DIVERSITY STUDIES OF COCOYAM (Colocasia esculentum and Xanthosoma sagittifolium [L.] Schott), TOWARDS FOOD SECURITY IN SOUTHERN NIGERIA: A REVIEW.

Abstract

Diversity studies like morphological and molecular characterization are crucial to addressing the issue of declining food security in Nigeria because they provide plant breeders with baseline data to utilize in developing new varieties with the potential of being extremely productive and disease-resistant.  In this review, a total of 35 original research articles and six conference papers were downloaded from the internet, out of which, five papers with accessions/varieties collected in states in southern Nigerian were selected and reviewed. The result of the review showed that a total of ten varieties and 60 accessions of cocoyam from five states (Anambra, Edo, Cross River, Akwa Ibom, and Abia) in southern Nigerian were screened, and several molecular markers and morphological descriptors were used in all the studies.  While two of the studies were unable to determine the level of diversity, three studies revealed a high level of diversity among the accessions and varieties.  Based on these findings, it was concluded that there is a high level of diversity among cocoyam accessions and varieties found in southern Nigeria, and plant breeders can harness this diversity to create a large amount of germplasm for cocoyam breeding projects that will increase food security in Nigeria.