R4D Jamaica

Addressing the impact of preference erosion in bananas on Caribbean countries. A Report for DFID

Tue, 26 May 2009 11:42:00 GMT

Miscellaneous NERA Economic Consulting; Oxford Policy Management 2004 NERA Economic Consulting, London, UK/Oxford Policy Management, Oxford, UK, 133 pp.

This report sets out to assess the impact on the Caribbean of the reform - or tariffication - of the EU Common Organisation of the Market in Bananas (COMB).

Part One of this study, by NERA, examines the impact of different tariff levels on the European market, taking into account:

the competitiveness of the Caribbean
dollar zone production and competitiveness over the next decade
competition from other, mainly African, ACP producers
under different levels of tariff and at different stages in the marketing chain.

Part Two, by OPM, goes on to examine the development options for the Caribbean, picking up the NERA findings on the price impact of different tariff levels on individual countries, in particular:

impacts on the economy, in particular on production, exports and employment
potential strategies in response to changes in the COMB, including:
-improved competitiveness
-exit from banana production and
-diversification
the nature of available development assistance
the arguments for and against additional financing
concluding with recommendations for future aid strategies.

Voices of the Poor in the Current Crises

Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:22:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Hossain, N. 2009 IDS In Focus Policy Briefing 7.3 Institute of Development Studies at the University of Sussex Brighton, UK, 2 pp. This briefing reports on participatory field research undertaken in February 2009 in poor rural and urban communities in Bangladesh, Indonesia, Kenya, Jamaica and Zambia on the impacts and responses to the food, fuel and financial crises. Effects on the local economies, the ways people are coping, the responses and the social impacts are described. The findings indicate that poor communities have been hit hard by high food and fuel prices, while the effects of the global financial crisis are beginning to be felt.

Development Research Centre on Citizenship, Participation and Accountability. Annual Report 2007 - 2008

Tue, 17 Feb 2009 11:28:00 GMT

Miscellaneous 2008 34 pp. This report presents progress towards outputs and impacts for the main areas of the DRC's work: research, building capacities for research and action, communication and policy influence, developing the network and partnerships, and governance and coordination. A lessons learnt section covers the mid-term review, the need for deeper synthesis of research findings, and lessons on partnerships and sustainability.

id21 insights 69. Mobile phones and development: The future in new hands?

Mon, 26 Jan 2009 16:14:00 GMT

Miscellaneous id21 2007 id21 insights 69, IDS, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK, 6 pp. Half the world's 6.5 billion people now use a mobile (up from two billion just two years ago). There are more than twice as many mobile owners in developing countries as in industrialised countries. Subscriber growth rates in developing countries are 25 percent per year and double that in Africa. This issue of id21 includes brief articles on Micro-entrepreneurs in Nigeria, the use of mobile phones to deliver information to Bangladeshi villagers, unequal gender relations in Zambia, mobile banking, and the various impacts of mobile phone use on different groups in Jamaica.

CABI Caribbean & LA regional consultation synthesis report, 3-4 March 2008 Port of Spain, Trinidad

Fri, 12 Sep 2008 13:53:00 GMT

Miscellaneous 2008 CABI, Wallingford, UK, 15 pp.

CABI's programmes are driven by the needs of its Member Countries. To reinforce this connection, CABI has been undertaking a series of direct dialogues with Member Countries in each region of operation. These consultations aim to strengthen understanding of CABI's activities and capabilities in support of international development, and to build close engagement with the regional priorities of Member Countries. These priorities will shape its strategic programmes and establish the particular forms of mutual commitment and financial resourcing required in delivering its mission.

The Caribbean and Latin America Member Country Consultation was the last of the three dialogues. The first, for Africa, was held in Nairobi on 19-20 September 2007 and the second, for the Asia-Pacific region, was held in Beijing on 29-30 November 2007. At the end of each regional consultation, CABI staff and Member Countries started to further develop the mutually agreed areas of work. This work is ongoing. By the time of the Review Conference in 2009, the work in progress is expected to form the basis of CABI's strategic framework for the medium term. Member Countries will be asked to formally endorse this framework at the Conference.

Following the opening presentations the participants formed three regional breakout groups working in parallel to detail national priorities and sub-regional needs:
Group 1: Chile, Colombia, Guyana
Group 2: Trinidad and Tobago, Anguilla, Montserrat
Group 3: Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and Jamaica

The findings of the sub-regional groups were sorted into six areas of work, reflecting the diverse needs of the Caribbean and Latin American region. These comprised

Biofuels and Climate Change
Microbial Collections
Fundraising
Invasive Species Management
Institutional Capacity Building and Knowledge Management
Commodities, Integrated Pest Management/Invasive Species

Making and Unmaking the Young 'Shotta' [Shooter]: Boundaries and (Counter)-Actions in the 'Garrisons'.

