Presentation by Prof Christian Fatokun, International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, Ibadan, Nigeria Delivered at the B4FA Media Dialogue Workshop, Ibadan, Nigeria - September 2012 www.b4fa.org

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Biotechnology for Agriculture in Nigeria

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Fermentation: Production of alcohol from sorghum or sugar
cane, akanmu from corn etc.
Tissue Culture: Small plant parts placed on nutrient media
containing hormones.
Biotechnology:- Manipulation of biological elements (plant or
animal) to develop new products

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Modern Biotechnology;
Genetic engineering;
R-DNA technology;
Transformation:- A gene is taken from one organism and inserted in
another to give the latter the desired trait.
Transgenic is produced. :-
Genomics: Sequences of nucleotides that make up DNA.

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According to International Service for the Acquisition of Agric-
biotech Applications – ISAAA in 2011
GM adoption was by 16.7 million farmers
On 160 million hectares
In 29 countries: 10 developed
: 19 developing
In Africa on 2.5 million hectares
Crops:
Corn
Soybean
Cotton
Canola

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In Nigeria Agriculture is characterized by:
Low Productivity
– Small Holdings, subsistence
– Poor soils
– Mercy of the rains
– Limited access to irrigation facilities
– Unimproved planting materials
– Diseases, Pests, Drought, Heat, Weeds
– Storage and Transportation
– Inadequate funds
– Limited mechanisation (Inadequate tools)
– Ageing farming population

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Major Food Crops
Tubers:
• Cassava, Yams, Potatoes, Cocoyam
Grains:
Maize, Rice, Sorghum, Millet, Cowpea, Soybean,
Bambara, Pigeonpea, Phaseolus beans
Plantains/Bananas
Fruits and vegetables
Oil Palm/ Coconut/ Groundnut

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Planting yam in mounds
Yam production and
marketing

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At IITA tissue culture is being applied to facilitate crop improvement
In plantain/banana:- Black sigatoka disease

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Plantain/Banana
Constraints:- Black sigatoka - 40% yld loss;
- Banana streak virus – 60% yld loss;
- Weevils
- Nematodes
- Fusarium wilt/ Bacterial wilt
- Banana die back virus
B l a c k S i g a t o k a B a c t e r i a l w i l t F u s a r i u m w i l t
D i s e a s e s o f b a n a n a a n d p l a n t a i n

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Embryo rescue of hybrid seeds
Embryo rescue for hybrid seed

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- Mostly grown and consumed in SSA
- High protein content in grains up to 25%;
- Hence cheap source of protein;
- Approx 3.3 m tonnes on 9.8 m ha;
- Average grain yield is 600 kg/ha;
- Potential grain yield is upto 2.0 t/ha.
Cowpea – called beans in Nigeria

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Biotic contsraints:– Aphids;
Flower bud thrips;
Legume pod borer;
Pod sucking bugs;
Grain Weevil;
Bacterial blight;
Fusarium wilt;
Striga gesnerioides.
Cowpea

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An intractable pest is Maruca vitrata

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Maruca larva
Screened over 10,000
accessions for resistance;
Led to efforts at
developing GM cowpea
with Bt gene;
Cowpea with Bt gene
now available.

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Bt cowpea has been evaluated under confined field trials
Bt gene efficacious against Maruca vitrata
Further evaluations in B. Faso and Ghana
Plans to transfer Bt gene to good genetic background
Marker assisted selection to facilitate

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Anoplocnemis curvipes
Damaged pods
Pod sucking bugs

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Benefits of Biotechnology
• Rapid multiplication of new clones/varieties
• Prolonging Shelf Life of Fruits, Vegetables and Flowers
• Extend Crop Area and Season
– Stress Tolerance - Drought, Acidity, Salinity, Heat,
Water logging
• More Nutritious Food
• Healthy Produce, Low Toxins
• Pharmaceutical Proteins
• Clean Up of Environment
• Industrial Products
• Value-Added Products

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Improved food safety
Improving Cassava for Nutrition, Health and Sustainable Development - BioCassava Plus, a
multi-disciplinary team of scientist- Ohio State University, USA and DDPSC - Acyanogenic
cassava

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Food fortification
• Rice for High Beta Carotene, Vitamin E and
Enhanced Iron and Zinc bioavailability -
ProVitaMinRice Consortium, Albert-Ludwigs-
Universität Freiburg, Germany

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Both are derived from same ancestor, Brassica oleracea. They were
devoped over several years and generations through breeding and
selection. With bioengineering can be made more precisely over a
short period of time. (Bradford et al. 2004)
Cauliflower
Broccoli

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Recombinant technology
Conventional technology
Gene source
Unlimited
Usually limited to relatives within
species; could also between genera
Usually one or a few known
genes
Usually many blocks of genes of
unknown identity
Gene flow can be monitored
during subsequent generations
Individual gene flow can be
monitored
Location of genes
Random into recipient genome Normally – but not always – genes
remain in sites in which they evolved -
Source: Boulter, 1995

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Marker assisted breeding using DNA in cassava and cowpea
Cowpea: Aphid resistance
Bacterial blight resistance
Striga resistance
Drought tolerance

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Is Nigeria prepared for GMOs?
Some challenges
Research infrastructure:-
Few trained scientists in molecular biology
Only few laboratories exist with facilities for biotech
research – SHESTCO was to be a flagship
Virtually all needed reagents have to be imported
Good news is possibility for outsourcing some services

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Is Nigeria prepared for GMOs?
Some challenges
Complex crop combinations in farmers’ fields make certain
GMO crops unattractive
Only a few GM crops are available for planting
Likely increase in cost of procuring seeds for planting
Limited access to inputs for more productive farming
Insufficient information on GMOs
Fear of consumers attitude to produce
IPR issues
Biosafety regulations

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Thank You for Listening