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Biotechnology in agriculture, forestry and fisheries in Africa
Introduction
State of biotechnology in the region
Biotechnology in livestock and fisheries
development
Biotechnology in selected African countries
Future prospects and strategies
References
S.N. Kassapu and R.B. Singh
Regional Science and Technology Officer, Regional
Office for Africa, Accra
FAO Research and Technology Development Division
Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, is facing a developmental crisis, much of which is attributed to stagnant or sluggish growth in the agricultural sector. FAO estimates that population growth in the region will outstrip food production capacities for a long time to come. Given current trends, Africa will experience a 250 million tonne food shortage, or 20 times the current food gap, within the next 25 years (FAO, 1993). The problem is further exacerbated by widespread environmental degradation deriving from increased deforestation rates and biodiversity loss. Moreover, the region has also been subjected to declines in agricultural investment, especially for technology development and transfer.
While area extension has historically been the main solution in absorbing the increasing African population, FAO shows that the rate of opening new land was reduced by 30 percent in Africa between 1961 and 1980 as reserves in some countries were exhausted. New land is less and less an option and where it is, it merely offers a breathing space to focus on the only long-term viable option of improving productivity on existing cultivated lands. With rural populations expanding over the next 30-40 years, the increased demand for food and income will exacerbate pressures on soils, grazing lands and forests. As the costs of expanding into new areas increase, a point is eventually reached at which the only economic option for farmers is to intensify their production. When this happens, it creates a more favourable environment for technological innovation and greater demand for the results of research.
Notwithstanding the existing wide technology transfer gaps, there is a serious technology generation gap. Genetic improvement for resistance to, or tolerance of the major insect pests and diseases, is particularly important because of the low-cost approach to control offered to resource-poor farmers, let alone the environmental protection through avoidance of application of often-polluting pesticides. Genetic improvement of crops for tolerance of drought and for increased biological nitrogen fixation is another important area. The productivity of forests and farm trees is also running well below their potential and the improvement of multipurpose trees for farm and industrial uses deserves high priority.
Animal productivity is low and the improvement of animal nutrition and genetic make-up should be a high priority. Animal health is a dominant concern in most of Africa. In addition to trypanosomiasis and tickborne diseases, endoparasites in small ruminants constrain production in major subregions. As regards fisheries, the catch of inland water fish has remained relatively constant at about 1.4 to 1.5 million tonnes per year since the mid-1970s. Modern aquaculture has been slow to develop in Africa.
Generally, the known production principles for crops, livestock, forestry and fisheries have been applied in patches, but these have shown that there is strong potential for significant yield increases in all sectors. While the priority for research should be to exploit existing potential, efforts to increase genetic adaptation to specific needs, especially by breeding for resistance to major pests and diseases tolerance for drought and other abiotic stresses, conservation and utilization of vast and veritable indigenous genetic resources, diversification, quality improvement and value-addition offer great promises. In all these fields, biotechnology can play an important role in complementing the current efforts through conventional technologies.
This paper briefly reviews the status of development and application of biotechnology in agriculture, forestry and fisheries, describes experiences of selected countries in this field and finally examines the prospects of rational exploitation of biotechnologies in Africa.
State of biotechnology in the region
Plant Biotechnology
Crop production is the major source of employment, food, farm income and foreign exchange earnings in most African countries. The main food crops, cultivated in diverse ecological conditions, include cereals, roots and tubers and oilseeds (sources of energy), grain legumes (source of cheap protein and an important component of farming systems), and various fruits and vegetables (protective foods). But tree crops such as oil palm, cacao, tea and coffee, and fibre crops (e.g. cotton) are important for both domestic and export markets. The production of food crops is especially low and marked fluctuations in agricultural output are experienced. High Yielding Variety (HYV) technologies for crops such as sorghum, millet, root crops and pulses are limited. Among the constraints to agricultural production are low input use, low fertility of soils, climatic (viz recurrent droughts) and weather vagaries, and a high incidence of insect pests, pathogens and weeds. There are great expectations that plant biotechnology has the potential of making a significant contribution towards increased crop productivity, stability and sustainability of production, especially through the development of cultivars resistant to biotic and abiotic stresses, and the increased use of biofertilizers.
