ISSCA Awards

ISSCA Awards

About ISSCA

The ICRISAT Centre of Excellence for South–South Cooperation in Agriculture (ISSCA) was established in 2025 as a dedicated platform to translate decades of agricultural research into scalable, field-ready solutions for the Global South.

ISSCA focuses on identifying, validating, and accelerating the deployment of proven innovations across diverse agro-ecological landscapes of the global south. By working closely with various national institutions, CGIAR centres, development organisations, and funding agencies, ISSCA aims to enable structured technology transfer, institutional collaboration, and capacity strengthening.

Through its platform, ISSCA aims to bridge the gap between innovation and adoption, ensuring that impactful agricultural solutions are effectively disseminated and exchanged, to improve resilience, productivity, and livelihoods across developing economies of the global south.

About ISSCA Awards

  1. The ISSCA Awards are a flagship initiative by ISSCA, designed to identify and recognise proven, scalable agricultural technologies and solutions developed by institutions from across the Global South.
  2. ISSCA Awards are envisaged as an annual initiative with a vision to establish a legacy of recognising excellence in agriculture, evolving into globally recognised awards that celebrate impactful agricultural innovations.
  3. The ISSCA Awards are envisioned as a strategic vehicle to advance ISSCA’s technology transfer goals by strengthening its credibility and recognition as a global platform for identifying, showcasing, and facilitating the adoption of impactful agricultural innovations through South–South Cooperation.
  4. Beyond recognition, the ISSCA Awards shall also play a critical role in curating a portfolio of validated technologies for the ISSCA technology solutions repository.
  5. Solutions received through the Awards activity will undergo evaluation, after which suitable submissions will be incorporated into the ISSCA Repository.
  6. Selected technology solutions will be curated into an ISSCA Innovation Compendium, to be launched at the Drylands Congress 2026 – Transforming Dryland Agriculture with South–South Cooperation, jointly organised by ICRISAT and ICAR in New Delhi from 10–12 September 2026.
  7. Through this approach, the Awards shall help build a credible pipeline of solutions for ISSCA to drive technology transfer, while creating avenues for partnerships and institutional recognition.
  8. The recognitions conferred through the ISSCA Awards will foster partnerships and collaborations between ISSCA partners and participating institutions, enabling technology matchmaking for scaling and adoption.

ISSCA Award Categories

  1. Technical Awards: These will be conferred across the following ISSCA domains, recognising high-impact and scalable innovations from the Global South:
    1. Crop Improvement & Production Technologies
    2. Natural Resource Management & Climate Resilience
    3. Digital Agriculture
    4. Livestock Improvement & Production Technologies
    5. Agribusiness & Market Systems

A total of five technical awards will be presented, one under each domain.

ISSCA Systems Transformation Award/ ISSCA Global Impact Award: This award will be conferred to landmark innovations/initiatives from the Global South that have demonstrated exceptional scale, cross-country applicability, and transformative impact across systems, sectors, and communities.

Eligibility Criteria

  1. The following institutions are eligible to submit technology solutions for recognition under the ISSCA Awards:
    • International organisations
    • Non-governmental organisations (NGOs)
    • Foundations
    • Research and academic institutions
    • National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS) entities
    • Federal and Provincial government agencies
    • Donor-funded projects and programmes 
  1. The submitted technology/solution must fall under one of the following ISSCA thematic domains:
    • Crop Improvement & Production Technologies
    • Natural Resource Management & Climate Resilience
    • Digital Agriculture
    • Livestock Improvement & Production Technologies
    • Agribusiness & Market Systems
  2. The applicant institution must have ownership, rights, and/or authorised access to the technology/solution being submitted. 
  1. The technology/solution must be relevant to the Global South context, with potential for adaptation and replication across similar agro-ecological and socio-economic settings.
  2. For the ISSCA Impact & Transformation Award/ ISSCA Global Impact Award, submissions may span across multiple ISSCA domains and may include integrated solutions, programmes, or institutional models that demonstrate cross-sectoral impact.

 

Evaluation Criteria

Submissions will be assessed based on the following key criteria:

  • Relevance to Current Needs
    The extent to which the technology/solution addresses present-day challenges in agriculture and allied sectors, particularly within the Global South context.
  • On-Ground Adoption and Reach
    The level of implementation and uptake of the technology/solution, including its reach among stakeholders such as farming communities and institutions.
  • Demonstrated Impact
    Evidence of tangible outcomes, supported by measurable indicators such as area coverage (hectares), number of beneficiaries, productivity improvements, income enhancement, or other relevant measurable results.
  • Evidence and Validation
    Availability of credible and verifiable documentation (reports, IP applications, case studies, publications, third-party validations, etc.) supporting the claims on innovativeness, adoption and impact.
  • Scalability and Replicability
    The extent to which the solution can be expanded beyond its current scope and adapted across geographies with similar agro-ecological and socio-economic conditions, based on its design, delivery model, and enabling partnerships.
  • Transformational Potential and System-Level Impact
    The extent to which the solution contributes to structural or system-level change, including its influence on markets, institutions, policies, value chains, or long-term practices, beyond immediate or localised outcomes.

Submission Guidelines

  • Each submission must represent a distinct technology/solution and be aligned to only the following categories:
    • Crop Improvement & Production Technologies
    • Natural Resource Management & Climate Resilience
    • Digital Agriculture
    • Livestock Improvement & Production Technologies
    • Agribusiness & Market Systems
  • Institutions may submit multiple nominations, provided each nomination corresponds to a different technology/solution.
  • Applications must be submitted in the prescribed format through the ISSCA Awards nomination link: https://forms.cloud.microsoft/r/hHnajutypq
  • Submissions should clearly indicate the applicant institution, along with details of any partner organisations involved in the development or implementation of the technology/solution.
  • Applicants are required to complete all sections of the nomination form and provide adequate supporting evidence; submissions that are incomplete or lack sufficient documentation may not be considered for evaluation.
  • Deadline for submission of nominations: 15 July 2026
  • Announcement of Awards: 12 September 2026
  • For queries, e-mail: contact.issca@icrisat.org