Wed, 02 Jul 2008 12:40:00 GMT

Miscellaneous J. Moncrieffe 2008 IDS Working Paper No. 297, Institute of Development Studies, Brighton, UK, 53 pp. This paper comprises a patchwork of conversations and life-stories from two of Jamaica's reputedly violent 'garrison' communities. The stories come from a variety of sources, grandparents to the very young; however, the principal focus is on the children and, specifically, on how some among them - those labelled as 'young shottas' [shooters] are cultivated. Our storytellers expose the effects of deep-rooted economic and social inequalities; the perception that gun violence is a means to personal liberation and 'power', particularly among males; and the concentration of conflict within and across like neighborhoods. There are stories about social conditioning and manhood, the role of families and peers and of how children are forced to grow in contexts where there are little or no opportunities for exit and restricted spaces for change. There are also accounts of how some actual and potential 'shottas' are attempting to contest the physical, material and socio-psychological boundaries within and outside of their immediate communities, through what Hayward (2000) describes as 'action upon boundaries to action'. Notably, contestation does not always comprise those productive social actions that are considered crucial for participation and vibrant citizenship; it is often much more complex, combining non violent and violent actions, 'legal' and 'illegal' measures. It is important to dissect how perceptions, such as of legality and illegality, legitimacy and illegitimacy are framed for the stories indicate that in these communities such concepts can have different meanings and that what is considered indefensible in some areas may be both justified and regarded as normal practice in others. Through these forthright and compelling accounts, readers will be exposed to the routes to and experiences of different citizenships as well as the substantial challenges to transformational change, particularly for the children who were born and cultivated in these particular violent environments.

Improving skilled attendance at delivery: a preliminary report of the SAFE strategy development tool.

Wed, 21 May 2008 10:13:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Bell J, Hussein J, Jentsch B, Scotland G, Bullough C, Graham WJ 2003 Birth, 30(4), 227-234 Background: Increasing the proportion of births with skilled attendance is advocated by international agencies as a key factor in reducing maternal and perinatal mortality and morbidity. The SAFE Strategy Development Tool is designed to enable policy makers and planners to gather and interpret information systematically to develop strategies for improving skilled attendance at birth. Method: Five modules were developed with partners in Bangladesh, Ghana, Jamaica, Malawi, and Mexico to guide the identification of problems related to skilled attendance, the collection of primary and secondary evidence, and the synthesis of this evidence to formulate strategies. The involvement of key players, including policy makers, is emphasized throughout the application of the tool and is vital to its success. Results: The SAFE Strategy Development Tool was field tested in five collaborating countries. The methods employed by this tool were found to be feasible and produced evidence that will be useful in the formulation of strategies. Application of the tool can be completed in 3 to 5 months, and was estimated to cost between US$12,938 and US$15,627 for applications at district or subdistrict level. The final strategy options developed from the findings were presented at an international workshop in Aberdeen, Scotland, in February 2003. Conclusion: The SAFE Strategy Development Tool is now available to governments, organizations, and institutions involved in the implementation of maternal health programmes.

Citizenship DRC Participatory Video Project

Mon, 03 Mar 2008 01:00:00 GMT

Encouraging early results from the Citizenship DRC Participatory Video Project suggest videos are providing new ways for research participants to articulate their views, and promote debate with stakeholders

Teacher Mobility, 'Brain Drain', Labour Markets and Educational Resources in the Commonwealth. Researching the Issues 66

Wed, 16 Jan 2008 11:53:00 GMT

Miscellaneous Morgan, W. J.; Sives, A.; Appleton, S. 2006 Educational Paper No. 66, DFID, London, UK, ISBN 66 1 86192 762 2, 218 pp.

The report builds on the work undertaken by Ochs (published in 2003) which provided useful figures on recruitment of teachers and the experiences of overseas teachers working in the UK and led, at the 15th Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers, to the establishment of a Commonwealth working group to develop a draft protocol on teaching recruitment. The report provides a set of detailed analyses to assist policy development. There are three key themes around which the project was developed. Exploration of these themes led to the development of policy recommendations.

The first aim was to ascertain the extent of international flows of trained teachers. Are certain states losing valuable trained manpower, while others are benefiting disproportionately from the output of other countries? Are these flows offset by significant reverse flows, which may indicate that sending countries benefit from the experience their teachers obtain abroad? How do such flows compare with those in related fields, especially health? Specific figures will enable policy-makers to assess the extent of the problem and to examine benefits and losses.

Secondly, the causes of such flows were examined, exploring the 'push' and 'pull' factors. What are the 'supply side' factors? For example, how do age or gender issues impact on teachers' willingness to migrate? The report also discusses how the recruitment process works in practice. Are recruitment agencies, where they are involved, schools (in both sending and receiving countries) and overseas teachers satisfied with the process and outcomes?

Thirdly, the social consequences of these flows in developing countries were considered. Crucial here are the linkages between migrant teachers and their home country, in terms of remittances, return migration and other effects. It is hypothesised, for instance, that a key social cost of teacher flows to source countries was the cost of training teachers that subsequently migrate. The implications of teacher flows for recruitment shortages and the delivery of education services in source countries was a key objective of the research.

The study focused on four case-study countries within the Commonwealth. These were identified as two 'sending' countries, namely Jamaica and South Africa, two of the most vocal countries at the 15th CCEM, and two 'receiving' countries, namely the United Kingdom (because of devolution, specifically England) and Botswana. This also gave the opportunity of looking at 'South-South' mobility as well as 'South-North' mobility.

Reclamation of saline clay soils.

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Report 1996 A. S. B. Armstrong, E. J. Hughes, D. W. Rycroft, T. W. Tanton, G. R. Pearce, C. L. Abbott. HR Wallingford and University of Southampton - Wallingford and Southampton. 1 898485 03 8 pp. 65 The manual describes the horizontal leaching technique. The procedure is a rapid and practical method that enables land reclamation engineers to restructure clay soils before leaching to remove the soil salts. The applied water and the removed salts are then conveyed away from the area via a drainage network.

The manual has been produced to:

- Assist potential users to assess whether the technique is suitable for their particular salinity problem.

- Provide sufficient technical information for users to implement the method.

