{"id":18467,"date":"2026-06-20T13:05:52","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T13:05:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/iita-gender-team-strengthens-researchers-capacity-on-the-africa-agricultural-adaptation-aaa-atlas\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T16:45:56","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T16:45:56","slug":"iita-gender-team-strengthens-researchers-capacity-on-the-africa-agricultural-adaptation-aaa-atlas","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/iita-gender-team-strengthens-researchers-capacity-on-the-africa-agricultural-adaptation-aaa-atlas\/","title":{"rendered":"IITA gender team strengthens researchers\u2019 capacity on the Africa Agricultural Adaptation (AAA) ATLAS"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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A virtual cross-section of participants and the presenters during the training.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As part of its commitment to continuous capacity building and promoting gender equity, the\u00a0<\/span>IITA<\/span><\/a>\u00a0<\/span>Gender team<\/span><\/a>\u00a0continues to invest in upskilling its members to deliver high-quality research that advances food security and improves livelihoods across the continent.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nOn 10 and 11 November, the IITA Gender, Youth and Social Science team organised an intensive\u00a0<\/span>two-day virtual training<\/span><\/a>\u00a0on the\u00a0<\/span>Africa Agricultural Adaptation Atlas<\/span><\/a>\u00a0(AAA ATLAS).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nThe training was held in collaboration with the Policy Leadership in Agriculture and Food Security (PiLAF)<\/span>\u00a0team at the University of Ibadan<\/span>, and moderated by IITA Senior Research Associate Olamide\u00a0Nwanze.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nThe AAA ATLAS enables<\/span>\u00a0access\u00a0<\/span>to\u00a0<\/span>specialized datasets on gender, socio-economy, nutrition, climate risks, and adaptation organised per region, to inform and strengthen agricultural research and development. The AAA ATLAS aggregates scientific data with the aim to accelerate effective climate change adaptation as well as social and gender inclusion in African agriculture. Through interactive data visualizations, interactive\u00a0stories\u00a0and research-ready tools, it offers researchers, policymakers, and investors\u2019 insights into climate risks, vulnerability, impacts, and adaptation strategies\u2014bridging the gap between multidisciplinary scientific evidence and practical action.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nThe AAA Atlas is particularly relevant within the scope of IITA\u2019s mission to address the current nexus of challenges: rapidly changing socio-economic contexts, the need to enhance agricultural productivity, climate change mitigation, and the prevention of environmental degradation associated with intensification\u2014such as soil depletion, water stress, and biodiversity loss. At the same time, agricultural interventions must be responsive to socio-cultural diversity, differentiated preferences, working conditions, and diverse livelihood strategies along agricultural value chains. This nexus calls for well-thought-through and prioritised cost-effective bundles that combine technical and social innovations tailored to specific regional contexts.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nAs a platform widely used by key funders such as the African Development Bank (AFDB), mastery of the AAA ATLAS is expected to strengthen the quality, reach, and impact of research proposals, foresight work, and adaptation planning across Africa.<\/span>\u00a0In addition, it is also expected to foster Strategic Collaboration to\u00a0facilitate\u00a0knowledge exchange between CGIAR centers and initiatives, and partners at regional and national level, fostering a unified and integrated approach to CGIAR Systems Transformation agenda.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nThe training aimed to strengthen participants\u2019 analytical skills to use the AAA Atlas\u2019 historic, baseline, and foresight datasets for informed decision-making, and build their capacity to systematically integrate gender, climate, and nutrition considerations into research using the Atlas\u2019s data-driven tools.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nIn his welcome address, IITA Gender Lead,\u00a0<\/span>B\u00e9la Teeken<\/span><\/a>, outlined the purpose of the training and presented key highlights of IITA\u2019s ongoing work at the intersection of gender, climate change, breeding, and nutrition.\u00a0Additional\u00a0opening remarks were delivered by IITA Climate Lead,\u00a0<\/span>John Choptiany<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0and\u00a0PiLAF\u00a0Lead,\u00a0Iredele\u00a0Ogunbayo.\u00a0Choptiany\u00a0mentioned that the ATLAS is\u00a0a good way\u00a0to\u00a0showcase\u00a0IITA\u2019s work and the work of others, especially on the resilient solutions that can be used to adapt and combat the effects of climate change in agriculture. IITA will be more actively involved in the ATLAS going forward in 2026 to ensure that our research feeds into the tool.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nThe technical sessions\u00a0<\/span>on Day 1\u00a0<\/span>began with an overview of the Atlas,\u00a0facilitated\u00a0by Lecturer, Research Associate at\u00a0PiLAF, Oladele\u00a0Osanyinlusi, who guided participants through the platform\u2019s navigation and\u00a0demonstrated\u00a0how its data-rich tools support climate investment and policy planning.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nThis was followed by an in-depth practical session led by\u00a0PiLAF\u00a0Policy Researcher, Peace\u00a0Aburime, who focused on analysing women\u2019s exposure to climate hazards and exploring gender-responsive adaptation strategies. The session highlighted how climate actions that intentionally incorporate gender equality considerations can improve women\u2019s empowerment and ensure more inclusive and\u00a0equitable\u00a0outcomes.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n\nParticipants worked through multiple interactive notebooks on the Atlas platform, including:<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\n