Agricultural Input, Service Providers and NGOs

Lowland rice accounts for 50% of the total rice produced in Nigeria. In recent years, WARDA has introduced several rice varieties, together with efficient natural resource/crop management and pest and disease management technologies to rice farmers in Nigeria and other West and Central African countries. Typical examples are the high yielding rice varieties: FARO 44 (SIPI), FARO 51 (CISADANE), FARO 52 (WITA 4), FARO 57 (TOX 40043-1- 2-1), and the lowland varieties of the New Rice for Africa (NERICA) that are currently being evaluated in several parts of Nigeria prior to full release. The majority of these introduced technologies have been accepted and become widespread in some states of Nigeria. However, these technologies came to the farmers without an accompanying handbook on how to plant/grow the varieties, quantity of seed to plant per hectare, how to apply fertilizers and herbicides, etc.

This manual aims to present information that will enable veterinary departments and development agencies to implement a sustainable Newcastle Disease control program. Topics discussed include the characteristics of ND, collection and submission of samples for the diagnoses of ND, ND control measures emphasising vaccination with thermostable vaccines, gender and ethnoveterinary aspects of ND control and the development of an extension program for ND control.

Agriculture can work in concert with other sectors to produce faster growth, reduce poverty, and sustain the environment. In this Report, agriculture consists of crops, livestock, agroforestry, and aquaculture. It does not include forestry and commercial capture fisheries because they require vastly different analyses. But interactions between agriculture and forestry are considered in the discussions of deforestation, climate change, and environmental services.