PLEASE BE AWARE THAT ALL OF THE MISSING PAGES IN THIS DOCUMENT WERE ORIGINALLY BLANK BNARI REPORT 1995 -1996 BIOTECHNOLOGY AND NUCLEAR AGRICULTURE RESEARCH INSTITUTE (BNARI), P. O. BOXAE 50, ATOMIC ENERGY, ACCRA. GHANA ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION, MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY, GHANA. BNARI and its mandate a) Structure BNARI. a semi-autonomous research institute under the Ghana Atomic Energy Commission (GAEC), was established in 1993. The organs of BNARI are the Management Board, the Secretariat and three scientific departments, namely, Department of Animal Science, Department of Food Science and Radiation Processing and the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences. b) Mission Its mandate is to advance, through research and related training and development activities, the sustainable improvements in agricultural production and productivity to enhance nutrition, development and economic and social well-being, especially among rural low income people. The paramount objective of the institute is to help Ghana attain self-sufficiency in food security in both crops and livestock products so as to alleviate malnutrition, hunger and poverty. It also provides scientific and technical advice and information in the field of biotechnology and nuclear agriculture in furtherance of socio-economic development and national efforts to improve quality of life. c) Scope BNARI's concerns are: * promoting sustainable agriculture and ensuring food and economic security; * improving the health care; * advocating sustainable management of natural resources, including biodiversity conservation; * catalysing the adoption of science and technology as keys to national development in partnership with local communities and other national and international research institutions and organizations. BNARI aims to achieve these objectives through interactive, mission-orientated research, starting from basic scientific principles through the incorporation of indigenous knowledge and agricultural practices into improved technologies to end-user applications. The research and development programmes use conventional, biotechnological and nuclear and related techniques and focus on : - • mutation breeding and /w-v/Yro/tissue culture for crop improvement for higher yield, resistance to pests and diseases and tolerance to climatic stresses; • increasing food production through rapid micropropagation and better use of water and fertilizers: • increasing biodiversity through induction/development of new and better varieties of economic crops mainly through mutation breeding; • study of economic insects and terrestrial arthropods, both as a constraints to food production and as vectors of human and animal diseases and development of cost-effective, sustainable and safer techniques and integrated strategies for controlling the pests and vectors; • improving livestock nutrition, productivity, production and health; and • radiation processing of food, medical supplies and pharmaceutical products to improve their hygiene and safety for improved health care! • increasing food security through reduction of post-harvest losses by irradiation. The Institute, in conjunction with the national universities, is also involved in human capacity building through training in nuclear agriculture and related biotechnologies. CONTENTS Page BNARI and its Mandate 2 Preface by the Director of BNARI 5 Organizational Structure of BNARI 6 1. Aims and Goals 7 2. General Administration 7 2.1 Personnel 7 2.2 Visitors 9 2.3 Expert Missions 10 2.4 Installations and Facilities 11 2.5 Infrastructural Developments 11 2.6 Technical Services 12 2.7 Library and Documentation Services 12 2.8 Public Education 13 2.9 Staff Education and Training 13 2.10 Funding of Research Programmes 16 3. Research Activities and Programmes of the Institute 17 3.1 Scope of Research Programmes and Projects 17 3.2 Highlights of Research and Development 18 3.2.1 Department of Food Science and Radiation Processing 18 - Food Analysis 18 - Food Preservation by Irradiation 21 - Food and Environmental Biotechnology 23 - Radiation Sterilization 26 3.2.2 Department of Plant and Soil Science 26 - Plant Biotechnology and Mutation Breeding 26 - Increased Crop Production through Micropropagation and in vitro Culture Technique 36 3.2.3 Department of Animal Science 42 - Insect and Vector Control using Genetic Methods 42 - Animal Nutrition 47 - Animal Reproduction and Health 49 - Insect and Animal Breeding 50 3.3 Collaborative Research Activities 50 3.4 International Research Contracts 52 3.5 Scientific Meetings/Training/Workshops 52 4. International Relations and Collaborating institutions 58 5. Significant Achievements 59 5.1 Manpower Development 59 5.2 Significant Research & Development Findings 60 5.3 Technologies