| ICARDA :: Sustainable Agriculture for the Dry Areas

Collaboration with Pakistan partners taken forward

A recent visit to Pakistan by ICARDA’s Director General, Dr. Mahmoud Solh, provided an opportunity to discuss ongoing activities with key partners and outline the Center’s efforts to boost the productivity of smallholder farmers across the country’s dry areas. Emphasizing improved conservation and water and land management, ICARDA’s Pakistan Program develops, tests, and transfers new technology packages to farmers, supplementing these interventions with proven crop management techniques, sustainable seed systems, and efforts to improve small ruminant productivity.

In meetings with government officials – including H. E. Mr. Federal Minister of National Food Security and Research, Sikander Hayat Bosan, and Under-secretary and Chairman of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), Dr. Iftikhar Ahmad – Dr. Solh briefed attendees on recent developments at ICARDA and initiated discussions about the forthcoming establishment of a Center of Excellence on dry area agricultural research and development, to be located in Baluchistan province.

Appreciative of the Center’s expertise, and acknowledging its global mandate for the improvement of food legumes, the Minister requested that ICARDA expand its research activities targeting pulse productivity in Pakistan, remarking that this was a vital means of securing the country’s food and nutritional security.

A subsequent meeting with officials at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), including Clay Hamilton, USDA’s Agriculture Chief in Pakistan, enabled participants to discuss the progress of collaborative projects and plan the development of a forthcoming initiative on improving soil fertility. Launched in early November and implemented in Punjab and Sindh provinces, the effort will demonstrate and test practices to improve and maintain soil health, and disseminate successes via information campaigns.

During the same meeting, a project aimed at rehabilitating watersheds and improving irrigation was singled out for particular praise - water availability is one of the most significant constraints facing Pakistan, and the country struggles to provide sufficient water for its agricultural, domestic, and industrial requirements.

For more information on ICARDA’s activities in Pakistan and across South Asia please visit:
http://icarda.org/south-asia-and-china-regional-program

Dr Solh (top-left) discusses ICARDA's activities in Pakistan with H. E. Mr. Sikander Hayat Bosan (Center), the Federal Minister of National Food Security and research.

Pulse research progressing in South Asia

ICARDA’s expanding research on South Asian pulse production continues to move forward and is increasingly being acknowledged as a significant contributor to regional food and nutritional security. At a recent review and planning meeting for two on-going initiatives - one funded by the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID), and the other a CGIAR-wide initiative focused on the bio-fortification of lentil – researchers demonstrated significant progress over the past year.

The OFID-funded initiative, implemented alongside the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) and the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), is increasing the number of rice-fallow areas covered by improved lentil, chickpea, and grasspea (reaching over 860 farmers on 206 hectares); expanding the quantity of quality seed produced (producing over 17 tons in Bangladesh and 14 tons in Nepal); and delivering effective training on processing and value addition to over 2300 male and 835 female farmers.

The lentil bio-fortification project – the CGIAR Harvest Plus Challenge Program on lentil bio-fortification – has created and utilized new lentil parents with high iron and zinc content, which are being fast-tracked and made available to consumers to boost regional nutritional security. Over the past year the project has delivered improved varieties to 166 farmers in Bangladesh; 1150 farmers in Nepal; and 255 farmers in India. The initiative is a collaborative effort with the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI), the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), the Indian Institute of Pulses Research (IIPR), and the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC).

The review and planning meeting, held in Kathmandu and hosted by NARC, brought together researchers and agriculture for development professionals leading efforts to improve pulse productivity and strengthen food security in South Asia. Participants included Mr. Vijaya Kumar Mallik, Joint Secretary of Nepal’s Ministry of Agriculture Development, Dr. D B Gurung, Executive Director of NARC, and other regional NARS Directors. Attending on behalf of ICARDA was Dr. Ashutosh Sarker, Regional Coordinator for the Center’s South Asia and China Regional Program.

For more information on ICARDA’s work in South Asia please visit: http://www.icarda.org/south-asia-and-china-regional-program

Improved varieties such as Binamasur-7 have helped to strengthen food security and improve productivity across South Asia

Improved seed offers hope to Afghani farmers

The release of new high-yielding wheat, barley and chickpea varieties is offering hope to Afghani farmers who often have limited access to improved seed, struggle to raise their productivity, and routinely contend with intense biotic and abiotic stress. Created through farmer participatory selection, the varieties are the result of an on-going collaboration with the Agricultural Research Institute of Afghanistan (ARIA) which aims to evaluate ICARDA breeding material and identify high yielding, drought and disease resistant varieties of cereals and legumes.

