IITA Bulletin 2344

The IITA

CGIAR

No. 2344

12–16 September 2016

Aflasafe commercialization team holds workshop at IITA-Ibadan

T

he Aflasafe Technology Transfer and Commercialization (ATTC) project team held a 3-day, kick-off workshop to develop a cohesive understanding of the vision and scope of the commercialization component of the project, approach, and expected outcomes.

The workshop took place at IITA Headquarters in Ibadan, 14-16 September, and brought together staff representatives from Chemonics/Dalberg, and IITA-Ghana, -Kenya, -Nigeria, and -Senegal.

Speaking at the workshop, ATTC Managing Director Abdou Konlambigue said that the workshop gives the different members of the team the opportunity to know each other, and initiate the planning of the interventions that would enable them to have a common vision on how to commercialize Aflasafe™ in the countries where Aflasafe™ products are registered. “At the end of this workshop, we should have a common vision about the commercialization of Aflasafe™. It is also crucial to clarify the roles and responsibilities of individuals and organizations at the onset to ensure a successful implementation of the project,” Konlambigue said.

Also speaking at the workshop, Mario Kerby, Director, West Africa and Haiti, Chemonics, said a common

ATTC Managing Director Abdou Konlambigue (right) leading the discussion with the Aflasafe commercialization team.

understanding of the objectives of the project is useful to achieve project goals. “We have to work effectively as a team ready to provide support on the commercialization component…the project target is to have 100,000 hectares treated with AflasafeTM by June 2017, and 500,000 hectares treated by November 2020,” Kerby stated.

The ATTC project is funded jointly by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. It is designed to carefully and efficiently identify strategic options for partnership with private companies or government entities, execute those partnerships,

and help ensure that Aflasafe™ reaches millions of farmers. The 5-year project covers 11 countries (Burkina Faso, the Gambia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) where Aflasafe™ is registered or in the process of becoming a nationally registered product. As part of the ATTC, IITA is partnering with organizations with significant experience in commercializing agricultural products, technology transfer, and agribusiness go-to market strategy development.

The Consortium Chemonics/Dalberg was selected to support IITA in the commercialization of the product.

Training agricultural researchers to be more gender-responsive

P

eter Kulakow, IITA breeder and Elizabeth Parkes, HarvestPlus breeder, are part of a 16-person training panel for 11 teams of 33 researchers from four continents participating in a training on “Gender Responsive Root, Tuber, and Banana Breeding,” 12-21 September in Kampala, Uganda.

This is the first of seven training sessions on the theory and practice of gender-responsive research organized by agricultural theme and offered in a joint Cornell University and Makerere University educational project called GREAT, or Gender-responsive Researchers Equipped for Agricultural Transformation.

Margaret Mangheni of Makerere University in Uganda and Hale Tufan of Cornell University co-lead the GREAT training course in Uganda. Photo by D. Torrington, Cornell.

www.iita.org

In GREAT, researchers who work in sub-Saharan Africa learn how to identify the needs of both women and men when setting agricultural project priorities, implementing projects, and measuring and communicating outcomes.

“In sub-Saharan Africa, the livelihood and food security of a majority of people depends to some extent on roots, tubers and bananas, especially in rural areas,” said Margaret Mangheni, an associate professor at Makerere University who has more than 20 years’ experience with gendersensitive agricultural development projects in sub-Saharan Africa, and leads the project at Makerere. “GREAT training will improve the outcomes of agricultural research for smallholder women farmers, entrepreneurs and farmer organizations across subSaharan Africa.”

In the “Gender Responsive Root, Tuber and Banana Breeding,” or RTB course, research teams focus on challenges like banana bunchy top disease, banana xanthomonas wilt, cassava breeding and processing, potato production, banana breeding, micronutrient enhanced cassava, and sweet potato improvement.

“GREAT works to equitably extend the benefits of agricultural research

Kulakow commended the organizers of the training and said that the lessons were important to IITA’s research. “This is a really good program. It will make a difference in our ability to do gender research that can help many IITA projects.” to both women and men,” said Hale Ann Tufan, adjunct professor with International Programs in Cornell University’s College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, who leads the five-year project at Cornell.