Arising from the high hopes put on the potential of the new biotechnological techniques, a series of meetings on plant biotechnology were held in recent years. The general aims of these meetings were to assess the relevance of the new technologies and related challenges; to review current biotechnology R&D; to sensitize African scientists; to identify, in broad terms, policy issues, strategies and priorities and to stimulate collaboration in research and development.
An International CTA (Technical Centre for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation)/FAO Symposium on Plant Biotechnologies for Developing Countries was held in Luxembourg from 26 to 30 June 1989. The report presented on the status of plant biotechnology in sub-Saharan Africa at the symposium revealed that at most some 20 centres in eight French-speaking countries were working on 30 tropical plants. The programmes were at the early stages of development and seemed confined to the application of tissue culture technologies for the micropropagation and production of disease-free plants. At the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), these two technologies have been applied to cassava, sweet potato, yam, cocoyam, plantain and banana. Monoclonal antibodies and Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) have been used to detect and identify viruses in root and tuber crops. The successful development of dihaploids, derived from another culture for developing improved rice and banana varieties, and rhizobia inoculant production for Biological Nitrogen Fixation (BNF) in some countries were also reported.
The African Biosciences Network (ABN) organized the International Symposium on the Role of Biology in Resolving the Food Crisis in Africa (Côte d'Ivoire, July 1989), which identified priority R&D in plant, microbial, animal, medical and aquatic biotechnologies. In plant biotechnology, priority was accorded to plant tissue and cell culture technologies, viz. rapid clonal propagation, elimination of virus diseases through meristem culture, haploids derived from other culture, "embryo rescue" and the establishment of gene banks for the preservation and exchange of germplasm, and nitrogen fixation technologies. Recommendations were also made for the establishment of a regional network on biotechnology, personnel training and development, a survey on the status of biotechnology R&D in Africa, information exchange and funding of R&D activities.
The African Regional Workshop on Biotechnology for Food Production in Dry Areas, organized by the Niger Basin Authority (NBA) and the UN Centre for Science and Technology for Development (CSTD), in October 1990, in Dakar, Senegal, recommended research focus on drought tolerance, pests, diseases and weed control, and appropriate substitutes for expensive inputs and local processing, including traditional fermented products. It observed that capacity building for biotechnology requires access to relevant technologies and the introduction of biotechnology in education programmes from the first degree level. This will require the strengthening of basic science teaching at all levels and specific funding to equip laboratories in African universities and agricultural research institutes. With regard to the safety of biotechnological research, the meeting recommended that each country devise guidelines for biosafety and establish its own trained inspectorate and regulatory measures.
Recognizing the importance of conservation and characterization of indigenous germplasm for the enhanced impact of biotechnology, the Dakar workshop urged that biotechnology ensure that the germplasm base is not reduced as the result of new technology. Africa is considered as the primary or secondary centre of genetic diversity for a variety of crop species, such as sorghum, pearl millet, rice (glaberrima), "hungry rice" cowpea, bambarra groundnut, yam, oil palm, coffee, etc. Loss in biodiversity is on the increase. In vitro conservation of the recalcitrant seed species is being promoted in some cases. For instance, the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is currently maintaining over 2 000 cassava accessions under in vitro conditions. Resources which may contribute useful genes have been identified in indigenous species, such as stress tolerance genes in pearl millet (Pennisetum typhoides), saltgrass (Distichlis palmeri) and Argan (Argania spinosa). Plants of African origin offer the opportunity to develop new products for domestic use as well as for export. Some examples are sapogenin from saltbush (Atriplex spp.), essential oils from Mentha arvensis and edible oils from Salicornia europeae. Many arid developing countries have coastal sidelands and marshlands that may be suitable for Salicornia production both for producing high protein biomass as well as high-quality edible oil. Biotechnology applications to Salicornia include selection for high oil content as well as in vitro clonal propagation of the superior biotypes.
The Regional Symposium on Biotechnology for Development (Nairobi, Kenya, Feb. 1992) confirmed that mainly technologies based on plant tissue culture for plant multiplication and genetic improvement were applied in some African countries. In addition to APBNet, two new organizations, Réseau Africain de micropropagation and the African Agency for Biotechnology had been recently created. The symposium endorsed the establishment of the African Regional Network for Biotechnology (ARNB) as an umbrella organization to oversee and coordinate biotechnological activities in the Africa region. It appointed a Steering Committee to draft a constitution; draw up a programme of activities and develop a Newsletter; raise funds from national, bilateral and multilateral sources and from industry; and make a comprehensive survey of personnel and infrastructure related to biotechnology. FAO was requested to play a major role in coordination efforts and in helping the networks to raise funds for project elaboration and implementation.
