Consumption of pro-vitamin A cassava varieties could help Nigeria save $1.5bn losses in GDP

Adesina (fourth from left) holds provitamin A cassava from IITA

The consumption of pro-vitamin A cassava could help Nigeria reduce economic losses in Gross Domestic Product that is estimated at about $1.5billion, says the Director General of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Dr. Nteranya Sanginga.
“But more than economic savings, it will also improve the nutrition of women and children who are the most vulnerable,” says Sanginga at the public presentation of pro-vitamin A varieties by the Nigerian government in Umudike on Friday.
Represented by the Coordinator, Cassava Enterprise Development Project, IITA, Dr. Gbassey Tarawali; Sanginga commended the Nigerian government for taking the lead in biofortification with the release of the cassava varieties to farmers.
He canvassed joint efforts from partners and the private sector to ensure that the pro-vitamin A- rich varieties get to the hands of resource-poor farmers.
“Today we have varieties that have beta-carotene that could help tackle vitamin A deficiency. What is needed now is to get these varieties to farmers with the support of all stakeholders,” he said.
Elsewhere in the developing countries, vitamin A deficiency remains a major bottleneck to improved nutrition with approximately 250,000 to 500,000 malnourished children going blind each year, and half of whom die within a year of becoming blind.
The prevalence of night blindness due to vitamin A deficiency is also high among pregnant women in many developing countries.
“Vitamin A deficiency also contributes to maternal mortality and other poor outcomes in pregnancy and lactation,” says Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina.
“Annually, Nigeria loses over US$1.5 billion in GDP to vitamin and mineral deficiencies as many staple foods are low in essential micronutrients,” he added.
Adesina said that it was crucial that Nigeria accelerates efforts and policy measures on improving health and nutrition of vulnerable groups, especially women, infants and children, adding that scaling up core micronutrient interventions would cost less than US$188 million per year—which makes economic sense.
To popularize the Pro Vitamin A cassava, he said greater effort will be needed to increase the nutrition capacity within the Ministries of Health and Agriculture and Rural Development; improve infant and young child feeding through effective education and counseling services; increase coverage of vitamin A cassava within the nation.
The minister also gave the government’s support to the dissemination of the pro-vitamin A varieties by directing the inclusion of Abia state—one of the 36 states in Nigeria.
On 7 December 2011, the Nigeria government announced the release of the pro-vitamin A cassava varieties. Developed by IITA in partnership with the National Roots Crops Research Institute, Umudike (NRCRI); the project was funded by Harvestplus.
The vitamin A cassava varieties are named by the National Variety Release Committee of Nigeria as UMUCASS 36, UMUCASS 37, and UMUCASS 38; and are recognized as IITA genotypes as TMS 01/1368, TMS 01/1412, and TMS 01/1371.
They have high beta carotene (pro-vitamin A) and are suitable for food uses as gari, fufu, and high quality cassava flour,” says Dr. Thomas Ezulike, Acting Executive Director, NRCRI.
The yellow root color of the vitamin A-rich varieties are products of over 20 years of breeding efforts for improved nutritional quality using traditional breeding methods involving hybridization and selection of cassava seedlings followed by clonal propagation of the selected desirable plants.
Drs. Peter Kulakow of IITA and Chigozie Egesie of NRCRI said the development of the varieties was a major breakthrough that would change the nutritional status of people living on cassava-based food. Farmers who participated in the trials of the varieties across Nigeria loved the varieties for their high-yielding ability and resistance to major diseases and pests.
“Demand for these varieties has already started, but it will take some time before we have enough quantities to give out,” says Paul Ilona, the HarvestPlus Manager for Nigeria.
The yellow cassava is already being multiplied through stem cuttings. In 2013, when sufficient certified stems will be available, HarvestPlus and its partners will then distribute these to about 25,000 farming households initially. Farmers will be able to grow these new vitamin A varieties and feed them to their families. They can also multiply and share cuttings with others in their community, amplifying the nutritional benefits. After the mid-2014 harvest, more than 150,000 household members are expected to be eating vitamin A-rich cassava. Other partners in this work include the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa).

IITA-DR Congo sets up meteorological stations to monitor climate

Stefan Hauser (left) training foresters on the use of meteorological equipment

IITA DR Congo has set up a network of meteorological stations to monitor climate and contribute to research on climate change. As a result, the DR Congo foresters have joined this effort and have purchased a meteorological station in their YOKO forest reserve. IITA Scientist, Stefan Hauser installed the station and trained eight young forestry students in the management of the climate sensors, the programming of the data logger and in handling and analyzing the meteorological data collected by the electronic station.
The Congo basin is the largest contiguous forested area in Africa, and is being threatened by agricultural practices such as logging and slash-and-burn. Climate change as a consequence of deforestation has been documented in African history in the past 3000 years. Today the combined effects of greenhouse gas emissions and deforestation may cause stronger and highly undesired effects on agriculture and livelihoods.
The REFORCO project in Kisangani, DR Congo is training foresters to build capacities in protecting forest resources and engendering sustainable forest use. The impact of climate on forests plays a major role in conservation efforts, and IITA's capacity in climate research and monitoring will make a significant contribution in improving the knowledge on forest management under changing climatic conditions.