“Our goal is for agricultural researchers working across sub-Saharan Africa to improve the livelihoods of smallholder farmers by considering gender and prioritizing gender equality goals in their work.”

By 2020, GREAT expects to have trained eight cohorts with up to 10 research project teams each, or more than 200 researchers representing at least 30 national and international research institutions in sub-Saharan Africa.

Subsequent training to create more inclusive and effective agricultural systems will be offered on the themes of grain and legume breeding; small ruminant breeding; dairy and legume value chains; nutrition and Researchers in the RTB course food systems; knowledge exchange represent a mix of projects and (extension); and agricultural institutions: IITA in Cameroon, mechanization.

Bioversity International in Burundi, the Centre de Coopération International To help sustain the initiative, GREAT en Recherche Agronomic in France, will create a center of excellence for HarvestPlus, NEXTGEN Cassava gender responsive agricultural training Breeding in Uganda and Nigeria, the at Makerere. Over the life of the project, GREAT content will be integrated into Program for Emerging Agricultural spin-off short courses and current Research Leaders in Ghana, the West agricultural degree programs at Africa Center for Crop Improvement Makerere. in Ghana, the International Potato Center in Colombia, and the Savanna GREAT is funded by a $5M grant Agricultural Research Institute in from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Ghana.

Announcements

Banana research in Africa: modern breeding techniques, regulatory and biosafety issues, NARO-Kawanda, Uganda, 19-30 September.

GAP (GFAR-facilitated “Gender in Agriculture Partnership”) webinar, 4 October, on three ongoing initiatives to mainstream sex-disaggregated data and gender indicators in national agricultural censuses and surveys, and in agricultural development projects. The discussion will focus on (a) conceptual and methodological issues, (b) capacity building in statistical and agricultural research institutions, and (c) how to ensure that policy makers and planners receive and act on these data to improve gender equality in agriculture. Participation is free. Check out the full announcement post (including details how to participate in this webinar here.

IITA 50th Anniversary Kick-off Event: Lecture by IFAD President Kanayo Nwanze, IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria, 19 October.

First Regional Cocoa Symposium, IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria, 8–10 November. More details available here.

P4D (Partnerships for Delivery) Week, IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria, 21–25 November.

Commissioning of the AgriServe Building by AfDB President Akinwumi Adesina, IITA, Ibadan, Nigeria, 25 November.

7th International Nitrogen Initiative Conference, Melbourne, Australia, 4–8 December. More details available here.

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IITA Deputy Director lauds Abuja station as site of transformation

M

ichael Abberton, IITA Deputy Director, West Africa Hub, went on his first familiarization visit to the IITA Abuja Station on 7 September. He said the station holds much potential for transformation and growth.

Abberton visited the station to see the progress of ongoing projects implemented at the Station and was welcomed by the Head of Station, Gbassey Tarawali.

the IITA Youth Agripreneurs-Abuja members presented on developmental and innovative activities.

Responding to the detailed presentations, Abberton assured the staff of his support. “I was surprised to see the great transformation of the station and its potentials. Definitely, the station deserves more attention at this crucial period”, he remarked.

Abberton also interacted with the Tarawali made a presentation on the scientists at the station. transformation of IITA Abuja, while

Abberton addressing scientists, Agripreneurs, and staff in Abuja.

Advanced AfDB presidential party visits IITA Abuja Station

A

two-member delegation comprising the Regional Director of the African Development Bank (AfDB), Dore Ousmane, and the AfDB Chief of Staff and Director of Cabinet, Sipho Moyo, were at the IITA Abuja Station on 8 September. The purpose of the visit was to assess the activities of the IITA Youth Agripreneurs (IYA), Abuja; see the progress of the construction work at the Youth Training & Processing Center; and also review ongoing youth development programs being implemented at the Station, in preparation for the visit of the AfDB president, Akinwumi Adesina later this month.

The the

delegation Head of

was received by Station, Gbassey

Tarawali. IYA-Abuja members made a presentation on their activities, emphasizing plans of owning profitable agribusiness ventures in future.