From the various meetings on plant biotechnology held in the region during the past few years, it emerged that plant biotechnology offers enormous opportunity for agricultural growth and sustainable production with environmental protection. Reduced input costs associated with the increased adoption of disease and insect pest-resistant cultivars and biofertilizers will especially benefit small-scale African farmers. Reduced use of pesticides will promote biodiversity, minimize health hazards and promote the marketing of fresh fruits and vegetables. The new technologies, where appropriate, are considered extremely cost-effective in the long term.
Post-harvest losses in sub-Saharan Africa are as high as 40 percent of farm produce. Biotechnology research altering the quality of crops and seeds would be highly desirable if the harvest could better withstand the high humidity and temperatures of the tropics. Agroprocessing, such as the removal of toxic substances from cassava, should receive high priority. Biotechnological manipulation of cocoa, oil palm, vanilla and other industrial cash crops holds bright prospects for Africa and should be promoted on a priority basis.
Biotechnology in livestock and fisheries development
The gap between human demand and the availability of livestock products is huge in Africa, and imports have been increasing fast. The productivity of African breeds is very low: mature beef cattle of 4-5 years hardly weight 300 kg (as against 400 kg at one year for exotic animals); the best African cows produced 300 litre/lactation (as against 5 000 litres and more in Europe); 100 African ewes produced 50 lambs every two or three years (as against 150 lambs a year in developed countries).
Retrospectively, production policies that aimed at developing livestock through cross-breeding of exotic grade cattle with indigenous ones have generally failed. The new approach is not to make selection of local performant animals. Biotechnology offers good methods both for selection and cross-breeding schemes, essentially through Multiovulation Embryo Transfer (MOET) and the field diagnosis of pregnancy. Yet, there is wide diversity among the countries to use new technologies. For instance, even if simpler techniques such as Artificial Insemination (AI) are considered, it is seen that in East Southern Africa the technique is widely used, whereas in West and Central Africa, because of the predominance of nomadic transhumant livestock production, the technique is least developed.
MOET is well developed in few countries such as Zimbabwe and South Africa. Cattle farmers in these countries import frozen embryos from overseas. MOET is promising especially in the development of dairy cattle farms around large cities. Both AI and MOET are being used in Open Nucleus Breeding Systems (ONBS) to improve animal production. Small-scale ONBS projects are being carried out by FAO in small ruminants in Ghana and the Gambia. Moreover, by using semen from bulls, with genetic resistance to high temperature, diseases and insects common to African countries, embryos could be produced from superior cows of other regions and then implanted into surrogate mothers within the environment where improved livestock are needed.
In animal feeding, biodegradation of low-quality forage is also a promising technology. It can be associated with chemical degradation techniques (use of urea and ammonia) to improve animal feeds during dry seasons.
In some of the countries, farm diagnosis of pregnancy is also being used by field workers by using a kit based on the difference of levels of progesterone in cow's milk.
In the field of animal health, Sterile Insect Technology (SIT) is well known in Africa. Sterile males of glossina are being reared in Bobo-Dioulasso and Burkina Faso for field application. Successful field projects in tsetse control have been carried out in Nigeria (BICOT Project) and in Burkina Faso. Newworld screwworm was eradicated in the Libyan Arab Jamahiriya in 199091 by the use of SIT.
In disease diagnosis, ELISA is being used to evaluate rinderpest immunity in vaccinated animals. Monoclonal Antibody Techniques (MAB) is not commonly used. The two techniques are very promising because they are very simple and most effective. Trials are under way to use the ELISA test in trypanosomiasis diagnosis. In vaccine production recombinant rinderpest vaccine trials done in the United States seem ready to be utilized in a mass vaccination campaign against rinderpest in Africa. There is an increasing level of activity in hybridoma work in sub-Saharan countries.
The work of ILRAD in Kenya is addressing the problem of diseases and parasites that affect cattle. Some of the common cattle diseases are East Coast Fever, tickborne diseases and trypanosomiasis. The focused approaches to researching on these diseases is expanding to yield results that will significantly benefit cattle breeders. The development of rinderpest vaccines remaining stable at ordinary temperatures was of high practical value.
