News Overview

IITA–CGIAR has joined the Plant Breeding Innovation Management Program (PBIMP) under the Global Stewardship Group (GSG), reinforcing its commitment to responsible and ethical research in modern biotechnology, including Genome Editing. This strategic move marks another significant milestone in IITA’s continued leadership in agricultural innovation, particularly genome editing. By joining the PBIMP, IITA aligns itself with an international community of research institutions

The CGIAR Research Initiative on Sustainable Healthy Diets through Food Systems Transformation (SHiFT) has published its final annual report, showcasing progress made from 2022 to 2024 in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, and Viet Nam.   Over the past three years, SHiFT combined high-quality research with strategic partnerships to support country-led food systems transformation toward sustainable healthy diets. The 2024 report provides a snapshot

Opinion Piece by Dr Himanshu Pathak, Director General of ICRISAT Agriculture remains the backbone of livelihoods, employment, and food security across the Global South. From West African millet fields to South Asian rice paddies, the sector not only sustains communities but contributes significantly to national GDPs and employs a large share of the population, particularly women and youth. Yet, despite

KUNMING, Yunnan— Coinciding with the International Day for Biological Diversity, a global community of scholars and experts, convened by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), shared innovative solutions on the sustainable use and conservation of agrobiodiversity. The three-day event, themed “Agrobiodiversity for People and Planet”, was co-organized with the Yunnan

Agriculture and food systems have significantly affected over 75% of Earth’s land surface, polluted more than two-thirds of the oceans, degraded over 85% of wetlands, and now threaten over a billion plant and animal species with extinction. Yet, by restoring degraded land, ecosystems and curbing environmental degradation, greenhouse gas emissions, and biodiversity loss, we could generate economic returns of up

By Mengisti Berihu Girmay May 30, 2025 Agriculture, like many industries, is continuously evolving through technological innovations. One example is precision agriculture—a practice that employs data collection and analysis to optimize the use of inputs such as water, fertilizers, and pesticides based on local environmental conditions at the sub-field level. Artificial Intelligence (AI) and the availability of low-cost sensors

On 6 May, the Senior Special Adviser (SSA) on Agriculture and Agribusiness to the Ondo State Governor, Honorable Rotimi Akinsola, led a delegation to the IITA–CGIAR headquarters in Ibadan. The visit aimed to explore collaborative opportunities that would enhance Ondo State’s agricultural sector by leveraging IITA’s research-driven innovations and mandate crops. The IITA team, led by the Director for the West Africa

As part of ongoing efforts to revitalize Liberia’s coffee industry and strengthen agricultural diversification, IITA–CGIAR, through the Seeds4Liberia Project, has distributed more than 267,000 coffee seedlings to farmers across four counties—Bong, Lofa, Montserrado, and Nimba. This significant milestone is a key component of IITA–CGIAR’s broader agenda to empower farmers, improve seed systems, and drive economic growth through strategic crop value chains. This distribution