Effectiveness of learning and experimentation approaches for farmers as a community based strategy for banana xanthomonas wilt management

Banana Xanthomonas wilt (BXW) is a devastating disease for banana and enset in east, central and Horn of Africa since 1968. The disease has spread to all banana growing countries in the region in the last decade, causing yield losses of up to 80 to 100%. Several efforts have been undertaken to develop and implement technologies for BXW management and their effective deployment with varying successes. This paper presents a new participatory approach for managing BXW named Learning and Experimentation Approaches For Farmers (LEAFF) and describes how it was implemented, tested and evaluated among 220 farmers across two agroecological regions, central and South-western Uganda. Results showed that there was a general reduction in the number of infected plants, corresponding to 7% increase in productivity of banana among the LEAFF compared to the non LEAFF participating farmers. The findings suggested that scaling out LEAFF to different parts in the region can significantly contribute to effective and sustainable adoption of BXW management technologies, and in turn, can lead to improved productivity and smallholder farmers’ livelihoods

Gendered mapping and consumer testing of steamed matooke in urban areas of Uganda

Cooking banana or matooke is a key staple food for Ugandans, usually consumed in steamed form. Breeding interventions over the years have focused on increasing productivity for farmers especially in lieu of resolving constraints such as pests and diseases and adverse weather (drought). However, despite gains in productivity due to improved or superior cultivars, end-user uptake remained lukewarm. As a result, it was important to understand the underlying reasons for this leading to the studies that sought to investigate end-user preferences for the matooke consumed along the value chain beyond farmer fields. The current study focused on exploring the attributes of steamed matooke that are desirable or undesirable for urban consumers segregated by gender, age and income status. This approach is a useful precursor for targeted breeding of cultivars possessing consumers' preferred characteristics. The study was conducted in Kampala and Wakiso. First, a gendered food mapping involving use of Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and Individual Interviews (IDIs) was conducted. This was followed by a consumer test with 381 consumers where four steamed matooke samples/cultivars were evaluated namely, Nakitembe, Kibuzi, Ntika and Mpologoma. Steamed-mashed matooke was the most consumed form (97%) and with the highest frequency of consumption (83%). Of the cultivars assessed Kibuzi was most-preferred during the FGDs and also had the highest mean overall liking in the consumer test (7.2). Ntika was least-preferred (5.9). However, differences were observed among income classes and gender groups (sex and age). High- and low-income consumers gravitate towards steamed Kibuzi while for the middle income it was Mpologoma. The females (adult and youth) showed more preference for Mpologoma while the males liked Nakitembe more. The mapping of sensory characteristics showed that the key drivers of overall liking were a yellow color; a nice aroma; attractive looking; sweet (delicious, not sweet like sugar); Homogeneous (one color); good taste and soft. Matooke taste proved a key determinant for the preference of steamed Kibuzi over the other steamed matooke. It is therefore important to unlock this attribute in terms of sensory quantitative descriptive analysis and physico-chemical characterization, to guide breeding efforts geared towards improving sensory acceptability of matooke cultivars. Differences were observed in preference among different income and gender categories. Therefore, breeders need to package appropriate products based on the preferences of the various socio-demographic segments, including by gender and income class groupings to enhance new cultivar adoption

Unravelling technology-acceptance factors influencing farmer use of banana tissue culture planting materials in Central Uganda

Effective management of plant health is fundamental for food and income security to meet the growing demands of local and global markets. This however requires farmers’ adequate access to quality planting materials under the prevailing contextual and psycho-social factors. This study, anchored in the Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technologies, unravels technology-acceptance factors that influence farmers’ intentions to use banana tissue culture planting materials in the control of Banana Xanthomonas Wilt. Data were collected from 248 randomly sampled banana farmers using a structured questionnaire and analyzed using structural equation modelling to examine hypothesized paths in the uptake of banana tissue culture planting materials. Results show that farmer intentions to use tissue culture planting materials are dependent on two constructs: social influence and farmer innovativeness. However, social influence is the main predictor of intentions to use tissue culture planting materials. In particular, farmer innovativeness mediates facilitating conditions and social influence in predicting intentions to use tissue culture planting materials. Thus, this study reveals two factors that influence farmer intentions to use tissue culture planting materials: social influence and farmer innovativeness. The findings imply that social influence and farmer innovativeness are critical in disseminating novel agricultural technologies in Uganda and elsewhere

Gaging consumer demand and preference for peeled, packaged, and labeled cooking bananas in Uganda

