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Ten years ago, the animal production department of the Institut national de recherche agricole du Niger (INRAN), the country's leading agricultural research institution, had just one researcher with a PhD in agronomy.

"Today, there are eight PhD agricultural researchers in INRAN's Animal Production Department, mainly thanks to the capacity-building initiatives of the West African Agricultural Productivity Program (PPAAO)," explains Dr. Nourou Abdou, Head of the Department.

As a PPAAO fellow himself, Dr. Abdou spent four years (2012-2016) at the University of Kwa-Zulu Natal in South Africa, where he earned a PhD in animal feed and nutrition. Although he had the opportunity to pursue post-doctoral studies in South Africa, Dr. Abdou chose to return home and serve his country in the crucial livestock sector.

Niger has a long tradition of livestock farming. The majority of Nigeriens depend on this sector and on agriculture. However, this sector faces the challenges of climate change, desertification, land tenure, health and nutrition.

"I had many other opportunities to stay and work in South Africa, but I went home because of my attachment to the country. It's better to go home and work than go on an adventure," he says.

Research and development (R&D) in Niger, as in most West African countries, is mainly dependent on foreign funding. Agricultural research faced considerable challenges after the end of a World Bank-funded program in 1998. With the introduction of the PPAAO in 2008, with its various capacity-building initiatives, relative progress has since been made.

For the new researchers trained under the PPAAO fellowships, this is a unique opportunity to contribute to the advancement of agricultural research in their countries.

Learning abroad and experiencing other ways of life in relatively more developed countries can, however, complicate plans to resettle in their home countries, given the lack of infrastructure and low wages.

"Working conditions may not be as attractive as we'd like, and things may not be the way we want them, but it's up to us to make it work," says a determined Abdou.

In 2017, Dr Abdou was appointed head of INRAN's Animal Production Department. Given his background, this is a significant step forward for the 49-year-old researcher.

"Without the additional qualifications gained through the PPAAO, this promotion would not be possible," he says.

In his new role, Dr Abdou is already working hard with his staff to create a clean and decent working environment. And already, progress has been made in the working environment. This is partly because he believes that, with determination, anything is possible. "It will work if we want it to," he adds.

"We have a young team here and our commitment is to improve things, that's the commitment we've made," he likes to remind us.

A 43-year-old man leads the fight against foot-and-mouth disease

At the age of forty-three, Souley Kouato Bachir returned to Niamey, Niger, after spending five years studying veterinary science at the University of Liège, Belgium.

The State of Niger has spent nearly 100,000 USD (around 47 million FCFA) to finance Dr Souley's training. While this may seem like a lot, the return on this investment is already palpable.

" Foot-and-mouth disease is a highly contagious viral disease that affects domestic and wild ruminants and pigs. It is endemic in Niger and could have an impact on the national economy due to its negative consequences on the livestock sector".

"One of the main conclusions of my FMD research is that it makes economic sense to vaccinate animals," explains Dr Souley.

Niger exports livestock to West Africa and other parts of the world. Foot-and-mouth disease can seriously hamper livestock exports, as well as local milk production. For a country that relies heavily on livestock farming, this can be a major challenge.

For this Nigerian PPAAO scholarship winner, his new knowledge and work will be essential to understanding the right vaccine and ensuring that those in the livestock value chain take the treatment.

Driven by love of country

At a time when most young people in West Africa are taking huge risks to travel to unknown destinations in search of better economic conditions, it's interesting to see others who are driven by a love of country.

For several decades, the governments of sub-Saharan African countries granted scholarships to their citizens to study at Western universities, but many decided not to return home and instead joined relatively lucrative teaching jobs in the higher education sector.

But not for these Nigeriens we met in the capital Niamey in mid-May 2018.

Dr. Souley Kouato Bachir studied in Liège, Belgium, where there is a strong Nigerian community. Which means that if he had decided to stay in Belgium, he could have found a host.

But once he had finished his studies, he immediately decided to return home to invest his time in agricultural research.

"It wasn't my intention, I could have done it in 2009 when I no longer had a job at home, but when I finished my master's degree, I went home without even being sure what to do."

With his doctorate in hand, he was very confident that he would find his place in the Nigerian economy.

"With a PhD, I'm going to have a hard time in Europe, adapting will be difficult: back home, economically, I don't earn as much as others in Europe, I'm comfortable socially."

Dr Souley admits that there aren't many of them in the country. He is proud to have reached this level of study, and to be able to put his knowledge and skills at the service of the people of Niger.

And since his return to his homeland, he has been helping INRAN to make progress in understanding foot-and-mouth disease and, beyond that, to improve the animal welfare of Niger's livestock.

A "new generation" of agricultural scientists in West Africa

Most West African countries have invested heavily over the last ten years in training young researchers to fill the gap in their respective countries.

A total of 1,000 young researchers, of whom around 30% were women, were awarded scholarships to pursue their master's and doctoral studies in areas of priority to their country's development.

A decade later, several independent studies have concluded that the WAPP fellowship program has made a substantial contribution to strengthening research and development capacity in West Africa.