Consultative Group For International Agricultural Research Research Articles

Linking farmers' perceptions and management decision toward sustainable agroecological transition: evidence from rural Tunisia.

Global food systems face sustainability challenges like undernourishment, inequity, resource degradation, and pollution. Food production and consumption drive environmental change with greenhouse gas emissions, biodiversity loss, and land-system shifts. The climate change crisis has intensified concerns about the ecological impact of these systems. Sustainable food networks, such as community-supported agriculture, are promoting sustainable production and consumption through short supply chains. International bodies like the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) are also spearheading initiatives for more equitable and sustainable food systems. In Tunisia, where dryland areas predominate, the ongoing implementation of the Agroecology Initiative provides the context for this study, which explores the drivers and barriers of agroecological transformation in this challenging environment. The research focuses on stakeholder engagement, with a gender perspective to explore farmer perceptions. The study, conducted in the northwest of Tunisia in 2022-2023, involved focus groups, workshops, surveys, and questionnaires with various stakeholders. Findings highlight farmer organizations' potential in promoting sustainable farming, with clear goals, diversified systems, and collaborations. However, challenges such as input scarcity, water shortage, low income, and marketing must be addressed. Results also indicate that over 90% of farmers who received assistance with agroecological practices reported a change in their ideas and practices. Fifty seven percent of the workshops participants identified the olive oil value chain as having the greatest potential for agroecological transformation, but it faces constraints such as climate, lack of policy incentives, training, funding, and difficulty in adopting technical innovations. Women's inclusion in agriculture, environmental, social, and economic challenges were also highlighted. Despite these obstacles, key drivers for agroecological transition were identified. These include the compatibility of many agroecological practices with existing farmer capabilities, their cultural and economic benefits, and the positive outcomes for environmental sustainability and health. The study advocates for a socio-technical systems analysis to address the root causes hindering Tunisia's agroecological transformation. A participatory approach is crucial to understanding priorities and developing a sustainable and resilient food system. Furthermore, the research underscores the importance of considering diverse farmer perspectives and tailoring strategies to support this critical transition effectively.

Gaining Acceptance of Novel Plant Breeding Technologies.

Ensuring the sustainability of agriculture under climate change has led to a surge in alternative strategies for crop improvement. Advances in integrated crop breeding, social acceptance, and farm-level adoption are crucial to address future challenges to food security. Societal acceptance can be slow when consumers do not see the need for innovation or immediate benefits. We consider how best to address the issue of social licence and harmonised governance for novel gene technologies in plant breeding. In addition, we highlight optimised breeding strategies that will enable long-term genetic gains to be achieved. Promoted by harmonised global policy change, innovative plant breeding can realise high and sustainable productivity together with enhanced nutritional traits.

Crop science: A foundation for advancing predictive agriculture

Crop science: A foundation for advancing predictive agriculture

Survey Identifies Essential Plant Genetic Resources Training Program Components

ABSTRACTHigh‐quality plant collections are maintained by personnel with specialized skills, based on a foundation of expertise in numerous fields. The lack of formal training opportunities in plant genetic resource management, both in the United States and globally, represents a challenge to plant genebanks whenever new personnel are hired. An English‐language survey was developed and distributed to representatives of the worldwide plant genetic resources community to assess the needs for specific topics and preferred delivery methods of training materials. A total of 425 survey responses were received that were suitable for detailed analyses. Survey respondents included those from academia (higher education), the US National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS), Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) genebanks, government genebanks (non‐NPGS‐affiliated), nongovernmental organizations, and the private sector. Survey respondents agreed that there is a shortage of high‐quality learning materials on plant genetic resources, and that learning materials would be useful for researchers in their current positions, would advance careers, and would be useful in teaching or providing information to others. Training topics of high priority to the respondents include crop wild relatives, phenotyping, genotyping, and associated information. In addition, plant genetic diversity, germplasm preservation, gap analyses, prebreeding, and intellectual property are of interest. The proposed training materials must be designed to benefit multiple audiences, especially currently employed personnel and graduate students, postdocs, and visiting scientists. Overall, these results document a clear need to provide plant genetic resources training materials to ensure global plant collections are curated with the best available technologies and techniques.

