| Popis: |
Cassava has been an important success story in Africa's developing agriculture over the past decade. The crop's inherei'lt capacity to cope with marginal growing conditions and unpredictable rainfall, coupled with determined efforts of a number of countries to move away from over-reliance on maize, have helped establish it as the continent's number one crop in terms of total fresh production. The hope provided by these gains is now threatened, however, by the devastating impact of the virus diseases, cassava mosaic and cassava brown streak. Both have been known for many years, but seem to be becoming increasingly damaging, and pose an ever greater threat to the livelihoods of the millions of Africans who depend on cassava as a food staple. Substantial effort has been directed towards understanding and managing cassava mosaic. By contrast, cassava brown streak disease (CBSD), which has a more limited distribution, and causes most severe damage in the coastal lowlands of Eastern and Southern Africa, has received little attention. In order to address this deficiency, an international workshop was convened at Mombasa, Kenya. This meeting brought together a diverse range of cassava stakeholders with the twin aims of reviewing current research into cassava brown streak and developing a plan to guide future research for development initiatives. The IS papers presented in these proceedings provide a useful and informative summary of the history and current status of CBSD, recent research initiatives and management options for the worst affected countries - Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya and Mozambique. Outputs of the research and on-farm working group sessions are also included. lt is anticipated that this information will serve both as a useful technical resource as well as an essential planning tool for scientists, development workers and others with an interest in the management of CBSD and the development of cassava in Africa. |
