N2Africa | Putting nitrogen fixation to work for smallholder farmers in Africa

Nutritional and soil fertility benefits: influence of fertilizers on groundnuts (Arachis hypogaea L.) yield and soil nitrogen contribution for smallholder farmers in Uganda

Review of conditioning factors and constraints to legume adoption, and their management in Phase II of N2Africa

Fixation biologique de l'Azote et Entreprise de légumineuses à graine: Guide du Paysan Pilote pour N2Africa

I’m delighted to report that Dr Fred Kanampiu will join N2Africa as Project Coordinator based in Nairobi from 1^stJune. Fred will be known to many of you already for the pioneering research he and his team have conducted on Striga control over the past years – including of course a strong legume component! Fred has been leading and managing a range of international projects – including the SIMLESA project that has a large legume component – and we look forward to benefiting from his rich experience.

Fred Kanampiu to join N2Africa as Project Coordinator

Fred Kanampiu holds a PhD Soil Science-Soil Fertility (Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, USA). He has 25 years of extensive experience in conducting agricultural research, technology development, and dissemination in cereal-legumes-livestock systems in East and Southern Africa, local and regional project implementation, coordination and management, including publishing, with public and international organizations.

N2Africa planning meeting for Tier 1 countries in Nairobi

On April 14 and 15, a meeting was held at the ICIPE campus in Nairobi to plan for N2Africa phase II activities in the so called tier 1 countries, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda and the Democratic republic of Congo. The meeting was attended by the six country coordinators, senior business development officer Edward Baars, coordinator research and data Joost van Heerwaarden and the N2Africa leadership team represented by Ken Giller, Bernard Vanlauwe and Bashir Jama (AGRA).

Introducing the Country Coordinators of the Tier 1 countries

As indicated above, the Tier 1 countries are the six countries other than Ghana and Nigeria, that participated in the N2Africa project from the start. The country coordinators for these countries are:

Lloyd Phiphira (Malawi)

N2Africa/phase II DR Congo activities have already begun

Opportunities for sustainable intensification of climbing bean on smallholder farming systems in the eastern highlands of DR Congo

N2Africa Malawi

Positive developments! despite the absence of N2Africa in the first three months of the 2013/2014 season: (a) huge interest by farmers to use soybean inoculants despite facing hurdles to access the product; (b) the pass-on program of legumes seed from farmer to farmer continued with facilitation by DAES, WVI, CRS, NASFAM and Clinton-Hunter Development Initiatives, among others.