{"id":18643,"date":"2026-06-20T13:07:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-20T13:07:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dev.iita.org\/news-item\/undp-and-iita-to-drive-agricultural-transformation-in-sierra-leone\/"},"modified":"2026-06-29T16:43:14","modified_gmt":"2026-06-29T16:43:14","slug":"undp-and-iita-to-drive-agricultural-transformation-in-sierra-leone","status":"publish","type":"news-item","link":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/news-item\/undp-and-iita-to-drive-agricultural-transformation-in-sierra-leone\/","title":{"rendered":"UNDP and IITA to drive agricultural transformation in Sierra Leone"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The<\/a>
The MoU signing ceremony between IITA and UNDP Sierra Leone.<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Agriculture\u00a0remains\u00a0the backbone of Sierra Leone\u2019s economy, contributing significantly to the country\u2019s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and serving as the primary source of livelihood for\u00a0the majority of\u00a0its population. However, despite the sector\u2019s immense potential, it continues to face\u00a0numerous\u00a0challenges that constrain growth, limit productivity, and threaten national food security. To address these challenges and strengthen its agricultural sector, Sierra Leone is\u00a0seeking\u00a0to deepen collaboration with IITA.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

On 11 May,\u00a0<\/span>IITA<\/span><\/a>\u2013<\/span>CGIAR<\/span><\/a>\u00a0welcomed a high-level delegation from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security (MAFS), Sierra Leone, the\u00a0<\/span>United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)<\/span><\/a>, and the Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute (SLARI). The delegation included the Chairperson of the SLARI Council, Dr Alfred Dixon; the Resident Representative of UNDP, Fredrick Ampiah; the Deputy Chief Agricultural Officer of MAFS, Aiah Tholley; and other distinguished representatives.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The visit highlights the need for a deeper partnership among IITA, UNDP, and SLARI to advance agricultural transformation, technology transfer, and capacity strengthening within Sierra Leone\u2019s agricultural sector.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Welcoming the delegation, IITA Deputy Director General, Partnerships for Delivery,\u00a0<\/span>Tahirou Abdoulaye<\/span><\/a>, emphasized the significance of the collaboration between IITA and SLARI. He noted that both institutions share a common vision of strengthening agriculture and improving food systems across Africa.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/a>
The IITA Management team and staff with the delegation from UNDP, Ministry of Agriculture, Sierra Leone and the Sierra Leone Agricultural Research Institute (SLARI).<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Abdoulaye introduced the delegation to IITA\u2019s value proposition in accelerating agricultural transformation through research, innovation, and delivery. In his presentation, he highlighted the institute\u2019s work across its mandate crops, including banana and plantain, cassava, cowpea, maize, soybean, and yam. He also\u00a0showcased\u00a0IITA\u2019s contributions in genetic innovation, resilient agrifood systems, seed transformation, and the development of more than 487 improved crop varieties adapted to diverse agroecological conditions and market demands.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking during the visit, Dr Dixon described the engagement as an important milestone in deepening collaboration among the institutions. He expressed satisfaction with IITA\u2019s proposal to formalize the partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Director of the IITA West Africa Hub,\u00a0<\/span>Michael Abberton<\/span><\/a>, noted that the visit would allow the delegation to experience first-hand the practical application of IITA\u2019s technologies and innovations beyond what was presented during the institutional briefing.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As part of the visit, the delegation toured key IITA facilities and\u00a0observed\u00a0several agricultural transformation initiatives underway at the institute. These included innovations in cassava production, improved crop varieties, and the use of Semi-Autotrophic Hydroponics (SAH) technology for the large-scale multiplication of cassava and yam planting materials.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ampiah\u00a0commended IITA\u2019s contributions to food and nutrition security, particularly its support for agricultural development initiatives that\u00a0benefit\u00a0young people and women in Sierra Leone. He further emphasized the importance of sustained collaboration between development partners and research institutions in driving sustainable agricultural growth.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Representatives from the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security also highlighted the need to strengthen collaboration with IITA through capacity-building programs, support for SLARI, and technology-transfer initiatives to improve agricultural productivity and enhance farmers\u2019 livelihoods in Sierra Leone.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The visit concluded with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between UNDP and IITA,\u00a0witnessed\u00a0by representatives of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security, Sierra Leone. The agreement reaffirmed the commitment of all parties to deepen collaboration in agricultural research, innovation, and development for sustainable agricultural transformation.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Contributed by Christabel Ediri and\u00a0Ochuwa\u00a0Favour Daramola<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Agriculture remains the backbone of Sierra Leone\u2019s economy, contributing significantly to the country\u2019s Gross Domestic Product (GDP)<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":18644,"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 center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}}},"tags":[],"science-area":[],"program":[],"location":[32],"news-type":[],"hub":[61],"crop":[],"impact-areas":[],"item-year":[204],"class_list":["post-18643","news-item","type-news-item","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","location-nigeria","hub-western-africa","item-year-204"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item\/18643","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news-item"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item\/18643\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":19120,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-item\/18643\/revisions\/19120"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/18644"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18643"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"science-area","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/science-area?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"program","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/program?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"location","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/location?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"hub","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hub?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"crop","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/crop?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"impact-areas","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/impact-areas?post=18643"},{"taxonomy":"item-year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/iita.org\/fr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/item-year?post=18643"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}