News – Page 179

MasAgro to offer farmers advice and information through cell phones

Written by on August 17, 2012. Posted in News.

masagromovil On 1 and 2 August 2012, representatives of public and private organizations interested in developing information technologies for the agricultural sector met at CIMMYT to participate in the MasAgro Movil Think Tank.

The objective of the meeting was to present the work that has been done by MasAgro partners to develop and promote Mexican farmers’ adoption of information services provided through mobile phones.

MasAgro Movil is a communications tool being used by “Take It to the Farmer”, MasAgro’s extension strategy, which is still at the pilot stage. According to Philippa Zamora, who is in charge of developing this project at CIMMYT, MasAgro Movil is a platform that can be used to send market recommendations and weather information to farmers using SMS messages.

“By giving farmers easy access to the information produced by MasAgro’s five innovation hubs, cell phones are expected to help increase farmers’ productivity and generate higher returns on the money they invest in production inputs,” said Bram Govaerts, leader of “Take It to the Farmer.”

CIMMYT Director General Thomas Lumpkin pointed out that because researchers involved in MasAgro understand how the different links in Mexico’s agri-food value chain operate, they can work with the private sector on developing business opportunities that will boost the productivity of Mexican farmers.

The business meetings of the MasAgro Movil Think Tank were inaugurated by Francisco Mayorga Castañeda, Mexico’s Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries, and Food. He congratulated CIMMYT for promoting, through MasAgro, public-private partnerships that foster sustainable rural development.

Mayorga Castañeda also emphasized that right from the beginning, MasAgro Movil will have access to 80,000 farmers who will receive advice from 2,000 technicians belonging to the Strategic Program in Support of the Production Chain of Mexico’s Maize and Bean Farmers (PROMAF). For this reason, he is confident the project will be a great success.

Gender integration in CGIAR Research Programs

Written by on August 16, 2012. Posted in News.

The move to integrate gender in the organizational and research agenda of the CGIAR Research Programs (CRPs) and Centers is gaining speed, also due to the formation of the ‘CGIAR Gender and Agriculture Research Network’ earlier this year. The network consists of Lead Gender Specialists from each of the 15 CRPs, as well as other social and biological scientists committed to the integration of gender in agricultural research for development.

This network of highly energetic women and men reunited at a workshop hosted by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation during 25-27 July 2012 in Seattle, USA. The objective was to discuss how CGIAR research can contribute to closing the gender gap in agriculture and to explore opportunities for collaboration in gender-responsive research across CRPs. Lone Badstue, CIMMYT Gender Specialist, represented the MAIZE and WHEAT CRPs, and CIMMYT Socioeconomist Tina Beuchelt also participated.

“The workshop was a great opportunity to share ideas and lessons learned, to exchange concepts of different gender strategies, as well as to discuss the latest gender-related research methods,” said Beuchelt. The workshop identified four themes for cross-program research on gender and agriculture: (1) engendering agricultural value chains; (2) gender-transformative approaches; (3) gender and technology adoption and diffusion; and (4) gender and nutrition. The participants also agreed upon a shared set of gender-responsive research outcomes that can be jointly monitored to assess progress towards CGIAR System Level Outcomes. Furthermore, they discussed how to measure these outcomes and agreed to continue collaboration on the development and measurement of a shared set of genderresponsive indicators.

An inspiring presentation by Eve Crowley, Deputy Director of the Food and Agriculture Organization´s Gender, Equity and Rural Development Division, provided valuable insights on critical success factors for mainstreaming gender in the CRPs and identified good practices that promote mainstreaming.

Topics to work on were many and time flew by in the workshop. As a follow-up to the workshop, a set of joint CRP concept papers on the integration of gender in the CGIAR research agenda will be developed. The group parted sharing the spirit of working together on this topic highly relevant to all CRPs.

Capacity building in gender mainstreaming for SIMLESA

Written by on August 15, 2012. Posted in News.

The Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) initiative held its third workshop on gender mainstreaming at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) campus, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, during 24-27 July 2012. Following recommendations from the previous meeting in Tanzania, this workshop aimed to compile field-related case studies on gender mainstreaming activities, and to harmonize gender mainstreaming action plans for five SIMLESA countries: Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania. Twenty participants from these five countries attended, and, for the first time, extension officers from SIMLESA sites in each of the five countries also participated. The workshop was opened by Dagne Wegary on behalf of SIMLESA Program Coordinator Mulugetta Mekuria, and facilitated by Forough Olinga, Gender Expert at the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA), Enock Warinda, Monitoring and Evaluation Unit leader at ASARECA, Daisy Namono, Consultant, and Ruth Nankinga, Administrative Assistant at ASARECA. Bekele Shiferaw, CIMMYT Socioeconomics Program Director, and Menale Kassie, Socioeconomist and SIMLESA Objective 1 Coordinator, also contributed encouragement and insight on mainstreaming gender within SIMLESA. The extension officers shared their field experiences which were then used to identify good practices and potential case studies for further development. At the end of the workshop, the participants developed country gender mainstreaming action plans to be funded and implemented, created a format for the case studies, and agreed to submit at least eight case studies to Olinga and Namono for evaluation by 26 August 2012. To follow up, Namono will visit SIMLESA countries to finalize the case studies for publication before the end of the year.

Scientists from SIMLESA Spillover countries visit Kenya

Written by on August 14, 2012. Posted in News.

A delegation of scientists from South Sudan, Rwanda, and Uganda —the spillover countries of the Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) initiative— visited Embu, Kenya, during 18-20 July 2012, to gain hands-on experience in implementing the program and to learn about its impact on livelihoods of smallholder farmers.

The delegation comprised Leonidas Dusengemungu, Albert Ruhakana, and Alphonse Nyobanyire from Rwanda; Luka Atwok, Anna Itwari, and Cirino Oketayoyt from South Sudan; and Drake N. Mubiru, William Nanyenya, and Godfrey Otim from Uganda. The scientists found the visit very educative and informative. They learned about the implementation of SIMLESA in Kenya and the role of national agricultural research institutions, the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) in particular, in the process. They also gained insights into the innovation platform establishment and arising challenges, maize-beans intercropping and timing, challenges and coping strategies for the implementation of SIMLESA, and the level of adaptation of SIMLESA technologies in Kenya.

In his introductory remarks, Stephen Njoka, KARI-Embu Center Director, explained the Center’s mandate, activities, opportunities, and challenges in conducting agricultural research in Kenya. He noted that research programs at KARI-Embu range from food crops and crop health, natural resource management, horticultural and industrial crops, animal production and health research, outreach and partnerships, to cross-cutting programs, such as socioeconomics and applied statistics. The Center also offers advisory services, such as technical support for partners and capacity development for other service providers, including extension service providers and NGOs. Alfred Micheni, KARI Agronomist and SIMLESA Site Coordinator for eastern Kenya, explained that the western and eastern sites in Kenya had been selected because of their potential for the highest impact. This was determined by their agricultural production constraints: low soil fertility, erratic rainfall, high cost of farm inputs, high incidences of pests and diseases, high cost of credit, and small land sizes.

The scientists had a chance to interact with farmers participating in SIMLESA during a farmers’ field day in Kyeni Division, Embu County, on 20 July 2012. The field day was hosted by the Kyeni Innovation Platform and showcased various treatments under conservation agriculture (CA): maize-legume intercrop, minimum tillage, furrows and ridges, use of herbicides, residue retention, and variety selection. The scientists also had the opportunity to compare the robust crops under CA with those under conventional agricultural practices which were unable to cope with the prolonged drought in the region.

Charles Nkonge, SIMLESA National Coordinator, stressed the importance of the innovation platforms used by the program to evaluate and scale out maizelegume intensification technologies and knowledge in a participatory manner. Other strategies for scaling out include farmer exchange visits and participatory exploratory demonstrations. Nkonge stressed the importance of the participatory nature of the evaluations; through cooperation between the farmers and other collaborators, experimental designs of some of the treatments were adjusted to achieve more efficiency. For instance, the design of maize-pigeon pea intercropping trial was changed from intercropping of one pigeon-pea row between two rows of maize, giving one crop of maize and pigeon pea per season, to five rows of maize between two rows of pigeon pea and one row of common beans between two rows of maize. With the new design, two crops of maize, two crops of beans, and one crop of pigeon pea are harvested every year. This demonstration of successful practices allowed the representatives from SIMLESA Spillover countries to leave Kenya feeling optimistic about the new partnership.

