Scaling of innovations is a key requirement for addressing societal challenges in sectors such as agriculture, but research for development programs struggles to make innovations go to scale. There is a gap between new complexity-aware scientific theories and perspectives on innovation and practical approaches that can improve strategic and operational decision-making in research for development interventions that aim to scale innovations. To bridge this gap, Scaling Readiness was developed. Scaling ...

This Chapter describes the approach and impacts of the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) Program. TAAT is an operational framework based upon collaboration between the African Development Bank, the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, and many other partners. This Program is designed to deliver modernizing agricultural technologies as a means of achieving food and nutritional security, and to boost employment and agricultural exports across Africa. TAAT consists ...

Horticultural crops, including fruits and vegetables, form a major source of nutrition containing minerals and vitamins for humans and have been primarily cultivated since thousands of years of domestication. Their production has crossed the 10 billion tons mark value signifying their massive demand in the market. However, they are adversely affected by various abiotic stresses such as drought, heat, salinity, and cold, which are adversely affecting their production. This highlights serious and ...

This chapter provides the first comprehensive review of digital tools and technologies available for the identification, monitoring, and control of pests and diseases, with an emphasis on root, tuber, and banana (RT&B) crops. These tools include systems based on identification keys, human and artificial intelligence-based identification based on smart applications, web interfaces, short messages services (SMS), or combinations thereof. We also present ideas on the use of image recognition from ...

This chapter focuses on quantitative genetics, screening of germplasm collection at the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture, genetic diversity, genetic variation of provitamin A content in maize. Inheritance, heritability, genotype-by-environment for carotenoid content, population improvement, development of open-pollinated varieties were also discussed. Agronomic performance, stress tolerance, combining ability, heterosis were also conducted in sub-Saharan Africa. It may be concluded ...

This study measures the economic contribution of International Rice Research Institute’s (IRRI) Germplasm Health Unit (GHU) to a breeding program that aims to avert yield losses from rice blast disease (Pyricularia oryzae Cavara) in Bangladesh. We first conceptualize the general pathways through which SHU contributes to the impact of international agricultural research. Then we use a farm-level panel dataset collected between 2013 to 2016 and data on blast incidence collected from field surveys ...