Enhancing Farmers’ Capacity for Sustainable Management of Cassava Mosaic Disease in Côte d’Ivoire

Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD) is a major constraint to cassava production in Côte d’Ivoire, causing significant yield and income losses for smallholder farmers. Despite its high prevalence, farmers’ knowledge and understanding of the disease remain limited. To address this issue, the Central and West African Virus Epidemiology (WAVE) Regional Center of Excellence provided capacity building for farmers in the major cassava growing regions. This study assesses the impact of the WAVE’s trainings and awareness campaigns on farmers’ knowledge of the disease and the management methods they adopted. Mixed socio-agronomic data were collected from 290 farmers, and CMD epidemiological parameters were assessed in 82 farms. Data were analysed using propensity score matching (PSM), followed by a Tobit regression model to assess the determinants and intensity of adoption of CMD management practices, using Stata. The results showed that trained farmers had a better understanding of CMD compared to untrained farmers. On average, trained farmers adopted 2.36 disease management practices (DMPs) compared to 1.55 DMPs for untrained farmers. Participation in WAVE’s training sessions and a sound knowledge of CMD positively influenced both the adoption and intensity of adoption of DMPs. However, there was no significant difference in CMD incidence between beneficiary areas (54.55%) and non-beneficiary areas (54.95%), likely due to the unavailability of disease-free planting material, inadequate agricultural practices, and high populations of whiteflies (Bemisia tabaci). This study shows the importance of awareness campaigns in the sustainable management of crop diseases in general and CMD in particular and suggests the need to train farmers on disease management and provide them with healthy planting materials.