Agricultural lime value chain efficiency for reducing soil acidity in Ethiopia

Moti Jaleta (2023)

Soil acidity is challenging agricultural production in Ethiopia. Above 43% of the farmland is under soil acidity problem and it leads to low crop yields and production losses. Ag-lime is widely considered as an effective remedy for amending soil acidity. This study assesses the current structure of ag-lime value chain and its functionality focusing on central parts of Ethiopia where lime is produced and channeled to acidity affected areas. The study uses Ethiopia as a case study and applies qualitative methods such as key informant interviews and focus group discussions to collect data from different actors in the ag-lime value chain. Key findings indicate that both public and private ag-lime producing factories are operating below their capacity. Due to limited enabling environments, the engagement of private sector in ag-lime value chain is minimal. In addition, farmers have a good awareness of soil acidity problem on their farms, and its causes and mitigation strategies in all regions. However, the adoption of ag-lime by smallholders was minimal. Overall, the current structure of the ag-lime value chain appears fragmented and needs improvement. Addressing soil acidity challenge through efficient ag-lime value chain could narrow lime supply-demand mismatches and increase widespread adoption by farmers to enhance crop productivity and food security in acidity-prone areas of the country.

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CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA LIMES PRODUCTION COSTS VALUE CHAINS SOIL PH

Unsupervised segmentation and clustering time series approach to Southern Africa rainfall regime changes

Lovemore  Chipindu Walter Mupangwa Isaiah Nyagumbo Mainassara Zaman-Allah (2023)

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Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average Facebook Prophet Hidden Markov Model Regression Regression with Hidden Logistic Process CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA COASTAL AREAS SEMIARID ZONES SUBHUMID ZONES RAINFALL CLIMATE CHANGE

Associations between endogenous spike cytokinins and grain-number traits in spring wheat genotypes

Gemma Molero Carolina Rivera-Amado Matthew Paul Reynolds John Foulkes (2024)

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Spike Cytokinins Grain Number Fruiting Efficiency Wheat Breeding CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA SPIKES CYTOKININS GRAIN FRUITING HARVEST INDEX WHEAT PLANT BREEDING

Molecular characterization of divergent isolates of Citrus bent leaf viroid (CBLVd) from citrus cultivars of Punjab, Pakistan

Abdelfattah DABABAT Yong Suk Chung (2023)

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Biological Indexing Sequencing Analysis Citrus Orchards CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA PHYLOGENETIC ANALYSIS CITRUS RNA DNA

Morphological characterization of native maize populations of the ratón race from Coahuila, Mexico

Froylan Rincon Cesar Petroli (2023)

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Repeatability Index Representative Subset of Diversity Maize Raton Race CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA GENETIC DIVERSITY (AS RESOURCE) ZEA MAYS MORPHOLOGY PHENOTYPING VARIETIES

Value chain research and development: The quest for impact

Jason Donovan (2023)

Motivation: For decades, governments, donors, and practitioners have promoted market-based development approaches (MBDA), most recently in the form of value chain development (VCD), to spur economic growth and reduce poverty. Changes in approaches have been shaped by funders, practitioners and researchers in ways that are incompletely appreciated. Purpose: We address the following questions: (1) how have researchers and practitioners shaped discussions on MBDA?; and (2) how has research stimulated practice, and how has practice informed research? We hypothesize that stronger exchange between researchers and practitioners increases the relevance and impact of value chain research and development. Methods and approach: We adopt Downs' (1972) concept of issue-attention cycles, which posits that attention to a particular issue follows a pattern where, first, excitement builds over potential solutions; followed by disenchantment as the inherent complexity, trade-offs, and resources required to solve it become apparent; and consequently attention moves on to a new issue. We review the literature on MBDA to see how far this framing applies. Findings: We identify five cycles of approaches to market-based development over the last 40 or more years: (1) non-traditional agricultural exports; (2) small and medium enterprise development; (3) value chains with a globalization perspective; (4) value chains with an agri-business perspective; and (5) value chain development. The shaping and sequencing of these cycles reflect researchers' tendency to analyse and criticize MBDA, while providing limited guidance on workable improvements; practitioners' reluctance to engage in critical reflection on their programmes; and an institutional and funding environment that encourages new approaches. Policy implications: Future MBDA will benefit from stronger engagement between researchers, practitioners, and funders. Before shifting attention to new concepts and approaches, achievements and failures in previous cycles need to be scrutinized. Evidence-based practice should extend for the length of the issue-attention cycle; preferably it should arrest the cycling of attention. Funders can help by requiring grantees to critically reflect on past action, by providing “safe spaces” for sharing such reflections, and by engaging in joint learning with practitioners and researchers.

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Agri-Food Value Chains Issue-Attention Cycles Market-Based Development Approaches CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA VALUE CHAINS PRIVATE SECTOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT SMALLHOLDERS

A 'wiring diagram' for sink strength traits impacting wheat yield potential

Gustavo Slafer John Foulkes Matthew Paul Reynolds Erik Murchie A Elizabete Carmo-Silva Simon Griffiths (2023)

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Grain Number Grain Weight Yield Physiology CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA BREEDING GRAIN HARVEST INDEX SOURCE SINK RELATIONS YIELD COMPONENTS WHEAT

QTL mapping for pre-harvest sprouting in a recombinant inbred line population of elite wheat varieties Zhongmai 578 and Jimai 22

Ming Li Shuanghe Cao xianchun xia Zhonghu He Yong Zhang (2023)

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KASP Markers CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA PREHARVEST SPROUTING GERMINATION INDEX QUANTITATIVE TRAIT LOCI WHEAT

Genomic selection: A tool for accelerating the efficiency of molecular breeding for development of climate-resilient crops

UTTAM KUMAR Rajeev Ranjan Kumar Philomin Juliana Sundeep Kumar (2022)

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Genomic Selection Single-Trait Genomic Selection Multi-Trait Genomic Selection Genomic Estimated Breeding Value Climate-Resilient Crops CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA MARKER-ASSISTED SELECTION CLIMATE CHANGE STRESS CLIMATE RESILIENCE CROPS ABIOTIC STRESS BIOTIC STRESS

Editorial: Genome wide association studies and genomic selection for crop improvement in the era of Big Data

Alison Bentley Charles Chen Nunzio D'Agostino (2022)

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Allele Mining High-Throughput Phenotyping Genomic Estimated Breeding Value CIENCIAS AGROPECUARIAS Y BIOTECNOLOGÍA CROP IMPROVEMENT DNA CHROMOSOME MAPPING GENETIC LINKAGE GENOMES GENOTYPING GERMINATION HEAT STRESS QUALITY CONTROL SINGLE NUCLEOTIDE POLYMORPHISM TRITICUM AESTIVUM GENETIC DIVERSITY (AS RESOURCE) HIGH-THROUGHPUT SEQUENCING