Nairobi — Research to improve sorghum's nutritional levels through genetic engineering is under way.

A Sh1.3 billion project intends to increase the appeal of the grain, largely considered as the staple food for the poor.

Nine global scientific research organisations have joined hands under the Africa Bio-fortified Sorghum (ABS) project to develop the nutritional value of sorghum in search for long-term solutions to malnutrition in Africa.

The project seeks to develop more nutritious and easily digestible sorghum varieties for different climatic regions. The research is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

The institutional partners include Kenya's Africa Harvest, South Africa's Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), Pioneer HiBred International, and the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (Fara) based Iowa in the US.

Others are the Agricultural Research Council (ARC), the African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF), the International Crops Research Institute for Semi Arid Tropics (Icrisat) and the universities of Pretoria and California - Berkeley.

Article on allAfrica.com | pdf