Participatory Rural Appraisal on Cowpea Production Constraints and Farmers’ Management Practices in Burkina Faso

摘要

Success of cowpea cultivation requires a strong understanding of production constraints in order to overcome them. It is thus useful to know whether smallholder cowpea growers use modern or indigenous means to overcome these challenges. We completed a participatory rural appraisal (PRA) study to identify current cowpea production constraints and management practices in Burkina Faso. We interviewed 481 cowpea growers (219 women and 262 men) and used a mixed-method design of collecting both qualitative and quantitative data. The results showed that water scarcity, damage due to insects, plant diseases, striga, lack of training, and marketing challenges are the main constraints to cowpea production. Among insects reducing cowpea yield, growers identified aphids as a major pest. However, growers often did not know the biology and incidence of insects in their fields. This study also identified local resistant cowpea varieties in various locations.