Abstract
The productivity of maize in Ethiopia has remained lower than the world average because of several biotic and abiotic factors. Stemborers and poor soil fertility are among the main factors that contribute to this poor maize productivity. A novel cropping strategy, such as the use of push-pull technology, is one of the methods known to solve both challenges at once. A push-pull technology targeting the management of maize stemborers was implemented in the Hawassa district of Ethiopia with the ultimate goal of increased food security among smallholder farmers. This study evaluated farmers’ perception of push-pull technology based on their experiences and observations of the demonstration plots that were established on-farm in Dore Bafano, Jara Gelelcha and Lebu Koremo village of the Hawasa district in 2016 and 2017. This study examined farmers’ perception of the importance of push-pull technology in controlling stemborers and improving soil fertility and access to livestock feed. In both cropping seasons, except for Jara Gelelcha, the maize grain yields were significantly higher in the climate-adapted push-pull plots compared to the maize monocrop plots. The majority (89%) of push-pull technology-practising farmers rated the technology better than their maize production methods on attributes such as access to new livestock feed and the control of stemborer damage. As a result, approximately 96% of the interviewed farmers were interested in adopting the technology starting in the upcoming crop season. Awareness through training and effective dissemination strategies should be strengthened among stakeholders and policymakers for the sustainable use and scaling-up of push-pull technology.
Highlights
In Ethiopia, agriculture is the dominant economic sector that contributes 42% of the total gross domestic product (GDP), employs approximately 83% of the population, is a source for more than90% of export revenues, and provides raw materials for more than 70% of the country’s industries [1].According to the World Bank [2] report, within the Ethiopian agricultural sector, 60% of income comes from crop production, while 30% comes from livestock, and the rest (10%) comes from forestry products
2016 cropping season, maize yieldspush-pull ranged from kg/hamonocrop in the climate-adapted
The findings of the present study demonstrate that stemborers and poor soil fertility are among the main factors that contribute to poor maize productivity in the study areas
Summary
In Ethiopia, agriculture is the dominant economic sector that contributes 42% of the total gross domestic product (GDP), employs approximately 83% of the population, is a source for more than. According to the World Bank [2] report, within the Ethiopian agricultural sector, 60% of income comes from crop production, while 30% comes from livestock, and the rest (10%) comes from forestry products. Smallholder farmers account for the largest share of agricultural production. The country produces more maize than all other crops, accounting for more than 27% of production. The crop plays a leading role in maintaining food security with a high population growth, productivity remains low with an average yield of 3.24 ton/ha compared to the world average of Agronomy 2019, 9, 452; doi:10.3390/agronomy9080452 www.mdpi.com/journal/agronomy
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