Biotechnology in fisheries is recent in Africa and it is being applied essentially in private fisheries sector. Work is mostly confined to hormonal treatments for sex reversal and pawning, detection of fish and shrimps disease and development of fish feed.
Biotechnology in forestry
Forestry research in Africa, let alone forestry biotechnologies, is not well developed. Some success stories were experienced with rhizobium technology such as coniferous plantations in East and southern Africa and Casuarina plantations in Senegal. However, in recent years, there is a tendency to move towards genetic improvement and in. vitro culture. African forestry research institutions are actively engaged in laying the foundations for genetic improvement research. This is a very necessary prerequisite for biotechnology or any other sophisticated research to be effective.
According to a survey carried out by the FAO Regional Office for Africa (1987), 20 countries in the region, including the North African subregion, had established national forest seed centres, and FAO is helping, through a cooperative programme with France, to establish a seed centre in each Sahelian country. The survey further revealed that about 100 researchers in 22 countries are undertaking some kind of genetic improvement research, but only three countries are engaged in in vitro culture, with considerable inputs from foreign institutions and expertise in two cases. However, most of the research institutions are engaged in research on vegetative propagation for the establishment of clonal plantations.
Biotechnology in selected African countries
Summarized below is the development and application of biotechnology in ten selected African countries, representing the various subregions. The information is adopted from Bialy (1993), Chatsanga (1993), Komen and Persley (1993) and Sasson (1993).
Burundi
Biotechnology work in Burundi was confined to in vitro culture and the promotion of biological nitrogen fixation. In vitro micropropagation was performed for rice, maize and sorghum. At the University of Burundi, Bujumbura, yam, cassava and potato were propagated in the same way. Similar work was carried out at the Agricultural Sciences Institute of Burundi. A national programme aimed at improving potato, and propagating selected varieties on a large scale, was supported by the International Potato Centre (CIP). Potato plantlets were marketed by a private company at the same time as agricultural inputs. Demand for potato plantles was high and such a marketing and distribution mechanisms was appreciated by the partners involved.
At the Agricultural and Zootechnical Institute (IRAZ) of Gitega, serving Burundi, Rwanda and Zaire, banana was micropropagated. Banana plantlets were mainly sold to Rwanda, which had a small industry for processing banana beer and wine. Since IRAZ could not meet the demand for technical reasons, Rwanda created its own micropropagation production unit and the Institute was considering giving its micropropagation work to a private company, so as to concentrate on upstream research.
Cameroon
Micropropagation techniques have been introduced for root and tuber crops in Cameroon. Development work at the Root and Tissue Research Project Biotechnology Laboratory has focused on mass-producing disease-free seedlings from the roots and tubers of cocoyam and yam. Embryonic tissue material has been used to produce cassava seedlings. The Cameroon biotechnology capability is enhanced by other projects under way at the University of Yaoundé Biotechnology Centre which is using techniques such as cell and tissue culture, hybridoma development and recombinant DNA. The Centre's work on developing diagnostic antigens from Onchocerca volvulus, the causative agents for river blindness, is well recognized.
Bio/Afrique, a diagnostic biotechnology company in Yaoundé, was formed as a profit-making joint venture between the government of Cameroon, through the biotechnology centre at the University of Yaoundé, and private Cameroonian investors as equity partners; Applied Biotechnology (San Diego, CA) as a source of proprietary manufacturing technologies; Chiron, Crop. (Emeryville, CA), Tanox Biosystems (Houston, TX), New England Biolabs (Beverly, MA) and a number of European and American academic laboratories as scientific partners. The impact of this joint venture is yet to be felt.
Côte d'Ivoire
The Institut international de recherche scientifique pour le développement en Afrique (IIRSDA) is the leading centre for biotechnology development in the country. Yam, a very important food crop in West Africa, is being researched in order to accelerate its rate of propagation. Studies include genome characterization, disease-free micropropagation, karyotyping, protoplast fusions and in vitro conservation. Techniques of micropropagation of cells obtained from the calli of young leaves and flowers of oil palm are being standardized. Somatic hybridization and field trials of vitro plants are being pursued. The country is the world's number one producer of cocoa and the crop accounts for almost 50 percent of export earnings. Plans to use biotechnology to develop disease-resistant and superior quality cocoa are receiving due attention.
