**5. Conclusions**

The study provides evidence that brachiaria is an important source of fodder besides its prominent use in pest managemen<sup>t</sup> strategy. Its multiple utility facilitates sustainable intensification of smallholder agriculture by facilitating the integration of cereal and livestock fodder production. It is used as "pull" component for cereal pests in the climate adapted push-pull technology (PPT), a habitat managemen<sup>t</sup> strategy initially developed to manage the lepidopterous stemborers, while it generated quality fodder. The study demonstrates that these Brachiaria genotypes could be of value in the improvement of cereal livestock-based livestock productivity in sub-Saharan Africa in the current scenarios of increasing aridification and attacks by invasive pests, such as spider mite (*Oligonychus trichardti*). It also demonstrates that farmers' skills and knowledge can complement scientific research, and that their contribution through participatory approach is key in validating the potential of such genetic materials.

**Author Contributions:** Conceptualization, D.C., C.A.M., J.A.P. and Z.R.K.; Formal analysis, J.O.P.; Funding acquisition, C.A.M., J.A.P. and Z.R.K.; Investigation, D.C. and J.O.P.; Methodology, D.C., J.O.P., J.A.P. and Z.R.K.; Project administration, C.A.M. and Z.R.K.; Resources, C.A.M., J.O.P., J.A.P. and Z.R.K.; Supervision, C.A.M. and Z.R.K.; Validation, C.A.M.; Writing—original draft, D.C.; Writing—review & editing, D.C., J.O.P. and J.A.P. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.

**Funding:** We gratefully acknowledge the financial support for this research by the following organizations and agencies: European Union; Biovision foundation; UK's Department for International Development (DFID); Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida); the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC); Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation (NORAD) and the Ethiopian and Kenyan Governments. The views herein do not necessarily reflect the o fficial opinion of the donors.

**Acknowledgments:** We further thank the International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) for provision of brachiaria genotypes studied. The authors also acknowledge contributions by the farmers, *icipe* field sta ff, Kenyan Ministry of Agriculture extension sta ff and Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute sta ff.

**Conflicts of Interest:** The authors declare no conflict of interest.