The guide takes the user through the four main activities required for the practical application of the horizontal leaching technique:

1) Assessment of site suitability and pilot testing of methodology

2) Site preparation

3) Water application procedures

4) Monitoring and assessment

The manual also contains detailed appendices on relevant issues that must also be considered:

- Soil salinity

- Water and salt movement in clay soils

- Causes of salinity

- Review of clay soil reclamation techniques

- Converting laboratory salinity measurements to plot-scale salt balances

- Estimating soil hydraulic conductivity and machinery specification

- Saline-sodic soils.

Double Standards, Single Purpose - Reforming housing regulations to reduce poverty.

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Book S. Yahya, E. Agevi, L. Lowe, A. Mugova, O. Musandu-Nyamayaro, T. M. Schilderman 2001 For the majority of the urban poor in developing countries, European standards for housing and infrastructure are inappropriate and unaffordable. But what is the alternative? This was the issue addressed by an international research project within ITDG's Shelter Programme, of which this book is the major output. This book provides development workers, planners and decision makers with information and advice on the revision of housing standards at the national, local or project level. The shelter context is described, the particular place of standards, regulations and procedures, as well as current thinking and approaches to their revision. These chapters are based on an international literature survey as well as case studies in a dozen developing countries. The recent revisions of housing standards in Kenya and Zimbabwe are explored in more detail, their origin, the participants involved, their relevance to low-income residents, their impact as well as lessons learned for future reviews. Overriding issues are covered, such as informal enforcement, which emerge from work with low-income residents, the case studies and the literature reviews. Finally, how to get future standards right is examined.

This book costs £14.95 and is available from the ITDG Publishing bookshop website (see download link).

The impact on forest biodiversity of an invasive tree species and the development of methods for its control

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed The recent development of tropical forestry has been associated with the cultivation of exotic tree species in locations outside their natural range. There are now many examples where these exotic species have become naturalized and there is increasing concern that they may pose a threat to the biodiversity of the indigenous vegetation. There is a clear need for research into case studies of such naturalised exotic species to develop a methodology for assessing their impact on biodiversity and determining the best methods for their control. The impact of the Australian tree, Pittosporum undulatum, on the forests of the Blue Mountains of Jamaica is well suited for such a case study. Since its introduction in 1870 it has spread extensively into the natural montane forests but has not yet reached the full extent of its potential range. Therefore, all stages of its impact on the natural forest can be studied. It is a fast growing tree, capable of reaching 25m height in Jamaica and has the ability to grow and reproduce in a wide variety of disturbed and undisturbed environments. 1.)To assess the distribution of Pittosporum undulatum in Jamaica and the impacts that it is having on the biodiversity of the natural forests of the Blue Mountains.
2.)To investigate the ecology and life history.
3.)To investigate the economic role of Pittosporum in Jamaica and analyse the practicability of options for its control, including their environmental and socio-economic benefits, costs, impacts and risks.
4.)To bring together this information into definite management recommendations.
5.)To utilise an invasive woody plant species database to assess the practical implications of existing tree invasions throughout the tropics. Then to make recommendations on the assessment and management of existing invasions and the assessment of the risks associated with future introductions. The project produced an extensively disseminated methodology whereby a specific invasion of montane rain forest in Jamaica by P. undulatum may be managed and controlled, together with general principles to be followed in assessing and managing invasive woody species in the tropics and subtropics worldwide, thus contributing to the conservation of biodiversity in tropical moist forest. A full enumeration has been carried out of all the plots in the main removal experiment. Data analysis is currently under way.

Monitoring of Pittosporum seed production has been started. One hundred trees in gaps and 100 in closed forest are being sampled.

An experiment has been set up to assess the effects of gap formulation on Pittosporum seed germination.

A Pittosporum control experiment has been established with a factorial design. The effects of two physical treatments (cutting and girdling) and arboricide are being tested.

An experiment to test the effects of removing Pittosporum seedling from lightly invaded forest has been established.

In 1993 it is aimed

To carry out a second full enumeration of all lots in the main experiment.

To continue monitoring of Pittosporum seed production.

To carry out a full enumeration of the trees in the Pittosporum control experiment.

To map the distribution of Pittosporum trees from recent colour aerial photographs and ground survey, should the necessary photographs become available in time.

The P. undulatum study revealed that the species now occupies about 2.1 per cent of the total forest area that is potentially invadable in the Blue Mountains. The tree has a high resilience to hurricane impact and is highly persistent. The natural regeneration becomes established more quickly than that of most native tree species. Total leaf area and basal area growth are greater than those of all ecological groups of native species. The presence of P. undulatum suppresses biodiversity, there being a strong linear negative correlation between the dominance of the species and the density and diversity of native tree seedlings.

Alternative strategies for eradication of the species from lightly invaded forest, and for its management in heavily invaded forest, were proposed.

The review of infomation on woody plant species invasions resulted in a classification of the invasion hazard associated with each species. The species and environmental characteristics associated with serious invasions were characterised to provide information for assessing the extent to which exotics of unknown invasive potential may become invasive.

The results from the P. undulatum case study and the review of species invasions were combined in a manual on the practical assessment, management and control of woody plant species in the tropics.