“Save More, Grow More, Earn More” – CIMMYT in Bangladesh

Written by on August 13, 2012. Posted in News.

Prices for irrigation, fertilizers, fuel, and labor are rising. Fresh water supplies are decreasing, and many farmers find it increasingly difficult to plant their crop on time to assure good yields and return on their investments. The CIMMYT team in Bangladesh created an inspiring video showing how farmers in South Asia are innovating to overcome these problems by using small-scale appropriate machinery and crop management practices that reduce tillage to save time, soil moisture, and money. The video, “Save More, Grow More, Earn More”, has been released in English and Bangla and features the work of the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia in Bangladesh (CSISA-BD).

The video shows case studies from two distinct environments in Bangladesh. In the coastal region, soil salinity and insufficient irrigation present serious constraints keeping farmers from growing a dry season crop. However, by using simple machinery that reduces tillage to allow earlier planting and keeping crop residues on the soil surface to conserve soil moisture and reduce salinity, a group of women in southern Bangladesh managed to forgo the fallow and grow a profitable maize crop. In central Bangladesh, where the cost of irrigation and farm labor is skyrocketing, farmers and local service providers teamed up to demonstrate the benefits of planting wheat, maize, and legumes on raised beds to reduce labor and irrigation requirements. The crop management principles used by both groups of farmers can be applied anywhere –it is possible to grow more, while saving time, water, and money!

“Save More, Grow More, Earn More” is being shown in villages across Bangladesh through traveling outdoor roadshows led by CIMMYT’s partner Agricultural Advisory Services (AAS). Thousands of DVDs have been produced, and the film will be featured on national television in Bangladesh. Furthermore, “Save More, Grow More, Earn More” has been re-released on a CSISA-BD training DVD entitled “Strengthening Cereal Systems in Bangladesh”, which also features four films on rice seed health.

“Save More, Grow More, Earn More” was developed in partnership with the Regional Wheat Research Consortium of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) and with the guidance of Timothy J. Krupnik, CIMMYT Cropping Systems Agronomist, and Agro-Insight. Funding for video development and field activities was supplied by the Feed the Future Initiative of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Cornell University’s Food for Progress Project funded by the Unites States Department of Agriculture.

SIMLESA farmers from western and eastern Kenya share their experiences

Written by on August 8, 2012. Posted in News.

A delegation of 20 farmers, research technicians, and Ministry of Agriculture officials from western Kenya visited their counterparts in eastern Kenya during 12-13 June 2012 to learn and share their experiences with implementing Sustainable Intensification of Maize- Legume based Cropping Systems for Food Security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) project. Before meeting their counterparts, the visiting farmers toured on-station SIMLESA trials at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI-Embu) where Charles Mugo, KARI technician, took them through the various trials and treatments: maize and beans under minimum tillage, bean under conventional tillage, bean under minimum tillage, bean under furrow and ridge tillage, and maize and bean under furrows and ridges.

The farmers had a chance to see trials addressing the livestockresidue retention conflict among the mixed farming communities. SIMLESA has partnered with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) to try out alternative fodder species. Treatments under these trials include retaining all, half, or a quarter of the residues on each plot, and intercropping the maize with Desmodium to fix nitrogen in the soil and provide animal feed.

The performance of the on-station trials and a visit to the Kyeni Innovation Platform in Embu County encouraged the farmers to scale out conservation agriculture (CA). “They are able to conserve water, especially in this area characterized by low, scarce and erratic rainfall. It has not rained for almost one and a half month in the area,” said Teresa Maitha Njiru, a member of the Kyeni Innovation Platform, explaining why her crops were robust, particularly those under furrows and ridges. Njiru, who has been practicing CA for the last four cropping seasons, hailed the practice for its productivity, environmental friendliness, and cost effectiveness. Above all, she appreciated that it is not labor-intensive. “Hakuna Kazi hapa, there is no work here,” she said, referring to the little time required to prepare and manage a CA plot. “And I only spray three days after planting for weed control,” she added.

