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)
 
 
3 March 2005
Lentil Research Benefits Nepal's Farmers
Farmers selecting elite lentil lines in Rampore, Chitwan district.
Lentil production and productivity in Nepal has significantly increased in the last 15 years, contributing to food security in the country as well as income generation for many small-scale farmers, agro-industries, traders, and exporters. Total lentil production in Nepal has risen from 63,000 tonnes in 1986 to 150,000 tonnes in 2003. Its productivity has increased from 593 kg/ha in 1986 to 818 kg/ha in 2003. According to Mr R.K. Neupane, the Ex-Coordinator of the Grain Legume Improvement Program (GLIP) of the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), the country has produced a cumulative amount of more than 13,000 tonnes of lentil worth US$ 45 million over the 1995/96 to the 2002/03 cropping seasons.

In a recent meeting with Dr Ashutosh Sarker, ICARDA Lentil Breeder, Mr Neupane, expressed deep gratitude on behalf of NARC to Prof. Dr Adel El-Beltagy, ICARDA DG, and Dr William Erskine, ADG (Research), for ICARDA’s continuous support to the Nepalese farmers. ICARDA has been working with GLIP since the early eighties and has provided genetic materials, technical backstopping, human resources development, and financial support for research and development through external funding.

Mr Neupane said that some of the newly-released varieties, originating from ICARDA-supplied germplasm, have been adopted by the farmers in Terai and mid-hills, where there was no lentil earlier. Many of the elite lines selected from ICARDA international nurseries are awaiting release for different agro-ecological niches. Mr Neupane also appreciated ICARDA's technology transfer activities that follow a participatory approach. With the development and adoption of more new technologies, lentil cultivation should get a further boost in Nepal.

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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