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Posts Tagged ‘africa’
Africa’s Green Revolution ‘needs indigenous tech approach’
Africa's Green Revolution should be built around the needs of its people, says report
This article on Science development Network (www.scidev.net) on a recent UN report seems to cover a lot of relevant ground to us.
Find it by clicking here.
As it mentions “…the challenge is to find, promote and disseminate innovation relevant to African agriculture.”
Importance of Traditional Food Crops for Community Resilience in Zimbabwe
Photo: Luciano Ghersi
A recent study titled “Traditional food crops as a source of community resilience in Zimbabwe” by researchers from Cornell and Rhodes universities and the Sebakwe Black Rhino Conservation Trust found that traditional food crops, such as mubovora (pumpkin) and ipwa (sweet reed), are an important source of community resilience in Zimbabwe—including resilience to climate change and economic turbulence.
Read more here.
2010 AWARD Fellowships call for applications
The CGIAR Gender and Diversity Programme calls for applications for its 2010 AWARD Fellowship scheme. The call is open to nationals from:
Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia, who are working in the fields of:
Agricultural economics, Agricultural engineering, Agronomy, Animal and livestock sciences, Aquatic resources and fisheries, Biodiversity conservation, Crop sciences, Ecology, Entomology, Extension education, Food sciences and nutrition, Forestry and agroforestry, Horticulture, Molecular biology (plant/animal breeding), Natural resources management, Plant/animal virology, Soil sciences, Veterinary sciences and Water and irrigation management.
The deadline for all applications is 22 March 2010.
Details and application forms can be downloaded from: http://www.genderdiversity.cgiar.org/resource/award.asp
Application forms can also be obtained by writing to: email hidden; JavaScript is required
Vacancy Announcement – Chief Executive Officer – PROTA
ICRAF/PROTA seeks to recruit a candidate for the position of Chief Executive Officer for the Network Office Africa, reporting directly to the PROTA Board Chair and closely collaborating with the PROTA Network Office in Europe. He/she shall implement the policies of the Board in close consultation with the CEO of the Network Office Europe, and shall be responsible to the PROTA Board for the operation and management of PROTA in Africa and for ensuring that its programmes in Africa are properly developed and carried out in accordance with PROTA’s mission and objectives. The activities of the Network Office Africa will substantially increase over time, as an increasing number of tasks and activities will be gradually transferred from the Network Office Europe to the Network Office Africa before the end of 2012.
We invite you to learn more about us at:
http://www.worldagroforestrycentre.org
Bioversity International: Senior Scientist, Genetic Diversity
[please also refer to our earlier post: http://www.cropsforthefuture.org/?p=1192]
To feed a rapidly increasing population it is crucial to tap into the full range of traits in the diversity of crop varieties and their wild relatives that have been selected over thousands of years for a multiplicity of conditions and qualities.
Under the supervision of the Director, Understanding and Managing Biodiversity Programme, and based at the Regional Office for Sub-Saharan Africa, Nairobi, Kenya, the incumbent will:
- Provide scientific leadership, coordination and facilitation of research to overcome constraints to the enhanced use of plant genetic resources. More specifically, having in-depth expertise in at least one of the areas listed below, the Senior Scientist will build the necessary links to develop a cohesive programme of work encompassing all four areas:
1. Identifying and understanding the extent and distribution of genetic diversity in agricultural biodiversity, particularly of crop plant genetic resources and wild populations of useful plants;
2. Developing ways of sampling and monitoring genetic diversity applicable to evaluating the status and trends of important genepools;
3. The application of molecular genetics and genomics tools to enhance theeffectiveness and efficiency of both conservation and use of genetic resources;
4. Promoting the use and deployment of genetic diversity through activities such as prebreeding and base broadening of cultivars under production and promoting links to more general plant breeding, including breeding by farmers.
He/she will be expected to further develop such a research agenda, to be implemented in collaboration with national partners and other institutions;
- The Senior Scientist will play a key role in the development of fundraising proposals to support collaborative research in this area, as well in development the capacity of partners;
- As a member of the Sub-Saharian Reginal Office, he/she is expected to be an excellent team player and to contribute to the delivery of outputs at regional level.
