Cameroon Partners with IITA to Improve Agriculture

The government of Cameroon will form a close collaboration with the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA) to tap the vast agricultural innovations and technologies with a view to shrinking yield gaps, and improving productivity in the Central African country. The country's decision was reaffirmed by Essimi Menye, Cameroon's Minister of Agriculture, during the four-day visit in the country of IITA's Director General, Dr. Nteranya Sanginga.

Menye will visit IITA's headquarter in Ibadan, Nigeria to see for himself innovations that could benefit his country, adding that he was impressed with IITA's cassava value addition efforts in Nigeria . IITA's extensive support to Cameroon can be tracked as early as 2000 when the country experienced limited productivity of many crops. To respond with this, IITA distributed improved varieties of cassava to Cameroonian farmers until 2010. This helped the country to raise production from 1.9 million tons to 3 million tons as reported by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

View IITA's press release at http://www.iita.org/2012-press-releases/-/asset_publisher/CxA7/content/cameroon-and-iita-to-step-up-efforts-to-improve-the-fortunes-of-farmers?redirect=%2F2012-press-releases#.UGFmhrLiaf5.