Impact of - IDL-BNC @ IDRC - International Development Research ...

depends largely on external factors, such as the link between research and
policy development in the countries concerned, and related issues, such as the
adequacy of the occupational health and educational infrastructure.
Originality and innovation
In the field of pesticides research, as in other scientific endeavours, intellectual
contributions can be made across a spectrum ranging from "originality"
through "innovation" to "perseverance," and a judicious mix of these qualities
is most likely to lead to human progress.
At the Caribbean Epidemiology Centre, a good example of innovation in
vector control is the use of small-diameter styrofoam beads to obliterate the
surface of selected peridomestic mosquito breeding sites such as latrine pits.
This technique is surely as close as possible to the earlier stated concept of an
"ideal pesticide" as one can currently get. Also at the Centre, work is ongoing
in the biological control of Aedes aegypti mosquitoes through the selective use
of a predator species, Toxorhynchites montezuma, which consumes Aedes larvae.
Both these examples show evidence of originality and innovation, whereas
their eventual evaluation in various settings, including their application
within integrated pest-management strategies, will require perseverance.
On the international scene, it is often assumed that most of the truly original
work will come from well-funded laboratories in developed countries, and
that the type of science that will take place in developing countries will be
applied in nature. Yet the potential for originality in the developing countries
is no less real.
Among the IDRC-funded studies, two are focused on the use of botanical
species to control schistosomiasis. The most critical step in this development
was the first: the astute observation that one could not find snails in areas
where particular plants were growing. The identification of such natural
molluscicides, and their subsequent evaluation as potentially cost-effective
alternatives to synthetically derived chemicals, well illustrates the opportunities
for valuable research in developing countries. When combined with
studies of community participation in cultivating the plant and of related
economics, hyperendemic areas such as Egypt and the Sudan may indeed
have a remedy for a long-standing problem literally growing in their own
backyard. Whether this is really the case, however, will require continued
attention to a systematic plan for further research, evaluation, and
development.
Information development
A significant obstacle to the ongoing assessment of human health and safety
in relation to pesticides is the problem of obtaining reliable information on the
characteristics of their use. This is an area of difficulty shared by all countries,
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