Vegetable IPM in Africa: Current status and future prospects with emphasis on Eastern and Southern Africa

The production of vegetables in many parts of Africa is basically a small-holder entreprise. However, knowledge on and the use of IPM is scanty. Inadequate IPM awareness among policy makers and donor agencies has resulted to the lack of national IPM policies. Historically, research and extension has concentrated on staples to the comparative neglect of vegetables despite being important component of daily dietary intake and source of income for small-holders. Current research and extension, which is primarily donor-driven, is focused on a few selected crops and problems, and is not necessarily addressing the real needs of the producers and local consumers. There is a growing awareness that, while staples remain as the key component of food security in Africa, improved production of vegetables in small-scale farming systems is urgently needed for provision of a balanced diet for the growing population. On parallel basis, the use of pesticides has to be reduced, and therefore, the need for IPM in vegetable production. With the growing awareness of the needs for IPM research and technology transfer in Eastern and Southern Africa and an increasing number of projects and NGO groups becoming involved in small-holder vegetable production, there is a need to try to enhance collaboration in the region to reduce duplication and optimise on scarce resources so as to improve production and increase profits from vegetable production. This is achievable through setting joint regional priorities, improved information sharing, technology transfer and co-ordination of research as well as development of appropriate farmer training and extension materials. The paper, therefore, reviews past and current vegetable research projects and highlights future opportunities in Eastern and Southern Africa.