we used linear regression to examine whether prenatal, childhood or adolescent factors are associated with lipid levels. Reduced high-density lipoprotein (HDL) and elevated triglyceride levels were common (prevalence 31% and 14%, respectively), but elevated low-density lipoprotein (LDL) or total cholesterol (TC) were rare. Current malaria infection was associated with lower mean LDL (adjusted ß - 0.51; 95% CI - 0.81, - 0.21), HDL (adjusted ß - 0.40; 95% CI - 0.56, - 0.23), and TC levels (adjusted ß - 0.62; 95% CI - 0.97, - 0.27), but higher mean triglyceride levels (geometric mean ratio (GMR) 1.47; 95% CI 1.18-1.84). Early-life asymptomatic malaria was associated with modest reductions in HDL and TC. Body mass index (BMI) was positively associated with LDL, TC, and triglycerides. No associations with helminth infection were found. Our findings suggest that early-life factors have only marginal effects on the lipid profile. Current malaria infection and BMI are strongly associated with lipids and important to consider when trying to improve the lipid profile

A genome-wide association and replication study of blood pressure in Ugandan early adolescents.

BACKGROUND: Genetic association studies of blood pressure (BP) have mostly been conducted in non-African populations. Using the Entebbe Mother and Baby Study (EMaBS), we aimed to identify genetic variants associated with BP among Ugandan adolescents. METHODS: Systolic and diastolic BP were measured among 10- and 11-year olds. Whole-genome genotype data were generated using Illumina omni 2.5M arrays and untyped variants were imputed. Genome-wide association study (GWAS) was conducted using linear mixed model regression to account for population structure. Linear regression analysis was used to assess whether variants previously associated with BP (p < 5.0 × 10-8 ) in published BP GWASs were replicated in our study. RESULTS: Of the 14 million variants analyzed among 815 adolescents, none reached genome-wide significance (p < 5.0×10-8 ) for association with systolic or diastolic BP. The most strongly associated variants were rs181430167 (p = 6.8 × 10-7 ) for systolic BP and rs12991132 (p = 4.0 × 10-7 ) for diastolic BP. Thirty-three (17 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) for systolic BP, 15 SNPs for diastolic BP and one SNP for both) of 330 variants previously identified as associated with BP were replicated in this study, but none remained significant after accounting for multiple testing. CONCLUSION: Variants showing suggestive associations are worthy of future investigation. Replication results suggest that variants influencing adolescent BP may overlap somewhat with those already established in previous studies, largely based on adults in Western settings

Do helminth infections underpin urban-rural differences in risk factors for allergy-related outcomes?

BACKGROUND: It is proposed that helminth exposure protects against allergy-related disease, by mechanisms that include disconnecting risk factors (such as atopy) from effector responses. OBJECTIVE: We aimed to assess how helminth exposure influences rural-urban differences in risk factors for allergy-related outcomes in tropical low- and middle-income countries. METHODS: In cross-sectional surveys in Ugandan rural Schistosoma mansoni (Sm)-endemic islands, and in nearby mainland urban communities with lower helminth exposure, we assessed risk factors for atopy (allergen-specific skin prick test [SPT] reactivity and IgE [asIgE] sensitization) and clinical allergy-related outcomes (wheeze, urticaria, rhinitis and visible flexural dermatitis), and effect modification by Sm exposure. RESULTS: Dermatitis and SPT reactivity were more prevalent among urban participants, urticaria and asIgE sensitization among rural participants. Pairwise associations between clinical outcomes, and between atopy and clinical outcomes, were stronger in the urban survey. In the rural survey, SPT positivity was inversely associated with bathing in lakewater, Schistosoma-specific IgG4 and Sm infection. In the urban survey, SPT positivity was positively associated with age, non-Ugandan maternal tribe, being born in a city/town, BCG scar and light Sm infection. Setting (rural vs urban) was an effect modifier for risk factors including Sm- and Schistosoma-specific IgG4. In both surveys, the dominant risk factors for asIgE sensitization were Schistosoma-specific antibody levels and helminth infections. Handwashing and recent malaria treatment reduced odds of asIgE sensitization among rural but not urban participants. Risk factors for clinical outcomes also differed by setting. Despite suggestive trends, we did not find sufficient evidence to conclude that helminth (Sm) exposure explained rural-urban differences in risk factors. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Risk factors for allergy-related outcomes differ between rural and urban communities in Uganda but helminth exposure is unlikely to be the sole mechanism of the observed effect modification between the two settings. Other environmental exposures may contribute significantly