IBP/IFAD Project - Enhancing institutional breeding capacity in Ghana, Senegal and Uganda to develop climate resilient crops for African smallholder farmers Gorgui Alioune MbowRegional Deployment Manager – West & Central AfricaIBP/IFAD Project Coordinator

1. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
IBP/IFAD Project - Enhancing institutional breeding capacity in Ghana,
Senegal and Uganda to develop climate resilient crops for African
smallholder farmers
Gorgui Alioune Mbow
Regional Deployment Manager – West & Central Africa
IBP/IFAD Project Coordinator

2. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Contents
• About the IBP and BMS
• General Overview of the project
• Key activities
• Key outputs
• Project Implementation
• Conclusions

3. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
The overall context
Where are we coming from

4. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
About the Integrated Breeding Platform – IBP
We come from the Generation Challenge Programme
(GCP)
• IBP is an extension of the GCP (2004-2014)
• GCP is a 10-year framework (Phase I, 2004–2008; Phase
II, 2009–2014)
• Targets: Drought environments, developing countries, 18
and then 9 target crops
• A consortium of Universities (5), CG Centers (9) and
National Programmes (4)

5. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
The IBP Initiative
Our mission is to accelerate the delivery of new improved crop varieties, following a
demand-led crop variety development approach
Building on the GCP network, we are a partner ready to lend expert assistance to
have breeders and breeding Institutions (public and private) rising to a new level of
breeding efficiency and innovation, focusing on the digitalization of their breeding
operations
We aim at sustainable adoption and implementation of modern crop data
management approaches, and therefore have an educational mandate, working in
close collaboration with local universities, and building internal capacity at target and
partner Institutions
The IBP is a not-for-profit entity, aiming at a dual funding system (public funds and
income from paying users) for the sustainable development maintenance and
development of its core product: the Breeding Management System (BMS)

6. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
The IBP Initiative…
How we view our role?
• We are here to enable national programme breeders to play a leading role in
R4D by offering them access to modern breeding data management, marker
technologies, breeding materials and related information in a centralised,
integrated and practical manner
• In the new area of big data management and the constant evolution of IT and
ICT technologies, to digitalize breeding operations is a “Must Have” for any
Institution dedicated to crop improvement
Benefits and added value
• Improve breeding effectiveness and efficiency (Data management, MB)
• Increase quality control (data, seed, …)
• Establish institutional data memory and ownership (staff turnover, IP)
• Enable data sharing and analysis across teams/projects/institutes (Meta
analysis)
• Institutional visibility, facilitate networking and fund raising.

7. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
https://www.integratedbreeding.net

8. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
About the Breeding Management System - BMS
What is the BMS?
• An integrated software package designed to
facilitate plant breeding logistics, data management,
analysis and decision support for any crop
• It contains a powerful database which automatically
collects and integrates data from plant breeding
activities such as genealogy, inventory,
characterization and evaluation
• This database becomes a permanent institutional
knowledge resource to monitor progress and
facilitate strategic decisions

9. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Breeding Management System - BMS
A suite of interconnected software applications specifically
designed to help breeders manage their day-to-day activities:
Programme management
Customise preferences and
monitor programme
activities from the
Workbench, a dashboard
application with integrated
tools to manage and query
crop information across the
system
Marker-assisted breeding
Select germplasm and design
crosses by complementing
phenotypic selection with marker
technology, for integrated
breeding decisions
Breeding activities
Prepare trials and
nurseries, manage seed
inventories and keep
continuous genealogy
records season after
season
Statistical analysis
Analyse field and lab data
with powerful statistics and
mixed model comparisons
of locations and genotypes

10. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
BMS - Implementing data management and integration
Specific germplasm
Phenotype
(target)
Trial or nursery
Trial site / Location
Genealogy
Parental crosses
Environment location
- Weather
- Elevation
- Day length
Environment plot
- NDVI
- CT
Physiology
- Chlorophyll
- Sugar content
Haplotype (prediction)
Genetic Diversity
Physical/Sequence map
QTL Map Gene/SNPs
Phenotypic data
Metabolomic
- Proteins
- Enzyme Genotypic data
Gene expression
Haplotype
(target)
Yield components
Secondary traits
SELECTION
GermplasmEnvironment
Physiology
Genetic
Morphology

11. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
BMS - Implementing breeding data pipeline
Import Data
into BMS
E
Labelling and reading
RLWOFE98-1.xls
RLWOFE98-2.xls
… Copy exported
file to tablet
B
Enter Data
using data
collection
app
C
Export data from
data collection appD
Export field
book from
BMS
A
Data capture

12. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
The IBP/IFAD Project

13. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
General overview
• Enhancing institutional breeding capacity in Ghana,
Senegal and Uganda to develop climate resilient crops
for African smallholder farmers
• Period: 36 months, starting in April 2018
• Targeted beneficiaries:
– Smallholder farmers (10,000/country),
– National breeding programmes (4 partner institutes; 10-15
programmes; 3 upgraded field stations),
– Breeders (20 to 35 breeders), and
– Universities (50 MSc and 5 PhD students).
• Target at least 40% participation by women, especially at
the student level.

14. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Key activities
• Activity 1 – Delivery chain and knowledge platform: Connecting the
dots between breeders, extension workers and farmers
• Engaging Smallholder farmers
• Linking with the seed business
• An online knowledge base
• Activity 2 – Improved data management and digitalising breeding
• BMS Deployment and Support
• Data Integration and Sharing
• Activity 3 – Breeding: integrating modern approaches
• Breeding activity assessment
• Modern Technologies
• Activity 4 – Capacity enhancement (human and infrastructure)
• Human Capacity
• Improved Infrastructure

15. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Drilling deeper in the delivery chain
• Focus on commodity value chains for groundnut
and rice in Senegal and Uganda, and rice in
Ghana
• A key aspect: ensuring farmer ‘buy-in’ on the
basis of Participatory Varietal Selection (PVS)
approaches (Existing initiatives)
• They will also benefit from some guidance in
agronomic practices to make optimal use of the
new varieties

16. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Breeders
(national programmes)
research &
breeding
create foundation seeds
PRA - market demand (general traits and
value)
Linking everyone down the value chain
seed
multiplication
certify and distribute
EvaluationPVS – product evaluation (adapted to demand)
Extension workers
(seed business)
Farmers
(local market and environment)

17. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Tapping into and sharing everyone’s knowledge
Towards a modern and demand-led breeding approach

18. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Activity network and interactions
CropvalueChain
Diversity
new crosses
Marker
development
and testing
Breeding
Seed
multiplication
and
distribution
Farmers’
fields
NationalPrograms/IBP/CGCenters
GOs,Foundations,
Privatesector,NGOs
Improved germplasm
Digital data management
(BMS)
(Institutional deployment)
Breeding objectives
Knowledgeplatform
Rice
Groundnut
Modern technologies
(selectedcrops)
Infrastructure
Capacitydevelopment
1
2
3
44
PRA PVS
PlantScientists,Breeders

19. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Key Outputs
• Output 1 : A true partnership among the different actors of the groundnut
and rice delivery chains in the three target countries, and a knowledge
gateway that contains farmer feedback on improved varieties and seed
distribution information.
• Output 2 : 4 institutions with a centralised data management policy defined
and implemented, and 10-15 breeding programmes in total with centralised
electronic crop data and information management.
• Output 3 : At least 10 breeding programmes using modern technologies,
with development of a broad set of improved genetic materials for key
staple crops, more adapted to local conditions.
• Outputs 4 : 50 MSc students trained in the BMS; 5 PhD students working in
National Programmes with strong expertise in molecular breeding, and at
least 3 plant breeding field stations upgraded.

20. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Project Implementation
• AfricaRice (lead institution) is the grant recipient
• The project is being implemented by the IBP (hosted at AfricaRice), which is
also coordinating overall project implementation in the three target countries
• Under the supervision of the the IBP Director, a Project Leader is leading
the project with a team of scientists including:
o The Global Deployment Manager,
o 2 Regional Deployment Managers,
o IBP Regional Hub Coordinators,
o BMS Support Specialists,
o Plant Breeding Specialists.
• Coordinating activities on the ground:
o The Institut Sénégalais de la Recherche Agricole (ISRA) in Senegal
o The CSIR-Crop Research Institute (CRI) in Ghana
o The National Semi-Arid Resources Research Institute (NaSARRI) and
the National Crop Resources Research Institute (NaCRRI) in Uganda

21. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Conclusions
BMS use and deployment
• Very good fit in our existing deployment efforts
• Enables us to focus in 3 target countries (Ghana, Senegal and
Uganda)
• Senegal, in West Africa, and Uganda in East Africa are our
champions at the institutional and country levels
IBP as an initiative
• Offer opportunities to use the IBP breeding services
• Back to be a broker in plant science
Networking and promotion
• An opportunity to reinforce and extend our network
• An opportunity to build on the Breeding Task Force of AfricaRice
• An opportunity to increase our profile in Africa and to raise
awareness for securing additional funding

22. AfricaRice Science Week 2019
11-15 Feb 2019 , M’bé Research Station, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire
Thank you !
Merci !