Factors influencing the adoption of integrated production techniques for a sustainable vegetable production in Lubumbashi, Democratic Republic of Congo

Abstract

Vegetable production is an important sector of urban and periurban agriculture in Africa. In the Democratic Republic of Congo, an horticulture development project was set up between 2000 and 2012 with the technical support of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations to disseminate integrated production and protection techniques. The techniques promoted included the use of natural fertilizers, seeds resistant to pests, plant extracts with insecticidal effect, natural pest control products, crop associations and rotations, as well as the rational use of pesticides. The Logit model was used to analyze data from a sample of 246 vegetable farmers surveyed between March and June 2016 in Lubumbashi, to identify the factors influencing the adoption of the techniques promoted. Membership in a farmers' association and training in vegetable production appear to be two key factors significantly and positively influencing the adoption of integrated production and protection techniques among farmers, of 3.5 up to 7 times respectively compared to farmers who did not belong to any farmers' group and have never been trained. These results suggest that participation of farmers in training workshops and discussion groups through field schools can serve as catalysts to increase the adoption of innovative techniques in market gardening.