Tanzania Journal of Agricultural Sciences

Enterprising Tendencies and Economic Well-being among Retirees: Experience from Dodoma City of Tanzania

V. Makuya — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This paper assesses the dimensions of enterprising tendencies and retirees’ income earned from income-generating activities. The study used a cross-sectional research design. Accordingly, quantitative and qualitative methods were used for data collection. Questionnaires and an interview guide were administered to 80 retirees obtained by using snowball sampling in Dodoma, Tanzania. Descriptive and regression analyses were conducted to generate meaningful information. The results of the study show that an individual retiree's economic well-being is improved by locus of control, need for accomplishment, risk-taking, and innovation in enterprising tendencies. The findings revealed further that retirees in Dodoma City have a low enterprising tendency (a score less than 3). On the other hand, retirees perceived difficulties as negatively influencing their economic well-being. Thus, inculcating an entrepreneurial culture is considered essential not only before but also after retirement. Retirees are advised to have confidence in their capabilities as far as enterprising tendencies are concerned.

Effectiveness of Grassroots Institutions in Governing Land Management: A Case of the Uluguru Mountains, Morogoro, Tanzania

E.T. Malisa — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Unsustainable land management practices have been reported in the Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania. Literature points to a clear association between land management and institutions; it reveals a problem in terms of effectiveness of conservation by-laws and indicates lack of focus on informal institutions. It is not clear as to how effective are land-related institutions when combined. Often times, formal and informal institutions have been studied in isolation from one another. This paper assessed the effectiveness of formal and informal institutions in governing land management. Data were collected through household survey and semi-structured interviews. Institutional effectiveness, indicated by behavioural change, was measured using Likert scale. Multinomial logistic regression was used to analyse the influence of independent variables on institutional effectiveness. Content analysis was used to analyse qualitative data. Results showed that institutions are generally effective in governing land management in the Uluguru Mountains. Formal institutions were seen to be legally binding. Informal institutions, though they influenced land management behaviour, were associated with declining credibility among the Luguru people. Land ownership security, awareness of institutions and market access were significantly important conditions for institutional effectiveness and hence ought to be the policy priorities. They provide knowledge on, and incentives for adherence to rules and norms. Ecological concerns motivated compliance with prescriptions on land management. Thus, actions on land management are not guided by individual rationality (the logic of costs and benefits) alone; they are also guided by the social rationality (doing what is appropriate or expected by a given community). While it is important to invest in formulation and/or amendment of formal rules for land management as deemed necessary, it is equally important to promote the good aspects of informal institutions, i.e. practices, norms and beliefs, which enhance land management behaviour.

Factors Influencing Land Allocation Decisions to Food Crops - Trees Production in Mufindi, Tanzania: A Fractional Multinomial Logit Approach (FMNL)

H. Ng’elenge, P. Damas — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Understanding of factors influencing land allocation decisions to food crops - trees production is vital for improving the welfare gain from land allocation decisions smallholder farmers make. This article aimed to investigate the determinants of land allocation decisions by smallholder farmers between food crops - tree production in selected villages in the Mufindi District in Tanzania. The study adopted a cross-sectional research design approach to collect data. The target population was 4896 farm households, from which a total of 413 households were randomly selected to constitute a sample size from which primary data were collected. Data from this study were analyzed quantitatively using the fractional Multinomial Logit model (FMNL). Variables included in FMNL were sex, age, education, household size, labor, and land size, access to market information, and awareness to land use policy. Major findings show that sex, household size, land size, awareness of land use policy, access to market information, and labor were influencing land allocation decisions more to tree farming than food crops. The study suggests that the government should create awareness among farmers through educational programs on, land use policy and market information, labor and land use allocation for improved farmers’ welfare.

Barriers to Adapting to Climatic Stress in Tanzania's Semi-Arid Environments

N.M. Pauline, F.J. Chiwanga — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The adaptation barriers to climate variability and change in Tanzania's semi-arid areas are significant. Dodoma urban district is among the areas in the country that have been particularly hard hit by climate change, with frequent reports of food insecurity and hunger as a result of flooding or drought. Data were collected using both qualitative and quantitative methods, where quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS version 16 and Microsoft Excel in the form of factor analysis and descriptive statistics. Major barriers to climate change adaptation included inadequate financial and farm inputs (factor 1), low level of education and income (factor 2), arable land constraints (factor 3), information barrier (factor 4), and lastly was financial barrier and lack of institution support (factor 5). To address the plethora of such barriers at the individual farmer level, a comprehensive and dynamic policy strategy across a scales and governance levels would be required. This implies that the adaptation process ought to take into account the locallevel realities for it to be successful in responding to climatic stresses. Thus, concerted efforts from all stakeholders and institutions are required to come up with a comprehensive approach across scales and levels to address barriers to adaptation.

