(Tetun) Due to concerns about near-El Niño conditions, the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF) has advised farmers not to plant crops until the wet season has definitely started.
The official advisory was issued by the MAF Director General of Agriculture & Livestock, Januario Marcal, and distributed to MAF district offices and Radio and Television Timor-Leste (RTTL) late last week. (more…)
(Tetum) Timor-Leste’s first National Seed Council (NSC) has been formed with the appointment of 15 representatives from the seed sector at an inaugural meeting last week.
The Council, established as an independent national seed authority, met on Wednesday 3 September to discuss its mandate as managers of the National Seed System and guardians of the National Seed Policy. (more…)
(Tetum) Growing and selling Sele maize is a big money-maker for Naroman, a registered commercial seed producer in Bazartete that has earned over four thousand dollars in two years from selling their quality commercial seed.
In 2014, only their second year of planting Sele for commercial seed production, this 56-member group (28 women, 28 men) from Fatunesa hamlet, Fahilebo village, Bazartete sub-district of Liquica district have had fantastic results with this improved variety, harvesting over seven tonnes of seed from five hectares. (more…)
(Tetum) They travel hundreds of kilometres on bumpy district roads each year, visit hundreds of farming families, and give expert advice on selecting seed and good agricultural practices.
They’re the suco (village) extension officers (SEOs) of Timor-Leste, and they’re helping thousands of farming families grow more food by enabling access to improved food crop varieties released by the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries (MAF). (more…)
