Documentary: The NARO Hybrid Banana Technologies & Farmer Perspectives

Banana is the main staple food and cash crop for more than 25 million smallholder farmers in Uganda. However, farmers still produce at low levels of less than 30% of the potential levels of production due to increasing pest and disease pressure, reduced soil fertility and water stress conditions, low yielding varieties and changing weather patterns. To reverse the banana productivity decline and increase plantations life cycle, the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO) through the National Banana Research Program has over the years developed and promoted technologies for enhancing the contribution of banana value chains for food security and agro- industrialisation. NARO has released seven (7) improved banana varieties that have resistance to Black Sigatoka, Nematodes, Weevils and have a high yielding capacity. All these hybrids have been adopted and available in plantations across the country boosting household food security and improving economic incomes of families.