Nairobi, Kenya
October 31, 2007
Source:
ICIPE - African Insect Science
for Food and Health
Farmers in Eastern Africa can now, at the click of a button,
have free access to the most recent, scientifically-based and
region specific information on sustainable methods for the
prevention and control of pests and vectors that are harmful to
humans, animals and plants.
The development comes as a result of an internet platform,
www.infonet-biovision.org, launched today by icipe – African
Insect Science for Food and Health and the Swiss-based BioVision
Foundation with funding from the Principality of Liechtenstein,
through its Government Development Agency.
The site, explained BioVision Chief Executive Officer, Andreas
Schriber, is different from search engines because it is
designed with farmers, and trainers of farmers in mind. “Imagine
a tomato farmer whose crop is invested by a disease. In order to
protect the plants, he needs to identify the disease first. If
he types in “tomato diseases” in one of the general search
engines available on the world wide web (www), the result might
be millions of pages. Most of them will be characterised by
heavy scientific jargon, and the farmer will have a difficult
time sieving through all of them,” he says.
Mr Schriber notes that in contrast,
www.infonet-biovision.org, has collated all the various
possible diseases of tomatoes in the region, and their visual
symptoms, either through photographs or illustrations. “All the
farmer will have to do is identify the picture that most closely
represents the damage on his crop, and he will be guided to
carefully selected and edited methods, tips and strategies, on
how to go the problem.”
This information, emphasises icipe Director General, Prof
Christian Borgemeister, is scientifically accurate, having been
compiled by local and international experts in collaboration
with a network of partner organizations. More importantly, it
incorporates farmers’ perspective.
Currently, explains project leader Monique Hunziker the site
incorporates information on over 40 major pests from those that
affect the production in the farms, such as aphids, to those
that damage the crop while in storage. This material has taken
into consideration more than 35 major crops, vegetables and
fruits grown in East Africa.
“This is a starting point that we are building-up on, adding
more content on a daily basis. We have, for instance, already
started to put together information on soil and water
conservation, natural enemies, on medicinal plants, the
processing and preservation of fruits and vegetables and on
organic farming and plant nutrition,” says Mr Schriber.
In addition, the plan is to integrate information on simple and
environmentally safe technologies and approaches to generate
incomes, and more information on human health (integrated
malaria control) and animal health (i.e. animal keeping, tsetse,
tick control) and many more issues.
icipe and BioVision are aware that for farmers to take advantage
of this initiative, they must at least have access to a
computer, and the ability to use it. Initial field tests of
Infonet, however, show that even for beginners with no computer
knowledge whatsoever, it takes as little as 20 minutes to get
acquainted with the platform.
For farmers who have computers but no internet access there is
an off-line version of Infonet available, downloadable
immediately from the website or available on Compact Discs or
USB flash sticks.
ICIPE – African Insect Science for
Food and Health – was established in 1970 in direct response to
the need for alternative and environmentally friendly pest and
vector management strategies in Africa. Headquartered in
Nairobi, Kenya, icipe is mandated to conduct research and
develop methods that are effective, selective, non-polluting,
non-resistance inducing, and which are affordable to
resource-limited rural and urban communities. icipe’s mandate
further extends to the conservation and utilisation of the rich
insect biodiversity found in Africa.
ICIPE focuses on sustainable development, to include human
health as the basis for development and the environment as the
foundation for sustainability. Working in a holistic and
integrated approach through the 4Hs Paradigm—Human, Animal,
Plant and Environmental Health—icipe aims at improving the
overall health of communities in tropical Africa by addressing
the interlinked problems of poverty, poor health, low
agricultural productivity and degradation of the environment.
ICIPE is the only international institution in Africa working
primarily on arthropods. Consequently capacity building of
individual researchers and institutions in Africa is an integral
part of all research and development activities at icipe; to
empower women, harness the youth and build capacity to use,
transfer and teach icipe’s technologies. In this way, icipe will
continue to work ‘in Africa, for Africa’.
The BioVision Foundation is a non-profit, non-denominational
and politically independent organisation which supports
initiatives towards the sustainable use of natural resources and
the conservation of plant and animal diversity by promoting
ecological thinking and action.
The BioVision Foundation carries out its projects in Switzerland
as well as in developing regions. With icipe as its main partner
in Africa, BioVision currently operates projects in Kenya,
Ethiopia and Tanzania focusing on improving human, animal, plant
and environment health, through the dissemination and
integration of appropriate, ecologically sound methods and
approaches. All of BioVision’s activities are implemented in
partnership with communities, collaboration and linkages with
national and non-governmental institutions with special emphasis
on capacity building. |
|
