Plant Breeding E-Learning in Africa – a Collaborative Effort to Develop and Deliver State-of-the Art Curriculum for the Next Generation of Plant Breeders

Africa needs a critical mass of well-rounded practical plant breeders to effectively and independently manage and scale up breeding programs. Breeders are also critical in advancing the emerging African seed industry through increased uptake of improved crop varieties to ensure food security. With funding from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, an innovative educational partnership was formed between Iowa State University (ISU), and Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, University of KwaZulu-Natal, and Makerere University.  Plant Breeding E-Learning in Africa (PBEA) is part of a larger project titled Improved Master of Science in Cultivar Development for Africa (IMCDA) managed by Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa. The Integrated Breeding Platform of the CGIAR Generation Challenge Program is another collaborating organization affiliated with the project. The aim of PBEA is to develop state-of-the-art e-modules covering modern breeding approaches, data management, and technologies that will be freely available for use by any institution in the world. PBEA members bringing knowledge and expertise to the project include faculty from ISU Agronomy Department, an innovator in online and plant breeding education, ISU Departments of Agricultural Education & Studies, Industrial & Manufacturing Systems Engineering, Horticulture, and School of Education, as well as experts from educational technology centers (Brenton Center for Agricultural Instruction & Technology Transfer and the Agronomy Distance Programs Development Lab). Several e-modules and Applied Learning Activities delivered to partner universities in Africa are being used in teaching in the IMCDA program, and have been reported as a useful resource.