The presentations impressed the visitors who in turn expressed satisfaction with the enthusiasm of the Agripreneurs towards agribusiness as a viable solution to the problem of youth unemployment in Africa.

They also inquired about the status of the business plans of the IYA members for mobilizing resources from the AfDB-funded ENABLE Youth project. In their responses, the IYA members affirmed that their business plan development was in progress and will be ready for review

and submission to commercial banks

by October 2016.

Ousmane and Moyo appreciated IITA’s Management for the quality of mentorship, enthusiasm, and entrepreneurial quest that has been instilled in the Agripreneurs.

The team was taken on a tour around the Station where IYA members showcased their activities,including the plots and fish ponds.

Ousmane will visit the Station again with Amadou Oumarou, Task Manager of the ATASP-1 Outreach Program, to develop a detailed plan for the President’s visit.

Tarawali leads the visitors to the Youth Training Center and Agripreneurs’ Work Station that is under construction.

Got a story to share? Please email it with photos and captions every Wednesday to Katherine Lopez (k.lopez@cgiar.org), Jeffrey T. Oliver (j.oliver@cgiar.org), Catherine Njuguna (c.njuguna@cgiar.org), or Adaobi Umeokoro (a.umeokoro@cgiar.org).

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BASICS project office launched

I

ITA Director General Nteranya Sanginga recently commissioned the offices of the new project Building an Economically Sustainable, Integrated Cassava Seed System (BASICS) in IITA headquarters, Ibadan, on 15 September in a formal ceremony attended by other IITA Management members, staff and scientists.

BASICS was set up to develop a sustainable cassava seed value chain in Nigeria. For the next four years, BASICS aims to help realize the full potential of cassava in the country. It will also serve as a channel to deliver quality cassava varieties, promote the adoption of new varieties, and improve productivity, and food security–all DG Sanginga cutting the ribbon during the commissioning of the BASICS office, in IITA,Ibadan, geared towards increasing the income with BASICS project coordinator Hemant Nitturkar. of farmers, village seed entrepreneurs, extract more potential of cassava is all other cassava- based projects to processors, and intermediaries along the to strengthen three ecosystems – actualize the dream of making cassava a research, quality assurance, and private sustainable crop in Nigeria. value chain. sector. The RTB-led BASICS project is Hemant Nitturkar, the project coordinator, leveraging and enhancing the expertise BASICS is funded by the Gates Foundation said that cassava has a lot of potentials of its partners to strengthen these areas and coordinated by the CGIAR Research which can only be realized when the towards developing an integrated and Program on Roots, Tubers, and Bananas seed, agronomic practices and market economically sustainable cassava seed (RTB). It is lead by IITA in collaboration with the National Agricultural Seed linkages are all at optimum levels. system in Nigeria” he said.

Council (NASC), National Root Crops “Cassava has the potential to provide Speaking at the office launch, Sanginga and Research Institute (NRCRI), Catholic more than twice the amount of food congratulated Nitturkar and his team Relief Services (CRS), Context Global and income it is currently providing for the project’s progress so far. Development, Food and Environment to farmers, processors, consumers, He emphasized the need for more Research Agency of the UK (FERA), and and the nation at large. The way to collaboration with the private sector and International Potato Center (CIP).

IITA at 50

50 1967 - 2017

IITA will celebrate its 50th year of founding in 2017. As IITA starts to celebrate its golden jubilee, we take a “then and now” look at Headquarters, Ibadan.

The Institute was formally established as an autonomous, nonprofit organization on 24 July 1967. Earlier, in 1966, the Ford Foundation formally appropriated $5

million for the first phase of construction of the IITA Headquarters; capital costs would eventually reach $25 million.

The first “office” of IITA was set up on the third floor of the Barclays Bank Building (now the Union Bank building) in downtown Ibadan. Meanwhile the scientific staff and the library were

located a short distance away in Bodija.

Construction of IITA headquarters began in 1968, and in spite of difficulties in obtaining materials during the civil war, some buildings were in partial use by 1969-70.

Source: Sustainable food production in sub-Saharan Africa: 1. IITA’s contributions, 1992.

Left: The entrance to IITA under construction in 1968. Right: The entrance to IITA in 2016.

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