Research that works for developing countries and AustraliaIndonesia - Country Office
Country OfficeKey indicators and performance for 2006-07 Indicator: Information from fisheries and soil management projects developed in response to the December 2004 tsunami disaster utilised by other users Performance: Technical information packages in aquatic health, extension methodology, soil chemistry and pond design have been developed and transferred to extension workers, smallholder shrimp farmers, and several donor projects. Work through WorldFish to help small fishers better manage the vulnerable inshore resources being continued with USAID funding. Through cooperation with the local agricultural departments the projects assisted farmers to manage soil constraints affecting rice, peanuts, soybeans and maize) on tsunami-affected land. Indicator: Major agribusiness projects for the beef, fish and vegetable industries initiated Performance: A program of project activities under the Smallholder Agribusiness Development Initiative addressing major investments in beef designed and initiated and in other programs to underpin agribusiness development for shrimp and potato/ vegetable production commenced. Indicator: Project portfolio on avian influenza implemented and coordinated with other Australian and international donor-funded activities Performance: Three major projects on avian influenza in ducks and poultry have commenced and complement support from other donors (especially FAO and AusAID). Indicator: Catch monitoring and assessment data systems routinely utilised for management of tuna and other fisheries of high common interest between Indonesia and Australia Performance: Tuna long-line vessel observer program implemented to supplement ongoing tuna port sampling system. Port sampling established and used to update Indonesian fishery status reports. Indicator: 40 per cent of new projects designed with potential for significant farmer or policymaker impacts within five years of completion Performance: Nine of fifteen full projects and four Small Research Activities agreed to meet this designation. Achievements from the 2006-07 Annual Report Collaborative research on crop and livestock diseases is a major emphasis of the ACIAR-Indonesia collaboration, both because of direct impacts on production but also because of the need to contain biosecurity threats. Huanglongbing (also known as citrus greening) is a severe problem for growers throughout Asia. In Indonesia, scientists have confirmed that a psyllid insect transmits the causative proteobacterium from plant to plant, and they have made progress in understanding how to control greening, especially through the application of mineral oil sprays.
Rapid expansion of cocoa production in the outer eastern provinces of Indonesia has led to the involvement of 400,000 smallholders. Indonesia is now the world’s third largest exporter of cocoa, but the industry in South and East Sulawesi is afflicted by conditions such as cocoa pod borer, phytophthora pod rot and vascular streak dieback. A second phase of a major project, in collaboration with Indonesian industry, provincial and national government and other donors is helping to build capability to collect, maintain and identify pest and disease resistance in different lines of cocoa, and also how to determine which have the best quality characteristics. In northern Sulawesi, cloves, vanilla, sago and maize (all important domestic or export crops) suffer from what appear to be soilborne fungal diseases. Progress had been made in understanding disease management strategies for vanilla stem and root rot, along with the epidemiology of clove decline, by studying the dissemination of the fungus pathogen in the soil and the insects associated with plants affected by clove decline. Infectious bursal disease in commercial poultry is an ongoing cause of deaths, reduced productivity and immunodeficiency. Current vaccines provide inadequate protection against the more virulent strains found in Indonesia. A vaccine derived from local isolates of the virus has been shown to provide effective immunity and are in the process of transfer to commercial partners.
