News Overview

Collaboration is essential for transforming Nigeria’s food systems and IITA–CGIAR continues to champion this cause through its open-door policy for inclusive partnerships. On 16 October, IITA welcomed a four-member delegation from Heifer International Nigeria, led by Dr Lekan Tobe, the Country Director and IITA alumnus, alongside Grace Dangana, the Signature Programme Technical Lead; Onyekachi Ayevbuomwan, the Program Lead; and Engineer Gift Umor, the Crop

The African Plant Breeders Association (APBA) Conference 2025 was an inspiring experience for members of the IITA International Association of Research Scholars and Fellows (IARSAF) as they took the center stage during various sessions, sharing their research, exchanging ideas, and representing the spirit of scientific excellence that defines vision of the community. Several scholars, including Uzoma, Chizaram Oluebube, Marvelline Chifamba, Olamide Afolarin,

The Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) Cassava Compact, led by IITA-CGIAR, has partnered with ENABLE-TAAT to strengthen private sector participation in cassava value chains across Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The collaboration aims to promote the adoption of proven TAAT technologies that enhance productivity, reduce post-harvest losses, and boost agribusiness profitability. In September 2025, the ENABLE

Agriculture production in Liberia faced a major challenge, i.e., limited access to high-quality seeds of important African food crops, including soybeans. Most farmers relied on informal seed networks for the next production season. These networks are crucial for agricultural continuity among farmers, who often lack the technical skills required to determine seed quality. As a result, yields have been low,

Cali, Colombia, October 23, 2025: The Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT has been selected as one of 15 global teams awarded funding through the Bezos Earth Fund’s AI for Climate and Nature Grand Challenge, receiving up to $2 million USD to scale artificial intelligence (AI) solutions that address the world’s most pressing environmental challenges — ranging from biodiversity loss, food

How can we ensure that the improved, climate-resilient varieties developed by CGIAR and partners reach the smallholder farmers who need them most? This question lies at the heart of CGIAR Breeding for Tomorrow’s Inclusive Delivery (formerly Seed Equal). We sat down with Christopher Ojiewo, Inclusive Delivery Lead, to unpack what ‘inclusive delivery’ means and how it can transform smallholder livelihoods. 

When the rain finally came to her village in Tanzania, Mariam didn’t just plant her usual variety of beans. That season, she tried three different ones – side by side, on her own land. By harvest, one plot clearly stood out: better yield, stronger against disease, and with good taste and marketability. Mariam didn’t learn this from a lab or

Science is powerful when people can see themselves in it.   This year, the United Nations revealed a sobering fact: fewer than 5 percent of its reports are downloaded more than 5,500 times. One in five never break 1,000. Evidence, it turns out, too often lives and dies in PDFs, admired by experts, unseen by those whose lives it aims