East Timor - Achievements

Achievements

Key indicators and performance for 2007-08

Indicator: At least four demand-driven small projects commissioned to leading agricultural researchers

Performance: Seven projects have been commissioned, addressing farming systems analysis, beef marketing, alley cropping, cattle reproduction, pasture composition, rice and maize seed systems, and socio-cultural aspects of crop production.

Indicator: On-going success in the implementation of jointly-funded ACIAR–AusAID Seeds of Life 2 program in close partnership with Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries

Performance: New high-yielding varieties have a high level of adoption with farming families. Beyond germplasm, the Seeds Of Life 2 program interacts closely with the Ministry of Agriculture Forestry and Fisheries on broader issues including national crop variety and seed legislation.

Achievements from the 2007-08 Annual Report

Seeds of Life 2 (SoL2) activities included evaluation of new germplasm and associated technologies. All five CGIAR centres collaborating with SoL (CIAT, IRRI, CIMMYT, ICRISAT, CIP) have provided well-adapted breeding lines and varieties of maize, cassava, sweet potato, rice, peanut and pigeon pea for evaluation between 2006 and 2008. Replicated variety trials for maize, peanuts, sweet potato, and cassava were installed at four sites together with rice at two sites (a total of 18 replicated trials). Collection of local varieties of the main food crops commenced after a two-week training course on germplasm collection in April 2008. It is expected that at least 100 varieties each of rice and peanuts will be collected at the end of the growing season.

Up to 80 per cent of the population remains dependent on agriculture but limited capacity is hampering ongoing development. Boosting both production and capacity in East Timor, however, is difficult, as it needs to be undertaken on a small scale. A project is attempting this by investing in small projects that link East Timorese researchers with local agricultural producers. Australian experts are acting as mentors, providing research and project management knowledge and other information to support project development and implementation. The first group of projects have proceeded satisfactorily and their outcomes were reported at the third National Agricultural workshop conducted at Hera in November 2007. At that workshop, working groups established research needs and priorities for a second round of projects. The suggested topics were developed into proposals and presented to the Project Steering Committee in March 2008 for funding.

In other work, Chromolaena odorata, a major invasive weed which is toxic to livestock, has invaded pastures, crop gardens and other areas in East Timor, causing significant livestock losses. Goats, cattle and buffaloes been particularly affected. A project is introducing biological control agents against Chromolaena that have already been successfully introduced in PNG and Indonesia. In the past year the project collaborators have actively progressed the project by releasing Cecidochares connexa (gall fly) at numerous sites throughout the country. In April 2008, galls of C. connexa were observed 21 km along the road from the Baucau Airport site where gall flies were released in March 2005. Field surveys in the enclave district of Oecusse in July 2007 revealed that galls had become established in all four subdistricts of Oecusse by natural spread from West Timor, Indonesia, where gall flies were released approximately 10 years ago. Local communities have already reported stunting and a reduction in health of local stands of Chromolaena where C. connexa has become established. Efforts are also continuing against the invasive Mimosa diplotricha. A nursery at Hera has reared large numbers of a psyllid insect which feeds on the mimosa and there has been a wide-scale release of the psyllid into mimosa infestations.