Sudanese wheat growers like Daf’Allah Mohamed Ahmed have battled the elements in recent years. Droughts, rising temperatures and the coronavirus pandemic have stretched the country’s agricultural sector, and smallholder farmers need a helping hand.
The African Development Bank’s programme, Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation, provided the answer. The program helped Ahmed and millions of other farmers in some African countries access better seeds and technical training. They received the much need support to boost yields and raise incomes.
Ahmed’s new heat-tolerant wheat variety grows better in Sudan’s rising temperatures, which often exceed 30°C. He has been able to double his yield to 5 tons. He praised the scheme for churning out a harvest of “good-quality wheat in record quantities…My wheat yield increased from 2.5 tons to 5 tons.”