IITA News

Banana breeding project successfully implements modern track and trace system

Tagging products with barcodes for easy price retrieval in supermarkets is now a regular practice that people often take for granted. But beyond supermarkets, barcodes can be employed across a whole spectrum of settings, including by scientists in their research. The Accelerated Breeding Better Bananas project has developed, adapted, finetuned, and deployed a fully operational…

IITA, AfS partner to promote biotech communication

Partnering with the Cornell Alliance for Science (AfS), IITA has launched the Biotech Communications Capacity Building program to implement Africa’s training activities. Launched in September 2020, the 4-year project plans to address misinformation around crop biotechnology, specifically genetically modified organisms (GMOs) and genome-edited products. Another object is countering conspiracy theories and disinformation campaigns that hinder…

ENABLE-TAAT backed startups flourish in Kaoma

On a recent tour of startup activities by ENABLE-TAAT trained youth in Kaoma District, Zambia, IITA Southern Africa Research and Administrative Hub (SARAH) Director, David Chikoye, commended youth agripreneurs for their flourishing enterprises. Chikoye visited the startups to monitor their work and progress. The 2-day visit allowed for in-depth interaction between the Director and the…

Maiden Naija Farmer Reality TV show on a learning visit to IITA Abuja

The Co-coordinator and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Chigbo Okoli, and fifteen Farm Mates of the maiden edition of the Naija Farmer Reality TV Show visited the IITA Abuja Station on a field tour. The essence of the visit was to see, in practice, some aspects of agriculture taught in the Farm House. It was also…

Gift supports Cornell’s Tanzanian cassava efforts

An anonymous gift of $2.65 million to support Cornell and partner research in Tanzania will improve distribution of new and more resistant varieties of cassava while empowering women and marginalized groups in the East African nation. Cassava is a fundamental staple and basis of food security for 500 million people across Africa and a major…

IITA strategically positioned to contribute to the One-CGIAR agenda in sub-Saharan Africa

IITA embraced the One-CGIAR initiative in the past year because a unified CGIAR will be a more effective and impactful organization. Since then, the Institute has participated in the unfolding plans and is strategically positioned to contribute to the One-CGIAR agenda in sub-Saharan Africa. Significant developments have been taking place at IITA and CGIAR, with bigger plans for 2021. Following discussions with the Directors General, the…

Scientists develop mini-core collection for guinea yam germplasm

With West Africa accounting for 92% of the world’s annual yam production (67 million tons; FAO, 2018), yam plays a significant role in the region’s food security and income generation. While yam is a common name for the multiple crop species belonging to the genus Dioscorea, widely cultivated as a staple crop in tropical and subtropical regions, Dioscorea rotundata is the most…

Access to infrastructure can increase youth engagement in agriculture

Youth unemployment remains a critical challenge in developing countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, where the youth unemployment rate is among the world’s highest. While graduate unemployment is a major concern for the Republic of Benin’s government, a study carried out under the IITA–CARE project—sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) across 10 African countries—explored factors that can influence the country’s youth to venture into agribusiness. Despite the opportunities for self-employment…

Female scientists seek enabling environment in the CGIAR

Female scientists play an essential role at the forefront of CGIAR’s mission to deliver science and innovation that advance the transformation of food, land, and water systems in a climate crisis. Female scientists, representing 29% of the CGIAR workforce, power its innovation but still require more support to thrive. This led to the creation of Women in Research and Science (WIRES), a new employee-led resource group (ERG)…

Ugandan coffee farmers enjoy increased yields through CSA technologies despite COVID-19 pandemic

The IITA Uganda Climate-Smart Agriculture (CSA) Program supports the Ugandan Government in its commitment to increasing coffee quality, volumes, and smallholder farmer livelihoods. The Institute’s activities closely align with the country’s agricultural agenda, with the IITA team collaborating with the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) to implement the Uganda Coffee Roadmap. By developing the Stepwise…