Cotonou, Benin
February 26, 2009A year
after the launch of the 3-year project on Stress-tolerant rice
for poor farmers in Africa and South Asia (STRASA), its
stakeholders are meeting, 26-27 February 2009, at the
Africa Rice Center
(WARDA) regional station in Ibadan, Nigeria to review the
progress made by the project and plan for 2009.
Funded by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to
the International Rice Research
Institute (IRRI), the STRASA project involves international
researchers from IRRI and the Africa Rice Center as well as
partners from national agricultural research institutes,
government extension and civil society groups in 17 countries.
Focusing on the major rainfed ecosystems in sub-Saharan Africa
and South Asia, the project aims to accelerate the development
and delivery of improved rice varieties that are tolerant to
five major stresses – drought, submergence, salinity, iron
toxicity and low temperature.
An important thrust of the project is to enhance the capacity in
national research and technology transfer systems for sustained
rice improvement efforts.
Africa Rice Center is IRRI’s main partner in implementing the
African component of this project. The project member countries
in Africa comprise Benin, Burkina Faso, The Gambia, Ghana,
Guinea, Mali, Nigeria and Senegal in West Africa as well as
Ethiopia, Madagascar, Mozambique, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda in
eastern and southern Africa.
Speaking about the STRASA project, Dr Baboucarr Manneh,
Coordinator of the African component, highlighted the following
achievements:
- Production of seeds of
improved and stress-tolerant varieties that will be
evaluated in the project countries through farmer
participatory varietal selection;
- Training of national
scientists, technicians and farmers in modern breeding
approaches, improved seed production and impact assessment;
- Implementation of improved
and standardized screening facilities at the research
stations of Africa Rice Center for the different stresses;
and
- Establishment of a network
of national scientists and partners in the project countries
The discussions on 2009
work-plan will cover participatory varietal selection methods,
seed production mechanisms, impact assessment studies and
monitoring and evaluation.
Dr Manneh added that this review and planning meeting is
particularly special because in addition to the participation of
representatives from 16 sub-Saharan African countries, the
President of the West and Central Africa Women Rice Farmers’
Association, Mrs Penda Gueye-Cisse, as well as private seed
producers have also been invited to the meeting to give their
feedback.
The Africa Rice Center
(WARDA) is a leading pan-African research organization working
to contribute to poverty alleviation and food security in Africa
through research, development and partnership activities. It is
one of the 15 international agricultural research Centers
supported by the Consultative Group on International
Agricultural Research (CGIAR). It is also an autonomous
intergovernmental research association of African member
countries.
The Center was created in 1971 by 11 African countries. Today
its membership comprises 22 countries, covering West, Central,
East and North African regions, namely Benin, Burkina Faso,
Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire,
Democratic Republic of Congo, Egypt, the Gambia, Ghana, Guinea,
Guinea Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria,
Republic of Congo, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo and Uganda.
WARDA’s temporary headquarters is based in Cotonou, Benin;
research staff are also based in Senegal, Nigeria, Tanzania and
Côte d’Ivoire.
For more information visit:
www.africaricecenter.org |
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