The protection role of Jamaican catchment forests and their resistance to and recovery from the impact of Hurricane Gilbert

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed The remaining 13,000 ha of rain forest in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica have been designated as a National Park. This follows a long history of clearance of the forest for a variety of cultivation systems, particularly herbaceous cash crop cultivation and coffee plantation. The Blue Mountain range is geologically recent, characterised by steep slopes and thin soils, and inappropriate forest clearance and cultivation has resulted in severe degradation. The area provides opportunity to investigate the effect of forest destruction by anthropogenic (shifting-cultivation) and natural (hurricane) forces on soil and water protection, and to gain understanding of the impact of forest conversion on productivity. This is an essential prerequisite to developing and maintaining sustainable agricultural systems crucial to the local economy and the conservation of the remaining natural forest. 1.)To compare the impact of Hurricane Gilbert on mountain forests differing in aspect, altitude and slope, using satellite imagery and geographical information systems analysis.
2.)To assess the impact of the hurricane on the tree species in the natural forest and their subsequent recovery using ground survey.
3.)To determine the effects of forest clearance, agriculture and agroforestry on soil conservation and sustainability.
4.)To assess whether both reduction in soil erosion and enhancement of nutrient inputs contribute to the maintenance of soil fertility and crop yield within an agroforestry system.
5.)By working with local farmers and the Jamaican authorities, carrying out formal rural appraisal and analysis, and using the data on the physical impact of forest conversion to other land uses, to develop guidelines and systems for soil conservation in the forest buffer zone, and to produce appropriate extension material.
6.)To investigate the suitability of native and naturalised Jamaican plant species for stabilisation of vulnerable sloping land and to produce output containing clear recommendation for the implementation. Produced knowledge for conserving and improving the service function, includig watershed integrity, of the forests in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica. To compare the impact of Hurricane Gilbert (1988) on mountain forests differing in aspect, altitude and slope using satellite imagery and geographical information system analysis.

To assess the impact of the hurricane on the tree species in the natural forest and their subsequent recovery using ground survey.

To determine the effects of forest clearance, agriculture and agroforestry on soil conservation and sustainability.

To assess whether both reduction in soil erosion and enhancement of nutrient inpouts contribute to the maintenance of soil fertility and crop yield within an agroforestry system.

To develop guidelines and systems for soil consveration in the forest buffer zone, and to produce appropriate extension material.

To investigate the suitability of native and naturalised Jamaican plant species for stabilisation of vulnerable sloping land and to produce output containing clear recommendations for the implementations of bioengineering techniques. Research into the impact of Hurricane Gilbert confirmed the high level of resistance and resilience (capacity to recover) of the natural high altitude forests and thus their value for protection of the environment against this natural disturbance.

The evidence indicated that hurricanes have few long-term effects on the forests, which confirms the forests value for protection of the environment against this natural disturbance. Conversely, recovery of the forest from the severe human disturbance of cutting trees at ground level and extracting the wood was very slow, indicating the natural forest's poor suitability for short-rotation harvesting of forest products.

The second year after clearance the levels of total phosphorus, nitrogen and organic matter on the farmed plots had fallen significantly below these on the forest control plots, but the agroforestry plots had significantly higher of soil organic matter than the conventionally farmed ones. An immediate result of this participatory research was the farmer's enthusiasm to adopt and promote the soil and water conservation techniques that they had been investigating.

The data of the responses of native and naturalised plant speices to disturbance, plus other data of their ecology, were used to select species for reforestation, agroforestry and bioengineering slope stabilisation in the forest buffer zone and surrounding deforested areas.

Guidelines and systems for soil conservation more developed in the forest buffer zone, and the appropriate extension material was produced.

Coconut lethal yellowing disease: development of new diagnostic tools and laboratory support to promote their application

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Coconut lethal yellowing and related diseases associated with phytoplasmas continue to threaten the livelihoods of resource-poor farmers and consumers in developing countries. Management has been based on the identification and rapid deployment of less susceptible varieties but a new epidemic of disease in Jamaica, in varieties that were previously considered to be resistant, has undermined this strategy. This project will provide scientific support to coconut rehabilitation programmes by refining, validating and supporting the trial commercial development of new diagnostic techniques to detect and identify phytoplasmas in the early stages of disease. This will facilitate reliable screening of new varieties for resistance to disease and enable other control options, such as timely phytosanitary measures, to be evaluated. Promotion of strategies to improve the sustainable environmentally-positive control of target pests in Land-Water interface coconut-based systems The project failed to achieve all its planned goals. This was due to two factors. Failure to revive the monoclonal cell lines following storage in liquid nitrogen. This meant that the validation of the ELISA and PCR results could not be done and the agreement to proceed to the development of a field assay with a lateral flow device did not go ahead. Lack of information from the CFC lethal yellowing project to enable the scoping visit by SJEG. However, in spite of this the project did achieve the outputs which established standard operating procedures at the molecular biology laboratory in Takoradi, for the sampling, processing and reporting of results. Standard operating procedures for non-destructive sampling of palms for serological and PCR tests developed, validated and documented in a form suitable for adoption by users in developing countries.

Standard operating procedures transferred to and established at CRP laboratory in Takoradi and skills of CRP laboratory personnel updated.

Validation of monoclonal antibody ELISA tests by parallel PCR assays.

Laboratory experimental reporting procedures established.

A diagnostic laboratory to fully support the needs of the Coconut rehabilitation project.

Evaluation of the needs and opportunities for linkage with the forthcoming CFC project and terms of reference for a possible new CPP proposal.

Under a suitable materials transfer agreement with the commercial subcontractor (Pocket Diagnostics), develop and produce a trial batch of diagnostic kits, and draft agreements for subsequent production and commercial sales. 1. Standard operating procedures for non-destructive sampling of palms for serological and PCR tests developed, validated and documented in a form suitable for adoption by users in developing countries.

