Tackling agriculturally relevant diseases in the staple crop cassava (Manihot esculenta)

•Cassava diseases have broad social and economic impacts for subsistence farmers.•Clean planting material and better disease control will improve disease outcomes.•Climate change may reduce cassava disease impacts in many regions across Africa.•Accelerated breeding and transgenic technologies will improve disease resistance. Cassava is an important staple food crop for millions of people in tropical regions across Africa, South America and Asia. Viral, bacterial and fungal diseases impact cassava yield in all three regions. The viruses causing cassava mosaic disease and cassava brown streak disease have been particularly devastating to cassava production in Africa. Improved farming practices and disease monitoring can reduce the impact of cassava diseases in the field. The availability of disease resistant cassava varieties developed through breeding or genetic engineering is key to tackling disease incidence and severity.