Participatory analysis of groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L) cropping system and production constraints in Burkina Faso

Abstract

Background: Groundnut (Arachis hypogaea L) is one of the major legume crop grown as food and cash crops across the agro ecological zone in Burkina Faso. It is ranked 2nd legume crop in the country, in term of importance, for household food, nutrition and income generation for both rural and urban zone, contributing significantly to food supply and the country economy. However, groundnut was downgrade long ago, forsaken and the groundnut sector is still struggling, with a low productivity, disorganized groundnut sector and a weak breeding program, due to several constraints. Assessing and describing the present groundnut cropping system and production constraint will eventually serve as a basis to guide efficiently the groundnut breeding activities. Methods: A Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) study was conducted in three groundnuts production areas (Central-Eastern, Central-Northern and Central- Western). A total of 124 farmers were involved in the study to collect data on socio-demographics, farming system, cropping practices and identified production constraints. Analysis was carried out for qualitative and quantitates variables using STATA 14. Mean variance were determined across regions and gender, and pairwise ranking were used to assess the level of agreement for variables ranking among the three regions using Kendall's W. Pearson's correlation was carried out to assess the relationship between variables. Results: The study revealed a cropping system of groundnut in an environment largely affected by climate change, and in a subsistence and extensive agriculture. There is a variance in groundnut cropping system across the regions with similarities in the cropping practices. Gender plays a key role in the production of the groundnut and 48.39% of women are engaged in groundnut cropping with less access to land and production resources. A yield gap between men and women has been observed denoting a huge inefficiency between men and women. Production constraints, although similar, are perceived and appreciated differently across the region. The lack of improved varieties, Absence of agricultural credit, lack of materials, high price of seeds, high price of fertilizer, drought and disease are some of the important constraints compromising the crop. Conclusion: This study provides a recent view of groundnut cropping, allowing good understanding of farmer’s situation. The result, will contribute to an efficient refining of breeding priorities and guide further activities in groundnut breeding in Burkina Faso.