Ciara Varley, Angharad Johnston, Charles Spillane
The LEG4DEV project welcomed nine postgraduate researchers from LUANAR to IITA-Malawi to engage in planning for their legume-scaling research and innovation projects
The LEG4DEV project has partnered with Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources (LUANAR) in Lilongwe, Malawi to provide financial and scientific support to nine legume-scaling research projects conducted by MSc and PhD researchers based in Malawi.
In partnership with the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM) university network, the LEG4DEV project issued a call to identify ongoing PhD and Masters level research projects (of relevance to legume scaling for development outcomes) underway in universities in Ethiopia, Malawi, Tanzania and Zambia. The nine projects selected for LEG4DEV partnership and support in Malawi were selected from 39 expressions of interest received across the four countries.
The nine selected legume-scaling projects that LEG4DEV and LUANAR will partner on are:
- Do land policies affect sustained adoption of maize-legume conservation agriculture amongst smallholder farmers in Malawi?
- Optimizing climate-resilient productivity: Tailored rhizobia bio-inoculant packages, lime and phosphorous strategies for groundnut varieties in legume-based scaling.
- Leveraging the perennial nature of pigeon pea and high nitrogen contribution from groundnuts to enhance local maize production in Kasungu, Malawi.
- Soil health options (biochar and urine) for improving maize productivity in Malawi.
- Performance of cowpea hybrid lines for yield and yield components under managed conditions in three cowpea agro-ecological zones of Malawi.
- Agripreneurship training for improved agricultural practices and productivity among legume women farmers.
- Estimating energy and money saving potential of the utilization of instant beans as a strategy to increasing household dietary protein intake, increase women’s income and conserve the environment.
- Screening of soybean mutants with improved nutritional quality traits and agronomic traits.
- Opportunities and Barriers to Legume production for agriculture diversification.
Following opening words from IITA’s Dr. Sika Gbegbelegbe, the LEG4DEV Lead PI Prof. Charles Spillane provided incoming researchers with an overview of the LEG4DEV project’s mission and aims. After a range of interactive exercises and a tour of IITA facilities, the induction session ended.
A key goal of the partnership is to support the postgraduate researchers and their academic supervisors to generate more impactful outputs, outcomes and impacts arising from legume scaling in Malawi.
The postgraduate students being supported by LEG4DEV in Malawi are: Joseph Mahuka, Memory Munthali, Joseph Blackwell Kalasa, Lameck Vwalika, Peter Takondwa Muhota, Prosperina Kamkamba, Urunji Banda Mezuwa, Bridget Agnes Chizula Vakusi and Dorothy Chisusu.
The associated supervisors are Dr. Moses Maliro, Dr. Assa Malagha Maganga, Dr. Patson Nalivata, Dr. Samson Katengeza, Dr. Wezi Mhango, Dr. Simon A Mng’omba, Prof. James Bokosi, Dr. Jospeh Danza, Dr. Stewart Makosani and Dr. Smith Nkhata.
Congratulations to the selected postgraduate students and their academic supervisors!