{"id":18297,"date":"2026-06-20T13:03:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T13:03:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/world-bank-delegation-visits-iita-to-strengthen-collaboration-on-agriculture-and-youth-engagement-initiatives\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T16:50:41","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T16:50:41","slug":"world-bank-delegation-visits-iita-to-strengthen-collaboration-on-agriculture-and-youth-engagement-initiatives","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/world-bank-delegation-visits-iita-to-strengthen-collaboration-on-agriculture-and-youth-engagement-initiatives\/","title":{"rendered":"World Bank delegation visits IITA to strengthen collaboration on agriculture and youth engagement initiatives"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The
The IITA Director General, Dr Simeon Ehui with the World Bank team during discussions.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

From 24 to 26 September, IITA<\/a>\u2013CGIAR<\/a> hosted a World Bank delegation at its headquarters in Ibadan, Nigeria, for a three-day visit designed to strengthen collaboration on agricultural development projects and showcase the institute\u2019s groundbreaking research and innovations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Welcoming the visitors, IITA Director General and CGIAR Regional Director for Continental Africa, Dr Simeon Ehui, expressed appreciation for the World Bank\u2019s continued partnership and commitment to advancing agricultural transformation across Africa. He reaffirmed IITA\u2019s dedication to fostering innovation and impact-driven collaborations that support farmers, strengthen food systems, and empower young people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOur doors are always open to our partners,\u201d Dr Ehui said. \u201cWith the assistance of the World Bank, we intend to take technology from the lab and the field directly to the farmers. That is how we can truly transform African agriculture.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During his remarks, Dr Ehui also highlighted IITA\u2019s work in soil fertility management, youth engagement in agribusiness, and its growing partnerships with several African countries, including Benin, C\u00f4te d\u2019Ivoire, Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Togo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The IITA team with the World Bank delegation following discussions at the IITA Headquarters in Ibadan.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

An introductory video showcasing IITA\u2019s mission and its decades-long impact in transforming African agriculture was presented to the delegation, setting the stage for a series of technical briefings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr Abdoulaye Tahirou, IITA interim Deputy Director for Partnerships for Delivery, provided an overview of the institute\u2019s research portfolio and mandate crops. He highlighted breakthrough technologies such as Nodumax, Aflasafe, and High-Quality Cassava Flour (HQCF)\u2014a product capable of replacing up to 25% of wheat in food production\u2014as examples of IITA\u2019s science delivering practical solutions for farmers and industries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking on behalf of the delegation, Dr Hardwick Tchale, Lead Agricultural Economist for the West and Central Africa Region at the World Bank, commended IITA for its impactful work and forward-thinking approach. He expressed enthusiasm about expanding collaboration with the institute, noting the World Bank\u2019s interest in engaging IITA-CGIAR to lead the second component of the agro project\u2014scaling existing research and technologies from the lab and field to farmers and consumers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the IITA Youth in Agribusiness (IYA) Unit, the World Bank delegation commended the team for its impact over the years, noting that the IYA\u2019s mandate aligns with a new program being designed by the Bank to attract young people into agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The World Bank delegation with the IITA Youth in Agribusiness team.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Responding to the delegation\u2019s enquiries on the kind of post-training support provided to participants in the employment track and how participants raise capital, Adetola Adenmosun, Partnership and Stakeholder Engagement Manager at IYA, explained that the projects first identify employers and the specific skills in demand before training participants in those areas and linking them to suitable jobs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She added that the job portal developed by one of the unit\u2019s projects has also been instrumental in connecting participants to dignified jobs in the agricultural and allied sectors. \u201cOne remarkable outcome is that some participants in the employment track provide skilled services to those in the entrepreneurship track,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Addressing questions on how participants finance their agribusiness ventures, Adenmosun explained that while some young farmers already have savings and only require support to scale up, new entrants are provided with starter kits to help them establish their enterprises, build business profiles, and develop credit histories that enable them to access larger financing opportunities. \u201cSome need certification to scale up and access new markets, and we facilitate that for them,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the commodities most preferred by young people, she noted that participants are often drawn to short-cycle commodities such as aquaculture, poultry, horticulture, and crops like maize, soybean, cowpea, and vegetables. \u201cWe also found that if you want to attract women, you need to consider value addition or enterprises they can easily start at home, so it doesn\u2019t take them away from their families. Those short-cycle commodities also give them quick returns on investment,\u201d she stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The
The World Bank team during a tour of the Cassava Processing Unit.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adenmosun further emphasized that the combination of training, mentorship, and post-program support provided by the unit serves as a strong incentive for aspiring young farmers. She added that IITA continues to engage with governments through policy suggestions addressing systemic issues\u2014such as access to land\u2014that often discourage youth from embracing agriculture.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When asked about the adoption of IITA technologies by young farmers, she explained that during and after training, participants are linked to relevant innovations in their areas of interest. \u201cFor example, when we train participants in maize, we introduce them to drought-resistant and biofortified maize varieties. For those into soybean production, we introduce Nodumax to boost yields. For groundnut producers, we promote Aflasafe to prevent aflatoxin and access premium markets. For aquaculture, we collaborate with WorldFish, a CGIAR center, to source improved fingerlings, while catfish processors are introduced to smoking kilns instead of traditional methods,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In his closing remarks, Dr Hardwick Tchale applauded the IITA team for its accomplishments, noting the strong alignment with the World Bank\u2019s upcoming youth-focused initiatives. \u201cWe at the World Bank are developing a new program with the government, and we do have elements within that project that would have to cater to the youth\u2014essentially how to attract the youth into agribusiness\u2014and that seems to be exactly what you are doing,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The visit concluded with a tour of IITA\u2019s laboratories, incubation centers, and experimental fields, giving the delegation an in-depth look at how the institute\u2019s research innovations are being translated into tangible agricultural solutions for Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contributed by Babatunde Ajaja, Tolulope Akinola and \u2019Timilehin Osunde<\/em><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From 24 to 26 September, IITA\u2013CGIAR hosted a World Bank delegation at its headquarters in Ibadan, Nigeria, for a three-day visit designed to strengthen collaboration on agricultural development projects and showcase the institute\u2019s groundbreaking research and innovations.<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":18298,"template":"","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center 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