THE survival of any crop, experts say, depends on maintenance and development of its genes.
According to Biosciences for Farming in
Africa (B4FA), a not-for-profit initiative with no commercial interests
set to raise the level of awareness and understanding of the potential
for
traditional and modern genetic techniques in improving agriculture,
gene banks are repositories where biological material is collected,
stored, catalogued and made available for redistribution.
The main role of plant gene banks is to
preserve genetic diversity in the form of seeds or cuttings in the case
of plants reproduced and subsequently make this material together with
associated information, available for future use in research and plant
breeding.
However, according to available
information, Tanzania is not only proud of having been the world’s
number one sisal producer back in the 1960s, it also boasts of being the
home of the only sisal gene bank in the world.
Located at the Agricultural Research
Institute at Mlingano in Muheza District, just a stone’s throw from
Mkanyageni village on the Tanga-Dar-Arusha highway, the gene bank was
established 15 years ago and currently has close to 80 sisal plant
genes.
The gene bank, however, is in danger of
losing some of its sisal genes if measures to restore or establish a new
gene bank are not taken as a matter of priority.
According to information made available
from the institute, the gene bank could lose some of the genes because
some of the plants are not flowering or producing suckers that could be
used for propagation of the genes.
“There is an urgent need now to
establish a new gene bank, which will have a modern and more
professional outlook that would have more sisal plants,” a researcher at
Mlingano ARI, Gedson Mkorongwe, says.
The institute needs USD 18,071.7 for
establishing a new gene bank out of which USD 14,000 would be used for
collecting various types of plant genes. Sisal research in Tanzania
started at Amani in Muheza District in 1930.
In 1934 all research activities were
transferred to Mlingano where the climate was ideal for sisal farming.
Records show the research centre was established by the Tanzania Sisal
Growers Association for collection, care of genes, breeding of improved
sisal plant types and providing technology and extension services to
sisal farmers under a Sisal Research Programme, which is the oldest
scheme at Mlingano ARI.
Main sections falling under the sisal
research programme include sisal breeding, agronomy, plant protection
and sisal tissue culture laboratory. The main activities of the
programme, therefore, include breeding and evaluation of high yielding
sisal varieties, propagation of sisal varieties by tissue culture,
developing improved agronomic practices as well as pest and disease
control practices for sisal.
Other activities provided by the
programme involve providing technical backstopping (advisory services)
to the sisal industry, training of sisal stakeholders and on-farm
demonstration.
According to Mkongorowe, financing of
sisal research has not been consistent after the fall of the sisal mar
kets in the 1970s which had a negative impact on research cost
contributions from the TSGA.
Despite a resolve by the Sisal
Association of Tanzania (SAT) for members to contribute towards its
running costs, the response has been quite unsatisfactory. A Sisal
Development Fund that was launched with the aim of becoming the main
financing organ of the center has been able to attract much from SAT
members.
Sisal research now depends on government
financing but financing is not enough in accordance with research
requirements for improving the crop. Last year’s meeting of sisal
stakeholders resolved to urge members to ‘review’ their decisions and
contribute towards the fund to enable it finance sisal research.
Chief Executive Officer of the
Tanga-based Sisal Company, Katani Limited, Salum Shamte, urged fellow
SAT members to honour their pledges to the Sisal Development Fund to
enable it support research activities which he termed as critical to the
survival of the crop.
Participants to the Tanga meeting called
for a review of the procedures for managing the Fund and push the
government to introduce a legislation that would force stakeholders to
contribute towards the fund.“Without
some kind of force, the fund’s success would be a dream. The fund must
be established through legislation,” Shamte said.
It
was revealed during the meeting that since the fund was established a
few years ago, it has only managed to collect 3m/-. Tanga Regional
Administrative Secretary, Eng. Zena Said, urged sisal stakeholders to
create other means of col lecting funds to strengthen the crop. “There
has been renewed interest in sisal farming following extensive research.
The
critical role of the gene bank is to make this renewed interest become a
positive attribute. The new gene bank would deal with such activities
as conducting a countrywide survey with the aim of collecting all types
of sisal not found at the current gene bank.
Proposals suggested by the centre include conducting surveys in sisal
estates in Kenya to collect sisal plants which are not found in Tanzania
and caring genes that do not produce stalks. The institute has been in
the forefront of sisal crop development.
One
of the most notable releases by the institute has been the improved
sisal variety H.11648 is responsible which the highest harvest record
achieved by Tanzania of 230,000 tons in 1966.
Other
notable releases are use of Sisal waste manure, weed control
technology, sisal planting and husbandry in the field, improved sisal
cutting, sisal legume intercropping, breeding through the laboratory and
nursery, use of fertilisers for planting such as Agricultural lime,
TSP, NPK and sisal plant growth (CAN, MOP).
Others are organic and chemical control of pests and diseases, use of improved and low priced machines for smallholder farmers.
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