Sustainable utilisation and management of forestry resources is a significant areas of ACIAR involvement. In a project studying community partnerships for plantation forestry a survey of current and potential marketing channels for sawn logs revealed a wide variety of partnership arrangements for commercial forestry, generating a mix of outcomes for growers, companies and government agencies. The project found that a high level of social cohesion in farmer forest groups was a critical requirement for improving their returns from forestry. One project that has been running for 4 years in eastern Indonesia is studying better use of cassava. This hardy root is an important crop in Indonesia, supplying food for humans and livestock, but in the past decade the country has moved from net exporter to net importer. A collaboration involving the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) is testing high-yielding varieties of cassava for their suitability in different regions of Indonesia as well as in East Timor. Many farmers have welcomed the opportunity to trial some of the high-yielding lines on their own farms. Other project work is helping smallholder farmers in eastern Indonesia to develop, test and apply tools and knowledge-sharing techniques to improve Bali cattle production. The work has involved a multi-disciplinary team comprising forage, livestock, farming systems scientists, social scientists and economists from both Indonesia and Australia. They have sourced benchmarking information from a combination of historical village records, interviews with both farmer groups and individual farmers, and the ‘expert-knowledge’ of staff from the collaborating extension and development agencies. All this information has been supplied at farmer workshops, giving participants access to better options for their livestock production. Efforts are under way to increase growth of weaned Bali calves. Researchers undertook feeding experiments at several study sites, and local farmers had the opportunity to visit and view the experimental activities. During the visits they were interviewed to determine their current practices and their perceptions of the experimental treatments and results. On completion of the feeding studies the team will conduct an economic analysis and also demonstrate best-bet options on-farm that will lead to optimal growth rates of the weaned calves. Cost effective vaccines against Jembrana disease in Bali cattle are being developed with a commercial partner and in partnership with the Government of Indonesia. ACIAR’s Indonesia program has addressed policy options for Indonesian agribusiness. In one project, officers in the Indonesian Ministry of Agriculture (MOA) are receiving training in detailed trade analysis of global markets. Their training has implications for Indonesian agri-business companies, who will benefit with help from the MOA officers to analyse export markets and develop new export strategies. Longstanding joint research efforts to better understand the fishery characteristics and related resource status of commercially important shared fish stocks between Indonesia and Australia continued, with the study on sharks and rays drawing to a close and amongst its many achievements has been the publication of a well received illustrated guide to the commercially important shark and ray species in Indonesian waters (Box 2). Research on tuna is now in its third year, with the tuna long-line fishery observer program functioning well and the country fishery status report in draft form. In a focus on better planning for more productive smallholder aquaculture, a project involving the Australian Institute of Marine Sciences and partner laboratories in Bali and South Sulawesi is studying water quality parameters and chemical composition of the sediments in the vicinity of experimental sea cages, which are part of a lucrative industry providing income for coastal communities throughout the tropics of Asia. A parallel project with the same partner agency in South Sulawesi, the Research Institute for Coastal Aquaculture and involving the University of New South Wales is developing simple mapping and planning tools to guide land use decision making regarding aquaculture developments in coastal areas, by farmers themselves, and at local and National policy levels. The geographical coverage of both projects has recently been extended to include more intensive aquaculture sites in Lampung, South Sumatra. ACIAR has an ongoing commitment to help restore agriculture and fisheries in the regions affected by the Boxing Day 2004 tsunami. The tsunami destroyed or severely damaged more than half of the province’s brackishwater aquaculture ponds (‘tambaks’). A project to build technical capacity and support research for the reconstruction of tsunami-affected, tambaks in Aceh has delivered regular technical training workshops covering soil assessment, soil remediation, pond and canal engineering and pond management. ACIAR and the AusAID-funded Australia-Indonesia Partnership (AIP) are also cooperating on the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the Regional Brackishwater Aquaculture Development Centre at Ujung Batee, the technology development and extension centre for aquaculture in northern Sumatra that suffered extensive damage in the tsunami. Another fisheries project, collaborating with the WorldFish Centre, has undertaken a community needs assessment and surveyed the fisheries resource status in Aceh. Evidence of unsustainable fishing practices and over-fishing were already threatening fisheries pre-tsunami, and this is an opportunity to introduce the concepts of long-term sustainability to coastal communities. During the year projects also commenced to lift productivity of tsunami-affected soils. One project confirmed that high salinity of water in the root zone or rice bay is a widespread and persistent production problem. Timely assessments of soil salinity using methods tested in this project can prevent waste of effort and inputs by avoiding establishment of crops in areas which are still too saline, and indicate when it is appropriate to introduce specific practices to alleviate salinity. The