IITA News

Picture of Training facilitator, Dr Jane Wright, talking to participants

Inqaba-IITA trains staff on phylogenetics

Inqaba biotec West Africa in collaboration with IITA organized an Introductory Phylogenetics Workshop on 24-29 January, at IITA, Ibadan. The workshop was attended by 15 laboratory scientists from various laboratories in Nigeria. It aimed to present the basic principles and techniques for understanding the evolution of genes and genomes. The steps required from checking a…

Picture of Group photograph of participants at the workshop

Ugandan Agric Ministry pioneer development of climate change mainstreaming guidelines

The Ugandan Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), with support from IITA-led Policy Action for Climate Change Adaptation (PACCA) project, and USAID Feed the Future Enabling Environment for Agriculture (USAID-EEA), organized a national level stakeholder workshop to validate the recently developed Climate Change Mainstreaming Guidelines for the Agricultural Sector in Uganda. The validation…

Special feature: IITA long-term trials validate ISFM benefits

IITA researchers working together with other scientists have shown that food security, crop yields and farmers’ livelihoods; the resilience of cropping systems to climatic change impacts; and mitigation of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions derived from fertilizer or soil are significantly enhanced when Integrated Soil Fertility Management (ISFM) is practiced during production. To achieve these, stakeholders…

Picture of Participants of the biostatistics course and IITA staff in Kinshasa after the opening ceremony with the DRC Minister of Agriculture Representative

Biostatistics and SAS refresher courses organized at IITA-Kinshasa

Two statistics courses were organized for IITA staff and partners in DR Congo on 25 January to 5 February. The first―a refresher course on Statistical Analysis System (SAS), was organized for IITA-Kinshasa researchers. The training provided detailed hands-on exposure to the basic procedures for appropriate data analysis as well as the provision of SAS software…

Picture of Central Africa Hub Director Bernard Vanlauwe being interviewed by the media

Project to boost cassava production in Africa through agronomic practices launched in Tanzania

The African Cassava Agronomy Initiative (ACAI) — Taking Agronomy to Scale in Cassava-Based Systems in sub-Saharan Africa, seeking to address this challenge and support smallholder farmers to increase production of cassava through developing good agronomic recommendations, recently launched its activities in Tanzania. Speaking during the project launch at the beginning of this month, Bernard Vanlauwe,…

Picture of large population of B. tabaci adults feeding on the underside of a young cassava leaf

Researchers on one of the world’s most destructive agricultural pests, whitefly, converge in Arusha, Tanzania

The 2nd International Whitefly Symposium (IWS2) is taking place in Arusha, Tanzania, this week, 14-19 February. It has brought together more than a hundred scientists from all over the world to discuss one of the world’s most destructive agricultural pests, the whitefly. In sub-Saharan Africa, whiteflies are a key threat to food security and efforts…

TAMASA conducts workshop on nutrient expert

Partners in the Taking Maize Agronomy to Scale in Africa (TAMASA) Project have successfully concluded a two-day workshop to enhance the development of Nutrient Expert (NE)―a computer-based package, which will aid in developing fertilizer recommendations suitable for variable soils and climatic conditions taking into consideration farmers’ socioeconomic status. The NE for Maize decision support tool…

Atser, presenting the findings of the extension study in China

Study finds gaps in Nigeria’s extension system

A study on the training needs assessment of extension agents in Nigeria has revealed several gaps and constraints that have limited the effectiveness of the extension service in the country. While presenting a paper on “The capacity of extension staff in managing weeds in cassava systems in Nigeria” in Nanning, China, during the World Congress…

Polish investors went around the IITA-Abuja station.

Polish investors visit IITA-Abuja

Agricultural investors from Poland have indicated interest in partnering with IITA to help in improving Nigeria’s agricultural development. This was announced during the visit of a three-person team of Polish investors led by Ewa Olszewska, the International Project Manager, Poland−Africa Partnership and Cooperation, to IITA Abuja station on 3 February. The visitors expressed satisfaction with…

Off the press: New book on chocolate

Oxford University Press book has recently released a new book on Chocolate entitled The Economics of Chocolate. This innovative book is the first of its kind to provide a comprehensive economic overview on chocolate. The book has a worldwide appeal with chapters on Europe, the US, China, India, the former Soviet Union, Ghana, Côte d’Ivoire,…