where have we come in bringing hybrid technology to a staple crop of West Africa?
Fred Rattunde, Aboubacar Toure, Issoufou Kapran, Kirsten vom Brocke, Eva Weltzien, Sokona Dagnoko Guinea-race sorghums, originating in western Africa, possess adaptive traits that make them the predominant sorghums in this region and vital to food security. Although Guinea-race sorghums give limited yield to intensified production, their hybrids provide opportunities for increasing yields while retaining adaptive and quality characteristics. This opportunity was not previously explored because of a lack of male-sterile Guinea-race female parents. We initiated research in 2000 to establish the basis for Guinea-race hybrid development and test this concept. Our objectives were to 1) create the first Guinea-race parental lines, 2) produce the first hybrids and establish methods for breeding Guinea-race hybrids, and 3) establish effective methods of hybrid seed production. Great strides have been made over the past six years. We have developed the fi rst series of male-sterile parents (A lines
