Articles, Conference and Workshop Papers Collection

Permanent URI for this collectionhttp://10.10.97.169:4000/handle/123456789/81

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Forecasting of the rain-fed maize yield in Tanzania using machine learning
(Sokoine University of Agriculture, 2022) Lebalwa,Bertha Msuliche
Yield monitoring is vital for food security in the country. The uncertainty that may influence fluctuations in yield is impeccable to the nation's food security strategy. Due to climate change around the world, yield fluctuation has dramatically been affected and led to food supply shortage in most developing countries, including Tanzania, since most of the staple food depends on rainfed agriculture, which is hit by high temperatures and variations in rainfall. Bad weather also contributes to diseases, pests and weeds which greatly challenge the growth of crops, particularly the top grain and maize. Most countries have adopted several yield prediction methods to mitigate the effects to resolve the situation. Most countries have shown that emerging techniques such as machine learning provide good predictions to help countries mitigate the problem and secure food security. Machine learning regression models (linear, AdaBoost, gradient boosting, k- Neighbour, random forest and stacking ensemble) are trained and evaluated using dataset obtained from the online database. Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDV1) is used to predict vegetation that are later assumed to locate probability of maize fields. The climate data from those areas is then subjected to training on forecasting maize yield. Therefore, the results have shown that Machine learning methods like a stacking ensemble, which combine several other models and use Random Forest as the final model achieved low Mean Absolute Error (MAE), Mean Squared Error (MSE) and Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) of 0.27, 0.12 and 0.34 Ton per Ha for each district respectively. The results suggest machine learning model like stacking ensemble can be used by policy makers and farmers to mitigate the effects of climate change in yields for a particular season.
Tanzania modern llibrary in research and development
(University of Nebraska - Lincoln, 2021) Mwilongo.K
The modern and advanced development in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has influenced various changes in the universe and resulted to phases of paradigm shifts and affected individuals, groups, organisations, institutions and states. The globalization of everything has similarly modernized and impacted the academic libraries and librarians. Modern academic libraries strive and undertake this development in facilitating sharing of research data and outputs with its potential stakeholders for Research and Development (R&D). Librarians and have to adapt new and emerging technologies, deploy the web technologies for cyberspaces, smart or digital library information and services, transform to embedded librarians for dynamic collaboration and partnership with stakeholders in sharing experience, research data and products for innovative R&D. Professionalism and personal competencies are the panacea for the modern librarians to remain relevant in the new environment. Technology and knowledge gaps lead to challenges that the modern libraries have to address and sustainably maintain their visibility, collaboration and sharing of research data and products for R&D. More important, modern libraries have to fully embrace the digital innovations, promote linkages and collaboration with R&D institutions or centres. Moreover, they have to integrate various innovative policies which foster sharing of research data and products and to make technology and innovative R&D among the core components of the university functions.
Knowledge management approaches in managing agricultural indigenous and exogenous knowledge in Tanzania.
(Emerald Group Publishing Limited, 2010-08-02) Lwoga, E. T
The purpose of this study is to assess the application of knowledge management (KM) models in managing and integrating indigenous and exogenous knowledge for improved farming activities in Tanzania, by examining the management of indigenous knowledge (IK), access and use of exogenous knowledge, the relevance of policies, legal framework, information and communication technologies (ICTs), and culture in KM practices in the communities. Design/methodology/approach – Semi-structured interviews were used to collect qualitative and quantitative data from 181 farmers in six districts of Tanzania. Four IK policy makers were also interviewed. Findings – The study demonstrated that western-based KM models should be applied cautiously in a developing world context. Both indigenous and exogenous knowledge was acquired and shared in different contexts. IK was shared within a local, small and spontaneous network, while exogenous knowledge was shared in a wide context, where formal sources of knowledge focused on disseminating exogenous knowledge more than IK. Policies, legal framework, ICTs and culture determined access to knowledge in the communities. The study thus developed a KM model that would be applicable in the social context of developing countries. Research limitations/implications – The study necessitates testing the developed model against existing KM models, in a specific context such as local communities of the developing world, to determine whether it is better at explaining the link between KM principles and KM processes. Originality/value – The proposed KM model provides a deep understanding of the management and integration of agricultural indigenous and exogenous knowledge in the rural areas of developing countries. Previous KM models were developed in the context of an organizational environment, and thus failed to address the needs of rural communities. The proposed model thus advances the theory of KM in developing countries, and provides linkages between KM processes and KM principles.
