Researchers from the Tanzania Agricultural Research Institute (TARI) are attending a four-day training in Mwanza aimed at improving the production and availability of cassava and sweet potatoes.

This workshop is part of a collaboration among TARI, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), the International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), and the German Collection of Microorganisms and Cell Cultures (DSMZ), focused on increasing yields of these staple crops.

Salum Kasele, a senior cassava researcher from TARI Ukiriguru, noted that Tanzania's cassava yield averages 8.6 tons per hectare, significantly below the recommended 30 tons. He highlighted that the process of researching, registering, and commercializing improved crop varieties currently takes up to 10 years. "This training is exploring ways to reduce this timeline to five years, ensuring farmers receive enhanced cassava and sweet potato seed varieties faster," he said.

Dr. Hadija Ally, head of TARI Ukiriguru's sweet potato program, reported a substantial gap in the Lake Region’s sweet potato seed demand. In 2022/2023, demand reached 23 million pieces, but farmers used fewer than 5 million. She also warned of the threat from sweet potato virus disease, which can completely devastate crops if not controlled.

"Our research aims to equip farmers with better seed varieties and effective pest management techniques to combat this virus," Dr. Hadija assured, emphasizing that improved sweet potato production will also contribute to food security.

The training included researchers from TARI Ukiriguru, TARI Naliende, TARI Kibaha, and TARI Maruku centers.