Most farming at subsistence level is located in rural areas where the majority of smallholder farmers have low productivity which results in high rate of food insecurity. The areas are characterised by animal traction and poor farming practises, and monoculture is mostly preferred. In light of this, this study analyzed the impact of animal power on agricultural productivity. Smallholder farmers in the lowlands of Mohale’s Hoek district of Lesotho were investigated by means of a case study methodology. The aim of the study was to inform agricultural policy about the level and key determinants of inefficiency in the smallholder farming system so as to contribute to policy designed to raise productivity of smallholder farmers. The sampling frame comprised farmers and extension workers in the lowlands of Mohale’s Hoek district. From this frame, 118 farmers and 4 extension workers were randomly selected from four villages, namely‘Mapotsane, Potsane, Tsoloane and Siloe. The four groups of farmers include; the farmers owning and using cattle for ploughing, farmers owning tractor and cattle and using them for ploughing, farmers owning tractor only and using it for ploughing, and farmers who owned neither cattle nor tractor and normally hire these when ploughing operations are to be done on the farm. The interviews of these farmers and extension workers were conducted by means of semi-structured questionnaire which consisted of both open and close ended questions. The study used the stochastic frontier production model for the production efficiencies and linear regression model for the impact of animal traction on agricultural productivity. Both procedures provided insights into the relative contributions of animal power and traditional systems to poverty alleviation and food security in the project areas. Descriptive statistics were employed for farming systems and challenges facing small scale farmers. Gross Margins analysis was conducted for the animal power and tractor power yield levels for maize crop to compare the two types of power. Some diagnostic tests to detect serial correlation and heteroskedasticity and t-tests were also performed. The significant variables include the area of sorghum ploughed, members of the household that assist with family labour, education, quantity of fertilizer applied, time taken by the farmers in farming, members who are formally employed, household size, area of land ploughed, old age, costs of tractor and animal, marital status, income, area of maize ploughed, area of sorghum ploughed, quantity of fertilizers applied, costs of seeds and fertilizers applied, maize and sorghum yield and amount sold and consumed. The study revealed that monoculture is mainly practised and many smallholder farmers used traditional technologies that fail to replace nutrients in the soil. Nonetheless family labour was not a problem. During the farming season, tractors were used as the main source of power for ploughing. Most farmers hired these for maize production as it is a staple food crop even where animal power is available. It was noted that the tractors were few and in most cases old and malfunctioning. The cost of using animals in farming obviouslyplayed a role in the production of both maize v and sorghum in the lowland areas of Mohale’s Hoek district. Smallholder farmers who owned both tractors and animals produced more but they were mainly affected by high costs of maintaining the aging tractors, generally purchased on the used-equipment market. The increased challenges resulted in lower productivity of the smallholder farmers, including: unhealthy animals, drought, marketing problems, late ploughing, poor soils, lack of extension services, low yields, low income, lack of information, lack of appropriate implements, lack of support services, nutrition inadequacy, inappropriate farming systems. The study recommended the adoption and promotion of low-cost mechanization in the lowlands of Mohale’s Hoek district so as to increase the production of the smallholder farmers. Increased productivity will in turn improve household food security.

Submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of the degree of Master of Applied Science in Food and Nutrition, Durban University of Technology, Durban, South Africa, 2016. / Rational and Objectives The objective of this study was to determine socio-demographic, socio-economic, health status, dietary diversity, nutrition adequacy, food consumption patterns, coping strategies, and agricultural practices in relation to food insecurity and nutritional status of elderly population in Mpharane. Methodology The sample size was n=260 participants with 75 men and 185 women. A variety of variables were used to measure the objectives and different types of questionnaires were used as measuring instruments for all the variables of the study. Socio-demographic questionnaires determined household indicators like age, employment status, and number of dependents, living conditions and assets. Anthropometrics measurements that were conducted included height, weight and blood pressure. Health status questionnaires included indictors such as consumption of alcohol, smoking, food allergies and affected parts of the body. Food frequency score, dietary intake and nutrition adequacy were established. Coping strategies in the household were determined for the period of food insecurity. Agricultural practices questionnaires were to determined household indictors like land, types of crops and livestock. The completed Socio-demographic Questionnaires, Health Questionnaires, Food Frequency Questionnaires, Anthropometric Measurements Forms, Coping Strategies Questionnaires and the Agricultural Practices Questionnaire were captured on a Microsoft Excel® Spreadsheet by the researcher and analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), version 21.0, with the assistance of a statistician. Results Results indicated that all participants resided with grandchildren. Majority of grandmothers headed the households. All participants were unemployed and 61.20% often had shortage of money to buy food. Nutrient analysis from 24-Hour Food Recall indicated deficient intake in energy, calcium and vitamin A. There were high levels of food insecurity among the participants since all the participants used all 15 coping strategies. The Body Mass Index (BMI) results indicated 65.50% of participants were overweight, 60.70% obese and 13.60% were underweight. Majority of participants had access to land for plantation. All Participants suffered from various health aliments. The history of health associated with diseases indicating that 24.60% (n=64) of the participants had reported skin diseases, 71.20% (n=185) of the participants suffered from diseases of skeleton or joints and 81.90% (n=213) of the participants indicated affected eyes, ears, nose and teeth. Diseases of the chest or respiratory system were experienced by 50.80% (n=132) of the participants. The total fat intake of all the groups was slightly below the recommended goal by the World Health Organization WHO (15-30%), with men obtaining 13.33% and women 12.55% of energy from fat. Carbohydrates contributed 75.12% for men and 75.41% for women of the daily energy needs in the groups, slightly above the levels recommended by the WHO (55-75%). The contribution of protein to total daily energy intake for all the groups was within the recommendation of 10-15%, men (11.56%) and women (12.07%). As a result this proves that the average participant consumed a balanced diet in terms of the macronutrient intake. Carbohydrates were the main source of food consumption. The highest number of individual foods consumed by the majority of the participants was between 6-10 individual foods (53.46%, n=139) followed by 11-15 individual foods (39.23%, n=102). The mean Food Variety Score (FVS) (±SD) for all the foods consumed from the food groups during seven days was 10.06 (±6.726), which indicated a low food variety score. The food group with the most variety was the cereal group. Seven different cereals were consumed by (1.53%, n=4) participants, a large number of the participants (31.15%, n=81) only consumed 3 different cereals within seven day period and (23.46%, n=61) of the participants consumed 4 different cereals. Conclusion The grandparents were the principle providers for the grandchildren and the demographic pressures, unemployment and old age increased the financial strains which contributed to high levels of poverty resulting in food and nutrition insecurity and poor nutritional status of the elderly people. / M

This study investigated the quality and safety of solar dried fruits and vegetables produced by households in three locations in the Butha-Buthe district of Lesotho from November 2002 to March 2003. The aim of the study was to enhance year round availability of fruits and vegetables and reduce post-harvest losses, contributing to increased food availability and accessibility in the district. The study analysed the quality and safety of dried fruits and vegetables by assessing the processing techniques applied by the respondents during the production of dried fruits and vegetables, analysing the quality of dried fruits and vegetable samples produced by the study respondents using Appropriate Technology Section (ATS) solar driers, and by identifying the constraints that hamper the improvement of quality and safety of solar dried fruits and vegetables in the study area. Data was collected through focus group discussions, interviews, and laboratory food quality analysis of dried fruit and vegetable samples provided by the respondents. The dried fruits and vegetables produced by the respondents were of low quality due to poor processing techniques and unhygienic practices that increased chances of contamination and deterioration during processing and storage. Lack of processing skills and information, particularly on quality and safety standards, and weak extension support contributed to poor product. For the respondents to improve the quality and safety of dried fruits and vegetables, they need training and support with respect to quality and safety that includes training on the importance of food safety, best processing and storage practices and marketing of dried produce. / Thesis (M.Agric.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2005.

Lesotho has a land area of about 30.340 square kilometers and is completely surrounded by the Republic of South Africa. Much of the country is mountainous. Its agricultural sector is characterized by low productivity due to erratic climatic conditions, limited arable land and fragile soils with a low water holding capacity. These conditions have proved very detrimental to crop production, rendering agriculture a risky economic activity. Numerous efforts have been made over the years to address the technical constraints confronting the sector, but nothing seems to be changing. The implication is that the technical/climatic factors mentioned above may be only part of the problem. The current situation whereby Lesotho imports nearly 95% of its domestic food requirements is unsustainable, but this desperate picture looks set to worsen with the continuing threats of contracting farm sizes and further declines in farmer participation rates. But this sector has continued to be an important source of household survival and existence. A study was designed and conducted during 2008 and 2009 to identify the institutional constraints to horticulture production in Lesotho, looking specifically at the obstacles to effective production and marketing of horticultural products. A total of 100 farming households were enumerated in four districts of the country, namely Butha Buthe, Berea, Mafeteng, and Thaba-Tseka. A range of institutional and non-price factors in the farming and marketing environment were incorporated in a binary choice model to investigate the degree of satisfaction of the farming households with their previous year’s farming results. To avoid selection bias in the sample, a probit model was chosen, and the Stata-10 software was used to estimate probit coefficients. The results provide indications that property rights, the agricultural extension service, the condition of the physical infrastructure, and distance to markets may be crucial elements threatening the existence of this sector in Lesotho. The difficulties in accessing markets and land remain important institutional constraints to horticulture production and marketing in Lesotho. Recommendations made on these issues include providing more policy support to homestead gardening and for these issues to be incorporated into the Vision 2020 process. Also to be included is the issue of addressing the growing national food insecurity and enhancing Basotho livelihoods in general.