July 2016 - Page 3 of 4

Picture of the participants interact with one another.

IITA strengthens capacity of graduate students

The IITA Ibadan station is hosting a 4-week training course from 27 June to 22 July, to strengthen the capacity of selected graduate students in the various areas of their research. The 16 participating students are from Chad, Togo, DR Congo, and Sierra-Leone. The training falls under the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) CORAF/WECARD research…

This week in history: IITA hoists national and institutional flag for the first time

16 July 1973, IITA raised the Nigerian and institutional flag for the first time. John Nickel, IITA acting Director at the time, stated the raising of the Nigerian flag alongside the IITA flag was symbolic. “Such togetherness marks the goodwill that exists between the government and the people of Nigeria and the efforts of IITA…

Picture of The IRD delegation tasting cassava food products at the cassava processing center in Ibadan.

IRD, IITA explore opportunities for collaboration

A senior delegate from the Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD) visited IITA, Ibadan, on 28 June to explore partnership opportunities between the two institutes. The IRD Regional Director, Jean-Philippe Chippaux, was accompanied by Arnaud Dornon, Head of Cooperation and Cultural Affairs, French Embassy, and Martin Mbella, Secretary General of the French Institute for Research…

Picture of DG Sanginga motivates IITA Youth Agripreneurs to go into value chain activities in maize.

Reorient the African youth towards agriculture, pleads DG Sanginga

At the Annual Meeting of the African Development Bank (AfDB) in Lusaka, Zambia on 23 May, IITA Director General Nteranya Sanginga strongly affirmed that the African youth holds the ace to transforming the agricultural sector when given the right orientation and empowerment. Speaking as a panelist at the meeting co-hosted by INCLUDE to discuss ‘jobs…

Picture of Chiji Ojukwu of AfDB (center) and H.E. Matata Ponyo (left) listen to IITA’s Nzola Mahungu (right), IITA Representative in DR Congo, talking about the cassava processing equipment introduced through the SARD-SC project funded by AfDB.

IITA empowers cassava farmers in Bukanga Lonzo, DR Congo

The Agro-Industrial Park of Bukanga Lonzo (PAI-BL) is the first complex intended to transform DR Congo’s agriculture into an engine for economic development. When completed, the PAI-BL will have over 50,000 hectares of developed farmland producing staple crops and vegetables. It will also produce livestock products such as poultry and pork. In addition to producing…

Picture of Participants at the HQCF review meeting.

IFAD-IITA HQCF organizes review meeting with processors

Members of the High Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF) value chain project recently reviewed the activities of the HQCF processors on the project. The review meeting, held in Ibadan on 15 June, scrutinized success indicators of interest to the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the project donor. These include the change in yield and income of…

Picture of Youth Agripreneurs display their certificates of participation after the training.

IITA and CTA organize training on ICT, social media for youth

The IITA-Central Africa Hub and the Technical Center for Agricultural and Rural Cooperation (CTA) organized its first training on ICT and social media for Agribusiness and Marketing in DR Congo. The training was held at Kalambo on 20–24 June. The training participants consisted of IITA Kalambo Youth Agripreneurs (IKYA), youth value chain actors, and civil…

Picture of DDG Ken Dashiell with the Risk Management Committee members flag-off the opening of Risk Awareness Week in IITA.

IITA organizes first-ever Risk Awareness Week

From 27 to 29 June, IITA hosted Risk Awareness Week across all hubs and stations. With the theme “Consider the risk, Improve IITA”, the week aimed to increase awareness on risk management and develop a culture of risk management among staff. Organized by the Risk Management Committee (RMC), the week included Risk Walk, interviews with…

Call for paper – Innovative treatment and presentation of cassava stems for increasing sales

The Building an Economically Sustainable, Integrated Seed System for Cassava in Nigeria (BASICS) project is calling for submission of inventive proposals on “Innovative treatment and presentation of cassava stems for increasing sales”. BASICS is a new project that aims to develop a sustainable cassava seed value chain in Nigeria, characterized by the commercial production and…

Kwesi Atta-Krah (left) leads panel discussion on sustainable productivity growth.

IITA plays active role at Africa Agriculture Science Week

From supporting the organization of the event both programmatically and financially, to organizing various parallel and side sessions and taking part in an exhibition together with other CGIAR centers, IITA was very active and visible at the recently concluded Africa Agriculture Science Week (AASW). The event was organized by the Forum for Agricultural Research in…