About the project

In Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan (Central Asian or CA countries) fruit species genetic diversity is threatened due to overgrazing, deforestation, logging and industrialization in the wild, and use of uniform high-yield varieties, chemical fertilizers and pesticides, and increased mechanization in home gardens and on small farms. The result is loss of traditional diversity-based farming systems, arable lands degradation, pollution, genetic erosion, and loss of biodiversity. Legal and policy frameworks of the CA countries that address biodiversity conservation do not adequately support conservation of fruit species. Farmer and research sector knowledge about wild and cultivated fruit genetic resources is dispersed and fragmented, out of date, and lacks the benefits of modern technologies. Linkages between and among stakeholder groups are weak.

The development objective of the project is: that in situ/on-farm conservation and utilization of horticultural crops and wild fruit species are ensured for sustainable agricultural development, food security, and environmental stability.