Transformational Learning in Women's Leadership Development Training

Recent years have seen a sharp increase in interest in women's leadership development. However, the nature of change for women in leadership development training and the processes within the training setting that produce change remain under-explored. This paper examines the learning processes within training settings in the context of the Women's Leadership Series (WLS), a leadership development initiative for scientists and managers within the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). It documents this process within a multi-stage framework and concludes that transformational learning can indeed take place in the context of a classroom and in the specific setting of leadership development training.

Resources, Policies, and Agricultural Productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa

Agricultural productivity in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) remains low and is falling farther behind other regions of the world. Although agricultural output growth in the region has accelerated since the 1990s, this has been primarily due to resource expansion rather than to higher productivity. Yet there is evidence that agricultural productivity growth has improved in some countries. Enhanced productivity is correlated with investments in agricultural research, wider adoption of new technologies, and policy reforms that have strengthened economic incentives to farmers. Many of the technological improvements have come from the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) centers. Benefits from the CGIAR in SSA are estimated to be over $6 for each $1 invested. Returns to national agricultural research are also robust, at least for large countries. But overall investment in agricultural research has remained low, and increases in research capacity will likely be necessary to significantly accelerate agricultural growth in the region. Other constraints to agricultural productivity include government policies that reduce earnings in the farm sector, the spread of the HIV/AIDS virus, and armed conflict within and between countries.

The role of international organizations in the spread of genetically modified food

Numerous international organizations on the direct or indirect way influence the diffusion of genetically modified (GM) food. Particularly important role in this process play a World Bank (WB), World Trade Organization (WTO), Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the Organization for Food and Agriculture United Nations (FAO UN), various international foundations, universities and other scientific institutions. The paper concludes that taking in consideration, inequality of diffusion recognizing GM plant culture, ignoring the interests of poor farmers and countries, restrictions on technology transfer and general domination of the private sector, certain international organizations are trying to reconcile interest of multinational companies and the needs of the poor.

CREATING A SAFE ENVIRONMENT FOR WOMEN'S LEADERSHIP TRANSFORMATION.

The article investigates the creation of a safe setting for women's leadership transformation and individual change through transformational learning. Qualitative data used for the study include interviews of participants in the Women's Leadership Series (WLS), and a formal women-only training program of the Gender and Diversity (G&D) program of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). The necessary elements to generate safety and create an environment that is conducive to transitional states and transformational learning are considered. A women-only environment's characterization by egalitarian norms and openness is also discussed.

PAPER PRESENTED AT INTERNATIONAL WORKSHOP ON INCREASING WHEAT YIELD POTENTIAL, CIMMYT, OBREGON, MEXICO, 20–24 MARCH 2006 Use of spatial analyses for global characterization of wheat-based production systems

CIMMYT (International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre) and other research groups within the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) have made major contributions to agricultural development, e.g. underpinning the ‘green revolution’, but it is unlikely they will continue making such far-reaching contributions without the ability to collect, analyse and assimilate large amounts of spatially orientated agronomic and climatic data. Increasingly, application of modern tools and technologies are crucial elements in order to support and enhance the effectiveness of international agricultural research. Bread and durum wheats (Triticum aestivum and Triticum durum) occupy an estimated 200 million ha globally, are grown from sea level to over 3500 m asl, and from the equator to latitudes above 60 ° N in Canada, Europe, and Asia. For organizations like CIMMYT, which seek to improve wheat production in the developing world, understanding the geographic context of wheat production is crucial for priority setting, promoting collaboration, and targeting germplasm or management practices to specific environments. Increasingly important is forecasting how the environments, and their associated biotic and abiotic stress patterns, shift with changing climate patterns. There is also a growing need to classify production environments by combining biophysical criteria with socio-economic factors. Geospatial technologies, especially geographic information systems (GIS), are playing a role in each of these areas, and spatial analysis provides unique insights. Use of GIS to characterize wheat production environments is described, drawing from examples at CIMMYT. Since the 1980s, the CIMMYT wheat programme has classified production regions into mega-environments (MEs) based on climatic, edaphic, and biotic constraints. Advances in spatially disaggregated datasets and GIS tools allow MEs to be characterized and mapped in a much more quantitative manner. Parallel advances are improving characterizations of the actual (v. potential) distribution of major crops, including wheat. The combination of improved crop distribution data and key biophysical data at high spatial resolutions also permits exploring scenarios for disease epidemics, as illustrated for the stem rust race Ug99. Availability of spatial data describing future climate conditions may provide insights into potential changes in wheat production environments in the coming decades. There is a pressing need to advance beyond static definitions of environments and incorporate temporal aspects to define locations or regions in terms of probability or frequency of occurrence of different environment types. Increased availability of near real-time daily weather data derived from remote sensing should further improve characterization of environments, as well as permit regional-scale modelling of dynamic processes such as disease progression or crop water status.

