How NRCRI and CGIAR are shaping the next generation of root and tuber crops in Nigeria

Nigeria’s National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) is the only research institute in Africa fully dedicated to Root and Tuber Crop (RTC) breeding. These crops are vital staples for millions across the continent, making our work crucial to food security.  

To amplify impact, NRCRI has embraced collaboration with CGIAR – the world’s largest agricultural research organization – and its research Centers focused on RTC, such as the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and the International Potato Center (CIP). Together, we are transforming how breeding is done for these vital crops – here’s how.

Collaborative crop development with CGIAR

To develop improved RTC varieties that are climate resilient, high-yielding, and nutritious, national research institutions across Africa need better resources and capacity, and so, collaboration is key. CGIAR helps us amplify our work, while national partners like NRCRI possess the local expertise to tailor the new varieties to national needs.  

In Nigeria, our partnership with CGIAR began as a pilot, demonstrating how international crop breeding collaborations could work in the future. NRCRI served as a proof of concept for developing in-demand RTC varieties, a model that could be applied to other crops and countries. 

One of the key innovations from this collaboration is the Product Design Team (PDT) approach. By bringing together all stakeholders in the crop value chain—farmers, processors, private companies, researchers, universities, and NRCRI breeders—with support from CGIAR’s Accelerated Breeding Initiative and its TRANSFORM Work Package, we identified the cassava, yam, sweet potato and potato market segments that are relevant to Nigeria.  

From these market segments, we co-defined corresponding Target Product Profiles (TPPs), which outline the ideal characteristics of the single one variety meeting the needs of a given market segment and its stakeholders’ needs. 

By involving all the actors of the value chain in the breeding process, from the early stages, we ensure that the crops we seek to develop are not just scientifically superior but also practically valuable to the people who grow, process, and consume them. The TPPs now guide our breeding efforts, helping us aim for varieties that meet the precise demands of the Nigerian market. 

Filling gaps through subgrants

Our collaboration with CGIAR goes beyond knowledge-sharing. Through our partnership with TRANSFORM, we unlocked funding opportunities and secured a $170,000 subgrant from the CGIAR Accelerated Breeding Initiative to address priorities in our breeding modernization plans and to scale up breeding operations for key cassava, yam, sweet potato and potato market segments in Nigeria.  

This funding will help us address several challenges, including training personnel in hybridization, implementing sparse testing to optimize resources, and expanding seed testing and multiplication efforts. By increasing the number of test locations and refining our breeding processes, we can roll out new varieties faster and ensure they meet farmer requirements through scale up on farm verification trials.  

The PDT approach ensures that our breeding efforts are focused on the most impactful projects, while helping us strategically target investments and attract additional international financing. In addition to the Scaling Breeding Operations (SBO) subgrant, NRCRI is also benefiting from support through the Vision for Adapted Crops and Soils (VACS) Initiative funded by USAID, for its work on taro.  

In the coming months, we are planning to develop further investment proposals to secure funding for other areas that need improvement, as identified from PDTs and program assessments.

Establishing a new standard for breeding cycles

One of the most transformative changes to our breeding process has been the adoption of a stage-gated breeding model, particularly for cassava. This approach, defined by CGIAR, sets clear milestones or “gates” that guide the variety development process, ensuring each step aligns with the TPPs defined for Nigeria root and tuber crops. 

Now, when I ask a NRCRI cassava breeder about their work, the objectives are well-defined. They can clearly outline their targets, the steps required to achieve them, and how they will track their progress. There’s also a deeper understanding of the bottlenecks that could hinder progress and strategies to overcome them. 

Cassava, long a staple of our research, is now serving as a model to refine breeding approaches for other crops, such as yam, sweet potato, and even non-RTC like soybean and cowpea. The stage-gated system brings greater transparency and accountability, allowing our teams to monitor progress more effectively and make real-time adjustments to their strategies. Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) further help ensure our breeding programs are in sync with broader international efforts. 

Crop breeding is a lengthy process, but with this new system, breeders can situate each crop within the broader breeding cycle and determine the potential market impact of each variety. The clarity this brings is highly valuable, as it increases the likelihood that new varieties will meet market demands and will be widely adopted by farmers. 

This is not yet the end of the journey, but it marks an important milestone. As we move forward, we will continue refining the process to make it more efficient. Our focus will remain on developing varieties that meet the market needs of today, while anticipating the demands of the next 5 to 10 years. We look forward to further capacity development and training opportunities from our regional and international partners to further mainstream and adopt modern breeding practices in our variety development programs in Nigeria.   

It’s becoming clear that this method will set the standard for future crop breeding efforts, not only in Nigeria but across Africa and beyond. By integrating local expertise with international best practices, we are improving our breeding cycles and setting new benchmarks for crop development. From Product Design Teams to the stage-gated breeding model, our work is transforming how crops are bred and delivered to those who need them most. 

Resources:

• Nigeria’s National Root Crops Research Institute (NRCRI) 
• Key Result Story: Transforming breeding partnerships for greater impact 
• About RTB: https://www.rtb.cgiar.org/about/  
• CGIAR Accelerated Breeding Initiative website

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Main image: Woman sells fufu in a marketplace, Abuja – a staple food of many African and Caribbean countries. It is often made with a flour made from the cassava plant. Credit: IFPRI: Milo Mitchell. Written by Julie Puech, Breeding for Tomorrow. This work contributes to CGIAR Breeding for Tomorrow (B4T) Science Program through its Accelerated Breeding Area of Work.