Journal Article

Among the biotic stresses that affect cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L) productivity, infestation by cowpea bruchid beetles (Callosobruchus maculatus) is a major problem, causing yield losses of up to 100 %. To alleviate this problem, use of resistant varieties is a feasible approach for small-scale farmers. In Zambia, there are no reported sources of resistance to C. maculatus. The objectives of this study were: i) to evaluate certain cowpea mutants, generated at the University of Zambia, for resistance to C. maculatus; ii) to cluster the tested genotypes based on height, number of pods per plant, 100-seed weight, yield ha-1, number of eggs laid and adult emergence; and iii) to evaluate the candidate mutants for protein content. Experiments were conducted at three locations in 2014/15. The mutants, LT 11-5-2-2, BB 7-9-7-5 and BB-14-16-22, were found to be resistant to C. maculatus across locations and they out-performed their respective parents (p< 0.05) in the degree of resistance to C. maculatus. Cluster analysis, using selected agronomic parameters, showed that the selected resistant mutants (cluster B) were more similar to each other (95 %) than to Namuseba and Msandile (included as susceptible genotypes), which clustered at a similarity level of 78 % (cluster A). The mutants, LT 11-5-2-2, BB 7-9-7-5 and BB-14-16-22, showed resistance to C. maculatus, but their protein content was similar to their parents, indicating that this crucial trait had been maintained in the mutants. 

Abstract — A survey was undertaken in three districts of Zambia namely; Monze, Mpongwe and Chipata which are hosting the Agriculture Productivity Programme for Southern Africa (APPSA) Sub-project titled “Developing Conservation Agriculture (CA) in Maize-Legume Systems for Smallholder Farmers in Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique”. The overall objective of this study was to get farmer perceptions of CA practices in the study districts for key information and research gaps that will contribute towards the development of CA based research agenda. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative methods to collect data from the respondents. Data generated was subjected to analysis using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Results revealed that the major hindrances to the application of CA practices lay in biophysical, technological, land, institutional and agro-climatic constraints.  Generally, farmers reported weeds as a major biophysical constraint to the implementation of CA technologies with Monze standing at 81.6% of the respondents followed by Mpongwe 58.1% and Chipata 52.1% respectively. This study recommends strengthening social networks of the community in order for them to have access to CA technologies information. Enhancing institutional linkages between Research, Extension and Meteorology departments is critical for dissemination of weather information which would aid in decision-making as to when farm operations would be carried out for improved agriculture productivity and production in the APPSA Project areas of Monze, Mpongwe and Chipata districts. 

This study evaluated water use efficiency (WUE) of selected hybrid maize (Zea Mays L.) varieties in Zambia under rain-fed conditions. A randomized complete block field experiment was carried out during the 2014/2015 rainy season at the University of Zambia Agricultural Demonstration Centre. Treatments were 30 maize varieties from the early, medium and late maturity classes. WUE was calculated as the ratio of yield to evapotranspiration (ET) and transpiration (T). Results showed significant differences in WUE dry matter (DM) for transpiration (T) of early maturing varieties. However, no significant differences were observed in WUEDM for evapotranspiration (ET), WUE grain yield (GY), T and WUEGY, ET. WUEDM, T, WUEDM, ET, WUEGY, T, and WUEGY, ET were statistically the same among medium maturing varieties. Results further showed that among the late maturing varieties, WUEDM, T, WUEDM, ET and WUEGY, T showed significant differences but no significant differences were observed in WUEGY, ET. It was concluded that maize varieties from the same maturity classes have different WUEs. The study thus provided options in variety selection based on which varieties performed better, particularly SC 525, SC 513 and PAN 4M 21 from the early maturity class; PHB 30G19, ZMS 606, MRI 634 and SC 637 from the medium maturity class; and PAN ZM 83, SC 709, PAN 8M 93 and SC 719 from the late maturity class. It was recommended however, that repeated experiments over time should be done to validate the findings given that the trial was only conducted in one season.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS) in Lesotho held a one-day Comprehensive Africa Agriculture Development Programme (CAADP) Second Malabo Declaration Biennial Review (BR) Report Validation Workshop for all stakeholders in the agricultural sector. CAADP is Africa's Policy Framework for Agriculture and Agriculture-led development. It is aimed at reducing poverty and increasing food security in the continent through at least 10% public budget allocation to the sector in order to achieve at least 6% agriculture annual growth rate.
The Principal Secretary (PS) of MAFS, Mr. Malefetsane Nchaka officially opened the Workshop and thanked the participants for their attendance. He encouraged them to own the CAADP process as a sector and should not only be the responsibility of MAFS as the leading Ministry. He also acknowledged the presence of Regional Strategic Analysis and Knowledge Support System (ReSAKSS) at the validation workshop The PS mentioned that the first BR report was presented in January 2018 at the AU Ordinary Session, and Lesotho’s score was 3.7 out of 10 which did not reflect well on the country. The PS further encouraged the sector to do more in whatever may be required by asking the participants to provide with data as required so that when this current BR report is presented, Lesotho should have a better score than the 2018 score. 
  
