ProMusa has organized various meetings, workshops and conferences over the years. Between 1998 and 2005, when ProMusa was the global programme for Musa improvement1 , most of the meetings were organized by the working groups.
Between 2007 and 2018, the restructured ProMusa organized symposia in association with the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS). Symposia were often the opportunity to hold workshops on various topics.
ISHS-ProMusa symposia Working group meetings
Istanbul, Turkey / 12-16 August 2018
The sixth ISHS-ProMusa symposium was organized as part of the 30th International Horticultural Congress held in Istanbul, Turkey, from 12 to 16 August 2018. The symposium took stock of recent developments in subtropical banana production and marketing.
Montpellier, France / 10-14 October 2016
The fifth ISHS-ProMusa symposium was hosted by CIRAD. The gathering provided scientists from around the world the opportunity to exchange around the theme of agroecological approaches to promote innovative banana production systems.
Brisbane, Australia / 18-20 August 2014
The fourth ISHS-ProMusa symposium was held during the 29th International Horticultural Congress. It took stock of research efforts in the context of the recently sequenced genome, and how this has influenced various areas of banana research.
Salvador, Brazil / 10-14 October 2011
The third ISHS-ProMusa symposium was hosted by Embrapa. It brought together scientists from several countries around the world discussed latest advances in crop management, crop diversity and improvement, and post-harvest and marketing.
Guang Dong, China / 14-18 September 2009
The second ISHS-ProMusa symposium was hosted by the Guang Dong Academy for Agricultural Sciences. It brought together experts from all over the world to share their experience and discuss genetic and management solutions to problems affecting banana production systems in Asia.
White River, South Africa / 10-14 September 2007
The first symposium held under the alliance between ISHS and ProMusa was hosted by the Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute and Du Roi Laboratories. The symposium brought together the world's leading experts on protecting bananas from pests and diseases.
ProMusa was established in 1997 to increase interactions between pathologists and the world’s few banana breeders in order to maximize the outputs of breeding and accelerate the impact of banana improvement efforts. Until 2005, ProMusa was organized into the Genetic improvement, Sigatoka disease, Fusarium wilt, Weevil, Nematology and Virology working groups. The structure of ProMusa was changed in 2005 following a meeting of the working group convenors.
Montpellier, France / 2-4 June 2005
In June 2005, the convenors of the ProMusa working groups proposed bringing the researchers together into multi-disciplinary teams to better respond to research priorities.
Guapiles, Costa Rica / 24-25 May 2002
Participants presented their research capacity and future and ongoing projects related to Mycosphaerella leaf spot diseases. They also commented on their participation in ProMusa, defining their areas of interest where they would like to develop partnerships with other participants. The group identified various research priorities and defined the main activities that should be carried out.
Leuven, Belgium / 6-7 May 2002
Discussions at the first meeting of the Breeders group focused on the current status of Musa germplasm, a global Musa breeding programme, genomics versus breeding, and a Musa breeding programme for Asia and the Pacific.
Canary Islands, Spain / 2 March 2002
The inaugural meeting of the Weevil working group focused on working mechanisms and research priorities.
San José, Costa Rica / 20-23 May 2002
Thirteen years after the 1st international workshop on Sigatoka diseases of banana held in San José, Costa Rica, in March 1989, the present proceedings offer an overview of the present status and outlook regarding Mycosphaerella leaf spot diseases at the global level.
Hazyview, South Africa / 24-25 May 2001
Participants in the Nematology working group meeting presented an outline of their research with regard to the three research priorities: a) nematode communities and biodiversity; b) resistance screening (including methods, sources and mechanisms); and c) damage and yield loss potential of nematode populations.
Montpellier, France / 18-20 April 2001
A first meeting of the convenors of the ProMusa working groups was held in Montpellier. Up-to-date news of the activities of each of the five groups were shared.
Bangkok, Thailand / 6-8 November 2000
The ProMusa Steering Committee and the working groups on Genetic Improvement, Fusarium, Nematology, Sigatoka and Virology came together during the third global ProMusa meeting.
Montpellier, France / 6-8 April 2000
The Genetic Improvement working group organized this meeting in order to make rapid progress in genomics research as applied to Musa. The participants agreed to form a Banana Genomic consortium.
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia / 21-22 October 1999
The Fusarium working met during the International Seminar “Fusarium wilt of banana: towards sustainable cultivation”. The working group discussions covered four main areas: Fusarium wilt management issues; IMTP Phase III; issues relevant to other working groups; and updating of Fusarium working group documents.
Ithaca, USA / March 1999
This meeting, organized by the Genetic Improvement working group, was held on the occasion of the International Symposium on the Molecular and Cellular Biology of Banana. Discussions focused on the role ProMusa could play in the development of partnerships between the public and private sector. It was recognised that ProMusa could provide a suitable forum for such collaboration, particularly in the area of pre-competitive research.
Douala, Cameroon / 6-10 November 1998
The second global ProMusa meeting was held during the International Symposium on Bananas and Food Security. The ProMusa Steering Committee held its first meeting and the working groups on Genetic Improvement, Nematology, Sigatoka and Virology also came together.
Montpellier, France / 19-21 January 1998
The meeting, organized by the Virology working group, focused on recent advances in the understanding of the virus and the significance of integrated viral sequences in the Musa genome. Research needs were analysed and prioritized, and current BSV indexing procedures reassessed in the light of research results. It was generally agreed that the current indexing methods are still the most reliable for detecting a wide range of BSV isolates, and revisions to the Technical Guidelines for the Safe Movement of Musa germplasm were not considered necessary.
Gosier, Guadeloupe / 5-9 March 1997
The creation of ProMusa as the global programme for Musa improvement was endorsed during a joint World Bank/INIBAP meeting. The programme structure, modus operandi and medium-term plan were agreed upon.