Short-Term Effects of COVID-19 on Foreign Direct Investment Influxes: Evidence from the United Republic of Tanzania

J.J. Mmasa — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The COVID-19 outbreak in 2019 caused health and economic challenges at a global scale, similarly, the outbreak affected Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) inflow in many countries including the United Republic of Tanzania (URT) in 2020. Additionally, the economic prospects were also damaged by a stumpy in oil prices. The United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) predicted that FDI will decline by 25% to 40% due to pandemic containment measures. This study intended to investigate the extent to which COVID-19 has affected FDI inflow in the URT over the near term. Specifically, the study focused on two factors: first, the number of FDI projects registered; second, the number of jobs created by FDI projects (in all sectors or agriculture alone). This study adopted both quantitative and qualitative approaches. The fixed effect model was used in the ex post facto study design. This study used Excel and STATA software in handling and processing the data. The study shows a significant overall decline in FDI influxes, particularly after COVID-19. Similarly to this, the majority of FDI observed in the manufacturing and construction sectors goes toward building infrastructure, which could help create new jobs, increase household incomes, and increase domestic spending to help the economy. An increase in FDI per unit has no appreciable effect on the number of projects over years across sectors, according to the study's finding the FDI value is not statistically significantly different from zero at the 5% level of significance. Likewise, on average there is no significant effect of a unit increase in FDI on the number of jobs created over years across sectors. It is recommended that Government should attract more FDI in order to stimulate investment and hence promote jobs and economic development.

Comparative Effects of Urea Intercalated with Poultry Manure on Soil Properties, Growth Parameters, Nitrogen Contents and Grain Yield of Rice

M.O. Azeez , J.O. Ogunseijua, O. Oyetunji, O.O. Adesanwoa — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The study investigated the efficiency of intercalating Urea fertilizer with organic materials on Nitrogen (N) release, growth parameters, grain yield and N contents in soil and plant tissue under field condition at two locations. Urea fertilizer was intercalated with raw and composted poultry manure through a chemical method. Urea intercalated with raw poultry manure (UIP) and Urea intercalated with Poultry manure compost (UIC) were applied at three rates (40, 60 and 80 Kg N ha^-1) together with urea fertilizer at 60 kg N ha^-1and control. Three seeds of rice (FARO 64) per hole were sown at a spacing of 25 cm by 25 cm and the experiment was arranged in Randomized Complete Block Design with four replicates per treatment. Soil samples were collected at both sites before sowing and after harvesting for analyses. The greenness index, plant height, stem girth and tiller numbers of the rice plants were monitored and determined. Grain yields of the rice plants were also determined. Results showed positive effects of urea intercalated fertilizers on all parameters though not significantly different in both locations. Tissue N contents in Urea fertilizer alone, UIP and UIC at 60 Kg N ha^-1 were 1.23, 1.12 and 1.19 % respectively. Intercalation of urea with poultry manure and compost had positive effects on grain yield. Greenness index in intercalated fertilizers were higher than Urea alone treated plots at eight weeks after planting. The UIP at 80 kg N ha-1 had the highest liming potential. This study showed the potential of Urea intercalated fertilizer as a slow-release N-fertilizer, liming ability, and environmentally friendly management strategy for sustainable crop production.

Assessment of Poultry Workers Management Competencies in Kwara State, Nigeria

S. Ibrahim-Olesin, L.L. Adefalu, M.O. Olaolu, A.O. Awoyem, S.B. Muhammed — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This study assessed the perceived management competencies of poultry workers in Kwara state, Nigeria. The respondents were selected using a multi-stage sampling technique. The final stage involved a proportionate sampling of 70% of the sample population, and 156 respondents were selected. Results showed that the average age of the respondents was 26 and the majority (51.30percent) held a Senior School Certificate. The majority (98.1 percent) of respondents received training after being hired, with monthly training being the most common (49.4 percent). The average number of birds raised per worker was 5401. Despite this, the Borich's need assessment tool revealed that the workers required training in bird debeaking (MWDS = 0.00981), disease prevention (MWDS = 0.00967), flock record keeping (MWDS = 0.00919), identifying ecto-parasites (MWDS = 0.00839), identifying signs of disease (MWDS = 0.00788), and day-old chick care (MWDS = 0.00737). It concludes that workers have competencies in some practices but not in others, and this study recommends that poultry management trainings cover the identified practices for effective management.

