AfDB’s TAAT Phase III Targets 14 Million More African Farmers
The next chapter of one of Africa’s most ambitious agricultural programmes will open in Nairobi in June 2026, as the African Development Bank (AfDB) and partners launch Phase III of the Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation initiative, better known as TAAT.
Backed by a new US$16 million package approved by the AfDB Board, TAAT Phase III aims to scale climate-smart and productivity-boosting technologies to a further 14 million smallholder farmers across the continent. The launch will take place from 29–30 June 2026 at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) Campus in Nairobi, Kenya.
TAAT, the AfDB’s flagship technology delivery programme under its Feed Africa Strategy, has already reached more than 25 million farmers in its first eight years. According to programme figures, it has helped raise crop productivity by up to 69%, influenced US$3.18 billion in agricultural investments, distributed 488,000 tonnes of improved seed, and deployed 3.1 million tonnes of fertiliser across participating countries.
What Is TAAT Phase III About?
Phase III marks a pivot from proving that large-scale technology delivery works, to making it sustainable. The AfDB is working with the International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), several CGIAR centres, Regional Technology Delivery Infrastructure (RTDI) partners, regional member countries, development partners, and private sector actors to embed TAAT tools more deeply into national systems.
The programme’s new focus areas include:
- Strengthening Africa’s capacity to produce climate-resilient certified seeds.
- Digitising extension services so farmers receive timely, tailored advice.
- Attracting private investment into seed, fertiliser, mechanisation, and aggregation.
- Embedding proven technologies in national agricultural investment programmes.
- Deepening climate resilience across value chains.
FFA Explainer:
TAAT – Technologies for African Agricultural Transformation – is a large-scale partnership coordinated by the African Development Bank to speed up the delivery of proven agricultural technologies to farmers. These include improved crop varieties, water management practices, fertiliser blends, and digital advisory tools. The aim is to boost yields and incomes quickly by moving solutions off the research shelf and into farmers’ hands.
Why TAAT Phase III Matters For African Farmers
The theme of the Nairobi launch, “Resilient Food Systems for a Prosperous Africa”, speaks to a continent still battling climate shocks, rising input costs, and pressure on foreign currency. TAAT’s backers argue that tested technologies, deployed at scale, remain one of the fastest ways to stabilise food supplies and reduce import bills.
Over its first phases, TAAT has validated more than 180 agricultural technologies – from drought-tolerant seed varieties to improved livestock feeds and water-efficient irrigation techniques. Programme data show that seed roadmaps, which map out how countries will increase production and distribution of improved seed, have already been developed in eight African countries.
For smallholders, the impact of such work is tangible: access to certified seed, fertiliser that matches their soils, and advice that arrives in time for planting can mean the difference between a hungry season and a surplus.
“We’ve seen that when farmers can actually get these technologies at the right time and price, yields jump, and risk drops,” said a TAAT programme official involved in preparations for the Nairobi launch. “Phase III is about locking in those gains and reaching millions more.”
Inside The Nairobi Launch
The two-day event at ILRI’s Nairobi campus will bring together AfDB leadership, scientists from IITA and other CGIAR centres, government representatives from regional member countries, development partners, and private firms that supply inputs, finance, and agri-services.
Organisers say the launch will formally unveil the TAAT III implementation strategy, outlining how the initiative plans to work with public and private actors to reach its target of 14 million additional farmers. Discussions are expected to spotlight:
- How to crowd in more private capital into seed, fertiliser, and mechanisation markets.
- Ways to digitise extension services, using mobile phones and data platforms.
- Opportunities to integrate TAAT technologies into national agricultural investment plans linked to the AU Agenda 2063 and the UN Sustainable Development Goal 2 on zero hunger.
- New approaches to supporting women and youth farmers with tailored technologies and finance.
Journalists are being invited to cover these discussions, with opportunities to interview senior AfDB officials, engage CGIAR leaders and implementing partners, and examine case studies from across the continent.
FFA Explainer:
Digital extension uses mobile phones, radio, and online platforms to deliver farming advice at scale. Instead of relying only on face-to-face visits from an extension officer, farmers receive messages on weather, pests, and best practices directly. This can be especially powerful in remote areas, and for women and youth who may be overlooked by traditional services.
What The Numbers Tell Us
TAAT’s promoters point to a track record they say justifies the expansion into Phase III. According to figures shared by the programme:
- More than 25 million farmers have been reached over eight years.
- Productivity has increased by up to 69% where TAAT technologies are adopted.
