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Sokoine University of Agriculture Institutional Repository (SUA IR). This repository was built and is maintained by the university library (Sokoine National Agricultural Library-SNAL) , in order to collect, preserve and disseminate scholarly output generated by University research community (staff and students) members.
This repository hosts a variety of openly accessible materials including: scholarly articles and books, theses and dissertations, conference proceedings and technical reports. For assistance about depositing your research output in the repository click here. SUA IR Policy click here or any queries contact us at snal@sua.ac.tz.
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- The Agroforesty Community is a collaborative network dedicated to advancing sustainable land-use practices that integrate trees, crops, and livestock. It serves as a platform for knowledge exchange, research dissemination, and practical innovations in Agroforestry. By fostering connections among researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and local communities, the Agroforestry Community promotes environmental conservation, enhanced agricultural productivity, and resilient livelihoods.
Recent Submissions
An Investigation of the extent of implementation of the financial management practices of Agri-SMEs in developing countries: evidence from Tanzania
(Elsevier, 2023) Mang’ana, Kulwa Mwita; Hokororo, Silver John; Ndyetabula,Daniel Wilson
he success of agricultural Small and Medium Enterprises (agri-SMEs), among other factors, heavily relies on
their ability to manage finances effectively. This study examined the extent to which agricultural SMEs in
Tanzania practice financial management activities. The study employed a cross-sectional survey design to collect
data from 427 agri-SMEs in three regions of Tanzania. Descriptive statistics and higher-order reflective-formative
Structural Equation Model (SEM) were employed for data analysis. The findings indicated moderate adoption of
financial management practices. Specifically, agri-SMEs were found to frequently engage in working capital
management practices, such as maintaining sufficient cash flows and records for payables and receivables.
However, financial reporting is less frequently practiced, with sporadic financial statements preparation and
financial analysis. The findings indicate further that other financial management practices such as financial
accounting, capital budgeting and financing management were moderately and infrequently implemented, with
external financing sources being utilized less frequently compared to internal financing sources. The path
analysis indicates that all lower-order constructs significantly contributed to the higher-order financial man
agement practice construct with capital budgeting demonstrating the strongest impact. The findings highlight the
need for improving financial reporting, analysis, and external financing usage in Tanzanian agri-SMEs. These
findings offer valuable insights agri-SMEs in developing countries to appropriately strategize on implementation
of financial management practices that will lead to improved access to finance and high performance
Agri-SME managers’ perception of financial management practices in Tanzania
(Elsevier., 2024-09-24) Mang’ana, Kulwa Mwita; Hokororo, Silver John; Ndyetabula, Daniel Wilson
Agribusiness Small and Medium Enterprises (Agri-SMEs) handle 60 % of all food production and
trade worldwide. Despite their crucial contribution to developing economies, there is a wide
spread concern about their poor performance, largely due to poor Financial Management Prac
tices (FMPs). This study used a survey of 427 Agri-SMEs in Tanzania to investigate managers’
perception towards FMPs and whether the implementation of FMPs impact the achievement of
Agri-SME business objectives. Descriptive statistics were employed to characterize managers’
technological and financial backgrounds. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) was employed to
assess perceived ease of use of FMPs and perceived usefulness of FMPs. The findings revealed that
managers’ perceptions of financial management practices significantly and positively influence
the organizational performance of Agri-SMEs. Specifically, the perceived usefulness and ease of
use of financial practices were key drivers of improved performance. Additionally, about 62 % of
Agri-SMEs have not adopted Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. Furthermore, 63 % of
Agri-SME managers report limited exposure to financial management training. These findings
imply that there is need for enhanced financial management technology adoption and managers’
frequency retooling on financial management practices
Forage growth, yield and nutritional characteristics of five African foxtail ecotypes grown at Magadu dairy farm in Morogoro, Tanzania
(Plants and Environment, 2021-12-31) Lutatenekwa, Dorice L.; Mtengeti, Ephraim J.; Msalya, George M
This study was conducted to assess the forage growth, yield and nutritional characteristics of five ecotypes of African
foxtail (Cenchrus ciliaris) grown under the similar environmental condition at Magadu Dairy Farm (MDF), a facility of Sokoine
University of Agriculture (SUA) in Morogoro, Tanzania. The ecotypes used in the study were collected from semi-arid areas of three
districts namely Kiteto (Ologoraing’ok namelock and Ologoraing’ok twanga ecotypes), Mpwapwa (Nzingangata and Orupilipili
ecotypes), and Kilolo (Iramata mtandika ecotype). Each ecotype was planted in a 12 m 2 plot with plants interspacing of 0.5 m, 1.5 m
space between plots and three replications. Then 30 tussocks were randomly sampled per ecotype and their plant height, tiller
number, inflorescence length, leaf length and leaf mid-width were recorded. The dry matter yield and Nutritional characteristics were
analysed from the harvested above-ground biomass in two quadrats of one square metre per plot at the age of six weeks from
standardization cut. The results indicated significant variation (p-value<0.05) among ecotypes on the studied characteristics.
