Mushagalusa Nachigera Gustave | Université Evangélique en Afrique (original) (raw)
Papers by Mushagalusa Nachigera Gustave
Scientific Reports
There are several techniques for mapping wetlands. In this study, we examined four statistical mo... more There are several techniques for mapping wetlands. In this study, we examined four statistical models to assess the potential distribution of wetlands in the South-Kivu province by combining optical and SAR images. The approach involved integrating topographic, hydrological, and vegetation indices into the four most used classifiers, namely Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Random Forest (RF), Boosted Regression Tree (BRT), and Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt). A wetland distribution map was generated and classified into 'wetland' and 'non-wetland.' The results showed variations in predictions among the different models. RF exhibited the most accurate predictions, achieving an overall classification accuracy of 95.67% and AUC and TSS values of 82.4%. Integrating SAR data improved accuracy and precision, particularly for mapping small inland wetlands. Our estimations indicate that wetlands cover approximately 13.5% (898,690 ha) of the entire province. BRT estimated wetland are...
Environmental challenges, Dec 1, 2021
International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences, 2021
This study aims to measure food insecurity and its correlates according to the calorie intake app... more This study aims to measure food insecurity and its correlates according to the calorie intake approach. By conducting the consumption survey on a stratified sample grouped into localities considered, here, as strata. The survey covered 139 households. The results show that 84.2% of the respondents generate their income from agriculture and the household lives on US $ 50.09 per month obtained from the optical expenditure. Households allocate more than 50% of this income to food consumption. The calorie intake provided by the consumed food is 1248.28 kcal. The Estimated Energy Need (EEN) calculated was 2303.76 kcal on average, i.e., a negative gap of 1055.48. The estimated results of the LOGIT model for the possibility of being food secure showed that factors of various kinds expose households to food insecurity, i.e., level of education, gender, income and number of meals. In addition, livestock farming, distance from home to market were variables that significantly condition the probability of a household being food secure only in the locality of Bwegera whereas household size and existence other income sources within the household significantly affect food security only in the locality of Lemera. In this case, it is necessary to encourage large-scale production through access to new technologies, access to food, education and financing, structuring and strengthening the capacities of farmers' organizations, diversification of activities and the revival of the livestock farming sector and its integration into the cropping system, access to resources by women, the development of agricultural markets for products and inputs.
Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C
Soil erosion by gullying causes severe soil degradation, which in turn leads to severe socioecono... more Soil erosion by gullying causes severe soil degradation, which in turn leads to severe socioeconomic and environmental damages in tropical and subtropical regions. To mitigate these negative effects and guarantee sustainable management of natural resources, gullies must be prevented. Gully management strategies start by devising adequate assessment tools and identification of driving factors and control measures. To achieve this, machine learning methods are essential tools to assist in the identification of driving factors to implement sitespecific control measures. This study aimed at assessing the effectiveness of four machine learning methods (Random Forest (RF), Maximum of Entropy (MaxEnt), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and Boosted Regression Tree (BRT)) to identify gully's driving factors, and predict gully erosion susceptibility in the Luzinzi watershed, in Walungu territory, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In this study, gullies were first identified through multiple field surveys and then digitized using a very high-resolution image (CNI/airbus) from Google Earth. Overall, 270 gullies were identified, of which 70% (189) were randomly selected to train the four machine learning methods using topographical, hydrological, and environmental factors hypothesized to be gully-related conditioning factors. The remaining 30% (81 gullies) were used for testing studied methods using the thresholdindependent area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) and the true skill statistic (TSS) as performance measures. The results showed that RF and MaxEnt algorithms outperformed other methods; performance assessment results showed that the RF model with AUROC = 0.82 (82%) and MaxEnt (0.804: 80.4%) had higher prediction accuracies than BRT: 0.69 (69%) and ANN: 0.55 (55%). TSS results indicated that RF and MaxEnt are best methods in predicting gully susceptibility in Luzinzi watershed. On the other hand, the conditioning factors such as Digital Elevation Model (DEM), Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), slope, distance to roads, distance to rivers, and Stream Power Index (SPI) played key roles in the gully occurrence. Given the significance of these factors in gullies' occurrence, as shown in this study, policy-makers must adopt strategies that consider these factors to lower the risk of gully occurrence and related consequences at the watershed scale in eastern DRC.
