29 September 2013: Bioversity International launched a new framework for addressing neglected and underutilized species (NUS) at the 3rd International Conference on Neglected and Underutilized Species: for a food-secure Africa held in Accra, Ghana, from 25-27 September 2013.

The framework presents opportunities for fighting poverty, hunger and malnutrition with NUS, and describes the importance of NUS for food security, nutrition, income and cultural identity. The framework also outlines the status of NUS around the world, describing their vulnerability and key challenges they face. In response to threats to NUS, it calls for changes in perceptions, increased capacity, enhanced research, improved conservation, greater stakeholder involvement, increased investment in value chains, an increasingly supportive policy environment and increased cooperation.

The three-day conference brought together over 150 participants from 36 countries. Bioversity is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [Publication: Fighting Poverty, Hunger and Malnutrition with Neglected and Underutilized Species – Needs, Challenges and the Way Forward] [3rd International Conference on Neglected and Underutilized Species Website]