“Here we give advice for free”: the functioning of plant clinics in Rwanda

ABSTRACT

Although plant clinics are considered an important mechanism in the service delivery to farmers, not much is known about their functioning in the daily reality of plant doctors and farmer-clients. This article reports on an exploratory study describing the functioning of eight plant clinics in Rwanda. Personal and organisational commitment, publicity, and proactive communication with farmers and local leaders are key factors explaining higher attendance of some clinics. Farmer attendance is under-reported by 40–50%. Data management needs improvement to make clinic records reliable tools for decision-makers. This type of assessment can help improve operations and realise the plant clinics’ potential.

KEYWORDS:

• Environment (built and natural) – Agriculture
• Gender and diversity
• Sub-Saharan Africa

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to all participating plant doctors, farmers, and plant clinic coordinators for providing insightful information and views on plant clinic operations for the study. Thanks to Dannie Romney for constructive comments on the manuscript.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes on contributors

Jean Claude Noel Majuga holds a Masters in plant sciences, with a specialisation in natural resources management, from Wageningen University, The Netherlands. He has a Bachelor’s degree in horticulture.

Bellancile Uzayisenga is a researcher working for the Rwanda Agriculture Board. Her key research interest is plant biosecurity. She holds an MSc in plant sciences with a specialisation in a plant pathology and entomology, from Wageningen University, The Netherlands and has 10 years’ experience working with crop protection research and extension. She is the National Coordinator of Plantwise in Rwanda.

Jean Pierre Kalisa is Plantwise Officer at RAB and a plant doctor trainer. He holds a Masters of advanced studies in integrated crop management from the University of Neuchâtel, Switzerland. He has 12 years’ experience working in different aspects of agriculture extension. Before joining Plantwise in 2013 he was a coordinator of the Crop Intensification Program (CIP) in Southern province.

Conny Almekinders is an Associated Professor in the Knowledge, Technology and Innovation group at Wageningen University. With a background and PhD in the plant sciences, she now focuses on interdisciplinary research and socio-technical interaction in the field of agricultural and rural development.

Solveig Danielsen is Research Coordinator of Plantwise, CABI. She holds a PhD in plant pathology from the University of Copenhagen. She has 20 years of experience working in plant health, agricultural research and extension, policies and institutions in developing countries. Before joining CABI in 2012 she was an Associate Professor at the Centre for Health Research and Development, University of Copenhagen.

Notes

1 CABI’s global Plantwise programme aims to contribute to improved food security and rural livelihoods by promoting networks of plant clinics, improving the management and use of plant health data and strengthening the links between key actors in plant health. It operates in 34 countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Plantwise replaced the Global Plant Clinic, a former CABI-led initiative, in 2011.

2 POMS accessed 01.05.2017.

3 US$1 = 810 Rwandese francs (RWF).

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by Nuffic [grant NFP-MA.14/3755] and the Plantwise programme of CABI, which is financed by the UK Department for International Development (DFID); the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC); the European Comission (DG DEVCO); the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands (DGIS); the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR); the Ministry of Agriculture of the People’s Republic of China; Irish Aid, and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).