By Sylvester Thompson

The National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency (NBRDA) says it has developed two products, including biofungicide to tackle ginger blight disease in Nigeria.

The Director-General, Prof. Abdullahi Mustapha, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.

He said the achievement was to the credit of the versatility of revised National Biotechnology Policy, adding that it was driving biotechnology to solve national challenges.

“We are not doing it for fashion; we are not doing it for academic purposes, but to solve problems we have in this country,” he told NAN.

He said scientists had developed a disease-resistant ginger seedling and a biofungicide spray that kills the fungus, adding that both were still undergoing trial.

Mustapha further said that the agency was partnering with the Bank of Agriculture and seeking support from ginger-producing states, especially those in Kaduna, to fast-track the release of the products.

“Every year, people are exporting ginger; Nigeria’s ginger is very important because across the globe; people are looking for it,” he said.

He said the intervention would enable farmers to return to their farms and supply the local market and other African countries seeking the crop.

On Lassa fever, he said progress on the agency’s earlier drug discovery was stalled by funding constraints for clinical trials and protocol issues.

“It is not only NBRDA that is on this.  As an agency; we are collaborating with other agencies and that’s why the clinical trial stalled,” he told NAN, but assured that the agency was still on it.

Mustapha also said that the agency was working to extend the shelf life of tomatoes.

He added that work on soybean focused on improving its protein and oil content was ongoing. (NAN)

Edited by Bukola Adetoye/Uche Anunne