In the face of climate change and other issues affecting the agric sector in Africa, there is a renewed drive by experts to unlock the continent’s potential, by improving soil health, food safety, and resilience to feed itself.
This new drive was initiated at the 11th African Grain Trade Summit (AGTS) held between October 1 to 4, 2025, in Zanzibar, Tanzania, where the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) and Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation (TAAT) played a leading role through its strategic partnership with the Eastern Africa Grain Council (EAGC) to showcase scalable solutions designed to tackle Africa’s most pressing grain market challenges.
The long-standing collaboration, formalised through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), combines IITA’s agricultural research expertise with EAGC’s extensive network of millers, traders, processors, and policymakers. Together, they are creating a platform that translates research into real-world impact across the continent.
The Executive Director, Eastern Africa Grain Council, Gerald Masila, said the partnership with IITA and TAAT demonstrates the summit’s core value of turning knowledge into action. “By showcasing scalable technologies, we are bridging the gap between research and markets, ensuring that Africa’s grain sector is not only resilient but also competitive and inclusive.
“This collaboration reflects the very essence of the 11th AGTS, convening science, policy, and business to drive real transformation for farmers, traders and consumers across the continent.”
Held under the theme: ‘Resilient grain markets: Unlocking Africa’s food security potential’, the summit highlighted persistent challenges such as fragmented value chains, post-harvest losses, food safety concerns, poor infrastructure and limited access to finance.
The IITA used the platform to advance its ‘Scaling for Impact’ initiative, linking research-driven technologies with private sector leaders capable of taking them to scale, while also strengthening existing partnerships.
According to the Scaling & Agribusiness specialist at IITA, Jane Kamau, scaling for impact means moving beyond research to real change in the lives of farmers and communities.
“By working together to improve soil health, food safety, and resilience, we can unlock Africa’s potential to feed itself and thrive in the face of climate challenges.”
At the summit, IITA scientists and partners featured prominently across the agenda. On a session titled: ‘Food Safety Leadership’, IITA, which focused on ‘Grain quality and food safety: Harmonising standards and combating aflatoxins for competitive trade,” Dr. George Mahuku delivered a keynote on Integrated Aflatoxin Management, addressing one of Africa’s most critical food safety and trade barriers.
On ‘Productivity Innovation’, Geoffrey Nsofor presented the TAAT Private Sector E-catalogue in the “Innovating for Productivity” session, providing private enterprises with access to CGIAR technologies that promote climate-smart practices.
At the Innovation Exhibition, IITA spotlighted the Aflatoxin Risk Early Warning System—a GeoAI-powered model developed by Francis Muthoni and Kamau. By combining satellite data with machine learning, the system predicts aflatoxin risks in several crops, including maize, and guides timely interventions to minimize contamination.
Live demonstrations also illustrated how advanced data-driven tools can transform food safety management across value chains.
TAAT also showcased its technology ecatalogs, which comprises cutting-edge ag-technologies from developers and agricultural research institutions for agricultural value chains covering crops, livestock and fisheries.
Designed for three key audiences, decision makers in governments, the private sector, and development partners, the e-catalogs enhance the brokerage of TAAT technologies to decision-makers, empowering them to pick the most appropriate technology.
Participants at the summit revealed that IITA’s engagement at AGTS underscores the power of its collaboration with EAGC, the recognised voice of Africa’s grain sector. They added that by convening millers, traders, processors, researchers, donors, and policymakers, the partnership ensures that summit discussions translate into commitments and concrete action.
“Africa’s food security depends on solutions that are both science-driven and market-ready. CGIAR and its partners are delivering innovations and decision-support tools—such as the aflatoxin risk early warning system—that provide actionable insights and scalable technologies for governments, agribusinesses, and development agencies,” concludes Kamau.
