ICARDA News

INTERNATIONAL CENTER FOR AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH IN THE DRY AREAS
P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria
Phone: (963-21) 2213433, 2213477, 2225112, 2225012
Fax: (963-21) 2213490, 2225105; E-mail: ICARDA@CGIAR.ORG
Website: http://www.icarda.cgiar.org

Two seminars were held this summer addressing participatory plant breeding in a stressful environment and information technology and water-use efficiency. They were both coordinated by ICARDA in collaboration with the Arabian Peninsula Regional Program (APRP) and the UAE Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries. Mr Abdullah Abdul Aziz, Assistant Under-Secretary for Agricultural Affairs (MAF) opened the seminars which were attended by researchers and scientists from ministries, municipalities, universities and other agricultural institutions.

Participatory Plant Breeding for a Stressful Environment
Participatory plant breeding, often defined as selection done by the target users in the target environments, has received increasing attention in recent years.
     The first seminar, entitled "Participatory Breeding for Stressful Environment" held on 28 June 2003 was presented by Dr Salvatore Ceccarelli, ICARDA barley breeder.
     Most of the work published on participatory plant breeding refers to farmer participation in variety selection. This is a linear process reflecting sporadic, episodic or occasional participation from the farmer, and lacks the cyclic nature of plant breeding. There has been comparatively more work done to interview the participating farmers and to understand their preferences and attitudes as opposed to methodologies, experimental designs and statistical analysis. These factors are needed to transform a centralized, non-participatory plant breeding program into a decentralized, participatory plant breeding program.
     Dr Ceccarelli described how to implement a participatory plant breeding program for self-pollinating crops in the following stages: when the breeding material goes into farmers' fields; during the selection procedures; in developing experimental designs and methods of data analysis and determining which activities are to be kept on station.
     The methodology described allows the participation of farmers in the development of new cultivars regardless of farm size, gender, or wealth. Because of its cyclic nature, this methodology develops farmers' skills and incorporates innovations generated by the increased skills and results in various degrees of empowerment for the farmer. The main advantages of this new methodology include: the shortest time to release a new variety, the best use of resources and the generation of environment-friendly cultivars.

Information Technology and Improving Water-Use Efficiency
The second seminar on information technology and its impact on improving water-use efficiency was held 13 July 2003. Dr Ian McCann, Fomer Senior irrigation and water management specialist of ICARDA, now in the University of Delaware, was the featured presenter.
     The use of the internet has expanded rapidly in recent years, and it is now a primary means of delivering information. In the field of agricultural water use, potential users include large and small farms, extension services, municipalities, researchers, private companies and consultants, each using the existing information to suit their needs and capabilities.
     The available water for crops varies significantly from day to day. ICARDA and the countries of the Arabian Peninsula have initiated a network of automated weather stations from which data can be retrieved on line and processed to estimate water requirements on an up-to-the-minute, daily basis. Computer models can then use this data to generate estimates and predictions of the amount of water in the soil and how much is needed for irrigation. This information tends to be technically complex, and so has to be formatted for the end user in a simple, easily understandable form.
     Several factors are necessary to assure success in this endeavor. End-user and extension personnel must participate in the development of information tools. Maintenance of hardware and software, on-site calibration and validation are also critical factors. Cooperation and the sharing of data between different groups and institutions will help achieve the goal of water-use efficiency.

ICARDA's (www.icarda.org) mission is to improve the welfare of people and alleviate poverty through research and training in dry areas of the developing world by increasing production, productivity, and nutritional quality of food, while preserving and enhancing the natural resource base. ICARDA is a Future Harvest Center.