Background The adoption rate of improved maize varieties (IMVs) is low among small-scale farmers ... more Background The adoption rate of improved maize varieties (IMVs) is low among small-scale farmers in South-Kivu province, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), despite extensive dissemination efforts by local and international research institutions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The level of understanding of farmers' preferences and needs for released IMVs, as well as socioeconomic factors influencing their adoption in South-Kivu, is still limited. This study aimed at assessing farmers' preference criteria for maize varieties and identifying factors driving the adoption of IMVs as well as major production constraints in South-Kivu, to guide varietal selection and breeding initiatives. Results Results showed that the most farmer-preferred attributes were high yield potential, early maturity, taste, and pest/disease resistance, with significant disparities across market segments. Socioeconomic factors such as the farmer’s age, experience, membership of farmer ...
Land
Maize (Zea mays L.) productivity is constrained by water shortages in the predominantly rainfed a... more Maize (Zea mays L.) productivity is constrained by water shortages in the predominantly rainfed agriculture of the tropical semi-arid Ruzizi Plain, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The region is characterized by a high seasonal and inter-annual rainfall variability and a frequent occurrence of consecutive dry days within growing seasons. Consequently, planning water utilization in rainfed agriculture has become complex, as appropriate soil water conservation (SWC) practices are lacking among most smallholder farmers. Identifying practices that increase water use efficiency (WUE) along the slope gradient is crucial for supporting maize production in the region. In this study, we assessed, for three growing seasons, the effectiveness of two SWC practices (tied ridges and Zai pits) in improving the WUE of two maize varieties along three slope gradients (0–2, 2–8, and 8–15%) in the tropical semi-arid Ruzizi Plain. In this area, rainfall amounts (142–289 mm) were consis...
African Crop Science Journal, 2020
Farm mechanisation plays a major role in the agricultural sector, as it facilitates achievement o... more Farm mechanisation plays a major role in the agricultural sector, as it facilitates achievement of energy-intensive operations. In developing countries, policies and technical constraints have greatly affected the development of a coherent agricultural mechanisation system, that is accessible to farmers, especially the poorest. This study aimed to identify the socioeconomic factors that have driven the use of different sources of farm power in family farming in Ruzizi Plain in Democratic Republic of Congo. A random sample of 190 smallholder farmers and 30 technicians were surveyed in 2014 and 2015 in six areas of Kamanyola, Luvungi, Luberizi, Sange, Kiringye and Kiliba. Results showed that mechanisation in the Ruzizi Plain involved a range of sources of farm power, including draft animals, tractors and rototillers. Factors such as gender, attitude of the head of a household, farm productivity and profitability and non-farm incomes played a crucial role in the choice of whether or not to mechanise. Maize profitability was higher under mechanisation (US$ 535.46 ha-1) compared to non-user farms (US$ 7.73 ha-1). For cassava, however, there were no significant differences in profitability between mechanised and non-mechanised farms. Other benefits of mechanisation included better working conditions, reduction in the duration of farming operations, and the expansion of cultivated land parcels.
