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Foiling a Deadly Duo
Anne McCulloch, i.new, IITA
 Alone,
they're nasty but bearable. Together, they can be devastating.
When two different forms of cassava mosaic disease performed a remarkable
genetic recombination in Uganda, the resulting, more destructive virus cut a
swath through thousands of hectares of cassava before moving on to other
countries. Now the deadly duo is threatening to do the same in southern Nigeria.
IITA (International Institute of Tropical Agriculture) spotted the danger and
initiated a plan to protect the country's most vital food crop.
The strategy is to beat the disease to the fields, leaving it powerless
against resistant cassava plants. A wide range of IITA's uninfected,
already-resistant cassava can be delivered to farmers for planting before the
disease hits.
"Once resistant cassava gets to the farmers, they can continue to
multiply disease-free plants and the protection is perpetuated," said the
plan's coordinator, IITA Plant Breeder Dr Alfred Dixon.
 The
virulent Uganda variant of cassava mosaic disease wiped out crops in Congo
Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, southern Sudan, Tanzania, and
Uganda. Both parent cassava mosaic disease strains are now in Nigeria, and
they're even infecting the same plants. IITA researchers are conducting
diagnostic studies to see if they have already recombined. The 4-year, US$16.5
million project, to be funded by Nigeria's federal and state governments, the
Niger Delta Development Commission, and the private sector, will do more than
protect cassava leaves from twisting and yellowing because of whiteflies
carrying the disease.
The project also includes plans to avoid the possibility of a cassava glut. High
yielding, disease-resistant varieties could send prices falling. By introducing
farmers to new, IITA-developed ways of producing, using, and marketing cassava,
the plan will also help sustain, and even expand, the market.
Developing Nigeria by developing the cassava market is a priority for the
Nigerian government. Nigeria is the world's biggest cassava producer, and almost
every Nigerian farmer grows the crop for food and income. In keeping with
Nigeria's national cassava initiative, hunger, poverty, and social tensions will
be lessened by preempting the looming cassava crisis.
More Information:
I.new, International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, IITA. www.iita.org
Useful links:
LINK: IITA responds to the threat of famine in the
Democratic Republic of Congo
LINK: Decades of cassava research bear fruit
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