- US$3.18 billion in agricultural investments have been influenced.
- 488,000 tonnes of improved seed and 3.1 million tonnes of fertiliser have been distributed.
- Seed roadmaps have been developed in eight countries, laying the groundwork for more reliable seed systems.
- Over 180 agricultural technologies have been validated and readied for scaling.
These figures sit squarely within continental ambitions. The African Union’s Agenda 2063 and national plans like Zimbabwe’s National Development Strategy 1 (NDS1) all call for higher productivity, better rural incomes, and reduced dependence on food imports.
“Farmers have shown that when they get the right seed, the right fertiliser, and practical advice, they can transform fields quickly,” noted a regional agriculture analyst. “The question now is how to make that access reliable season after season.”
Zimbabwe’s Lesson: Technologies Only Matter If They Reach The Field
On a small plot outside Shamva in Mashonaland Central, Zimbabwe, the promise of such technology is already visible. During the last season, a group of women farmers in a local cooperative planted drought-tolerant maize varieties promoted through a regional technology programme, paired with conservation agriculture practices and carefully measured fertiliser applications.
The results surprised even seasoned neighbours. The women harvested cobs where others had written off the season as too dry. Their experience mirrors what TAAT advocates are pushing for: not just high-tech research, but practical packages of seed, inputs, and training that work in real fields under real stress.
Conservation agriculture, climate-resilient seed varieties, and targeted fertiliser use sit at the heart of Zimbabwe’s own efforts to strengthen food security under NDS1. Many of these approaches overlap with the 180-plus technologies TAAT has validated, suggesting strong scope for alignment.
For youth and women farmers, these packages can be especially powerful. Smaller plots can become viable businesses when yields climb, and when digital tools reduce the time and cost of accessing information, markets, and finance.
“Our daughters are now interested in staying on the land because they see that farming can pay,” one Shamva farmer said during a recent field day. “But they need seed, fertiliser, and information that match this changing climate.”
Where Private Sector And Governments Fit In
TAAT Phase III is being framed as a bridge between research, farmers, and markets. The AfDB and its partners are clear that public money alone cannot sustain the pace of technology delivery seen so far. Private seed companies, fertiliser blenders, agro-dealers, digital service providers, and financial institutions all have a role to play.
By influencing US$3.18 billion in agricultural investments to date, the programme has already begun to shift how banks, agribusiness firms, and governments weigh the risks and returns of backing smallholder-focused technologies. The Nairobi launch is expected to highlight new models for de-risking investments and bundling technologies with finance, insurance, and offtake agreements.
For governments, the task is to weave proven TAAT technologies into their national agricultural investment plans and budget frameworks. That includes aligning subsidy programmes with certified climate-resilient seed, supporting local seed production, and opening space for digital extension providers.
Zimbabwe’s own experience integrating conservation agriculture into public programmes offers a reference point. Officials in Harare have used tools like Pfumvudza/Intwasa to bring soil conservation practices and input packages to hundreds of thousands of smallholders, showing how national policy can accelerate adoption when it is grounded in field-tested methods.
Media And Public: How To Engage
The TAAT Communications Unit is coordinating media accreditation for the Nairobi event. Journalists will be able to:
- Interview senior officials from the African Development Bank.
- Engage with CGIAR leaders and implementing partners like IITA.
- Hear first-hand accounts of TAAT’s impact from different African countries.
- Cover the presentation of the TAAT III implementation strategy in detail.
- Report on Africa’s next phase of agricultural transformation, framed around climate resilience and digital tools.
Media enquiries can be directed to the TAAT Communications Unit via email at [email protected] or by phone on +254 711 898530. More information is available at the programme’s website: www.taat-africa.org.
From Nairobi To The Village Gate
The Nairobi launch is a high-level moment: officials, scientists, and financiers gathered on a modern campus to talk food security. Yet its real test lies far from the conference hall, in places like Shamva, Gokwe, Murehwa, and thousands of villages across Africa.
If TAAT Phase III succeeds, farmers in those communities will see more than new logos and strategies. They will see certified seed in their agro-dealers’ shops, accurate fertiliser blends in 50 kg bags, advisory messages on their basic phones, and, most importantly, heavier grain bags after harvest.
“We don’t want promises; we want inputs that work,” a young farmer from Mashonaland East said at a recent field day. As TAAT moves into its third phase, that is the standard by which its impact will be judged – from Nairobi boardrooms to the rows of a maize field at dawn.
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