News Overview

In a major development to strengthen agricultural mechanization and enhance food security in Togo, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and AfricaRice, under the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)-funded Zero Hunger Project, officially handed over 29 newly fabricated processing machines to the Togo’s Ministry of Agriculture, Village Water Resources and Rural Development. The equipment, designed to improve rice and cassava processing efficiency,

As part of efforts to assess the progress of the Zero Hunger Project in the region, IITA Director of Private Sector Partnerships, Dr Debo Akande, spearheaded a high-level engagement among IITA, AfricaRice, Togo’s Ministry of Agriculture, Village Water Resources, and Rural Development recently. The meeting also focused on formulating a strategic policy framework to scale its successes through upcoming national and international initiatives, including

In a move to deepen collaboration in agricultural research and innovation, the High Commissioner of Rwanda to Nigeria, Ambassador Christophe Bazivamo, visited the IITA headquarters in Ibadan recently. The visit marks a renewed commitment to building strategic partnerships between Rwanda and IITA in advancing agricultural transformation across Africa. Welcoming the Rwandan delegation, IITA Director General and CGIAR Regional Director for Continental Africa, Dr Simeon Ehui,

In Uganda, approximately 75% of farmers cultivate ‘Matooke’ and other banana varieties, covering an estimated 38% of the total cultivated land. However, production has declined over the past three decades, primarily due to soil fertility depletion, drought, and attacks from pathogens such as banana bacterial wilt, black Sigatoka, and fusarium wilt. Additionally, pests like the banana weevil and burrowing nematodes

By Valeria Piñeiro, Yostina Girgies, Fernando Martín, Juan Pablo Gianatiempo, and Joseph Glauber April 7, 2025 Over the past 10 years, Peru has grown to become the second-largest producer of blueberries in the world after the United States and the world’s largest exporter. How did a country that produced almost no blueberries as late as 2010 manage this feat? The answer lies in a

by Muhammad Ashraful Habib*, Swati Nayak*, Nuruzzaman*, and Saidul Islam* Lying in the southeastern part of Bangladesh, the Chattogram Hill Tracts (CHT) are the country’s only extensive hilly region that belongs to a low-productive agriculture zone. Most rural households in this region depend on agriculture-related activities for their livelihoods, yet some inhabitants have never, or only rarely, received information on

NAIROBI, KENYA – Over 10,000 delegates, including farmers, science experts, policymakers, partners, and funders, are convening in person and online at Science Week, with the participation of the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT. We share a common goal to strengthen global food security and smallholder livelihoods via groundbreaking science and innovation that boosts agricultural productivity while safeguarding the

The Accelerating Impacts of CGIAR Climate Research for Africa (AICCRA) project is transforming farming practices in Kenya’s semi-arid regions by promoting drought-tolerant crops and climate-smart technologies. Through farmer field days, implemented by the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-arid Tropics (ICRISAT), the project equips farmers with practical solutions for building resilience. In collaboration with county governments in Makueni, Kitui, and Taita Taveta,