Tropicultura, 2017
L’objectif de l’etude etait d’evaluer la combinaison optimale des substrats locaux avec des addit... more L’objectif de l’etude etait d’evaluer la combinaison optimale des substrats locaux avec des additifs permettant d’accroitre le rendement des souches P969 et HK51 de Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacq.) P. Kumm., dans les conditions ecologiques de l’Est de la R.D. du Congo. L’essai a ete etabli en split plot avec 3 facteurs: nature du substrat (fanes de haricot et feuilles de bananier), nature de l’additif (son de riz et bouse de vache) et dose d’additif (0, 5, 10 et 15%). Les resultats ont montre que les substrats a base de fanes de haricot sont plus productifs en termes de poids moyen des sporophores. L’ajout de l’additif a base de bouse sur les fanes de haricot, comme l’ajout de son de riz sur les feuilles de bananier, a permis l’accroissement proportionnel du rendement. Par contre, au-dela de 10% de supplement de son de riz sur les fanes de haricot, le rendement chute et devient meme inferieur au temoin sans additif. Il ressort de cette etude que le choix du type et de la dose d’additifs...
In response to growing food demand, edible insects are seen as a potential source to alleviate fo... more In response to growing food demand, edible insects are seen as a potential source to alleviate food insecurity. With its wide edible insects’ biodiversity, the Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in Africa. This study aimed at giving a first insight on the inventory showing diversity, perception, consumption, availability, host plants, harvesting techniques and processing techniques of edible insects in South-Kivu, DRC. It recorded twenty-three edible insects belonging to nine families and five orders, some of which are consumed in the larval, adult, egg and pupa stages. Rhyncophorus phoenicis, Alphitobius diaperinus, Macrotermes subhylanus and Acheta domesticus were the most preferred edible insects in Fizi Territory, Ruspolia differens and Apis melifera larvae in Kabare Territory, Imbrasia oyemensis, Imbrasia epimethea, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Rhyncophorus phoenicis in Mwenga Territory, Ruspolia differens, Macrotermes subhylanus, G...
Aim: In recent studies, three species of bat, Hypsignathus monstrosus, Myonycteris torquata and E... more Aim: In recent studies, three species of bat, Hypsignathus monstrosus, Myonycteris torquata and Epomops franqueti were identified as the most likely candidates to be reservoir for Ebolavirus. To help in epidemic preparedness and surveillance, species distribution modeling techniques are useful for predicting where these species are likely to occur in DR Congo. Methods: MaxEnt software was used to model the current and future distribution of the three species in DR Congo based on the occurrence data collected from global biodiversity information facility and environmental covariates collected from Worldclim and USGS. The future distribution were obtained based on two scenario (RCP4.5 and RCP 8.5) of the HadGEM2-CC an IPPC5 climate projections from global climate models (GCMs). Results: The suitable habitat of H. monstrosus, M. torquata and E. franqueti are essentially located from latitude-5°to 5°and longitude 17°to 30°. Overall, their favourable living areas are located in the territories along the entire northern border and the entire northern part of the eastern border of the DR Congo with varying degrees of importance depending on the territories and species. Three bioclimatic variables have shown to play major role in their spread, the precipitation of the driest quarter, the precipitation of coldest quarter and the temperature annual range. In the future, the suitable area of these species will be decreasing and being essentially located in the Kivu provinces. The change in the ecological niche of these species will differ with respect to future climate scenario. Climate of RCP 8.5 has shown to induce major decrease of their suitable habitat in DR Congo. Main conclusions: The MaxEnt model is potentially useful for forecasting the future adaptive distribution of the three bat species under climate change, and it provides important guidance for comprehensive management of the Ebolavirus risk.
