development
projects
locations Kenya, Tanzania date 1 January 2010 – 30 June 2011 project team Richard Musebe
stopping the march of the armyworm
so what’s the problem? The African armyworm (Spodoptera exempta) is a voracious pest that is devastating large areas of farmlands in Eastern Africa. With outbreaks difficult to predict due to their rapid spread, farmers often find themselves unaware and unprepared for attacks that are capable of destroying entire crops. The worst affected countries are Tanzania and Kenya, which together grow over 7 million hectares of cereal (mainly maize). In both countries, as many as 2 million farmers are at risk from armyworm attacks and many are ill-equipped to cope. In order to control the pest, governments of Tanzania and Kenya have established an outbreak forecasting system that interprets the biological patterns of armyworm to predict future distribution maps. However, whilst this forecasting method works successfully at a national level, it has little value for individual farmers in local regions. Whilst chemical insecticides are currently available to control armyworm populations, their high costs, toxic effects and environmentally damaging nature makes them an unsustainable solution.
what is this project doing? The project looks to implement a system of armyworm controls tools for local communities to protect crops from armyworm invasions. Building on the national forecasting model used by the governments of Tanzania and Kenya, one effective control tool is community-based forecasting using pheromone traps. With research showing over 80% accuracy of predicting armyworm outbreaks, the method will provide poor farming households with a timely and effective way to protect their crops. Once a potential outbreak has been predicted using the forecasting
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methods, a safe biological pesticide can then be administered to protect crops from damage. This biological control tool is based on a naturally occurring disease of armyworms and is non-toxic, environmentally friendly and half the cost of the chemical pesticide currently used by farmers. Together these tools will reduce the devastating effects of armyworm outbreaks on food production. To implement this system of control tools the project will establish a supply network for registered, low cost forecasting tools to reach Tanzania and Kenya’s smallholder farming communities. It will also establish a manufacturing system in Tanzania to produce the biological pesticide. To encourage the use of the tools, the project team will then promote the model to government services, farmers, community organisations, NGOs and development partners.
results so far To date, a training of trainers’ course has been conducted for 32 agricultural extension officers in Eastern and Coast Provinces of Kenya. These newly qualified trainers have since trained 320 community members in the principles of community-based armyworm forecasting and pesticide application. Frontline extension officers and assistant chiefs have also received training with the hope to promote such methods to the local farmers they service. So far forecasting at community level is being conducted in 80 sub-locations in Kenya. In the case of Tanzania, six Agricultural Extension Officers and six Plant Protection Officers have been trained. These officers have in turn trained 160 community members, including 80 farmers, 40 village executives and 40 village agricultural extension officers. Furthermore, community-based forecasting has been conducted in 40 villages in Tanzania.
www.cabi.org/armywormcontrol partners Bajuta International, Tanzania Desert Locust Control Organisation for Eastern Africa, Ethiopia Eco Agri Consultancy Services Ltd, Tanzania Juanco SPS, Kenya Lancaster University, UK Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Tanzania (MAFSC) Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Ethiopia (MoARD) Ministry of Agriculture, Kenya (MoA) Natural Resources Institute (NRI) Pest Control Products Board, Kenya (PCPB) Tropical Pesticides Research Institute, Tanzania (TPRI) sponsors Department for International Development - Research Into Use (DFID RIU) Angolan Government (GoA)
contact CABI, ICRAF Complex, United Nations Avenue, Gigiri, PO Box 633-00621, Nairobi, Kenya T: +254 20 72 24450 F: +254 20 71 22150 E: africa@cabi.org www.cabi.org/africa
ID-AC-06-12
Richard Musebe, Project Manager