Constraints in deciduous fruit development in Nepal - Technical support constraints

These constraints are summarized as follows:

- Low priority for fruit research - Poor allocation of fiscal resources - Lack of trained manpower - Weak extension system in horticulture - Inadequate technical information The Nepal Agriculture Research Council (NARC) is the sole agent responsible for fruit research. Only a little research has been done in fruit crops to solve technical problems which the growers are facing. There is also a total lack of coordination between research and development. Every district agriculture extension office has horticulture extension staff but they are completely deprived of technical backstopping. The number of deciduous fruit specialists is very limited in the country. Horticulturists working in extension have very limited access to information on new horticulture technologies and they are not exposed to any specialized training.