October 6, 2023-The second session of “Tropical Fruit Trees Planting and Processing Technology Training Course in Panama” was successfully held in the city of Capra, Panama. Miss Zonia Ortega, an officer from the Ministry of Agricultural Development (MIDA) of Panama attended the opening ceremony and delivered a welcoming speech. She said that the training course from China was very rare valuable for the agricultural development, and all the trainees should cherish this precious opportunity and learn the planting techniques of tropical fruit tress. Dr. Tang Qinghua, an expert from the Coconut Research Institute of CATAS, participated in this ceremony and then presented lectures on techniques of coconut cultivation and pest management during the training course to 30 trainees from different regions of Panama. 

To date, Panama has a total of 2,000 hectares of coconut trees, of which 1,700 hectares is mainly grown around houses or along roads. Most of the coconut trees is Pacific tall species/varieties while the last small part belongs to green and yellow dwarf varieties. Currently, the Panamanian coconut industry is restrict by factors including smallholding cultivation, underdeveloped management techniques, and low yield, ect. In addition, South American palm weevil (Rhynchophorus palmarum), a pest that is difficult to control, also threatens the development of coconut industry in Panama. To address these issues, Dr. Tang introduced successful techniques of high-yield cultivation and pest management achieved in China, thus enhanced the understanding and confidence of Panamanian trainees in developing their own coconut industry. Associate Researcher Li Hongli, another expert from CATAS shared techniques including planting and grafting of dragon fruit trees during the training course. 

Dr. Tang and Associate Researcher Li conducted investigation on the tropical fruit industries and markets of coconut, dragon fruit, and other tropical fruit trees in West Panama, Collé, Herrera, and Veraguas. The overseas training course and the survey laid a solid foundation for the continuous development of China-Panama agricultural cooperation and technology exchanges of tropical fruit trees in the future.

A lecture on High-yiled cultivation technology in Cocont Tree presented by Dr Tang Qinghua

Dr.Tang Qinghua shared the cultivation technology with trainees in a coconut plantation