The role of radio, television and mobile phones in disseminating information on occurrences of wildfire in Uluguru Mountains Nature Reserve – Morogoro Tanzania
(Sage Journals, 2024-02-28) Mabula, D.M; Wema, Evans.F
Abstract This study sought to determine the contribution of radio, television and mobile phones used by local communities in disseminating and accessing information about wildfire hazards in the Uluguru Mountains Nature Reserve and assessed the extent of their usage in disseminating wildfire information. It also aimed at identifying barriers to their use in reporting wildfire incidences in the Uluguru Mountains and determined the available wildfire reduction strategies which can be improved by use of other types of ICTs. A descriptive survey method and purposive and conveniently sampling techniques were employed to select a sample of 15 key informants and 90 villagers from the three villages that were purposively selected. Questionnaires, focus group discussions, interview with key informants and participants observations were used to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. The finding show that the community living around Uluguru Mountains Nature Reserve own Radio and mobile phones although few of them owned televisions. Very few respondents reported wildfire incidence using their mobile phone, while the majority used their mobile phone for other social-economic activities. However, internet based AFIS Meraka system and handheld GPS were the most common technologies used to disseminate wildfire information. In general radio, mobile phones and televisions are not fully beneficial to the local communities. Based on the results, it was recommended that the role of modern ICTs in detecting and disseminating wildfire be encouraged among the authorities.
Data preservation practices for enhancing agricultural research data usage among agricultural researchers in Tanzania
(Journal of Librarianship and Information Science, 2022) Mwinami, Nolasko Victory; Dulle, Frankwell W.; Mtega, Wulystan Pius
The objective of this study was to investigate the role of research data preservation for enhanced data usage among agricultural researchers in Tanzania. Specifically, the study aimed to examine the data preservation methods used by agriculture researchers, find out how long agriculture researchers preserve their agriculture research data, and determine factors that influence agriculture researchers on their choice of data preservation methods for use. The study employed a cross-sectional research design. The study employed both qualitative and quantitative approaches. A survey was conducted to collect data in 11 research institutions. A simple random sampling technique was used to select 204 respondents from the study area while purposive sampling techniques were used to select 11 agriculture research institutions including 10 Tanzanian Agricultural Research Institution (TARI) centers, and Sokoine University of Agriculture (SUA). Also, 12 respondents were selected purposively for an in-depth interview as key informants. The study adopted Data Curation Centre (DCC) Lifecycle Model to explain data preservation process. Findings indicated that a majority of more than 90% of researchers preferred to preserve their data using different storage devices such as field notebooks, computers, and institutional libraries. Moreover, findings indicated that about 74% of agricultural researchers preferred to preserve their data for more than 6 years after the end of the project. Findings also indicated factors that influence researchers in the choice of data preservation methods to be easy to reach, cost-effective storage devices, support to use the devices, adequate infrastructure for data preservation, and reliable power supply. It can be concluded that there is yet a great role of research data preservation in enhancing data usage among researchers in Tanzania. It is recommended that the government should establish an agricultural research data bank to guarantee permanent availability of data at all times when needed.
A study of data sources for accessibility and reuse practices among agricultural researchers in Tanzania
(Journal of Agricultural & Food Information, 2023-03-10) Mwinami, Nolasko Victory; Dulle, Frankwell W.; Mtega, Wulystan Pius
This paper reports a study that investigated how agricultural researchers use and reuse other researchers’ data in Tanzania. This research used a survey method to investigate the factors influencing researchers in this use/reuse. Findings indicated that more than 80% of researchers use and reuse data accessed from different sources. Several factors influence the majority of researchers (more than 70%) to use and reuse data. The results of this study may attract the attention of agricultural researchers elsewhere to agricultural data use and reuse practices.