2. Standard operating procedures transferred to CRP laboratory at Takoradi and skills updated.

3. Laboratory experimental reporting procedures established.

4. A diagnostic laboratory to fully support the needs of the Coconut rehabilitation project.

These outputs planned in the PMF were not achieved in full.

5. Validation of monoclonal antibody ELISA tests by parallel PCR assays.

6. Evaluation of the needs and opportunities for linkage with the forthcoming CFC project and terms of reference.

7. Under a suitable agreement with PD, develop, produce and evaluate a trial batch of diagnostic kits, and draft agreements for subsequent licensing, production and commercial sales.

The effective use, management and disposal of post-harvest fungicides in the banana industry

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed IRRD funded research(1988-89) identified the complex of organisms associated with banana crown rot. Continued NRED funded collaborative work (1989-91)addressed the epidemiology and control of crown rot and involved the University of Belfast, and WINBAN Research and Development Division. The project complemented the concurrent TC (Regional Geographic) programme which aimed to improve banana quality in the Windward Islands. The wider objective of this project is to improve the effective use, management and disposal of post-harvest fungicides in the banana industry.
The immediate objectives are:
To improve efficacy of fungicide application and reduce overall rates of application
To minimise the hazard to small farmers applying pesticides to bananas post-harvest
To introduce procedures for pesticide waste disposal to minimise environmental contamination
To monitor the development of crown rot pathogen tolerance to the fungicides in use. The project identified the fungal pathogens causing fruit disease (banana crown rot) and developed improved management strategies for the fungicides used for their control. Improved disease management will be reflected by increased fruit quality in the export market; standards of fungicide management will be raised with an increased awareness of the hazards to those involved in fungicide application and to the environment. Remedial measures to address these concerns are contained within the project outputs. Control.

Specific recommendations for fungicide application maximising the efficiency of application.

Recommendations to allow a reduction in the quantities of fungicide used for post harvest treatments.

Specific procedures for the safe disposal of waste fungicide solutions.

Recommendations on the most appropriate commercial fungicide for the control of banana crown rot. Fungal pathogens from crown tissue of crown rot infected fruit were isolated for identification and to determine their tolerance to the fungicide imazalil.

Fungicides applicable for use in crown rot control were reviewed; there are still only two main compounds, thiabendazole and imazalil, available for this purpose and good management will be needed to preserve their effectiveness. Within the constraints of the Windward Islands production system, dipping of the fruit in a fugicidal solution or suspension is considered to be the most appropriate form of treatment and no change is recommended. The use of a simple hand-held applicator warrants further local attention and stem injection may be a further possibility for latent infections.

Crown rot control necessitates effective fungicide treatment and it is important to be able to determine, practically, whether fruit supplied for export has been properly treated. A simple procedure was developed and evaluated based on the surface washing of fruit, with water, and the reaction of the water wash with a colour reagent.

The residue (60-80%) of the solution/suspension left after the dipping process requires safe and effective disposal to minimise the risk to the environment and to the progressive development of tolerance by the crown rot fungi. Attempts to decompose the fungicide in solution using low-cost, locally available materials proved impracticable and attention was turned towards the development of a filtration sytem to remove the fungicide from solution. A disposal pit using charcoal and banana trash was developed, and WIBDECO intend to introduce the use of the pit into their guidelines for growers.

On-Farm Research for the Development and Promotion of Improved Agroforestry Systems for Steeplands in the Caribbean

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Land pressures, growing rural populations and environmental degradation have lead to marginalisation of farmers on steeplands in the Caribbean and other parts of the tropics. Forest areas are increasingly under threat as a result of these pressures. As a consequence, the establishment of protected areas for forest and biodiversity conservation can potentially further marginalise hillside farmers by restricting the practice of shifting cultivation. Together, these factors have created an urgent need to find sustainable methods of hillside farming. Strategies for the improved management of tree based systems, integrated with animal and crop production systems developed and promoted. Amongst marginalised hillside farmers it has demonstrated, tested and disseminated a technology that is enabling them to increase the productive capacity of their farm land on a socially, economically and environmentally sustainable basis. A consequence of this is improved quality and quantity of water supply for those involved in fishing and irrigated agriculture, and the urban poor - a major contribution to poverty reduction. It also has importance for both terrestrial and marine ecotourism, an increasingly important source of employment in the Caribbean. Regionally and Internationally important experimental data on the effects of the presence of trees and addition of organic matter on soil processes and physical and chemical properties measured and published.

Management regimes developed for different local tree species to optimise tree and crop production using low-cost methods of controlling soil erosion.

Inventory of locally suitable species for contour hedgerow systems, and propagation for guidelines for each produced.

Local community and extension officer onvolvement and awareness of the benefits of trees in farming systems (reduced reliance on high cost inputs, increased soil erosion control) and appropriate agroforestry techniques achieved.

Adaptive research results, recommendations and extension materials disseminated to Caribbean regional and national institutions via recognised promotion pathways. The disturbed, buffer-zone of secondary forest on steep hillslopes provides good protection against surface water runoff (consistently less than 0.2% of rainfall) and erosion losses (less than 50kg ha -1 yr -1)

Where farming is carried out on steep hillslopes (24-32 degrees) there is a five- to ten-fold increase in water run-off and a twenty- to thirty-fold increase in soil erosion. However, low input agroforestry contour tree hedgerow technology is effective in conservation of soil (erosion reduced by 55%) and water (2.5 times reduction in runoff), and enhancement of agricultural productivity (maize cob and grain weights up to 45% and 63% higher per plant respectively). Despite the loss in land available for crops, yield per area was not significantly reduced by the introduction of hedgerows. These results have great significance for the design of contour hedgerow techniques.

