Cortada Laura, Dehennin Inge, Bert Wim, Coyne Danny
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), Kasarani, P.O. Box 30772-00100, Nairobi, Kenya.
Nematology Research Unit, Faculty of Sciences, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, 9000 Ghent, Belgium.
Nematology. 2019;22(1):1-21. doi: 10.1163/15685411-00003291. Epub 2019 Oct 22.
Within sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), although nematodes are viewed among the most important threats to crop production and food security, the presence of trained nematologists working within this discipline has traditionally been viewed as scarce. The few research studies concerning this subject address this topic from a country or sub-regional perspective and generally portray nematology as 'insufficient'. Over the past two decades, a few initiatives have been instrumental in building greater nematology expertise. For the first time a structured survey was undertaken, involving interviews with individuals from SSA that were (or currently are) involved in nematology training programmes, research, national extension services or in African universities. This paper provides evidence of the positive impact of various initiatives and shows an increase in the number of available nematology positions, together with high rates of graduates that return home to occupy qualified positions. Our findings will help researchers, policy makers and donors to identify areas requiring support to increase the promotion of nematology in SSA and to make an impact for end-users.
在撒哈拉以南非洲地区（SSA），尽管线虫被视为对作物生产和粮食安全的最重要威胁之一，但传统上认为该领域受过专业训练的线虫学家数量稀少。为数不多的关于这一主题的研究是从国家或次区域角度探讨的，并且普遍认为线虫学“发展不足”。在过去二十年中，一些举措有助于培养更多的线虫学专业人才。首次开展了一项结构化调查，采访了来自SSA的、曾参与（或目前仍在参与）线虫学培训项目、研究、国家推广服务或非洲大学相关工作的人员。本文提供了各项举措产生积极影响的证据，表明可用的线虫学职位数量有所增加，同时回国占据合格职位的毕业生比例也很高。我们的研究结果将有助于研究人员、政策制定者和捐助者确定需要支持的领域，以加强SSA地区线虫学的推广，并为最终用户带来影响。
