2023/24 MSCE MOCK EXAMINATIONS

AGRICULTURE

PAPER 1
PROVISIONAL MARKING KEY

1. a. - They are a source of raw materials for agro-based industries.

- They provide employment to people directly or indirectly.
- They provide people (farmers) with income.
- They provide foreign currency . (1 mark for each point)

b. They are very fibrous hence cause problems during processing. (1 mark)

c. - Hay
- Silage
- Foggage (1 mark for each point)

2. a. - Type and breed of animals

- Genetic make-up
- Body weight
- Exposure to opposite sex
- Feeding or nutrition
- Cross breeding
- Temperature (1 mark for each point)

b. Dystokia (dystocia 1 mark)

c. - Bad positioning of the foetus before birth.

- Oversized calf that cannot go through the vagina.
- Small size of the cow particularly in the pelvic area
- Inability of the uterus to contract sufficiently.
- Failure by the cow to push the calf due to body weakness.
- Reduced size of the birth canal due to accumulating of fats in the pelvic area.
(1 mark for each point)

3. a.
i. It reduces raindrop impact(1 mark) /hence preventing splash erosion(1 mark)
ii. It allows the soil time to rest(1 mark) /hence recovering destroyed soil structure(1 mark)

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 b. - Planting trees and grass to maintain soil cover
 Planting cover-crops such as groundnuts and sweet potatoes
 Practising strip-cropping
 Practising agro-forestry
 Practising crop-rotation
 Application of farmyard manure
 Mulching
 Controlling bushfires (1 mark for each point)

c. - It affects seed germination(1 mark)/seeds germinate faster in warmer soils than cold soils(1 mark)/
- It affects root growth (1 mark)/warmth is a requirement for root and plant growth.
- It affects chemical reactions(1 mark)/ soil warmth speeds up chemical processes that take place
in the soil, hence affect nutrient availability(1 mark)/
- It affects transpiration and evaporation(1 mark)/higher soil temperatures lead to higher
evaporation and transpiration rates(1 mark)/
- It affects soil formation (1 mark)/temperature changes facilitate weathering (breaking down of
rocks) resulting into to soil formation.
- It affects microbial activities(1 mark)/warm soils provide a conducive environment for micro-
organisms to live and work on decomposition of organic matter(1 mark)/

4. a. - Heavy machinery may lead to destruction of the soil structure(1 mark)/by causing compaction or
breaking of soil aggregate (1 mark)
- Fuel engines release fumes (smoke) (1 mark)/hence increasing concentration of carbon in the
atmosphere(1 mark)
- It contributes to deforestation(1 mark)/since machines have the ability to cultivate large tract of
land (1 mark)

b.
i. Biogas power (1 mark)

ii. - It improves environmental sanitation since it uses waste.

- It lowers methane emission by trapping it and using it as fuel.
(1 mark for each point)

5. a. - They have very few or no close substitutes

- They are very essential and people cannot do without them.
- They are addictive
(1 mark for each point)
(2
b.

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 i. Percentage change in quantity demanded = 10000 – 9000 x 100 = 10% (1 mark)
10000

Percentage change in quantity price = 2000 –1500 x 100 = 25% (1 mark)

10000

Price elasticity of demand = Percentage change in quantity demanded

Percentage change in price

= 10 (1 mark)
25

(1 mark)
= 0.4

ii.

- 1 mark for correct labelling of price variable

- 1 mark for correct labelling of quantity supplied variable
- 1 mark for correct sketchy plotting of the graph

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6. a. - Have availability of waste materials to use as growth medium.
- Be near a clean source of water to avoid contamination.
- Be near a market to enable quick selling of the mushroom before they get bad.
- Be away from livestock houses, pit latrines or rubbish pits to avoid attracting flies.
- Be near a dense forest to provide ideal conditions humid conditions and wood availability.
- Be free from pests and diseases.
- Have warm moist climatic conditions to enable fast development
- Have availability of expertise in mushroom production.
(1 mark for each point)
b. - Setting traps
- Keeping the surrounding clean
- Keeping cats (1 mark for each point)

c. .
i. Relay (mixed) cropping (1 mark)

ii. - It is difficult to mechanise

- It is difficult to use chemicals
- It requires skills to manage different sets of crops together
- Crops compete for growth resources (sunlight, nutrients, space and water)
(1 mark for each point)

iii. - amount of land that is available

- type of crops grown
- topography of the land
- climatic conditions of the area
- the farmers’ management skills or abilities
(1 mark for each point)

7. a. Q Large duct (1 mark)

R. Gland cistern (1 mark)

b. P Manufacturing and secreting milk (1 mark)

S A passage for milk during suckling or milking (1 mark)

c. Oxytocin (1 mark)

8. a. - blue gum
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 - pine
- gmelina (1 mark for each)

b. - They are fast growing

- They are deep rooted
- The absorb a lot of water (1 mark for each point)

c. - Draining the soil to remove salts from the root zone.

