Seed of the new heavy yielding bean cultivar Carioca was distributed directly to 400 farmers in Zambia during 1986 in order to speed its adoption and diffusion. Three years after distribution, 55% of the farmers who participated in a follow-up survey were still sowing Carioca. Diffusion of the new cultivar had occurred, with 3.7 times as many farmers estimated to be growing Carioca in 1988/89 as in 1986, an annual rate of diffusion of approximately 49%. Use of a logistic modelling framework suggested that the variables directly associated with the decision to adopt the cultivar were the farmer's total area in cultivated crops and the area in local maize. Variables indirectly associated with adoption were the level of education of the household head, the average number of years that the fields had been in continuous cultivation and the number of cattle owned. These results will help guide the development of effective strategies for the release and distribution of new bean cultivars from national bean research programmes in sub-Saharan Africa.
Adopción y difusión del poroto Carioca en Zambia