The Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa project aims to mitigate drought and other constraints to maize production in sub-Saharan Africa, increasing maize yields by at least one ton per hectare under moderate drought and with a 20 to 30 percent increase over farmers’ current yields, benefiting up to 40 million people in 13 African countries. The project brings together farmers, research institutions, extension specialists, seed producers, farmer community organizations and non-governmental organizations. It is jointly implemented by CIMMYT and the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, in close collaboration with national agricultural research systems in participating nations. Millions of farmers in the region are already benefiting from the outputs of this partnership, which includes support and training for African seed producers and promoting vibrant, competitive seed markets.
Achievements:
Between 2007 and 12, participants marketed or otherwise made available 60 drought tolerant hybrids and 57 open-pollinated varieties to smallholder farmers
In addition to drought tolerance, the new varieties and hybrids also possess such desirable traits as resistance to major diseases
Engage government officials in policy dialogue to help fast-track varietal releases and fosters competitive seed markets and more
widespread access to quality seed at affordable prices
Help ensure farmers’ access to the best possible products and services, coordinate various capacity-building events and
activities for maize breeders, technicians, seed producers, extension workers, non-government organizations and farmer groups
Provide technical and advisory support to 50 African undergraduate and 28 African graduate students
Expand smallholder farmers’ use of drought and other stress tolerant maize seed to benefit 30 to 40 million people and provide added grain worth $160-200 million each year in drought-affected areas of sub-Saharan Africa
Around 115 members of the CGIAR breeding community, plus others representing national programs, universities, funders and the private sector, met for a three-day discussion of how to co-develop the next generation of advanced breeding programs that will improve the rate at which resource-poor farmers are able to adopt improved varieties that meet their needs.
The annual Excellence in Breeding Platform (EiB) Contributor’s meeting, held this year in Amsterdam from 13-15 November, caps a year of engagement with CGIAR Centers and national agricultural research system (NARS) partners around the world.
Paul Kimani, from the University of Nairobi, speaks during the meeting. (Photo: Sam Storr/CIMMYT)
“Although breeding is one of the oldest functions in CGIAR, we have never had a meeting like this with scientists from all the centers,” said Michael Baum, director of Biodiversity and Crop Improvement at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, (ICARDA). “Within CGIAR, plant breeding started as a science, but now we are looking at how to implement it not as a science but as an operation, as it is done in the private sector, so there are many new concepts.”
Key items on the agenda for November were new tools to develop product profiles and create improvement plans that will define the modernization agenda in each center and across the Platform itself, based in part on the Breeding Program Assessment Tool (BPAT) that most Centers completed in 2018.
Ranjitha Puskur, gender research coordinator at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), started an animated discussion on how to incorporate gender into product design by thinking about customer segments.
Tim Byrne from AbacusBio introduced methods for identifying farmer preferences to be targeted by breeding programs.
IRRI’s Ranjitha Puskur started a discussion on how to incorporate gender into product design. (Photo: Sam Storr/CIMMYT)
In breakout sessions, contributors were able to have detailed discussions according to their various specializations: phenotyping, genotyping and bioinformatics/data management. The direct feedback from contributors will be incorporated into EiB workplans for training and tool development for the coming year.
A key outcome of the meeting was an agreement to finalize the product profile tool, to be made available to EiB members in early December 2018. The tool helps breeders to work with other specialisms, such as markets, socioeconomics and gender, to define the key traits needed in new products for farmers. This helps to focus breeding activities towards areas of greatest impact, supports NARS to play a greater role, and creates accountability and transparency for donors, in part by defining the geographic areas being targeted by programs.
“Breeding trees is different to the annual crops,” said Alice Muchugi, genebank manager at the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF), “but we are seeing what we can borrow from our colleagues. By uploading what we are doing in maps, for example, donors are able to perceive the specific challenges we are undertaking.”
EiB’s George Kotch describes his vision of product profiles. (Photo: Sam Storr/CIMMYT)
“I think we have realized there are lot of challenges in common, and the Platform is helping us all work on those,” said Filippo Bassi, durum wheat breeder at ICARDA. “I like to see all the people around the room, if you look at the average age there is a big shift; the number of countries present also tells you a lot.”
Tabare Abadie, R&D external academic outreach lead at Corteva Agriscience, also saw the meeting as a good opportunity to meet a broader group of people. “One of the take homes I hear is [that] there are a lot of challenges, but also a lot of communication and understanding. For me as a contributor it’s an incentive to keep supporting EiB, because we have gone through those changes before [at Corteva], and we can provide some know-how and experience of what happens,” Abadie explained.
“There are still a lot of gaps to fill, but this is a good start,” said Thanda Dhliwayo, maize breeder at the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT). “We need to get everyone involved, from leadership down to the guys working in the field.”
Michael Quinn, director of the CGIAR Excellence in Breeding Platform, discusses the CGIAR’s initiative on crops to end hunger.