African Journal of Agricultural Research, 2019
Soybean is an important crop in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country faced with high level... more Soybean is an important crop in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country faced with high levels of war induced malnutrition but its productivity is limited by poor soil fertility coupled with low access to nitrogen mineral fertilizers. Commercial rhizobia strains introduced in 2010 failed to adapt and increase soybeans yields at desired level. We studied the performance of six indigenous rhizobia strains in enhancing soybean productivity compared to two commercial strains USDA110 and SEMIA5019. The study was carried out in the greenhouse and field of Kalambo station of International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), D. R. Congo during 2016/2017 cropping season. The treatments included: (1) N-, control without inoculation and N-fertilizer; (2) N+, non-inoculated control with 80 kg of N ha −1 ; and inoculated with (3) commercial strain Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens USDA110; (4) commercial strain Bradyrhizobium elkanii SEMIA5019; (5) local strains Bradyrhizobium japonicum NAC17; (6) NAC22; (7) NAC37, (8) NAC42 (9) NAC 46 and (10) NAC78. Greenhouse and field experiments were laid out as completely randomized design and randomized complete block design respectively. The best inoculation treatments across all experiments were the indigenous strains NAC46 and NAC17 which nodulated equally or better than the commercial strain USDA 110. In the field NAC46 and NAC17 increased soybean grain yield from 2.4 to 3.3 t ha-1 and 3.4 t ha-1 ; indicating the increase of 68.7 and 70.8% respectively, over the commercial strain USDA110. The results demonstrated that indigenous rhizobia NAC46 and NAC17 would thus be the silver bullet to enhanced BNF and soybean yields in South Kivu province of Democratic Republic of Congo.
Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is the main leguminous crop grown in South-Kivu province. Howeve... more Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is the main leguminous crop grown in South-Kivu province. However, there is a scarcity of information concerning the soil mycorrhizal potential, natural mycorrhization and the spore density of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi associated with P. vulgaris in South-Kivu province. In this study, rhizospheric soil and roots samples have been collected in Kabare and Walungu territories in famer’s field (three localities in each territory) to determine the bean natural mycorrhization rate, AM spore density and the soil mycorrhizal potential in relation with soil chemical properties. We founded that bean root colonization was high in Katana, Kavumu and Miti, and low in Lurhala, Walungu centre and Nduba. Katana and Kavumu showed a high number of spores (242.9 ± 37.8 and 183 ± 13.1 spores.100g− 1 soil, respectively) compared to other sites. Soil mycorrhizal potential was higher in Katana, Kavumu and Miti sites, located in Kabare territory (10.8 ± 0.7, 9 ± 1.3...
Land
Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is one of the innovative approaches for sustainably increasing th... more Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is one of the innovative approaches for sustainably increasing the agricultural productivity, improving livelihoods and incomes of farmers, while at the same time improving resilience and contributing to climate change mitigation. In spite of the fact that there is neither explicit policy nor practices branded as CSA in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), farmers are utilizing an array of farming practices whose attributes meet the CSA criteria. However, the intensity, distribution, efficiency, and dynamics of use as well as the sources of these technologies are not sufficiently documented. Therefore, this review paper provides a comprehensive evidence of CSA-associated farming practices in DRC, public and private efforts to promote CSA practices, and the associated benefits accruing from the practices as deployed by farmers in the DRC. We find evidence of progress among farming communities in the use of practices that can be classified as CSA. Commun...
CABI Agriculture and Bioscience
Sustaining high crop yield and profitability on marginal soils, such as degraded ferralsols, call... more Sustaining high crop yield and profitability on marginal soils, such as degraded ferralsols, calls for the use of adequate farming practices. In this study, we assessed for four cropping seasons the effect of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer application doses (100, 150, and 200 kg ha−1) and plant densities (100,000, 166,666, and 250,000 plants ha−1) on growth, yield, nodulation capacity, and profitability of two pea varieties (Adei and Rwanda) under degraded ferralsols in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Results showed that pea growth, yield, nodulation, and profitability were significantly affected by the DAP dose and the plant density. Application of 150 kg ha−1 of DAP improved pea yields from 730 to 1720 kg ha−1 and nodulation from 17 to 22 nodules per plant. The number of active nodules was positively correlated with total number of nodules, DAP doses, yield parameters, and plant height. High grain yield was recorded during the long rainy season (1400 kg ha−1) c...
