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​Agricultural Services
Agronomy Division​​


Contact ​Person:  
Position:

Tel: 
Fax:  
E mail: 

Mr Y. MUNGROO
Principal Scientific Officer​

​(230) 466 0794, 401 2800(Ext 2852)
466 1867
moa-agronomy@govmu.org
yamungroo@govmu.org

     Mandate​​​​

To produce vegetab​le seeds of traditional varieties and landraces​​
​​To supply propagules/plants selected ornamentals and fruits for plant propagation
To conserve plant genetic resources and advocate their use, and ensure that the country's commitments with international organisations are met
To curate the herbarium collections and carry out ecological surveys, and uphold the office as a reliable reference on the flora of the Mascarenes
To encourage the adoption of Good Agricultural Practices by setting the example on the stations, and to prioritize enhancement of biodiversity and to encourage the proliferation of insect pollinators
To maintain the grounds of the State House .  Proper upkeep of grounds, undergo landscaping and embellishment works. Maintenance of agricultural equipment and provision of proper animal husbandry practices to the animal / birds sections.

(​i) Managing our local inh​eritance in terms of crop biodiversity for Food and Agriculture.
(ii) Promoting sustainable use of crop genetic diversity in order to ensure food Security
​​

​The National Plant Genetic Resources Unit

The National Plant Genetic Resources Unit (NPGRU) forms part of the Agronomy Division of the Ministry of Agro Industry and Food Security.
It consists of:
(i) A National Seed Gene Bank located at Curepipe.
(ii) A National Field Gene Bank located at Nouvelle Decouverte.
The Unit is mandated for effective management, long term conservation and sustainable utilisation of crop genetic resources in Mauritius. Its main activities comprise of collection, conservation, multiplication, regeneration, characterisation and documentation of locally available crop germplasm. Rescue of a few critically endangered endemic species is also undertaken by the unit.

​Mauritius Agricultural Certification Body (MACB)

The MACB unit forms part of the Agronomy Division of the Ministry of Agro Industry and Food Security.

The MACB Unit is responsible for the certification of Agricultural good practices. 

Currently it caters for the certification of crop for MauriGAp Standard.

  Resources

​​


'The Division has under its responsibility the following stations to fulfil its mandate: ​

Albion (ex Belle Vue) Experiment Station. 

Tel: 2384552. 

Email:moa-bves@govmu.org
Officer in Charge: Mr. A. M. BHOORAJ​

​The station is situated in the sub-humid zone in the district of Black River at 27 m above sea level.  It has a total area of 2,6 ha of which 1,8 ha are available for seed production. It provides accommodation to the Chinese Agriculture Technical Team.  ​

Nouvelle Decouverte NFGB
The National Field Gene Bank. 
Tel: 4315645. 
Email: nationalfieldgenebank@govmu.org
 Officer‑in‑charge:  Mr. M. R. ALLAMAMALLY

​The station is situated in the super‑humid zone in the district of Moka at 503 m above sea level.  It has a total area of 2,4 ha of which 1,2 ha are available for the regeneration/multiplication of seed accessions and for the conservation of non‑seed accessions.
The main activities of the NFGB is as follows:

(a) regeneration, multiplication and maintenance of crop accessions in the field gene Bank.

(b) Field conservation of locally available crop diversity.

(c) Collection of locally available crop varieties and their wild relatives.

(d) Collaboration in the rescue of endangered species.

(e) Characterisation of accessions.

​Curepipe NSGB
The National Seed Gene Bank. 
Tel: 6705694. 
Email: nationalseedgenebank@govmu.org.
Officer‑in‑charge: Mr M. F. HOTEE

​The office is situated in the premises of Curepipe Experiment Station.  It monitors the viability/quantity of seed accessions.  Seed accessions are regenerated/multiplied at NFGB or other stations.  It conditions the seeds for long-term conservation and ensures the duplication of a safety collection at the SADC Plant Genetic Resources Center in Zambia.

The National Seed Gene Bank Curepipe (NSGB) has been mandated to collect the locally available crop diversity for long term conservation and make them available to different  stakeholders for ultimate utilization in crop improvement. 

Other activities of NSGB include:

     (1)  Maintain viability of seeds through germination tests and regeneration  programs.
     (2)  Send seed  accessions to SPGRC for safety duplicate storage

​​The State House Unit. 
Tel: 4543021. 
Email: moa‑shu@govmu.org
Officer‑in‑charge: Mr. R. JALLOO

​It maintains the grounds of the State House. Proper upkeep of grounds, undergo landscaping and embellishment works.  Maintenace of agricultural equipment and provision of proper animal husbandry practices to the animal/birds sections


Herbarium


​The Mauritius Herbarium​
Tel: 4541061.  
Email: cbaider@govmu.org
Officer‑in‑charge: Dr. (Mrs) C. BAIDER.

​​The Mauritius Herbarium.    The office is situated at Réduit.  It holds an impressive collection of, and documentation on, plant specimens of the Mascarenes dating back to early 1800s, which makes it an authoritative reference for plant identification, ecological surveys and scientific collaboration with international botanical institutions.'


​Mauritius Agricultural Certification Body
 (MACB) Unit

​Tel: 464 4864/ 4012800 (Ext. 2827)

E mail: macbcertification@gmail.com

Contact Person: Mr. Bala Krishna PONNUSAWMY

​​The office is situated in the premises of Agricultural Services, Agronomy Division, Réduit.  The MACB unit provides third-party certification for MauriGAP standards for crop production.  These standards are based on Good Agricultural practices.  In the future the scope of certification will be extended to other standards including organic and honey.

For the time being the certification is free of charge.  Applicant may fill in an application form at rhe MACB or send an email at: 

               macbcertification@gmail.com.    

The  email should include details of produce to be certified, plot size and contact details.

  ​    ​​​Services​



Sale of agricultural produce on all stations except the National Seed Gene Bank, the State House Unit and the Mauritius Herbarium.
Sale of publications and plant identification services at the Mauritius Herbarium.   
Educational tour on seed production, conservation of plant genetic resources, herbarium collections.
Provision of Certification for MauriGAP standards for crop production​​​