The Toxicity and Effects of Chlorpyrifos 40 EC on the Fingerlings of African Catfish (Clarias gariepinus)

M.I. Ogwu, F.D. Sikoki, E. Orose, O.K. Wokeh — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The study examined the acute toxicity of Chlorpyrifos 40EC, a soluble pesticide, on Clarias gariepinus fingerlings under laboratory conditions using static non-renewable bioassays for 96hrs. The fish (weight 0.6- 0.8 kg) were exposed to four different concentrations of 0.4 ml/l, 0.8 ml/l, 1.2 ml/l, 1.6 ml/l, and 0.0 ml/l as control. The physicochemical parameters of the test media were relatively stable except for the total dissolved solids (TDS) and conductivity, which increased with increased concentration and exposure time. The LC₅₀ of Chlorpyrifos 40 EC was observed at 0.76 ml/l while the LT50 was found to be 0.4mg/l, 0.8mg/l, 1.2mg/l and 1.6mg/l for 120.22hrs, 95.50hrs, 66.07hrs, and 36.08hrs respectively. The ANOVA revealed significant variation between treatments and control for fish mortality (P<0.05). The physiological changes analyzed revealed that Tail Beat Frequency (TBF) decreased while the Opercula Beat Frequency (OBF) increased with an increase in concentration and exposure time. The fish exposed to the extract displayed behavioral changes like prolonged vertical movement, rapid movement, jumping, and changes in skin colour with the heavy secretion of mucus. This study shows that Chlorpyrifos is toxic to fish, which implies that stringent measures should be taken to ensure the restraint of its usage by the local fishers to reduce the potential risk of poisonous fish consumption and pollution of the aquatic ecosystem.

Factors Influencing the Level of Water Access for Livestock in Semi-Arid Areas of Monduli District, Tanzania

F.A. Mfinanga, C.P. Msuya, R. Madaha — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Access to water by livestock is critical for their growth, reproduction and quality of products. However, despite its relevance, water access for livestock has received comparatively little attention in developing countries Tanzania included. Therefore, the paper examines factors influencing water access for livestock in the semi-arid areas of Monduli district, Tanzania. A cross-sectional research design was adopted whereby primary data was collected using a pre-structured questionnaire discussions from 367 randomly selected pastoralist households. In addition, focus group discussions were used to allow triangulation. Quantitative data were analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) whereby both descriptive (frequencies and percentages) and inferential statistics were determined. An ordinal logistic regression model was used to determine the factors associated with livestock access to water. Qualitative data was analysed using content analysis. The findings show that the majority (76.3%) of households experienced low levels of water access for their livestock. Additionally, findings show that off-farm income, access to credit, access to subsidies and the use of donkey carts and or tied jerry cans onto donkeys were significantly associated with water access by livestock. The study concludes that most pastoralists in the Monduli district have a low level of water access for livestock. Therefore, it is recommended that all stakeholders in water and livestock sectors should come up with strategies that ensure pastoral communities have access to sufficient amounts of water for their livestock.

Smallholder Rice Farmers’ Technical Efficiency: Implication for Competitiveness through Agricultural Marketing Co-operative Societies in Tanzania

C. Mauki, J. Jeckoniah, G.D. Massawe — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Agricultural Marketing Co-operative Societies (AMCOS) are increasingly being advocated by the government of Tanzania as a way to enhance smallholder farmers’ competitiveness countrywide. Yet, the smallholder rice farmers’ competitiveness is low. This paper analysed the smallholder rice farmers’ competitiveness in terms of Technical Efficiency (TE) in Morogoro and Mbeya regions, Tanzania. Data were collected from 382 smallholder rice farmers. The Cobb-Douglas stochastic frontier model was used to establish the frontier line of the farmer’s production potentials by a single-stage Maximum Likelihood Estimates. The findings show that the mean TE indices for Kapunga, Madibira and UWAWAKUDA AMCOS were 84.9%, 87.6% and 79.1% respectively. Across AMCOS, it was found that intermediate costs, labor costs, fixed costs and amount of fertiliser influenced productivity ( P<0.05) while access to training, water distribution, ploughing time, planting systems, and access to credit influenced TE (P<0.05). The mean TE for the whole sample was 83.8% indicating that smallholder rice farms in the study area have been operating below the maximum level of production frontier and given the available technology, farmers can increase their production by 16.2%. The rice production in terms of TE has not reached a plateau, hence there is a potential for improvement. This study recommends that policymakers should prioritize the implementation of targeted training programs and enhance access to agricultural inputs and credit facilities to improve the technical efficiency of smallholder rice farmers. The Local Government Authority and development partners espoused with improving smallholder farmers’ livelihoods should ensure farmers’ access to credit and increase farmers’ linkages to credit providers in the rice farming schemes.

