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: www.icarda.cgiar.org
Surendra Varma (s.varma@CGIAR.ORG)
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| Mr Hassan Al Mousa (left) a dairy farmer from El-Bab, Syria, offered his products to a large number of visitors at Terra Madre. |
The project tested the use of the Vallerani system¾a multi-functional technology consisting of a mechanized technical unit with two special plows and a set of tools that construct semicircular bunds with precision. The bunds harvest rainwater, thereby reducing surface runoff and improving vegetative cover in the dry areas. Since 1988, the technology has been introduced in Burkina Faso, Chad, Egypt, Kenya, Morocco, Niger, Senegal, Sudan, Syria, and Tunisia on a total surface area of about 80,000 hectares.
On behalf of the ICARDA Director General, Prof. Dr Adel El-Beltagy, Dr William Erskine, ADG (Research), welcomed the project stakeholders to ICARDA and highlighted the problem of water scarcity in the West Asia and North Africa (WANA) region. He warned that water shortages in WANA were likely to be more severe, while human-induced land degradation was getting worse. The Vallerani project presents one solution to maximize the use of available water resources through water-harvesting and water-use efficiency techniques. ICARDA is working with NARS, using new science and building on indigenous knowledge, to improve the livelihoods of the poor in the region. The Vallerani model is, therefore, an exciting project because it brings together different partners to address problems of water scarcity and desertification. Dr Erskine noted, however, that the main challenge of the project is to ensure that the model works at the community level. He thanked SDC for supporting this initiative.
The Director General of the General Commission for Scientific Agricultural Research (GCSAR), Syria, Dr Majd Jamal, said that 50% of the land in Syria is subject to harsh dryland environment. The Vallerani Project can help improve the livelihoods of people in those marginal areas. He called for moving the technology from research centers to communities. Dr Mahmoud Al Akhras, Project Coordinator in Jordan, hoped that the project will enable the improvement of water productivity and contribute to combating desertification.
The Project Coordinator, Dr Theib Oweis, gave an overview of the objectives, expected outputs and outcomes of the project and the challenges it faces. He noted that the farmers may not see immediate benefits from water harvesting and restoring vegetative cover, but the project will have overall benefits to the environment in the participating countries. He, therefore, called upon the respective governments to support the project.
About
ICARDA: Established in 1977, ICARDA (www.icarda.cgiar.org)
serves the entire developing world for the improvement of barley, lentil,
and faba bean; and dry-area developing countries for the on-farm management
of water, improvement of nutrition and productivity of small ruminants
(sheep and goats), and rehabilitation and management of rangelands. In
the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, ICARDA is responsible
for the improvement of durum and bread wheats, chickpea, pasture and forage
legumes and farming systems; and for the protection and enhancement of
the natural resource base of water, land, and biodiversity.
The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)
(www.cgiar.org) is a strategic alliance
of 62 members and 16 Future Harvest Centers that mobilizes cutting-edge
science to promote sustainable development by reducing hunger and poverty,
improving human nutrition and health, and protecting the environment.