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Pesticides are essential for the control of infestation of disease, insect pests and weeds on different crops. Due to wide usage of synthetic pesticides which may lead to increased exposure and associated environmental and health risks among small-holder farmers in Zambia, a study was undertaken to understand how knowledgeable farmers are on pesticide use and practices. A total of 418 small scale farmers were randomly sampled from Mkushi, Mpongwe, Luangwa, Mbala, Solwezi, Chipata and Kalomo Districts of Zambia. Data pertaining to types of pesticides use, handling, storage and disposal was solicited using structured questionnaires. The data collected was analyzed using SPSS. Findings revealed that of the sampled farmers 43%, 30%, 25% and 17% used Glyphosate, Dicamba, Paraquat and Atrazine respectively as herbicides in Maize. 21% and 14% used Cypermethrine and Monocrotophos respectively as insecticides in both Maize and Soybean. 81% of the sampled farmers used empty containers for either storing drinking water or salt while only 15% wore protective clothing when applying pesticides. Pesticide mishandling occurred regardless of the amount of experience a farmer had using pesticides. 68% of the sampled farmers had never received any formal basic training in pestic ide use, hence a clear knowledge gap. The fact that receipt of basic training was the main predictor of a farmers’ level of knowledge on pesticide use, a farmer who had received basic training in appropriate chemical pesticides use, as opposed to one who had not, had a better chance of using chemical pesticides safely and in the right quantities.

BACKGROUND:Thispaperdocumentsfarmerperceptionsandmanagementpracticesforfallarmyworm(Spodopterafrugiderda J.E.Smith),providingabaselineforthedevelopmentofsustainablepestmanagementstrategies.
RESULTS:91%offarmerscorrectlyidentifiedfallarmyworm,andreporteditasthemostimportantmaizepestduring2016/2017 cropping season, affecting nearly half of cultivated area. Estimated maize yield loss during the season, attributed to fall armywormwas28%.Amajorityoffarmers(60%)usedpesticidesforfallarmywormcontrol,alongwithothercultural/physical practices – handpickingandcrushingeggmasses/caterpillars(36%),andapplicationofash/sandinthefunnel(19%).Farmers usedvariouspesticideactiveingredients,andprotectivemeasureswereinadequate;>50%offarmersdidnotuseanyprotective measures while spraying. Significantly more male than female farmers used pesticides (P=0.05), and the reverse was true for culturalpractices.Significantmaizeyielddifferences(P=0.001)wereobservedbygender,attributedtodifferencesinutilization of production inputs/practices. At least 77% of farmers received and shared agricultural advice, which can be optimized to spreadinformationonfallarmywormmanagementoptions.
CONCLUSION: Increased use of pesticides to manage fall armyworm poses health and environmental risks, besides the high cost for farmers and governments. Research into cultural and indigenous practices used by farmers will offer opportunities for alternative and sustainable management practices. Research efforts should pay attention to gender differences in access to resources and inputs. Tackling fall armyworm at the farm level, and averting yield losses will require integrated messaging addressingotherproductionrisks. 

Seed quality can have a major impact on potential crop yield. Previous research found that about 60% of the crop yield in small cereals such as rice relies on the varietal genetic potential. In Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique and other developing countries, rice is grown as a food and cash crop by smallholder farmers whose productivity, production and marketing potential are yet to be reached.

Among the biotic stresses that affect cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L) productivity, infestation by cowpea bruchid beetles (Callosobruchus maculatus) is a major problem, causing yield losses of up to 100 %. To alleviate this problem, use of resistant varieties is a feasible approach for small-scale farmers. In Zambia, there are no reported sources of resistance to C. maculatus. The objectives of this study were: i) to evaluate certain cowpea mutants, generated at the University of Zambia, for resistance to C. maculatus; ii) to cluster the tested genotypes based on height, number of pods per plant, 100-seed weight, yield ha-1, number of eggs laid and adult emergence; and iii) to evaluate the candidate mutants for protein content. Experiments were conducted at three locations in 2014/15. The mutants, LT 11-5-2-2, BB 7-9-7-5 and BB-14-16-22, were found to be resistant to C. maculatus across locations and they out-performed their respective parents (p< 0.05) in the degree of resistance to C. maculatus. Cluster analysis, using selected agronomic parameters, showed that the selected resistant mutants (cluster B) were more similar to each other (95 %) than to Namuseba and Msandile (included as susceptible genotypes), which clustered at a similarity level of 78 % (cluster A). The mutants, LT 11-5-2-2, BB 7-9-7-5 and BB-14-16-22, showed resistance to C. maculatus, but their protein content was similar to their parents, indicating that this crucial trait had been maintained in the mutants. 

