Our research-for-development (R4D) programs

IITA research for development

IITA has aligned all its research programs to the new CGIAR Research Programs. We conduct research on the following thematic areas: Biotechnology and genetic improvement, Natural resource management, Social science and agribusiness, and Plant production and plant health.

We are involved in nine CGIAR Research Programs, namely, those on the (1) integrated systems for the humid tropics, (2) policies, institutions, and markets, (3) maize, (4) roots, tubers, and bananas, (5) grain legumes, (6) agriculture for improved nutrition and health, (7) water, land, and ecosystems, (8) climate change, agriculture, and food security, and (9) genebank.

We lead the CGIAR Research Program on Integrated Systems for the Humid Tropics (Humidtropics) which addresses challenges in agricultural systems in the humid tropics. This CGIAR Research Program gives us an umbrella for all other CGIAR Research Programs which are components of the system. These could be commodity programs, such as maize, cassava, banana, or legumes, which could provide the institutional framework for socioeconomic studies, market, policies, and natural resource management. This CGIAR Research Program will have a major impact in attaining system-level outcomes.

CGIAR Research Programs

CGIAR (www.cgiar.org) is a global research partnership that unites organizations engaged in research for sustainable development. CGIAR research is dedicated to reducing rural poverty, increasing food security, improving human health and nutrition, and ensuring more sustainable management of natural resources. It is carried out by the 15 centers which are members of the CGIAR Consortium in close collaboration with hundreds of partner organizations, including national and regional research institutes, civil society organizations, academia, and the private sector.

Research will be conducted through a portfolio of CGIAR Research Programs that addresses today’s most pressing agricultural research-for-development challenges:

Biotechnology and Genetic Improvement