Background Improving the productivity of grain legumes is important to address global challenges of food security and soil degradation. This study’s objective was to quantify the adoption of improved mungbean (Vigna radiata L.) varieties and agricultural practices and to identify production constraints for six countries in Southeast Asia and three countries in East Africa. Methods A Delphi method using expert elicitation was applied at subnational levels and then aggregated to national levels. Each panel employed repetitive and independent questioning of experts. The study organized 31 expert panels involving 387 experts across 9 countries. Results The share of improved varieties in the planted area, as estimated by the expert panels, was 92% for the Philippines, 91% for Vietnam, 99% for Thailand, 84% for Cambodia, 60% for Indonesia, 35% for Laos, 91% for Kenya, 30% for Uganda and 25% for Tanzania. The average age of improved varieties was 19 years in Asia and 12 years in East Africa. Of the mungbean area in Southeast Asia, 61% was planted to varieties developed by the World Vegetable Center, but this was only 2% in East Africa. Production constraints generally included insect pests and plant diseases, unstable markets with low price and low market demand, and the lack of quality seed of suitable varieties. Conclusions There are ample opportunities to improve mungbean productivity through wider use of improved varieties and practices, which is important to meet the contemporary challenges of improving human nutrition and agricultural sustainability.

Horticulture is one of the fastest growing subsectors of agriculture in Tanzania. Gender relations in vegetable-producing and vegetable-trading households need to be understood to make value chain development equitable. This study, carried out in northern and central Tanzania, is based on data from surveys, focus group discussions and semi-structured interviews. The perceptions of men and women traders and producers are investigated with regard to labour participation in traditional vegetable value chains and gains (income and expenditure) from it. Farmers were found to report more balanced intra-household labour arrangements paired with less-balanced income and expenditure shares, while traders indicated less-balanced labour contributions that went hand in hand with more-balanced shares of benefits. Farmers related limited household development not only to imbalances in benefits but also to a lack of trust and cooperation between spouses. The importance of gender-transformative approaches in agricultural value chains is emphasized herein.

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Poor diets are a primary cause of malnutrition and a leading constraint to public health in Tanzania. The consumption of fruit and vegetables in Tanzania is well below the recommended standard as recommended by the WHO. Increasing the intake by consumers of fruit and vegetables requires a year-round availability of these foods, as well as their affordability, accessibility and acceptability. The objective of this study is to contribute to an improved understanding of the informal market of fruit and vegetables in the Arusha Region of Tanzania to better address food loss and waste and food safety issues in the fruit and vegetable chains. To do so, it is important to better understand the motivations and business operations of informal midstream actors, who are key in connecting farmers to most consumers. Through a literature review and survey data among 260 traders, we assessed how social capital of midstream actors in the informal fruit and vegetable sector is related to the performance of the individual firms. We conclude that members of groups that exchange business information have both higher self-reported business performance as well as higher calculated revenues. Members of groups that engage in joint sourcing or price setting have higher revenue, and members of groups that engage in the regulation of physical market space or outward representation have higher self-reported business performance. Finally, we found that traders that are part of a trading group have higher self-reported business performance, but we did not find a significant difference in calculated revenue.