In the face of the disquieting population growth, poverty, climate change, and the low agricultural productivity currently ravaging sub-Saharan Africa, IITA has reinforced its commitment to the efficient advancement and application of Biosciences tools and products to tackle the resultant challenges of chronic food insecurity, raise levels of nutrition, productivity, and health, and enhance potentials for improved livelihoods in West Africa.
Following IITA’s participation in the Biosciences L andscape Survey Validation conference which aimed at providing insights and recommendations for a strategy to address the gaps and challenges related to Biosciences over the entire agricultural value chain of West Africa, Dr Nteranya Sanginga, IITA Director General, signed a statement document formalizing this commitment on 17 September.
In this pivotal initiative, IITA and 23 other Biosciences regional organizations, programs, and institutions in Nigeria, Ghana, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Senegal will be partners in four thematic and cross-cutting areas of crop improvement, livestock improvement, feed and forage, food safety and nutrition, as well as capacity building. IITA was also selected to serve as Thematic Area Coordinating Center (TACC) for crop improvement.
As a first step of stirring stakeholders into action, Dr Sanginga will present a paper on Promoting Youth Employment in African Agriculture and Agribusiness on 29 September during the Year of Agriculture celebration by the African Development Bank in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Dr Sanginga was also selected as one of the key advocacy persons for promoting this initiative. He said that the initiative was aligned with IITA’s Refreshed Strategy. He added that IITA is fully committed to continue investing its wealth of experience, infrastructure, facilities, and expertise to this end, and also to work closely with national and international partners to ensure that meaningful results are achieved.
“We are pleased to play the role of TACC for crop improvement. Our seasoned scientists are currently applying genomic tools in accelerated breeding schemes for both grain and clonally propagated crops. This is one of the many kinds of resources and expertise that we will advance as TACC.”
Dr Robert Asiedu, Director of Crop Improvement at IITA, added that the initiative is a step in the right direction.
Dr Melaku Gedil, Head of IITA’s Bioscience Center, said that the aim of the commitment was towards establishing a Biosciences Center of Excellence in West Africa for research, product development, and training with broad and up-to-date competences in genomics, transgenics, diagnostics, tissue culture, bioinformatics, and data management.
“This Bioscience initiative is a big one because Africa is lagging behind in applying Biosciences for improved agricultural productivity. We are taking a cue from advanced societies to comparatively place West Africa comparatively on the same level as other Biosciences-advanced regions and also drive innovative ways of improving agricultural production in Africa.”
For more details, please contact: Catherine Njuguna c.njuguna@cgiar.org
About IITA www.iita.org
The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is one of the world’s leading research partners in finding solutions for hunger, malnutrition, and poverty. Its award-winning research for development (R4D) approach addresses the development needs of tropical countries. IITA works with partners to enhance crop quality and productivity, reduce producer and consumer risks, and generate wealth from agriculture. IITA is a non-profit organization founded in 1967 in Nigeria and governed by a Board of Trustees. IITA works on the following crops: cowpea, soybean, banana/plantain, yam, cassava, and maize. IITA is a member of CGIAR, a global agriculture research partnership for a food secure future.
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