India to co-host two-day international millet conference in Kenya in August

New Delhi [India], July 6 : India will co-host a two-day 'India-Africa International Millet Conference' in Kenya on August 30-31, 2023.

The event will witness participation from government leaders, researchers, farmers, entrepreneurs and industry associations from around the globe, an official release from the agriculture ministry said Thursday.

The official curtain raiser for the 'India-Africa International Millet Conference' was held in Nairobi, Kenya on Thursday, giving the audience a glimpse of what to expect from the main event.

Through the international conference, the government of India and Kenya aim to raise public awareness about millet as the world's emerging smart food.

With high levels of minerals such as iron, calcium, zinc and other vital nutrients, Millets are a treasure trove of health benefits.

Additionally, they are also drought-resistant, pest-resilient, climate-friendly crops that can boost income opportunities and livelihoods of smallholder farmers, especially in sub-Saharan Africa and Asia.

India produces all the nine commonly known traditional millets viz. Sorghum, Pearl Millet, Finger Millet, Foxtail Millet, Proso Millet, Little Millet, Barnyard Millet, Brown top Millet and Kodo Millet.

The government of India under Prime Minister Narendra Modi spearheaded the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolution for declaring the year 2023 as the International Year of Millets and the proposal of India was supported by 72 countries.

Millet is a common term for categorizing small-seeded grasses that are often called Nutri-cereals. Most of the states in India grow one or more millet crop species. Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, and Telangana are the major millets producing states.

In March, India held its first mega-global event Global Millets (Shree Anna) Conference in Delhi to celebrate 2023 as the International Year of Millets (IYM). The aim of the United Nations to declare 2023 as the International Year of Millets on India's initiative is to elevate awareness of millets for food security and nutrition, enhance investment in R&D and extension, and inspire stakeholders towards improving production, productivity and quality of millets.

A ministerial round table of millets was held post-inaugural session of the Global Millets (Shree Anna) Conference in New Delhi.

Ministers from Guyana, Mauritius, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname and Zambia; Permanent Secretary, Agriculture of Gambia and Maldives and Director General, Millets Initiative, Nigeria participated in the meeting.