Southern African countries develop the national strategy for plant genetic resources for food and agriculture

Abstract

Six southern African countries, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia, have each recently developed a National Strategy for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Serving as a national blueprint for the management, i.e., conservation and sustainable use, of plant genetic resources for food and agriculture, the strategy document identifies the national vision, goals and objectives, and the corresponding plan of action, including responsibilities, resources, and timeframes for relevant activities. It therefore enables the streamlining of countries' efforts toward the implementation of the Second Global Plan of Action for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Adopted by the Council of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nation at its 143rd Session in November 2011, the Second Global Plan of Action is the internationally agreed framework for the conservation and sustainable use of the plant genetic diversity. We review the salient parts of these documents and the steps taken in developing them under the auspices of a Technical Cooperation Project funded by FAO. The endeavors were greatly facilitated by the ongoing coordination provided by the SADC Plant Genetic Resources Centre; this enabled the sharing of experiences. Equally important for mobilizing the critically important broad stakeholder base were the existing National Programmes for Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture. Finally, we highlight the lessons learned which will be useful in the foreseen support to five additional countries in the region in developing their own strategies.