How are you settling into your new role?
Even after changing so many jobs in the past and living in different countries, the process has not become any easier. I’m thankful for the very supportive teams both at home and at the office. This is helping me settle in very well. I am lucky to have family, colleagues and a wonderful network who understand this process. As you know, with every new role, there is so much to learn – both bureaucratic and technical – but I am happy to say I am quickly finding my feet. I’m pleased that during these first 100 days, we at CTLGH have managed to host visitors and scientists from far and wide.
What have been the highlights so far?
It is very difficult to pinpoint one specific highlight. Having been asked to lead this centre is in itself a huge privilege and honour. To be the champion for our vision and mission to improve livelihoods through livestock is a humbling experience. In the tropics, the majority of people are largely dependent on small-scale farming for food and income. Unfortunately, the productivity of the livestock found in these farms is relatively low compared to other regions in the world. CTLGH has been involved in research that is trying to improve the livelihoods of the people in the tropics through the improvement of livestock. This has been done through research that is aimed to be passed on to our partners, which are farmer-facing organisations. We aim to develop and apply genomic tools to improve the productivity of livestock and increase climatic resilience, adaptation and mitigation, for the benefit of smallholder farmers in the tropics. There cannot be a better highlight than being part of this goal.
What makes CTLGH unique?
There are several things that make us unique. One of them is the CTLGH model itself. CTLGH is a strategic partnership between three organisations. These are the International Livestock Research Institute based in Nairobi, Kenya, and Scotland’s Rural College and the University of Edinburgh based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Let us say that each of the three organisations is represented by a circle drawn, as a Venn diagram, on a piece of paper. If one looked at a Venn diagram made out of three cycles, one would recognise the fact that this centre is an intercept of the three cycles. This then brings us to the aspect of how to harness the power of the intersection. That in itself is unique and highly beneficial. One can argue that each one of these three organisations has strong scientists that can deliver research in the tropics. That is true. However, by having these three organisations working together, the centre benefits from the strong power of the synergistic effect.
The whole aspect of focusing on upstream science informed by downstream challenges is a very important uniqueness of CTLGH. We aim to support the transformation of livestock-based livelihoods in the tropics. This is done through investment from different partners to enable scientists, policymakers and communities to co-produce and apply the knowledge and tools necessary to make tropical livestock productivity better. If we may, CTLGH is a unique conduit or platform for transforming fundamental research into solutions and technologies that our famer-facing partners can deliver on the ground. It is a unique type of scientific and knowledge ‘relay race’.
Have you had an opportunity to visit the other parts of CTLGH yet?
Yes, I have. I have not only visited our nodes in Nairobi and Addis Ababa, but I have also been to SRUC in Edinburgh. Of course, I am based at the Roslin Institute, also in Edinburgh. I have had the opportunity to have one-on-one meetings with CTLGH scientists. During my visit to Nairobi, I was accompanied by all three CTLGH Principals, and had vital discussions and meetings with them. I also visited some of the research sites. This gave me insights into the breadth and depth of the work being undertaken in CTLGH and its positive impact on tropical livestock systems in the tropics. During the trip to Kenya, I also visited and had discussions with some key stakeholders in African livestock development. For example, I had the opportunity to meet with the Director of the African Union Interafrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR), Dr Huyam Salih, among others.
On my trip to Addis Ababa, further to visiting our research sites, I had the opportunity to accompany colleagues to go and hand over funds to the Tesfa Addis Parents Childhood Cancer Organization (TAPCCO). The funds were raised by CTLGH and the wider University of Edinburgh community at a Christmas raffle in December 2023. This was a very humbling experience.
What motivates you about the Centre’s work?
To wake up every day realising that what we do can change somebody’s life somewhere is a huge motivation to do what we do. I am grateful to be surrounded by some of the top biosciences and biotechnology experts in the world; it fills me with the energy that fuels my passion for the work. As Bill Gates once said, “the world of science is moving faster today than ever.” It is exciting to be part of that fast-moving world to find solutions to the problems that the farmers in the Global South face.
How do you see CTLGH’s work moving forward?
For some time, livestock production has been seen as either a pathway out of poverty or as a strong contributor to food security. Both these are true and indeed improving productivity is important not only for the livestock themselves, but also the people and the environment in which those animals are. However, in the changing world with the changing climate, other spheres of livestock production should be emphasised. For example, the importance of breeding for disease resistance, adaptation and resilience. In the tropics, the environment presents with it a lot of stressors which can affect animal health and welfare, and ultimately animal productivity. A better understanding, of the genetic basis and architecture of disease resistance, heat tolerance, adaptation and resilience, is of paramount importance.
With climate change also come the issues that affect animals at embryonic and foetal levels and later affect their performance as adults and even get passed on to the next generation. At CTLGH, we have teams that work in this area. These issues are becoming particularly serious in the context of recurrent drought, feed and water scarcity.
For some time, there has been a lot of mud thrown on cows because of the methane that they produce. While we all agree that this is a problem, we should also realise that cows can be a strong part of the solution. Serious efforts should go towards finding genomic and phenotyping tools at the animal and microbiome level to underpin the design of animal breeding for low enteric methane emissions in tropical livestock. This is not only good for the environment, it is also very good for the livestock themselves and the people who keep them.
Of course, animal breeding work in the tropics should never leave out the people who keep the lifestyle. The livestock keepers are a very important component of livestock production in the tropics and hence any strategy should aim to involve them. At CTLGH, our capacity-building work should not only be structured but should also be undertaken in close collaboration with organisations and networks such as The Global Academy of Agriculture and Food Systems, SEBI-Livestock, and the African Animal Breeders Network (AABNet).