Ready for Transfer to User-Agencies 61 5.4 Equipment 61 5.5 List of Publications, Technical and Conference Papers 61 5.6 Degrees and Certificates obtained 65 5.7 International Appointments 65 6. Membership of BNARI Management Board and Committees 66 7. Staff List 69 9. Problems and Constraints 71 10. Targets and Projections for 1997- 1998 72 Important Telephone Numbers 78 PREFACE The Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute (BNARI) was established in September 1993 by Atomic Energy Commission Amendment Law PNDC Law 308 of 1993. It is made up of three scientific departments viz. Department of Food Science and Radiation Processing, Department of Plant and Soil Sciences and Department of Animal Science. The years from 1995 through 1996 proved to be a period for reflection, for organizing and reappraisal of our core scientific activities and for a clear resolution as to what must constitute the size of BNARI. Various types of projects continue to be developed to form the basis of our operations over the coming years. This second report on BNARI summarizes its activities for 1995 and 1996. As can be seen in the area of personnel, we are a growing institute that is building up manpower to face issues of biotechnology for the coming years. An important landmark in the history of BNARI is the commencement of the construction of permanent buildings in 1995. The construction of the first phase of the project comprising laboratories for Tissue Culture and Molecular Biology started in late 1995. Interdisciplinary approach to research is being emphasized and research which is demand-driven is replacing research carried out without such an objective. Research activities show progress over the previous years. The institute embarked on studies aimed at the establishment of radiation doses for semi-commercial scale food preservation of cocoa, yams, maize, salted fish, cured fish, sweet potatoes against post-harvest losses and test-marketing of the irradiated foods including yam and cowpea. Research activities towards increased crop production through tissue culture and mutation breeding techniques and the control of riverine tsetse flies using sterile insect technique received attention. A number of farmers have taken advantage of the BNARI programmes for micro-propagation of plantain, banana and pineapple for the supply of planting materials. It is our pleasure to acknowledge the support of the government of Ghana for providing funds particularly for infrastructural development. The support received from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in terms of Technical Assistance Projects and Research Contracts enabled us to train staff and undertake a number of the projects reported. The assistance received from the National Agricultural Research Project (NARP) facilitated the execution of a number of projects which otherwise would have been abandoned. We appreciate the assistance from the IAEA and NARP and look forward to a more closer collaboration with them and other institutions and individuals in the coming years. (Dr. G. Y. P. Klu) Director, BNARI o Fig'. 1 - ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF BNARI H n MINISTRY OF ENVIRONMENT, SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY w GHANA ATOMIC ENERGY COMMISSION o _ BIOTECHNOLOGY & NUCLEAR AGRICULTURE RESEARCH INSTITUTE (BNARI) o - MANAGEMENT BOARD z > DIRECTOR SECRETARIAT 73 O RESEARCH DEPARTMENTS O r 5 DEPARTMENT OF DEPARTMENT OF FOOD SCIENCE DEPARTMENT OF PLANT n C/3 ANIMAL SCIENCE & RADIATION PROCESSING & SOIL SCIENCES G 73 SCIENTIFIC ENTOMOLOGY ANIMAL NUTRITION, FOOD SCIENCE RADIATION PROCESSING PLANT SCIENCE SOIL SCIENCE w ^ SUPPORT SECTION PRODUCTION & HEALTH SECTION SECTION SECTION SECTION SERVICES SECTION 1. Social Science 8. Nulrition/Physlology 15. Industrial Processing 2. oicstatistics 9. Animal Health 16. Agronomy/Breeding 3. Pfotograpiy/lllustiaiions 10. Reproduction/Breeding 17. Physiology/Tissue Cullure 4. Agncullufoi Entomology 11. Food Analysis & Preservation 18. Plan! Protection (Virology/Pathology) 5. Meaical/Veiefinafy Entomology 12. Human Nutrition 19. Genetic & Molecular Genetics 6. c'o-'ed Prooucts Entomology/Dtsinfestalion 13. Microbiology 20. Soil Physics & Conservation 7. Eiooesticldes 14. Medical Sterilization 21. Soil Chemislry/Feriility H H e H 1. AIMS AND GOALS The Biotechnology and Nuclear Agriculture Research Institute (BNARI) has the potential to make great impact on the agricultural and economic development in this country. The objectives of the research programmes are to use isotopes, biotechnology and nuclear techniques to :- i) develop improved varieties and production technologies for increasing agricultural productivity; ii) study plant-soil-water relationships for the improvement in nutrient utilization; iii) research into problems militating against