marker-assisted selection in wheat - ictsd

462Marker-assisted selection – Current status and future perspectives in crops, livestock, forestry and fishBox 3Regional networksThe East African Regional Programme and Research Network for Biotechnology, Biosafety andBiotechnology Policy Development (BIO-EARN) is supported by the Swedish InternationalDevelopment Cooperation Agency and involves Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda and the UnitedRepublic of Tanzania. It has a Governing Board and a Programme Advisory Committee thatprovides technical advice to the Board on project proposals, progress and continuing funding.MAS is a priority theme within BIO-EARN, being used to look for resistance markers for plantviruses and fungi (including sweet potato, maize, banana and sorghum) and genotype variationin coffee and banana. The programme has contributed substantially to the improvementof scientific and technical capacities, research infrastructure, equipment and stocking ofconsumables. Connectivity at all BIO-EARN Network institutions has been achieved andthis has not only greatly improved communication among network members, but also accessto information from the Internet to keep abreast with new biotechnology developments inthe world. BIO-EARN Ph.D. students have developed close links with each other throughcommon workshops and annual BIO-EARN student meetings and created a strong basis forfuture regional collaboration.Box 4Biosciences eastern and central Africa hub and networkLocated on the campus of ILRI in Nairobi, Kenya, the Biosciences eastern and central Africa(BecA) hub is the first of four regional networks of centres of excellence in biosciencessponsored by the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). The establishment ofBecA is funded mainly by the Canada Fund for Africa (CFA) of the Canadian InternationalDevelopment Agency (CIDA). It consists of a hub that provides a common biosciencesresearch platform, research-related services and capacity building and training opportunities,and a network of regional nodes and other participating laboratories distributed throughouteastern and central Africa for conducting research on priority problems affecting Africa’sdevelopment. It has a Steering Committee and a Scientific Advisory Committee responsible forthe quality and relevance of the programme. The genomics platform includes state-of-the artequipment for genotyping, DNA sequencing, transcriptomics and bioinformatics, and currentactivities include microsatellite and EST marker development, genetic linkage mapping, MAS,and fingerprinting for distinctness, uniformity and stability and plant variety protection. Itcurrently supports work being conducted on MAS by the International Maize and WheatImprovement Center (CIMMYT), the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), and ILRIand their national partners. Further information is available at www.biosciencesafrica.org.