{"id":12701,"date":"2026-06-20T12:24:51","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:24:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/iita-and-partners-launch-cassava-innovation-challenge\/"},"modified":"2026-06-20T12:24:51","modified_gmt":"2026-06-20T12:24:51","slug":"iita-and-partners-launch-cassava-innovation-challenge","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/iita-and-partners-launch-cassava-innovation-challenge\/","title":{"rendered":"IITA and partners launch Cassava Innovation Challenge"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>The Rockefeller Foundation will provide up to US$1 million in grants for global innovations to enhance cassava shelf life, the main nutrition source for 500 million people in Africa<\/strong><\/p>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><em>The Rockefeller Foundation, Dalberg Global Development Advisors,  and the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)announce an Innovation Challenge to provide support for innovative solutions that can increase cassava shelf life in Nigeria, thereby enhancing food security  and increasing income for millions.<\/em><\/p>\nKigali, Rw anda \u2013May12, 2016 \u2013 The Rockefeller Foundation, Dalberg  and IITA, today launched an Innovation Challenge to uncover innovative solutions to increase cassava shelf life in Nigeria. The Challenge was announced at the World Economic Forum \u2013 Africa annual meeting in Kigali, Rw anda,  and will provide up to US$1 million in funding, as well as technical assistance to implement business model development  and product design.\n\nCassava is critical for food security in Africa. It is the main source of nutrition for around half of the continent\u2019s population, or 500 million people. Yet this root crop has a very short shelf life  and if unprocessed it will spoil within 24-72 hours after harvesting \u2013 less if it is damaged during harvesting or transport. Nigeria is the world\u2019s largest cassava producer, accounting for more than 20% of global production \u2013 more than 50 million tons annually, grown by nearly 30 million smallholder farmers. Approximately 40% of this cassava is lost due to spoilage, a tremendous problem that limits farmer incomes  and rural economic development,  and one that stretches far beyond Nigeria\u2019s borders as food spoilage  and wastage affects our global economy  and impacts greenhouse gas emissions.\n\nAccording to the President of the African Development Bank, Dr. Akinwumi Adesina, \u201cThe agricultural transformation agenda is beginning to open up new income streams for farmers. A good example is the case of cassava.\u201d In his previous tenure as the Minister of Agriculture  and Rural Development in Nigeria, Dr. Adesina championed cassava commercialization in the country  and grew the capacity to process cassava into flour, starch,  and several other products.\n\nThe Rockefeller Foundation Cassava Innovation Challenge will consider applications that are incremental as well as those that are transformative to the Nigerian cassava value chain. The shelf life issues arise from some of the following barriers:\n<ul>\n \t<li><strong>Limited access to existing cassava varieties:<\/strong> Though varieties that extend shelf life do exist, access to or awareness of them may need to increase.<\/li>\n \t<li>Preservation of cassava between harvest  and processing: Poor  and inefficient h andling, storage  and transport either damages roots or leaves them exposed to the elements.<\/li>\n \t<li>Far-away processing: Processors are far from cassava farms  and use inefficient manual peeling, allowing more time for the root to spoil before it can be processed into forms that have longer shelf life.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nAny innovation that could enhance shelf life or reduce postharvest losses will be considered  and those organizations that have ideas for transforming this critical link in food security \u2013 but may not have food security expertise \u2013 are encouraged to apply.\n\nGiven the global nature of cassava, which outside of Africa is grown in countries as diverse as Thail and, Indonesia,  and Brazil, the Challenge is global  and is open to organizations with innovative products\/technologies, processes or services\u2014in various stages of development\u2014from anywhere in 2 the world. IITA Director General Dr. Nteranya Sanginga comments that, \u201cwe have been working on cassava improvement  and value chain development for many years from our base in Ibadan, Nigeria  and our substations all over sub-Saharan Africa. We are very excited about the potential of this Challenge to bring to light innovations but also to get these innovations into the h ands of smallholder farmers in Nigeria in a sustainable way\u201d.