Scientific Reports
There are several techniques for mapping wetlands. In this study, we examined four statistical mo... more There are several techniques for mapping wetlands. In this study, we examined four statistical models to assess the potential distribution of wetlands in the South-Kivu province by combining optical and SAR images. The approach involved integrating topographic, hydrological, and vegetation indices into the four most used classifiers, namely Artificial Neural Network (ANN), Random Forest (RF), Boosted Regression Tree (BRT), and Maximum Entropy (MaxEnt). A wetland distribution map was generated and classified into 'wetland' and 'non-wetland.' The results showed variations in predictions among the different models. RF exhibited the most accurate predictions, achieving an overall classification accuracy of 95.67% and AUC and TSS values of 82.4%. Integrating SAR data improved accuracy and precision, particularly for mapping small inland wetlands. Our estimations indicate that wetlands cover approximately 13.5% (898,690 ha) of the entire province. BRT estimated wetland are...
Environmental challenges, Dec 1, 2021
International Journal of Applied Agricultural Sciences, 2021
This study aims to measure food insecurity and its correlates according to the calorie intake app... more This study aims to measure food insecurity and its correlates according to the calorie intake approach. By conducting the consumption survey on a stratified sample grouped into localities considered, here, as strata. The survey covered 139 households. The results show that 84.2% of the respondents generate their income from agriculture and the household lives on US $ 50.09 per month obtained from the optical expenditure. Households allocate more than 50% of this income to food consumption. The calorie intake provided by the consumed food is 1248.28 kcal. The Estimated Energy Need (EEN) calculated was 2303.76 kcal on average, i.e., a negative gap of 1055.48. The estimated results of the LOGIT model for the possibility of being food secure showed that factors of various kinds expose households to food insecurity, i.e., level of education, gender, income and number of meals. In addition, livestock farming, distance from home to market were variables that significantly condition the probability of a household being food secure only in the locality of Bwegera whereas household size and existence other income sources within the household significantly affect food security only in the locality of Lemera. In this case, it is necessary to encourage large-scale production through access to new technologies, access to food, education and financing, structuring and strengthening the capacities of farmers' organizations, diversification of activities and the revival of the livestock farming sector and its integration into the cropping system, access to resources by women, the development of agricultural markets for products and inputs.
Physics and Chemistry of the Earth, Parts A/B/C
Soil erosion by gullying causes severe soil degradation, which in turn leads to severe socioecono... more Soil erosion by gullying causes severe soil degradation, which in turn leads to severe socioeconomic and environmental damages in tropical and subtropical regions. To mitigate these negative effects and guarantee sustainable management of natural resources, gullies must be prevented. Gully management strategies start by devising adequate assessment tools and identification of driving factors and control measures. To achieve this, machine learning methods are essential tools to assist in the identification of driving factors to implement sitespecific control measures. This study aimed at assessing the effectiveness of four machine learning methods (Random Forest (RF), Maximum of Entropy (MaxEnt), Artificial Neural Network (ANN), and Boosted Regression Tree (BRT)) to identify gully's driving factors, and predict gully erosion susceptibility in the Luzinzi watershed, in Walungu territory, eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). In this study, gullies were first identified through multiple field surveys and then digitized using a very high-resolution image (CNI/airbus) from Google Earth. Overall, 270 gullies were identified, of which 70% (189) were randomly selected to train the four machine learning methods using topographical, hydrological, and environmental factors hypothesized to be gully-related conditioning factors. The remaining 30% (81 gullies) were used for testing studied methods using the thresholdindependent area under the receiver operating characteristic (AUROC) and the true skill statistic (TSS) as performance measures. The results showed that RF and MaxEnt algorithms outperformed other methods; performance assessment results showed that the RF model with AUROC = 0.82 (82%) and MaxEnt (0.804: 80.4%) had higher prediction accuracies than BRT: 0.69 (69%) and ANN: 0.55 (55%). TSS results indicated that RF and MaxEnt are best methods in predicting gully susceptibility in Luzinzi watershed. On the other hand, the conditioning factors such as Digital Elevation Model (DEM), Normalized Difference Water Index (NDWI), Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI), slope, distance to roads, distance to rivers, and Stream Power Index (SPI) played key roles in the gully occurrence. Given the significance of these factors in gullies' occurrence, as shown in this study, policy-makers must adopt strategies that consider these factors to lower the risk of gully occurrence and related consequences at the watershed scale in eastern DRC.
