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Climate conversations: Developing water-efficient maize for Africa

Source(s): Thomson Reuters Foundation, trust.org
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by Flickr user cimmyt / International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 2.0, http://www.flickr.com/photos/cimmyt/5114494399/
by Flickr user cimmyt / International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center Creative Commons BY-NC-SA 2.0, http://www.flickr.com/photos/cimmyt/5114494399/

In Africa, a public-private partnership called Water Efficient Maize for Africa (WEMA), was formed in 2008 to help address the effects of drought for African smallholder farmers in a cost effective way, as per AlertNet. The aim of this organisation is to help smallholder farmers and their families develop more drought tolerant maize varieties through advanced plant breeding and biotechnology.

By identifying ways to mitigate drought risk in Africa, small-scale farmers might be able to improve their livelihoods. The five WEMA participating countries are Kenya, Mozambique, Tanzania, South Africa, and Uganda. "We are eager to move forward and start to use some of the products, especially conventional drought-tolerant maize lines, to develop an array of varieties in the country," said Godfrey Asea, a maize breeder and the WEMA-Uganda country coordinator.

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Hazards Drought
Themes Private sector Disaster risk management Food security and agriculture
Country and region Kenya Mozambique South Africa Uganda Tanzania, United Rep of
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