A training manual authored by researchers working under the IITA-Cassava Weed Management Project has been well received by farmers with more than 440 farmers downloading the publication from the web in the last one month. The 29-page document details how weeds can be controlled in cassava using a combination of mechanical, cultural and environmentally friendly herbicides. The publication is a product of four-year work by researchers from IITA, Federal Universities of Agriculture Abeokuta, University of Agriculture Makurdi, and the National Root Crops Research Institute, Umudike.
Dr. Alfred Dixon, Project Leader of the Cassava Weed Management Project said the simple style used in capturing the information in the publication made the manual a choice material for every practicing and would-be farmer.
Godwin Atser, Communication and Knowledge Exchange Expert, who led the publication observed that the aim was to present research findings to the public in simple everyday language that would make farmers to adopt practices and recommendations in weed management.
For farmer Olufemi Yerokun, the publication would go a long way as a standard
reference for weed management in cassava production systems. Yet, farmer El Farouk
commended the team for producing the publication, adding that “even an amateur
would benefit so much from the clarity and extensive research. The Executive Director for Dominican Center for Human Resources Development (DCHRD), Fr Fortunatus Okeke noted that with the publication, “the question of the impact of IITA research results on rural and small farmers is enhanced by this master piece.”
The DCHRD has downloaded copies of the publication and is using them in training farmers on weed management. As part of the project’s planned dissemination strategy, the IITA-CWMP
is sharing the publication electronically including via platforms such as WhatsApp, LinkedIn, and Facebook. A limited quantity is also being printed and shared to farmers during farmers’ field days and other farmer meetings.