MID-TERM REVIEW OF THE CSIRO-AFRICA FOOD SECURITY PARTNERHIPS REPORT 2: THE CSIRO-BecA PARTNERSHIP 2 January 2013 Report prepared for AusAID by a Review Team Andy Hall (team leader), LINK Ltd Steve Ashley, theIDLgroup Howard Elliott, Independent Consultant Ian Kershaw, AusAID TABLE OF CONTENTS
Institutional Capacity Strengthening and Awareness Creation The Partnership supports the BecA-ILRI Hub in targeting organisations and countries that are underrepresented as hub users. Collaborative Research Projects AusAID supports research projects under the BecA-CSIRO Partnership, four of which focus on Food and Nutritional Security and three on Animal Health. Table 1 summarises the key features of these projects. 1. Key Features of AusAID-Supported CSIRO-BecA Projects Name Development rationale Main lines of bioscience and other enquiry Country focus Collaborators Aflatoxin: Establishing a Regional Mycotoxin Analytical Platform and its Application in Reducing Aflatoxin Contamination of Kenyan and Tanzanian Maize Health and income benefits from improved measurement and strategies to reduce Aflatoxin contamination in maize Determine genetic diversity. Advance measurement tools. Modeling occurrence and risk mapping. and Tanzania Lead BecA Key collaborators: Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI); Agricultural Research Institute, Tanzania (ARI); Open University of Tanzania; Cornell University; University of Queensland – QAAFI; CSIRO Cavies: Harnessing husbandry of domestic cavies for alternative and rapid access to food and income in Cameroon and the Democratic Republic of the Congo Improved livelihoods and nutrition through improved breeds, production and marketing Genetic characterisation. Improve husbandry and forage. Cameroon, DRC Lead Group: BecA Key collaborators: University of Dschang, Cameroon; CIAT; Université Evangélique en Afrique (UEA), DRC Mushrooms: Domestication of wild edible mushroom species in Eastern Africa Improved nutrition and livelihoods through promotion of mushrooms as a potential source of micronutrients. Genetic diversity and characterisation of wild, edible mushrooms: quality, taste, ease of propagation, market potential Burundi, Tanzania Lead Institution: University of Key collaborators: Kenya Industrial Research and Development Institute (KIRDI); University of Burundi; CSIRO Amaranth: Nutritional characterisation and value addition of amaranth vegetable and grain by low cost sustainable processing: towards poverty reduction, food and nutrition security in East Africa Improve and livelihoods of poor people through promotion of a traditional crop as a source of and compounds. Genetic and nutritional characterisation of varieties and processed products. Market development for new products. Kenya Tanzania Lead Institution: Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology Key collaborators: Sokoine University of Agriculture; AVRDC – World Vegetable Centre; CSIRO
PPR: Development of Improved Control Interventions for Peste des Petits Ruminants: Component I - Thermostabilisation of Existing Vaccines; Component II – Innovations in Vaccine Delivery Systems Eliminate major threat to livelihoods of small farmers. Develop thermostable vaccines. Develop and deliver vaccine mechanisms through public and private services Uganda and Sudan with potential regional applications Lead Group: ILRI Key collaborators: African Union Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources the Veterinary Services of Uganda and Sudan and private and animal health services providers in Uganda and Sudan CBPP: Providing proof of concept for the development of an inactivated vaccine for contagious bovine pleuropneumonia (CBPP) Highly contagious disease of cattle and buffalo with 50% mortality in newly-exposed animals. Develop a vaccine that gives longer protection than a live vaccine and which does not require refrigeration. Evaluate potential of using inactive mycoplasma to develop a better CBPP vaccine. Kenya, with potential regional applications Lead Institution: ILRI Key collaborators: KARI; Centre of Animal Biotechnology, Melbourne; University of Melbourne; CSIRO African Fever: Understanding the epidemiology of African swine fever as a prerequisite for mitigation of disease impact on pig keeping in East Africa Improved livelihoods of producers, butchers, processors, and traders. Prevent 100% losses in infected animals Genetic characterisation of the Development of field-based diagnostic protocols. Disease surveillance, epidemiology and testing of control measures Uganda, Cameroon Lead Group: ILRI Key collaborators: DVS Kenya; MAAIF: Uganda, Edinburgh University, UK; University of Pretoria, South Africa, CSIRO, Australia, SPAIN, SLU/SVA, Sweden. Services and Platforms In response to the increasing demand for research and capacity building the BecA Hub has established specialised platforms. The Partnership has supported the development of a nutrition analysis platform, which supports partners from JKUAT and other African universities mentioned in Table 1. 2. BecA-CSIRO Partnership Achievements The BecA-CSIRO Partnership has achieved much in the two years since the phase one agreement was signed in April 2010. During an intensive period of activity projects have been contracted and commenced, and capacity building activities with young African bioscientists have been launched and have built recognition across the sub-region. The review team sees some of the Partnership’s key achievements as follows. 2.1. The Partnership