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Assessing Indigenous Knowledge on Diversity, Socio-economy, and On-Farm Management Practices of Different Yam Landraces (Dioscorea cayenensis-rotundata Complex) for Sustainable Production in Southern Ethiopia

Birhanu Kagnew,A. Assefa,Messay Mulugeta,Asfaw Degu,Wondawek Abebe,S. Demissew

Published 2025 in Ethnobiology and Conservation

ABSTRACT

World’s agriculture mainly relies on cereal crops (e.g., wheat), often overlooking tuber and root crops like yams. Yams are nutritious, climate-resilient, and vital for food security, especially in Sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia. Ethiopia's yam production is crucial for sustainable agriculture, improving nutrition, and significantly enhancing food security. However, research on biotic and abiotic factors affecting Ethiopia's yam production and distribution is limited. This study investigates yam on-farm management practices, conservation status, production constraints, socio-economic importance, and indigenous farming knowledge. The study involved 1125 households in three districts and 14 Kebeles, using interviews, questionnaires (kobo toolbox software, version, 2.4), focus group discussions, and landrace counts at farm levels. The study utilized two-way ANOVA (p < 0.05), Shannon diversity index, evenness, Simpson’s diversity index, and Sorenson’s similarity index. The results highlighted several constraints affecting yam distribution and production, including  drought and climate change (97.78%), lack of sustainable seed source (95.64%), market chain issues (92%), high production costs (87.91%), labor cost (73.51%), disease and animal attack (95.64%), staking material (98.76%), tediousness of the practice (95.29%), farmland scarcity (96.27%), lack of training (98.93%), awareness (72.53%), modern storage (84.44%), agro-chemicals (99.73%), new technology (68.44%), credit access (95.56%), and lack of optimized fertilizer rate. Despite strong preference for yam production (70.93%), trends indicate a decline (77.51%) due to these factors. The study identified 27 yam landraces, with Basketo Zone and Wadha Kebele exhibiting the highest diversity (43.30%), and abundance (4.03 ± 1.65) respectively, while 85.71% of the landraces were common across Kebeles. The organization of yam landrace communities is undergoing significant changes due to both natural and human-induced disturbances across all study sites. Consequently, most yam landraces are now cultivated in small plots by a few farmers, highlighting the need for interventions that support on-farm conservation while aligning with farmers' interests to preserve yam diversity.

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