Browsing by Author "Atwijukye, Dunstan"

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Factors influencing the adoption of organic farming practices in the banana cropping systems in Kajara County, Ntungamo district
(Kyambogo University [ Unpublished work], 2021-09) Atwijukye, Dunstan
This study was carried out in Kajara County, Ntungamo District aimed at identifying and characterising the existing organic farming practices used by smallholder farmers; establishing the socio-economic and institutional factors influencing adoption of organic farming practices in the banana cropping system. To achieve the above objectives systematic and purposive sampling the study adopted a cross sectional research design whereby data was collected from 357 farmers through household surveys using questionnaires, and key informant interviews. Quantitative data was analysed with the help of SPSS, whereby descriptive statistics such as frequencies and percentages were determined, chi-square tests were run to examine whether there were significant differences between adopters and non-adopters in relation to the adoption of organic farming practices. Study findings show that, mulching was highly organic farming practice employed followed by weed management, use of farmyard manure, pest management, use of crop residues and use of cover crops as the least utilised practice; chi-square test results revealed that there were significant differences between adopters and non-adopters with regard to, age of the household head, gender , household size, years of farming experience, ownership of land, off-farm income, number of extension contacts, membership to farmer groups and access to credit significantly influenced the use of organic farming practices. On the other hand, there were no significant differences between adopters and non-adopters of organic farming practices concerning the education level and marital status thus did not influence the rate of adoption. Therefore, this study recommends interventions that enhance farmers’ awareness through agricultural advisory services with a focus on organic farming practices, increased access to credit facilities, and secure land tenure.
Land-use change and small-mammal diversity in and around African mountain forest reserves: consistent loss of habitat specialists and critical gaps in altitudinal, long-term, and landscape-scale research- a review
(East African Journal of Environment and Natural Resources, 2026-01-23) Atwijukye, Dunstan; Turyahabwe Remigio; Isabirye Moses
Anthropogenic land-use change, such as agricultural intensification, selective logging, overgrazing, altered fire regimes, urbanisation, plantation forestry, and habitat fragmentation, have consistently favoured ecologically generalist small mammals while driving marked declines or local degradation of habitat-specialist species (particularly forest-dependent rodents and shrews) across Africa. This systematic review synthesised 37 independent field studies (2002–2021) and reveals a striking continent-wide pattern: natural and lightly disturbed habitats sustain higher small-mammal richness and specialist taxa, whereas intensive disturbance shifts assemblages toward a small set of generalist species, often with seasonal peaks tied to rainfall or crops. Despite this convergence, virtually all studies share the same critical methodological gaps: no altitudinal transects, no long-term (multi-year) monitoring, no landscape-connectivity or matrix-permeability analyses, limited multi-seasonal replication, and no assessment of population sustainability or resilience. Consequently, reported specialist declines may reflect temporary dispersal or seasonal lows rather than irreversible extinction, while the long-term viability of dominant generalists remains unknown. The current evidence base is therefore predominantly short-term and snapshot-based, severely limiting its predictive value for conservation under accelerating land-use and climate change. Robust future research requires routine incorporation of elevational gradients, multi-annual monitoring, landscape-scale connectivity analyses, full seasonal coverage, and explicit tests of population persistence to secure Africa’s small-mammal diversity.
Understanding the drivers of adoption of organic banana farming technologies in Kajara County, South-western Uganda
(East African Journal of Agriculture and Biotechnology, 2022) Atwijukye, Dunstan; Turyahabwe, Remigio; Nabalegwa, Muhamud Wambede; Asaba, Joyfred
This study aimed at identifying and characterising the major organic banana farming technologies used and assessing the drivers of adoption of the same in Kajara County. A total of 360 respondents were used to obtain primary data. As the study adopted a cross-sectional design, we used questionnaires, interviews, focus group discussions, and field observations to collect the required data. Data was analysed using descriptive statistics and the non-parametric (Chi-square) tests. Results indicate that the major organic banana farming technologies adopted in the study area were mulching, cover cropping, farmyard manure application, pest and weed management. The chi-square test revealed that the marital status, gender, and level of education of the farmers had significant positive effects on the adoption of organic banana farming technologies among the farmers. We concluded that, generally, the rate of adoption of organic farming technologies in Kajara County was low, and therefore, there is a need for emphasising the training of the farmers at local levels so as to equip them with information on the organic farming technologies for sustainable banana farming. We recommend that stakeholders who work on agricultural programs use model farmers in the area to educate and demonstrate the importance of organic banana farming technologies.