Research that works for developing countries and Australia

 

Tonga - Achievements

  1. Overview
  2. Country Strategy
  3. Priorities
  4. Key Program Managers
  5. Current Projects
  6. Concluded Projects
  7. Achievements
  8. Relevant Publications
  9. Country News and Stories
  10. Project Locations
  11. Country Portfolio
  12. AusAid and Other Briefs
  13. Fellowship Statistics

Achievements

Key indicators and performance from 2008-09

Indicator: Research program implemented that underpins emerging high-value forestry plantation programs for teak, whitewood and sandalwood

Performance: Activities in Vanuatu and Solomon Islands are making good progress towards the definition of silvicultural regimes for whitewood and teak that are compatible with traditional agricultural and agroforestry practices.

Indicator: Projects developing new fruit crop opportunities for Tonga and new vegetable opportunities for Solomon Islands implemented

Performance: In Tonga activities have established which tropical fruits are already grown and marketed to guide research and training programs to support development of suitable new crop varieties. In Solomon Islands seeds of adapted cultivars of exotic vegetable species have been introduced and are being spread among farmers through an innovative seed-exchange scheme.

Indicator: Improvements in aquaculture-based livelihoods investigated through a mini-project approach in at least three countries

Performance: Eighteen mini-projects have been designed and approved by ACIAR. Eleven of these, involving four Pacific island countries (Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji, Tonga and PNG) have commenced.

Indicator: ACIAR–University of the South Pacific scholarship scheme implemented with at least five students placed within active ACIAR projects

Performance: An additional eight scholarships were awarded, bringing the total number to 16 since the project commenced in 2008.

Indicator: Preliminary policy environment implications ready for adoption from an assessment of all ACIAR projects in the Pacific

Performance: The capacity of Pacific extension staff and organisations to undertake participatory research and extension associated with ACIAR projects and to work with governments to design appropriate interventions and policy changes was assessed. Training and participatory needs assessment activities have been conducted in Palau, Fiji, Tonga, Western Samoa, Vanuatu and the Cook Islands, and the results presented at an Extension Summit in Fiji in May 2009.

Indicator: At least 40 per cent of new projects designed to have significant farmer or policy-maker impacts within five years of completion

Performance: Four of the six new projects implemented in the Pacific islands during 2008–09 are designed to have significant farmer or policymaker impacts within 5 years of completion.

Achievements from 2008-09 Annual Report

Subprogram 1: Improving household incomes and food security through more productive and diverse farming systems

The Asian honeybee (Apis cerana) has spread in Solomon Islands since 2002, impacting on the European honeybee (A. mellifera), which is kept for honey production. Since Asian honeybees were first detected, the number of hived European honeybees has declined and feral European honeybees have virtually disappeared on some islands—on Guadalcanal Island they have disappeared completely. Project work is underway to develop a means of suppressing Asian honeybee densities in Solomon Islands, based on the assumption that fewer Asian honeybees will improve the competitiveness of European honeybees. During the past year a trial was conducted on Savo Island to determine whether the broad-spectrum insecticide fipronil would suppress Asian honeybees. Fresh sugar syrup containing a concentrate of fipronil was used to attract the bees, and colonies under observation that showed clear signs of poisoning were dead within 14 days. No detrimental side effects were observed from using fipronil, and Asian honeybees have only slowly recolonised the site.

The project work has detected the serious microsporidian pathogen Nosema ceranae, which has recently been implicated in severe mortality of European honeybees in Europe and USA. The decline of European honeybees on Solomon Islands was thought to have resulted from poor management and from the Asian honeybees being more aggressive. However, high levels of the N. ceranae pathogen were found in Asian honeybees on Savo Island, which is free of European honeybees, indicating that the Asian honeybees may have introduced the pathogen and it may now be playing an important role in the decline of European honeybees. The reproductive behaviour of the varroa mite hosted by the newly arrived Asian honeybees (the Java strain of Varroa jacobsoni) was also monitored. This task assumed greater urgency following the discovery in May 2008 that the same mite had developed a newfound ability to reproduce on European honeybees in PNG. Monitoring confirmed that the mite in Solomon Islands still lacks the ability to reproduce on European honeybees.

