I C A R D A    N e w s

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
For more information contact: Dr Surendra Varma (s.varma@CGIAR.ORG)
 
 
19 May 2005
Quality Assurance and Seed Processing Courses in Afghanistan
ICARDA organized two courses on Seed Quality Assurance and Seed Processing in Nangarhar province on 19-21 April and Kunduz province on 24-26 April, as part of the Village-based Seed Enterprise Development (VBSE) project funded under the Rebuilding Agricultural Markets Program (RAMP). The courses were designed to train the staff of the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry and Food (MAAHF), FAO, and ICARDA; and VBSE-member farmers in the production and marketing of quality seed. The courses focused on simple and illustrative guidelines relevant to quality assurance in seed production and certification; they also included introductory lectures on variety identification, field inspection, seed testing, and seed processing. The participants had the opportunity to attend practical field and laboratory sessions and discussions. The key resource persons for the course were Dr Zewdie Bishaw and Mr Abdul Aziz Niane from ICARDA’s Seed Unit. Mr Shamsuddin Siddiqi and other ICARDA staff members in Nangarhar and Kunduz regional offices translated all lectures into local languages.
Haji Lal Jan, one of the pioneer promoters of VBSEs in Kunduz province, explained his experience to fellow farmers during a farm tour, while his partner distributed vegetable seed (right).
A total of 104 participants working with MAAHF, ICARDA, FAO, NGOs, and VBSE members from the major crop production districts of Baghlan, Bamyan, Ghazni, Herat, Kabul, Kunduz, Helmand, Nangarhar, Parwan and Takhar provinces attended the two courses. ICARDA sponsored VBSE members and extension staff from its target provinces, whereas FAO sponsored research and seed technology staff from MAAHF working in other provinces.

RAMP and FAO representatives in both provinces attended the opening and closing ceremonies of the course. The Deputy Director of Agriculture Department in Nangarhar and Deputy Governor of Kunduz provinces chaired the opening and closing ceremonies of the courses in the two locations, respectively. In their opening/closing statements, the honorable guests thanked ICARDA and RAMP for their technical and financial support in the rehabilitation and sustainable development of the agricultural sector in Afghanistan.

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 countries, international and regional organizations, and private foundations supporting15 international research centers that mobilizes cutting-edge science to promote sustainable development by reducing hunger and poverty, improving human nutrition and health, and protecting the environment.
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