By Abdallah el-Kurebe
‘The African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) has appointed Dr Jean Baptiste De La Salle Tignegre as the new manager of the Pod Borer Resistant Cowpea (PBR) project being implemented in Nigeria, Ghana, and Burkina Faso.
A Burkinabé, Tignegre who replaces Dr Issoufou Kolo that retired last December, joined AATF on August 1, 2022, from the World Vegetable Centre, Mali Office, where he worked as the Country Manager and Representative for West and Central Africa-Dry Region.
In his role as Project Manager PBR Cowpea, Tignegre will also serve as the AATF West African Regional Representative and be based in Abuja Nigeria,
The new manager who has led other cowpea improvement initiatives has worked for over 25 years in the cowpea value chain, will bring valuable experience in biotechnology and specifically PBR Cowpea on board.
His previous roles include working with the Institute for Environment and Agricultural Research (National Scientific and Technology Research Centre), Burkina Faso, as a Plant Breeder for the Grain Legume Improvement Program (Cowpea) and team leader of the Plant Genetics for Cowpea in Burkina Faso.
Tignegre holds a PhD in Plant Breeding from the University of KwaZulu in the Republic of South Africa; MSc in Plant Biology and Ecology from University of Ouagadougou; MSc in Rural Development Engineering (Major in Agricultural Sciences) from University of Ouagadougou and BSc Rural Development Technical Sciences Engineering (Major in Agricultural Sciences) from University of Ouagadougou in Burkina Faso.
