Coming to speed with the state of cassava breeding in Uganda

Uganda is the 5th largest producer of cassava in Africa and cassava is the second most important source of starch after banana (matooke) in terms of area occupied, total production and per capita consumption. It is an important food security crop and a source of income for smallholder farmers as well as its potential to contribute to national economic development. Cassava production in Uganda is however hindered by several constraints including use of inferior and low yielding cultivars which are susceptible to pests and diseases, slow growth and development rate under clonal multiplication, and lack of improved early bulking cutting suitable and improved varieties which meet farmer’s preferences. Several efforts have been made by the Ugandan Government including establishment of breeding programmes to release new disease resistant varieties and multiplication of high yielding cassava varieties; integrated pest management; training of farmers and extension staff; infrastructure development; and policies that facilitate the development and adoption of innovations. Despite the efforts to improve cassava production, farmers are still challenged with wide spread of emerging pests and diseases leading to high yield losses coupled with low rates of adoption of improved varieties and lack of adequate clean planting materials. Additionally, although cassava breeders are making progress, they still face significant challenges in developing disease-resistant varieties that increase overall yield and respond to the needs of smallholder farmers and processors. There is therefore an urgent need to support cassava breeding towards selecting of genotypes which are high yielding with stability across several agro ecological zones and resistant to pests and diseases. This paper reviews the state of knowledge on cassava breeding in Uganda and the information generated from this review will inform the cassava variety release process.