“We
are relying on you, and will surely depend on you if we are to become self-sufficient in food,”
Demba Trawally, acting deputy director general of the National Agricultural
Research Institute (NARI) told 25 young scientists, who are currently being trained in plant breeding.
The
Gambia is a net importer of food and produces only half of its national
requirements of staple foods for the population estimated at 1.9 million. This
is partly due to lack of local breeders who can develop varieties to help the
country attain the long cherished dream of achieving national food security.
For
over three decades, NARI – the national agency mandated to carry out plant breeding - is grappling with inadequate human resources and the required
infrastructure, and thus preventing it from having in place a fully established
breeding programme. NARI is highly dependent on research institutions outside
the country to do its research work.
In
pursuit of its strategic objectives and in accordance with the National
Development Plan (2018 – 2021), the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the
United Nations (FAO) is supporting the government to create a pool of experts
to solve the lack of plant breeders who can develop new varieties of seeds for
the country that are more climate resilient and adapted to the local ecology.
The
course on rice, maize and groundnut breeders in The Gambia aims to develop the
next generation of breeders that will use modern tools to enhance the precision
and efficiency of their breeding programmes.
The initiative spearheaded by NARI is by FAO supported through the
European Union funded project titled: “Agriculture for Economic Growth and Food
Security to mitigate migration flows.”
The
participants come from NARI, the Plant Protection Services under the Department
of Agriculture (PPS), The Gambia College School of Agriculture, National Seed
Secretariat, National Coordinating Organisation of Farmer Associations Gambia
(NACOFAG) and the Variety Release Committee.
Addressing
participants at the start of the five-day Review Training in Plant Breeding,
Mr. Trawally underscored the importance of the activity amidst increasing
demand for foods and the impacts of climate change. He reminded participants
that expectations are high and urged them to serve as the beacon of hope for
The Gambia in the drive to achieve food security and zero hunger targets
(SDG2). He explained that through the introduction of new crop varieties and
bio fortification, the country can combat food insecurity and malnutrition, and
thus achieve improved health and nutrition outcomes for the population.
For
his part, Dr. Moussa Sié, senior scientist on Plant Breeding recruited by FAO
and posted at NARI to build local capacities to help ensure the availability of
improved cultivars, explained that participants have been equipped with the
requisite knowledge and skills to identify appropriate breeding methodologies
to be adopted at each step of the crop improvement programme. He noted that
participants had the opportunity to share experiences with other breeders as
well as receive the latest updates on areas relevant to breeding and the
worldwide exchange of plant genetic resources. “Our expectation is that your
knowledge on plant breeding, field setup, data collection and management has
been enhanced,” Sié told the participants.
He
underscored the importance FAO attaches to the activity and encouraged the
participants to live up to the expectations.
Progress
in breeding
So
far, NARI has experimented on 35 varieties of rice. Through a participatory
process involving farmers, researchers and extension officers, 10 best
varieties have been selected and given to farmers for seed multiplication.
In
the same vein, 68 groundnut and 16 maize varieties have been cultivated and are
currently under observation. Researchers are closely monitoring the vegetative,
flowering and maturing stages before involving farmers to undertake a varietal
selection for further seed multiplication.
