Climate change poses a serious threat to the growth of developing countries, especially Ghana where the majority of people derive their livelihoods directly from agriculture and related industries. This thesis sets out to examine the economic impact of climate change on agriculture by modelling climate, household, and farm data from Ghana. The impact is assessed through three connected empirical studies. In our first empirical study, we estimate a multinomial logit (8,700 observations) in order ...

Cowpea is one of the most widely grown legumes in Togo for its grains and leaves, which are used both as food and feed. Despite its importance in the nutrition and economic life of the people, bulk of the varieties grown in Togo are landraces. Genetic improvement of crops requires the presence of heritable genetic variation. However, there is hardly any information on the extent of variability among cultivated cowpea in Togo. This study was carried out to assess the phenotypic and molecular diversity ...

Low soil nitrogen (low-N) and Striga hermonthica (Del.) are major constrains hampering maize production in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Developing extra-early quality protein maize (QPM)-provitamin A hybrids that combine low-N tolerance with Striga resistance is crucial for addressing the food security and undernourishment challenges in SSA. The objectives of this study were to i) assess the genetic diversity among a group of extra-early yellow QPM and orange QPM-provitamin A maize inbred lines, ii) ...

Au Niger, le niébé (Vigna unguiculata L. Walp.) est une culture alimentaire importante mais son rendement est bas en raison de plusieurs contraintes biotiques et abiotiques. L’objectif de cette thèse est d’améliorer le rendement du niébé par la mise en place d’une stratégie écologique de lutte contre les principaux insectes ravageurs de la culture. Les activités suivantes ont été conduites : une enquête de base dans 19 villages des régions de Maradi et Zinder pour identifier les principales ...

This trial was conducted to determine cowpea living mulch and maize maturity type effect on soil physical properties, maize yield and weed management. The study was a 3 x 4 factorial experiment laid out in Randomised Complete Block Design with 3 replications. Three maize maturity types: extra early Abontem, early Omankwa and medium Obatanpa and four living mulch systems: cowpea living mulch interseeded same day with maize (SDWM), cowpea living mulch interseeded 1 Week after planting maize (WAPM), ...

Global demand for cocoa beans is projected to keep rising while future production is likely to be limited by climate variability and change. Over 70% of the global cocoa supply comes from West Africa, a region expected to be greatly affected by climate change and extreme droughts. Cocoa production in West Africa needs to be adapted to more marginal and extreme climatic conditions, mainly drought, to sustain production and avoid further deforestation of the remaining rainforest for its cultivation. ...

Banana is an important crop worldwide mostly grown in tropical and subtropical regions, of annual production is 145 million metric tons valued at 26.5 billion Euros. Banana production is threatened by various constraints including pests and diseases. Among the pests, Radopholus similis is the most destructive species. East African Highland Bananas mostly grown in Uganda and other parts of East Africa are highly susceptible to this species with yield reduction reaching 80%. Breeding for resistance ...

The genetic control of resistance to the cassava mosaic disease (CMD) in some African landraces, their relationship with the widely used resistant genetic stock, clone 58308, and molecular markers associated with resistance to CMD in the landraces were evaluated in this study. The F-i progenies of 54 cassava crosses and their parents (clone 58308, six improved clones and 15 African landraces) were evaluated in two genetic experiments in three environments in Nigeria. Genetic analysis revealed that ...

One of the key challenges facing big businesses is how to secure the huge financing they need to invest in their businesses. From banking, insurance, pharmaceuticals, conglomerates, oil and gas companies and every other sector of the economy, the story is the same. Everyone faces the challenge of funds generation for executing their developmental projects and generally keeping the engine of their businesses running. The government, in a bid to solve this problem, established the Nigerian Securities and ...