60,000 growers to benefit from legume farming
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture agronomist, Dr Frederick Baijukya, who is also the project’s country coordinator, speak at a past event . PHOTO|FILE
What you need to know:
- Such farmers will get quality legume seeds, access appropriate fertilisers, curb postharvest losses and acquire processing technologies, an International Institute of Tropical Agriculture agronomist, Dr Frederick Baijukya, who is also the project’s country coordinator, said.
Dar es Salaam. Nearly 23,828 households are involved in a project aimed at improving legume production to increase incomes of Tanzanian farmers.
Such farmers will get quality legume seeds, access appropriate fertilisers, curb postharvest losses and acquire processing technologies, an International Institute of Tropical Agriculture agronomist, Dr Frederick Baijukya, who is also the project’s country coordinator, said.
The target is to reach over 60,000 farmers in Tanzania by 2018.
Already farmers who have adopted the technologies and improved seeds have enjoyed high yields, he said. Under the project, ‘Putting nitrogen fixation to work for Africa’s smallholder farmers’, or N2Africa, in short, 1,365 farmers have been trained on proper technology use. The project is also aimed at creating sustainable input supply and marketing access and empowering women to benefit from legume production.
“While legumes are very important for improving food security and income of rural smallholder farmers they also fertilise soils,” he said.
“N2Africa is promoting to farmers different technologies assembled from different research institutions in the country.”
