“Ex-situ gene banks have an important role to play. But we’ve been trying to save seed in gene banks for the last half century, with more failures than successes. To ensure a sustained supply of useful germplasm and a more dynamic system of keeping diversity alive, we must support farmers in maintaining seed in their field. If we lose this living diversity Africa and the world will not be able to adjust to climate change,” Worede said.
I was in Tunis, and had the privilege of speaking with Dr Worede. He is a living inspiration, and someone whose face, spirituality and presence I will never forget.
Maleku Worede and Pat Mooney provided a great double act during one of the fourth evening side events, organised jointly by USC Cananda and Via Campesina. Sadly few delegates where there to listen to their words of wisdom. Maleku in support of farmer and community seed management, and Pat riling against industrial agriculture to great effect. One of the few inspiring moments of the Treaty meeting. At times, the rest was enough to induce bleeding from the eyes and nose. By the way, Pat and the ETC Group have just produced a highly readable, entertaining and intentionally provocative piece on international agriculture development and research, Toward a New Roman Forum. Downloadable at the ETC Group website.
I am a bit confused about Dr Melaku’s claim to be the founder of the Ethiopian Gene Bank. The gene bank was founded in the mid-1970s, with German development help, under the leadership of the excellent Dr Tadessa Ebba. For part of the time I was project manager – there is a photograph on the wall of the current Director’s office showing the crew of us ‘founders’.
‘Toward a New Roman Forum’ is classic Mooney. For almost thirty years Mooney has been trying to close down the CGIAR and its effective work at feeding people. He knows merger with FAO would wreck the CGIAR. Mooney should learn from his mistakes – including pushing for the ITPGR. This is heading for underfunded failure. Much-needed global sample distribution is now — as for many years — very predominantly from CGIAR collections (and not from Treaty member states). The CGIAR should ignore Mooney’s deliberately bad advice and get on with its key role of crop and varietal introduction (70% of crop production in Latin America and Africa is not from ‘locally adapted’ indigenous crops, but from introduced species escaping co-evolved pests and disease).