Ghana
Ghana was once the world's leading cocoa producer. By the 1970s, it ranked far behind Côte d'Ivoire, the new leader, Brazil and Malaysia. It nevertheless maintained a good reputation for cocoa, thanks to rigorous quality control. At the faculty of Agriculture of the University of Ghana, disease-resistant and higher-yielding cocoa plantlets were being multiplied through clonal propagation; thermotherapy was applied to eliminate viral and bacterial diseases. At the National Agricultural Research Institute, work was being conducted on in vitro conservation of various indigenous crop species. The Department of Veterinary Services of the University of Ghana was developing vaccines against some of the prevalent cattle diseases.
The Overseas Development Administration (ODA, United Kingdom) contributed £7.5 million of financial and technical assistance over four years to Ghana's Cocoa Research Institute and Cocoa Marketing Board. Technical assistance covered the provision of staff at the Institute and training of Ghanaians in the United Kingdom. ODA also supplied equipment for the rehabilitation of laboratories, in line with research priorities. Among other things, ODA provided assistance for the development of nucleic acid probes and Restriction fragment Lenght Polymorphism (RFLP) markers intended to understand better and prevent cocoa viral and fungal diseases. Research in these areas was conducted in collaboration with the John Innes Institute at Norwich.
Kenya
The Kenya Agricultural Research Institute (KARI) is pioneering the development of modern biotechnological approaches to existing programmes, especially tissue culture technology for producing uniform and disease-free seedlings of potato, pyrethrum and tea. Efforts are under way to develop inoculants for leguminous plants and transfer of the technology to farmers. Until 1993 the focal point for biotechnology coordination in Kenya was the National Advisory Committee on Biotechnology Advances and their Applications (NACBAA). It was composed of the directors of research institutes under the Ministry of Research, Science and
Technology (covering agriculture, industry, health and the environment), plus representatives from the private sector. The Committee had responsibility for:
An outline for a national biotechnology programme was prepared in 1991 by NACBAA, identifying national priority areas, the development of regulatory guidelines, and the formation of a decentralized National Biotechnology Enterprise Programme. The programme would involve the creation of a National Biotechnology Education Centre, a Biotechnology Enhancement Fund, and a National Commission for Biotechnology to succeed NACBAA, which was disbanded after completing its task. The faculties of science and agriculture at the University of Nairobi and at Jomo Kenyatta University are also building expertise in this field, and the former intends to establish a biotechnology institute to provide a focus for biotechnology research and education.
Mauritius
The University of Mauritius identified three areas of biotechnology research to start with, namely upgrading of sugarcane byproducts, biological nitrogen fixation and plant tissue and cell culture. In collaboration with Imperial Chemical Industries (ICI) Ltd and using ICI airlift fermenter and continuous culture techniques, molasses were used as a substrate to produce yeast single-cell protein (microbial biomass); in association with Mauritius Farms Ltd, trials were conducted on the use of this yeast biomass as a protein substitute in chicken feeds. Investigations on the use of sugar-cane juice instead of molasses, improvement of the culture medium, selection of yeast strains, pH and temperature optimization, flocculation and sedimentation processes, yeast nutrient value and potential use as food and feed, were also planned. The digestibility of bagasse by ruminants and its nutritive value after a variety of biotechnological treatments to decrease its relative lignin content, followed by biodegradation, constituted another area of investigation. The University also foresaw the need for a databank on genetic engineering.
Several grain legume species were selected for pulse production locally to cut down on imports: Vigna mungo, Phaseolus vulgaris, Lablab purpureus, Glycine max, Lens culinaris and Cicer arietinum. Research work was being carried out on the selection of effective and persistent strains of Rhizobium for these legume species to be grown under various soil conditions and fertilizer. As regards other crops, after screening selected species of economic importance to Mauritius (tea, coffee, vanilla, fruit crops, Anthurium andreanum species and other flower species), their suitability to be cloned successfully through tissue culture was studied; these techniques were also expected to be used on a routine basis to produce selected plants with desirable attributes.
