In Uganda, weather-related events such as prolonged dry seasons, floods, storms, mudslides, extreme rainfall, and delayed/early rains have become more frequent and/or intense. This has left most of the rural poor farmers' food insecure and their livelihoods threatened. A total of 192 sweetpotato farmer households distributed in six agro-ecological zones were interviewed to assess how farmers perceive the effects of changes in climatic variables, and how they have adjusted their farming practices to cope with the changes in climate. Gender of the household head and size of land owned significantly affected adaptation. Ninety nine percent of all households interviewed had observed a change in the climate in the last 10 years. Drought and floods had the highest impact on crop production across agro-ecological zones. Coping strategies towards extreme events included storing food, income diversification and digging drainage channels. Other strategies were planting trees; high-yielding, early-maturing, drought-tolerant, disease and/or pest-resistant varieties; planting at onset of rains; increased pesticide/fungicide application among others. The smallholder farmer households studied have a high awareness of changes in rainfall and temperature and have taken measures to cope with effects of a changing climate.

In response to increased pest and disease problems, potato farmers use pesticides, which could raise environmental and health concerns. This study sought to promote proper and safe pesticide-handling practices by providing data needed to guide pesticide regulation policy and training for extension staff and farmers. A household survey was conducted in three major potato-growing agroecological zones of Uganda. Two hundred and four potato farmers were interviewed about the type and source of pesticides they use in potato cultivation, the frequency of applications, the use of protective clothing, and cases of pesticide poisoning. The types of pesticides used in potato were fungicides (72%), insecticides (62%), and herbicides (3%). Overall, use of personal protective equipment was low, that is, gumboots (73%), gloves (7%), face masks (16%), and long sleeve shirts (42%). Forty-three percent of farmers who applied pesticides reported having experienced skin itching, 25% skin burning sensation, 43% coughing, 60% a runny nose, 27% teary eyes, and 42% dizziness. An IPM approach involving only moderately to slightly hazardous pesticides when pest and disease incidence has reached economic injury levels and by considering all safety measures during application and storage would be environmentally recommendable and result in reduced health risks.

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Insect pests are among the most important constraints limiting sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas) production in Africa. However, there is inadequate information about farmers’ knowledge, perceptions and practices in the management of key insect pests. This has hindered development of effective pest management approaches for smallholder farmers. A standard questionnaire was used to interview individual sweetpotato farmers (n = 192) about their perception and management practices regarding insect pests in six major sweetpotato producing districts of Uganda. The majority (93%) of farmers perceived insect pests to be a very serious problem. With the exception of Masindi and Wakiso districts where the sweetpotato butterfly (Acraea acerata) was the number one constraint, sweetpotato weevils (Cylas puncticollis and C. brunneus) were ranked as the most important insect pests. Insecticide use in sweetpotato fields was very low being highest (28–38% of households) in districts where A. acerata infestation is the biggest problem. On average, 65% and 87% of the farmers took no action to control A. acerata and Cylas spp., respectively. Farmers were more conversant with the presence of and damage by A. acerata than of Cylas spp. as they thought that Cylas spp. root damage was brought about by a prolonged dry season. Different levels of field resistance (ability of a variety to tolerate damage) of sweetpotato landraces to A. acerata (eight landraces) and Cylas spp. (six landraces) were reported by farmers in all the six districts. This perceived level of resistance to insect damage by landraces needs to be investigated. To improve farmers’ capabilities for sweetpotato insect pest management, it is crucial to train them in the basic knowledge of insect pest biology and control.

Background: In spite of women making up the biggest workforce in food production, processing and preparation in Africa, little is known about how women access production resources, especially concerning sweet potato enterprise. Based on the sex of the household head, we compared male and female sweet potato farmers' access to agricultural information, credit and extension in Uganda. Differences in sweet potato production techniques, contribution of sweet potato to household food security or cash income, off-farm income sources and membership to farmers' group were also determined. Methods: A diagnostic survey was conducted using a questionnaire in six districts of Uganda. A total of 139 and 53 male-and female-headed households were interviewed, respectively. The study was largely descriptive and data was analyzed using the SAS package. Results: Few male-(5.8%) and female-(7.5%) headed households used fertilizers. Over 80% of both male-and female-headed households grew sweet potato primarily for home consumption. Only a few male-(8.6%) and female-(9.4%) headed households had received any form of agricultural information related to sweet potato production, marketing or value addition in the 12 months preceding the survey. Information sources on sweet potato cropping were numerous, with both farmers' own experience and friends or relatives (8.3 and 40.0% for male-and female-headed households, respectively) being equally the most common. Although none of the female-headed households received agricultural information from both governmental extension agents and non-governmental organizations, male-and female-headed households had similar chances of receiving information. More female-headed households had no off-farm income (67.9%) and lacked access to credit (26.4%) than did their male counterparts. Male-headed households had significantly more members who belonged to a farmer organization (44.6%) compared to female-headed households (30.2%). Conclusions: Both male-and female-headed households were found to have relatively equal but very low access to both agricultural information and credit. There is a need to develop and disseminate integrated sweet potato management messages for better understanding and efficient use, preferably in local languages and through mass media. There is evidence of anti-female household heads' bias in membership to farmer organizations. It is recommended that men receive training on gender mainstreaming and awareness, so as to appreciate the role women play in the sweet potato value chain.