The material – five wheat varieties, two barley varieties, and two types of chickpea – have demonstrated up to a 70% higher yield potential than existing average yields. Given limited access to improved seeds, and the low adoption rate of new improved varieties, the release is being accompanied by efforts to enhance extension services.

Working with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock (MAIL), development partners, and farming communities, the initiative is organizing demonstrations and farmer field days, and producing technical bulletins and radio programs to encourage adoption. ICARDA is also coordinating with more than 100 village based seed enterprises – jointly established by ICARDA, FAO, and MAIL - to catalyze the production and availability of new certified seeds.

Appreciative of the initiative’s success, H. E. Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock, Mr. Ghani Ghuriani, recently acknowledged the initiative’s productive work across several provinces and its contribution to strengthening food and nutritional security in many parts of Afghanistan. The research is made possible by projects funded by IFAD, ACIAR, and the Netherlands.

For more information on ICARDA’s work in Afghanistan contact Javed Rizvi: j.rizvi[at]cgiar.org

The improved varieties are being promoted through demonstrations, farmer field days and information campaigns

Strengthening food security in Palestine

ICARDA’s efforts to strengthen food security and improve the livelihoods of farmers in Gaza and the West Bank are progressing well, according to research recently presented to key Palestinian stakeholders. The activities, funded by the Netherlands and presented at a recent project steering committee meeting in Amman, target improved varieties, better water use efficiency, and protected agriculture.

In the area of improved varieties, scientists have evaluated 66 wheat, barley, lentil, and chickpea genotypes under local rainfed farming conditions. Improved wheat and barley yielded on average 26–29% more grain than traditional varieties, offering a potential solution to the low productivity and instability of Palestine’s major rainfed crops.

Following the development of guidelines for seed production and marketing, four seed producer groups were subsequently set up in the West Bank to produce seed of the most suitable improved varieties. The groups received 16 tons of seed to initiate the production of high quality seed. Thirty-nine farmers, working according to the quality control guidelines, produced 56 tons of pure seed for distribution to other producers.

In the West Bank and Gaza, project partners held workshops targeting the safe and productive use of treated wastewater on farms and home gardens. They also distributed material for waste water and gray water production – alfalfa and sorghum for fodder, and citrus and olive trees. Overall, the use of treated waste and gray water resulted in water savings of 80%.

In Gaza, scientists demonstrated Integrated Production & Protection Management (IPPM) practices for raising land and water productivity in protected agriculture. The project team prepared a brochure and technical manual on IPPM, and a protocol and technical advisory notes for soil-less and hydroponic production. The new practices will raise the quality and value of high-value cash crops.

Farmer field days have been held to educate farmers on the safe use of wastewater

Training targets early-career wheat breeders

ICARDA and its partners are equipping early-career researchers with the knowledge and skills to tackle some of the fundamental constraints holding back wheat production in Central Asia. A recent wheat breeding course formed part of the Center’s overall efforts to help the region combat the debilitating effects of abiotic stresses and diseases like yellow rust.

The training, held in Uzbekistan, briefed participants on the concepts of wheat breeding, and the use of traditional and modern crop breeding methods. The Uzbek and Azerbaijani participants also had a chance to complete wheat hybridization and visit wheat breeding fields at Kashakadarya Research Institute, Gallaral Research Institute, the Uzbek Research Institute of Plant Industry, and Krasnovodapad Breeding Station in Kazakhstan.

Part of an on-going research project funded by Germany's Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the workshop will help to ensure that bridging wheat yield gaps and achieving sustainable productivity growth remain high on the list of regional priorities for the next generation of agricultural researchers.

The event, led by Drs. Ram Sharma and Zakir Khalikulov, of ICARDA-CAC, and Dr. Saidalim Gaybullaev of the Gallaral Research Institute, supports one of ICARDA’s regional priorities – raising the capacity of national researchers and supporting their efforts to raise productivity and strengthen food security. The Center regularly organizes short training courses and workshops for regional researchers in all aspects of wheat production.

For more information related to ICARDA’s work in Central Asia please visit: http://www.icarda.org/central-asia-and-caucasus-regional-program

The training will equip early-career researchers with the skills to combat the debilitating effects of disease and abiotic stress

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