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: www.icarda.cgiar.org
24 May 2004
For more information contact:
Surendra Varma (s.varma@CGIAR.ORG)
IFAD President Visits ICARDA
Prof. Dr Adel El-Beltagy (left), Director General, briefed Mr Lenart Bage (right), President of IFAD, and H.E. Prof. Dr Adel Safar, Minister of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform in Syria, on the mission, mandate and research activities of ICARDA.
ICARDA was privileged to host the visit of Mr Lennart Båge, President of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and H.E. Dr Adel Safar, Minister of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform of the Syrian Arab Republic, on 10 May 2004. The Minister was accompanied by Eng. Hassan Ibrahim, Deputy Minister; Dr Majd Jamal, Director General of the General Commission for Agricultural Scientific Research (GCASR), Ministry of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform; Dr Abdul Mohsen Sayed Omar, Director General, General Organization for Seed Multiplication (GOSM); and Eng. Essam Al Zannon, Director of Jabal Hoss Project, Syria.

Dr Abdulmajid Slama, Director of Near East and North Africa (NENA) Division of IFAD, Dr Abdelhamid Abdouli, Country Portfolio Manager for NENA Division, and Ms Farhana Haque Rahman, Coordinator, Communications Special Program of IFAD, joined Mr Båge on his visit to Syria and ICARDA.
The distinguished guests in front of the plaque at the entrance of the Administration Building. The plaque is inscribed with an acknowledgement of IFAD’s support for the construction of the building.
ICARDA Director General Prof. Dr Adel El-Beltagy welcomed Mr Båge and other distinguished guests. Briefing him on the long-standing collaboration between IFAD and ICARDA, Prof. El-Beltagy expressed ICARDA's gratefulness to Mr Båge for IFAD's generous support for the construction of the Administration and Training Building of the Center. He acknowledged IFAD's continued support, from inception of the Center, for its research on alleviating poverty and improving the livelihoods of the poor in the dry areas of the CWANA region.

Through its proactive role in the CGIAR governance and financial support for specific non-core programs, IFAD has directed the CGIAR research work towards the needs of the rural poor, sustainable natural resource management, and capacity building of NARS. ICARDA has been able to undertake highly successful research projects, such as the Nile Valley Faba Bean Project in Egypt and Sudan, the Mashreq and Maghreb Project, the Livestock Integration Project in Central Asia—to name a few—that have demonstrated significant impact on development in rural areas. The output of ICARDA's research has provided technologies for use in investment projects supported by IFAD in the CWANA region. The Center scientists have also backstopped the IFAD field projects by providing training.
Mr Lenart Båge, H.E. Adel Safar, and their delegation members with ICARDA senior management and scientists.

Mr Båge and the accompanying guests viewed the audio-visual presentation of ICARDA's activities and achievements. A tour of ICARDA research activities was then given to them, where Mr Båge discussed the ongoing and future work with ICARDA scientists. The tour covered (a) GIS Laboratory, where a presentation on ICARDA's Integrated Resource Management Research approach and activities was made; (b) Laboratory for Bio-control of Insect Pests, where a discussion on the use of soft pesticides to control key insect pests of cereals and legumes was held; (c) Seed Testing and Processing Facility, where a discussion on seed systems and capacity building in the region as well as work on emergency seed support under post-conflict situations took place; (d) Field site for water harvesting and management, where issues related to enhancing use efficiency of scarce water resources in the region were discussed; (e) Field site for Germplasm Improvement, where work on improving the yield stability of ICARDA mandate crops through improved tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses common in the region and the role of farmer-participatory plant breeding were discussed; (f) Small Ruminant Laboratory, where the management of sheep and goat for improved productivity and income generation and processing of milk products by small-holder farmers were discussed; (g) Gene Bank, where an overview of collection, characterization, conservation, and use of genetic resources of ICARDA mandate crops and their wild relatives was presented; and (h) Biotechnology Laboratory, where work on molecular markers and tissue culture for improving the efficiency of crop improvement work as well as the issue of biosafety were discussed. At each stop, Mr Båge engaged in in-depth discussions with the scientists on their work.
During the working lunch, Mr Lennart Båge presented a copy of IFAD's 25th Anniversary Commemorative Volume to Prof. Dr Adel El-Beltagy.
In a working lunch after the tour, Mr Båge held further discussions with the senior management and scientists on ways and means to meet the challenges of poverty reduction and preventing the degradation of natural resources in the region. He expressed great appreciation for the work of the Center. "I had heard of the good work the Center was doing, but now I have seen it myself," said Mr Båge. He was happy that IFAD has been a partner with ICARDA in this work and he assured ICARDA of IFAD’s continued support in the future. He thanked the Director General and the scientists for receiving him so warmly and discussing with him ICARDA's activities. He wished ICARDA continued success.

The Director General thanked Mr Båge and H.E. Dr Adel Safar for visiting ICARDA and for sharing their views with ICARDA scientists on agricultural research for poverty alleviation and improved livelihoods of the poor.

Visit of IFAD President and the Syrian Minister of Agriculture
to ICARDA Laboratories and the Farm
Biotechnology Laboratory
Entomology Laboratory
Gene Bank
GIS Laboratory
Dairy Products Processing Laboratory
Water Harvesting Field Trial Demonstration
Germplasm Improvement Research Trials including farmer participating barley breeding

About ICARDA: Established in 1977, ICARDA (www.icarda.cgiar.org) serves the entire developing world for the improvement of barley, lentil, and faba bean; and dry-area developing countries for the on-farm management of water, improvement of nutrition and productivity of small ruminants (sheep and goats), and rehabilitation and management of rangelands. In the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region, ICARDA is responsible for the improvement of durum and bread wheats, chickpea, pasture and forage legumes and farming systems; and for the protection and enhancement of the natural resource base of water, land, and biodiversity.

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) (www.cgiar.org) is a strategic alliance of 62 members and 16 Future Harvest Centers that mobilizes cutting-edge science to promote sustainable development by reducing hunger and poverty, improving human nutrition and health, and protecting the environment.
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