ICARDA
News
INTERNATIONAL
CENTER FOR AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH IN THE DRY AREAS
P.O. Box 5466, Aleppo, Syria
Phone: (963-21) 2213433, 2213477, 2225112, 2225012
Fax: (963-21) 2213490, 2225105; E-mail: ICARDA@CGIAR.ORG
Website: http://www.icarda.cgiar.org
Morocco
and ICARDA have entered a new era of expanded cooperation with the country’s
joining of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research
(CGIAR), said Dr Hamid Narjisse, Director General of the Institut National
de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), at the Morocco–ICARDA annual
coordination meeting held 29–30 September 2003 in Rabat.
Speaking at the opening session, Dr Narjisse
expressed satisfaction over the progress made to date through joint efforts
with ICARDA, and told the participants that he looks forward to raising
collaboration with ICARDA to a higher level. He also stressed that expanded
cooperation with
Participants in the Morocco–ICARDA annual coordination meeting, held
in Rabat on 29–30 September.
ICARDA’s Assistant Director General for Research, Dr William Erskine, reviewed the status of collaboration with INRA and expressed his satisfaction over the level of achievement. He outlined some “prospects for the future” offered by the entry of Morocco into the CGIAR, highlighting the CGIAR’s multi-partner Challenge Programs and new regional initiatives.
Speaking on behalf of ICARDA Director General Prof. Dr Adel El-Beltagy, Dr Erskine said the Center is proud of its collaboration with INRA, and noted that INRA scientists have been called upon to help ICARDA implement its regional initiatives, most recently in organizing a training course for Mauritanian scientists in September 2003.
“ICARDA will rely more on Moroccan scientists to backstop other national agricultural research system programs in the region,” Dr Erskine said.
Dr Richard Thomas, Director of ICARDA’s Natural Resource Management Program, presented a keynote paper on integrated natural resources management and the prospects for collaboration with Morocco. He also presented an overview of the CGIAR Challenge Program on drought and desertification.
Dr Theib Oweis, Water Management Specialist, ICARDA, presented new initiatives on water resource management in the region, specifically Community-based Optimization of the Management of Scarce Water in Agriculture in West Asia and North Africa, a project due to start this year, supported by the Arab Fund for Economic and Social Development and the International Fund for Agricultural Development.
Highlights of on-going collaborative projects were presented by Dr N. Nasrallah for IRDEN, the durum project; Mr Maatougui for SDC–Maghreb, on Sustainable Management of the Agro-pastoral Resource Base in the Maghreb; and Dr S. Lhaloui on the Integrated Pest Management Pilot Site, Cereals and Legumes.
Highlights of INRA’s National Programs on Crop Improvement were presented by Dr Nasrallah on durum wheat; Dr Jlibene, on bread wheat; Dr Saidi, on barley; Dr Sakr, on lentils and chickpea, and Mr Fatemi, on faba bean.
The afternoon of the first day was devoted to working groups on the five INRA–ICARDA collaborative projects. Plans of work for 2003–2004 were elaborated and approved. The second day was devoted to development of new project proposals.
Finally, a meeting was held between Dr Narjisse, Dr Abderrahman Lyamani, Head, INRA Scientific Division, Dr Erskine, Dr Thomas Blake, Head of ICARDA’s Germplasm Program, Dr Thomas, and Dr Mohammed El-Mourid, Coordinator of ICARDA’s North Africa Regional Program, to review outputs of the meeting.
ICARDA's (www.icarda.org) mission is to improve the welfare of people and alleviate poverty through research and training in dry areas of the developing world by increasing production, productivity, and nutritional quality of food, while preserving and enhancing the natural resource base. ICARDA is a Future Harvest Center.