The mechanisms of these effects through the physical and chemical properties of the plot soils (determined through laboratory analyses and a bioassay) and the rate of nitrogen mineralisation are very complex, therefore caution must be expressed in extrapolating these results to other environments.

Survey of farmer's indigenous knowledge of technology and utilisation of native trees and ,market-information, on farmer selection of distributed tree seedlings, indicate the importance of farmers' perception of the value of the wide range of products and benefits that trees can provide, rather than just erosion control, in their decisions on selection of species and associated on-farm tree management techniques. It is critical that rural development projects recognise and incorporate the level of existing knowledge held by rural communities.

Assessment of the suitability of undomesticated native tree species for farm forestry by analysis of existing ecological data, and on-farm experimentation (with 25 species) has indicated the wide range in characteristics of co-existing tree species including significant variations in establishment success not predicted from their within-forest ecology. The local tree flora provides a range of species with considerable potential for farm forestry/afforestation for a wide range of purposes and environmental conditions. Until existing knowledge is greatly improved, on-farm trials are essential for farmers to establish which species best meet their needs. A wide range in performance was also found in a trial of eight provenances of the naturalised multi-purpose tree species, calliandra calothyrsus, with similar conclusions.

Nursery experimentation lead to incremental improvements in knowledge about the optimal methods for vegetative propagation of selected native tree species. However, the time and resources required for this indicates the importance of the existence of remaining areas of natural forest which can act as a source of wilding seedlings for seeds for an initial phase of farm-forestry with native species (until the planted trees themselves set seed).

Ecological and social impacts in planning Caribbean marine reserves.

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Marine reserves are widely recognised and increasingly viewed in departmental, national and regional plans, as a principal component of coastal zoning plans, as foci for tourism, and as a fisheries management tool. Development of these in the context of the critical habitat of coral reefs has been constrained in the Caribbean by differing perceptions of advantages and disadvantages among local stakeholders. In particular, those dependent on extraction of marine resources from the areas involved suffer a decline in exploitable area, can benefit from the new development only through change in lifestyle, and are often wary of tourism itself. If understanding of benefits can be improved, if discrepancies between that understanding and their perception of benefits can be corrected, and if social impacts of local implementation can be better assessed, then progress will be made towards a strategy for increasing the success of marine reserve planning. Impacts of coastal management options on urban and rural communities in the coastal zone identified, and quantified, and sustainable resource-use strategies developed and promoted, through assessing impacts of marine reserves on stakeholders and reef condition, and contributing to a strategy to optimise benefits of Caribbean marine reserves to local stakeholders. Attributes of reef preferred by tourist divers were used as measures of reef condition and compared among areas subject to different levels of management in Jamiaca, Barbados, Grand Cayman, Cuba and Belize. Reefs in marine reserves tended to have a higher proportion of the attributes that divers most preferred, and this finding provides a basis for improved valuation of protected areas in relation to tourism uses. Economic-anthropological and political assessments of marine reserve management were made, and local community perceptions and scientific understanding of benefits of marine reserve development assessed. Guidelines for a draft strategy to improve planning of marine reserves and optimise coral reef management were developed at a workshhop and disseminated. Assessment of reef condition made for areas subject to different levels of management and of other partial influences on this, to be produced.

Economic-anthropological and political assessments of marine reserve management and of local community perceptions, and scientific understanding of benefits, produced.

A draft strategy for improved planning of marine reserves, and greater optimisation of coral reef management, derived and disseminated for consultation. A survey of 400 dive-tourists in Jamaica indicated that reef fishes (notably their diversity, abundance, and number of large individuals) were attributes more preferred than reef benthos (only coral cover and diversity were consistently ranked as important). Criteria for assessing the success of marine reserve management in terms of those attributes most important to divers have therefore been developed. These and other ecological attributes were quantified for reefs in Montego Bay and Negril (Jamaica), Folkestone (Barbados), Ambergris Caye (Belize) and Grand Cayman (Cayman Islands). These sites represent a very wide range of conditions in the Caribbean both spatially and in terms of fishing intensity. Comparisons of protected and unprotected areas indicated that marine area protection has the greatest impact on numbers of large fishes and the presence of fish species with large adults. Effects of management appear strongest in shallow water, where benefits of marine protection would be greater for snorkelling activities than SCUBA diving, which tends to use deeper reefs. At the extremes of fishing pressure (very high, ie Jamaica, or very low, ie Grand Cayman), marine reserves appeared to be less effective in improving fish attributes than where fishing pressure was intermediate (Belize and Barbados). Within-site comparisons indicated strong negative correlations between herbivorous fish populations and the amount of macroalgae on reefs, but the slopes of the relationships involved were small.