The furrows and ridges technology stood out also for Titus Miriti from Chuka. “Ridges and furrows technology has the greatest and best effect on crop performance and the greatest benefit because this area is arid. It is very good in water retention,” Miriti pointed out, stating that CA is much more rewarding than the conventional practice.

Benson Nyakundi, technician at KARI-Kakemega and trip coordinator, noted that the CA technologies were important in boosting food security in Kenya. “New technologies like these being implemented by SIMLESA are critical in fighting food insecurity that is rampant in the country.” Lorna Oketch, Siaya County agricultural officer, praised SIMLESA for making extension services and providers a part of the project implementation team. “This will go a long way in sustaining the project even beyond the project timeframe.” The exchange visit was organized and facilitated by John Achieng and Alfred Micheni, SIMLESA site coordinators for western and eastern Kenya, respectively.

Expanding SIMLESA to the Kalahari

Written by on August 7, 2012. Posted in News.

With plans to expand to more countries in the region, the Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume cropping systems for food security in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA) program has included Botswana as a spill-over country, reflecting its recognition of the importance of crop-livestock interaction in the farming system. To initiate the spill-over activities, the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR) has allocated a research grant to Botswana through the CIMMYT-SIMLESA project.

During 23-25 July 2012, SIMLESA project coordinator Mulugetta Mekuria and cropping systems agronomist Isaiah Nyagumbo visited Gaborone, Botswana, to introduce SIMLESA to the Botswana National Agriculture Research System officials and to develop a work plan for the newly funded Spillover project. The project seeks to draw lessons from five core SIMLESA countries and share these with Botswana, Rwanda, Uganda, and South Sudan. It will also carry farming systems characterization studies on sites to be identified for subsequent SIMLESA activities. In Botswana, the primary activities will include exchange visits by Botswana scientists to core SIMLESA countries, surveys and characterization studies, and capacity building through short-term training.

The meeting was attended by more than 20 participants from different research stations in Botswana. Mekuria highlighted the SIMLESA project rationale, objectives, impact pathways, and partnership modalities, and outlined the linkages and synergies between SIMLESA and other CIMMYT projects and programs, including Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA), New Seed Initiative for Maize in Southern Africa (NSIMA), and Conservation Agriculture (CA). Nyagumbo then facilitated discussions on the anticipated outcomes of the Spillover project, focusing on the following objectives: developing an understanding of SIMLESA in Botswana, identifying kick-start investigatory activities leading to larger action plans linked to the SIMLESA program, and integrating Botswana scientists into SIMLESA capacity building activities.

The group work and plenary discussions resulted in a draft workplan which will be finalized shortly. According to this plan, the project will focus on CA, crop-livestock linkages, fodder crops production, and multiplication of suitable maize varieties for Botswana’s arid to semi-arid environment. The Botswana team showed a high level of interest in the project, and Stephen Chite, Chief Agricultural Research Officer and Head of arable crops research, expressed his appreciation to CIMMYT for its continued support for the national maize research program and to ACIAR for its financial support.

Combating Gray Leaf Spot with high-yielding and QPM maize varieties in Bhutan

Written by on August 6, 2012. Posted in News.

Maize is one of the major staples in Bhutan and is cultivated by about 70 percent of households throughout the country. Poor farmers sustain their families by consuming maize as a staple food, using it as animal feed, and selling it for further income. Thus, the 2007 outbreak of Gray Leaf Spot (GLS), a new disease caused by Cercospora zeae-maydis, posed a major challenge to the Bhutanese maize program and maize farmers, many of whom lost over 70 percent of their production.

To contain the disease, the National Maize Program collaborated with the CIMMYT South Asia Regional Office in Nepal to develop or identify new GLS-tolerant maize varieties able to adapt to the high-altitude, rainfed, mountainous, maizegrowing highlands of Bhutan. Over 100 GLS-tolerant maize varieties were introduced from CIMMYT Colombia, Zimbabwe, Mexico, and Nepal, and screened at hot-spot sites where GLS occurs naturally and in abundance. Initial selections of the disease tolerant lines were made at Chaskar (1,960 masl), Mongar, by a maize research team based at the Renewal Natural Resources Research and Development Center, Wengkhar, Mongar district.

