Ariculture..PHOTO;Courtesy
Smallholder farmers across Eastern Africa are expected to benefit from a new philanthropic research initiative aimed at speeding up the development of climate-resilient crops as drought, heat and unpredictable rainfall continue to threaten food production.
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) and CIMMYT have launched a five-year project backed by funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation to help develop improved crop varieties for dryland farming communities in Eastern Africa and India.
The programme will involve research institutions and agricultural partners in Kenya, Ethiopia and Tanzania, alongside collaborators in India and the University of Queensland.
The initiative will initially focus on sorghum and groundnuts, crops widely grown by farmers in dry and semi-arid regions where climate change is increasingly affecting yields and food security.
Researchers say the project aims to reduce the time needed to develop improved crop varieties by at least two years through the use of artificial intelligence, genomic science, speed breeding and advanced data systems.
For many farming communities across Africa’s drylands, prolonged droughts, crop diseases and erratic rainfall have made food production more difficult, leaving households increasingly vulnerable to hunger and income loss.
Organisers say the initiative is intended to help farmers access stronger and more resilient crop varieties faster, improving both food security and livelihoods in regions already heavily exposed to climate shocks.
Dr de Bang, Senior Scientific Lead at the Novo Nordisk Foundation, said the project reflects the importance of collaboration in responding to climate pressures facing agriculture.
“We are convinced that converging cutting-edge breeding science, modern data platforms, and enabling technologies with local expertise will bring real impact in farmers’ fields,” he said.
Director-General of ICRISAT, Himanshu Pathak, said the initiative demonstrates how science and partnerships can help strengthen food systems in vulnerable regions.
“Through frontier science, AI, and deep expertise in dryland agriculture, we are building a new generation of breeding systems capable of delivering faster, smarter, and more climate-resilient solutions for farmers,” he said.
Bram Govaerts said no single institution could solve the growing climate and food security challenges alone, adding that collaboration would help accelerate impact for millions of smallholder farmers.
The initiative also aims to strengthen local agricultural research systems and expand opportunities for women and young people involved in farming across Africa’s dryland regions.
Help us tell more untold stories of African Philanthropy!
To DONATE or Pledge: CLICK HERE
