Call for holistic approach to combat Black Sigatoka

The effects of Black Sigatoka on a banana field
The effects of Black Sigatoka on a banana field

Acting Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Agriculture, Dr. Eisenhower Douglas, has said that a holistic approach must be adopted to effectively manage Black Sigatoka in Dominica.

“We need to conquer the challenges in the laboratory, as well as the challenges in the field, we need the cooperation of the farming community, we need to work hand in hand with them, because if the farmers are successful the Ministry of Agriculture is successful” Dr. Douglas said.

He was speaking during the opening ceremony of a workshop on Fungicides and Fungicides Resistance in Banana plants sponsored by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) at the Garraway Hotel on Monday.

He said further that, “The Ministry of Agriculture is there to serve the farmers, it’s there to help them and I want the farmers of this country be aware of that.”

He is suggesting that the island should focus not only solely on managing the disease but its eradication. “We really want to eradicate the disease, so that the potential of the banana and plantain sub sector is able to reach their maximum” he said.

During the workshop two technicians each from Dominica, St Lucia, Grenada, Guyana and St Vincent and the Grenadines will be trained in upgrading their capacity in fungicide application.

The workshop will also build laboratory capacity which will aid in the management of the Black Sigatoka.

Senior Plant Pathologist from the Ministry of Agriculture in Cuba, Dr. Luis Perez- Vicente, an experienced scientist is in Dominica to facilitate the week-long workshop.

The workshop will end a year of FAO supported activities in response to requests for assistance from countries affected by the disease.

Last year, the FAO provided an expert from Cuba to conduct an assessment of management efforts in each country and identify areas for improvement.

Out of these assessments, each country produced a management plan and an action plan.

A regional plan was also compiled in conjunction with the CARICOM Secretariat and other partners.

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8 Comments

  1. Anonymous
    June 19, 2013

    Someone on DNO mentioned words to the effect to start back fresh again. Meaning to cut down ALL banana /plantain plantations and come fresh. Actually not a bad idea. Australia, the only country to have irradicated BS decided to take a chance on that route. End result, total irradication of BS in Australia. But again it will come at a financial cost to both the govt and private sector (banana companies and farmers). Maybe some of the BAM money could be used to develop a compensation package for affected producers. By all means managing that disease is not cheap and in the long term it might well be more economical to do just that and cut down ALL banana/plantain fields and come start fresh again. But trust us, it is by no means an easy way out!!!

  2. HardlyLonger
    June 18, 2013

    SquarePEG in rounded-hole. Nothing new to the ears.

  3. Farmer's son
    June 18, 2013

    According to the article above,’Last year, the FAO provided an expert from Cuba to conduct an assessment of management efforts in each country and identify areas for improvement.

    Out of these assessments, each country produced a management plan and an action plan.’

    Questions:
    Was the management plan prepared by Dominica in response to the FAO assessment, made available to the farmers and other participants in the banana industry?
    Has the Ministry of Agriculture provided the frontline staff with the resources needed to carry out the management program?

  4. Rastafari
    June 18, 2013

    There’s no way out of this dead zone. It was by design that we now experience these famines. After using Mocap and Gramozone for way too long…well what do you expect to come out of it? See for yourself:

    ethoprop (Mocap) Chemical Fact Sheet 6/83
    MOCAP:
    SCIENCE FINDINGS
    Chemical Characteristics

    – Ethoprop is a clear yellow-tinted liquid with a strong mercaptan odor.
    The empirical formula is C8H1902PS2, and the molecular weight is
    242.307. The boiling point is 86-91 degrees C at 0.2 mmHg. Ethoprop
    is soluble in water to 750 ppm and soluble in most organic solvents.

    Physiological and Biochemical Behavioral Characteristics

    – Metabolism and persistence in plants and animals: Ethoprop in bean
    and corn plants is metabolized by hydrolysis following uptake from
    the soil. The metabolites identified are ethyl propyl sulfide,
    propyl disulfide, ethyl propyl sulfoxide, and water soluble high-
    boiling phosphoric acids and/or their salts. The only residue of
    toxicological concern is the parent compound.
    —————————————-

    Gramoxone (Paraquat)

    Paraquat is the trade name for N,N′-dimethyl-4,4′-bipyridinium dichloride, one of the most widely used herbicides in the world. Paraquat, a viologen, is quick-acting and non-selective, killing green plant tissue on contact. It is also toxic to human beings and animals. Research has shown that it is linked to development of Parkinson’s disease.

    Although first synthesized in 1882, paraquat’s herbicidal properties were not recognized until 1955. Paraquat was first manufactured and sold by ICI in early 1962, and is today among the most commonly used herbicides.

    The European Union approved the use of paraquat in 2004. Subsequently Sweden, supported by Denmark, Austria, and Finland, brought the European Union commission to court. In 2007, the court annulled the directive authorizing paraquat as an active plant protection substance.

  5. Truth be told
    June 18, 2013

    Mr Douglas what is the government’s response to Coordinator of Black Sigatoka Disease Management Unit in Dominica, Carol Abraham, who said that (if I may quote DNO) “the biggest challenge facing the island as it battles the deadly plant disease is financial constraints. While speaking at the opening ceremony of a week long Regional Workshop on Fungicides and Fungicide Resistance in Banana on Monday, Abraham pointed out that cuts made to the budgets presented to the unit by the Ministry of Agriculture are now posing a major challenge.
    “Like Grenada we face financial challenges,” she said. “Although we prepare a budget and present it to the Ministry, we are not necessarily going to get what we ask for and that poses a problem…” So what do you say to Abraham, Mr Douglas? Will the Unit get what they asked for in order to deal with the problem?

  6. Mangoes
    June 18, 2013

    This is a Major plague in Dominica..if you go around the island you will see the effects on the Banana and Plantain crops….

    That’s is disaster, folks need to stop turning a blind eye. serious times for survival…

    the way forward…kick the labour regime out, re claim the Villas, sell them to Bill Gates or a Top Class investor, monies will help fund the eradication process, and other investments and transactions that are illegal in terms of recovering monies in personal bank accounts from the illegal sale of dominican passports in the middles east and other places on this globe.

    that would surely re vamp the agricultural sector gaining value for transparent motives…

  7. me
    June 18, 2013

    drive from Roseau through castle bruce down to Portsmouth and count the abandon banana farms and tell me if we are serious about our work or just our pay

    • Jahknow
      June 18, 2013

      I agree the abandoned plantations can only serve as a source of inoculum for the fungus. So no matter what you do to control this disease on the managed plantations it will be futile.

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