Several years of multi-location, nationally-coordinated evaluation resulted in provisional release of two entries from CIMMYT Colombia: ICAV305 and S03TLYQAB05. In 2011, over 2.6 tons of seeds were supplied to farmers affected by GLS for frontline demonstration and seed replacement. After a successful large-scale demonstration, ICAV305 and S03TLYQAB05 were recommended for formal release to the Technology Release Committee of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forests, which was endorsed on 22 June 2012. The names of these two varieties are Shafangma Ashom and Chaskarpa.

The new varieties have shown 10 percent yield advantage and much higher tolerance to GLS than traditional varieties. The yield is comparable to the popular improved variety Yangtsipa (Suwan 1) grown in lower elevations. The new varieties are recommended particularly for GLS-affected areas above 1,500 masl, and for subtropical maize production zones at 600-700 masl. Both varieties have yellow flint grains, which are highly preferred by maize farmers, and are open-pollinated. Shafangma Ashom is a Quality Protein Maize (QPM), which is more nutritious than the traditional maize varieties. This is the first QPM variety released in Bhutan, and it is expected to contribute immensely to the nutritional requirements of the local population.

QPM The replacement of seeds has been facilitated through Community Based Seed Producers (CBSP) groups. In 2011 and 2012, over eight tons of seed was supplied to GLS-affected farmers in 10 districts. The average yield recorded under farmers management was 3.73 t/ ha for S03TLYQAB05, and 4.43 t/ ha for ICAV305. Production of basic and foundation seeds has started at research farms and will serve as seed source for the CBSP groups. By 2013, the National Maize Program aims to replace 80 percent of the seeds for GLSaffected farmers cultivating maize above 1,500 masl. The program cooperates with the National Seed Center and CBSP groups to achieve higher efficiency in seed replacement.

The evaluation of GLS tolerant maize varieties in Bhutan was technically supported by CIMMYT, the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation, and the EU. The National Maize Program is currently funded through the Decentralized Rural Development Project (World Bank).

Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences explores collaboration and partnership in Southern Africa

Written by on August 3, 2012. Posted in News.

CIMMYT-Southern Africa in Harare, Zimbabwe, hosted a delegation from the Yunnan Academy of Agricultural Sciences (YAAS), China, on 20 July 2012. The delegation was led by He Xingze, Chief and Chairman of Board of Trustees, who was accompanied by long-time CIMMYT collaborator Fan Xingming, director general of the Institute of Food Crops of YAAS. The delegation explored opportunities to strengthen and support maize breeding capacity in Southern Africa.

Fan acknowledged the long-standing collaboration between CIMMYT and the Chinese agricultural research institutions, as well as CIMMYT’s range of collaborative research activities and presence in China. Mulugetta Mekuria, Isaiah Nyagumbo, Jill Cairns, and Cosmos Magorokosho presented highlights of CIMMYT-Southern Africa research activities and partnership modalities. Progress and achievements of the Drought Tolerant Maize in Africa (DTMA), NSIMA (New Seed Initiative for Maize in Southern Africa), Improved Maize for African Soils (IMAS), Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Cropping Systems in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA), and Conservation Agriculture (CA) projects were discussed, and the delegation visited the station facilities and met the support staff. They had the opportunity to meet Danisile Hikwa, principal director of Department of Research and Specialist Services of Zimbabwe. They are traveling to South Africa to visit the University of Natal and ARCGrain Crops Institute of South Africa.

The delegation expressed their intention to visit the region again for a substantive technical discussion with CIMMYT and its partners.

They wished to thank the senior CIMMYT management for arranging and facilitating their visit and for the hospitality accorded to them in Harare.

Celebrating 15 years of partnership with South Korea

Written by on August 2, 2012. Posted in News.

