Addressing the Yield Gap in Sub-Saharan Africa

There is a significant soybean yield gap in sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Sustainable intensification of the agricultural sector to reduce such a yield gap is important. Increasing soybean productivity can meet the growing demand for food and feed when complemented with higher soy meal demand by the local livestock industry. This study performs an ex-ante economic analysis to determine the effect of higher soybean production on trade and land use within SSA countries. We find that increasing soybean yield by 50% can increase the total returns from soybean production by 186 million LC (local currency) in Ethiopia and 36 billion LC in Nigeria. We show that soybean yield growth alone is enough to boost soy oil production, as the crushing of the beans produces 18% oil and 79% meal. While increasing productivity may lead to freeing land to produce high-valued cash crops, investors will be reluctant to invest in the crushing facilities in the absence of soy meal demand by the livestock industry. Therefore, policymakers need to establish collaboration between development organisations, private companies, farmers and researchers to achieve this transformation and thereby raise agricultural productivity.

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How big is the potato (Solanum tuberosum L.) yield gap in Sub-Saharan Africa and why? A participatory approach

Open Agriculture ◽

10.1515/opag-2018-0019 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. 180-189 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Dieudonné Harahagazwe ◽

Bruno Condori ◽

Carolina Barreda ◽

Astère Bararyenya ◽

Arinaitwe Abel Byarugaba ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Online Survey ◽

Management Practices ◽

Solanum Tuberosum L ◽

Experimental Information ◽

Poor Quality ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Model Parameters ◽

Yield Gap ◽

Potential Yield ◽

Sub Saharan

Abstract According to potato experts from ten Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) countries working together in a community of practice (CoP) over a 3-years period, potato farmers across SSA can increase their current annual production of 10.8 million metric tons by 140% if they had access to high quality seed along with improved management practices. This paper describes this innovative new methodology tested on potato for the first time, combining modelling and a comprehensive online survey through a CoP. The intent was to overcome the paucity of experimental information required for crop modelling. Researchers, whose data contributed to estimating model parameters, participated in the study using Solanum, a crop model developed by the International Potato Center (CIP). The first finding was that model parameters estimated through participatory modelling using experts’ knowledge were good approximations of those obtained experimentally. The estimated yield gap was 58 Mg ha-1, of which 35 corresponded to a research gap (potential yield minus research yield) and 24 to farmers’ gap (research yield minus farmer’s yield). Over a 6-month period, SurveyMonkey, a Web-based platform was used to assess yield gap drivers. The survey revealed that poor quality seed and bacterial wilt were the main yield gap drivers as perceived by survey respondents.

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Yield Gap-Based Poverty Gaps in Rural Sub-Saharan Africa

World Development ◽

10.1016/j.worlddev.2014.10.030 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 67 ◽

pp. 336-362 ◽

Cited By ~ 46

Author(s):

Fred M. Dzanku ◽

Magnus Jirström ◽

Håkan Marstorp

Keyword(s):

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Yield Gap ◽

Sub Saharan

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Can sub-Saharan Africa feed itself?

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1610359113 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 113 (52) ◽

pp. 14964-14969 ◽

Cited By ~ 244

Author(s):

Martin K. van Ittersum ◽

Lenny G. J. van Bussel ◽

Joost Wolf ◽

Patricio Grassini ◽

Justin van Wart ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Gap Analysis ◽

Biodiversity Loss ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Yield Potential ◽

Food Demand ◽

Security Risk ◽

Yield Gap ◽

Gap Closure ◽

Production Area ◽

Sub Saharan

Although global food demand is expected to increase 60% by 2050 compared with 2005/2007, the rise will be much greater in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Indeed, SSA is the region at greatest food security risk because by 2050 its population will increase 2.5-fold and demand for cereals approximately triple, whereas current levels of cereal consumption already depend on substantial imports. At issue is whether SSA can meet this vast increase in cereal demand without greater reliance on cereal imports or major expansion of agricultural area and associated biodiversity loss and greenhouse gas emissions. Recent studies indicate that the global increase in food demand by 2050 can be met through closing the gap between current farm yield and yield potential on existing cropland. Here, however, we estimate it will not be feasible to meet future SSA cereal demand on existing production area by yield gap closure alone. Our agronomically robust yield gap analysis for 10 countries in SSA using location-specific data and a spatial upscaling approach reveals that, in addition to yield gap closure, other more complex and uncertain components of intensification are also needed, i.e., increasing cropping intensity (the number of crops grown per 12 mo on the same field) and sustainable expansion of irrigated production area. If intensification is not successful and massive cropland land expansion is to be avoided, SSA will depend much more on imports of cereals than it does today.

