Fumesua (Ash), March 17, Ghanadot/GNA – The Crop Research
Institute (CRI) of the Council for Scientific and Industrial
Research (CSIR) will this year promote the production and
utilization of high yielding open-pollinated and hybrid maize
varieties that are tolerant to drought.
Dr Kwadwo Obeng-Antwi, Head of the Maize Breeding Programme of
the CRI, said the move was part of measures to maintain stable
yields, promote food security and increase farmers’ income while
alleviating poverty in the country.
He was speaking to the Ghana News Agency at Fumesua near Kumasi
on Tuesday after an in-house review and research planning
workshop organized by the CRI.
The workshop among others was dedicated to the West African
Agricultural Productivity Programme (WAAPP) involving Ghana,
Senegal and Mali of which the CRI has been selected as centre of
specialization for root and tuber crops research.
Dr Obeng-Antwi said those measures being undertaken by his
outfit was necessitated by the global food crisis.
As part of the programme the CRI would identify high and stable
yielding drought-tolerant maize germplasm and also release
superior drought-tolerant varieties of maize to farmers for
planting.
Recounting the importance of the maize in general, he said it
ranks first among cereals and second among grains in importance
worldwide.
It accounts for 15 to 20 per cent of total daily energy source
in diets of millions in over 20 developing countries mainly in
Africa, Latin America and Asia.
Dr Obeng-Antwi said the CRI was undertaking the project in
partnership with the Ministry of Food and Agriculture (MOFA),
the Sasakawa Global 2000 Extension and Promotion Programme and
some development partners.
He said CRI had planned to establish demonstration fields for
initial inspection by a Variety Release Committee to test the
viability of the project and also screen maize germplasm to
identify promising genotypes for composite and hybrid variety
development.
He said it was expected that the project would in the long term
help Ghana to cut down on maize import, stressing that currently
the nation imports two million tones of maize annually.
GNA
