Adopting newly developed cowpea varieties with high-yielding performance

In West Africa, particularly Nigeria, few crops play a vital role in food security, one of which is cowpea. The grain legume crop is a cheap source of protein for about 72% of households. Cowpea is well known for its potential to increase nutrition security, generate income for smallholder farmers and vendors along the value chain, and reduce poverty.

Cowpea is known for its adaptability to drier regions. However, due to climatic changes and harsh environmental conditions in these regions, the crop’s production has expanded to the Guinea savanna with crop-friendly environmental conditions such as sufficient rainfall. With about 60–68% of women farmers involved in cowpea production, most farmers in the savanna region cultivate this crop using an intercropping system.

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