Aflasafe SN01 has consistently reduced aflatoxin in groundnut by 85–95% and has been adopted in Senegal and many other African countries. Arising from these recorded successes, The Gambia’s National Agriculture Research Institute (NARI) and the Gambian Groundnut Corporation (GGC, the largest groundnut exporter) requested IITA to develop a local version of aflasafe for The Gambia. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) also reinforced this need and offered assistance to obtain political support from the Gambian government.
To start this, Dr Lamine Senghor of Direction de la Protection des Végétaux (DPV) Senegal in 2013, together with staff from GGC, sampled groundnut kernels from all regions of The Gambia. Aflatoxin analysis demonstrated that 40% of the samples in some regions had more than 5 times the permissible limit of aflatoxin, suggesting that aflatoxin is a serious issue in the country. Microbiological analysis of the samples at the laboratory in IITA-Ibadan further revealed that the aflasafe SN01 strains are also widely distributed in The Gambia and considered native in the country.
Groundnut is grown in about 42% of the cultivated l and area and accounts for almost 70% of merch andise exports. In addition to being the largest foreign exchange earner, groundnut is also a staple crop consumed daily in various ways. Aflatoxin contamination is a perennial problem in groundnut affecting the health of people and curtailing the full potential of export earnings.
With approval from the National Environment Agency of The Gambia, 2 t of aflasafe SN01, manufactured in IITA-Ibadan, was dispatched to The Gambia in early September 2014. A team of staff from DPV, NARI, GGC, and Extension Services, led by Dr Senghor and facilitated by GGC, began efficacy trials by treating 200 ha of groundnut and maize fields in three regions (Upper River, North Bank, and West Coast) of The Gambia. The GGC will aggregate groundnut from the aflasafe-treated fields and test the potential of exporting aflasafe-groundnut as high-value edible nuts. Bird-feed groundnut, the grade usually exported from The Gambia, is priced 35% lower than edible nuts. Therefore, the farmers and the economy st and to gain significantly from higher export income if they can meet the st andards for the edible grade.
Dr Ranajit B andyopadhyay visited The Gambia 15–17 September to inform various stakeholders about aflasafe. The visit was facilitated by Mr Ernest Aubee of ECOWAS and Mr Mustapha Colley of GGC. They met Solomon J.E. Owens, the Honorable Minister of Agriculture, and Omar Sey, the Honorable Minister of Health and Child Welfare, who reiterated the importance of groundnut and thanked IITA and partners for introducing aflasafe SN01 in The Gambia. Other high-level government officials who were also enthusiastic about the introduction are Momodou Lamin Ceesay, Deputy Permanent Secretary of Ministry of Trade, Umberto D’Aless andro, Director General of the Medical Research Council, Zainab Jallow, Director General of the Food Quality and Safety Authority of The Gambia, Anthony Carvalho, Managing Director of GGC, and Ansumana Jarju, Director General (Acting) of NARI. The aflasafe work in Senegal and The Gambia is supported by USAID through the United States Department of Agriculture – Foreign Agriculture Service.
For more details, please contact: Andrea Gros, a.gros@cgiar.org
About IITA www.iita.org
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is one of the world’s leading research partners in finding solutions for hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Its award-winning research for development (R4D) approach addresses the development needs of tropical countries. IITA works with partners to enhance crop quality and productivity, reduce producer and consumer risks, and generate wealth from agriculture. IITA is a non-profit organization founded in 1967 in Nigeria and governed by a Board of Trustees. IITA works on the following crops: cowpea, soybean, banana/plantain, yam, cassava, and maize. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food secure future.
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