Among the requirements for biotechnology development in Mauritius, the following were identified: (i) a national programme for biotechnology development; (ii) national machinery to review advances in biotechnology applications in the Mauritian context, safety standards, training requirements, etc., taking into account assistance schemes of the United Nations system, the EEC and bilateral cooperation; (iii) a documentation centre; and (iv) funding arrangements and distribution of tasks. Among the R&D projects, the following were considered as priority: fermentation processes, including anaerobic digestion of wastes and methane production, alcohol production, composting, degradation of lignocellulosic biomass; biofertilizers and biopesticides; virus-free crops, fruits and vegetables; production of hybrid horticultural and ornamental crops; dwarf tree crop varieties and fast-growing "energy" crops; soil-acidity tolerant crop varieties; microbial biomass for animal feed; embryo transfer in cows to increase milk yield; bovine and porcine growth hormones; diagnostic kits for common plant and animal diseases; vaccines for domestic animals (e.g. coccidiosis, Newcastle virus disease); and mass culture of micro-algae. An active effort is being made to link the public and private sectors.
Nigeria
Nearly ten government research institutes of the 24 in 1993 were involved in some kind of biotechnology research, largely related to agriculture and food processing. For instance, more palatable and sweeter varieties of cassava and yam were being developed; biotechnologies were applied to improve the shelf-life of palm wine and other foods; research was being carried out on the selection of wheat lines capable of withstanding the humid conditions in southern parts of the country. Two institutes were able to apply advanced techniques, in addition to IITA in Ibadan: the Biotechnology Unit of the Institute for Agricultural Research and Training (Ibadan), which applied tissue culture to maize (mainly for yield improvement), cowpea and groundnut; and the Biotechnology Centre of the Anambra State University of Technology, focusing on food fermentation and industrial enzyme production. The Nigerian Institute for Oil Palm Research (Benin), the Cocoa Research Institute of Nigeria (Ibadan), and the National Root Crop Research Institute (Umudike) applied plant tissue culture and other simpler biotechniques. The Oil Palm Institute is also working on the fermentation of oil palm sap to produce palm wine. ICRIN has also been concentrating on somatic embryogenesis, in vitro conservation of germplasm and the identification of microorganisms that could be used to improve the biochemical development of cocoa flavour during the fermentation process as well as those required for the digestion of pod husk on a large scale, to render it suitable as an animal feed.
FAO, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the International Plant Genetic Resources Institute (IPGRI) are supporting the National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology (CGRB), located at the Moor Plantation, Ibadan. It coordinates activities carried out in nine satellite laboratories, each of which has been given a mandate for research into specific biotechnology areas. Furthermore, the Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST) had set up a national committee on biotechnology and genetic engineering, with a view to pooling the scattered human resources in microbiology, genetics and molecular biology and to advising the Ministry and CGRB.
The research institutes involved in animal health were the National Livestock Research Institute, the National Animal Production and Research Institute (NAPRI), Shika, Zaria, and the National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI), Vom, as well as the Nigerian universities at Sokoto, Ibadan, Maiduguri and Zaria, carrying out some biotechnology research. The major investigation areas included the development both of new breeds of cattle for beef and milk production, and of vaccines against a wide range of diseases.
Small-scale food processing was an important industry in Nigeria. Many products were the results of the simple but effective use of traditional biotechnologies, e.g. the production of cassava-based foodstuffs, palm wine and various other wines from local fruits such as mango, pineapple and banana, and lager beer from malted sorghum and maize.
In the early 1980s, researchers at the University of Ife identified a protein sweetener in the exceedingly sweet berry of a plant, Thaumatococcus danielli, common to the forests of southwestern Nigeria. It was subsequently confirmed that thaumatin, the sweetener in the tropical berry, was weight-for-weight at least 1 600 times sweeter than sucrose, and yet nutritious. The gene for thaumatin has since been cloned, and the protein sweetener was selling for more than US$ 5 000 per kilogram.
The Nigerian Government allocated about 45 percent of its total resources for biotechnology to agricultural biotechnologies, including those to be applied to mitigate post-harvest losses. Inadequate funding by the government and private corporations, as well as the lack of interest showen by multinational corporations was proving a major hindrance to biotechnology research and development. The total funding available for all research coordinated by the National Centre for Genetic Resources and Biotechnology was less than US$ 250 000 in 1987, while IITA was spending more than US$ 2 million on its root crop investigations alone. Another bottleneck was the shortage of trained personnel.
Senegal
Work has mostly been concentrated on biological nitrogen fixation. At the Senegalese Institute for Agricultural Research (ISRA) and the French Institute of Scientific Research for Cooperative Development (ORSTOM) laboratory in Dakar, research carried out on actinorhizian microorganisms (Frankia) aimed to identify the most effective symbiotic associations with Casuarina and Allocasuarina genotypes, micropropagated in vitro. The identified associations could be used in reforestation schemes to be implemented in Sahelian countries, and also in North Africa and the Far East. Similar work has been done on Acacia species and their symbiotic microorganisms (rhizobium).