Factors influencing data sharing practices, perceptions and motivations for improved accessibility of agricultural research data in Tanzania
(HSOA Journal of Environmental Science Current Research, 2023) Mwinami, Nolasko Victory; Dulle, Frankwell W; Mtega, Wulystan Pius
Accurate and reliable information on the data sharing practices and what motivates researchers to share their data is important in making data accessible for use/reuse. The purpose of this paper is to report a study that investigated factors influencing data-sharing practices, perceptions, and motivations for enhanced accessibility of agricultural research data among agricultural researchers in Tan- zania. This research employed a cross-sectional survey method to examine data-sharing practices in agricultural research institutions and examined factors motivating researchers in their data-sharing. The sample size included 227 while from this sample size, some 204 respondents participated in the study. The findings have revealed that more than 80% of the researchers shared their data with proj- ect funders, research institutions, and with departmental colleagues. The findings also indicate that many researchers (60%) shared their data with the public through media, institutional libraries, and online publications. The findings reveal that both individual and institution- al factors influence researchers in data sharing. However, some of the factors were statistically significant at 5%; these are perceived community benefit, perceived ability to share, data sharing norms, perceived risk, and funding agency policies. In addition, the findings indicate that agricultural researchers face several challenges in their data sharing, including a lack of data sharing policy that could en- hance data sharing in research institutions. This study has practical implications for promoting more reliable, and beneficial data sharing in the agricultural scientific community. The findings of this research can facilitate the establishment of a data-sharing policy and data repositories that could improve easy data sharing. The present study has significant theoretical contributions: the TPB model has been used in this study to explain the factors motivating researchers in their data-sharing behavior.
Communication channels and their potential applicability in enhancing agricultural research data sharing among agricultural eesearchers in Tanzania
(The Journal of Association of European Research Librarries, 2023) Mwinami, Nolasko Victory; Dulle, Frankwell W.; Mtega, Wulystan Pius
The goal of this research was to investigate the communication channels that enhance data sharing among agriculture researchers in Tanzania. Specifically, the study aimed to identify communication channels that are used by agricultural researchers in Tanzania, examine the extent to which such channels were used to enhance data sharing among agricultural researchers, and examine the factors that influence the choices of channels used in data sharing. A descriptive cross-sectional design, alongside uantitative, and qualitative approaches, was employed to collect data from q 204 respondents. The Concentric Layered Model for the channel choices was used to guide this study. Results indicate that both mediated, and non-medi- ated channels existed and were used as data-sharing avenues and channels. The majority of the researchers (77.9%) preferred to use non-mediated chan- nels. Also, the findings indicate that more than 50% of respondents agreed that timely delivery, the cost of the channel, and convenience of a channel were among the factors influencing researchers in their channel selection. It can be concluded therefore that research institutions should invest in mediated channels that have been underutilized to strengthen data-sharing practices among researchers.
Usage of Sokoine university of agriculture institutional repository among academic staff at the college of veterinary medicine and biomedical science in Tanzania
(Emerald, 2018) Mnzava, Ester Ernest; Chirwa, Mussa Ndambile
Purpose – This study aims to investigate the use of Sokoine University of Agriculture Institutional Repository (SUAIR) among academic staff at the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Science (CVBMS). Specifically, the study looked at awareness of, attitude, self-archiving and challenges the academic staff face when using SUAIR. Design/methodology/approach – The study used survey method. The data were collected using self- administered questionnaire with the results analysed using descriptive statistics. Findings – The study found that although there was more than one source of raising awareness on SUAIR, the university’s library, the internet and meetings were the major sources. Majority of the respondents were not aware of how to deposit their scholarly output in the institutional repository. As a result, the majority of academic staff had never deposited their scholarly work in SUAIR. Generally, the respondents had a positive attitude towards using SUAIR. Apart from lack of skills and knowledge on how to deposit research outputs, the study established that lack of time, fear of plagiarism and lack of awareness of existence of the SUAIR were significant barriers to the effective utilisation of SUAIR. Originality/value – This is the first time such a study has been undertaken focussing on the use, awareness and attitude of SUAIR in Tanzania. As such, the study findings can be used to assess the attitude of academic staff at Sokoine University of Agriculture and other universities in Tanzania and Sub-Saharan Africa with similar operational characteristics.
