Strengthening knowledge continuity for research and development.

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Bosede Ayinla
February 2026

Communication & Knowledge Management Workshop.


www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Background
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IITA generates vast knowledge through:
Field research and innovation
Projects, programs, and partnerships
Policy engagement and capacity development.
Risk of knowledge loss due to:
Staff mobility, retirement, and project closure 
Fragmented documentation across hubs and regions




www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Institutional Memory of IITA
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Institutional memory refers to IITA’s accumulated:
Research outputs (publications, datasets)

Project experiences and lessons learned

Policies, procedures, and best practices

Tacit expertise of researchers and support staff


www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Why Institutional Memory Matters for IITA?
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Ensure continuity of research programs
Prevent duplication of research efforts
Improve evidence-based decision-making
Strengthen partnerships and donor accountability
Enhance institutional visibility and impact



www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Knowledge management (KM) is the deliberate process of:

Capturing Institutional Memory: The Knowledge Management Approach
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KM transforms individual expertise into organizational assets
Ensures research knowledge is:
Preserved
Accessible
Reusable


www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)



Knowledge Management
Team as the middleman

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Knowledge Management
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	Capturing	Curation	Connection	Creation	Conversion
	Explicit and tacit knowledge (identification critical and relevant knowledge, interviews, documentation, and recording best practices)	Organise and maintain knowledge for easy retrieval with proper tagging, categorisation, store in repositories and search capabilities.	Link people to knowledge using knowledge-sharing platforms, e.g. different media, IRs SharePoint.
-Foster teamwork and shared learning through communities of practice, 
-Extension activities.	Innovate by building on existing knowledge, combining insights to generate new solutions and competitive advantages.	Transforming knowledge into action.



www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Capturing Institutional Memory: The Knowledge Management Approach
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Identify Critical Knowledge		Knowledge Capturing


Map key roles and knowledge holders whose expertise is essential to operations and strategic success
Research methodologies and protocols, SOPs
Project reports and outputs 
Exit interviews for departing staff 
After-action reviews for completed projects
Mentoring and storytelling to capture tacit knowledge


www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Capturing Institutional Memory: The Knowledge Management Approach
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Deploy Technology			Build Documentation Culture


Implement technology to manage knowledge Eg. Institutional repositories (CGSpace, Flickr, CKAN),  and collaboration platforms (MS Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive Google Docs / Drive
Office 365 suits.
Foster storytelling, mentoring programs, and regular documentation practices that capture both explicit and tacit knowledge.


www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


Knowledge Management Efforts so far
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Development of KM Strategy

 Implementation Plan 

Management (CKM) Template for New Projects



www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


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www.iita.org   I   www.cgiar.org 
IITA is a member of the CGIAR System Organization
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)


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