Qualifications and Competencies:
Essential qualifications and competencies:
- A PhD in genetics or conservation genetics with an emphasis on plant populations, or in plantbreeding.
- At least ten years of experience working with research partners on topics related toagrobiodiversity and plant genetic resources; preferably research experience on the subject of biodiversity and the use of genetic resources; applied field experience in developing countries.
- Broad knowledge about modern genetics/genomics technologies and their potentials to contribute to research themes related to the use of plant genetic resources.
- Knowledge about population genetic structure and dynamics and their relevance to use (breeding) and conservation/monitoring.
- Knowledge of research methods, including methods for genetic diversity assessment, germplasm enhancement, crop improvement and population genetics and their application in use- related programmes.
- Demonstrated competency in communication and interpersonal skills complemented by a commitment to and demonstrated track record of working within multi-disciplinary teams and in multi-cultural environments.
- Excellent English language skills, both verbal and written.
- Demonstrated ability to write proposals and generate funds for research.
- A substantial and sustained record of achievement and innovation through project development, implementation and delivery of results and demonstrated publication record.
Desirable qualifications and competencies
- Knowledge of CGIAR system will be an advantage.
- Working knowledge of Spanish, French, Arabic or Russian.
- Experience and networks in Africa an advantage.
For information on how to apply, please follow the instructions posted in the earlier vacancy http://www.cropsforthefuture.org/?p=1192
Bioversity International: Senior Scientist, Nutrition & Biodiversity
Bioversity International is developing a programme of work on the use of biodiversity resources for food and nutrition. Bioversity’s research is designed to explore how biodiversity conservation and use can provide immediate local as well as global benefits to people, especially in developing countries facing a growing burden of malnutrition. Agricultural biodiversity within agroecosystems (including crop genetic diversity, neglected or orphan crops, and plants and animals in home gardens and in a range of niches including aquatic environments and forest margins) is an important a source of micronutrients and dietary diversity. Agricultural biodiversity is also crucial to counter trends towards uniform, simplified, and nutritionally poor diets.
Bioversity seeks to fill the international post of Senior Scientist in Nutrition with expertise in human nutrition to lead a global research programme investigating how agricultural biodiversity can contribute to improved nutrition and health. The incumbent would lead research that (i) provides systematic evidence of the links between agricultural biodiversity, dietary diversity and relevant health outcomes; (ii) documents the role of local foods, local food culture and traditional knowledge of plants and foods; (iii) identifies strategic options and pathways that mainstream biodiversity into cross-cutting policy and development agendas in agriculture, health, and environment.
Based at Bioversity’s office in Nairobi, Kenya and with a global mandate, the incumbent will work with partners, stakeholders at the global, national and local levels in implementing Bioversity’s strategy and research agenda in nutrition. Under the supervision of the Director of the Diversity for Livelihoods Programme, the incumbent will:
- Provide scientific leadership on nutrition research issues pertaining to the use and conservation of agricultural biodiversity, particularly in the context of developing countries.
- Build and lead the institutional programme linking nutrition and biodiversity, taking a primary role in developing strategic partnerships and networks. Serve as the focal point for nutrition research activities conducted by Bioversity.
- Contribute to the implementation and refinement of Bioversity’s nutrition strategy in partnership with relevant research institutes, scientific and development bodies, integrating all the relevant research results and evidence, so that biodiversity is mainstreamed into cross cutting policy and development agendas.
- Contribute to proposal development activities to the generation of additional financial and human resources to support the research agenda of the institute.
Qualifications and competencies:
Essential qualifications & competencies:
- Ph.D. in community, international or public health, nutrition or related field.
- Strong statistical background and experience in rigorous design of community nutritional studies and analyses.
- Demonstrated international research experience in an area of Nutrition at the community and/or program levels, including senior positions and in developing countries.
- Demonstrated competency in the management of people and other resources at a senior level, preferably in an international research or academic environment.
- A substantial and sustained record of achievement and innovation including experience with strategy development and implementation and a demonstrated publication record in relevant fields.
