The President of the African Development Bank, Mr. Akinwunmi Adesina, disclosed that as part of her commitment to Agriculture, the bank would invest $24bn in agriculture in Africa over a period of 10 years.
He mentioned this during the 50th-anniversary celebration of the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture in Ibadan on Monday.
He stated that: “At the core of this is getting technologies to millions of farmers and the bank has developed the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) together with IITA and other centres as a technology platform”.
He said the AfDB would work with the IITA to help drive Africa’s agricultural sector transformation and unlock its full potential. He also commended the IITA for the various researches they have been carrying out for 50 years.
Adesina Seeks Support for Africa
Stressing this, he said that the institute, in its bid to helping develop agriculture throughout the continent, developed different maize varieties which transformed the savannah and humid zones.
He further said:“Its landmark breakthrough on the biological control which saved Africa from the devastating cassava mealybug that had wiped out all its cassava was globally recognized”.
The Director General of IITA, Mr. Nteranya Sanginga in his own remark made it known that the institute was committed to making Africa produce what she consumes.
He also urged local investors to pay attention to the agricultural sector, as 99 per cent of the funds present in the sector is foreign investments.
Develop Lagos-Abidjan Highway to Boost Agriculture, ECOWAS Urged
