Geographical Distribution, Diversity and Production of Banana and Plantain in Malawi
| Dublin Core | PKP Metadata Items | Metadata for this Document | |
| 1. | Title | Title of document | Geographical Distribution, Diversity and Production of Banana and Plantain in Malawi |
| 2. | Creator | Author's name, affiliation, country | Harlod Katondo; Bvumbwe Agricultural Research Station, P.O. Box 5748 Limbe, Malawi.; Malawi |
| 2. | Creator | Author's name, affiliation, country | Moses Maliro; Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, P.O. Box 219 Lilongwe, Malawi.; Malawi |
| 2. | Creator | Author's name, affiliation, country | Abel Sefasi; Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, P.O. Box 219 Lilongwe, Malawi.; Malawi |
| 2. | Creator | Author's name, affiliation, country | Joyce Njoloma; Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources, P.O. Box 219 Lilongwe, Malawi.; Malawi |
| 2. | Creator | Author's name, affiliation, country | Willard Mbewe; Malawi University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 5196, Limbe. Malawi.; Malawi |
| 3. | Subject | Discipline(s) | |
| 3. | Subject | Keyword(s) | Musa spp, Diversity indices (H), cultivar evenness, cultivar diversity, Genetic erosion. |
| 4. | Description | Abstract | Banana (Musa spp.) is an important staple and cash crop in Malawi, yet its production has declined sharply over the past two decades due to widespread cultivar loss, pests, diseases, and climatic pressures. This study provides an updated assessment of the geographical distribution, diversity status, and production constraints of banana and plantain cultivars across ten districts. Using 110 survey sites, household interviews, focus group discussions and direct field observations, a total of 27 distinct cultivars were recorded. Cultivar richness per district ranged from 3 to 10, with Karonga exhibiting the highest diversity and Rumphi the lowest. Shannon–Wiener diversity indices (H′) varied widely, from 0.7356 in Rumphi to 2.2719 in Karonga, while evenness values ranged from 0.7414 to 0.9867, indicating variable. Zibowa was the most abundant cultivar nationally (15.06%), whereas Kabuthu, once dominant in Malawi, was now extremely rare (0.6%). Farmers reported significant cultivar erosion over the past 20 years, with 91% attributing losses to Banana Bunchy Top Disease (BBTD). The most preferred cultivars remained William, Kabuthu, Sukali and Ndoki. The findings demonstrate marked genetic erosion and highlight the urgent need for strengthened germplasm conservation, enhanced clean-seed systems and targeted breeding initiatives to restore banana production resilience in Malawi |
| 5. | Publisher | Organizing agency, location | annalsofplantscience |
| 6. | Contributor | Sponsor(s) | |
| 7. | Date | (YYYY-MM-DD) | 2025-12-09 |
| 8. | Type | Status & genre | Peer-reviewed Article |
| 8. | Type | Type | |
| 9. | Format | File format | |
| 10. | Identifier | Uniform Resource Identifier | https://annalsofplantsciences.com/index.php/aps/article/view/1245 |
| 11. | Source | Title; vol., no. (year) | Annals of Plant Sciences; Vol 14, No 12 (2025) |
| 12. | Language | English=en | en |
| 13. | Relation | Supp. Files | |
| 14. | Coverage | Geo-spatial location, chronological period, research sample (gender, age, etc.) | |
| 15. | Rights | Copyright and permissions |
Copyright (c) 2025 Annals of Plant Sciences This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. |