Author(s)

Peace Kankwatsa

Mbarara Zonal Agricultural Research and Development Institute (MBAZARDI), National Agricultural Research Organization, Mbarara, Uganda.

The common bean is the second most important food and third economically important crop after banana and coffee in the South Western Agro-Ecological Zone of Uganda. Farmers’ returns to investment in bean production are consistently negative mainly due to losses resulting from collective effects of insect pests and diseases that cause damages at the various plant growth stages. This research study was carried out to 1) identify the major insect pests and diseases affecting the common beans in the zone; 2) test and compare the performance of the local/traditional practices versus integrated pest and disease management (IPDM) technology combinations; 3) determine the yield performance of improved varieties under the different pest control practices; 4) evaluate the profitability of the different pest and disease management practices. Results showed that cutworm, thrips, aphid and defoliating beetles were the major insect pests, while angular leaf spot, ascochyta blight, anthracnose and the bean common mosaic virus (BCMV) were the major diseases. Improved varieties managed with the recommended IPDM technology combination were more protected compared to the farmers’ indigenous practices. The climbing varieties had significantly higher yield (3.4 t/ha) than the local bush variety (1.2 t/ha). Consequently, the application of indigenous practices resulted in negative returns to investment while the combination of research recommended technologies including judicial inorganic pesticide application led to positive returns to investment in bean production. The marginal rate of return (MRR) of IPDM technologies including inorganic pesticides was two times greater, implying that integration of improved variety with recommended agronomic crop management technologies plus judicial chemical application is economically feasible for increased common bean production in South Western Uganda.

Common bean, Production, Indigenous Technical Knowledge, IPDM, Marginal Rate of Return

Kankwatsa, P. (2018) Efficacy and Cost-Benefit Analysis of Indigenous Technical Knowledge versus Recommended Integrated Pest and Disease Management Technologies on Common Beans in South Western Uganda. Open Access Library Journal, 5, 1-18. doi: 10.4236/oalib.1104589.