Digital technology information-sharing prospects: a case of library websites in Tanzania during the covid-19 pandemic
(IGI Global, 2022) Mnzava, Ester Ernest
This chapter presents an experience shown by university and research library websites in Tanzania follow- ing the outbreak of COVID-19. Content analysis was the main method of data collection and analysis in which the contents of the selected websites were explored to establish various services. Thus, the analysis of the selected library website contents revealed that 12 of 24 library websites had the opening and clos- ing hours, two university library websites had information related to the outbreak of the COVID-19, and 12 had no information related to the outbreak of COVID-19 or changes in the library services following the outbreak of COVID-19. This chapter concludes that library websites provide opportunities for the libraries to serve their users conveniently. However, the experience given by some of the university and research library websites in Tanzania shows a lack of information on how particular libraries serve their users when the working environment and style changed following the outbreak of COVID-19
Twitter library account: highlights for the users and librarians
(Emerald Publishing Limited, 2022) Mnzava, Ester Ernest
A bibliometric analysis of human-wildlife conflicts in East Africa
(IJCS, 2022) Mnzava, Ester Ernest; Sirima, Agnes Anthony
Literature appraisal reveals a sufficient number of studies (research productivity), which have been conducted in the field of human-wildlife conflicts. However, little is known about the evolution of knowledge generation in the field, trends in research output, countries of publication, and international collaborations and specifically statistical related data. To track research productivity of human-wildlife conflict in East Africa, the study examines literature growth, describes the country-wise production of literature and establishes the degree of collaboration by studying authorship patterns on human-wildlife conflicts for the last 20 years. Publish or Perish software was used, followed by the execution of the search via Google scholar database on 28 March 2019. Regarding the country-wise contribution of literature, Tanzania was found to contribute 46 (32.2%), Uganda 45 (31.5%), Kenya 44 (30.8%) and Rwanda 8 (5.6%) and none from Burundi and South Sudan. The overall research productivity in the field of human-wildlife conflicts for Tanzania, Kenya, Uganda and Rwanda is increasing. This study provides a fairly accurate representation of research productivity on human-wildlife conflicts in East Africa from Google scholar database.
Evaluation of web-based online agricultural information relevant to Tanzanian maize producers
(AJIC, 2023) Mnzava, Ester Ernest; Jacobs, Lorette
This study examined the quality of web-based online agricultural information relevant to the maize industry in Tanzania. Selected online sources were evaluated to assess the agricultural information available in terms of four dimensions of quality, namely: authority, completeness, timeliness, and understandability. The study identified a wide variety of web-based online information on maize production, including information on seeds, fertilisers, pesticides, and grain-handling. It was found that the information was of variable quality. Among the 39 online sites studied, several lacked contact information, had outdated content, and contained information that was missing some important details, and none provided weather information. This study contributes to the body of knowledge on online agricultural information in an African context where the agricultural sector is central to national economic development. The online agriculture information evaluation tool used in the study can potentially be of use, in its current form or adapted, to researchers beyond Tanzania.
A bibliometric analysis of the Tanzania journal of agricultural science (1998-2017)
(Libraries at University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2019) Chirwa, Mussa Ndambile; Mnzava, Ester
The term bibliometrics was first coined by Pritchard in 1969. From there on different people defined and interpreted bibliometrics in various ways. For instance, British Standards Institution, (1976) define bibliometrics as the use of mathematical and statistical methods to study documents and patterns of publication. One year later Hawkins (1977) interpreted bibliometrics to mean the “quantitative analysis of the bibliographic features of a body of literature”. Historically, the term “librametry” was firstly used as coined by S.R. Ranganathan to refer quantitative study of librarianship. Bibliometrics is analogous to Ranganathan’s librametrics and the Russian concept scientometrics (Thanuskodi, 2010).
Library websites during the Covid-19 pandemic
(SAGE, 2021) Mnzava, Ester E; Katabalwa, Annajoyce S
The outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has been shown to impact the business en- vironment in different ways. The current paper presents how the university and research library websites in Tanzania responded to the changes in the working environment and style following the outbreak of COVID-19. This study employed a content analysis method to collect and analyse data from academic and research library websites in Tanzania. This study focuses on how library websites in Tanzania were used to update and connect library users with relevant information resources and services during the outbreak of the COVID- 19. The findings show that 12 of the 24 library websites had the opening and closing hours, two university library websites had information related to the outbreak of the COVID-19 and 12 had no information related to the outbreak of the COVID-19. This study has an important practical implication for the academic and research librarians on the effective use of library websites for information sharing and communication.
Usage of online public access catalogue (opac) by undergraduate students at Sokoine university of agriculture
(University of Dar es Salaam Library Journal, 2020) Katabalwa, Anajoyce Samue; Mnzava, Ester Ernest
This study aims to examine the usage of Online Public Access Catalogue (OPAC) by undergraduate students atSokoine University of Agriculture (SUA). Specifically the study aimed to determine whether the undergraduate students were aware of OPACat Sokoine National Agricultural Library (SNAL), to examine the access to OPAC by undergraduate students at SNAL,to examine the usage of OPAC by undergraduate students at SNAL and to identify the challenges encountered by undergraduate students in the usage of OPAC at SNAL. The study involved 100 purposively selected Bachelor of Information and Records Management (BIRM) students.This cross-sectional study basically used self-administered questionnairesas data collectionmethod. The data were analysed with the aid of the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). Findings of the study revealed that majority of respondents were aware of OPAC. The respondents used OPAC for various reasons including knowing the librarymaterialsavailable in the collection for a short time, locating library materials, and knowing the status of books – if they are available or on loan. OPAC are accessed from various points including in Library, Hostels,and study tables and seats made of cement locally known asvimbweta.Various ICT devices such as computers in the library, smartphones and laptops are used to access OPAC. However, some challenges such as lack of basic ICT skills, lack of training, power outage were found to be hindering the usage of OPAC. The study recommends provision of training to increase skills, increase marketing strategy and purchase of a heavy-duty automatic generator to solve the power outage challenge.
