Indian Consul-General explores collaboration opportunities with IITA

The Consul-General of India to Nigeria, Chandramouli Kumar Kern, visited IITA–CGIAR headquarters in Ibadan from 31 May to 1 June, aiming to strengthen India-Africa collaboration in agricultural research and innovation. Lava Kumar, the IITA Head of Virology and Germplasm Health, moderated the meeting.

In his welcome remarks, the IITA Deputy Director General for Research for Development (DDG-R4D), Bernard Vanlauwe, introduced Kern to IITA’s mission, strategy, and core research programs. He also highlighted ongoing collaborations between IITA and Indian research institutions, including:

• Development of Fusarium wilt-resistant banana varieties with the National Research Centre for Bananas (NRCB);
• Root and tuber crop research with the Central Tuber Crops Research Institute (CTCRI), including capacity building on cassava gene editing and Bambara groundnut breeding;
• Genetic resource exchange from IITA genebank and Indian organizations, including the National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources (NBPGR). India;
• Agronomy and soil health initiatives through the Excellence in Agronomy (EiA) program in Odisha, India; and
• Biocontrol efforts include successfully introducing predators for papaya mealybug from IITA-Benin and ongoing discussions on scaling Aflasafe in India.

Vanlauwe remarked that a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between IITA and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) would broaden collaboration in breeding, crop protection, mechanization, and digital agriculture. He also highlighted the Nigerian government’s interest in replicating India’s successful Soil Health Card initiative, positioning IITA as a potential lead partner for implementation.

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