Turning the tide on biodiversity loss:
Africa charts a future for its forgotten vegetables

– 08 December 2025 –

A farmer checks tricot trials of jute mallow at a village in Bonou, south-eastern Benin. Pic by Neil Palmer for the Crop Trust. tricot trials of jute mallow at a village in Bonou, south-eastern Benin. Pic by Neil Palmer for the Crop Trust.

African governments, researchers, development partners, and civil society groups have committed to a continent-wide effort to rescue and promote traditional African vegetables, following the signing of the Nairobi Declaration on Vegetable Biodiversity at the first African Vegetable Forum in Nairobi. The Declaration commits participants to share responsibility for conserving Africa’s vegetable genetic resources, mobilizing resources for the African Vegetable Biodiversity Rescue Plan, strengthening research and policy coordination, expanding partnerships, and integrating vegetable biodiversity into national and regional food system agendas.

Across Africa, interest in traditional vegetables is rising as countries look for nutritious, climate-resilient crops that can strengthen local food systems. That momentum was evident in Nairobi recently, where the First African Vegetable Forum gathered scientists, practitioners and policymakers to assess recent advances in the collection, conservation and use of traditional African vegetables, and chart a united path forward.

Hosted by the World Vegetable Center (WorldVeg) together with partners including the African Union, the Crop Trust, CGIAR, TaiwanICDF, and the UN World Food Programme, the Forum showcased recent progress and lessons learned, and considered the next steps for vegetable biodiversity conservation across the region.

Crops of importance facing multiple challenges

Traditional African vegetables include those grown for their leaves – like amaranth, cowpea, spider plant, jute mallow, and pumpkin; those grown for their fruits – such as African eggplant and okra; and legumes like Bambara groundnut and pigeon pea. They are nutrient-rich, resilient to climate variability, and essential for diversified farming systems. Yet their existence and availability are under threat due to changing diets, urbanization, and limited conservation efforts.

Since 2021, momentum has grown to strengthen work on traditional African  vegetables. Backed by a project funded by Taiwan, WorldVeg and its partners have made major advances in collecting, characterizing, conserving, and sharing vegetable genetic resources across the continent. Through the WorldVeg-led Taiwan-Africa Vegetable Initiative (TAVI), progress has been particularly strong in Eswatini, Tanzania, Madagascar, and Benin, alongside efforts to promote production and consumption, improve seed systems, and engage policymakers. The success of these efforts resulted in the development of the African Vegetable Biodiversity Rescue Plan, jointly developed by WorldVeg, the African Union, the Crop Trust, and AUDA-NEPAD. The ten-year plan sets out a pathway to collect, conserve, and promote the use of traditional African vegetables.

Bringing together “powerful minds”

Opening the Forum, Dr. Gabriel Rugalema, WorldVeg Associate Director General for Africa, described it as “a meeting of powerful minds”, and underscored both the urgency and the potential of the work to rescue traditional African vegetables. He noted the multiple threats facing Africa’s vegetable biodiversity but stressed the opportunities for collective action.

Describing the African Vegetable Biodiversity Rescue plan, he said it “is not a plan for a single institution; it is a plan for Africa; it is a plan for every individual, every community, and every organization,” stressing to participants that it is “our plan”. He concluded: “We have a great responsibility; let’s get down to work.”

“Not tomorrow, but yesterday”

The first keynote was delivered by Prof. Mary Abukutsa of Kenya’s Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology and joint laureate of the 2025 Africa Food Prize. A long-term friend and partner of WorldVeg, she has spent her career championing traditional African vegetables. She highlighted their strengths – nutrient density, fast growth, and climate resilience – and their importance in addressing malnutrition and opportunities for generating income. However, she pointed to persistent barriers such as limited commercialization and fragmented research. Her message was unequivocal: “We must collect, conserve, and use our African vegetables – not tomorrow, but yesterday.”

Prof. Julia Sibiya of the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) presented on the role of vegetables in food systems transformation. She called for greater integration of vegetables into public policy, stronger seed systems, and expanded school meal programs.

Other Day 1 highlights included a presentation on the achievements of the African Vegetable Biodiversity Rescue Plan to date. Over 17,000 accessions have been collected as part of the Plan, with the majority stored in Africa’s Vegetable Genebank – the WorldVeg facility in Arusha, Tanzania. Over 5,000 of these have been safely backed up in the Svalbard Global Seed Vault. The African Union has endorsed the plan and linked it to the Agri-Food Transformation Agenda (2025–2035).

A vision for the future

Panel discussions then explored the drivers of biodiversity loss in Africa, ongoing rescue initiatives, growth in community seed banks, integration of vegetables into school feeding programs, and the development of mobile apps linking farmers to markets. They emphasized the importance of stronger policy enforcement, the need to document traditional knowledge on indigenous African vegetables, and the importance of educating youth to restore cultural pride in them. As one speaker warned, “If children only eat cabbage today, they may never know the taste of spider plant tomorrow.” Participants proposed outreach measures – including chef training and cooking shows – to help popularize traditional vegetables.

Participants also envisioned future prospects for Africa’s vegetable diversity. Ideas included smart farming and branding initiatives, integration of vegetables into sectoral policies, and strengthened data-driven collaboration across agriculture, health, and education. Groups also emphasized the value of “genetic diplomacy” – collaboration to strengthen conservation, access, and responsible use – and improved data systems to help position Africa within the global wellness industry.

On Day two, discussions moved from recognizing the urgent need to rescue Africa’s vegetable biodiversity toward shaping a collective roadmap for action. Dr. Nico Wilms-Posen of the Crop Trust introduced the Power of Diversity Funding Facility (PDFF), a five-year multi-donor initiative launched in 2024 and funded by Germany (EUR 10 million) and Ireland (EUR 2 million) for 2024–2029, which aims to empower farmers to diversify their agricultural systems with “opportunity crops” – those resilient and nutritious alternatives to mainstream crops. The initiative complements the African Vegetable Biodiversity Rescue Plan and aligns with the just-launched Vegetables4Life (V4L) global initiative. Discussions emphasized the importance of moving beyond bilateral approaches toward more strategic regional collaboration.

Following a presentation by Julia Sibiya presented on the Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) initiative, a group session discussed resource mobilization for the African Vegetable Biodiversity Rescue Plan. Discussions highlighted potential contributions from donors, governments, private-sector actors, and industries such as health, sports, and food. Participants emphasized the need for strong policy frameworks, capacity building, digital data systems, and harmonized monitoring and evaluation to track progress.

Day Two also featured a visit to the Genetic Resources Research Institute (GeRRI) at the Kenya Agricultural and Livestock Research Organisation (KALRO), where Director Dr. Desterio Ondieki Nyamongo, warmly welcomed guests and provided an introduction to organization and staff. They later visited the Data Management Section, the Laboratory for Seed Viability Tests and Section of Seed Packaging, the Seed Dryer, and Germplasm Storage Facilities. 

The Forum closed with a clear sense of shared purpose: Africa’s traditional vegetables – long overlooked yet rich in nutritional, cultural, and economic value – are essential to the continent’s food system transformation. With the Nairobi Declaration now in place, governments, researchers, and partners have committed to coordinated action over the coming decade to rescue and conserve vegetable biodiversity, strengthen seed systems, deepen research collaboration, and ensure these crops are fully integrated into policies, markets, and community life. The task ahead is considerable, but the collective resolve shown in Nairobi signals a turning point in restoring and celebrating Africa’s vegetable heritage for future generations.