Nitrogen is a major plant nutrient which is most limiting in the soil due to soil losses of mineral nitrogen (N) form. To ensure availability of nitrogen in the soil, the study was conducted to screen four cowpea genotypes for Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF) and their contribution to maize yield in maize- cowpea rotation. The cowpea genotypes used were mutants LT11-3-3-12 (LT) and BB14-16-2-2 (BB) and their parental varieties Lutembwe (LTPRT) and Bubebe (BBPRT) respectively. Trials were established at two sites (Chisamba and Batoka) of different soil types. The Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications was used. Labelled 15N urea was applied at 20kgNha-1 on the four cowpea genotypes during 2015/16 growing season. Cowpea plant parts were dried and milled for 15N isotopic analysis. The data collected included Nitrogen content and atom % 15N excess in the fixing cowpea genotypes and non-nitrogen fixing pearl millet to determine total nitrogen derived from the atmosphere (TNdfa) and total nitrogen (TN) in plant parts which were further used to compute Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF). The results showed that BNF by cowpea genotypes at Chisamba was 63.9 kg ha-1 and was significantly (P<0.001) more than BNF of 6.6 kgha-1 at Batoka. The LT mutant fixed significantly (P<0.001) higher nitrogen of 86.1 kgha-1 and 16.5kg ha-1 at Chisamba and Batoka respectively than other genotypes. However, both BB and LT mutants significantly fixed more nitrogen than their parents and have demonstrated to increase maize grain yields up-to 12 tha-1 in the maize – cowpea rotation. 

Abstract — A survey was undertaken in three districts of Zambia namely; Monze, Mpongwe and Chipata which are hosting the Agriculture Productivity Programme for Southern Africa (APPSA) Sub-project titled “Developing Conservation Agriculture (CA) in Maize-Legume Systems for Smallholder Farmers in Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique”. The overall objective of this study was to get farmer perceptions of CA practices in the study districts for key information and research gaps that will contribute towards the development of CA based research agenda. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data from the respondents. Data generated was subjected to analysis using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Results revealed that the major hindrances to the application of CA practices lay in biophysical, technological, land, institutional and agro-climatic constraints.  Generally, farmers reported weeds as a major biophysical constraint to the implementation of CA technologies with Monze standing at 81.6% of the respondents followed by Mpongwe 58.1% and Chipata 52.1% respectively. This study recommends strengthening social networks of the community in order for them to have access to CA technologies information. Enhancing institutional linkages between Research, Extension and Meteorology departments is critical for dissemination of weather information which would aid in decision-making as to when farm operations would be carried out for improved agriculture productivity and production in the APPSA Project areas of Monze, Mpongwe and Chipata districts. 

In this flyer you will find 3 new groundnut varieties recently released in Mozambique by IIAM (Mozambique Agricultural Research Institute) under an APPSA funded project led by Dr. Amade Muitia. Overall, these varieties are tolerant to droughts, early/late leaf spots and rosette and yield around 2.5 tons per hectare. The names of the varieties are Mapupulo-018, Amena-018 and AMM-018.

The Sector Project Sustainable Agriculture in cooperation with GIZ Philippines and the Agricultural Training Institute (ATI) conducted RISE analyses with the objective to compare different production systems in the Philippian provinces Leyte and Southern Leyte.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) in Lesotho held a one-day Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Second Malabo Declaration Biennial Review (BR) Report Validation Workshop for all stakeholders in the agricultural sector. CAADP is Africa's Policy Framework for Agriculture and Agriculture-led development. It is aimed at reducing poverty and increasing food security in the continent through at least 10% public budget allocation to the sector in order to achieve at least 6% agriculture annual growth rate.
The Principal Secretary (PS) of MAFS, Mr. Malefetsane Nchaka officially opened the Workshop and thanked the participants for their attendance. He encouraged them to own the CAADP process as a sector and should not only be the responsibility of MAFS as the leading Ministry. He also acknowledged the presence of Regional Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System (ReSAKSS) at the validation workshop The PS mentioned that the first BR report was presented in January 2018 at the AU Ordinary Session, and Lesotho’s score was 3.7 out of 10 which did not reflect well on the country. The PS further encouraged the sector to do more in whatever may be required by asking the participants to provide with data as required so that when this current BR report is presented, Lesotho should have a better score than the 2018 score. 
  
The Lesotho CAADP Focal Person, Mr. Khesa presented the report on the results of the first Biennial Review where among the seven commitments, Lesotho scored an overall of only 3.7/10. Based on this score, the following were the recommendations that the country needs to consider in order to achieve a far better score in the next biennial review reporting. The recommendations were:
•    Lesotho should increase public agriculture expenditure as share of total public expenditure in line with the Malabo Declaration commitments, and stem the decline in the area of irrigated land.
•    The country should do more to integrate the youth and women in agricultural value chains.
•    The country should strengthen agriculture data collection and management systems (monitoring and evaluation) to ensure that missing under and unreported indicators are reported in the next round of the Biennial Review. Data was not available on the following areas: 
I.    Post-Harvest Loss;
II.    Farm Pastoral and Fisher Households that are resilient to climate change and weather related risks; and
III.    Participation of women in agriculture with access to finance.

The next Biennial workshop will be held in 2021. 
 

This Decision Tool aims to help field level extension staff make smart climate decisions on which pest and disease management options best suit their farmers’ context. This tool is not designed as a technical guide to implementation. It is designed to assist extension staff in making climate-smart decisions on improvements to their farming systems with their clients/farmers. Reference to technical guides relevant to the practices and technologies outlined are included at the end of the tool. The tool focuses on some of the Best Bet Climate-Smart Pest & Disease Management Options
for livestock production in the Southern African Development Community (SADC) region.