Moving beyond component research in mountain regions: Operationalizing systems integration at farm and landscape scales

Most research in support of agricultural development and natural resource management in densely settled mountain ecosystems continues to emphasize component over system-level goals. Research by plant breeders, foresters and animal scientists is generally designed to maximize the yield of products within their particular area of expertise (edible plant parts, tree products and livestock products, respectively), while soil scientists aim largely to increase soil nutrient stocks. At landscape level the same dynamic holds within the agronomic sciences, while water engineers work independently to conserve water through its isolation from broader landscape dynamics, and other common property resources remain largely ignored. Opportunities to foster positive synergies between system components, and to integrate livelihood with conservation goals, are generally missed. This paper presents experiences of the African Highlands Initiative, an ecoregional program of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) and a network of the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA), in operationalizing integrated research at farm and landscape scale. Following a discussion of the shortcomings of the conventional research paradigm that beg for stronger integration and a review of the contributions of extant research paradigms that help us move in the right direction, the paper lays a conceptual foundation for integrated research. System components at farm and landscape level are delineated, and this somewhat arbitrary conceptual partitioning of agroecological systems shown to influence the current research paradigm as well as the partitioning of institutional mandates. Diverse meanings of systems integration are then discussed to illustrate the synergies that might be built into agricultural and natural resource research programs. The distinction between the logic of maximization and optimization is then utilized to distinguish between component and “system-level” goals. This conceptual overview is followed by several case studies to illustrate how these concepts can guide the formulation of integrated research objectives, methods and outputs at farm and landscape scale. The paper concludes with a discussion of the implications of this alternative research paradigm for the structure, function and skill base of national and international agricultural research systems.

Application of Soil and Plant Analysis for Applied Research and Development in West Asia–North Africa: An International Center's Perspective

The networks of 15 international research centers around the globe that are sponsored by the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) seeks to alleviate poverty in the developing world through enhanced production, while maintaining biodiversity and the sustainability of natural resources. The mandate of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) is to focus on improving semi‐arid cropping systems in the drought‐prone West Asia and North Africa region. Since its inception in 1997, ICARDA's soil laboratory played a pivotal role in backstopping the institution's on‐station and on‐farm research in Syria and its collaborative research with the region's national programs. This article gives an overview of the evolution of soil and plant analysis in serving the center's mission. A major effort was the regional soil test calibration program, which set the basis for rational use of fertilizers and the identification of related nutrient constraints. Such analyses were extensively employed in all the long‐term dryland cropping system trials and later in irrigated agriculture and the interface between plant nutrition and crop breeding. Major emphasis was given to improving and upgrading analytical services in the region's laboratories. Despite advances made in analytical methodology, the challenge is to apply to solving real problems in the service of humanity.

Impacts of breeding on international collaborative wheat improvement

For over 40 years a collaborative network of publicly funded international wheat scientists has made a significant contribution to food security in the developing world. Thousands of modern wheat varieties (MVs) have been released for use in both favourable and marginal environments on well over 50 million hectares. The yield increases associated with genetic improvement in yield potential and adaptation to biotic and abiotic stresses are well documented. Millions of small-scale farmers in the developing world have benefited. While this so-called ‘Green Revolution’ displaced landraces in favour of more productive MVs, these and other genetic resources, held in trust by international organizations, have been utilized to improve the inherent genetic diversity of modern varieties. Furthermore, the result of increased yields reduced the need to bring natural ecosystems under cultivation, by as much as a billion hectares.Although international wheat breeding has its origins in the 1940s, recognition of a common scientific basis of agricultural problems worldwide was highlighted by the creation of International Agricultural Research Centres (IARCs) which included the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Centre (CIMMYT) established in 1965. This grew into a larger network called the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) now comprising 15 IARCs, including the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) established in Syria in 1977, another key player in the international wheat and barley breeding network. Two of the major coordination responsibilities of CIMMYT are maintaining the world collection of wheat genetic resources – a public good protected by international treaty – and the facilitation of the International Wheat Nurseries.After the initial impact of the Green Revolution in high production zones through exploitation of Rht-B1 and Rht-D1 dwarfing genes in conjunction with disease resistance, international breeding encompassed more challenging environments through, for example, international shuttle breeding between Brazil and Mexico to overcome problems associated with acid soils that restricted adoption of MVs. Another example is drought, which affects at least 30 million ha of wheat in the developing world. The approach focused initially on exploiting the inherent yield potential and disease resistance of MVs and later combined this with new stress-adaptive traits from wild wheat ancestors through wide crossing techniques. Adoption of modern varieties has increased substantially in drier areas between 1990 and 1997. In all environments, possibly the greatest threat to productivity is disease, especially those caused by fungal pathogens. International wheat breeding has placed great emphasis on genetic control of disease since resource-poor farmers generally lack the means to control diseases chemically.