In both Fiji and Australia a significant agricultural export, ginger, is being threatened by the build-up of soil-borne diseases. The main diseases found are Pythium in Fiji and Fusarium in Australia. Production, particularly in Fiji, is declining and affecting the quality of rhizomes, which production systems rely on for new plants. Evidence suggests that increasing the microbial diversity found in root zones of plants can ameliorate soil-borne pathogen damage. The project is using this knowledge to test and develop recommendations for appropriate management strategies to control diseases in both countries. The project has confirmed that Pythium myriotylum is highly pathogenic on ginger in Fiji, and has established that disease epidemics occur when soils become saturated after extended periods of high rainfall and relatively high soil temperatures. In addition, other species of Pythium have been isolated from ginger rhizomes in both Fiji and Australia. Investigating suitable control measures for Pythium rhizome rot has been problematic in the past due to the discontinuous distribution of the fungus in the soil, the development of disease ‘hot spots’ and the particular epidemiological features of the disease. Trials are underway using a prepared inoculum and controlled watering regime to replicate the disease spread and allow an understanding of outbreak patterns.

The diamondback moth is the leading pest of brassica crops in the Pacific islands. Both large and smallholder farmers grow brassicas, mainly head cabbage, Chinese cabbage and watercress. With production increasing in recent years, opportunities for the moth to spread have expanded. The use of insecticides is the main form of control. IPM approaches to the diamondback moth have been used elsewhere in the world, limiting insecticide use while maintaining control. A project is developing a locally relevant program for Fiji and Samoa, based on more comprehensive knowledge of the moth’s behaviour in each country. Good progress has been made towards demonstrating the effectiveness of IPM approaches to brassica pests in both countries. Trials of IPM were conducted at Nu’u crop research station in Samoa in 2008–09. These experiments confirm that the IPM strategy promotes natural enemy activity and can maintain pest numbers below threshold levels. The trials have found that the number of applications required of a biological pesticide based on Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) are far fewer than the conventional insecticide applications typically applied.

Two ACIAR-funded projects have worked in parallel with AusAID to develop sensitive tests to detect taro viruses. A follow-up study of a taro production system is determining the yield gains from using virus-free planting material, and is also undertaking a cost–benefit analysis on the economics of using such material. The work has focused on Dasheen mosaic virus (DsMV) that commonly affects taro throughout the Pacific region. Despite its widespread occurrence, there have been no studies carried out to determine the impact of this virus on yield of taro in the Pacific. The research team has identified taro plants infected with DsMV and also non-infected plants in both Fiji and Samoa through a series of exhaustive tests. Aphid-proof screenhouses have been erected in both countries and plants are now being grown to determine the relative performance of infected versus non-infected plants.

Many people in Solomon Islands and PNG do not receive enough dietary vitamin A, which is vital in boosting immunity to disease. The orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) is a nutritionally enhanced staple containing among the highest concentrations of beta-carotene (the major pro-vitamin A carotenoid) of any food—as little as 100 g/day can prevent vitamin A deficiency. In Solomon Islands and PNG a project is surveying promising coloured sweetpotato cultivars for carotenoids, in particular beta-carotene. The screening phase of the project, focusing on Solomon Islands, is now complete, with 77 orange- and yellow-fleshed sweetpotato varieties analysed for tuber levels of beta-carotene. Eighteen local varieties exceeded 100 mg/kg beta-carotene (dry weight basis), with seven of these recording over 200 mg/kg, an excellent level.

The most suitable Solomon Islands OFSP varieties identified in the survey have been included in the improved root crops program of the Kastom Gaden Association (KGA), with bulking and distribution occurring at several regional centres. Local knowledge of the health benefits of OFSP varieties was scarce, and an awareness program has led to 22 nutrition workshops now being conducted in Makira, Ulawa, Malaita (Solomon Islands) and around Lae, Morobe (PNG). The program has now been expanded to include other local nutritious foods, including high-carotenoid bananas, legumes and leafy vegetables.

