On Trial – Agricultural Biotechnology in Africa: Chatham House Report

Increasing agricultural productivity and adapting farming to climate change are central to Africasdevelopment prospects. There are important opportunities to enhance yields and increase resiliencethrough the adoption of improved crop varieties. In some cases, biotechnology, and in particulargenetic modification (GM), offer advantages over conventional plant-breeding approaches.Accordingly, there are various projects under way to develop new GM varieties for African farmers,ranging from drought-resistant maize to varieties of cassava, banana, sorghum, cowpea and sweetpotato with resistance to pests and disease. Read more in this Chatham House research report by Rob Bailey, Robin Willoughby and David Grzywacz. 8/8/14