Orupilipili ecotype indicated higher mean values of plant height (93.8 cm), leaf area (25.8 cm 2 ), inflorescence length (10.1 cm) and
dry mater (10.35 tDMha -1 ). Ologoraing’ok namelock had the lowest growth and yield characteristics except mean tiller numbers
(197.3). The lowest-yielding ecotype indicated the highest percentage of Crude Protein (21.15), Acid Detergent Fibre (31.35) and ash
content (16.91) but with the lowest Neutral Detergent fibre (55.89). Correlations were significant for all pairs of traits assessed.
Discriminant tests suggested close relationship between Ologoraing’ok namelock and Ologoraing’ok twanga, Nzingangata and
Iramata mtandika but each ecotype indicated a significant number (>46%) of unique individuals. This study recommends further
study on the ecotypes when subjected to stresses such as defoliation, salinity and drought
Efficiency of anthelmintic treatment and its effect on microparasite dynamics in wild Mastomys natalensis
(International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife, 2025) van de Ven, Marre; Broecke, Bram Vanden; Ribas, Alexis; Leirs, Herwig; Sabuni, Christopher; Mariën, Joachim
Co-infections between helminths and microparasites can modulate the host immune response and alter disease
dynamics, with potential implications for public health. However, identifying causal relationships in natural
populations is challenging due to the complexity of ecological interactions. Perturbation experiments, where a
specific parasite is selectively reduced, offers a powerful framework to directly test such interactions under
natural conditions. In this study, we investigated potential helminth-microparasite interactions in the multi
mammate mouse (Mastomys natalensis) in Tanzania by experimentally reducing helminth infections in both
captive and wild populations. We first confirmed that two anthelmintic treatments, ivermectin and pyrantel
pamoate, effectively reduced gastrointestinal nematode burdens in wild-caught individuals. We then assessed
whether helminth reduction influenced the prevalence of viral and bacterial infections in free-living populations.
Our results revealed no significant short-term effect of anthelmintic treatment on microparasitic infections. These
findings suggest that helminth-microparasite interactions in M. natalensis may be subtle, context-dependent, or
require longer timescales to become apparent
Plague and the human flea, Tanzania
(Emerging Infectious Diseases, 2007) Laudisoit, Anne; Leirs, Herwig; Makundi, Rhodes H.; Dongen, Stefan Van; Davis, Stephen; Neerinckx, Simon; Deckers, Jozef; Libois, Roland
Domestic fl eas were collected in 12 villages in the
western Usambara Mountains in Tanzania. Of these, 7 are
considered villages with high plague frequency, where hu-
man plague was recorded during at least 6 of the 17 plague
seasons between 1986 and 2004. In the remaining 5 vil-
lages with low plague frequency, plague was either rare or
unrecorded. Pulex irritans, known as the human fl ea, was
the predominant fl ea species (72.4%) in houses. The den-
sity of P. irritans, but not of other domestic fl eas, was signifi -
cantly higher in villages with a higher plague frequency or
incidence. Moreover, the P. irritans index was strongly posi-
tively correlated with plague frequency and with the logarith-
mically transformed plague incidence. These observations
suggest that in Lushoto District human fl eas may play a role
in plague epidemiology. These fi ndings are of immediate
public health relevance because they provide an indicator
that can be surveyed to assess the risk for plague