On 3 May 2012, CIMMYT marked 15 years of partnership with the Rural Development Administration (RDA) of South Korea. To commemorate this anniversary, a Plaque of Appreciation recognizing CIMMYT’s outstanding contribution and commitment to enhancing the food production of the Republic of Korea through its strong partnership with RDA in research on breeding and varietal development of wheat, barley and maize, was presented to CIMMYT director general Thomas Lumpkin, BISA director of research and assistant director for the Global Wheat Program Etienne Duveiller, wheat quality expert and laboratory head Roberto Javier Peña, and wheat geneticist David Bonnett, by adjunct senior scientist in the Global Wheat Program Cheong Young-Keun on behalf of RDA administrator Hyun-Chool Park.

Corea RDA is a central government organization responsible for agricultural research and services. Since its foundation, it has helped South Korea to achieve self-sufficiency in rice and other staple food production through dissemination and promotion of high-yielding cultivars and improved cropping technologies, and contributed to the improvement of the rural environment.

RDA began its collaboration with CIMMYT in 1996 through the use of CIMMYT germplasm. As a result, 32 wheat varieties with early maturity, high yield, and fusarium resistance have been developed, including the “geumgang” variety occupying 85 percent of the wheat-cultivated area in South Korea. CIMMYT has also hosted over 50 South Korean scientists and students in various training courses, visits, and internship programs. CIMMYT hopes to continue and strengthen its partnership with RDA South Korea in the future.

Visiting CIMMYT-Kenya to improve competency in breeding insect-resistant maize

Written by on August 1, 2012. Posted in News.

During 1-8 July 2012, scientists from Malawi, Mozambique, and Tanzania visited CIMMYT-Kenya to get hands-on experience in developing insect-resistant maize using conventional approaches. Among the visiting scientists were Patrick Paulo (Meru Agro Seed Company, Tanzania), Charles Makangala (Selian Agricultural Research Institute (SARI), Tanzania), Pedro Fato (National Institute of Agronomic Research (IIAM), Mozambique), Sheila Juma (IIAM-Chokwe), and Charles Singano and Kesbell Kaonga (both from the Ministry of Agriculture, Malawi).

The visit was organized and facilitated by the Insect Resistance Maize for Africa (IRMA Conventional III) project and focused on management of stem borer pests in maize production, breeding for resistance to stem borers and postharvest pests, and mass rearing of stem borer pests for use in a practical maize breeding program. Stephen Mugo, CIMMYT principal scientist/maize breeder and IRMA project coordinator, noted that the visit provided a forum to share experiences in mass rearing, breeding, and pest control among participating countries. “The visit was a great opportunity for the visiting scientists to learn about improving the quality of phenotyping data for insect resistance, and thus increase breeding gains,” said B.M. Prasanna, Global Maize Program director.

To understand how mass rearing facility is set up, equipped, and managed, the scientists visited a functional stem borer insectary at the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI)-Katumani, Machakos. They also visited IRMA field trials at KARI’s Kiboko and Embu research stations to observe stem borer trials and nurseries, as well as trials for storage pests and scoring of leaf damage by stem borers.

A visit to a postharvest pest resistance screening facility at Kiboko provided an opportunity to carry out a sample analysis for maize weevils and larger grain borers, scoring in the multiple choice trial on maize cob damage, and artificial infestation using the borer Chilo partellus. Tadele Tefera, CIMMYT scientist/ entomologist, facilitated the field and lab practices.

Paulo called the visit an “eyeopener” and a great learning opportunity for the visiting scientists. “I have improved my knowledge on breeding for insect resistance and improved my skills in scoring techniques and insect mass rearing,” added Makangala. Mugo called on the scientists to use their newly acquired knowledge, as well as technologies, to improve livelihoods of the people in their countries by reducing losses due to pests.

Training scientists in maize information management

Written by on July 31, 2012. Posted in News.

During 19-21 June 2012, researchers, technicians, and students from the Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA), Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA), Improved Maize for African Soil (IMAS), and Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA) projects attended a course on the use of Fieldbook at the Kiboko Research Station, Kenya. The objective of the training was to familiarize technicians and students with Fieldbook, a tool developed by CIMMYT maize breeders for managing experiments and data analysis using R software. Participants learnt how to create an inventory, a seed increase nursery, a nursery to form single crosses, and a stock list. The course also covered consolidating inventories, generating trials, and data analysis for single- and multi-location sites.