- A commitment to and demonstrated track record of working within multi-disciplinary teams and in multi-cultural environments.
- Demonstrated competency in communication and interpersonal skills including the ability to motivate, catalyze and promote engagement through negotiation and consensus-building.
- Experience with proposal development and fundraising
- Excellent English language skills, both verbal and written.
Desirable competencies and qualifications:
- Formal training and/or research experience in the use of biodiversity for food and nutrition, traditional and indigenous food systems, or food-based approaches to health.
- Experience in implementing research supporting sustainable use of agricultural biodiversity including ecosystem health, ecology, plant sciences, or related economic aspects.
- Participation in global for a and networks on the future of global and local food systems
- Fluency in French, Spanish, or Arabic.
Terms and conditions: This is an internationally recruited position. Bioversity International offers an attractive remuneration package including a competitive salary, non-contributory retirement plan, medical insurance, housing allowance and leave provisions. All benefits are denominated and paid in US Dollars. The initial contract will be for a period of three years subject to a probationary period of one year.
Applications: Please apply online through the following link: Bioversity Employment Opportunities Webpage by clicking the “Apply” button. Alternatively, via e-mail to: email hidden; JavaScript is required including a letter of application, curriculum vitae in English (that includes date of birth, gender and nationality) and the names and full contact details of at least three referees (telephone, fax and e-mail address); or via mail to: Human Resources Office, Bioversity International, Via de Tre Denari, 472/a, 00057 Maccarese, Rome, Italy; or via Fax to (39) 06 6118 341 no later than 15 November 2009. Please quote the source of advertisement.
Bioversity is an equal opportunity employer and strives for staff diversity in gender and nationality.
All received applications will be acknowledged, but only short listed applicants will be further contacted.
For further information on Bioversity International, consult its website.
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation: SPO Science and Technology
The Agricultural Development Program is focused on improving rural livelihoods in Africa and South Asia by helping small holder farmers increase their yields and find markets for their products. The Science and Technology division of the Agricultural Development Program makes grants for research, development, and technology dissemination to improve the crops of the poor. These grants employ breeding, biotechnology, and improved agronomy to develop higher yielding, more nutritious crops that are resistant to plant diseases, pests, drought, and other stresses.
The SPO for Science and Technology will be responsible for identifying and developing projects worthy of grant support. Such projects will involve research and development to improve the crops that are most important to the poor in Africa and South Asia. This R&D may involve conventional plant breeding, improved crop management, molecular markers, and other tools of modern biotechnology. These projects may also involve improvements to seed production and delivery systems as well as applied and adaptive research (‘extension research’). The SPO also will manage existing grant relationships with partners engaged in these types of projects, supporting their efforts to meet specified milestones in their work plans.
Bill Gates recently spoke on our agriculture program at the World Food Prize. Click here to review the speech;
The SPO will oversee activities worldwide, and will lead efforts to partner with key research and product development partners including private companies, public and academic research facilities, and local breeding initiatives, working closely with grantees, colleagues, and consultants. He/she will also engage governments and private entities in the co-funding of key project initiatives,
The SPO will be expected to:
Identify, evaluate and seize new opportunities to reduce hunger and poverty through improvements to crop yields, seed systems, and crop management
Drive the establishment of partnerships between relevant institutions to define project objectives, work plans, budgets, and institutional arrangements
Develop (engage partners, structure deals, make funding decisions) and manage (serve on boards, provide intellectual and management counsel to key grantees, hold grantees accountable against rigorous performance standards) a portfolio of complex grants requiring high-level grant management skills, and monitoring and evaluation
Support and help manage co-chair and CEO learning in the area of agricultural development. Write and produce informative briefings and other materials on key issues for the team and co-chairs as appropriate. Accompany co-chairs on trips and to key meetings
Publicly represent the foundation with broad stakeholders including both public and private entities, grantee organizations, other funders, universities, think tanks, and other valued partners.
This position is located in Seattle. We offer a competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits program that reflects the foundation’s values and culture. The foundation offers a comprehensive relocation program.
Please visit our website to learn more about the role and the foundation.
