Improvement of Rice Production under Drought Conditions in West Africa: Application of QTLs in Breeding for Drought Resistance
Kossi Lorimpo Adjah,
Maxwell Darko Asante,
Aboubacar Toure,
Mawuli Aziadekey,
Francis Osei Amoako-Andoh,
Michael Frei,
Yacouba Diallo,
Komi Agboka
Affiliations
Kossi Lorimpo Adjah
West African Science Service Center on Climate Change and Adapted Land Use / Climate Change and Agriculture Program, IPR/IFRA, P.O. Box 224, Katibougou, Mali; Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Crops Research Institute, P.O. Box 3785, Fumesua- Kumasi, Ghana; University of Sciences, Techniques and Technologies of Bamako (USTTB), P.O. Box 423, Bamako, Mali
Maxwell Darko Asante
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Crops Research Institute, P.O. Box 3785, Fumesua- Kumasi, Ghana; Council for Scientific and Industrial Research- College of Science and Technology, Department of Plant Resources Development, P.O. Box 3785, Fumesua-Kumasi, Ghana; Corresponding author: Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Crops Research Institute, P.O. Box 3785, Fumesua- Kumasi, Ghana,
Aboubacar Toure
International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, P.O. Box 320, Bamako, Mali
Mawuli Aziadekey
University of Lomé (UL), P.O. Box 1515, Lomé, Togo
Francis Osei Amoako-Andoh
Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Crops Research Institute, P.O. Box 3785, Fumesua- Kumasi, Ghana; Council for Scientific and Industrial Research- College of Science and Technology, Department of Plant Resources Development, P.O. Box 3785, Fumesua-Kumasi, Ghana
Michael Frei
Institute for Agronomy and Plant Breeding of Justus-Liebig-University of Giessen, Giessen 35392, Germany
Yacouba Diallo
Polytechnic Rural Institute of Training and Applied Research (IPR/IFRA), P.O. Box 224, Katibougou, Mali
Komi Agboka
University of Lomé (UL), P.O. Box 1515, Lomé, Togo
Rice plays a paramount role in food and nutrition security in many West African countries. Despite the doubling of production during the last decade, rice consumption has grown faster, creating a deficit between the demand and supply. Although the West African sub-region remains the main rice-producing centre on the continent, production is severely hampered by biotic and abiotic stresses. Drought is one of the factors that most severely reduce grain yields of rice. Systems of production need to be established in order to mitigate yield loss as a result of drought. This review discusses the effects of drought on rice production in West Africa and its mitigation with an emphasis on the improvement of tolerance to drought stress. Yield stability can be achieved by developing drought-tolerant varieties through several processes encompassing profiling of known QTLs and identification of new ones, marker-assisted selection, genomic selection, and extensive multi-locational yield trials. We suggest a comprehensive strategy for breeding drought-tolerant rice varieties in West Africa.
