Graduates from the African Plant Breeding Academy, who have now returned to their home countries, are on a mission: to grow more and better plants for their communities, reports an article on the Take Part website.

The article explains how 21 students from 11 African countries took part in a 3 week specialized plant breeding course, focusing on ‘orphan crops’. These are indigenous crops that have largely been neglected by science despite their value to local communities, such as in providing nutrition and preventing hunger.

The breeders who took part in the training came with a specific project in mind. For Busiso Mavankeni, this was the Bambara groundnut, grown by nearly 70 per cent of small-scale farmers in Zimbabwe. She has managed to reduce the groundnut’s growth cycle from around 140 days to maturity to between 90 and 120 days.

“The collaborative environment brought breeders from across Africa together in what may be the first meeting of its kind,” says Mavankeni. “We had the opportunity to meet and share experiences.”

Godson Nwofia from Nigeria is working on the cocoyam, a root vegetable which is an important weaning food but little studied. The cocoyam grows erratically and is difficult to hybridize. “If we do not create variation and the crop remains a clone, any disease can come and it is gone,” Nwofia explained.

The African Plan Breeding Academy is hosted by the World Agroforestry Centre in Nairobi, Kenya. Instructors include some of the world’s most renowned plant breeders.

Read the full story: Why These Graduates Are Primed to Reduce World Hunger

Find out more about the African Plant Breeding Academy

See a segment on orphan crops in Al Jazeera English’s Innovate Africa program (from 07.05-13.50 minutes): http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/innovate-africa/2014/11/transforming-food-20141117151248500352.html