Cowpeas play a crucial role as a staple crop in West Africa, however, their production is significantly hindered by insect pests, leading to staggering yield losses of up to 90%. The lepidopteran pod-borer (Maruca vitrata), poses a major challenge prior to harvest. Efforts to breed resistant cowpea varieties were unsuccessful which led to the implementation of a transgenic solution: the insertion of the cry1Ab gene, which is highly effective against Maruca. Several transgenic events were selected in the laboratory, and the elite ones were sown in confined field trials and evaluated for resistance in Nigeria, Ghana and Burkina Faso. Event 709A was chosen and approved by the Nigerian National Biosafety Management Agency (NBMA) for commercial release. This elite event was used to introgress the cry1Ab gene into the commercial variety SAMPEA 10. After successful breeding, a variety expressing Cry1Ab as well as possessing farmer and consumer preferred traits was evaluated by the National Variety Registration Release Committee and approved in 2019. This led to the registration of the world’s first transgenic cowpea variety called SAMPEA 20-T. This improved variety is now being grown by farmers offering them an affordable, safe, and accessible solution to combat the pod-borer. The successful release and acceptance of SAMPEA 20-T in Nigeria paved the way for its approval in Ghana, which happened in 2023. A second Bt gene (cry2Ab) with a different mode of action is now being stacked with cry1Ab to support a robust insect resistance management strategy.