Seeing is Believing

On a rainy afternoon earlier this year, 25 journalists gathered under makeshift tents on a banana farm near Masaka, a town about 80 miles southwest of Kampala, to listen to farmers describe how agricultural science increased their prosperity.

Here in the Masaka area, researchers from IITA and Uganda's National Agricultural Research Organization (NARO) have been collaborating with local farmers to increase harvests through integrated pest management techniques.

The visit was part of media tour, organized by IFPRI to highlight the benefits of CGIAR research in the region. The journalists represented media outlets such as the Wall Street Journal, major wire services in Africa and Europe, and leading daily newspapers in numerous African countries, including Botswana, Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Senegal, Tanzania, and Uganda.

During the tour, journalists had the opportunity to meet sweet potato farmers who are working with CIP. They also met community leaders and researchers in Mbarara, in southwestern Uganda, to learn how IWMI and ILRI researchers are working to curb the spread of malaria through the Systemwide Initiative on Malaria and Agriculture (SIMA).

"The SIMA initiative is very innovative," said Mildred Mulenga, Southern Africa Bureau Chief for the Pan African News Agency. She saw SIMA's efforts in improving irrigation management to prevent still bodies of water from forming where mosquitoes breed. "I was impressed with the truly holistic approach of the project, which involves communities, civic leaders, and extension workers."

In addition to farms, the group visited a clinic to see the connections between HIV/AIDS and nutrition, and a grain warehouse to understand how improved markets can increase the incomes of small-scale farmers. After the tour, journalists participated in a 3-day IFPRI-organized conference on food and nutrition security in Africa.

"Field trips are very valuable to journalists," Mulenga noted. "These opportunities help us understand the reality on the ground and depth of issues on which we report. As the saying goes, 'seeing is believing'."