Stakeholders meet to harmonize protocol on fertilizer analyses

Participants at the workshop on Harmonization of Analytical Methods for Fertilizers in Ibadan

Stakeholders in the agricultural sector converged on the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) to harmonize methods for fertilizer analyses. The workshop was organized by the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in collaboration with IITA.
The participants, who were drawn from key institutions including universities and research institutes, deliberated over issues involving the evaluation of the quality of organic and inorganic fertilizers. General laboratory practices that affect the quality of analytical results were also discussed.
Declaring the training forum open, Dr. Stefan Hauser, IITA Systems Agronomist underscored the importance of fertilizers to agricultural productivity.
He said the growing world population demanded agricultural intensification to produce more food without compromising forests, water and land resources.
Fertilizers today may contain undesirable additives that may be harmful to crops and the environment. Hauser emphasized that the issue of examining the quality of fertilizers and their impact on environment was imperative to safeguard ecosystems and biodiversity.
According to him, protocols on fertilizer analyses need to be verified and harmonized for efficient and effective quality control.
He commended the Nigerian government for supporting the training forum, adding that recommendations from the meeting would assist the government in her agricultural transformation action plan.
The meeting was facilitated by Mr. Joseph Uponi and Mrs. Lola Idowu. Lead Presenter, Professor G.O. Adeoye of the University of Ibadan said the workshop came at the right time when the issue of food security is hot on the table.
He urged participants to examine current methods of fertilizer analysis and come up with standard methods for use in Nigerian laboratories.

Pro-vitamin A cassava team receives ministerial award

L-R: Elizabeth Parkes, IITA; Richardson Okechukwu, IITA; Paul Ilona, HarvestPlus; Akin Adesina, Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development; and Gbassey Tarawali, IITA, being honored by the Nigerian government for the development of pro-vitamin A cassava varieties in Nigeria

Scientists who led the development of pro-vitamin A cassava varieties in Nigeria were honored with an annual ministerial award inaugurated by the Nigerian government on Friday.
The development of the pro-vitamin A cassava was led by IITA but funded by HarvestPlus. The National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) was a local partner in the project. The over two-decade research led to the development of the pro-vitamin A cassava varieties that are yellowish in color.
Nigeria’s Agriculture Minister, Dr. Akin Adesina, who conferred the award on the scientists, said the varieties would help in efficiently tackling malnutrition especially vitamin A deficiency in Nigeria.
The minister also threw his weight behind efforts to promote biofortification in the country with plans to put in place an aggressive strategy to take the pro-vitamin A varieties to 1.8 million farm families.
HarvestPlus’ Country Manager, Paul Ilona commended the government’s efforts towards tackling, adding that the best way to tackle malnutrition was through the provision of nutritious foods to the people.
At the moment, approximately 250,000 to 500,000 malnourished children in the developing world go blind each year from the deficiency of vitamin A, half of whom die within a year of becoming blind.
In Nigeria, vitamin A deficiency afflicts almost 20% of pregnant women and about 30% of children under-five in Nigeria.
IITA Director-General, Dr. Nteranya Sanginga commended the Nigerian government for her support to biofortification
Represented by Dr. Gbassey Tarawali, the director general said the institute would support the government to meet her target of reducing vitamin A deficiency.

Project aims to double yields of Nigeria’s major staples

Scientists at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture are working with national partners to double yields of Nigeria’s major stables, thanks to the Africa Development Bank (AfDB)-funded Community-Based Agriculture and Rural Development Project.
The project, which will involve active participation of farmers across five states, will deploy best agronomic practices and improved varieties to the fields, according to Dr. Sam Ajala, IITA Maize Breeder.
“It will focus on showcasing production technologies that can double yield in-situ with the hope that farmers will pick up from there,” he adds.
In spite of several innovations developed to spur yield, resource-poor farmers who dominate the agricultural landscape have limited access to these technologies. Consequently, this has negatively affected the productivity and fortunes of the country’s agriculture—a sector that employs more than 70 per cent of people in the rural areas.
A project to double maize in Nigeria that was implemented by IITA, whose first phase ended in 2009, had maize yield on participating farmers’ field rising from 1.5 tons per hectare to 4.2 t/ha.
“The project demonstrated that with the right technologies deployed to farmers backed by good agronomic practices, farmers could increase yield.”
Scientists will be leveraging on lessons learnt from the Doubling Maize project to increase productivity
The implementation plan for the five states namely Adamawa, Gombe, Bauchi, Kaduna and Kwara involve maize, cowpeas, soybean, cassava and yam.
However, yams and cassava are intended for only Kaduna and Kwara States, according to Ajala.
National partners in the project include the Institute of Agricultural Research of Ahmadu Bello University (IAR/ABU), the National Cereal Research Institute (NCRI), University of Ilorin, and the National Agricultural Extension and Research Liaison Services (NAERLS) of the ABU. The National Root Crop Research Institute (NRCRI) at Umudike will collaborate on yam miniset technology.
Researchers are optimistic that the project will benefit from other projects such as the Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA), Doubling Maize Project in Nigeria, Tropical Legume II, Nitrogen for Africa (N2Africa) project, Striga Control Project among others.
“It is expected that these linkages with other projects will provide the needed synergy that will create the maximum impact,” he added.

