Hyderabad,  The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) has been awarded the 2021 Africa Food Prize for work that has improved food security across 13 countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

The ICRISAT, a CGIAR Research Centre, is a non-profit, non-political public international research organisation that conducts agricultural research for development in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa with a wide array of partners throughout the world.

Between 2007 and 2019, it led a collaboration of partners to deliver the Tropical Legumes Project. The project, undertaken together with the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), developed 266 improved legume varieties and almost half a million tons of seed for a range of legume crops, including cowpeas, pigeon peas, chickpea, common bean, groundnut, and soybean.

These new varieties have helped over 25 million smallholder farmers become more resilient to climate change, as well as pest and disease outbreaks, said ICRISAT, which has its headquarters at Patancheru near Hyderabad.

The project also trained 52 scientists, who are already working in national research institutes across the continent. Training these next generation scientists in the countries where the projects were implemented, has helped strengthen the research capacity of national agricultural research systems in Africa and contributed to sustaining the gains the projects have made.

The award was presented at African Green Revolution Forum (AGRF) summit at Nairobi.

Congratulating the winner, Olusegun Obasanjo, the Chair of the Africa Food Prize Committee and former President of Nigeria, said ICRISAT's leadership in developing seeds that not only end malnutrition but also survive in semi-arid areas is inspiring other agricultural organisations to rethink seed development and farming practices that suit and solve Africa's agricultural challenges.

"Their work is also important as it provides an inclusive approach that supports the whole agricultural value chain, from farm to fork, providing farmers with farming tools and a market for their produce," he said.

Accepting the award, ICRISAT Director General Dr. Jacqueline d'Arros Hughes said the Institute's work spanned the entire value chain, from high-end genomics to markets and agri-business in dryland cropping systems.

"We also empower women and attract youth back to agriculture using the latest tools and technologies available to make farming profitable. The Africa Food Prize is a major accolade and recognition of ICRISAT's work in Africa and reinforces our belief that agriculture can be profitable for smallholder farmers. It is also testament to the work of our close collaborators, the national agriculture research and extension systems, without whose support this would not have been possible," she said.

"We dedicate this award to the smallholder farmers in the drylands of Africa, as they are the ones who inspire us with their patience and perseverance in the face of adversity," Hughes added.