Dream Team Expands to Mozambique

PlantVillage's Dream Team is now making inroads into Southern Africa after introducing its activities in Mozambique. 

The unit has already selected 11 young graduates from universities in Mozambique with knowledge of agriculture to form a formidable team that will reach out to farmers in the country that is severely hit by the effects of climate change.

With the help of Kenyan experts Winnie Onyango and Lawrence Ombwayo, the new team received a 5-day training that took place in Nakiti, Nampula Province. 

The training, which was a mix of indoor and field training, centered on the overview of PlantVillage as an organization and the roles of Dream Team members in their service to farmers.

Some of the topics tackled include cassava agronomy, pests and diseases and fall armyworm management and control. Field training was on how to use the PlantVillage Nuru application to diagnose crop diseases, use of the FAMEWS app and collection of data using ODK.

Natercia de Gloria Victoria Noel from Pedagogical University, one of the trainees, said the training has motivated her to help farmers solve pest and disease problems in different crops.

Osman Costa Contente, who has a degree in Agricultural Sciences from the UCM Faculty of Agronomic Sciences and who will be working with farmers in Maganja da Costa District, also had an interesting take on the training.

"It will help me work towards helping farmers increase their income, productivity, and mitigation against natural disasters," he said.

Dream Team Mozambique will be coordinated by Anica Sandra Massas, who holds a PhD in Plant Breeding from Pennsylvania State University.

The Dream Team aims at bringing together graduants from different universities in the world to come up with solutions tailored towards assisting small-holder farmers to fight the effects of climate change.

Apart from Mozambique, the unit has already taken routes in Kenya, Burkina Faso, Tanzania and Nepal.

 

Written By; Marion Makunyo