It is one of the most ambitious programs to provide lasting improvements in nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa.
Rothamsted Research is contributing soil and crop expertise to the program, known as GeoNutrition, which has received a grant of £4.4 million from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to cover 43 months’ work in Ethiopia and Malawi. It also has the support of the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council.
It is one of the most ambitious programs to provide lasting improvements in nutrition in sub-Saharan Africa, where a diverse multinational team of experts from agriculture to ethics start looking for ways to end dietary deficiencies in essential micronutrients.
The program is focusing on deficiencies in selenium and zinc, which impair growth, inhibit cognitive development and suppress the immune system. It aims to map cropland, test the efficacy of micronutrient-enriched fertilizers, assess public health policies and strengthen training networks.
In Ethiopia, there are Addis Ababa University, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT); in Malawi, Lilongwe University of Agriculture & Natural Resources (LUANAR); in Kenya, CIMMYT again and the World Agroforestry Centre (ICRAF); and, in the UK, Rothamsted, the British Geological Survey (BGS), the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) and the University of Nottingham, which is leading the program.