A feasibility study in 2006 found significant scope to increase production in the Tongan fruit industry and thus increase household income levels, with opportunities for import replacement, growth of the existing domestic market and, in the longer term, Pacific inter-island trade and export to other regional markets. A project arising from the study is seeking to increase the production, productivity and technical capacity of the Tongan tropical fruits industry with an emphasis on the local market. In March 2009 Tongan project members embarked on a study tour to northern Queensland. The aim of the tour was to give them greater familiarity with the commercial fruit industry, in particular the fruits themselves, nursery practices and nursery enterprises. In Tonga two nurseries have been identified for use by the project—one for seedling production and one for trials and demonstration plots—and both have undergone significant renovation. Of 35 fruit species identified, 18 were selected to provide propagating material. Seeds of 12 different species were also imported from northern Queensland for establishment, with the seedling nursery now holding 40 fruit species with a stock of around 10,000 seedlings and plants.

Stakeholders in a project to improve plant protection in Solomon Islands have worked over the past 3 years to install a crop protection capability in the country. Research continues on the seasonal abundance, life cycle and taxonomic status of Nisotra, a chrysomelid beetle pest of Abelmoschus manihot, an important green leafy vegetable. A local derris variety has been identified as a potent spray against the beetle and, from experience in PNG, is likely to be equally effective against Amrasca, a jassid pest. Derris and also neem (a natural pesticide extracted from the neem tree) are being multiplied and distributed.

Lead farmers continue to show others how to employ IPM to control Alomae (a lethal virus disease of taro) by understanding its spread. Work to identify natural enemies of the diamondback moth of head cabbage has been unsuccessful, but there is renewed enthusiasm among watercress growers at Mamara, near Honiara, to control the moth and other pests, and to obtain help with marketing.

Subprogram 2: Sustainable use and management of forestry and fishery resources

The bêche-de-mer (sea cucumber) fishery is potentially a multimillion-dollar industry in Solomon Islands; however, persistent overfishing has put the fishery in real danger of collapse. A project set out to work with coastal communities in Solomon Islands to assist them to manage their sea cucumber resources sustainably while gaining better returns for their bêche-de-mer product. But 6 months after the project began the Solomon Islands Government implemented a national ban on the collection and export of bêche-de-mer. The project was re-cast in consultation with stakeholders to increase the emphasis on sustainable management of the sea cucumber and to work with communities to assist in dealing with the sudden inability to use this important resource.

The project team has worked with communities in Kia district and Jorio to establish community-based management plans for sea cucumber. At the request of the community, the plans were broadened to cover all marine resources. As a result, in May 2008 the Kia community established a marine managed area covering approximately 450 km2. This work formed the basis for a similar management plan for an area of 170 km2 of the Jorio region, which was implemented from September  2008. This project offers a critical case study in a much broader re-analysis of approaches to small-scale fishery management in the developing world.

The focus of another project is culture of the winged pearl oyster (Pteria penguin), in support of the cultured pearl industry in Tonga. The first hatchery run in Tonga in May 2008 produced a large quantity of spat (~60,000). The spawning induction and larval culture methods used were based on those developed for other species of pearl oyster in an earlier project. However, relatively cold water temperature and problems with live microalgae culture (food for the larvae) at the facility in Tonga led to the use of a heat-exchange system, to maintain good water temperature in larval culture tanks, and commercially available microalgae concentrates, which eliminates the need for live micro-algae culture. This has major potential benefits for hatchery culture of pearl oysters (and other invertebrates) in the region, including reduced reliance on dedicated hatchery infrastructure, reduced hatchery costs and elimination of the need for specialised algae-culture skills.

