The following areas of intervention in biosciences research and development have been identified by the region:

Plant biotechnology
The region is characterised by pockets of food insecurity and malnutrition, the latter is usually due to a staple cereal diet which results in poor levels of protein, mineral and vitamin uptake. Projects in this priority area will consider increased yields, increased resistance to abiotic stressors, improved nutritive content and traits to reduce crop inputs. The traits are particularly relevant as the effects of HIV/AIDS increase resulting into reduced potential labour available for agriculture. Benefits to both large commercial farmers and resource poor farmers shall be taken into account. Discussions led to a project proposal on drought tolerant and nutritionally enhanced cereals and legumes where South Africa with its cereal transformation expertise could act as a coordinating node and eight countries were identified as having relevant capacity.

Livestock production
An important activity in the region as a contributor to food security and income generation and discussions have focused on tick-borne diseases and improving the gene pool of different species through breeding programmes using MAS. A project proposal has been defined as: "treatment, diagnostics and prevention of tick borne diseases".

Human health
The region is affected by a range of diseases, in particular, TB, malaria and HIV/AIDS; the "diseases of poverty". (This is Target 8 of the MDGs.) The HIV/AIDS pandemic is having a major impact on almost all aspect of life and with the mix of science and technology expertise in the region along with a deep understanding of traditional medicines, a project proposal is being developed: Integrating existing vaccine development programmes and the use of traditional medicine (WHO definition) in the treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS. This project could build upon the work of the South African AIDS Vaccine Initiative (SAAVI), additionally, the proposed establishment of a virtual malaria centre could make a contribution.

Anthropogenic activities on the freshwater ecosystems
The biodiversity of inland freshwater fishes in the region has been affected by anthropogenic activities which include over-fishing and habitat destruction. The biodiversity loss is exacerbated b y limited knowledge of inland fish diversity and insufficient inventories of inland fish species. The research will therefore involve carrying out inventories and characterisation of key species in order to design conservation and management programmes for the stocks.

Mushroom production
The programme will uplift the productivity and dignity of southern Africa’s people in selected rural communities, especially women, who carry the heaviest burden of Africa’s poverty. It will, additionally, promote sustainable livelihoods in selected peri-urban communities, refugee camps, and in orphanages harbouring children whose parents died of HIV/AIDS and other causes. It will, furthermore, provide new enlightenment and new direction to the unemployed youth, many of whom have lost direction, and are increasingly being dragged into drug addiction. This will be through promoting public awareness on unrealized wealth in one of Africa’s most ubiquitous, most precious, most invaluable, yet most neglected and ignored natural resource: mushrooms. Many African communities, indeed, know what edible species of mushrooms occur in their ecosystems, but are not aware of the fact that some of the species can be farmed.

Some of the medicinal mushrooms contain a cocktail of unique biomolecules with anticancer and immune-boosting attributes, which indeed show great potential as a possible remedy for some of the major diseases of our time, and also as a source of preventive medicine therapies. Some are already being researched as potential candidates for addressing the HIV/AIDS challenge.

Indigenous knowledge systems (IKS)
Over the past years, there has been a dramatic increase in interest in the role that African IKS can play in participatory approaches to sustainable development. This interest is reflected in a myriad of activities generated within African communities, who are recording their knowledge for use in their school systems and for planning purposes; within national institutions, where IKS is now being regarded as an invaluable national resource; and within the development community, where IKS provides opportunities for designing development projects that emerge from priority problems identified within a community, and which build upon and strengthen community-level knowledge systems and organizations.

The different forms of IKS have generally been marginalized and suppressed by colonialism and apartheid. IKS research has also suffered a similar fate to that of African economies, i.e., one of underdevelopment and disarticulation. The globalization process, however, has made it imperative that Africa’s IKS cannot be ignored. Specific objectives are to promote the interface between IKS and technologies with other knowledge systems; to promote the use of IKS and assets to combat life threatening pandemics such as HIV/AIDS, TB and malaria in Africa; and to enhance interdisciplinary IKS research excellence in areas such as indigenous food security systems, traditional medicine and health systems, intellectual property rights, environmental and natural resource utilization, knowledge management, and socio-cultural systems.

Enhancement of capabilities of the gene banking facilities in Southern Africa
The SADC Plant Genetic Resources Centre and a network of national genebanks have been established in the region. These genebanks have the capacity to handle and conserve seed propagated plants. However, they do not have the capacity to handle plant species that are vegetatively propagated and those that are agronomically difficult to propagate. The genebanks also lack capacity for molecular characterization and studies of plant genetic resources. Increased capacity should enable genebanks to study the collections, improve them and make them more available for plant breeding and research. The general objective will be to broaden the range of species that can be conserved in the existing genebanks of the regions. The specific objectives will be to build capacity for handling vegetatively propagated species; build capacity in molecular characterization of genetic resources; develop mechanisms for collaboration between gene banks and relevant institutions and promote utilization of genetic resources kept by the gene banks.