Could biocontrol solve the papaya mealybug problem for Ugandan farmers?
Papaya mealybug, Paraccous margniatus, is native to Central America but has spread rapidly in invaded countries. It was detected in Uganda in 2021 where it has the potential to affect the production and quality of papaya and other host crops.
5 ways that youth agricultural training benefits young people in Uganda
Youth agricultural training is bringing hope to young people in Uganda. Here, youth unemployment is a significant crisis. Around 70% of unemployed people are youths. There are ample job opportunities in the agriculture sector. However, many youths lack the skills they need to secure careers in farming.
Plant Health Rallies benefit farmers in Uganda
CABI has conducted a study into Plant Health Rallies in Uganda and the positive impact they have on farmers’ plant health management knowledge, attitudes and practices. The study looks at what factors enhance or hinder farmer attendance at rallies, as well as how advice received is applied.
Plantwise successes revealed in Impact Story Competition
The successes of smallholder farmers in Nepal, Uganda and Kenya – thanks to help from CABI – have become the focus of the Plantwise Impact Story Competition won by three extension workers who helped them combat crop pests and diseases. Debraj Adhikari, a Senior Plant Protection Officer from Nepal, plant doctor Mubunga Joshua from Uganda…
Plant doctor advice increasing availability of clean banana suckers in Kitema, Uganda
In Uganda the majority of the young people are unemployed, and efforts to create employment opportunities within the agriculture sector are yielding little to no interest among them. Agriculture is not viewed as a viable employment sector, due to the perceptions that agriculture as a profession is labour intensive, results in high crop losses from…
Voices of farmers facing the Fall armyworm
Masindi and Kiryandongo are the maize-growing regions of Uganda, and maize – or corn – is a staple crop, cooked into a porridge for breakfast or into ugali for dinner. The Fall armyworm is threatening maize crops in Uganda – and by extension the food security of Ugandans. It’s expected to damage up to 1.39 million tonnes…
Paying a visit to the Plant Doctor in Uganda
By Katie Tomlinson. Reblogged from the Cabot Institute blog. Two weeks ago I organised a visit to a plant clinic in the Mukono district of central Uganda. The plant clinics are run by district local government extension staff with support from CABI’s Plantwise programme and offer a place where farmers can bring crop samples to…
Update: Plant Health News (28 Jan 15)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including native ants helping to improve cocoa yields in Indonesia, unseasonal rains affecting crops in India and local mangoes in the Philippines declared free from mango seed weevil. Click on the link to read more of the latest plant health news!
Behind the scenes of Plantwise plant clinics in Uganda
PhD student, Andrew Tock, of the Warwick Crop Centre, has spent three months monitoring Plantwise plant clinic success in Uganda as part of a BBSRC-funded Doctoral Training Partnership. During this time, he kept a research diary (video above), describing his experiences in Uganda and the day-to-day work of plant doctors in the field. To read…
Plantwise joins IPPC in Rome to discuss building linkages for NPPOs
Delegates from over twenty-six countries attended last Thursday’s side event jointly-hosted by the International Plant Protection Convention (IPPC) Secretariat and the CABI-led Plantwise programme which served the goals common to both organizations: empowering countries to protect crops, thereby increasing food security. The event on the evening of April 2ndat Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of…