IITA News

IITA Agricultural Economist, Dr Shiferaw Feleke.

IITA economist: COVID-19 strengthens the need for a policy of food self-sufficiency for Africa

The effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on food security has revived the long-standing debate on the pathway to achieving food security in sub-Saharan Africa. There have been two divergent thoughts on how to accomplish this, with one side calling for Africa to become food self-sufficient and the other supporting international trade over self-sufficiency. Both approaches…

Adamawa State participants with training facilitators behind.

Integrated Agriculture Activity trains youth as spray service providers in Adamawa and Borno States…

The USAID-funded Feed-the-Future Nigeria Integrated Agriculture Activity (IAA) recently concluded the training of 30 youths as spray service providers (SSPs) in Adamawa and Borno States, in North-Eastern Nigeria. The first sessions of the training, which began in February, and held in Borno had 15 participants. The Adamawa Agriculture Development Investment Limited Farming Skills Acquisition Centre…

ENABLE Youth Cameroon births first start-up

On 15 June, AgriBiz Home made history as the first start-up of the ENABLE Youth Cameroon program. At a ceremony chaired by the city of Penja Divisional Officer M. Abate, the start-up unveiled “Juicy”, its branded banana-based fruit juice, to the public. Cargèle Masso, IITA-Cameroon Country Representative and Coordinator of ENABLE Youth Cameroon, also attended…

IITA hosts One-Health kick-off webinar under CGIAR’s Two Degree Initiative

As part of CGIAR’s Two Degree Initiative (2DI) for Food and Agriculture, CGIAR-IITACGIAR-IITA hosted a kick-off webinar on the “One-Health platform for climate-driven pests and diseases in West Africa” on 30 June. The One-Health platform is Regional Grand Challenge 1 (RGC1), one of eight grand challenges under the 2DI, which comes from a need to…

Science-based policies can unlock Africa’s access to genome-edited crop varieties

CGIAR-IITA head of plant biotechnology Leena Tripathi has made an impassioned plea for genome editing and its potential. She made the call in a recently published paper titled, CRISPR/Cas9-based genome editing of banana for disease resistance. Tripathi and her Kenya-based team are using gene editing to develop disease-resistant banana varieties. “To boost the use of…

IITA launches Agribusiness Training Program for secondary schools in Oyo State

Ibadan, Nigeria – The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), through a new initiative known as the Start Them Early Program (STEP), is introducing agribusiness training in secondary schools in Oyo State. To promote interest in agriculture and learning among the secondary-school aged children, IITA will launch a modern agribusiness training facility at Fasola Grammar…

DG Nteranya Sanginga talking about the transition of the BASICS project from phase I to II.

IITA launches BASICS-II project

On 25 June, IITA launched the second phase of the project Building an Economically Sustainable and Integrated Cassava Seed System (BASICS II). With a duration of 5 years, BASICS II will be led by Project Manager Lateef Oladimeji Sanni, former Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Development), Federal University of Agriculture, Abeokuta, Nigeria. The BASICS project was first launched…

Participants at an Adamawa training session.

Integrated Agriculture Activity trains trainers on climate-smart and improved agricultural practices in North-Eastern Nigeria

As part of its mandate to facilitate improved agro-input and extension advisory services to serve vulnerable populations, the USAID-funded Integrated Agriculture Activity project under Feed the Future Nigeria recently conducted a training of trainers (ToT) for selected participants from Adamawa and Borno States. The training focused on climate-smart and improved agricultural practices, with trainees drawn…

One of the workshops, introducing IITA-developed digital tools to extension workers, media and collaborators.

IITA uses digital tools to improve delivery of research products and knowledge

Digital communication is the present. That is why IITA is continuously working to improve its digital delivery system for increased impact. In the last decade, ICTs have emerged as frontline tools for transforming agricultural systems in sub-Saharan Africa. The present COVID-19 pandemic has made it necessary for the government and non-governmental agencies in Africa to…

The IITA team, led by Dr Kokou Kintche, IITA DRC, with Governor Theo Ngwabidje Kasi at the South Kivu governor’s office.

Package delivered to fight COVID-19 crisis in South-Kivu

As part of its social responsibility activities, CGIAR-IITA, in collaboration with the Catholic University of Bukavu (UCB), delivered donations to South Kivu administrative division in the Democratic Republic of Congo, to combat the effects of the coronavirus pandemic in the country. The relief package, delivered on 23 June, is part of a short and long-term…