Background The adoption rate of improved maize varieties (IMVs) is low among small-scale farmers ... more Background The adoption rate of improved maize varieties (IMVs) is low among small-scale farmers in South-Kivu province, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), despite extensive dissemination efforts by local and international research institutions and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The level of understanding of farmers' preferences and needs for released IMVs, as well as socioeconomic factors influencing their adoption in South-Kivu, is still limited. This study aimed at assessing farmers' preference criteria for maize varieties and identifying factors driving the adoption of IMVs as well as major production constraints in South-Kivu, to guide varietal selection and breeding initiatives. Results Results showed that the most farmer-preferred attributes were high yield potential, early maturity, taste, and pest/disease resistance, with significant disparities across market segments. Socioeconomic factors such as the farmer’s age, experience, membership of farmer ...
Land
Maize (Zea mays L.) productivity is constrained by water shortages in the predominantly rainfed a... more Maize (Zea mays L.) productivity is constrained by water shortages in the predominantly rainfed agriculture of the tropical semi-arid Ruzizi Plain, in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). The region is characterized by a high seasonal and inter-annual rainfall variability and a frequent occurrence of consecutive dry days within growing seasons. Consequently, planning water utilization in rainfed agriculture has become complex, as appropriate soil water conservation (SWC) practices are lacking among most smallholder farmers. Identifying practices that increase water use efficiency (WUE) along the slope gradient is crucial for supporting maize production in the region. In this study, we assessed, for three growing seasons, the effectiveness of two SWC practices (tied ridges and Zai pits) in improving the WUE of two maize varieties along three slope gradients (0–2, 2–8, and 8–15%) in the tropical semi-arid Ruzizi Plain. In this area, rainfall amounts (142–289 mm) were consis...
African Crop Science Journal, 2020
Farm mechanisation plays a major role in the agricultural sector, as it facilitates achievement o... more Farm mechanisation plays a major role in the agricultural sector, as it facilitates achievement of energy-intensive operations. In developing countries, policies and technical constraints have greatly affected the development of a coherent agricultural mechanisation system, that is accessible to farmers, especially the poorest. This study aimed to identify the socioeconomic factors that have driven the use of different sources of farm power in family farming in Ruzizi Plain in Democratic Republic of Congo. A random sample of 190 smallholder farmers and 30 technicians were surveyed in 2014 and 2015 in six areas of Kamanyola, Luvungi, Luberizi, Sange, Kiringye and Kiliba. Results showed that mechanisation in the Ruzizi Plain involved a range of sources of farm power, including draft animals, tractors and rototillers. Factors such as gender, attitude of the head of a household, farm productivity and profitability and non-farm incomes played a crucial role in the choice of whether or not to mechanise. Maize profitability was higher under mechanisation (US$ 535.46 ha-1) compared to non-user farms (US$ 7.73 ha-1). For cassava, however, there were no significant differences in profitability between mechanised and non-mechanised farms. Other benefits of mechanisation included better working conditions, reduction in the duration of farming operations, and the expansion of cultivated land parcels.
