ABSTRACT
Banana is produced in over 100 countries and used in various ways. While large plantations owned by multinational companies are grown mainly for export, small-scale farmers rely on banana for food and income. Mycosphaerella eumusae was discovered in the mid 1990s as a member of the Sigatoka disease complex of banana. Symptoms of black and yellow Sigatoka diseases are very similar and often difficult to distinguish with the naked eye, which hampers disease management. Epidemiology involves studying the factors that influence disease development such as hostpathogen interactions and the environmental and edaphic factors. Although plant diseases can hardly be completely eradicated, their impact can be reduced to acceptable economic levels. Fusarium wilt, commonly referred to as Panama disease, is regarded as one of the most devastating diseases of banana and ranked as one of the top six important plant diseases in the world. Fusarium wilt disease affects almost all the important cultivars grown in different parts of the world.
