A Research Partnership for Success

BUILDING A STRONGER SEED SECTOR

Seed companies in Africa continue to rely on public domain open-pollinated varieties for example in Eastern and Southern Africa of tomato and chili such as Tanya and Tengeru-97 tomatoes that were introduced by the World Vegetable Center in the late 1990s. While the vegetable seed sector in Africa is undergoing rapid change. Research and development are becoming increasingly important for vegetable seed companies as market competition intensifies.

The Africa Vegetable Breeding Consortium (AVBC) is a joint initiative of the World Vegetable Center and the Africa Seed Trade Association (AFSTA) aimed at promoting the development of a strong vegetable seed sector in Africa.

Established in 2018, the AVBC helps companies to:

• Learn about the latest developments in vegetable breeding research from the WorldVeg team of internationally renowned plant breeders
• Obtain improved breeding material (varieties, inbred lines and hybrids) to enhance your cultivar catalogs
• Meet breeders, pathologists, entomologists, and other researchers to strengthen your knowledge network
• Share experiences with colleagues from other vegetable seed companies operating in Africa
• Invest in joint projects with other consortium members that target the specific needs of their companies

AVBC membership is open only to AFSTA members in good standing. The AVBC aims to support companies of all sizes, including small, regional and international companies.

WorldVeg, an autonomous, philanthropic, non-profit agricultural research and development institute, strives to realize the potential of vegetables for healthier lives and more resilient livelihoods. WorldVeg carries out its mission by forming research partnerships with government, non-governmental, and private sector organizations to conserve and utilize vegetable biodiversity, improve vegetable varieties, and increase vegetable production, marketing and consumption.

Special Project: development and release of new tomato and pepper varieties adapted to local growing conditions and markets

WorldVeg proposes a collaborative strategy, where AVBC members working across Africa jointly invest in the development of new tomato and pepper cultivars tailored to the African market. WorldVeg will provide the genetic resources, training and technical backstopping for the breeding activities of consortium member companies.

Objective

To strengthen tomato and pepper breeding programs among AVBC members to facilitate the development and release of new varieties adapted to local growing conditions and markets.

Activities

If mutually agreeable, WorldVeg may send selected lines to consortium members annually for on-station observation nurseries, evaluation trials or demonstrations, and discuss future variety development work. The protocols for conducting these trials will be shared by WorldVeg.

• Germplasm sharing: WorldVeg will provide member companies with a panel of 20 pepper and 20 tomato breeding lines with proven performance in multi-location trials across SSA. These breeding lines are high yielding and stable sources of abiotic stress tolerance, and contain resistances to various biotic stresses, have high fruit quality and are accepted by consumers.

• Capacity strengthening: WorldVeg will support seed companies in seed breeding and provides hands-on training for a maximum of two (2) staffs per company. The training will be held at the WorldVeg regional office in Benin and will aim to strengthen the capacity of seed companies.

• Technical backstopping: Testing companies existing or promising hybrids at WorldVeg stations (Bénin, Mali, Tanzania)

Learn more about the special project here : AVBC Special project 2023 : Development of Locally-AdaptedTomato and Pepper Varieties in Africa