Yoseph Beyene, CIMMYT maize breeder, explained that Fieldbook is used to prepare seed for nurseries and trials, make field books and maps, generate stock lists for different pollinations, manage stocks and trial data, conduct statistical analysis, apply selection indices, maintain and manage pedigree information, and generate shipment lists, labels, and bar codes. He also noted the flexibility of the tool; while it is tailored to maize, it can be adapted for other crops as well.

Reiterating the importance of the training, Stephen Mugo, CIMMYT principal scientist/maize breeder and team leader of the IRMA and WEMA projects, gave an overview of CIMMYT global research and explained its guiding principles: demand driven, high impact partnerships (public and private); cutting edge science; state-of-the-art technologies; and effectiveness, efficiency, and quality.

The training was appreciated by both young and experienced researchers, who considered it crucial for understanding Fieldbook concepts. “The training was timely and inspiring. I never imagined that creating nursery and trial designs could be achieved in less than 10 minutes, provided one has the technical knowhow of using the Fieldbook software,” said James Mwololo, a PhD student at Makerere University, Uganda. “I gained the skills and knowledge on how the Fieldbook can be used in managing breeding programs, right from nursery and trial designing, planting, data collection, and data analysis based on R and SAS interfaces. This forms a strong foundation for my career development as a researcher in the plant breeding context, because I will be able to establish and manage sound breeding programs,” he added.

Lewis Machida, who was first exposed to Fieldbook in 1997 but never received any formal training on its use, also appreciated the course: “The training gave me the opportunity to learn what I didn’t know about using Fieldbook,” he said. The participants were encouraged to continue using Fieldbook, as it is the only way to become proficient in its use. The training was facilitated by Mugo, Beyene, Andrew Chavangi, and Joseph Kasango.

CIMMYT-Hyderabad welcomes a Limagrain delegation

Written by on July 30, 2012. Posted in News.

A group of 14 Limagrain representatives visited the CIMMYT-Asia maize program in Hyderabad, India, on 18 July 2012. Limagrain is an international agricultural co-operative group specialized in field seeds, vegetable seeds and cereal products. Led by Daniel Cheron, CEO of Groupe Limagrain, the delegation included Georges Freyssinet (CEO of Genective), Valerie Mazza (corporate scientific director), Sophie Boulinguez (scientific project manager), Elisabeth Chanliaud (research coordinator), Christiane Duchene (seed regulation & IP manager), Mimia Ghania Taleb (biotechnology project manager), Frank Coutand (patent department manager), Jean-Paul Guinebretiere (research manager), Arnaud Messager (scientific director of Vegetable Seeds Division), Pascual Pérez (head of Trait Discovery), Philippe Bertaux (research director of Limagrain Asia), Suhas Nimbalkar (head of R&D Support Services, Bisco Bio Sciences), and Vinod K. Yadav (breeding coordinator of Bisco Bio Sciences). The team was received by P.H. Zaidi, Senior Maize Physiologist of the CIMMYT-Asia Program, and CIMMYT maize program staff based in Hyderabad.

India-Zaidi After a formal introduction, Zaidi gave an overview of the research program and priorities of the CIMMYT-Asia maize program, and the ongoing collaborations with various public and private institutions in the region, including the International Maize Improvement Consortium (IMIC-Asia). He emphasized CIMMYT’s initiatives towards purposeful partnerships, which offer a big opportunity for pro-poor agricultural investment and innovations (such as IMIC-Asia and MAIZE), the global alliance for food security, and the livelihood of resource-poor in the developing world.

The Limagrain team discussed the ongoing research programs at CIMMYT-Hyderabad and expressed particular interest in research on abiotic stresses, especially on drought and heat stress, and major diseases, including foliar diseases and stalk rots. Cheron mentioned the existing collaboration with CIMMYT, including research on double haploids in Mexico and within IMIC-Asia. In the future, he hopes to further strengthen the partnership, especially in Asia, starting in India and China. The group also visited CIMMYT’s root phenotyping facility at the ICRISAT campus and appreciated its significance for precision phenotyping for molecular breeding projects. At the end of the visit, Cheron suggested that the Limagrain-India team further explore avenues of mutual interest to build an even stronger partnership with the CIMMYT-Asia maize program.

