Sélection participative des variétés de sorgho à l'aide d'essais multilocaux dans deux zones cibles

Abstract

Variety development for sorghum requires multi-location testing for yielding ability. In West-Africa, where adaptation to specific zones of rainfall distribution is crucial for the success of a variety, these multi-location trials need to be conducted within any specific zone of adaptation. As most West-African countries lack sufficient research station capacity for this type of yield testing, we have developed a trial design and experiments with a sharing of roles and responsibilities between farmers, NGO's and researchers that allow for effective varietal differentiation in the target environment across a wide range of production conditions within a zone. The added advantage of farmer participation in this early stage of variety evaluation is that farmers also evaluate a wide range of other traits that are essential for making a variety a success.