Tropicultura, 2017
L’objectif de l’etude etait d’evaluer la combinaison optimale des substrats locaux avec des addit... more L’objectif de l’etude etait d’evaluer la combinaison optimale des substrats locaux avec des additifs permettant d’accroitre le rendement des souches P969 et HK51 de Pleurotus ostreatus (Jacq.) P. Kumm., dans les conditions ecologiques de l’Est de la R.D. du Congo. L’essai a ete etabli en split plot avec 3 facteurs: nature du substrat (fanes de haricot et feuilles de bananier), nature de l’additif (son de riz et bouse de vache) et dose d’additif (0, 5, 10 et 15%). Les resultats ont montre que les substrats a base de fanes de haricot sont plus productifs en termes de poids moyen des sporophores. L’ajout de l’additif a base de bouse sur les fanes de haricot, comme l’ajout de son de riz sur les feuilles de bananier, a permis l’accroissement proportionnel du rendement. Par contre, au-dela de 10% de supplement de son de riz sur les fanes de haricot, le rendement chute et devient meme inferieur au temoin sans additif. Il ressort de cette etude que le choix du type et de la dose d’additifs...
In response to growing food demand, edible insects are seen as a potential source to alleviate fo... more In response to growing food demand, edible insects are seen as a potential source to alleviate food insecurity. With its wide edible insects’ biodiversity, the Democratic Republic of Congo is one of the most important biodiversity hotspots in Africa. This study aimed at giving a first insight on the inventory showing diversity, perception, consumption, availability, host plants, harvesting techniques and processing techniques of edible insects in South-Kivu, DRC. It recorded twenty-three edible insects belonging to nine families and five orders, some of which are consumed in the larval, adult, egg and pupa stages. Rhyncophorus phoenicis, Alphitobius diaperinus, Macrotermes subhylanus and Acheta domesticus were the most preferred edible insects in Fizi Territory, Ruspolia differens and Apis melifera larvae in Kabare Territory, Imbrasia oyemensis, Imbrasia epimethea, Rhynchophorus ferrugineus and Rhyncophorus phoenicis in Mwenga Territory, Ruspolia differens, Macrotermes subhylanus, G...
Aim: In recent studies, three species of bat, Hypsignathus monstrosus, Myonycteris torquata and E... more Aim: In recent studies, three species of bat, Hypsignathus monstrosus, Myonycteris torquata and Epomops franqueti were identified as the most likely candidates to be reservoir for Ebolavirus. To help in epidemic preparedness and surveillance, species distribution modeling techniques are useful for predicting where these species are likely to occur in DR Congo. Methods: MaxEnt software was used to model the current and future distribution of the three species in DR Congo based on the occurrence data collected from global biodiversity information facility and environmental covariates collected from Worldclim and USGS. The future distribution were obtained based on two scenario (RCP4.5 and RCP 8.5) of the HadGEM2-CC an IPPC5 climate projections from global climate models (GCMs). Results: The suitable habitat of H. monstrosus, M. torquata and E. franqueti are essentially located from latitude-5°to 5°and longitude 17°to 30°. Overall, their favourable living areas are located in the territories along the entire northern border and the entire northern part of the eastern border of the DR Congo with varying degrees of importance depending on the territories and species. Three bioclimatic variables have shown to play major role in their spread, the precipitation of the driest quarter, the precipitation of coldest quarter and the temperature annual range. In the future, the suitable area of these species will be decreasing and being essentially located in the Kivu provinces. The change in the ecological niche of these species will differ with respect to future climate scenario. Climate of RCP 8.5 has shown to induce major decrease of their suitable habitat in DR Congo. Main conclusions: The MaxEnt model is potentially useful for forecasting the future adaptive distribution of the three bat species under climate change, and it provides important guidance for comprehensive management of the Ebolavirus risk.