ROLE OF INTERNATIONAL RESEARCH CENTERS' SOIL LABORATORIES IN AGRICULTURAL DEVELOPMENT

The worldwide network of 16 research centers of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) focuses on research, training, education, and capacity-building with the goal of poverty alleviation through increased production, economic development, and environmental protection in the poorer countries of the world. The centers work in partnership with the national agricultural research systems as well as advanced research institutions. The pillars of their research are germplasm enhancement and natural resource management. The soil laboratory is fundamental to such research endeavors, involving analysis of soils as a basis for soil characterization, identifying nutrient constraints, and establishing criteria for fertilizer application and efficient nutrient use, along with water, plant, and fertilizer analysis. The soil laboratory backstops both basic and applied research. Most CGIAR centers' laboratories have a training function for their region's national programs, and are involved in networks to upgrade analytical standards and maintain quality output. Many laboratories also host students from regional universities for their graduate research. There is a need for an increased role for laboratory analysis in the future research and development programs of the international centers. However, inherent weaknesses in the system will have to be addressed, as well as improved staff training, centralization of analytical services, automation, and quality assurance. There will also be a shift in the types of analysis as research programs place more emphasis on environment rather than traditional soil fertility concerns.

Poverty, productivity and production environment:: a review of the evidence

This paper reviews the state of knowledge about the key issues needing to be understood to satisfactorily resolve a long-standing debate within the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) system. The debate revolves around the effects on various populations (particularly the poor) of different allocations of research effort between marginal and favoured production environments. This paper specifically focuses on what is known about the geographical distribution of the rural poor, across agro-ecological zones and over time. Variations in the income-generating activities—including non-agricultural activities—engaged in by the poor are examined and the ways in which specific technology packages affect the economic well-being of different types of households, both directly and indirectly.

Breeding for Trace Mineral Density in Rice

In 1992 the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) began to examine the effect of certain soil characteristics on the iron content of rice grains. As part of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) Micronutrients Project, this effort was expanded in 1995 to include analysis of both iron and zinc, in collaboration with the University of Adelaide in Australia. Since then, germplasm screening has shown large genetic variation for iron and zinc concentrations in brown rice. Common cultivars contain about 12 mg of iron and 25 mg of zinc per kilogram. Some traditional varieties have double these amounts. Genetic-by-environmental interactions are sufficiently moderate that breeding for higher iron and zinc content is considered worthwhile. The next major research step will be to further study the genetics of trace mineral accumulation in the grain to determine the best selection techniques for use in breeding. High iron and zinc traits can be combined with improved agronomic traits. This has already been demonstrated in the serendipitous discovery in the IRRI testing programme of an aromatic variety (IR68144-3B-2-2-3) that has a high concentration of grain iron, about 21 mg/kg in brown rice. This elite line has good tolerance to rice tungro virus and to mineral-deficient soils and has excellent grain qualities. The yields are about 10% below those of IR72, but in partial compensation, maturity is earlier. After 15 minutes of polishing, IR68144-4B-2-2-3 had about 80% more iron than IR64, a widely grown commercial variety. It remains to be shown that this extra iron can improve the iron status of iron-deficient human subjects. A human feeding trial is being planned.