Cooking banana is widely grown and consumed the world over due to its distinct aroma and taste. It also forms the economic lifeline for many countries. However, the fruit is highly perishable owing to its high-water content, disease susceptibility and quick ripening after harvest. This results in significant economic losses across its marketing chain. A breakthrough towards reduction of the bulk of the losses incurred, especially at the retail level, has been achieved through a technological innovation that extends the shelf-life of fresh cooking banana in peeled and packaged form. However, consumer preference and demand for this novel product remains widely unknown. Our study therefore investigated consumer demand and preference for peeled banana products with varied attribute levels in two major banana consuming cities of Uganda—Kampala and Jinja. A Discrete Choice Experiment (DCE) was conducted with 360 banana consumers who were randomly picked using a systematic sampling approach from 8 banana retail markets located within the two sample cities. Principal factor analysis, based on perceptions and attitudes towards peeled banana products, was conducted to segment the respondents into market niches. Then, a latent class model (LCM) was estimated to identify the different segments for peeled banana products and the values they derive from the different products. Lastly willingness to pay (WTP) estimates for the different customer segments for peeled banana products with varied attribute levels was also determined

Management of Banana Xanthomonas Wilt: Evidence from impact of adoption of cultural control practices in Uganda

Banana Xanthomonas Wilt (BXW) is an important emerging and non-curable infectious plant pathogen in sub-Saharan Africa that can cause up to 100% yield loss, negatively impacting sustainable access to food and income to more than 100 million banana farmers. This study disentangles adopters into partial and full adopters to investigate the factors that are relevant to sustain the adoption process of BXW control practices and quantifies the impact of adopting the practices. Data from a randomly selected sample of 1200 banana farmers in Uganda where the disease is endemic was used. A multinomial logit model was used to determine the factors affecting adoption of control practices and augmented inverse probability weighting was employed to estimate the impacts of adoption on banana productivity and sales. Results show that training a woman farmer and having diverse sources of information about BXW control practices increased adoption of the control practices and reduced the disease incidences. Farmers who adopted all the recommended control practices achieved significantly the highest values of banana production and sales. We conclude that improving information access through farmers’ preferred communication channels, having women-inclusive trainings, and a combination of cultural practices are effective ways for sustaining adoption of the control practices

Benefits from the adoption of genetically engineered innovations in the Ugandan banana and cassava sectors: an ex ante analysis

The Government of Uganda has implemented programs and policies to improve the agricultural sector’s recent underperformance. Uganda’s two main food security crops, bananas and cassava, have been critically affected by two diseases: Banana Xanthomonas Wilt (BXW) and Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD). The effectiveness of agronomic and cultural practices to control these diseases has been limited, requiring better alternatives. The Ugandan R&D sector in collaboration with international partners have developed genetically engineered innovations that can control both diseases. To examine the potential benefits to consumers and producers from the adoption of genetically engineered banana and cassava with resistance to BXW and CBSD, we use a set of economic impact assessment methods. These include an economic surplus model implemented via IFPRI’s DREAMpy framework, a real options model and a limited gender assessment. Results from the economic surplus approach suggest that the adoption of both technologies can benefit Uganda. These results were confirmed for the case of bananas and partially for the case of cassava using the real options and the gender assessment performed. Results from this assessment are predicated on Uganda maintaining an enabling environment that will ensure the deployment and use of both innovations. Looking forward, continuing to improve enabling environment for innovation in Uganda will require addressing current R&D, regulatory, technology deployment and product stewardship processes constraints

Benefits from the adoption of genetically engineered innovations in the Ugandan banana and cassava sectors: An ex ante analysis

The Government of Uganda has implemented programs and policies to improve the agricultural sector’s recent underperformance. Uganda’s two main food security crops, bananas and cassava, have been critically affected by two diseases: Banana Xanthomonas Wilt (BXW) and Cassava Brown Streak Disease (CBSD). The effectiveness of agronomic and cultural practices to control these diseases has been limited, requiring better alternatives. The Ugandan R&D sector in collaboration with international partners have developed genetically engineered innovations that can control both diseases. To examine the potential benefits to consumers and producers from the adoption of genetically engineered banana and cassava with resistance to BXW and CBSD, we use a set of economic impact assessment methods. These include an economic surplus model implemented via IFPRI’s DREAMpy framework, a real options model and a limited gender assessment. Results from the economic surplus approach suggest that the adoption of both technologies can benefit Uganda. These results were confirmed for the case of bananas and partially for the case of cassava using the real options and the gender assessment performed. Results from this assessment are predicated on Uganda maintaining an enabling environment that will ensure the deployment and use of both innovations. Looking forward, continuing to improve enabling environment for innovation in Uganda will require addressing current R&D, regulatory, technology deployment and product stewardship processes constraints.Non-PRIFPRI1; CRP2; DCA; 1 Fostering Climate-Resilient and Sustainable Food Supply; 2 Promoting Healthy Diets and Nutrition for all; Capacity Strengthening; BioRAPPEPTD; PIMCGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM

Insights from a consumer survey in Uganda

PRIFPRI3; ISI; PBSEPT