Soyabean is an important crop in the farming systems in Malawi, particularly as a source of cash and proteins. In addition, soyabean has the potential to replenish soil nitrogen (N) through biological nitrogen fixation (BNF). The N fixed by soyabean can also be utilized by the component crop when used as an intercrop or in crop rotation. However, the potential benefits of soyabean in smallholder farming system are often not realised because of poor agricultural practices.

After two seasons of implementing N2Africa activities in Malawi, the team changed the dissemination approach for sustainability purposes. Previously, the team already worked with the PREA (Participatory Research and Extension Approach) in which N2Africa staff trained Lead/Master Farmers who in turn trained satellite farmers in legume technologies. Now, the team has modified the PREA, empowering Lead Farmers to train School teachers and students in legume technologies.

N2Africa conducted a writeshop in Wageningen, the Netherlands from the 21st to the 24th of May 2013. The objective of the writeshop was to providing participants the opportunity to develop papers in small teams, review each other’s draft manuscripts and share ideas – all aimed at improving the quantity and quality of papers produced by the participants in the N2Africa project.

Ethiopia recently joined the N2Africa project. The country is the leading chickpea producer in Africa with a share of 39% of the total production in 2011. In the same year, chickpea was the third most widely cultivated legume crop in Ethiopia next to faba bean and haricot bean. Reason enough to include chickpea as one of the focus crops of N2Africa in this country. Chickpea, being considered a multi-functional crop, has an important role in Ethiopian diets and serves as a protein source for the rural poor who cannot afford to buy animal products.

The Catholic Relief Services (CRS), through the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) -funded Soya ni Pesa Project is supporting small holder farmers in Southern highlands (Ruvuma and Njombe regions) of Tanzania to grow soyabean. In this endeavour the project has identified lack of seed and well adapted soyabean varieties to be the major challenge.

As background documents for the new countries Ethiopia, Tanzania and Uganda characterization reports have been written with information on agronomy, farming systems and ongoing projects on grain legumes in the different countries.

As part of the investment in rhizobiology research and inoculant production in the different N2Africa countries, N2Africa recently facilitated the replacement of a 33 year old autoclave at the government inoculant factory in Marondera, Zimbabwe.

The International Postgraduate Course "Farming Systems and Rural Livelihoods: Vulnerability and Adaptation"will be held 7 – 18 October 2013 in Wondo Genet, Ethiopia.

This postgraduate course provides skills and methods to analyse (the dynamics of) farming systems as embedded in the complex livelihoods of rural people in Africa. For more information see the poster.

We received a link to a very interesting publication written by the Australian team Drew E, Herridge D, Ballard R, O’Hara G, Deaker R, Denton M, et al.: INOCULATING LEGUMES: A PRACTICAL GUIDE. Grains Research & Development Corporation (GRDC) [Internet]. Kingston, Australia; 2012. It provides a good overview of the use and benefits of Inoculants in the Australian setting, showing a fine series of photos of legumes and their nodulation.