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Archives
January 1-15, 2001
INIBAP project to benefit Filipino banana farmers
by Mary Charlotte O. Fresco
Small banana farmers may now increase
their income by adopting superior banana hybrids and
land races.
This was the highlight of the project
proposal presented by Dr. Agustin Molina, Jr. of the
International Network for the Improvement of Banana
and Plantain (INIBAP) before the Bureau of Agricultural
Research (BAR) in a consultation meeting held on 10
January 2001. The project, dubbed as Introduction, Evaluation
and Adoption of Improved Superior Land Races of Banana
for Food and Income Alleviation, aims to boost the Philippine
banana industry through increased availability of improved
high-yielding and disease- resistant varieties of banana
such as land races. Land races are primitive banana
cultivars from other countries that have been identified
as superior varieties that posses desirable characteristics.
Encapsulating this goal is a plan of establishing
a germplasm center or a National Repository Center for
banana farmers as part of an integrated banana production
development strategy. This is has been a turning point
for the small-scale banana growers who have been largely
neglected in terms of research and development in the
past decades.
Dr. Molina reiterated that the establishment
of an improved germplasm center is a short- cut to a
long, tedious and expensive national banana breeding
program.
As the key player of the project, INIBAP
will be providing certified in vitro plantlets which
will serve as foundation stock for further multiplication
of disease-free planting materials using either tissue
culture or nursery-based mass propagation technique.
Once the identified banana hybrids have been tested,
they will be disseminated to our local farmers.
During the consultation meeting, BAR Director
Eliseo Ponce recommended the Bureau of Plant Industry
(BPI) in Davao City to take the lead in conceptualizing
the implementation of the project, which include material
transfer, training, and technical assistance.
Dr. Ponce added that the support fund
for the INIBAP proposed project will fall under the
Philippine contribution to the Consultative Group on
International Agricultural Research Center (CGIAR) restricted
fund.
Also present in the meeting were Dr. Violeta
Villegas of the Institute of Plant Breeding (IPB), Dr.
Hernani Golez of BPI- National Mango Research and Development
Center (NMRDC), Dr. Rene Rafael Espino of the Banana
RDE Network and BAR Public and International Relations
Division (PIRD) staff. 
January 1-15 2001 Articles: ::
Panganiban is new DA secretary
::
BAR to hold strategic planning workshop
::
DA R&D management committee created
::
SGP-NSC and CGEF board strategize plans for 2001
::
INIBAP project to benefit Filipino banana farmers
::
Fruits program area research planning and prioritization: a background analysis
::
BAR's research management info center soon to rise
::: More January 2001 articles :::
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