Principles of Plant Genetics and Breeding

Selected accomplishments
The impact of the CGIARs on the agriculture of developing
countries includes the following:
1 Food production and human nutrition. Researchers
have developed over 300 cultivars of wheat and rice
and more than 200 cultivars of maize for farmers.
Some of these cultivars, such as quality protein maize
(QPM), have augmented the nutritional profiles of
major food crops, enhancing the health of consumers.
2 Natural resources conservation. CGIAR-developed
technologies have been adopted by farmers resulting
in reduced environmental degradation and conservation
of water, soil, and biodiversity.
3 Reduction in pesticide use. This is a result of the
development of pest-resistant cultivars and improved
farming practices for use in developing countries.
4 Germplasm conservation. CGIAR maintains over
6,000 accessions of germplasm, representing over
3,000 species (including crops, forage, and pasture
species).
5 Capacity building. CGIAR has trained over 75,000
scientists and technical staff from developing countries.
Agricultural biotechnology efforts
in developing countries
Whenever the subject comes up, the role biotechnology
can play in the humid tropics is often identified to be
alleviating hunger. Then, there is also the ongoing debate
about whether or not developing economies and donor
nations and agencies should exploit biotechnology in
addressing the food security of developing nations.
Overview of world food issues
Because of the expected population expansion and
increasing land erosion, food security in developing
countries is a major concern to the international community.
Whereas population growth is leveling off in
developed countries, most of the estimated 5 billion
additional people on earth by 2030 will inhabit the poor
regions of the humid tropics. It should be pointed out
immediately that it is an oversimplification to equate
hunger alleviation with food security. Associated issues
such as effective and efficient distribution networks,
effective management of production resources (land,
water), and government pricing policy critically impact
the success of any food security undertaking. Further,
INTERNATIONAL PLANT BREEDING EFFORTS 459
food security in these economically disadvantaged areas
is intertwined inextricably with disease and environmental
degradation. Poor soils and poor production
management result in low crop yield, malnutrition, and
a variety of health issues. Some observe that the medical
problems of Africa are inseparable from the of lack of
food. Needless to say that tackling third world food
security is a challenging proposition that requires careful
planning and an integrated approach.
Promotion of agricultural biotechnology in developing
economies should be accompanied by a promotion
of improved agricultural practices. This way, the ecological
limits of population growth can be expanded by
utilizing existing farmland more productively and also
by improving crop harvests. It has been pointed out by
some experts that the current agricultural biotechnologies
do not increase the productivity per se of plants.
Instead, they lower pre- and postharvest losses by up to
25%. In terms of strategy, it is suggested that in view of
the problems with food distribution and local environments,
agriculture in the humid tropics must be indigenous
and very productive. Consequently, the infusion of
foreign technologies must proceed cautiously. Further,
the technology of gene transfer must be developed in
situ, at least in some of the tropical developing countries,
to ensure that it responds to local conditions. This
strategy will also ensure that the technology is more
readily acceptable to the local government, the local
scientific community, plant breeders, and also the local
population.
Biotechnology is very capital and knowledge intensive.
Such commitments are woefully inadequate in many
developing economies. However, because the private
sector plays a dominant role in setting biotechnology
research and development targets, and because economic
returns on investment is critical to investors,
crops that benefit developing countries receive little
attention because they are of little commercial interest.
Consequently, the talk of improving tropical crops falls
to other agencies (e.g., the United Nations) where there
is little pressure to make profit. The need to infuse
biotechnology into the agriculture of developing countries
is further underscored by the fact that most of these
countries have agricultural-based economies. Improving
agriculture is hence a major avenue for improving such
economies. The productivity potential of the major
food crops of the developing world is far from being
attained. Doubling the current level of productivity of
staple food crops will make a significant impact on the
food security of these nations.