Nairobi, Kenya — February 14, 2026 Africa at Risk of Losing Critical Crop Diversity, Experts Warn.
A rapid loss of plant genetic diversity in Africa is raising alarms among experts, who are calling for immediate action to safeguard crops vital for food security, climate resilience, and livelihoods.
The Third Report on the State of the World’s Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, published by the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO), reveals that crops, their varieties, wild relatives, and other food plants are disappearing faster than they are being conserved.
According to the report, Africa is losing plant genetic diversity at a pace that threatens food security, nutrition, and the resilience of agrifood systems.
The loss of crop diversity, including farmers’varieties, wild food plants, and the genetic relatives of major crops, is critical for developing improved crop varieties needed to climate-proof the continent’s agrifood systems. Locally adapted crop varieties, known as landraces, are disappearing from farms across Africa, including staple crops like sorghum, millet, yams, rice, and traditional cotton.
These crops are often better suited to local soils and climates than commercial varieties and are crucial for adapting to extreme weather events.
In Sub — Saharan Africa, about 16 per cent of more than 12,000 distinct locally adapted crop varieties are threatened, narrowing farmers’options as droughts and heat intensify.
The report also highlights sharp declines in wild food plants, which provide essential nutrients and act as safety nets for vulnerable populations during times of food scarcity.
The loss of crop wild relatives, which carry traits for drought tolerance, pest, and disease resistance, is also of great concern. Over 70 per cent of assessed crop wild relatives in Africa are under threat, while African gene banks conserve only about 14 per cent of those collected. FAO’s Deputy Director of the Plant Production and Protection Division, Chikelu Mba, emphasized the importance of plant genetic resources for sustainable agrifood systems.
“Without stronger policies, investment, and coordination, Africa risks losing irreplaceable plant diversity that supports livelihoods, food security, and nutrition,” he.
The report calls for urgent, coordinated action to strengthen policies, invest in seed systems and genebanks, build scientific and technical capacity, and support farmers and communities as custodians of plant genetic diversity. Without decisive action, Africa risks losing irreplaceable resources essential for food security, resilience, and sustainable development.
*Additional reporting by ImNews | Sources consulted: 5*
