Earlier this week (16 Nov 2015) a delegation from the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the German Embassy in Kenya visited the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Nairobi. Continue reading
Ethiopian farmer with fresh milk from her cow (photo credit: ILRI/Apollo Habtamu). This article is written by ILRI scientists Dawit Gizachew, Barbara Szonyi, Azage Tegegne, Jean Hanson and Delia Grace Editor’s note: A statement in the article below, comparing various levels of risk, offended some of our readers. We thank those readers who let us … Continue reading
Improved livestock genetics, health and feed—guided by policies geared towards enabling a sustainable and business-friendly environment—are key to unlocking the potential of agriculture in Africa, Continue reading
At a recent workshop co-hosted by an NGO called Biosciences for Farming in Africa (B4FA) and the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), in Nairobi, Kenya, ILRI communications staff Susan MacMillan made a short presentation on why the 20-plus animal geneticists in the room should bother communicating their science to non-specialists. The big picture ‘A … Continue reading
In recent weeks, ILRI has signed collaborative research agreements in China, India and Vietnam. These build on several years of past engagement and aim to deepen ILRI’s work in these and other countries in Asia. Continue reading
We are unaware of any comprehensive studies undertaken in sub-Saharan Africa to explore how mixed farms will be affected by climate change and the cost and benefits of different adaptation options. Underestimating the importance of livestock in the mixed’ smallholder farming systems that are ubiquitous across the developing world weakens both emissions reduction and climate change adaptation efforts. Continue reading
At a time when the price of mutton is climbing and wool crashing, a groundbreaking new study has used advanced genetic sequencing technology to rewrite the history of sheep breeding and trading along the ancient Silk Road—insights that can help contemporary herders in developing countries preserve or recover valuable traits crucial to their food and economic security. The new findings regarding one of the first animals ever domesticated will be published in the October print edition of the journal Molecular Biology and Evolution. They are the product of an unprecedented collaboration involving scientists in China, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, Nepal, Finland, and the United Kingdom. The team analysed the complete mitochondrial DNA of 42 domesticated native sheep breeds from Azerbaijan, Moldova, Serbia, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Poland, Finland, China and the United Kingdom, along with two wild sheep species from Kazakhstan. Continue reading
A new risk assessment paper, Assessing the potential role of pigs in the epidemiology of the Ebola virus in Uganda, was published in the science journal Transboundary and Emerging Diseases on 27 Aug 2015. The authors are scientists at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Presently, there is no solid evidence that pigs have any role in the past outbreaks of Ebola virus disease. But the risk assessment paper indicates that further research on the role pigs may play in Ebola virus transmission in Uganda is warranted. Continue reading
The first meeting of a new project, ‘B3Africa, short for ‘Bridging Biobanking and Biomedical Research across Europe and Africa’, was held this week (24–25 Aug 2015) at the University of the Western Cape, in Cape Town, South Africa. Continue reading
Scientists are developing a way of transforming the mountains of cassava peels created every day in Nigeria, where cassava is a staple food, into a nourishing feed for smallholder farm animals. The several CGIAR centres involved include the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the International Potato Center (CIP). Also involved in this project are several CGIAR research programs—Livestock and Fish; Integrated Systems for the Humidtropics; and Roots, Tubers and Bananas—as well as the Global Cassava Partnership for the 21st Century (GCP21). Continue reading
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