The Bringakro Experimental Site and Sub-Center in addition to being a sub-center in the interior of the country (with infrastructure for housing and laboratory experiments), this unit has an experimental agricultural field, providing a suitable location for testing both crop and animal production systems. Its objective is to develop sustainable production strategies and demonstrate their viability (economic, environmental and social).

Its approach will be based on the concept of the "school farm". The "school field" is a device for promoting and disseminating knowledge, technologies and innovations that contribute to increasing production and integrated protection of selected crops. A period of realization is predefined. It is an organizational and participatory system for capacity building of producers.

It is also a space for all other research of the two scientific departments. The strengthening of the capacity of the soil and plant laboratory at the Bringakro sub-center allows the development of the iterative approach (lab-field-lab), characteristic of the overall research and development strategy.

Expected results

(i) to set up a "school field" in Bringakro (ii) to design and update technical itineraries for market garden, soybean and yam-manioc production, (iii) to be recognized as a reference center for the FAO, (iv) to improve the equipment of the site (construction of a canteen and increase the number of rooms) (v) to have an antenna in the north of Côte d'Ivoire (Korhogo Department) that will specialize in dealing with issues related to climate change and agriculture (vi) to eventually balance the unit's accounts (autonomy).

1. Location

Located in Bringakro, 185km from Abidjan (3h drive), and 25km from the town of Toumodi, it is in the forest-savanna transition zone, thus offering opportunities to conduct work on a wide range of climatic, sociological, ecological and production system parameters.

Bringakro Research Station

2. Infrastructure
Habitat

Located on the outskirts of a Baule village of about 1000 inhabitants, with a very welcoming population, it consists of a modern building with three rooms equipped with fan and mosquito nets, a kitchen, with running water and electricity. A laboratory with air-conditioning system, for simple manipulations in various fields with a computer, two ovens, a microscope and high-precision scales is available. Inside the well-arranged garden, there is also a warehouse for the storage of various materials (phytosanitary products, irrigation equipment and motorcycles). Mopeds are used for short distance transportation.

Projects in progress in 2004
3. Current projects
- Agronomic and technological evaluation of new cassava varieties (83 varieties from IITA.
- Trials on the production of healthy yam seeds (24 varieties) using the mini-set technique.
- Homologation of 5 improved varieties of yam.
- Multiplication of new high-yielding cassava varieties using the minibouture technique with reception at 7 months.

Projects in preparation
- Multiplication of varieties of pure lines of tomato
- Trial on the physiology of yam - Study on animal production in the Toumodi region.

Field of agricultural experimentation
The field of agricultural experimentation extends over 2 ha. It is partially irrigated thanks to the presence of a drip irrigation system. It is also equipped with a weather station. The diversity of soils present on this plot favors the cultivation of a wide range of crops (root and tuber crops, cereals and market garden produce). Work in the countryside, at the village level, ecological level, etc. is also possible.

Bringakro laboratory: dry matter, chemistry,
microscopy, weighing, computer

4. Completed projects
- Agriculture (specialties: yam, cassava, market gardening), varietal evaluation, production factors, seed production, diffusion of new technologies, tomato production.
- Quality of food products (sensory evaluation of new varieties of yam and cassava tested with local consumers).
- Post-harvest system (conservation of yam tubers after harvest) - Animal production, especially animal parasitology and production factors

Yam variety trial (agronomic selection)

- Physiology of the tuber and the yam plant.
- Insect ecology (dung beetle biodiversity).
- Sociology and anthropology.
- Pedology (classification of commonly cultivated soils).

Yam variety trial (agronomic selection)