Using agrobiodiversity to support resilience of Pacific SIDs to climate change and disasters

CAPACITY BUILDING WORKSHOP: Building Climate Resilience Agriculture in Pacific SIDS

11-13 August 2016, Nadi Fiji

Mission

“ To work for the well-being of Pacific people through the effective and innovative application of science and knowledge, guided by a deep understanding of Pacific island contexts and culture”

SPC works across more than 25 sectors using multidisciplinary approach contributing to achieving. DEVELOPMENT GOALS 1.Pacific people benefit from sustainable economic development 2. Pacific communities are empowered and resilient 3. Pacific people reach their potential and live long and healthy lives

SPC Strategic Plan, 2016 – 2020 …

• Water & food insecurity • Inequity in gender & wealth, youth unemployment, shortage

of skilled labor • Access to high quality education for all children • High prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) • Increased population sizes and urbanization • Market demands for few selected varieties • Climate change • Natural disasters on the increase • Environmental degradation • New emerging pest and diseases eg phytoplasm in coconut,

banana fusarium wilt race 4, zika etc • Scarce resources especially in atoll countries

Ongoing Challenges ….

Overall GOAL: To support Pacific countries in their agricultural and forestry development by conserving important genetic resources; and to provide access to the diversity they need, when they need it.

Genebanks established by SPC to address some of these challenges….

1. Centre for Pacific Crops and Trees (CePaCT) in 1998 (then RGC) – mainly root crops

2. Pacific Islands Tree Seed Centre, in 2011 (top floor)

Two plant genebanks established at SPC, Fiji to address some of these challenges….

Opened in Sept 2009, occupied in March 2010, based in Narere around Suva, Fiji

3. Genebanks - Niue, Fiji , Cook Is

Animal genetics genebanks established in countries to address some of these challenges….

1. CePaCT core activities ….

• > 60,000 plantlets

• > 45 countries including Europe, Africa, Caribbean and Asia (under SPC EU International Network for Edible Aroids (INEA) project)

• Major crops distributed – bananas, breadfruit, cassava, potato, sweet potatoes, taro and yams

• Accompanied by FAO Standard Material Transfer Agreements after June 2009 (Annex 1 material on the FAO Treaty multilateral system genepool)

CePaCT distribution since 2005….

OUTSIDE-PACIFIC

REGION (mainly taro (C.esculenta)

Belgium, Burkina Faso, Costa Rica, Cuba, Ghana, India, Indonesia, Kenya, Madagascar, Nicaragua, Nigeria, Philippines, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago, Germany, Portugal, Cameroon, Haiti, US, Bangladesh, Congo, Mauritius, Jamaica, St Vincent, Dominic Republic, Comoros

Countries received materials from CePaCT…

PACIFIC REGION American Samoa, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Guam, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Norfolk Is, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Pitcairn Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vanuatu, and Wallis and Futuna

What CePaCT can offer to countries and require funding support ….

Climate resilient crop varieties: • tolerant to drought,

salt and waterlogging conditions

What CePaCT can offer to countries and require funding support ….

Disease resilient crop varieties: • tolerant to taro leaf

blight disease, banana panama disease (fungal – fusarium wilt race 4) & black leaf streak

Photo: Taiwan Banana Institute

What CePaCT can offer to countries and require funding support ….

Nutrient rich crop varieties for improved health: • Sweet pineapple,

purple and orange flesh sweet potato, yellow taro

Photo: D.Varin

Photo: UH

Photo: T.Douglas

What CePaCT can offer to countries and require funding support ….

Commercial varieties to support livelihood/trade security: • Potato (sequoia and

red pontiac), ginger (budreim), formosana banana, beaurgard sweet potato

Photo: D.Varin

Photo: UH

• Focus mainly on forestry and tree seeds only

• Activities

1. Safe exchange of high quality seeds of priority tree species between countries using MTA; only 6 countries (PNG, Fiji, Samoa, Vanuatu, Tonga and Solomon Islands) have signed to date

2. Research

3. Capacity building/Training

2. Pacific Islands Tree Seed Centre established in 2011….

Common Name

Scientific Name Origin

Mahogany S. macrophylla Honduras

Teak T. grandis Solomon Islands

Caribbean Pine P. Caribaea var. hondurensis Fiji

Vesi Intsia bijuga Fiji

Sandalwood S.yasi Fiji

Sandalwood/Yasi (Fiji)

Pine (Fiji)

Mahogany (Honduras)

Teak (Solomon Is) Vesi (Fiji)

PITSC – some seeds in/were in Cold Storage……

3. Animal genetics activities and services ….

• Livestock inventory characterisation

• Breeding • Multiplication • Conservation, • distribution; and • Promotion/marketing

livestock products

24

Workshops, degree

research, training on

basic tissue culture

methods and source of

information to facilitate

access to resilient crop

diversity

PAPGREN trainings

Carribbean scientists attachment, SPC,2015

SPC supports technical training …

Training of 3 scientists from

Caribbean and PICTs staff

International Breadfruit Symposium,

Trinidad and Tobago, 4 scientists from Fiji,

Samoa, SPC

SPC (eg EU PAPP) supported technical training…

SPC supports technical training …

FORESTRY SERVICES

SPC supports technical training …

SPC partnership with international genebanks

CGIAR genebank centres: African Rice, Bioversity International (Belgium), International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) (Columbia), International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) Nigeria, International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) (Mexico), International Potato Center (CIP) (Peru), International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) (Philippines), World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) etc Non-CGIAR centres: – SPC CePaCT (Fiji, largest global taro in the world), AVRDC (Taiwan) and national genebanks but are part of the global genebank networks

Government agencies

Regional organisations of the Pacific • Forum Fisheries Agency (FFA)

• Pacific Islands Development Programme (PIDP)

• Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (PIFS)

• Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP)

• South Pacific Tourism Organisation (SPTO)

• University of the South Pacific (USP)

• Pacific Power Association (PPA)

• Pacific Aviation Safety Office (PASO)

Others: Pacific Disability Forum

• Development partners (European Union, Government of Australia, New Zealand Government ,GIZ ,USAID

• Private sector organisations, specialist technical and scientific organisations,

• the United Nations family and media organisations

Regional & global partnerships

• SPC Pacific Agricultural Plant Genetic Resources Network (PAPGREN) – facilitating sharing and access of countries to resilient crop diversity

• SPC PIRAS and PAFNET – facilitating research-extension information sharing

• Linking to global networks – CGIARs, EU- INEA, BAPNET, international genebanks etc

• Linking to different donor funded projects and partners – supply of planting materials

Partnership & networking

Thank you/Vinaka