Prawn farming is currently one of the most important sectors in fisheries in Fiji; however, expansion of prawn farming in Fiji depends on availability of quality prawn post larvae, the supply of which is currently the main bottleneck to growth. A current project seeks to compare the relative productivity of the prawn strain currently farmed in Fiji against a set of selected high-performing stocks available in Asia, and to develop low-cost feeds specifically for the local species. Post larvae stock of three high-performing culture lines from Indonesia, Malaysia and Vietnam were introduced to Fiji, following 21 days’ quarantine, to stock broodstock ponds at Naduruloulou Research Station. In addition, feed ingredients have been sampled at Viti Levu and taken to the Queensland Primary Industries and Fisheries laboratory in Brisbane for analysis.

A forestry project aims to reduce the risk of serious damage by exotic pests to the valuable timber resources of Fiji, Vanuatu and Australia by establishing efficient detection systems for target pests in high hazard sites. Simple and robust technologies involving static trapping systems and sentinel plantings are being developed. In particular, the project aims to minimise losses in the valuable plantations of Fiji and the emerging plantation industry of Vanuatu. This is part of a 'neighbourhood watch' approach to incursion management that will benefit all regional countries, including Australia. The project has already had a potentially significant impact; the Asian ambrosia beetle (Xylosandrus crassiusculus), a pest of potential economic significance to Fiji's mahogany plantations and not previously known in Fiji, was detected during static trapping. The Fiji Forestry Department has shown its commitment by allocating its own funds to continue surveillance work, and has already detected and controlled an incursion of Semanotus beetle.

An ACIAR project to improve the value and marketability of coconut wood has completed resource characterisation assessments on material sampled from a range of Fijian and Samoan sites. Recovery data and drying information added to the existing information on cocowood sawn recovery. In addition to sawn boards, full cross-sectional discs were harvested from sampled logs to provide test specimens for grain deviation and grain angle measurements. It was discovered that cocowood has three helices, offset to each other, that form a strong interlocked structural cylinder.

Cocowood has a reputation for high silica content, often given as the reason for rapid blunting of tool edges during processing. Studies found that the abrasiveness is more likely attributed to the combination of high levels of a range of mineral compounds (total mineral content is 2–3%) rather than specifically due to silica. As well, samples covering the range of density found in cocowood were tested for resistance to termites at a northern Queensland site. It was found that, although resistance increases with increasing density, all densities were susceptible to termites.

The government of Vanuatu intends to greatly expand its plantation estate over the next 18 years, and there is international interest in a whitewood (Endospermum medullosum) plantation industry. A significant amount of genetic improvement and propagation research of whitewood has already been carried out, but current plantation practices are poor. A project is developing comprehensive silvicultural prescriptions for community-based plantation forestry with whitewood in Vanuatu. Trial plots of whitewood monocultures have been established to deal with issues of weed control, plantation management and spacing–thinning practices. These have been augmented with other trials focusing on agroforestry combinations and mixtures involving other tree species.

Canarium indicum nuts are marketable products with great potential to improve the livelihoods of rural households in the South Pacific. At the moment the canarium nut industry is small but there is strong consumer demand and acceptance of the product in PNG, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, offering the potential for expansion of the domestic markets and development of an export market. A major constraint to increased commercialisation of the industry is poor quality of the nuts due to inferior postharvest handling and processing techniques. A project aims to develop techniques that optimise quality while being appropriate for small-scale agriculture. Researchers have determined that placing unshelled nuts in water enables the full-kernelled ones that sink to be separated from those with little inside that float. This process is now recommended as a protocol at point of purchase. Floaters will be of lower value and can either be discarded or downgraded. Drying nuts at 40oC increased the percentage of whole kernels to around 80%. This is a very significant finding as canarium nuts tend to break into small fragments and these are difficult to market. A nutcracker developed for macadamias has been modified for use with canarium, creating strong interest among growers, with many expressing interest in purchasing one.

