Adoption of IPM groundnut production technologies in Eastern Uganda

Groundnut (Arachis hypogea L) is the second most widely grown food legume in Uganda. Currently average yield of groundnuts at farm level is about 800 kg ha-1, but up to 3,000 kg ha-1 can be achieved. The most important constraints to its production are pests and diseases. Integrated pest management (IPM) technologies have been developed and demonstrated to farmers in Mayuge district. However, many farmers in the district have not adopted these technologies, for reasons not well known. The study was done to establish factors affecting adoption of IPM technologies. Socio-demographic and groundnut production data were collected for the second crop season of the year 2000 from a purposively and randomly selected sample of 76 farmers consisting of both IPM technology adopters and non-adopters. Adopters used improved technologies while the non-adopters used traditional technologies for groundnut production. Data analysis using the probit model indicated that adoption was significantly influenced by education (P< 0.1), family size (P< 0.05), association membership (P<0.01), extension visit (P<0.05), access to credit (P<0.05), size of cultivable land (P<0.01) and household income (P< 0.05). A descriptive analysis indicated that lack of seed, lack of information about the technologies, costly chemical, labour intensiveness, and lack of land were reasons for non-adoption. Intensification of extension services, farmers joining associations, establishment of farmer field schools (FFS), provision of credit to farm families by government, improvement of the seed delivery system and enforcement formal education as well as adult literacy programme are recommended to enhance adoption.