Mzuni promotes neglected plants

Food and herbal medicinal plants have been a part of the traditional African medicine from time immemorial, but the continent’s huge biodiversity, especially plants that possess nutritional and medicinal properties, remain underexploited despite their potential contribution to development, CLIFF KAWANGA writes:

Elina Phiri, 43, from Kaphatenga Trading Centre, plies her trade near Salima Bus Depot.

For months, her daughter struggled with a persistent cough though the relief was right in her backyard.

“A friend recommended ginger as a home remedy. I have a lot in my compound, but I never thought it would work wonders,” Phiri says, contemplating to grow more and sell the surplus.

The majority of Malawians switched back to home remedies at the height of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Ginger was just one of the numerous neglected and underutilised plants with nutritional and medical value.

At Mzuzu University, (Mzuni) associate professor Mavuto Tembo, the director of  African Centre of Excellence in Neglected and Underutilised Biodiversity (Acenub), says research and training in these living organisms will help address numerous challenges faced by Malawi and the rest of southern Africa.

He explains: “Food and nutrition insecurity are major development challenges in sub-Saharan Africa due to overdependence on few selected cereals, leaves, fruits, roots and animal foods.

“A clear and targeted research and development agenda could unlock the potential of neglected and underutilised biodiversity.”

Tembo says this could be done by employing the same techniques used in the development of major crops such as biotechnology, crop genetics and breeding, agronomy and agro-processing.

Sub-Saharan Africa plays home to a wide variety of foods, but ironically remains nutrition-insecure as people depend on selected staple crops prioritised in agricultural policies.

“Strangely, the most food and nutrition insecure population are the majority poor smallholder farmers living in the rural areas,” Tembo states.

“The food system is failing to meet the demand of food and nutrition, create small businesses and enterprises and take advantage of urban and rural commodity markets linkages and communication technology.”

Tembo says neglected and underutilised foods are a source of scarce nutrients such as vitamins and zinc, currently accessed by fortified foods.

“The problem is that their value chain is underdeveloped in Malawi ranging from input supply, agronomic practices, post-harvest handling, processing, marketing and consumption. These foods’ potential contribution to agri-food system is threatened by climate change, weak knowledge of value chains, untrained human resource, gender issues, poor institutional policy frameworks and lack of enabling business environment,” he says.

Tembo says Africa’s higher education institutions sometimes hardly meet the needs of the modern food system.

He explains: “A high degree of misalignment of investment in higher agricultural education programmes with labour market demands is evident from large cross-country differences in returns to higher agricultural education and Technical and Vocational Education and Training.

“There is also limited engagement of universities with local, regional and international key stakeholders, resulting into misaligned curricula, weak research, innovation, outreach and policy advocacy beyond agri-production and services.”

Tembo says African countries are dependent on food imports due to low value addition to commodities “as the enabling policy and business environment do not adequately respond to the major trends reshaping the continent’s food systems and broader economies”.

“There is an urgent need to invest in the transformation of higher agricultural education to produce the quantity and quality of graduates and knowledge needed to achieve the African Union’s Agenda 2063,” he said.

The agenda for Africa we Want  envisions human capital on the continent developed to its full potential, and agriculture that will be modern and productive, using science, technology, innovation and indigenous knowledge.

Acenub will provide a platform for high-level research and post-graduate training for Malawi and the region.

The centre of excellence directly responds to Mzuni’s Strategic Plan (2021-2030) and Malawi Vision 2063.

Specifically, Acenub aims at strengthening conservation and value-addition to indigenous knowledge in the utilisation of underutilised and neglected biodiversity in Malawi as well as enhancing skills development in agri-food systems using trans-disciplinary approaches and applied research.

The university seeks to strengthen its linkages with the national, regional and international agricultural sector, private sector and public entities related to agri-food systems through the new centre of excellence.

The areas Acenub seeks to address include the mismatch between the skills needed by the industry and current university programmes; inadequate focus on approaches geared to sustainable and inclusive growth and the  need for more inter-disciplinary programmes incorporating business and economics training to complement the overly theoretical training in agricultural programmes.

It will also tackle  inadequate opportunities for exposure to field research relevant to smallholder farmers; limited mobility of staff and students across Africa limiting intercultural exchanges and integration; agricultural education that is theoretical without practical or specialised focus; and the need to update the curricula to the digital age.

Apart from teaching and research on neglected and underutilised biodiversity, Acenub will work closely with communities in selected districts in all the three regions of Malawi.

The communities in these districts exploit underutilised and neglected biodiversity for cash incomes and improved nutrition.

The centre is working with Inter-University Council for East Africa which has received a grant from the World Bank to continue supporting implementation of the African Centres of Excellence (ACE) II Project until 2025.