Demand-Driven Technologies for Sustainable Maize ... - IITA

489Report and Recommendations on the FifthWest and Central Africa Biennial RegionalMaize Workshop held at IITA-Bénin, Cotonou,3–6 May 2005PreambleThe Fifth Biennial West and Central Africa (WCA) Maize Workshop tookplace at the IITA-Bénin Station, Calavi, Cotonou, Benin Republic 3-6 May2005. About 50 participants from 12 countries attended the Workshop.WCA countries represented included Bénin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon,Côte d’Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Mali, Nigeria, Senegal, Tchad, and Togo.One participant came from Kenya and another from Mozambique. In all,49 scientifi c/technical papers and several other reports were presented.A Merit Award Ceremony was held to honor members who had madeimmense contributions to the progress of the Network.A breakdown of the scientifi c/technical papers is as follows:Theme 5Breeding 7Agronomy and Physiology 9Seed Systems and Statistics 2Integrated Pest Management 7Economics and Extension 11Postharvest and Utilization 8Creating a new section on Seed Systems and Statistics was a welcomeidea. In the previous Workshops, this new section had been subsumed inthe Breeding Section. Similarly, in line with the terminology in vogue, theNetwork changed Plant Protection to Integrated Pest Management.Generally, the presentations were well prepared, well presented,informative, thought provoking and they generated a lot of livelydiscussion. All presenters used Power Point in preparing their papers andused the LCD projector for the presentation. In sum, the subregion hasmade further progress in improving maize production and productivity.Theme PapersAn overview of the activities of the Network for nearly 20 years revealedthat considerable progress was made in most subject-matter areas ineach of the member countries. It was concluded that the Network hadproceeded in the right direction and this should be sustained to raisemaize production in the subregion.