Up to 16 African countries have now experienced the banana bunchy top disease (BBTD), caused by the banana bunchy top virus (BBTV), which threatens the livelihoods of 70 million vulnerable banana farmers. The virus is also endangering the diversity of banana varieties grown by these farmers. The CGIAR Research Program on Roots, Tubers and Bananas (RTB) is combating the virus through the Alliance
Budding youth-led enterprises often find it challenging to raise capital. In many cases, such enterprises begin with personal savings or financial support from families and acquaintances, which may not sufficiently cater to the business plan. In other cases, the youth may form a cluster and combine their financial strengths to build the enterprise. To bridge this gap, the youth compact
The Institute of Food Technologists (IFT) has announced that IITA is among the Growth Grand finalists to be awarded $100,000 for its project on integrating Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) as bio-inoculants to boost banana production in the East African Highlands. This was announced in a press release issued on the IFT website. The award is part of the Seeding The Future Global Food System Challenge–an
Youth migration from rural to urban areas is often attributed to a lack of employment in the rural areas. Statistically, more youth crowd up the cities searching for better opportunities, and those who stay back may find opportunities for income and livelihood in excess. In Kyotera District, Uganda, just like in many other countries, this is the case. In 2020,
To accelerate the development of improved groundnut varieties, ICRISAT’s groundnut breeding team is gearing up to provide seed to research partners for multi-environment testing (MET) during the 2022 rainy season. Two product profiles are being targeted by the team. Resistance to late leaf spot (LLS) as well as rust are key traits for both profiles. To select lines with resistance
Nature Reports published an open-access paper on a big plant-genome sequencing study conducted by ICARDA and ICRISAT scientists which will facilitate the breeding of more climate-smart, disease-tolerant chickpea crop varieties for better food security. Food legumes are essential for nutrition security. Chickpea, ICARDA staple crop and the third most-produced food legume worldwide, especially in South Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, is
Under the Oyo State Agribusiness Development Agency (OYSADA), the Oyo State Government collaborated with IITA and other partners to organize a summit themed: “Oyo Agribusiness Summit 2021.” The summit, which had some financial institutions and ambassadors from other countries in attendance, took place from 25 to 27 October and was a platform to showcase and promote agribusiness. In his welcome address, OYSADA Director
IITA joined the international community to celebrate Open Access Week from 25 to 29 October, as the Institute keeps promoting the global mission of openness. The theme of the week-long event was “It matters how we open knowledge: Building structural equity.” The Data Management Unit (DMU) embarked on an awareness campaign, with scientists sharing their opinions about open access throughout the