Bananas and Food Security - Bioversity International

Afrique / Africa : B. Banful
Below is a summary of some activities aimed at increasing the adoption of improved
technologies:
• Field Days are organised for farmers and extension staff of MOFA in plantain growing
regions. The activities for each day comprise photo exhibitions and field demonstrations.
• Radio broadcasts on local FM on improved plantain production practices.
• Training for institutions :
– Subject matter specialists from different institutions,
– Front line field extension staff and production officers from MOFA,
– Agricultural science teachers,
– Instructors and students of religious institutions,
– Individual farmers.
• Establishment of demonstration plots beside roads.
• Fact sheets on improved production practices and the split corm technique are produced
and distributed to farmers.
Through the adoption of improved research technologies, production has steadily
increased with the national average yield per hectare increasing from 6 tons to about
8 tons. Between 1992 and 1996, national production increased by 37.9%.
Present and future research focus
• Multi-location on-farm adaptive trials of tested technologies throughout the plantain
growing regions.
• Studies on plantain-based intercropping systems with emphasis on agronomy, protection
and socio-economics.
• Marketing studies on plantain production.
• Impact assessment of the adoption of developed technologies.
Ashanti region as case study
Importance
This is the second most important plantain producing region in the country. Production
from this region represents 24% of the total production, while the area under cultivation
in the region forms 24% of the national area cultivated.
Climate and vegetation
The region covers the moist semi-deciduous forest and forest-savannah transition agroecological
zones. It has bimodal rainfall pattern, from March to July (major season) and
September to November (minor season). Rainfall amount ranges from 1300 mm to
157