The Lesotho CAADP Focal Person, Mr. Khesa presented the report on the results of the first Biennial Review where among the seven commitments, Lesotho scored an overall of only 3.7/10. Based on this score, the following were the recommendations that the country needs to consider in order to achieve a far better score in the next biennial review reporting. The recommendations were:
•    Lesotho should increase public agriculture expenditure as share of total public expenditure in line with the Malabo Declaration commitments, and stem the decline in the area of irrigated land.
•    The country should do more to integrate the youth and women in agricultural value chains.
•    The country should strengthen agriculture data collection and management systems (monitoring and evaluation) to ensure that missing under and unreported indicators are reported in the next round of the Biennial Review. Data was not available on the following areas: 
I.    Post-Harvest Loss;
II.    Farm Pastoral and Fisher Households that are resilient to climate change and weather related risks; and
III.    Participation of women in agriculture with access to finance.

The next Biennial workshop will be held in 2021. 
 

Climate change is projected to have serious impacts on the agriculture of southern Africa, affecting food availability, creating local production shortfalls and resulting in rising commodity prices. This report highlights the risks to agriculture and food systems that may occur in two counties of the region, Malawi and Zambia. The analysis uses the conceptual framework of climate-related risk from the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to examine the impacts that climate change is likely to have on agriculture and food security. Country-specific trends in temperature and rainfall and projected impacts are summarised from the literature. The vulnerability of the agricultural sector in each country is discussed in relation to its sensitivity to change and coping and adaptive capacity, and the risks of climate change on agriculture and small-scale farmers in the two focus countries assessed. A prioritisation process is then carried out to rank different commodities in each country, with respect to four dimensions: the importance of the commodity to the economy of the country, the national yield gap compared with the regional average, the importance of the commodity in people’s diet, and the projected impact of climate change on yield. The results of the analysis highlight three commodities that could be prioritized for agricultural development interventions: maize, potatoes and beans in Malawi, and maize, pulses and sorghum in Zambia.

A study was conducted to determine the influence of climate variability on livestock population dynamics in Kgalagadi district. Data on NAO, ENSO and SSTs indices were regressed and correlated against regional rainfall for kgalagadi region and livestock populations. Regional rainfall data was also related to livestock population dynamics. The results suggested that NAO, ENSO and SSTs were not good predictors of regional rainfall variability and livestock population dynamics (P > 0.05). The regional rainfall was highly variable and accounted for fluctuations on cattle and goat populations (P < 0.05) but not sheep population. Goat population appeared more sensitive to rainfall variability than other livestock species. Cattle death rate was also strongly influenced by rainfall variability whereas other livestock performance indicators were not significantly accounted for by rainfall variability. The results suggest that management need to be improved to buffer impact of climate variability on livestock population.

The eastern communal conservancies are situated along the western fringe of the Kalahari basin. Under a very short rainfall gradient, the vegetation abruptly changes from microphyllous Acacia-dominated savannas to mesophyll savannas, dominated by Terminalia sericea and Combretum spp. We hypothesise that this is caused by changes in soil moisture availability brought about by changes in soil texture from loamy soils to deep sands (the ‘inverse texture effect’). For this analysis, we used vegetation and soils data derived from a recognisance survey of the natural resources of the study area. As the sites in the soil and vegetation surveys did not overlap, it was decided to use only synoptic data for the plant associations in the analysis. Non-metric multidimesional scaling ordination was utilised as ordination technique of the vegetation data and various environmental parameters, including soil texture, soil hydraulic parameters, climatic and fire regime parameters, were overlaid as biplots onto the resulting graph, as were various plant functional attributes particularly related to climatic conditions. The main environmental gradient identified within the study area is the rainfall gradient. This relatively short gradient, however, does not explain the marked change in vegetation observed within the study area. This change is attributed to the change in soil type, in particular, the soil texture and the associated soil hydraulic parameters of the soil. This gradient is closely correlated to leaf size, explaining the change from microphyll savannas to mesophyll savannas along the change from loamy to sandy soils. One of the lesser understood mechanisms for the survival of these mesophyll plants on sandy soils seems to be a deep root system, which is actively involved in water redistribution within the soil profile – by hydraulic lift, inverse hydraulic lift and stem flow.

North-central Namibia is more vulnerable to effects of climate change and variability. Combined effects of environmental degradation, social vulnerability to poverty and a changing climate will compromise subsistence farming in north-central Namibia (NCN). This will make subsistence and small-scale farmers in the region more vulnerable to projected changes in the climate system. Thus, the aim of this article was to examine factors contributing to subsistence farmers’ vulnerability to impacts of climate change. The article further discusses different aspects of human vulnerability and existing adaptation strategies in response to impacts of climate related disasters experienced over the past three to four decades in NCN. Qualitative and quantitative research approaches and methodology were employed to obtain information from subsistence farmers in north-central Namibia. The socio-demographic characteristics of Ohangwena, Oshana and Omusati Region reveals high levels of unemployment, high adult and elderly population and high dependency on agricultural livelihood system. These indicators help understand levels of household vulnerability. The study concludes that households interviewed revealed low levels of adaptive capacity due to exposure to climate risks and combined effects of social, political and cultural factors. This article provided an understanding that is required to inform the adaptation pathways relevant for NCN.