CORAF held the third edition of the Agricultural Innovations and Technologies Market (MITA) from 12 to 15 September 2023 at the Ouaga 2000 Conference Hall. Under the theme “Facilitating Access to Gender and Nutrition Sensitive Agricultural Technologies and Innovations,” this event was important to highlight innovations and technological resulting from research in public and private sector in West and Central Africa.
“Agricultural technologies and innovations make an enormous contribution to the quest for food security, environmental sustainability, and resilience to the challenges of climate change.” recalled Prof. Adjima Thiombiano, Minister of Higher Education, Research and Innovation of Burkina Faso during his opening speech.
The 3rd edition of the Agricultural Innovations and Technologies Market (MITA) brought together 190 participants including 57 women from West Africa, Central Africa and other regions. Inventors and innovators of agricultural technologies participated in this edition of MITA through exhibitions followed by presentations of agricultural technologies and innovations, B to B meetings, panels, and communications.
“For this year, MITA 2023 takes on a special dimension by highlighting gender and nutrition-sensitive technologies. The perspective is to facilitate access to such agricultural innovations and to position them at the heart of the debates. These technologies have the potential to revolutionize agriculture and contribute to greater food security, while taking into account the gender dimension and nutrition,” said Dr Abdou TENKOUANO, Executive Director of CORAF.
120 cutting-edge technologies and innovations were exhibited, and 70 of them aroused clear interest during the face-to-face (B to B) meetings. In addition, several other technologies and innovations in the agri-food sectors have also attracted significant interest.
For example, one of the technologies presented by the Institute of Environment and Agricultural Research of Burkina Faso (INERA) is a process for the valorization of mango by-products into animal feed. To promote the industrialization of this technology, INERA has set up equipment to facilitate the implementation of the process. This equipment allows grinding and trilling of mango kernels, separating the mango kernels from the flesh and skin. “This will facilitate the production of animal feed. And this machine can process a ton of mango per hour,” explains Dr Timbilfou Tiendrébeogo, researcher at INERA and Zootechnician, specialized in animal feed and nutrition.
Innovation promotion awards have been awarded to organizations that have distinguished themselves in fields related to the theme of publishing.
Through this edition, CORAF and its partners are committed to promoting gender and nutrition-sensitive innovations that meet the needs of all links in agricultural value chains, from production to processing and mechanization. As a platform for the exhibition and discovery of technologies and innovations in the agricultural value chain, MITA has also attracted key players involved in the supply, transfer, and adoption of improved technologies.