Ethiopia's most crucial pulse crop is being safeguarded from a devastating disease, with ACIAR-funded researchers leading efforts to protect the food and income security of the country's smallholder farmers.
Since 2010, Ethiopia's faba bean producers have been battling the incursion of the Faba Bean Gall (FBG) disease, threatening rural communities' nutrition and livelihoods.
Through an ACIAR research project, scientists from the University of Western Australia (UWA) have led efforts to investigate the disease, identify its cause for the first time, and introduce new management strategies to curb its spread.
The A$1.97 million initiative collaborated with the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR), the Amhara Agricultural Research Institute (ARARI), the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), and the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries (NSWDPI), which have been working together to circumvent the issue.
The latest findings were reported during a recent project review and highlighted the conditions driving the spread of FBG in Ethiopia's Amhara, Oromia and Tigray regions. The report showed increased incidence of FBG is associated with high altitudes, poor soil drainage, high weed density and suboptimal planting times.
'Field trials conducted during the project period revealed that FBG spreads rapidly through dust from infested soil, water runoff, faba bean debris and animal manure,' said Dr Asnakech Tekalign, the project coordinator and National Program Leader for Highland Pulse Crops at EIAR.
To mitigate the impact of FBG and improve crop yields, the project team has developed several disease management strategies, including integrating disease-tolerant varieties with fungicide treatments. The project has also introduced non-chemical methods such as weed reduction and intercropping with barley, which also proved effective in reducing FBG disease pressure.
'Developing faba bean varieties resistant to the disease has been a top priority for the project. While we haven't achieved full resistance yet, we have observed partial resistance in several varieties,' said Dr Martin Barbetti, the project lead and a plant pathology and mycology specialist at UWA.
'Our ongoing research focuses on incorporating these traits into adapted faba bean lines to offer farmers long-term, sustainable solutions.'
ACIAR Acting Program Manager, Crops, Dr Richard Brettell said the project has laid a timely foundation for the country's long-term sustainability of faba bean farming.
'Collaboration between Ethiopian and Australian scientists will continue to play a critical role in overcoming existing challenges and scaling the identified solutions to enhance food security in Ethiopia,' said Dr Brettell.
The project has also developed research capacity through supporting PhD students and training 26 Ethiopian scientists in disease management and crop improvement.
As the project transitions to its final phase, the research team plans to scale up the adoption of disease-resistant faba bean varieties and expand sustainable management practices across Ethiopia. The revival of faba bean cultivation will contribute to Ethiopia's broader agricultural goals under the Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda.
'Before, Faba Bean Gall took over my fields, and my harvests suffered,' said Mrs Desta Woldearegay, a champion farmer from the Mush area in Debrebirhan. 'Now, with the new varieties and better management practices, I am hopeful of a future where I can resume cultivating and boosting my yields.
'My family used to rely on faba beans for food and income, so these changes mean everything to us.'
Learn more via the ACIAR website.
