FOOD CROPS RESEARCH

DOA will implement the project with USAID and Peace Corps technical assistance. Long-term, on-the-job technical training will be provided to DOA personnel in horticulture, plant pathology, and soil science at Grand Anse Agricultural Research Center (GAC) and the Farmer Training Center (FTC) and on state farms and farmers" settlement plots. To supplement this training, short-term U.S. training will be provided for four DOA technicians in plant pathology and protection; plant pathology laboratory techniques; and soil science; and to the Pest and Disease Control Officer in advanced plant quarantine. Short-term, third-country training will be provided for one plant quarantine assistant and for GAC"s chief research officer in horticulture, research methodology, and research station familiarization. A joint plant pathology-soils analysis laboratory will be set up at GAC to identify plant pathogens and to develop control methods. Plant protection methods to be researched include foliar protection and reflective polyethylene strips. Standard laboratory equipment easily obtainable in the tropics and reparable locally will be provided. To determine high-yielding and disease- and pest-resistant food crop varieties, some 200 crops will be tested at GAC. Of these, 40 will be further tested on selected small farms and at FTC. Ten tested varieties will be made available through extension services to all Seychelles farmers, including FTC students. Using improved food crop varieties, five improved farming practices (e.g., erosion control, intercropping) and fertilization methods (e.g., composting) will be demonstrated to Seychelles farmers for onfarm use. To expand MOA research outreach, GOS will host a conference to share research results with other Indian Ocean countries, and DOA officers will attend international conferences, subscribe to technical periodicals, and conduct joint research with a U.S. university.