Browsing by Author "Tinzaara, William"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Challenges and Opportunities for Smallholders in Banana Value Chains
    (Achieving sustainable cultivation of bananas, 2018) Tinzaara, William; Ocimati, Walter; Kikulwe, Enoch; Otieno, Gloria
    Bananas and plantains (Musa spp.) rank sixth on the list of staple crops in the world (FAO, 2017). With a global production of around 86 million tons per annum, about 18 million tons are exported, while the remainder is consumed domestically. Though exports, mainly comprising dessert bananas, account only for about 20% of global production, they account for about half of the value generated (about US$13 billion out of a total of US$26 billion). Cooking bananas and plantains account for the other half of the value generated and, given that they account for about 80% of global banana production, play a critical role in terms of global food security and in national and household economies.
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    Determinants of Farm-Level Adoption of Cultural Practices for Banana Xanthomonas Wilt Control in Uganda
    (Journal of Agricultural Science, 2013) Jogo, Wellington; Karamura, Eldad; Tinzaara, William; Kubiriba, Jerome; Rietveld, Anne
    Understanding the factors influencing farmers’ adoption decisions of the disseminated Banana Xanthomonas wilt (BXW) control package is critical for successful management of the disease. This paper analysed the determinants of farmers’ decisions to adopt the control package by smallholder banana farmers in Uganda. A binomial Logit model is applied to household survey data collected from 350 households. Results from the study show that household labour availability, technology package attributes such as labour demand and perceived effectiveness of the practices in managing the disease; and agro-ecological location and banana production system significantly influence adoption decisions. These results suggest the need for adaptation of the technology package to better suit the needs and socio-economic conditions of smallholder farmers through a farmer participatory technology development approach that takes into account research findings, farmers’ indigenous knowledge and resource constraints to enhance adoption.
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    Farmers’ awareness and application of banana Xanthomonas wilt control options: The case of Uganda and Kenya
    (Journal of Development and Agricultural Economics, 2011) Jogo, Wellington; Karamura, Eldad; Kubiriba, Jerome; Tinzaara, William; Rietveld, Anne; Onyango, Margaret; Odongo, Michael
    Banana is a key staple and cash crop in east and central Africa. However, the recent outbreak of Banana Xanthomonas wilt (BXW) has threatened farmers whose livelihoods depend on the crop. Since 2002, stakeholders embarked on campaigns to sensitize farmers on the disease and its management. This study evaluated the effectiveness of these efforts by examining farmers’ awareness of the disease, control options and their application in Uganda and Kenya. Data on BXW distribution and incidence, farmers’ awareness of symptoms, mechanisms of spread and control options of the disease and banana production were collected through household surveys conducted in 2010. The results indicated that most farmers (> 90%) were aware of the disease and its symptoms and more than 50% were aware of the recommended control measures. Farmers obtained information on the disease from multiple sources but farmer-to-farmer interaction was the main source suggesting the key role rural social networks play in managing the disease. Not all affected farmers were able to apply control measures due to cost of intervention, lack of labour and inputs. The study recommends strengthening of linkages among stakeholders for better coordination of efforts and participatory development and promotion of farmer-oriented interventions that address farmer constraints.
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    Fine-tuning banana Xanthomonas wilt control options over the past decade in East and Central Africa
    (European journal of plant pathology, 2014) Blomme, Guy; Jacobsen, Kim; Ocimati, Walter; Beed, Fen; Ntamwira, Jules; Sivirihauma, Charles; Ssekiwoko, Fred; Nakato, Valentine; Kubiriba, Jerome; Tripathi, Leena; Tinzaara, William; Mbolela, Flory; Lutete, Lambert; Karamura, Eldad
    Xanthomonas wilt, caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. musacearum has, since 2001, become the most important and widespread disease of Musa in East and Central Africa. Over the past decade, new research findings and especially feedback from smallscale farmers have helped in fine-tuning Xanthomonas wilt control options. During the initial years of the Xanthomonas wilt epidemic in East Africa, the complete uprooting of diseased mats and the burning or burying of plant debris was advocated as part of a control package which included the use of clean garden tools and early removal of male buds to prevent insect vector transmission. Uprooting a complete mat (i.e. the mother plant and a varying number of lateral shoots) is understandably time-consuming and labour intensive and becomes very cumbersome when a large number of diseased mats have to be removed. Recent research findings suggest that Xcm bacteria do not colonize all lateral shoots (i.e. incomplete systemicity occurs) and even when present that this does not necessarily lead to symptom expression and disease.
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    Management of Banana Xanthomonas Wilt: Evidence from Impact of Adoption of Cultural Control Practices in Uganda
    (Sustainability, 2019) Kikulwe, Enoch M.; Lule Kyanjo, Joseph; Kato, Edward; Ssali, Reuben T.; Erima, Rockefeller; Mpiira, Samuel; Ocimati, Walter; Tinzaara, William; Kubiriba, Jerome; Gotor, Elisabetta; Stoian, Dietmar; Karamura, Eldad
    Banana XanthomonasWilt (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 a ecting 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 e ective ways for sustaining adoption of the control practices.
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    The Status of Research for the Management of the Banana Weevil, Cosmopolites sordidus (Germar) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) in Sub-Saharan Africa
    (European Journal of Agriculture and Food Sciences, 2022) Bakaze, Elyeza; Tinzaara, William; Gold, Cliff; Kubiriba, Jerome
    The banana weevil Cosmopolites sordidus (Germar) (Coleoptera: Curculionidae] is a major pest of East African highland bananas and plantains. Its larvae bore in corm tissue damaging the root system, disrupting nutrient and water uptake, compromising plant anchorage, reducing yield, and shortening plantation life. Yield losses in bananas and plantains may exceed 50%. Available technologies for the management of the pest include cultural control, biological control, and chemical control. These methods may be costly, labor intensive, or ecologically unsustainable. Such effects, together with developed pesticide resistance, have led to various efforts searching for sustainable alternatives. To achieve this, there is a need to understand the biology of the pest and the currently available management options which includes use of cultural practices, resistant banana varieties, biological and microbial control, pheromone trapping and chemical and botanical insecticides. This article reviews the research status concerning C. sordidus biology, distribution, management options, including current innovations such as genome editing, and suggests future research directions for the management of the pest. Research findings suggest that no single control strategy will provide complete control. The integration of appropriate conventional C. sordidus management options with genetic engineering and other ecologically friendly methods such as use of botanicals and infochemicals will manage the pest and sustainably increase banana production.