Opening remarks by Mr Kouakou Apporture, Cabinet Deputy Director, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Côte d’Ivoire, during the meeting on “Scientific and Technical Partnerships in Africa: Technologies, Platforms and Partnerships in support of the African agricultural science agenda,” co-hosted by IFPRI and AfricaRice, 4-5 April 2017, Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.