Developing tropical zinc biofortified crops using hyperaccumulator plants

Farida Abubakari’s research is focused on developing a tropical zinc biofortified crops using the shrub of eastern Australia Gossia fragrantissima which has a background concentration of Zn, where the biomass may be utilised as organic zinc fertilisers or as micronutrient supplements for human consumption. Farida's research will contribute to better understanding the ecophysiology of Gossia fragrantissima with the ultimate aim of developing it as a zinc biofortified crop.

Farida completed her Bachelor of Science Degree in Agriculture at Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology in Ghana, and was a recipient of the Tertiary Education Scholarship Trust for Africa (TEST for Africa) scholarship. After which she worked with Council for Scientific and Industrial Research-Soil Research Institute (CSIR-SRI), one of the largest research institutions in Ghana as a Senior Technologist. Farida was later awarded the Soils of Forest Islands in Africa (SOFIIA) scholarship funded by DFID to pursue a master’s program at KNUST, where she graduated with Distinction in MPhil Soil Science. 

Farida has won several fellowships such as the Ewha Global Empowerment Program Fellowship held by Ewha Womans University and UN Women in Seoul-South Korea (2017) and the Climate tracker fellowship to attend the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) in Bonn, Germany (2015). Farida is the Global ambassador for Youth and Enlightenment and Welfare and Climate Tracker for Global Call for Climate Action.

Funding

  • Australian Government Research Training Scholarship
  • Soils of Forest Islands in Africa (SOFIIA) scholarship funded by DFID
  • Tertiary Education Scholarship Trust for Africa (TEST for Africa) scholarship

Supervisor

Associate Professor Peter Erskine