Australia is assisting Cambodia in growing safe and healthy cassava through the Cambodia-Australia Agricultural Value Chain Programme (CAVAC), according to the Australian Embassy in Cambodia.

Mrs. Amber Cenrnovs, First Secretary of the Australia Embassy yesterday joined a visit, led by H.E. Veng Sakhon, Cambodian Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, to Stung Treng province, where CAVAC is working with the Royal Government to increase the number of healthy, fertile and disease-free cassava plants, leading to higher yields and better quality produce.

Cassava is an important crop that thousands of farmers are growing for food, household income and export. But these crops are under threat from a devastating viral disease, Cassava Mosaic Disease (CMD). Cassava plants infected with CMD lose the ability to produce quality roots.

Through CAVAC, Australia has been partnering with Cambodia to respond to the emergence and spread of CMD since 2018 and raise main income for female cassava farmers, it added.

Source: Agency Kampuchea Press