Discussing the importance of seed systems

Written by on July 25, 2012. Posted in News.

As we endeavour to reach more farmers with improved varieties, seed systems are becoming increasingly important for CIMMYT in Africa, and a number of projects are generating germplasm to meet the varied abiotic and biotic challenges in smallholder agriculture. To improve effectiveness and collaboration amongst projects in seed systems activities, a coordination meeting was held on 3–4 July 2012 in Nairobi, Kenya. The meeting was attended by scientists from Global Maize Program (GMP) projects: Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA), New Seed Initiative for Maize in Southern Africa (NSIMA), Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Cropping Systems in Eastern and Southern Africa (SIMLESA), Sustainable Intensification of Maize-Legume Systems for the Eastern Province of Zambia (SIMLEZA), Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA), Improved Maize for African Soils (IMAS), HarvestPlus, and Insect Resistant Maize for Africa (IRMA).

The agenda included seed initiatives in different countries, coordination between projects, seed production research priorities, demonstrations, and variety seed production. Seed road maps and seed delivery strategies for projects and/or countries working in partnership with seed companies and the National Agriculture Research Systems (NARS) were also discussed. Participants also considered more effective ways to convey key messages to stakeholders involved in seed delivery, the Socioeconomics Program’s involvement in maize seed systems, and global policy changes affecting seed systems. Special focus was placed on gender equity and the inclusion of female farmers in demonstrations and field days. Where male farmers form the majority, they should be encouraged to bring their wives and other female household members to field days and demonstrations to ensure family participation in decision making. However, following the results of a survey indicating that significant proportions of farms are managed by female-headed households, the group also recognised the need for developing promotional strategies specifically targeting women.

seed-systems-meeting-group-photo

CIMMYT recognizes the growing importance of seed systems and is increasing its staff capacity accordingly to provide appropriate support and expertise. The latest additions to the team are seed systems specialists James Gethi and Mosisa Regasa.

Principal supplier of barley to the Mexican beer industry joins MasAgro

Written by on July 24, 2012. Posted in News.

On 12 July 2012, Impulsora Agrícola, a company dedicated to promoting and improving the cultivation of malt barley, signed a coordination agreement with CIMMYT to adopt MasAgro’s working model. This partnership shall take effect mainly within the Bajío area (Guanajuato and Querétaro), in the highlands (Estado de México, Hidalgo, Puebla, and Tlaxcala) and Zacatecas, where most of the malt barley consumed by Mexico’s beer industry is produced.

During the ceremony, the Director General of Impulsora Agrícola, Carlos Pérez Castañeda, stated that thanks to this agreement, MasAgro shall have an effect on 20,000 producers who harvest around 600,000 tons of barley a year, covering an area of 300,000 hectares. Pérez Castañeda added that the total production is sold, under contract, to the Mexican beer industry for nearly 2.5 billion pesos (approximately 2 billion dollars).

Bram Govaerts, head of MasAgro’s component Take it to the Farmer explained that the aim of the partnership is to increase the number of “driving centers” or platforms operating under the leadership of the producers, with funding from Trust Funds for Rural Development (FIRA in Spanish) and Impulsora Agrícola, backed by MasAgro and state governments.

Govaerts also mentioned that 280 producers had received training through the MasAgro–Driving Center platforms, and that a total of 3,370 barley producers had assisted in demonstration days organized by the “driving centers” in Hidalgo, Tlaxcala and Guanajuato. As a result, the principles of agricultural conservation and precision agriculture techniques are now being adopted in 3,964 hectares dedicated to the production of malt barley.

The event was presided over by Mexican Minister for Agriculture, Francisco Mayorga Castañeda, who estimated that MasAgro would benefit from nearly 50,000 barley producers. The Minister of SAGARPA took the opportunity to refer to the acknowledgment that MasAgro received from the G20 Agriculture Group, who cited the project as a model to follow in developing research, innovation and transfer technology, as well as in coordinating public-private partnerships in the agri-food sector. Mayorga Castañeda confirmed that for this reason, MasAgro would be discussed at the next meeting of leading agricultural scientists, which is due to be organized by the current G20 Mexican Presidency next September.