At the same laboratory, Azolla species were studied with a view to being used as biofertilizer in paddy fields in West Africa, because of their high nitrogen-fixing capacity. Manipulation of the rhizobia of Sesbania rostrata which formed dense cover during the wet season in flooded zones was improved. Field experiments carried out in the Casamance region using Sesbania rostrata as a green manure in rice cultivation showed that the paddy yield could be increased from 1.7 to 4 tonnes per hectare without any nitrogen fertilizer input. With a good field inoculation and good cultivation practices, this shrub legume could be used systematically and intensively in hydromorphic soils or in paddy fields. The work should further be intensified and results shared with other ricegrowing countries in the region and outside. Other ISRA programmes focused on the biotechnological manipulation of nitrogen fixation in groundnut and Vigna unguiculata;
A West African Regional Plant Biotechnology Laboratory, through financial assistance from France, was inaugurated in 1991, at the ISRA/ORSTOM centre. A staff of about 20 Senegalese and European researchers was expected to work in the laboratory, equipped for plant tissue culture and micropropagation. This laboratory has recently been designated one of the cooperating centres of the International Centre of Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB).
Zambia
The use of legume inoculants has been increasing rapidly in Zambia, demanding intensive research and development work in this field. Established in 1984, the Mt. Makulu Research Station Inoculum Production Facility has grown rapidly and promoted the application of biofertilizers over inorganic nitrogen usage. An estimated 8 000 hectares of soybean are being inoculated annually with appropriate Rhizobium strains. Two new bioreactors were assembled and tested in 1991 at the Facility, each with a capacity to produce 100 litres of broth culture. The average annual production increase in legume inoculants on a peat-base carrier for several species has been 10-15 percent since 1987. A total of 75 000 packets, each 250 g, was supplied during 1991-1992.
Zimbabwe
The prime agency for coordinating biotechnology in Zimbabwe is the Research Council of Zimbabwe (RCZ). Its overall function is to advise the government on issues of science and technology. In its latest National Science and Technology Policy Statement, agricultural biotechnology research is a principal topic. The major trust of the biotechnology programme proposed by RCZ is to develop high-yielding crops, food technology, improved horticultural crops and improved methods of animal breeding, as well as to create a national gene bank. The proposed national programme and related issues were discussed at three workshops held in 1991.
The biotechnology programme in Zimbabwe has been spearheaded by scientists at the University of Zimbabwe which now offers an M.Sc. degree in biotechnology. The most applied early work was with the tissue culture of potato and tobacco. A private company has now taken over commercial micropropagation of potato and strawberries. Improved production of rhizobium inoculants is being contemplated.
The Bioteehnology Forum, initially supported by the Netherlands, leads the national planning in biotechnology. A Biotechnology Research Institute, emphasizing applied biotechnology work, has been established. A number of projects utilizing recombinant DNA technology are under way. These include the development of a Salmonella probe, cloning of the S gene of the Hepatitis B virus, characterization of the cowpea mosaic virus, milk fermenting local microorganisms, and immobilized enzymes. A number of Ph.D. students are involved in these projects.
Future prospects and strategies
Alleviating the widespread food gap and attaining food security or food reliance and nutritional adequacy should be the highest national priority in almost all African countries. In order to achieve this foremost goal, production, productivity and sustainability of food and agriculture must be greatly enhanced through the generation, development and transfer of appropriate technologies. While the potential of currently available technologies should be rationally harnessed, new and emerging technologies such as biotechnologies, should be used in conjunction with, not as substitute for, existing conventional technologies.
Biotechnology is offering innovative possibilities for increasing crops, livestock, forestry and fisheries production and for protecting the environment by the reduced use of agrochemicals, conservation of genetic resources, bioremediation and recycling of wastes. In vitro culture techniques for micropropagation, freeing planting materials of viruses and other pathogens, the production of secondary metabolites and germplasm conservation are being widely used. Genetic mapping of major tropical crops as an aid to conventional plant breeding programmes; plant virus resistance by genetic engineering of the host plant; novel biocontrol agents for pest control to reduce pesticide use; and the use of efficient and new biofertilizing agents are now being increasingly used mostly in developed and in a few developing countries. Embryo transfer techniques and the use of diagnostic kits for detection of diseases both in plants and animals, and the use of highly specific and effective vaccines are proving of great value to animal production and health. Biotechnologically designed new feeds, hormones and disease control agents are already favourably impacting fish production. But, in Africa, these technologies and products are being used only rarely, in a limited way and in an ad hoc manner.