\n\n\u201cThe Rockefeller Foundation has a long history of supporting agricultural innovation  and enhancing food security  and farmer income,\u201d said Mamadou Biteye, Managing Director of The Rockefeller Foundation Africa Regional Office. \u201cOur Yield Wise Initiative, launched earlier this year, is committed to halving postharvest loss on the continent,  and enhancing the shelf life of cassava will be key to achieving this goal, while having a significant positive impact on the lives  and livelihoods of farmers  and their families.\u201d\n\nNneka Eze, Agriculture Practice Co-Lead  and Associate Partner at Dalberg, remarks that, \u201cif we solve the shelf life issues in cassava in Nigeria, we can solve them everywhere else. Our role in designing  and managing the Challenge has allowed us to work directly with a diversity of innovators, agronomists,  and business people keen to solve shelf life issues. We hope that the Cassava Innovation Challenge  and the significance of the award will help to harness this energy from across agricultural value chains  and even bring non-agricultural innovators into the cassava value chain.\u201d\n\nVisit <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rockefellerfoundation.org\/cassavachallenge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.rockefellerfoundation.org\/cassavachallenge<\/a> in the coming weeks to apply for the challenge.\n\n<strong>About The Rockefeller Foundation<\/strong>\n\nFor more than 100 years, The Rockefeller Foundation\u2019s mission has been to promote the well-being of humanity throughout the world. Today, The Rockefeller Foundation pursues this mission through dual goals: advancing inclusive economies that exp and opportunities for more broadly shared prosperity,  and building resilience by helping people, communities  and institutions prepare for, withst and,  and emerge stronger from acute shocks  and chronic stresses. To achieve these goals, The Rockefeller Foundation works at the intersection of four focus areas \u2013 advance health, revalue ecosystems, secure livelihoods,  and transform cities \u2013 to address the root causes of emerging challenges  and create systemic change. Together with partners  and grantees, The Rockefeller Foundation strives to catalyze  and scale transformative innovations, create unlikely partnerships that span sectors,  and take risks others cannot \u2013 or will not.\n\nFor more information, please visit <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rockefellerfoundation.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.rockefellerfoundation.org<\/a>\n\n<strong>About Dalberg Global Development Advisors<\/strong>\n\nDalberg is a strategic advisory firm exclusively dedicated to global development  and innovation. Our mission is to mobilize effective responses to the world\u2019s most pressing issues  and to raise living st andards in developing countries. From our network of 14 global offices, we serve clients to make sustainable improvements in the lives of disadvantaged  and underserved populations around the world.\n\nFor more information, please visit: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.dalberg.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.dalberg.com<\/a>\n\n<strong>About the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture<\/strong>\n\nThe International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is one of the world&#8217;s leading research partners in finding solutions for hunger, malnutrition,  and poverty. Our award-winning research for development (R4D) addresses the development needs of tropical countries. We work with partners to enhance crop quality  and productivity, reduce producer  and consumer risks,  and generate wealth 3 from agriculture. We are a non-profit organization founded in 1967, governed by a Board of Trustees,  and supported by several countries.\n\nFor more information, please visit: <a href=\"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">http:\/\/www.iita.org\/<\/a>\n\n<strong>Contact:<\/strong>\n\nRockefeller Foundation: Achieng Otieno <a href=\"mailto:aotieno@rockfound.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">aotieno@rockfound.org<\/a>\nDalberg: For press inquiries only, contact +1 646 286 5331 or <a href=\"mailto:communications@dalberg.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">communications@dalberg.com<\/a>\nIITA: Kristina Roing de Nowina k.roingdenowina@cgiar.org or Katherine Lopez k.lopez@cgiar.org\n\nChallenge information: info@cassavachallenge.com\nWebsite: <a href=\"http:\/\/www.rockfellerfoundation.org\/cassavachallenge\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">www.rockfellerfoundation.org\/cassavachallenge<\/a>\n\nTwitter: @RockefellerFdn @DalbergTweet @IITA_CGIAR","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The Rockefeller Foundation, Dalberg and IITA, today launched an Innovation Challenge to uncover innovative solutions to increase cassava shelf life in 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