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Simulating Regional Cassava Yield Gap in Nigeria

10.21203/rs.3.rs-1244050/v1 ◽

2022 ◽

Author(s):

Amit Kumar Srivast ◽

Thomas Gaiser ◽

Akinola Shola Akinwumiju ◽

Wenzhi Zeng ◽

Andrej Ceglar ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Calorie Intake ◽

Modeling Framework ◽

Yield Gap ◽

Short Rainy Season ◽

Yield Gaps ◽

Cassava Production ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Climate Parameter ◽

Significant Factors

Abstract Cassava production is essential for food security in Sub-Saharan Africa and serves as a major calorie- intake source in Nigeria. Here we use a crop model, LINTUL5, embedded into a modeling framework SIMPLACE to estimate potential cassava yield gaps (Yg) in 30 states of Nigeria. Our study of climate parameter influence on the variability of current and potential yields and Yg shows that cumulative radiation and precipitation were the most significant factors associated with cassava yield variability (p = 0.01). The cumulative Yg mean was estimated as 18202 kg∙ha-1, with a maximum of 31207 kg ha-1 in Kano state. Across the states, nutrient limitation accounts for 55.3% of the total cassava yield gap, while the remaining 44.7% is attributed to water limitation. The highest untapped water-limited yields were estimated in States, such as Bauchi, Gombe, and Sokoto, characterized by the short rainy season. Conclusively, the current cassava yield levels can be increased by a factor of five through soil fertility enhancement and with irrigation, particularly in semi-arid regions.

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Improvement in Cassava Yield per Area by Fertilizer Application

10.5772/intechopen.97366 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

John Okoth Omondi ◽

Uri Yermiyahu

Keyword(s):

Fertilizer Application ◽

Raw Material ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Storage Roots ◽

Yield Gap ◽

Production Strategies ◽

Current Production ◽

Cassava Production ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Smart Technologies

Cassava is a source of carbohydrates to more than 200 million people in Sub-Saharan Africa, even though its production is 6–8 t ha−1, which is below the highest world production of 36.4 t ha−1 in India. To address this yield gap and increase cassava’s availability, affordability, and adequacy, intensive but sustainable production is important. Additionally, being an emerging raw material in the animal feeds, pharmaceutical, beer industries etc., only increases its demand, however the current production levels cannot effectively sustain this. Therefore, this paper reviews: improvement in cassava yields per area under fertigation and banding of fertilizers, a common practice among many farmers; the advantage of fertilizer application on starch of the storage roots, which is the fundamental ingredient in most industries using cassava as a raw material; and the climate smart technologies for intensive sustainable cassava production. In the end, this review enhances knowledge about fertilizer application to cassava, both banding and fertigation, and expounds on effective intensive sustainable climate-smart production strategies.

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Estimating and Decomposing Groundnut Gender Yield Gap: Evidence from Rural Farming Households in Northern Nigeria

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su12218923 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 12 (21) ◽

pp. 8923

Author(s):

Geoffrey Muricho ◽

Jourdain Lokossou ◽

Hippolyte Affognon ◽

Benjamin Ahmed ◽

Haile Desmae ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Smallholder Farmers ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Switching Regression ◽

Yield Gap ◽

Esr Model ◽

Yield Gaps ◽

Sub Saharan ◽

Using Data ◽

Female Headed Households ◽

Farming Households

Poverty among smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa has been associated with low agricultural productivity emanating from gender yield gaps among other factors. Using data collected from smallholder groundnut producers in Nigeria, we analyzed the gender yield gap by applying the exogenous switching regression (ESR) model and Oaxaca–Blinder (OB) decomposition framework. Results from the two complementary approaches showed a significant gender yield gap in favor of male headed households (MHHs). The main and significant source of the gap was differences in resources/endowments. We found that involving female headed households (FHHs) in prerequisite yield augmenting activities like technology validation trials, testing, and demonstrations is critical in closing the existing yield gap.

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RTS,S/AS01, a vaccine targeting pre-erythrocytic stages of Plasmodium falciparum

Emerging Topics in Life Sciences ◽

10.1042/etls20170101 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 1 (6) ◽

pp. 533-537

Author(s):

Lorenz von Seidlein ◽

Borimas Hanboonkunupakarn ◽

Podjanee Jittmala ◽

Sasithon Pukrittayakamee

Keyword(s):

Protective Efficacy ◽

Age Groups ◽

Sub Saharan Africa ◽

Phase Iii ◽

European Medicines Agency ◽

Older Children ◽

Pivotal Phase ◽

Malaria Epidemiology ◽

Maximum Benefit ◽

Sub Saharan

RTS,S/AS01 is the most advanced vaccine to prevent malaria. It is safe and moderately effective. A large pivotal phase III trial in over 15 000 young children in sub-Saharan Africa completed in 2014 showed that the vaccine could protect around one-third of children (aged 5–17 months) and one-fourth of infants (aged 6–12 weeks) from uncomplicated falciparum malaria. The European Medicines Agency approved licensing and programmatic roll-out of the RTSS vaccine in malaria endemic countries in sub-Saharan Africa. WHO is planning further studies in a large Malaria Vaccine Implementation Programme, in more than 400 000 young African children. With the changing malaria epidemiology in Africa resulting in older children at risk, alternative modes of employment are under evaluation, for example the use of RTS,S/AS01 in older children as part of seasonal malaria prophylaxis. Another strategy is combining mass drug administrations with mass vaccine campaigns for all age groups in regional malaria elimination campaigns. A phase II trial is ongoing to evaluate the safety and immunogenicity of the RTSS in combination with antimalarial drugs in Thailand. Such novel approaches aim to extract the maximum benefit from the well-documented, short-lasting protective efficacy of RTS,S/AS01.

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