An Economic Assessment of Banana Genetic Improvement and ...

162 CHAPTER 11
4.
5.
for which the “technology” is generated
on the farm. Again, farmers are
price responsive, undertaking more
production when the output price relative
to the input price is high. The high
rates of dissemination of improved soil
fertility practices are promising, despite
the labor these practices demand.
Labor constraints are less of a problem
in the highlands, the more commercially
oriented production zone with
labor surpluses. Farmer- and association-based
mechanisms appear to be a
crucial factor in disseminating both
planting material and technologies.
Scaling up the adoption of genotypes.
There is need for a demand-driven
strategy for scaling up farmer use of
approved banana varieties. There is
widespread adoption of FHIA hybrids
in Tanzania, given the great disease
pressures, extensive dissemination efforts,
and the historical practices of
farmers in actively seeking pest- and
disease-free planting material. Adoption
definitely shows an impact on vulnerability
to disease losses. Further
analysis is needed over time to see
whether diffusion is sustained, benefits
are sustained, and income effects are
observable. The examples of farmerto-farmer
exchanges described for
Uganda, though limited in their impact
in terms of numbers of farmers and
communities, warrant closer examination
as models for more structured,
though more decentralized, diffusion
mechanisms. We recommend a farmerbased
and socially based network design,
with farmer-supplied planting
material, possibly scaling up from
some of the experiences in Uganda.
The strategy of providing large quantities
of materials free of charge (a
“push” strategy) is not sustainable.
Determining R&D strategies for the
highlands and lowlands. Strategies for
improving productivity in high-elevation
areas will necessarily be different
from those targeting the low-elevation
areas. The highlands require development
and promotion of best cultural
practice and marketing improvements,
whereas lowlands require development
and promotion of pest- and/or diseaseresistant
endemic varieties together
with best cultural practice aimed at reviving
productivity. To support the
success of these efforts, major investments
need to be made in dissemination.
Overall, we recommend targeting
more than one trait, but not too many
simultaneously, because such a strategy
could delay transformation, curbing
the benefits to be earned by Ugandan
society.
Technical change is a continuous, multidimensional
process. Social science can
contribute to the formulation of agricultural
research policy during technology development
by identifying the social, economic,
and institutional impediments that must be
addressed to ensure that promising new
crop technologies will be adopted by farmers.
Once these technologies are in the
course of adoption, social science can provide
insights into mechanisms that will support
adoption rates and enhance the positive
impact of technical change on the livelihoods
of rural people.
The National Banana Research Programme
of NARO and IITA, with the support
of the INIBAP, have embarked on an
ambitious breeding program that employs a
range of biotechnologies (embryo rescue
and somatic embryogenesis) as well as
crossing, propagation, and crop and soil
management practices, to address the most
debilitating diseases and pests. Some of the
improved technology explored in this report
already exists and some is emerging from
these efforts. The baseline developed here,
which represents a single, statistically based
“snapshot” in a gradual process of technical
change, has been used to predict the ex ante
impact of transgenic cultivars. In addition, it
has been used to assess the ex post impact