Posted on November 22, 2011

Howard G. Buffett, Gates Foundations Partner to Improve Soil Fertility in Africa

The Howard G. Buffett Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation have announced a partnership to improve the quality of soil in Africa through support for the N2Africa initiative.

The initiative — a project of Wageningen University, which has been working with the Gates Foundation since 2009 — is designed to boost the productivity of legumes and improve family nutrition, soil health, and farm income by maximizing biological nitrogen fixation through the use of soybeans, groundnuts, common beans, and cowpeas. The Netherlands-based university already is working with partners in Nigeria, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Rwanda, Mozambique, Malawi, and Zimbabwe, and $2 million in additional funding from the Buffett Foundation will enable it to expand the project to Sierra Leone and Liberia.

Although legume crops such as beans and nuts often fail to "fix" nitrogen levels in soil that lacks essential nutrients, N2Africa utilizes a simple scientific approach that combines nutrients and bacteria with seeds, potentially doubling crop yields and improving soil quality.

"Africa needs a 'brown revolution' to improve soil quality and increase agricultural productivity," said Howard G. Buffett. "Our partnership with the Gates Foundation and our contribution to N2Africa underscores the importance of investing in both soil and seeds as a way to improve the standard of living and quality of life for the world's most impoverished and marginalized populations."