Economic Viability of System of Rice Intensification (SRI) Technology in Morogoro, Region, Tanzania

R.W. Mkubya , P. Damas, H.F. Mahoo — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The objective of this study is to analyze the benefits and costs of the system of rice intensification in the Morogoro Region, Tanzania. The cost-benefit analysis theory was used in this study. Data were collected by using a questionnaire and checklists after a preliminary survey that aimed at familiarizing the researcher with the study area and pre-test the questionnaire to gauge the relevance of the questions and their comprehensiveness. The study adopted a multistage sampling method. The sample size of 384 farmers was randomly selected. The viability of each production method (SRI and Conventional) was estimated using the Cost-Benefit Analysis. Overall, the results of the comparison of economic viability between SRI and Conventional method projects indicated that the former (SRI) was more profitable and viable than the latter (Conventional Method) at discount rates (Interest rates) equal to or less than 12% respectively. In terms of both NPVs and BCRs interest rates often decrease, making borrowing money less expensive. However, the increase in NPV revealed that the System of Rice Intensification was more profitable than the conventional method of rice production. The sensitivity analyses, of the NPVs for the SRI and Conventional Method projects, respectively, were negative at discount rates of more than 54.17749% and 32.10396%, indicating that the projects were not financially feasible at rates higher than these, but when measured in terms of IRR, SRI outperformed the conventional technique. In general, the empirical findings showed that the System of Rice Intensification produces rice at a higher profit than the conventional method. Therefore, it is important to encourage rice farmers to use the System of Rice Intensification.

Incidence of Seed-borne Fungi of Rice in Ghana and Antifungal Activity of Three Botanical Extracts

J.F. Asamoah, C. Kwoseh, E. Gyasi, E. Moses — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

A questionnaire-based survey on rice farmers’ source of seeds, cultivar planted, storage conditions and practices employed in the storage of rice seeds and pests and diseases encountered in storage was conducted in three selected rice-growing districts of Ashanti Region, Ghana. Seedborne fungi associated with farmer-saved rice seeds were assessed. Again, the efficacy of ginger rhizome, lemon grass and chili pepper aqueous extracts (100% w/v), and Mancozeb (check) were evaluated against seven seed-borne fungal species of rice in-vitro. Sixty seed samples collected from the interviewed farmers were examined for the presence of seed-borne fungi using the blotter method. Seed sample with high incidence of fungal pathogens selected after seed health test was soaked separately in the aqueous extracts, Mancozeb and water for 24 h. The seeds were later plated on blotter papers in Petri dishes. From the survey, majority of smallholder rice farmers interviewed (71.7%) saved their own seeds for planting and only 18.4% of the farmers treated their seeds during storage and before sowing. Twenty seed-borne fungal species were recovered from the rice seed samples from the three districts, the major pathogenic ones including Bipolaris oryzae, Fusarium spp., Colletotrichum sp., Curvularia spp. and Cercospora sp. Soaking the seeds in aqueous lemon grass extract (100% w/v) was effective in managing the seven seed-borne fungal species when compared with the other aqueous extracts.

Impact of Climate Variability and Change Adaptation Strategies on Technical Efficiency of Sorghum Production in Manyoni District, Tanzania

E.P. Mbwambo, S.J. Kabote, B. Kazuzuru — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Climate variability and change adaptation strategies are increasingly becoming fundamental for improving efficiency in agricultural production in Tanzania and elsewhere in developing countries. However, empirical evidence on how adaptation strategies improve agricultural technical efficiency on drought resistant varieties like sorghum is inadequate in Tanzania. This study was conducted to address this knowledge lacuna in the literature. With cross-sectional research design, we used a household survey to collect data from 330 randomly selected household heads. A CobbDouglas stochastic frontier model was used to determine the impact of adaptation strategies on technical efficiency of sorghum production. Farmers adapted a number of strategies including drought tolerant crops, conservation agriculture, drainage system, early maturing crops, use of hired labour, resistant livestock breeds, membership in farmer organizations, access to extension services, and access to credit to cushion climate variability and change impact. Six strategies including use of drought tolerant crops, drainage systems, conservation agriculture, membership in farmer organizations, access to extension services and access to credit showed significant impact on technical efficiency of sorghum production at 5% level of significance. Such strategies were effective in improving technical efficiency of sorghum production. However, about half of the respondents were less efficient. Therefore, farmers’ adaptation strategies were indisputably essential in semi-arid environments like Manyoni district. Nevertheless, a policy to heighten use of the effective farmers’ adaptation strategies to cushion climate variability and change impact should be devised and effectively executed to strengthen farmers’ efficiency.

