Agronomist dreams of a cassava revolution

Mercy Diebiru-Ojo's ambitions are straightforward — increase Nigerian yam and cassava yields by 500 per cent, fight hunger and raise her country’s position on the agricultural value chain from a mere grower to a processor.

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The first steps, at least, are already underway for the 44-year-old agronomist, who was awarded this year's prestigious Africa Food Prize for her research on yams and cassava, both major food staples in Africa. Traditionally, farmers in Nigeria — which produces 70 per cent of the world’s yams — replant chunks of yams and cassava from the previous year's harvest, to grow this year’s crop. Gradually, the plants lose their resistance to diseases — a serious problem for food security in a country where 30 million people are not getting enough to eat, according to the United Nations’ World Food Programme.