African Journal of Agricultural Research, 2019
Soybean is an important crop in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country faced with high level... more Soybean is an important crop in the Democratic Republic of Congo, a country faced with high levels of war induced malnutrition but its productivity is limited by poor soil fertility coupled with low access to nitrogen mineral fertilizers. Commercial rhizobia strains introduced in 2010 failed to adapt and increase soybeans yields at desired level. We studied the performance of six indigenous rhizobia strains in enhancing soybean productivity compared to two commercial strains USDA110 and SEMIA5019. The study was carried out in the greenhouse and field of Kalambo station of International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), D. R. Congo during 2016/2017 cropping season. The treatments included: (1) N-, control without inoculation and N-fertilizer; (2) N+, non-inoculated control with 80 kg of N ha −1 ; and inoculated with (3) commercial strain Bradyrhizobium diazoefficiens USDA110; (4) commercial strain Bradyrhizobium elkanii SEMIA5019; (5) local strains Bradyrhizobium japonicum NAC17; (6) NAC22; (7) NAC37, (8) NAC42 (9) NAC 46 and (10) NAC78. Greenhouse and field experiments were laid out as completely randomized design and randomized complete block design respectively. The best inoculation treatments across all experiments were the indigenous strains NAC46 and NAC17 which nodulated equally or better than the commercial strain USDA 110. In the field NAC46 and NAC17 increased soybean grain yield from 2.4 to 3.3 t ha-1 and 3.4 t ha-1 ; indicating the increase of 68.7 and 70.8% respectively, over the commercial strain USDA110. The results demonstrated that indigenous rhizobia NAC46 and NAC17 would thus be the silver bullet to enhanced BNF and soybean yields in South Kivu province of Democratic Republic of Congo.
Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is the main leguminous crop grown in South-Kivu province. Howeve... more Common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) is the main leguminous crop grown in South-Kivu province. However, there is a scarcity of information concerning the soil mycorrhizal potential, natural mycorrhization and the spore density of arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi associated with P. vulgaris in South-Kivu province. In this study, rhizospheric soil and roots samples have been collected in Kabare and Walungu territories in famer’s field (three localities in each territory) to determine the bean natural mycorrhization rate, AM spore density and the soil mycorrhizal potential in relation with soil chemical properties. We founded that bean root colonization was high in Katana, Kavumu and Miti, and low in Lurhala, Walungu centre and Nduba. Katana and Kavumu showed a high number of spores (242.9 ± 37.8 and 183 ± 13.1 spores.100g− 1 soil, respectively) compared to other sites. Soil mycorrhizal potential was higher in Katana, Kavumu and Miti sites, located in Kabare territory (10.8 ± 0.7, 9 ± 1.3...
Land
Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is one of the innovative approaches for sustainably increasing th... more Climate-smart agriculture (CSA) is one of the innovative approaches for sustainably increasing the agricultural productivity, improving livelihoods and incomes of farmers, while at the same time improving resilience and contributing to climate change mitigation. In spite of the fact that there is neither explicit policy nor practices branded as CSA in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), farmers are utilizing an array of farming practices whose attributes meet the CSA criteria. However, the intensity, distribution, efficiency, and dynamics of use as well as the sources of these technologies are not sufficiently documented. Therefore, this review paper provides a comprehensive evidence of CSA-associated farming practices in DRC, public and private efforts to promote CSA practices, and the associated benefits accruing from the practices as deployed by farmers in the DRC. We find evidence of progress among farming communities in the use of practices that can be classified as CSA. Commun...
CABI Agriculture and Bioscience
Sustaining high crop yield and profitability on marginal soils, such as degraded ferralsols, call... more Sustaining high crop yield and profitability on marginal soils, such as degraded ferralsols, calls for the use of adequate farming practices. In this study, we assessed for four cropping seasons the effect of di-ammonium phosphate (DAP) fertilizer application doses (100, 150, and 200 kg ha−1) and plant densities (100,000, 166,666, and 250,000 plants ha−1) on growth, yield, nodulation capacity, and profitability of two pea varieties (Adei and Rwanda) under degraded ferralsols in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Results showed that pea growth, yield, nodulation, and profitability were significantly affected by the DAP dose and the plant density. Application of 150 kg ha−1 of DAP improved pea yields from 730 to 1720 kg ha−1 and nodulation from 17 to 22 nodules per plant. The number of active nodules was positively correlated with total number of nodules, DAP doses, yield parameters, and plant height. High grain yield was recorded during the long rainy season (1400 kg ha−1) c...