In a survey, divers indicated that reef attributes preferred on dives, those most lacking on degraded reefs in Jamaica were variety of reef fishes, abundance of fishes, variety of corals, other large animals, unusual fishes, coral cover and big fishes. Greater abundance and biomass of certain fish groups were detected in shallow (2-6m) effectively-enforced marine reserve than on adjacent unprotected reef in Montego Bay, Barbados, Belize (Hol Chan) and Cuba (Punta Frances), but not at Grand Cayman. Differences in the Cuba sites were attributable to habitat as well as fishing effects. Fish biomass and abundance differences were very few on deep (12-15m) reefs. Fish species diversity and richness tended to be greater on protected reefs than unprotected, in deep but not shallow sites, while both deep and shallow protected reefs tended to have more large fishes than unprotected reefs. In shallow water, most grazing of macroalgae appears by sea-urchins, while on deeper reefs, there may be scope for management to reverse macroalgal growth on a large scale through protection from fishing in areas where exploitation is sufficiently intense. The fishing communities studied in Montego Bay are highly fragmented, which makes it difficult to generate community support for any restrictions on fishing. Spear fishing is opportunistically carried out by a range of people, and hence cannot be readily contained through policies targetting self-identified fishers. Substitute work for fishing to generate income tends to pay relatively little and be unreliable. The need to devote energy to setting up the Marine Park has diverted attention away from establishing close relations with fishing communities.

Opportunities and constraints for coastal livelihoods in the Caribbean

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed To help DFID coastal zone research projects become more appropriate to the needs of local communities. In the past, projects have been focussed on the management of resources in marine protected areas (MPA). This work will identify and categorise knowledge of resources in the region and expand the area of interest to entire island watersheds. It will include studies of communities living outside the MPA. It will consider community livelihoods, poverty and vulnerability in relation to resource availability, providing an overview that will set the context for future LWI research issues. To improve technical and social understanding of management needs in Caribbean coastal zone habitats through provision of an overview and details of resource availability, usage strategies and vulnerability in coastal zone systems. The outputs were designed to identify the gaps in quality and quantity of previously published work in relation to pro-poor livelihood policies and the NR resource base in the Caribbean, with a view to identifying topic areas on which the NRSP-LWI research should focus. These outputs were achieved. Through the creation of a Caribbean-focussed searchable database, collating 12,000 references relevant to the coastal zone covering publications, indicators and projects, it was possible to identify topics on which greater or lesser quantities of material have been published. To obtain some idea of the quality of their content, hard copies of 1% of references were assessed. The scope and content of the database was praised by regional participants at the NRSP workshop in Barbados (14-15 June 2001) although gaps in content were indicated. Work on regional, national and local perceptions of coastal problems, and the local validation studies in Tobago and Jamaica, was carried out through 90 local interviews by NGO project partners, ET Jamaica and CCAM Jamaica. This provided high quality information on where to focus future NRSP-LW research. Results were validated at national workshops in each country. The project was a baseline information collection and analysis study, but has contributed significantly to improving resource use strategies, as it will permit following research projects to act on firm knowledge for more appropriate Caribbean coastal zone management. The project's final technical report details gaps and recommendations for possible generic projects and some additional considerations for NRSP, including: *Consideraton of a blend of regional, national and local projects. *More emphasis on the human resource base in relation to natural resources. *Carrying capacity studies. *Social and economic inclusion of coastal communities during research. *Development of more appropriate coastal poverty indicators. *Attention to scalability. A database collating all available information on land water interface in the wider Caribbean. Containing:

*Bibliography of historical and current research and practice.
*Characteristics for each country in terms of human, natural, physical, financial and social capital recorded and mapped. To include key service functions, natural resources, activities, impacts and economic status, vulnerability or risk.
*Inventory/project resource base of more detailed datasets (perhaps made available within region through DFID at project completion).

A regional analysis of interactions between stakeholders, activities and the resource base.

*A ranking of single parameters to identify relative capital across the wider Caribbean.
*A comparative analysis to identify key factors in poverty and vulnerability in relation to the above factors.
*Tool developed to identify where research and management interventions are required.
*A synthesis with the results of the two case studies which will identify key disparities between the results of the regional and local studies.

Community perception identified through stakeholder analyses in two case study locations for selected small island (Tobago) and area of large island (Jamaica) land water interfaces:

*Livelihoods study and context mapping based on existing data.
*Local level stakeholder analyses to identify key factors in poverty and vulnerability in relation to the above factors.
*Implications for regional information and analysis.

Recommendations to DFID and regional partners in terms of :

*Researchable constraints.
*Technical constraints to management methodologies.
*Information gaps.
*Institutional issues identified. A database collating all available information on land water interface in wide Caribbean.

An analysis of interactions between stakeholders, activities and the resource base at regional, national and local levels.

Community perceptions of resources and livelihood options identified through stakeholder analyses in two study locations for the land water interface for a selected small island (Tobago) and in an area of a large island (Portland Bight, Jamaica).

Recommendations to DFID and regional partners on future researchable problems related to coastal zone livelihood issues.

Impact and amelioration of sediment and agro-chemical pollution on Caribbean coastal waters