The role of libraries in promoting health literacy for combating non-communicable diseases in Tanzania
(International Journal of Development and Sustainability, 2017) Mnzava, Ester Ernest; Katabalwa, Anajoyce Samuel
Health literacy is an important aspect to every individual in the society. This is due to the fact that a health literate person understands his/her health status, take prevention and control measures of various diseases. The purpose of this paper was to discuss how health literacy for prevention, control and treatment of non communicable diseases can be conducted by libraries in Tanzania. The researcher reviewed several literatures and found out that libraries have a big role to play to ensure that community recognize their information needs, search for relevant information and make use of the information to make informed health decisions. The study concluded that because non communicable diseases impose a double burden to the government and her people a call for immediate actions from various stakeholders’ such as health libraries is required.
Contribution of East Africa region to open access literature: the case of OpenDOAR
(CORE, 2017) Chirwa, Mussa Ndambile; Mnzava, Ester Ernest
This paper is based on the findings of a study that evaluated the initiatives taken by East African countries to embrace the open access movement. Specifically, the study analysed the position of East African countries in disseminating open access literature in Africa and globally; determined the contribution of each East African country to global open access literature; identified the type of document as well as Open source software they used. Moreover, the study analysed the subject content of OARs and identified the language for the archived items. The study first used literature review to determine current status of open access in East Africa, then the Directory of Open Access Repositories (OpenDOAR) were accessed to get the required data. The results revealed that East African counties make only a miniscule contribution to Open Access literature of about 0.022 percent of items found in global OARs and 1.2 percent by number of repositories. The study concluded that East African countries with a slight exception of Kenya lag far behind in open access literature. The study, therefore, recommends more efforts to be made by individual East African countries to make necessary arrangements required to adopt and use OA repositories to enhance free access to knowledge and information and, consequently, boost socio- economic development in the region.
Digital technology and services for sustainable agriculture in Tanzania: A literature review
(MDPI, 2022) Mushi Gilbert E.; Di Marzo Giovanna Serugendo; Burgi Pierre-Yves
Digital technology has the potential to eradicate extreme poverty and food insecurity to the majority of smallholder farmers in the world. This paper aims to identify knowledge gaps on digital technology for sustainable agriculture and assess their availability to smallholder farmers worldwide. The particular case of Tanzania receives special attention. We conducted an extensive literature search from relevant databases for review. The advanced digital technology in agriculture, mostly used by large scale farmers, significantly contributes to sustainable agriculture. However, the existing digital services for smallholder farmers lack sustainability in the agriculture context and hardly meet the needs for a comprehensive set of services in a complete farming cycle. In most developing countries, Tanzania case included, digital technology and services respond to a challenge at a particular stage of the farming process or to a specific value chain. Based on this literature review, we identify inequalities among large and small farmers, as well as environmental challenges caused by ICT itself. To conclude we provide suggestions for improvements for smallholder farmers: developing a digital platform that addresses smallholder farmers’ challenges in a complete farming cycle, bringing together the stakeholders at a country level, in order to achieve sustainable agriculture and support adoption of cutting-edge digital technology. These suggestions will be the starting point for future research.
Serving the public: African academic libraries and outreach services
(National Information Workers Association of Namibia, 2021-10-06) Mushi Gilbert; Kingsley Egbukole
Academic libraries are sources of information and services, which serve not only the academic community but also the general public. The libraries serve as preservers and disseminators of information, adding value to the public as they give access to information through outreach services. As such, public users of different disciples including farmers, entrepreneurs, professionals, household members, industries and other similar groups in the public are the beneficiaries of the information held in the academic libraries. This paper discusses the issues, challenges and solutions of outreach services provided by the University Library of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) in Nigeria and Sokoine National Agricultural Library – the Sokoine University of Agriculture in Tanzania. The paper generally discusses academic library services offered to the non-academic community for the aim of extending access to information resources held in the academic libraries.

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