Regional Centre for Banana and Plantain Research

Regional Centre for Banana and PIantain Research The Regional Centre for Banana and Plantain Research (CRBP) concentrates its activities on the problems facing banana production for local consumption. The Centre, which is based in Njombe, southeast of Douala, Cameroon, was established in 1989 by the Cameroon Ministry of Scientific and Technical Research and CIRAD. Its regional mandate is based on cooperation agreements between the Burundi Institute of Agricultural and Animal Research (IRAZ), the Agricultural Research Institute of the Central African Republic (ICRA) and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA). Agreements for scientific collaboration also exist with Guinea, Ghana and Congo. In addition to research and training, the Centre also supports development organizations within the framework of agreements made at national and regional level, with Gabon, Congo, Chad and Equatorial Guinea. There are three objectives to CRBP's regional, scientific cooperation: improving production systems and adapting itinerant farming practices in order to encourage settled and more intensive crop production; transfering the results to users, through agricultural extension and training services including the distribution of new and improved plant material, technological packages especially adapted for small-scale farmers, and the study of the economics of agricultural production and processing; and training of national scientists, and those responsible for extension and development. The Centre's three research programmes are: to improve varieties of plantains and bananas for local consumption relying principally on biotechnology, and including the study of post harvest techniques to evaluate the storage and processing quality of the fruit; to develop strategies for the control of pests and diseases, particularly fungal diseases, fruit rot, nematodes and weevils; and to improve and develop production and marketing systems for plantains. In addition to its annual reports on scientific activities, regional cooperation and development, CRBP has published 150 reports since 1993 on the experiments and field trials conducted by its scientists. There is also a comprehensive series of documents for development workers presenting the results of research in the form of information sheets: technical information on cultivation of plantains and 'dessert, bananas extension advice for plantains information sheets describing 250 different varieties and hybrids kept at CRBP. The Centre also produces a bi-monthly publication about its activities, and a monthly magazine, Plantainfo, about plantain production, marketing and consumption in Cameroon. All these publications are available without charge upon application to CRBP. Centre Regional de Recherche sur Bananiers et Plantains /CRBP/ BP 382, Douala, CAMEROON Tel: (237) 42 60 52 - Fax: (237) 42 57 86 Njombe Research Centre Tel: (237) 42 71 20Regional Centre for Banana and PIantain ResearchThe Regional Centre for Banana and Plantain Research (CRBP) concentrates its activities on the problems facing bananaproduction for local consumption. The Centre, which is based in Njombe, southeast of..