First All-Africa Mushroom Conference

The First All-Africa Scientific Conference on Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms will be held October 25th ...

The First All-Africa Scientific Conference on Edible and Medicinal Mushrooms will be held October 25^th – 29^th, 2006 at the Nile Resort Hotel in Jinja, Uganda. The chosen theme for the conference, organised by NAPRECA – Uganda and Makerere University, is ‘Edible and medicinal mushrooms for health and poverty alleviation’. 

Background and objectives

Mushrooms have long been valued as tasty, nutritious food by different societies throughout the world. In the developing world, including Africa, mushrooms are used as food and medicine in many societies. In Africa, however, the medicinal and nutritional importance of mushrooms has not been adequately studied and documented. In the developed world, mushrooms now occupy a central position in natural products research (medicine, food, environmental issues). For instance, there is now increasing evidence that medicinal mushrooms have a wide array of medicinally important compounds that have anticancer and antiviral activity; offering great hope for the production of new drugs for ailments like HIV/AIDS,  Avian influenza and the many cancers that afflict humanity today. Mushroom growing is also a source of considerable economic gain to farmers in the developed world, notably Japan and the USA. Africa lags behind in this unfolding ‘mushroom revolution’.

This conference will therefore be a meeting point between mushroom growers and scientists in Africa and the rest of the developed world; resulting in a benefit from exchange of experiences between scientists within and outside Africa. It will raise awareness of the scientific and commercial value of mushrooms and thereby sensitizing policy makers on the value of edible and medicinal mushrooms; resulting in commitment of more resources into research and production of mushrooms in this continent.

Proposed key conference themes 

• Ethnomycology and mushroom toxicology
• Mushrooms in food and medicine
• Mushrooms and the environment
• Taxonomy and systematics in tropical mushrooms
• Socio-economic aspects of mushroom industry in Africa
• Mushrooms as non-timber forest products

Target participants

This conference will attract several individuals and groups, including but not limited to the following: graduate students of environmental science, forestry, crop science, molecular biology, mycology; the farming community (especially active and prospective commercial mushroom growers); mushroom spawn producers (international and local);  researchers in food science, pharmacology, physiology and nutrition, forestry, botany, environment and wildlife, agriculture, molecular biology and taxonomy and many leading authorities in mushroom science and socio-economists.

Organising committee

This conference is organised and run by Makerere University (Uganda) and the Natural Products Research Network for Eastern and Central Africa (NAPRECA -Uganda). The conference brings together the resources of four faculties of Makerere University: Veterinary Medicine, Science (Chemistry and Botany departments), Agriculture (Food science department), and Forestry. 

Local organising committee:

• Dr. Deo. Olila – Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (Physiological Sciences)/ Convener.
• Dr. F. Ejobi – Faculty of Veterinary Medicine (Public Health and Preventive Medicine).
• Ass. Prof. J.D. Kabasa  - Faculty of Veterinary Medicine -Dean.
• Dr. Kamatenesi, M.– Faculty of Science (Botany)/Chairperson NAPRECA.
• Prof. Oryem-Origa - Faculty of Science (Botany).
• Dr. Kakudidi - Faculty of Science (Botany).
• Dr. Ipulet, P.- Faculty of Science (Botany).
• Mr. Kimbowa – JERA/NAPRECA.
• Prof. Kiremire – Faculty of Science (Chemistry).
• Mr. Robert Byamukama – Faculty of Science (Chemistry).
• Mr. Muyanja- Faculty of Science (Industrial Chemistry).
• Prof. Obua – Faculty of Forestry.
• Dr. Eilu, Gerald - Faculty of Forestry.
• Dr. Joyce Kikafunda – Faculty of Agriculture (Food Science).
• Ass. Prof. C. Dranzoa - Faculty of Veterinary Medicine/Graduate School.

International contacts:

• Prof. Omoangye, Isikhuenmen, USA.
• Prof. Okhuoya, Nigeria.
• Prof. Munishi, PKT - Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania.
• Dr. Kisovi - Kenyata University, Kenya.
• Prof. Dawit Abate - Faculty of Science, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia.
• Ms. Magda Verfaillie - Belgium.

The Jinja Nile Resort.

Timeline/plans for the scientific conference

• 31st January, 2006: First call for Abstracts.
• 30th April, 2006: Second Call for Abstracts.
• 30th May, 2006: Deadline for abstracts.
• 30th July, 2006 - Deadline for full papers.
  
• Wednesday, 25th October, 2006 – Arrival in Jinja: Nile Resort Hotel.
• Thursday 26th- Friday 27th October, 2006, Scientific Presentations.
• Saturday, 28th October, 2006: Mushroom Forays (Mabira Forest).
• Sunday, 29th October, 2006: Departures.

The organising committee is still looking for international key speakers and funding/sponsoring for the conference.

Contact: Dr. Deo.Olila, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Makerere University. E-mail: olilad@vetmed.mak.ac.ug