The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA) is a nonprofit organization that works with partners to enhance crop quality and productivity, reduce producer and consumer risks, and generate wealth from agriculture, with the ultimate goals of reducing hunger, malnutrition, and poverty.

[3] The institute was established in 1967 and headquarters located in Ibadan, Nigeria, with several research stations spread across Africa.

[3] The organization is governed by a Board of Trustees, supported by several countries and the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).

Part of the institute's initial goals was to develop a better productive farming system, the selection and breeding of high-yielding crop varieties that are resistant to diseases and pests, and strengthening agricultural research in the humid and tropic regions.

The grain and legume improvement system consisted of soybean, cowpea and tuber program composed of yam and cassava.