Zambia hosted its 98th Agricultural and Commercial Show, one of the country’s largest platforms for showcasing agriculture, commerce, and innovation. Held under the theme “Fostering trade and investment,” this year’s show challenged exhibitors to demonstrate how agriculture can contribute to economic growth and national prosperity. The show ran from 29 July to 3 August 2026, in Lusaka.
The Agricultural and Commercial Show Society of Zambia describes the show as Southern Africa’s premier agricultural and commercial exhibition platform. For IITA–CGIAR, the answer lay not only in the technologies on display, but in the story behind them.
Agricultural trade is often associated with markets, exports, and commercial transactions. Yet long before products reach supermarket shelves or cross international borders, they begin in research laboratories, breeding programs, and experimental fields where scientists develop solutions to improve agricultural productivity.
It is through this process that research becomes the foundation of competitive agricultural economies.
This year’s exhibition provided IITA with an opportunity to demonstrate how science and innovation are strengthening agricultural value chains, empowering farmers, and creating the conditions necessary for investment, agro-processing, and regional trade.
One of the exhibition’s key highlights was IITA’s soybean breeding program, where visitors learned about the development of rust-resistant soybean lines. Soybean rust remains one of the crop’s most significant production constraints, reducing yields and affecting farmers’ incomes. Through advanced breeding, IITA is developing improved varieties that help farmers produce healthier, more resilient crops while reducing production risks, and the impact extends well beyond the farm.
Higher-yielding, disease-resistant varieties provide industries with a more reliable supply of raw materials for livestock feed, poultry production, aquaculture, edible oil processing, and food manufacturing. Reliable supply creates confidence for processors and agribusinesses to invest, strengthening agricultural markets and expanding trade opportunities.
The same principle is evident in cassava.
Through the Semi-Autotrophic Hydroponics (SAH) technology, IITA is transforming cassava seed systems by improving the multiplication of clean and healthy planting materials. Greater access to quality planting material enables farmers to increase production while supporting industries that depend on cassava for flour, starch, animal feed, and other industrial products.
Research, therefore, does more than improve productivity. It strengthens entire value chains.
Recognizing that agricultural transformation also depends on people, IITA showcased its Youth in Agribusiness initiative, which equips young people with practical skills and entrepreneurial opportunities across agricultural value chains. By investing in youth, IITA is helping to develop the next generation of producers, processors, and agribusiness leaders who will continue to drive agricultural innovation and enterprise.
Taken together, the technologies on display demonstrated a simple but powerful principle.
Research leads to innovation.
Innovation improves productivity.
Productivity creates a reliable supply.
Reliable supply supports agro-processing and industry.
Industry attracts investment.
Investment expands trade.
This is how science contributes to economic transformation.
As governments increasingly recognize agriculture as a strategic driver of industrialization and economic growth, research has become more than a scientific endeavor. It has become the foundation upon which competitive industries, resilient value chains, and sustainable economies are built.
The 98th Zambia Agricultural and Commercial Show reminded us that fostering trade and investment begins long before products reach the marketplace. It begins with sustained investment in science, innovation, and partnerships that transform research into opportunities for farmers, businesses, and economies.