N2Africa | Putting nitrogen fixation to work for smallholder farmers in Africa

A flavour of the N2Africa Annual Planning Meeting and field trip in Zimbabwe

Professor Regis Chikowo (left) and Dr Endalkachew Wolde-meskel and Dr Peter Thorne (right) in Goromonzi, Zimbabwe (Photo Obrian Mudyiwenyama, 2016)

N2Africa key facts 2015 and learnings 2016

Today

N2Africa agronomy trials and farmers’ recommendations in Tanzania

^{This article is based on an article in the IITA Bulletin of 28 March-1 April 2016}

"Can the use of soyabean inoculants reduce the use of nitrogen fertilizers? How much fertilizer should soyabean farmers continue to apply in subsequent seasons? What are the long term effects of fertilizers, inoculants and soyabean and maize intercropping?

Improving traditional storage systems of grain legume residues for livestock feeding in Ghana

Crop residues are an important livestock feed resource and as such they are linking crop and animal production in West Africa. They are the second largest feed source for livestock after grazing, especially in the dry season in the savannas.

School Feeding Program in Ghana - Caterers and cooks enriching school meals with soyabean recipes

^{This article was published before on N2Africa Facebook}

Soyabean is one of the most promising grain legume crops for improving both human and livestock nutrition in northern Ghana due to its high protein content. Although the crop has been promoted during the past decade by the Ministry of Food and Agriculture, amongst others, it is rarely consumed by households.

Women’s position, dietary nutrient adequacy and nutritional status of children in Ghana

The prevalence of malnutrition in terms of stunting and wasting is high in rural Northern Ghana. Agriculture plays an important role in access to food, as agriculture represents the population’s main livelihood activity in the area. Hence, multiple programs (including N2Africa) aim to address malnutrition by increasing agricultural production. The position of women is one of the pathways through which agriculture affects children’s dietary nutrient adequacy and nutritional status, as women tend to prioritize the nutrition and health of their children.

The association between the diversity of crop production and nutritional indicators of rural households in Ghana

We investigated how household production diversity is correlated with dietary diversity and nutrition of infants and young children living in rural farming communities in northern Ghana.

An erratum of sorts

In Podcaster 34 of last year, we reported on progress on our data flows. As an example of how fast data turnover enables timely learning, we presented results of a 2015 climbing bean diagnostic trial in Uganda. Two figures showed the average effects of different inputs and the variation in those effects across different districts.

Related publications

Centre for Rhizobium Studies published manual "Working with Rhizobia".

Announcements

The 17^th African Association of Biological Nitrogen Fixation (AABNF) conference

The Botswana University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (BUAN) organizes the 17^th African Association of Biological Nitrogen Fixation (AABNF) conference to be held in Gaborone, Botswana from 17 – 21 October 2016.