Plantwise going strong in Democratic Republic of Congo
Plantwise has been active in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) since 2006. It has been doing admirable work with the cocoa growers of ESCO Kivu and the “Universite Catholique du Graben” in North Kivu province in the last 5 years. However, since November 2013, the focus has been on getting the central government figures of…
Plantwise in Suriname
Blog post by Shamela Rambadan and Abigail Rumsey In May last year, discussions began with the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Husbandry and Fisheries (LVV) to start up a Plantwise programme in Suriname. By December, 22 plant doctors had completed Module 1 of the Plantwise ‘How to Become a Plant Doctor’ training course. In January 2014,…
Photostory: SDC visits Plantwise Sri Lanka
The story of support from the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) for the Plantwise food security programme goes back to its inception in 2011. Since the start, SDC has been a major supporter of both in-country programme activities as well as global resources such as the Plantwise knowledge bank. Sri Lanka is one…
Who benefits from Plantwise?
As part of our Monitoring and Evaluation within Plantwise, we are identifying indicators both to help us improve the way we operate and also increase accountability to our participants, partners, and donors. As a follow-up to our blog post on International Women’s Day, one of the ways we can improve our current work and set…
Plantwise 2013 Highlights
As we move into the New Year and all that 2014 has to offer it seems like a good time to review some of the achievements of 2013. Here are a few of the Plantwise highlights of 2013!
Plant health system developing well in Zambia
Since the launch of Plantwise in Zambia last year, much progress has been made to build capacity within the national plant health system. In collaboration with the Zambia Agriculture Research Institute (ZARI), CABI staff have successfully trained crop officers and extension staff from the Department of Agriculture, ZARI, and Self Help Africa on ‘how to…
Plantwise on TV: Launch of Makerere University Training in Uganda
Check out this great coverage of Plantwise coming out of Uganda. Working with the University of Makerere, Plantwise is training young plant doctors to answer the increasing demand for plant clinics across all regions. National television station UBC news interviewed CABI’s Joseph Mulema and key partners on this major development for extension and smallholder farmer…
The Hindu covers Plantwise India
National newspaper The Hindu publishes article discussing the positive impact of Plantwise activities in the country. With support of the M.S.Swaminathan Research Foundation, ‘plant doctors are coming to the rescue’ of farmers in India. Read full article here.
Days are numbered for pests in Kenya’s irrigation schemes
Report by Peter Karanja and Abigail Rumsey Between May and July this year, 22 new plant clinics were established in Kenya. Nine of these clinics were launched by the Smallscale Horticulture Development Project (SHDP), which has been funded by the African Development Bank to help smallholder farmers increase the amount that they produce and earn…
Can you guess this plant clinic?
Take a close look at the photo below. Can you guess where in the world this plant clinic is located? It is one of hundreds of clinics, operated by national partners in local markets and meeting places, where farmers can find the plant health advice they need. Click ‘Read more’ for the location answer….