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed The Caribbean economy was traditionally based on agriculture and fisheries, but tourism has now taken over as the region's most important economic sector. The agriculture and fishery sectors are dominated by poor people, particularly smallholding farmers and subsistence fishers. In St Lucia, fisheries have been in decline for years, due to intensive exploitation. Agriculture has recently suffered a major setback from increased competition in banana markets supplying the European Union, affecting small and large-scale farmers alike. Farmers are now trying to increase yields and to diversify crops, and there is considerable pressure to open up new land to cultivation to maintain income. Much of the farming in the watersheds of St Lucia is small-scale, and located on steep slopes where there is a severe risk of erosion and landslides. Soil loss is a key problem for agricultural sustainability. Furthermore, use of agrochemicals to promote yields may be increasing, with presently unknown environmental and human-health problems. Further land clearance may have severe economic and human consequences, as illustrated by the highly destructive landslides in St Lucia following Tropical Storm Debbie in 1995. That storm also severely affected coastal resources and users . There is thus a clear need to develop means of sustaining livelihoods based on agriculture, while reducing the necessity to clear further land. On the coast, growing fishing pressure has led to erosion of livelihoods based on fishing, and incomes have declined with fish stocks. Tourism offers one means of easing pressure on fisheries, and improving livelihoods of families formerly fully-dependent on fishing. At the country levels, there is intense pressure to develop the tourism sector further, to provide new and alternative employment. The tourism industry is dependent on a high quality environment, especially in coastal areas, and pollution of the sea seriously affects opportunities for its expansion, and for rehabilitation of the fishery. In addition, the potential bio-accumulation of agro-chemical pollutants in the coastal zone poses a considerable and additional long-term health risk to those using the coast for food supplies and recreation. Fishers and their families may not only ingest contaminated fish directly, but also sell it to a wider market. Fish products may also be exported to other islands and countries throughout the region. This project is targetted toward reducing inputs of sediment and chemical pollutants from watersheds to the sea. It aims to develop management solutions that, if adopted, will leave farmers and fishers better off, and will maintain or help restore high environmental health. Technical understanding, and methods for management of coastal zone habitats improved. New knowledge and recommendations for ameliorating agro-chemical and sediment pollution have been delivered to policy makers. Improved livelihoods of the poor will result from adoption of these recommendations, as their implementation will have significant impacts on public health and the environment. Fishers and farmers are among the poorest people in the Caribbean. Their livelihoods are critically dependent on fertile soils and healthy marine ecosystems. At present, fish stocks are severely overexploited in the target countries, and fishers are suffering additional losses from reef degradation by pollution. Improved land use and more effective and selective use of agro-chemicals will reduce costs for farmers and thus improve their income. Careful application of agro-chemicals will reduce pollution at source and reduce public health risks to farmers. It will also reduce pollution downstream and so reduce public health risks in coastal communities. Pollution amelioration may improve fish yields as well as possibly help secure new opportunities for fishers and farmers offered by the growing tourist industry. Improved understanding of the effects of sedimentation on coral reefs; on the efficacy of current management measures (marine reserves and zoning plan); and on reef recovery from natural disturbances (storms).

Economic estimates of the value of reefs to the St Lucian economy and the costs of sediment pollution.

Estimates of agro-chemical loadings and fate of loadings in St Lucia.

Review and evaluation of existing agricultural land management in participating countries.

Pollution monitoring systems designed for participating countries.

Best management practice (BMP) manual and educational materials written for the participating countries, and generalised for disssemination Caribbean-wide. Improved understanding of the effects of sedimentation on (a) coral reefs, (b) on the efficacy of current management measures (marine reserves and zoning plan), and (c) on reef recovery from natural disturbances (storms). All elements of this output were achieved.

Economic estimates of (a) the value of reefs to the St. Lucian economy, and (b) the costs of sediment pollution. Both elements of this output were achieved.

Estimates of agro-chemical loadings and fate of loadings in St. Lucia. This output was achieved although the baseline snapshot survey conducted in St Lucia was limited in scope and further work is necessary to determine levels of agro-chemical contamination in the environment.

Review and evaluation of existing agricultural land management in participating countries. All components of this output were achieved.

Options for pollution monitoring for participating countries. All components of this output were achieved.

Identification of management options to ameliorate sediment and agro-chemical pollution in participating countries and dissemination and promotion through appropriate networks in the wider Caribbean. All components of this output were achieved.

Resource used by Small farmers, The Case of Hillside cultivation in Jamaica

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed To study the importance of the small farm sector in Jamaica, and to trace the evolution of policies relating to the sector and particularly to conservation of agricultural land.

Participation in FAO/CIB expert meeting in Jamaica on coconut lethal yellowing disease

Tue, 20 Nov 2007 00:00:00 GMT

Completed Lethal yellowing and related diseases thought to be caused by phytoplasmas have caused devastating losses to coconut plantings in meso America, East and West Africa and are thought to occur in SE Asia. Between 1960-1980, an outbreak in Jamaica killed over 6 million palms. The livelihoods of thousands of producers and consumers were sustained only by results of research (supported by ODM/ODA) which led to the identification and exploitation of sources of resistance in the Malayan Dwarf and Panama Tall ecotypes. The disease has since spread to Mexico, Belize and Honduras where the same sources of resistance continue to provide the only practical means of control. Observations in Jamaica suggest that a new strain of the pathogen (or possibly its insect vector) may have emerged that is able to overcome this resistance, and this would threaten coconut-dependent communities throughout the region. The objectives of this meeting will be to review the latest situation in Jamaica, to draw up national, regional and global research priorities and identify prospective partnerships for research to address this threat. To participate in and contribute to an expert meeting in Jamaica in order to help:
1. Review of the status of knowledge about the causes of the current outbreak of lethal yellowing disease in previously-resistant varieties in Jamaica, and the threat to livelihoods of poor producers and consumers.
2. Identify priorities for research to help understand and control the disease or to investigate alternative options for coconut-dependent communities.
3. Communicate and raise awareness of the problem amongst national, regional and global producer and donor authorities. 1. Brief report (max 3-4 pages) summarising the meeting plus annexed documents, conclusions and resolutions.

2. Written contribution to the proceedings of the meeting, if requested by and agreed with the organisers, based on the consultant's recent and previous experience of the problem.