SLARI Convenes Stakeholders to Define Target Product Profiles and Market Segments for Yam in Sierra Leone

Freetown, Sierra Leone | 14 July 2026 – The Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute (SLARI) in collaboration with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) successfully hosted a one-day Stakeholders’ Workshop on “Target Product Profiles (TPPs) and Market Segment Workshop for Yam” at its Headquarters Conference Room, Tower Hill, Freetown.

The workshop brought together a broad spectrum of stakeholders, including representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS), Njala University, development partners, farmer organizations, extension services, the private sector, processors, marketers, and SLARI scientists. The gathering provided a platform for participants to collectively identify market opportunities and define the desirable characteristics of improved yam varieties that meet the needs of producers, consumers, processors, and traders.

The workshop forms part of ongoing collaborative efforts to strengthen Sierra Leone’s yam value chain through demand-driven research and innovation. By aligning breeding objectives with market needs, stakeholders aim to ensure that future yam varieties are more productive, resilient, marketable, and responsive to consumer preferences.

Delivering the technical presentation, Dr. Prince E. Norman, Deputy Director General for Research, Technology and Innovation Development at SLARI and Plant Breeder, guided participants through the concepts of market segmentation and Target Product Profiles (TPPs). He emphasized that modern crop breeding must be driven by clearly identified market needs, ensuring that improved varieties deliver value to farmers, processors, traders, and consumers alike.

Participants discussed the different yam market segments in Sierra Leone by considering agro-ecological zones, production systems, maturity periods, consumer preferences, processing requirements, and market demand. The discussions enabled stakeholders to identify priority market segments that will guide future breeding programmes.

The workshop also developed Target Product Profiles (TPPs), which define the ideal characteristics of improved yam varieties for each identified market segment. Priority traits discussed included early and intermediate maturity, high fresh tuber yield, superior boiled and pounded yam quality, high dry matter content, desirable tuber size and shape, extended shelf life, and resistance to major diseases and pests such as anthracnose, mosaic virus, and nematodes.

Through interactive discussions and technical validation, participants reached consensus on priority product profiles that will serve as benchmarks for future yam breeding programmes in Sierra Leone. The workshop also recognized the potential for improved varieties developed in Sierra Leone to benefit neighbouring countries, including Liberia and Guinea, thereby contributing to regional agricultural development.

The workshop reaffirmed the importance of collaboration among research institutions, government agencies, development partners, the private sector, and farming communities in delivering innovations that are farmer-centred, market-oriented, and responsive to national development priorities.

Speaking at the close of the workshop, participants commended SLARI for providing an inclusive platform that strengthens collaboration among stakeholders while advancing research that responds directly to market demand. They reaffirmed their commitment to supporting the development and dissemination of improved yam varieties capable of increasing productivity, improving food and nutrition security, creating market opportunities, and enhancing farmers’ livelihoods.

The outcome of the workshop guided SLARI’s yam breeding programme and will contribute to the development of improved varieties that support the Government of Sierra Leone’s Feed Salone Initiative, while reinforcing the Institute’s mandate to generate agricultural technologies and innovations that transform the country’s food systems and improve the livelihoods of farming communities.