I will just join those who believe that we first have to ensure phenomics in Africa before moving forward to genomics.How is it possible to have for example the breeding values of our cattle breeds when there is no recording of their performances?We have to convince farmers that it is very important to keep consistent records on the performances of their animals.Of course prior to that phenotypic identification of our breeds is a must.On my own point of view we need to first focus on this.

La préservation de la qualité du génotype des élevages au Sud-Kivu /Est de la RDC est tributaire du système d’élevage et qui nécessite une nouvelle approche pour relever le défit entre le phénotype et le génotype

Dear all. Sorry for delay. Here in Sudan we have some animals are indangered. I search in one of them (nubian ibex) I would like to study the genetic diversity/population structure and assess the gene intoregression between ibex and do mastic goats in red sea state in Sudan.
i would like to do share the samples of DNA with most countries where ibex is exist.
I am looking forward to a fruitful collaboration

We come to the end of the forum time, and I very much thank everyone for their contributions. We will however leave the space open for the next few days, to allow for last comments and for people to view the summary posts.

Thanks Again, Karen.

Thanks MIzeck and I fully agree – integration across disciplines is essential!

One challenges with phenomics (as applied in functional genomics) is not phenomics itself. Its much more to do with how we train the next generation of scientists. Correct me if I am wrong but I see a lot of lack of connectedness in the way most courses are taught. Take an example of biochemistry, mathematics, biology and animal science (including animal breeding, animal health and animal nutrition). Until when the teaching/learning shows serious connections, the application of the omics in our production systems will only look good on paper but not on the ground where the animals are.

The current state of livestock production in Africa is pathetic despite the huge potential of these animals to sustain the livelihoods of farmers. If phenomics and genomics could help improve livestock production and productivity, then African countries should not put these at the back burner. We should move away from our current crude ways of doing things by exploiting modern technologies that will contribute to increased livestock populations and more income to the farmers. Although the task is daunting, I believe if all the relevant stakeholders (governments, research institutions, farmers, regional and sub-regional organizations, private investors, NGOs and funding bodies) are highly committed and give phenomics and genomics the much deserved priority, then we will overcome. All current efforts geared towards improving African livestock especially cattle should be harmonized to yield laudable results. However, we should not forget the aspect of capacity building as it affects researchers and farmers. On a final note, I wish to commend the organizers of this e-discussion for a job well executed. Please keep the good work up.

Dear All, I have been late to join this discussion mainly because am in an area where the network connections are not good, it has been very interesting, i took time yesterday and today to go through almost all the discussions and i commend Karren for initiating such a forum. Phenomics as it is now is a real challenge, however i would want to suggest that African governments be put to a challenge to develop livestock policies that will incorporate tracability and record keeping for all livestock, this is not easy in countries where the level of illiteracy is high, but such programs adult literacy can be incorporated in the extension programs for livestock farmers. we developedd a recording method with rural farmers while disseminating elite bulls from ITC for multiplication by farmers, the farmers were using their family members who are going to school to do the recordings, I think if such programs are introduced to farmers they will notice the importance of animal record keping.

In agreement with most contributors (especially Dr. Okeno Otieno & Dr. V.E. Olori), phenomics is a bigger challenge in African livestock system. Efforts should be channeled more towards establishing phenomics and well defined conventional breeding schemes. No doubt genomics is great as it facilitates rapid genetic improvement, but this is not possible without phenotypes. Even in developed countries where genomics is currently implemented, there is still emphasis on the collection of more and more phenotypes. That goes to show how important phenotypes are. As Prof. Mike Coffey of University of Edinburgh rightly puts it “In the era of genomics, phenotype is king”. So, be it for genome-wide association studies which enables us to link phenotypes to genes or genomic selection which could lead to rapid genetic improvement in African livestock system, phenomics is paramount.

Thanks – and this aligns with some of the earlier contributions on current and potential use of genomics. In particular, one of the most commonly discussed applications was around determination of breed composition.