The availability of clean planting materials and functional seed regulatory systems is indispensable for fostering a sustainable seed yam system. The Yam Improvement for Income and Food Security in West Africa (YIIFSWA) project of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) developed the capacity of National Agricultural Research Institutes (NARIs) in their use of standardized Temporary Immersion Bioreactor (TIB) and Vivipak (VP) systems for high-ratio propagation and post-flask ...

Inoculation of suitable rhizobia enhances biological nitrogen fixation in soybean production and are economically viable for use among smallholder farmers due to its low price over inorganic commercial fertilizer blends. In Mozambique, inoculants are available in liquid or solid form (powder/peat or granular). Field studies were conducted in 2017 and 2018 seasons in three agroecologies (Angonia, Nampula and Ruace) in Mozambique to evaluate the performance of inoculants when applied directly to ...

This book provides an insight into the background, lessons learned, and the methodology of facilitating the application of best-bet/best-fit agricultural technologies to smallholder farms in East and Southern Africa (ESA). All technologies highlighted within this book, except those on livestock feeding, were trialed and demonstrated in farmers' fields over an eight-year period [2012-2020] as part of the Feed the Future/USAID funded research-for-development Africa RISING ESA Project and supported ...

This chapter presents a definition of 'scaling' and outlines the key elements for success based on the experiences gained from Africa RISING research and dissemination in East and Southern Africa (ESA). Three examples are presented: (a) research and development partnerships; (b) community based scaling through seed systems; and (c) outdoor advertising for orange-fleshed sweet potato. It presents experiences and lessons learned from using these approaches to transfer and scale the technologies.

This chapter presents technologies for replacing the nutrients lost from cropped fields with external fertilizer sources in a manner that minimizes the consequences of too little or too much application. The technology of using industrial fertilizers, organic fertilizers, and application of farmyard manure and compost alone or in combination with industrial fertilizers are discussed in detail.

This chapter describes soil and water conservation measures for climate-resilient agriculture. It presents three interventions that can be used separately or in combination, depending on the context of the region: (1) integrating strips of forage grasses and legumes; (2) rainwater harvesting through tied ridges and ripping techniques; (3) constructing banks and ditches as part of an agroforestry system. The description of each technology, its benefits and application are discussed.

Gender-responsive breeding is a new approach to making sure modern breeding takes advantage of opportunities to improve gender equality in agriculture. Conventional research on the acceptability of modern varieties has scarcely addressed gender differences during adoption studies. Gender-responsive breeding starts from a different premise that adoption and social impact will be enhanced if gender is addressed at early stages of variety design and priority setting in breeding. However, until recently, ...

This perspective paper complements the Special Issue, by taking the five Challenges and Recommendations to One CGIAR as a starting point, and grounds those recommendations in the 15 years of AR4D practice of the Consortium for Improving Agriculture-based Livelihoods in Central Africa (CIALCA). CIALCA is a longstanding consortium of CGIAR centres and regional and national research and development partners that aims to accelerate the impact of agricultural research for sustainable development and ...