Scientists get closer to developing tools that will fast track cowpea breeding

By Godwin Atser
Scientists at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan and partners in the Netherlands and the United States of America are a step closer to developing approaches/tools, through genome mapping, that will facilitate progress in the conventional development of improved cowpea (Vigna unguiculata L) varieties with traits such as drought-tolerance.

An IITA Lukas Brader Postgraduate Fellow, Eugene Agbicodo, who carried out the genetic analysis of drought-tolerance in cowpea and subsequently constructed a linkage map of the crop, identified portions on the cowpea genome where genes that have effects on drought-tolerance and resistance to bacterial blight could be located.

His findings have been hailed by breeders as part of landmarks for marker assisted selection in cowpea breeding.

A similar work was reported by researchers at the University of California, Riverside and researchers at the two institutions are comparing notes on the outcomes of their research to see areas of agreement, according to Christian Fatokun, Cowpea Breeder, who supervised the work at IITA.

“If both parties are able to find areas of agreement or concurrence, such areas of the genome would be of immense benefit when marker assisted selection is to be applied in cowpea breeding. So what will take about 10 years to accomplish could be done in three years or even less,” he said.

With about 70 per cent of world cowpea grown in the savannah region of Africa, the protein-rich legume provides not only incomes but also improves the health of its consumers. However, cowpea faces several production constraints among which are diseases, insect pests, parasitic weeds such as Striga, and drought which is becoming increasingly important in the cowpea producing zones of sub-Saharan Africa.

Agbicodo phenotyped and genotyped a set of cowpea recombinant inbred lines generated at IITA, Ibadan. Phenotyping was carried out in Ibadan and Kano while the genotyping was carried out at the University of Wageningen, The Netherlands.

Consequently, he constructed a cowpea genetic linkage map using the data obtained from genotyping and phenotyping. The linkage map showed molecular markers that defined quantitative trait loci (QTLs) with effects on drought-tolerance and resistance to bacterial blight among others.

The Lukas Brader Fellow will between 27 September and 1 October 2010 present his work at the 5th World Cowpea Research Conference holding in Dakar, Senegal.

Fatokun described the work as a milestone as scientists seek ways to fast track cowpea improvement.

According to him, he feels happy that technologies to quicken plant breeding are being developed.

Nigerian farmers to get improved cassava planting materials

By Godwin Atser
Farmers in seven states of Nigeria including Oyo, Osun, Ondo, Ekiti, Kogi, Nasarawa, and Benue will benefit from the distribution of free improved cassava varieties, thanks to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)-funded project.
The distribution of the varieties is part of activities lined up for 2010 by researchers at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture Ibadan who are implementing the Unleashing the Power of Cassava in Africa project (UPoCA) that is funded by USAID in seven countries namely Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Tanzania, Malawi, Democratic Republic of Congo, and Mozambique.
“The aim of the project in Nigeria is to empower 75,000 farms with improved varieties by the end of 2010. We also expect cassava yield in these areas to increase by 30 per cent,” said Richardson Okechukwu, IITA-UPoCA Deputy Project Manager who is also the Nigeria Country Coordinator.
“The project will thereafter ensure food security for Nigerians and neighboring northern countries like Niger and Chad, and will also provide more roots for the large-scale cassava industries,” he added.
Although increasing cassava production is one important aspect of the project, researchers are also pushing improved processing and utilization technologies to create more markets for the crop.
Consequently, between 23 February and 3 March 2010, the IITA-UPoCA project conducted two Training of Trainers (TOT) courses for farmers, processors, Women in Agriculture of Agricultural Development Programs (ADPs), non-governmental organizations, and other private business firms on cassava processing and utilization; and products packaging and labeling.
During the processing course, participants were trained on how to process 21 products including gari, soy fortified gari, starch, tapioca granules, soy milk, high quality cassava flour (HQCF), 10 per cent HQCF composite bread, cassava chin-chin, cassava meat ball, cassava root fritters, cassava croquettes, cassava cocktail tidbits, cassava flour doughnuts, cassava egg rolls, cassava cookies, cassava queen cakes, cassava strips, odorless fufu, kpokpo gari, yellow gari and cassava meat pie. They were also exposed to processing equipment such as motorized cassava graters and double screw press developed by IITA. The Product packaging and labeling course also exposed participants to the functions of packaging and communication among others.