A significant community-based teak plantation industry is now emerging in Solomon Islands. Teak is a high-value timber with a strong market demand that is likely to escalate as the supply of timber from natural forests dwindles. A project aims to develop agroforestry systems, suitable for smallholders, based on wider final-crop spacing of teak or rosewood, and row interplanting with tree species that could be harvested as a commercial crop at an earlier age. The project is also investigating high-value products from small-sized logs of teak, rosewood and interplanted species. The initial phase of the project has successfully finished, with demonstration trials established at three Rural Training Centres (RTCs). Work has begun on developing curricular materials for use by the RTCs at the curriculum development unit of the Solomon Islands College of Higher Education. This work is being partially funded through the European Union and is a close collaboration with a similar project introducing smallholder timber plantings into the state school system.

While a marked increase in sandalwood planting has occurred in Vanuatu over the past 5 years, there are a number of technical and socioeconomic factors that limit the expansion of this industry. A project aims to address the knowledge and resource gaps that currently constrain the industry’s development. It is investigating the economic prospects for a sandalwood planting industry in Vanuatu, analysing financing and industry partnership models and marketing options. The project’s main output is a prospectus outlining investment potential for sandalwood in Vanuatu.

Subprogram 3: Farming systems economics, marketing and biosecurity

Analysts studying an established tuna cannery in Madang, PNG, and a proposed cannery in Solomon Islands have used modelling to measure the range of benefits and costs that the host country could expect to flow from a domestic tuna cannery. The model also measures the net benefit to a foreign firm investing in a cannery under a range of possible financial arrangements, and can be used as a tool in negotiating any tax or similar concessions requested by the firm. Partner-country staff members have been fully involved in the survey at the Madang cannery and the subsequent development of the model, and they are now able to apply their knowledge to new proposals as they come forward.  

ACIAR has commissioned the University of the South Pacific (USP) to manage and administer a postgraduate scholarship scheme, initially for 3 years, focusing on those wishing to pursue further studies in agriculture, forestry, fisheries and agricultural economics. In 2008 eight postgraduate students were selected and received ACIAR–USP scholarships for postgraduate diploma and Masters programs. Five students are based in Lacuala Campus, Fiji, at the Marine Studies Program and the other three students at the School of Agriculture in Alafua Campus, Samoa.

Pacific flower industry set to bloom

Flower cultivation (floriculture) is an infant industry in the Pacific. By contrast, in some Asian and African countries it is big business, and can give smallholders a profitable cash enterprise. The opportunity for Pacific smallholders to embrace floriculture has led to an ACIAR scoping study to examine the potential for the industry in Fiji and PNG. Flowers such as heliconias, anthuriums, ornamental ginger and orchids thrive in Pacific countries and make spectacular floral displays. But until recently little regard has been given to their commercial potential. The ACIAR study considered opportunities for small producers to capitalise on this resource.

A major part of the study focused on the rapid expansion of the local non-tourist flower market in Fiji, which followed the establishment of wholesale markets in Nadi (1999) and Suva (2001). Their establishment has given small florists and informal flower-arranging businesses a consistent supply of high-quality inexpensive flowers. The result has been an unprecedented growth in demand. The traditional main market is for weddings and funerals, but a new outlet has emerged for cut flowers in homes and the workplace. The survey highlighted that the future of the industry lay in encouraging these local markets. Investigations into the potential for export found that Fiji had no comparative advantage, especially in relation to the industry in South-East Asia.

The study looked at the prospects for developing other floral lines for the local Fijian market. Guzmanias, ornamental members of the pineapple family and known in the Australian industry as bromeliads, were recommended. As a result, more than 16,000 improved variety plants were imported from Holland in 2008 and distributed to growers. A horticulturist from Darwin who pioneered the Northern Territory’s multimillion-dollar cut flower industry back in the 1980s worked with women growers in Fiji to help them improve their business practices and bring elements of quality and value to growing and marketing. The study attracted interest from seven other Pacific countries, whose representatives, with the support of the Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation, toured floriculture enterprises in Fiji. They saw much to encourage them and learnt the lessons of success and failure experienced by the Fiji industry.