On Tuesday October 17, Wageningen UR organizes is a symposium “POtato production in Africa: Challenges and opportunities: at the occasion of the PhD defences of Yenenesh Tadesse and Waga Mazengia (by invitation only).

Potato production in Eastern Africa has increased considerably over the last decades but actual farmer yields per hectare are still far below the achievable yields. There are many reasons for this yield gap. Nevertheless there is a tremendous potential of the crop in Eastern Africa and Irish and Dutch knowledge institutions are active in supporting the realization of that potential. To celebrate the successful completion of two PhD studies on potato production in Chencha, Ethiopia, co-supervised by Irish and Dutch potato experts, a symposium is organized to exchange information on activities, to look for new avenues for further improvement of the crop and to identify opportunities for continued collaboration.

Programme

The symposium will be held in the Radix building, Droevendaalsesteeg 1, Wageningen, Room M10.

13.45.               Arrival; for those who also attended the PhD defence of Waga Mazengia there will be sandwiches

14.00-14.30.     Lance O’Brien: TEAGASC’s activities in Eastern Africa

14.30-15.00.     Denis Griffin: TEAGASC’s outreach to the potato world of Eastern Africa

15.00-15.30.     Gareth Borman (WUR-CDI): Governance of seed systems in Ethiopia

15.30-16.00.     Thomas Minda (Arba Minch University): Combined effect of meteorology and elevation on potato production in the Gamo highlands, Ethiopia

16.00-16.15.     Coffee break

16.15-16.45.     Peter Gildemacher (KIT): The potential of potato in Africa

16.45-17.15.     Rico Lie (WUR-KTI): EVOCAs for Ethiopian potato

17.15-17.45.     Michiel de Vries (Solynta): Hybrid potato breeding for Africa

18.15. Dinner for speakers and other invitees