Seminar delegates observing combine harvesters with farmers in Rupandehi, Nepal. Photo: V. Dakshinamurthy/CIMMYT CSISA in Nepal organized a three-day traveling seminar on “Scale-appropriate machinery for cereal crop harvesting in South Asia” on March 25–29, 2019. In Nepal, the adoption of agricultural mechanization has increased slowly over time. While small, regional markets for combine harvesters have existed in Nepal for the last 20 years, the major rise in sales has occurred in the last 10 years, both ...

Scientists, in collaboration with CSISA, help farmers practice integrated disease management with the help of the weather-based Stempedia model. Stemphylium blight is one of the most damaging diseases that plagues lentil fields in South Asia, causing plants to shed leaves and loose twigs, ultimately leading to grain loss. In severe cases, yield losses as high as 90% have been reported in Bangladesh and other countries. Lentil production is an integral part ...

Wheat blast is a fast-acting and devastating fungal disease that threatens food safety and security in the Americas and South Asia. First officially identified in Brazil in 1984, the disease is widespread in South American wheat fields, affecting as much as 3 million hectares in the early 1990s. In 2016, it crossed the Atlantic Ocean, and Bangladesh suffered a severe outbreak. Bangladesh released a blast-resistant wheat variety—developed with breeding ...

Discussions on the video show of yield enhancing practices such as healthy rice seedling production and early wheat sowing throughout southern Bangladesh(Photo: M. Shahidul Haque Khan, CIMMYT) The Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), in collaboration with the Bangladeshi NGO Agricultural Advisory Society (AAS), recently conducted video showings of yield-enhancing practices such as healthy rice seedling production and early wheat sowing throughout southern Bangladesh. Early wheat sowing and healthy rice seedlings are both key ...

Millers and GATE Nepal discussing the mungbean grain quality demanded in the market(Photo: Narayan Prasad Khanal, CIMMYT) Mungbean is a relatively new crop in Nepal, so relevant research and development activities are still just emerging. In 2015, the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), supported by USAID, started conducting participatory research and development, including market development activities for mungbean in partnership with the National Grain Legume Research Program, millers and seed companies. Mungbean, a short-duration crop ...