The Roots, Tubers and Bananas East Africa Germplasm Exchange Laboratory Ground Breaking Ceremony
Plant Quarantine & BiosecurityStation, Muguga - The Roots, Tubers and Bananas - East Africa Germplasm Exchange Laboratory(RTB-EAGEL) ground breaking ceremony was conducted yesterday, with the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development Hon. Mithika Linturi emphasizing the game changing facility that will facilitate access to high-quality planting material for farmers in Kenya and the larger Eastern African region. "Kenya's economy is heavily reliant on agriculture, hence the importance of potato, sweet potato, cassava, yams and bananas." He stated.
Chairman Hon. Joseph M'eruaki added that the investment for the facility of Ksh 260 million (USD 2 million) will greatly contribute to KEPHIS mandate and enhance the access to disease-free high-quality planting material. The facility will make available high-quality, disease-free planting material to Kenyan and East African region farmers, thereby enhancing agricultural productivity. Also, this will contribute greatly to KEPHIS desire to promote safe trade without the transfer of pests and diseases through planting material.
MD Prof. Theophilus Mutui stated the ground breaking has come at an opportune time when Kenya has established measures to enhance its productivity for food security.
The RTB-EAGEL aims to provide services such as pathogen diagnostics, virus-elimination, in vitro and germplasm exchange services as well as a platform for Roots, Tubers and Bananas research and knowledge sharing on a regional basis. The
The RTB_EAGEL will be housed at KEPHIS Muguga and will contribute to increased productivity by expediting the testing and release of new varieties, managing pests and diseases and providing ‘nucleus’ quality seeds to the seed system. The Plant Quarantine and Biosecurity Station in Muguga houses six plant health labs and associated facilities such as greenhouses and soil sterilization units. On average, the labs handle over 12,000 samples for diagnosis while the glasshouses are home to numerous farmer varieties.
The RTB-EAGEL is a collaborative project between KEPHIS, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the International Potato Center (CIP), funded by the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ) through a program called Crops to End Hunger (CtEH) of the CGIAR.
Roots, tubers, and bananas play a vital role in the diets and socioeconomics of many households, particularly in the Eastern Africa region where they significantly contribute to food and nutrition security and livelihoods.