Socio-Economic Factors Influencing the Adoption of SRI among Smallholder Rice Irrigation Farmers in Morogoro Region, Tanzania

R.W. Mkubya , P. Damas, H.F. Mahoo — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

This study discusses the factors that influence the adoption of the System of Rice Intensification (SRI) among smallholder farmers in the Morogoro region, of Tanzania. The overall objective of this study was to assess social economic factors affecting the adoption of SRI among smallholder farmers in Tanzania. Primary data were collected by using a questionnaire administered to farmers and a checklist for the key informants. The sample size chosen from a population of rice farmers practising in irrigation areas around Morogoro was 384 farmers. Moreover, the multistage sampling distribution was used in this study. Secondary data were collected from various books and journals from both the electronic library and Sokoine National Agricultural Library (SNAL). The logistic regression model was used in the analysis of this study: It was concluded that households accessing more extension services are more likely to participate in SRI than households with no or little extension service. The main barrier to the original use of SRI methods was the high labour demand, notably for weeding, which increased the cost of production. It would be beneficial to create various power-operated mechanical weeder models that are suited to the nation's various soil types. Incentives should be used to promote the production of mechanical weeder machines, which some farmers have been at the forefront of. A mechanized weeder reduces herbicide-related environmental damage while addressing the issues of labour scarcity and declining income per acre. Herbicides often need less labour input and have proved successful when there is a labour shortage for weeding during crucial times. It is also recommended that further research be conducted on SRI in different regions of Tanzania to broaden knowledge and to discover new techniques which will give more output by using SRI based on locality.

Handling Practices and Microbiological Status of Food Service Establishments within Morogoro Municipality, Tanzania

J.B. Kussaga, D.P. Nziku — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

The study assessed handling practices and microbiological status of ready-to-eat food (stiff porridge and rice), contact surfaces, and personnel hands in 20 food service establishments and 10 street vendors within Morogoro municipality. It used face-to-face interviews and microbiological sampling of food, contact surfaces and personnel hands in the selected food businesses. The samples were then analysed for Total Viable Counts (TVC), Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli. The findings of the study revealed that that personnel had low education level with limited training on food hygiene. Hygienic practices that are essential for food handling and preparation such as hairnets, gloves, protective clothing and potable water were not consistently observed. Street vendors operated in informal settings with unroofed makeshift huts, in contrast to restaurants and cafeterias which operated in relatively proper-designed facilities. Although preparation methods of ugali and rice involved cooking, both foods had high microbiological contamination level than the specified standards in raw materials. The contamination levels in foods reflected the levels on tables, plates and personnel hands; which ranged from 4.4-5.6 Log CFU/cm² for TVC, 4.7-6.4 Log CFU/cm² for S. aureus, and 3.6-5.5 Log CFU/cm2 for E. coli. This further indicates inadequate handling practices, faecal contaminated water or poor hand washing procedures. Therefore, personal hygiene training and control by legal authorities are needed to ensure quality and safety of ready-to-serve foods

Use of Integrated Range Management Practices for Improving Growth and Dry Matter Yield of Forage Species in Mvomero district, Morogoro, Tanzania

G.D. Mlowe, G.M. Msalya — Mon, 28 Aug 2023 00:00:00 +0000

Scarcity of forage particularly during dry seasons is among the major factors which limit improved meat production from livestock in many pastoral communities in tropical countries. The scarcity is associated with low level of soil nutrients, irregularity in weather patterns and climate change. One way of making more feeds available for livestock in such times include the adoption of Integrated Range Management practices (IRM), rangelands management technique which involve a range of practices including application of manure, furrowing the land and oversowing among others. The IRM was a focus for this study which was conducted in one pastoral village namely Mela, in Mvomero District in Morogoro Region, Tanzania. Field trials were conducted based on a Completely Randomized Block Design (CRBD) and aimed to assess the influence of oversowing Cenchrus ciliaris on grazing lands, the effect of manure application on growth performance and dry matter yield of the specie, and the effect of furrowing on grazing land. Fifteen plots of equal sizes (16m²) were needed for this study and from which the dry matter (DM), number and height of tillers of the target specie were determined. Comparison on the study factors among the plots were done based on the One -way analysis of variance (ANOVA), results obtained from the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 25.0. In general, growth was significant (p≤0.05) among the different plots being fast in the plots which combined manure, oversowing and furrowing followed by those which had manure and oversowing, and least were those which oversowing and furrowing was the option. The major reason for high growth in the three factors plot was with no doubt shown to be high level of IRM with three or more factors (practices) for increased fodder productivity.