International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA)

The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is one of the world’s leading research partners in finding solutions to hunger, malnutrition, and poverty.

IITA is a non-profit international organization founded in 1967 and governed by a Board of Trustees.

Research for Development
The International Institute for Tropical Agriculture’s award-winning agricultural research for development addresses the needs of the poor and vulnerable in the tropics. It works with public and private sector partners to enhance crop quality and productivity, reduce risk to producers and consumers, and generate wealth from agriculture.

The Institute’s research for development covers the following themes: biotechnology and genetic improvement, natural resource management, plant production and plant health, and social science and agribusiness.

For the last 45 years, IITA’s agricultural research for development has delivered over 70% of CGIAR impact in sub-Saharan Africa. It has achieved this impact by focusing on key tropical food crops, such as banana and plantain, maize, cassava, soybean, cowpea, tree crops and yam.

Mission
With the mission to enhance food security and improve livelihoods through research for development, the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture tackles these challenges by pursuing these interrelated objectives: improving food security, increasing the profitability of foods and other agricultural products, reducing risks to producers and consumers, and helping national entities to expand agricultural growth.

Information from the CGIAR