Poster prepared by T. Ansah, D. Kadyampakeni, C. Shedrack and A. Nurudeen for the AfrIca RISING West Africa Review and Planning Meeting, Accra, 30 March-1 April 2016

1. Comparative yield performance and fodder quality of Napier grass
in Northern Ghana
T. Ansah1, D. Kadyampakeni2, C. Shedrack1, A. Nurudeen3
1University of Development Studies (UDS)
2International Water Management Institute (IWMI)
3International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)
Corresponding author email: d.kadyampakeni@cgiar.org
Key research activities
o Piloting fodder production for supplementary irrigation
o Training farmers in fodder production
o Exploring outscaling of potential for fodder irrigation in Northern
Ghana
Implications of the research for
generating development outcomes
Results and main findings
o Promising Napier grass varieties tested in northern Ghana for
animal and farmer preference.
o Dry matter yields ranged between 1354 to 3339 kg/ha
o While all the cultivars showed some potential in terms of biomass
yield, plant height and tiller number the Local cultivar and 16837
proved to be superior considering the climatic zone in which the
study was conducted (Table 1; Figure 2).
o The cultivation of the Local cultivar and 16837 is recommended
among smallholder livestock farmers and forage sellers within the
savanna zone.
o The installation of small scale irrigation systems could help improve
the biomass yield.
There is need to introduce small-scale irrigation and rainwater
harvesting structures for fodder production to improve animal and
household nutrition.
Photos (a) and (b): Farmers planting fodder (top) and one of the farmers harvesting
fodder in northern Ghana
o This work will continue through use of low-cost irrigation
technologies and water harvesting technologies for dual-purpose
fodder production.
o The irrigated forage production for seed will also be done in phase
2 of Africa RISING especially on dual-purpose fodder.
How this work would continue in
Africa RISING phase 2
The Africa Research In Sustainable Intensification for the Next Generation (Africa RISING) program comprises three research-for-
development projects supported by the United States Agency for International Development as part of the U.S. government’s Feed the
Future initiative.
Through action research and development partnerships, Africa RISING will create opportunities for smallholder farm households to move out
of hunger and poverty through sustainably intensified farming systems that improve food, nutrition, and income security, particularly for
women and children, and conserve or enhance the natural resource base.
The three projects are led by the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (in West Africa and East and Southern Africa) and the
International Livestock Research Institute (in the Ethiopian Highlands). The International Food Policy Research Institute leads an
associated project on monitoring, evaluation and impact assessment.
www.africa-rising.net
o CGIAR Centers: IITA, ILRI
o Universities: UDS
o Research Institutes: ARI
o USAID Projects: ATT
o Farmer Based Organizations
Current partnerships and future
engagements for out scaling
a b
Parameters 16837 16798 16840 Local Sed P value
Biomass Yield (DM kg/ha) 2299.0 1354.0 1384.0 3339.0 1204.9 0.38
Tiller Number 9.5 16.1 10.3 13.1 2.8 0.18
Plant Height (m) 1.3 1.1 1.1 1.4 0.2 0.33
Leaf : Stem (g) 1.0 0.9 1.2 1.1 0.2 0.82
Table 1: Effects of four different cultivars of Napier grass on biomass yield, plant
height, tiller number and leaf to stem ratio.
P=0.947
P=0.0983
P=0.972
P=0.973
P=0.845
P=0.755
P=0.809
P=0.746
p=0.560 P=0.500 P=0.334
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
1.4
1.6
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Plantheight(M)
Week
16837 16798 16840 Local
Figure 2. Effect of four different cultivars Napier grass on plant height (m)
Figure 1: Rainfall during the year 2015
P=1.0 P=0.1
P=1.0
P=1.0
P=0.9
P=0.8
P=0.8
P=0.8
p=0.6 P=0.5 P=0.3
0
0.2
0.4
0.6
0.8
1
1.2
1.4
1.6
3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
Plantheight(M)
Week
16837 16798 16840 Local
Figure 2: Effect of four different cultivars Napier grass on plant height