BBC airs programme on indigenous vegetables
Tune in to BBC’s Food Programme on Sunday 13 September at 12:32 BST (GMT+1) to listen to Sheila Dillon who looks at work to promote indigenous vegetables in Africa, an attempt to improve nutrition, maintain genetic diversity and respond to concerns about climate change. Are there lessons for developed nations as well?
Tune into BBC Radio 4 or access through the internet. For more details visit http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qnx3
Money will not end Africa’s famine
[by James Shikwati*, Business Daily Africa, 2 September 2009]
There was a time in Africa when elders would “talk” to the drought and negotiate their way into receiving rainfall. With their unique understanding of causation, elders would either sacrifice a black sheep or ask a virgin girl to bathe in a lake in order to draw the attention of the rain gods. Would that they could do so now.
With an estimated 50 million Africans in dire need of food aid and an additional 120 million facing starvation if immediate measures to alleviate the situation are not taken, the general assumption has become that developing countries do not have what funds are necessary to increase food productivity.
Too little time has been invested in seeking to understand why Africa, with its vast farmlands and its brilliant and innovative sons and daughters, still goes hungry as the rest of the world battles with obesity. Computer experts are aware of malware, the “malicious software” that is designed to infiltrate a computer without the owners’ informed consent. The general computer user is familiar with viruses, Trojan horses, worms, and spyware among other programmes that cause harm to the operating system.
As we talk about famine in Africa, we should take a moment to evaluate the hostile and intrusive programmes operating in the background as food aid in particular and aid in general run in the foreground. Ask yourself, for example, why a majority of Africans have changed their diets. Kenyan nutritionists point out that we have ignored high value foods and replaced them with junk, sacrificing thousands of Africa’s domesticated and wild edible crops at the altar of modernity. Crops whose production should be scaled up by virtue of their ability to adapt to Africa’s climate have instead been framed as crops of poverty.
Crops such as the tamarind, millet, sorghum, indigenous peanuts and potatoes have been kicked out of the menu in favour of wheat and beef.
Over 50 years of food aid targeted at Africa have been marked by a corresponding increase in episodes of famine, which points to the possible existence of a food “malware” – a malicious system that changes people’s dietary habits in favour of imported foods. The same malware has penetrated agricultural schools, where it trains graduates to promote the new foods as opposed to upgrading local varieties.
Worst of all, it has penetrated our political leadership, corrupting their minds with the quest for kickbacks to the extent that they do not invest in local solutions as foreign solutions can loaded with the the possibility of a quick 10 per cent. In the absence of an effective “anti-virus” this malware loads its intentions on the hapless operating systems of Africa’s nations, forcing them to become perpetual beggars.
It is my contention that, to reduce the incidence of famine on the continent, Africans must develop an effective system for detecting the “malicious background operating system” that has not only denied them the opportunity to promote their local cuisines but has also exposed their land to grabbing.
It is time we invested in our indigenous crops, turned our rural populations into celebrated food suppliers through incentives and invested in technology to free our continent from perennial famine. Contrary to common belief, money is not the solution to Africa’s famine problem. Neither, for that matter, is food aid. What we need to do is get rid of the malware operating in our system.
* James Shikwati is the director of Inter Region Economic Network: email hidden; JavaScript is required
African Indigenous Vegetables in Urban Agriculture
Charlie M. Shackleton, Margaret W. Pasquini and Axel W. DrescherPaperback £24.95, June 2009
African Indigenous Vegetables in Urban Agriculture provides a comprehensive synthesis of current knowledge of the potential and challenges associated with the multiple roles, use, management and livelihood contributions of indigenous vegetables in urban agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa. Based on critical analysis of current debates and practices, it presents a multidisciplinary analysis of the realities and future opportunities.
More information about the book is available on our website: www.earthscan.co.uk/?TabId=56958&v=451875
To request a review or inspection copy, and for all queries, please contact email hidden; JavaScript is required
Download a 20% discount for the book from our website here:
www.earthscan.co.uk/Portals/0/pdfs/African_Indigenous_Vegetables_in_Urban_Agriculture.pdf