Online Reporter
Rutendo Nyeve,Victoria Falls Reporter
A dedicated maize breeder at the Crop Breeding Institute, under the Ministry of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development Ms Ronica Mukaro was among 12 distinguished African plant breeders who graduated from the Collaborative Breeding Leadership Program (CBLP) on Wednesday evening here in Victoria Falls.
The CBLP, a CGIAR-led initiative, is designed to equip mid-career breeders with advanced leadership, management, and strategic communication skills to complement their technical expertise.
The 18-month pilot programme involved fellows from eight African nations.
The graduation ceremony, a highlight on the sidelines of the 4th African Plant Breeders Association (APBA) conference, was presided over by the Deputy Minister of Lands, Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development, Vangelis Haritatos.
Deputy Minister Haritatos underscored the strategic importance of such leadership initiatives for the continent and Zimbabwe.
“My Ministry would like to express appreciation for this very important science leadership development programme which focuses on plant breeders in Africa
“The realisation that technical skills alone are not enough, and that there is need to mentor and build a new generation of plant breeding science leaders who can drive collaboration, innovation, and operational excellence across plant breeding networks in Africa is a welcome development,” said Deputy Minister Haritatos.
He further highlighted the alignment of the programme with national goals.
“On the Government side, we are very keen and interested in having young people in this space. Food security means food security for us, having these young people that graduate in their roles, is critical for us to move our agenda,” he said.
Emphasising the pan-African spirit of the initiative, the Deputy Minister added,
“This is about us as Africans, us as an African continent, ensuring that our people are food secure. What you have done on the surface looks like a small graduation programme but the real in-depth benefit for us, not as Zimbabwe alone, but as Africans, is massive,” he said.
Ms Ronica Mukaro’ s participation and successful graduation has lifted the country’s flag high.
In an interview, an elated Mukaro shared her transformative experience.
“This Programme saw breeders from national programs being equipped and mentored by the senior scientists, senior breeders from national programmes, from CG centers, and from universities,” she said.
She detailed her mentorship under Dr. Dan Makumbi from a CGIAR centre in Nairobi, which profoundly refined her technical approach.
“So as a breeder, I thought I knew everything, but for sure, if you are starting, you do not know until you meet a senior scientist. I benefited a lot from this Programme because the way I was doing my nurseries, my trials, was actually, well, it was fine, but Dr Dan Makumbi had a very good way of doing selections,” she said.
