ECHO East Africa Notes EAN Issue #1

Conservation Agriculture in East Africa

Erwin Kinsey

Conservation agriculture (CA) has been promoted in East Africa through a number of initiatives over the past half year. In this article, we share what ECHO has gleaned from regional partners, in hopes that you can expand upon these successes and also promote further sharing on ECHO’s website. Please share your CA experiences and questions on ECHO Conversations.

Telfairia pedata

Telfairia pedata is a perennial climbing plant grown throughout eastern and central Africa, though it is native only to Tanzania and northern Mozambique. (A similar species, Telfairia occidentalis, is grown in West Africa.)  It is grown for its large (4 cm in diameter) seeds, which resemble oysters and, thus, are known as “oyster nuts.”