After working at KARI for nearly a decade to help improve sweet-potato production using traditional breeding and agronomy methods, I made no progress. Control of this disease will improve household food security for millions. This project involved collaboration between KARI, a project called Agricultural Biotechnology for Sustainable Productivity, funded by the US Agency for International Development, and Monsanto. The work by Kenyan scientists focuses on local varieties, and there will be a smooth and sustainable transfer of the technology, which will be shared with neighbouring countries. Kenyan scientists have been trained in gene technology techniques.
Similar projects are under way for bananas, sugar cane and tropical fruits.
Nevertheless, countries such as South Africa, Egypt, Zimbabwe and Kenya are taking practical steps to ensure that they can use biotechnology for sustainable development. African countries need to a oid exploitation and to participate as stakeholders in the transgenic biotechnology business. They need the right policies and agencies, such as operational biosafety regulatory agencies, breeders' rights and an effective local public and private sector, to interface with multinational companies that already have the technologies. Consumers need to be informed of the pros and cons of various agricultural biotechnology packages, the dangers of using unsuitable foreign germplasm, and how to avoid the loss of local germplasm and to maintain local diversity. Field trials need to be done locally, in Africa, to establish environmental safety under tropical conditions.