The Bill & Melinda Gates Agricultural Innovations has awarded a $35 million grant to a Cambridge University-led effort to create self-fertilizing crops for African farmers.
The $35 million will fund the Engineering Nitrogen Symbiosis for Africa research program over the following five years, according to a release.
In order to decrease the requirement for fertilizer, it was reported that the research consortium focuses on enhancing nutrient uptake by food plants.
The Chief Executive Officer of Gates Ag One, Joe Cornelius, said, “The pioneering work of ENSA is fundamental to levelling the playing field for smallholder farmers in Africa, leveraging the latest crop technology to ensure all communities have the chance to thrive.
“Breakthrough advances in crop science and innovation mean intractable challenges like nutrient uptake and soil health need not hold back agricultural development. We’re delighted that Gates Ag One can support ENSA to continue its work to meet the needs of smallholder farmers.”
The Director of the Crop Science Centre and Russell R Geiger Professor of Crop Science, Giles Oldroyd, added, “African agriculture is at an inflection point, with vastly increasing demand at a time when supply is at risk, especially due to a changing climate.
“The outcomes of this work have the potential to see gains as great as those from the Green Revolution, but without relying on costly and polluting inorganic fertilizers.
“Increasing production of crops sustainably in smallholder farming systems, like those in sub-Saharan Africa, directly addresses some of the worst poverty on the planet.”
The statement stated in parts, “ENSA is the latest research project to receive funding from Gates Ag One, which recently announced a grant for the Realizing Increased Photosynthetic Efficiency project, of which Cambridge University is a collaborator.
“A not-for-profit subsidiary of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Gates Ag One was created to leverage global crop science to meet the needs of smallholder farmers in Africa and South Asia. It focuses on accelerating research that enhances the biological processes of six priority food crops: cassava, cowpea, maize, rice, sorghum, and soybean.”
