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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: www.icarda.org
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Media
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icarda-media@cgiar.org
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Bangladesh
seeks wider collaboration
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Scale up collaboration, says Bangladesh Minister. A meeting between H.E. Matia Chaudhury, Minister for Agriculture, Dr Mohammed Eanyatullah, Secretary, Ministry of Agriculture, and a NARS-ICARDA delegation has outlined plans for broader collaboration on a range of crops. The delegation comprised Dr Solh; Dr M. Harun-ur-Rashid, Executive Chairman of the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC); Dr M.A. Bakr, Director, Pulses and Oilseeds Research Centre; Mr Ali Afzal, Pulse Breeder; and Dr Ashutosh Sarker, lentil breeder and head of ICARDA's South Asia office. The Minister and Secretary were apprised of ongoing collaboration between BARC and ICARDA in pulses research. They commended the research program, and stressed the need for even greater collaboration, in view of the importance of pulses in the Bangla diet, and the growing gap between production and demand.
The Minister is keen to expand research on grasspea, lentil, kabuli chickpea and mungbean with ICARDA's help. She also sought additional technical and backstopping support, supply of genetic materials, and assistance in capacity building of young national scientists. In addition, three specific priorities were discussed:
Visits to BARC and BARI. BARC is the country's apex body for agricultural research and the implementing agency for the World Bank-funded National Agricultural Technology Program (NATP), for which ICARDA has submitted two project proposals in collaboration with the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI). Dr Solh held meetings with Dr M. Harun-ur-Rashid and several senior officials including Dr Abdur Razzaque, Director of the NATP project. Dr Solh also visited BARI, the country's largest multi-crop research center. He met with Dr K.C. Roy, Acting Director General, and others in the management team. Dr Mohammed Azizur Rahman, Director of Research, lauded ICARDA's help in developing four popular lentil varieties, Barimasur 2, 4, 5 and 6. Amidst presentations, meetings and tours of facilities, Dr Solh found time to attend a Field Day. Some 150 farmers participated, and provided very positive feedback on the new lentil and mungbean varieties on display. Pulses Research Center. Dr Solh visited the hub of pulses R&D in Bangladesh, the Pulses Research Center headquarters at Ishurdi, about 175 km from Dhaka. He toured research plots that included the Barimasur series of lentil varieties, chickpea trials, and a range of other materials received from ICARDA: extra-early lentil, low-toxin grasspea and adapted faba bean lines. Barimasur 4 and 5 are also being tested under zero-tillage, grown as a relay crop in rice fields, and results are extremely encouraging. Dr Solh also visited farmers' fields near the station. The farmers were keen to acquire extra-lentil varieties (<90 days) which can be fitted between two rice crops. Dr Mohamed Jalaluddin, Head of the Center, noted that BARI expected to release such varieties within three years. These were identified from ICARDA-supplied materials and are being developed in collaboration by BARI, ICARDA, the US Department of Agriculture and Washington State University. In addition, a new variety Barimasur 7 will be released shortly, developed from segregating populations supplied by ICARDA. About 65% of the country's lentil area is planted to improved varieties, developed through joint efforts by BARI, ICARDA and other partners. A detailed impact study is being planned, to document the benefits generated. A field day was organized, where over 200 farmers interacted with scientists and extension staff. Mr Mohamed Abdul Sattar, a farmer who recently won a national award for his lentil crops, described his experience with Barimasur 4. He harvests 2.7 t/ha in a good year, and reports minimal disease losses and substantially higher income. He now provides seed to others in the community, to help disseminate the variety.
Discussions with farmers and scientists clearly identified research areas that need further attention.
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About
ICARDA: Established in 1977, ICARDA (www.icarda.org) is one of the 15
international research centers supported by the Consultative Group on
International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). ICARDA 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.