Knowledge-intensive networks for development: the case of the Global Water Partnership

The Global Water Partnership (GWP) is a “reinforced network” of organisations interested in the sustainable management of freshwater resources in developing countries. It was established in 1996 in response to the worsening water shortage in large parts of the developing world and to the perceived lack of international leadership in water. It is modelled on the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) as a virtual organisation with a minimum of formal structure. It aims to establish principles of sustainable water resources management, identify gaps and stimulate its partners to meet critical needs, support action that follows principles of sustainable water resources management, help match needs to available resources, and strengthen mechanisms for sharing information and experiences. It promotes an integrated approach to water resources management that recognises that water is a limited resource subject to multiple uses and increasing demand. GWP is co-sponsored by the World Bank, UNDP and Sida and supported by several bilateral aid donors. Its secretariat is hosted by Sida in Stockholm.

INTERNATIONAL AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH AND THE CGIAR SYSTEM—PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE

Although much bilaterally supported international agricultural research was conducted prior to 1972, only with the formation of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) did a co-ordinated research programme funded by a number of agencies (national, development banks, UN and charitable) become a reality. Four existing institutes (IRRI, CIMMYT, IITA and CIAT) were initially accepted for funding, and in the course of the next seven years ICRISAT, CIP, ILRAD, IBPGR (now IPGRI), WARDA, ILCA, ICARDA, ISNAR and IFPRI were added. A brief period of consolidation occurred between 1979 and 1991, but in 1991±92 ®ve more institutes (ICRAF, IIMI, INIBAP, ICLARM and CIFOR) became part of the system, quickly reduced by two by absorbing INIBAP into IPGRI, and merging ILCA and ILRAD to become ILRI. There are also several internationally funded institutes not of the CGIAR but associated with it, and strangely referred to as the non-associated centres, including AVRDC, IBSRAM, ICIMOD, ICIPE and IFDC. The CGIAR programme has become increasingly large and diverse. Plant breeding and crop and animal production still form the major components, together accounting for 40 per cent of the budget. Studies of economic policy and the strengthening of national agricultural research systems (NARS) through training and in other ways, have always been an important component of the CGIAR programme, although receiving little publicity. They have grown in importance as the system has developed. More recently increasing attention has been given to the environment, sustainability and biodiversity, and to the difficulties that an international system encounters in dealing with the `location speci®city' of many of the problems studied. `Ecoregional' and `systemwide' initiatives have become part of the research agenda. Perhaps most importantly a serious attempt is now being made to come to grips with the location speci®city problem through the ecoregional initiatives. This requires greater collaboration between the CGIAR centres, and the many other partners in national and international agricultural research.

Sustainable agriculture: future hope for developing countries

Aided by a political resolve, the dedication of their scientists, and strong international support, many developing countries made remarkable progress in achieving self-sufficiency in food and natural fiber during the last two decades. However, increasing population and commercialization of agriculture in these countries have put enormous pressure on the resources needed for a sustained growth in agricultural production. Limited arable lands are being overexploited reducing their productivity. Erosion-prone marginal lands are being brought under cultivation. Faulty irrigation practices, coupled with poor drainage, have made many areas less productive than before. Several time-tested stable cropping systems have been given up in favor of new, unstable systems to obtain higher yields per unit area. Indiscriminate use of fertilizers and pesticides has led to serious unforeseen problems adversely affecting the stability of crops. In spite of these setbacks, there is hope of achieving sustainable growth in agricultural production. This can be done by improving land and water management practices; discovering stable, high-productivity farming systems including crops and livestock; evolving better, environment-friendly crop health management practices', using new biotechnology tools; supporting international agricultural research centers sponsored by the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research; involving nongovernmental organizations and government agencies in efforts to educate and support farmers; and most important of all, implementing innovative programs to reduce population growth rates with the total commitment of the concerned governments.

The Impact of the International Agricultural Centres: Measurement, Quantification and Interpretation

SUMMARYImpact assessment is important to agricultural research. It quantifies benefits from both proposed and past research, and allows comparisons of the cost effectiveness of different research investments as a basis for priority setting. Though there are important economies of scale in the global and regional level research done by the international centres of the Consultative Group for International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), this research covers only one small sector in the sequence of research and development reaching down into farmers' fields. CGIAR impact thus depends on the rest of the research and development (R&D) sequence operating effectively, something largely beyond its control. In deciding a strategy for impact assessment, the international centres need to resolve two dilemmas: first, how much impact assessment they should do, for their own programme planning and monitoring, and to satisfy their stakeholder constituencies; and secondly, how sophisticated this assessment should be. Impact measurement is itself research and, like all research, is very much concerned with how much is gained from the extra costs of collecting further information.Centros agrícolas internacionales