- Applying chemicals such as gypsum to replace sodium in the soil.
- Prevent or reduce evaporation of water from the soil by mulching.
(1 mark for each point)
9. a. - strongly built to avoid predators
- dry and warm/sighted on raised ground
- well thatched to avoid leaking
- well ventilated
- easy to clean
- well lit (have enough light)
- large enough to accommodate the number of animals comfortably
- have suitable isolations pens for sick or injured animals
(1 mark for each point)

b. .
i. Accumulation of gas in the rumen due rapid fermentation of feed eaten by the animal (1 mark)
ii. Low levels of calcium in the blood of the animal (1 mark)

c. - To enable them provide high quality products

- To help them live long and have a longer productive life
- To produce more to meet the demands of the growing population
- To maintain their body to avoid weight loss
- To maintain animal health to reduces production cost because the farmer spends very little on
drugs
- To enable the produce healthy young ones
- To provide them energy to work very efficiently when used as draught animals
- To enable them to give high market value when sold

(1 mark for each point)

d. - Taken directly through drinking
- Bound water (water contained in feeds)
- Metabolic water (water produced in the animal’s body) (1 mark for each point)

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 10.
a. Transport = 4 x K2,500.00 = K10,000.00 (1 mark)

Storage = 4 x K750.00 = K3, 000.00(1 mark)

Profit = 4 x K6,750.00 = K27,000.00(1 mark)

Total = K40,000.00(1 mark)

b. Farm-gate price + marketing costs/bag

= K20,000.00 + K2,500.00 + K750.00 + K6,750.00 (1 mark)

(1 mark)
= K30,000.00

c. Farmer (producer) Vendor consumers

( 1 mark for each tier)

11. - They reduce marketing costs for small scale farmers(1 mark)/since farmers do bulk marketing and
selling of their produce(1 mark)
- Members have stronger bargaining power(1 mark)/hence they are able to fetch better selling prices
for their produce(1 mark)
- They eliminate unnecessary profits made by middlemen(1 mark)/since they perform some
marketing functions themselves(1 mark)
- They provide employment(1 mark)/since some people are hired to work for the cooperatives(1 mark)
- They promote quick adoption of technologies(1 mark)/since farmers are able to share knowledge
and skills(1 mark)
- Members are more credit worthy (1 mark) /because the group serves as a security (1 mark).
- Members benefit from economies of scale(1 mark)/since overhead costs are low since they are
shared(1 mark)
- They help in procurement of cheap farm inputs (1 mark)/since they are bought in bulks at reduced
prices.
- They provide farmers easy to access extension services(1 mark)/because extension workers find it
easy to teach groups than individuals(1 mark)

12. - Improved technology increases productivity and yields (1mark)/ which makes it possible for enough
high quality food to be available most of the times.

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 - It reduces post-harvest losses(1mark)/ Food storage technologies such as silos and cold rooms
minimise destruction of produce from pests and pathogens (1mark)
- It improves nutritional content of food(1mark)/ Fortification process increases the nutritive value of
foodstuffs(1mark)
- It helps in food processing(1mark)/ processing and packaging technologies increase the shelf-life of
food products(1mark)
- It reduces food wastage at the point of consumption(1mark)/ food packaging and labelling technology
reduces food wastage at point of consumption by providing clear storage and preparation
instructions
- It promotes efficient food distribution(1mark)/efficient road networks and other infrastructure promote
fair distribution of food to all parts of the country(1mark)
- It increases profits (1mark)/ ICT helps farmers in better planning, budgeting and decision making
which leads to high profits (income) which can be used for buying food for their families.
-
13. Explain any five benefits of crop rotation.
- It ensures maximum utilization of soil nutrients(1mark)/all nutrients are used almost equally since different
crops have different nutrient requirements(1mark)
- It recycles leached nutrients(1mark)/deep-rooted crops bring back nutrients from sub-soil to the top-
soil(1mark)
- It controls parasitic weeds(1mark)/by depriving them of their hosts(1mark)
- It improves soil fertility(1mark)/when legumes are included since they fix nitrogen(1mark)
- It enhances higher crop diversification (1mark)/ which is a security again total crop failure. (1mark)
- It controls crop-specific pests and diseases (1mark)/by breaking their life cycles.(1mark)

END OF PROVISIONAL MARKING KEY

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