Overview

Groundnut production in Uganda has been constrained mainly by pests and diseases. An Integrated Pest Management package was developed by the Department of Crop Science, Makerere University and the IPM CRSP for the management of the major pests and diseases of groundnuts in eastern Uganda. Although the IPM package was developed onfarm with active participation of farmers in the region, the adoption rate has been low. The farmer field school approach was used to upscale the knowledge and awareness of IPM and the adoption of the IPM menu. The study was conducted in the districts of Iganga, Pallisa, Kumi and Kaberamaido, which represent some of the major groundnut growing areas in Uganda. Baseline information was collected from 180 farmers using pre-tested questionnaires. Thereafter the farmers participated in weekly sessions that focused on the use of IPM. Seventeen sessions were held during the growing season. Post-test questionnaires were administered at the end of the growing season to evaluate the acquisition and retention of knowledge. Results indicate that farmers who consistently attended farmer field school sessions gained more IPM knowledge compared to those who attended fewer sessions