project has trained research and extension staff in a rapid field method to assess soil salinity in relation to crop performance. Soil mapping has identified acid sulfate soils and sandy textured soils as the principal limiting factors for reconstruction. The mapping work in Aceh revealed that approximately 470,000 ha of coastal sediments could be classed as acid sulfate soils. Tidal conditions are also an important factor and require site-specific assessment. Soil remediation methods developed under an earlier project can be applied to the acid sulfate soil problems in Aceh, but there are no easy solutions for the sandy soils. Case Study - Smallholder Agribusiness Development Initiative (SADI): ACIAR’s role SADI, a 10-year program with an initial funding commitment from the Australian Government of $38 m for the July 2006 – December 2009 period, aims to improve rural sector productivity and growth in four eastern provinces. It will improve incomes and productivity for farmers and agribusiness in response to market opportunities, through a process that is underpinned by improved adaptive R&D capacity. It comprises three subprograms, each of which also build on existing activities in Indonesia:
The purpose of the ACIAR-SADI subprogram is to develop strengthened province-based agricultural R&D capacity that is market- and client-driven and to effectively transfer knowledge to end users. A feature of this subprogram is its integration with other subprograms on enhanced smallholder production and marketing and strengthened private sector agribusiness development. In its first year, significant progress was made. Project offices were established in Makassar and Bogor, and international and Indonesian research and support staff appointed. Priorities for research investment were identified through workshops of industry, farmer groups, government and researchers held in each of the four partner provinces in November 2006, and through institutional and market assessments. ACIAR-SADI is focussing on areas that build on provincial experience in a product but allow the development of profitable and sustainable supply chains. Over 20 technical and market analyses have been designed to identify researchable issues and impact pathways, and over a dozen, focussing on fruit, vegetables, estate and field crops and some aquaculture products have been completed. The first group of collaborative R&D projects have been designed and implemented. Initial field consultation was completed for a second ACIAR-SADI component, which aims to establish improved linkages and more effective knowledge transfer processes between R&D providers and extension providers. New extension media and methods to assist in dissemination of R&D outcomes will be piloted in the field. A final component, focuses on institutional development, and will assist with the development of optimal R&D planning and budget allocation policies and procedures, assist in human resources development and upgrade infrastructure and equipment. In-depth institutional and information technology assessments were conducted centrally and the Assessment Institutes for Agricultural Technology in each of the four partner provinces. A number of training activities were conducted, including a two week study tour of Australia for senior managers. This exposed the group to current Australian best practice in research priority setting and funding, and the role of industry, farmers and inter-institutional collaboration in delivering targeted and relevant research outputs. Case Study - Surprising diversity revealed in shark and ray survey During the past 50 years, Indonesia’s extraordinary shark and ray diversity has developed into a critical commercial commodity for many millions of people throughout the archipelago. One key factor has driven the massive growth in the exploitation of sharks in this region, as it has elsewhere in the world—escalating demand from China for shark fins. Almost all species are targets and large dried fins can attract as much as US$1500 each in Hong Kong. Before Australian fisheries biologist Dr William White visited Indonesia, he thought that gathering information about the sharks and rays caught by local fishermen would be a reasonably straightforward task. But in his first forays into Indonesia’s fish markets he quickly realised that here was an array of species that didn’t fit with current knowledge. At the time he was working on an ACIAR project, exploring artisanal shark and ray fisheries—traditional operations run along subsistence lines—in eastern Indonesia. The project recorded sharks and rays of sizes and in locations that were not expected, and found species that turned out to be new to science. The work has grown into the most extensive biological and taxonomic investigation of Indonesian sharks and rays ever undertaken, a collaborative effort that ultimately involved scientists from CSIRO, Murdoch University and Indonesia’s Institute of Sciences and Research Centre for Capture Fisheries. Dr White and his Indonesian colleagues trained local people in rudimentary aspects of shark and ray biology and taxonomy and, with their help, documented more than 40,000 individual sharks and rays from 14 fish landing sites and markets across Indonesia’s east. Basic biological data, such as size and sex, were recorded for almost half of these. At least 20 new shark and ray species were discovered, and in late 2006 ACIAR released a bilingual book, Economically important sharks and rays of Indonesia, based on the project’s findings. It will radically expand global awareness of Indonesia’s sharks and rays, and is seen as a critical tool for further research into commercial fish stocks of interest to Indonesia and Australia.
As well as Dr White’s study, Professor Malcolm Tull from Murdoch University has led a team to gain a better understanding of the socioeconomic issues surrounding eastern Indonesia’s artisanal shark and ray fisheries. The work so far has enabled Professor Tull and his colleagues to prepare advice on policy and management strategies to support more sustainable economic activity for the region’s small fishermen. |
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