Central and West Asia and North Africa Regional Meeting Report THE 20 ACTIVITIES GLOBAL PLANT ACTION COUNTRY REPORT OF UZBEKISTAN IN SITU CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT Surveying and inventorying Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Collection of seeds of cultivated plants and their. wild relatives are preserved at different institutes. All the collections have been inventoried. The biggest collection, (more than 100 of agricultural crops) are concentrated at UzRI. of Plant Industry. There are working. collections of separate crops as well: at UzRI of Cotton Breeding and Seed Growing (10.5 thousands of accessions); at RI of Genetics and Experimental Biology, 5.5 thousands of cotton accessions and 400 phytopathogen accessions; at Tashkent State University, 800 accessions of genetic cotton collection; at UzRI of Grain, 1900 accessions of grain, grain legumes, and great crops; at UzRI of Rice, more than 750 accessions of rice; at Uzbek Experimental Station of Fiber crops, 200 accessions of fiber crops; at. UzRI of Sericulture, 200 accessions of mulberry; at UzRI of Vegetables, Melons and Potato, 600 accessions of vegetable and melons; at Shreder RI of Horticulture and Vine Growing, 1400 accessions of fruits, nuts, berries and vine; at UzRI of Forestry, 20 accessions of pistachio; at Botanical Garden, 4 thousands and at RI of Botany, 4.5 thousands arboreal plants, herb and fodder grasses, fungi and algae. At all the institutes seeds are preserved in the premises on room temperature, what leads to necessity of frequent seed resowing for maintaining their germination.   Supporting on-farm management and improvement of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Supporting of development of farms and supply with qualitative seed material of modern cultivars on different agricultural crops is carried out on the side of state At the same time it is stimulated the interest to growing of the best local varieties and reproduction of their seeds.   Assisting farmers in disaster situations to restore agricultural systems By unfavorable natural factors (hail, flood, frosts. and so on) leading to destruction or damage of crops in the presence of contract with a farms, state recovers its losses through State insurance. Qualitative seeds of cultivated agricultural crops realized through state seed growing corporations. Achievements of science are used for restoration of agricultural systems. Farms use cultivars, developed on the base of collection accessions and wild relatives of cultivated plant. Many local varieties, which have been lost in production and in farms, are preserved in collections at Institutes.   Promoting In situ conservation of wild crop relatives and wild plants for food production Wild cotton species are wide studied and used in hybridization for developing of new cultivars with valuable traits at RI of Genetics, and Experimental Biology of plants and UzRI of Breeding and Seed Growing of Cotton. Wild species of fodder plants have been studied and recommended for introduction at Botanical Garden and Institute of Botany.   ex situ CONSERVATION Sustaining existing ex situ collections Collections of arboreal plants; bushes and vegetatively reproduced crops are preserved in live form at the following Institutes: UzRI of Plant Industry, Institute of Botany, Botanical Garden, Institute of Genetic and Experimental Biology, UzRI of Breeding and Seed Growing of Cotton, UzRI of Horticulture and Vine Growing and UzRI of Sericulture. There are reserves and National Parks in the republic.   Regenerating threatened ex situ accessions Enrichment of collections with new accessions and restoration of lost ones is carried out by conducting of expeditions and collection of plants by exchange and receiving from genepool of foreign countries. Last years most considerable losses were in Botanical Garden in connection with alienation of its territory for zoological gardens construction. As a result many valuable species of arboreal plants were lost and many kinds of plants did not strike roots by replanting; Urgent replanting of fruits and vine collections is required at UzRI of Plant Industry. It is necessary to replenish collection of cotton wild species that is created a new at Institute of Genetics and Experimental Biology of Plants, in new green house. Gradual erosion of some cultures is to be observed on territory of Uzbekistan. These are first of all wild species, growing in the mountains and pasturable plants as well. The Republic needs in construction of genebank of plants, fungi and algae for long conservation of base collections. It is required reconstruction of all depositories of duplicate materials at research institutions. Provided by state budget financing is not sufficient for carrying out all necessary work on Plant Genetic Resources. Insufficient financing is especially appreciable for carrying out of Plant Genetic Resources collecting on the Central Asia territory and aboard, material and technical securing of seed resowing for germination maintaining and replanting of vegetatively propagated crops, payment of scientists and technical personnel labor.   Supporting planned and targeted collecting of Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture Complex plan of plant resources collection on territory of Central Asia and CIS has been worked out. Yearly at Research Institutions expeditions on definite routes for collecting of accessions and replenishment of collections at the expense of state budget, Cooperation is to be expanded between Uzbekistan and Korea, Russia, Syria, and other countries, financing carrying out of joint expeditions on territories of corresponding countries. Our collections have been enriched owing to exchange with Botanical gardens and genepools of Korea, Netherlands, Russia, Egypt and other countries.   Expanding ex situ conservation activities ex situ conservation in the republic is carried out in National Parks and Reserves: Chatkal, Bandikhan.   TOC