The slow and poor development of modern biotechnology in Africa may be ascribed to: (i) lack of appropriate policies, strategies, plans and programmes and the absence of political will in general; (ii) inadequacy of human resources, paucity of financial investments, poor research and laboratory infrastructure, absence of priority-setting mechanisms and insufficiency of mechanisms to analyse global market and technology trends; and (iii) negligible involvement of the private sector and absence of effective regulatory measures.
In view of the above, the African strategy for biotechnological development should include both the provision of direct support for biotechnological research, product development, technology assessment and transfer and the creation and fostering of a climate where biotechnology can develop in a balanced manner. This will largely depend on governmental and public awareness, political will, policies and programmes for building national capabilities and strengthening/developing regional and international cooperation. Creative partnerships between public and private sector interests are critical in establishing a competitive strategy in biotechnology. While developing institutional mechanisms best suited to a given country, it is essential to establish effective interdisciplinary collaboration among molecular biologists, breeders, agronomists and plant protection specialists and to forge and menage linkages among researchers, extensionists, farmers and other users of bioproducts and techniques. It may be generally preferable to build the new initiatives on traditional strengths in agricultural, forestry and fishery research, rather than creating totally new institutes. It should be kept in mind that biotechnology in crop and livestock production will be applied through the creation of new genotypes possessing novel characteristics, and this is possible only when conventional breeding and production systems are already in place.
Development of trained personnel should be a high priority in Africa. The important areas of training that are required for a successful biotechnology programme are microbiology, plant biology, zoology, cell biology, virology, genetics, biochemistry and cell and molecular biology. In most of sub-Saharan Africa, the people trained in these areas are in very short supply. Even biology and tissue culture training is not in the currriculum of most tertiary education institutions. Very few universities offer training with adequate laboratory facilities in molecular biology and recombinant DNA technology. Those that are trying to offer such training are constrained by the lack of equipment and staff. In recent years, however, some donor-supported formal training programmes in biotechnology have been developed. For instance, the M.Sc. in biotechnology at the University of Zimbabwe was assisted by SAREC (Sweden) and DGIS/Ministry of Foreign Affairs (the Netherlands). The donors provided the funding for both the teaching/research equipment as well as funds to buy supplies and to cover the cost of bringing Dutch and Swedish biotechnology specialists to Zimbabwe to give special lectures in areas in which there was no local competence. Students from Zimbabwe have also been admitted to universities in the donor countries for Ph.D. degrees. Such arrangements exist and/or are being developed in several other African countries.
The actual and potential effects of biotechnology development are not always positive. In the African context, the negative effect is the displacement of crops at present grown for export in Africa by biotechnologically designed "industrially" produced analogous in industrialized countries. African countries should be aware of such developments and diversify their products or increase quality and cost-effectiveness of their products not only to maintain the international market share but also to enhance or open new opportunities. FAO and other concerned international systems should assist African countries in developing early warning systems whereby the potential relative substitution effects could be monitored and strategic adjustments brought about in time to avert damage. In industrialized countries, where biotechnology is essentially in the hands of the private sector, the work is focused on areas and commodities that will fetch higher economic returns to often costly investments in biotechnology research and development. Commodities such as bananas plantations, cocoa, oil palm, roots and tubers, which are of high socio-economic importance to Africa, should be on priority biotechnology research agendas of countries in the region. International agencies and research centres should also pay due attention to "orphan" commodities.
Most of the African countries with an interest in modern biotechnology are aware of the need to institute adequate biosafety provisions and establish appropriate intellectual property and patenting systems. The GATT agreements have brought these issues to the freefront, and they must be attended to in time to enable countries to access global markets. Preliminary work on developing biosafety guidelines is underway in many African countries. The status of the issue of intellectual property rights in the region is still in a state of flux. Policymakers and biotechnologists in the region, in consultation with concerned international agencies, need to address this issue more decisively. Access to information by establishing the necessary national and regional databases and information systems should be strengthened to render priority setting, technology assessment and transfer mechanisms more effective.
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