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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.org
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Media
contact: Surendra Varma (s.varma@CGIAR.ORG),
Ravi R. Prasad (r.prasad@cgiar.org)
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ICARDA
Board of Trustees Meets at the Arab Fund Headquarters
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In his opening address H.E. Mr Al-Hamad assured the Board of Trustees of ICARDA of the Arab Fund's continued support to the Center. "As you all know, the Arab region's agricultural potential is significant; however, the achievements in this sector, both at the country and regional levels have been far below expectations. Food security in our region is still a critical issue. Moreover, the gap between agricultural production and demand is steadily increasing, particularly with respect to basic commodities, resulting in a declining level of self-sufficiency. More importantly, water security is still beyond reach; more than 70 million people do not have access to suitable drinking water. The only way to improve this situation is to adopt more efficient water policies," H.E. Mr Al-Hamad said.
"Undoubtedly, we all agree that greater efficiency in the development of the agricultural sectors is at the heart of comprehensive economic and social development. However, advanced technology is only possible with extensive research; this requires funding cooperation, commitment and careful use of scarce resources," he added. "In this context, the Arab Fund is dedicated to agricultural development in the Arab countries, and has provided extensive financial support to this sector. Since its inception and until the end of 2006, the Fund extended loans in the amount of 922 million Kuwaiti Dinars (around U.S. $3.2 billion), that is around 17% of total commitment," H.E. Mr Al-Hamad said.
"As part of its dedication and commitment to agricultural research development in the region, the Fund has forged a special and successful relationship with ICARDA that goes back to the year 1977. The Arab Fund has supported ICARDA financially in two forms: annual core funding to date amounting to 3.6 m KD (US $13 m), and funding for specific projects, totaling 4.2 m KD (US $15 m). All this has enabled ICARDA to enhance regional cooperation with agricultural research institutes in the Arab world and strengthen capabilities of Arab scientists through joint applied research, and dissemination of findings," he said. "In conclusion, I would like to reemphasize the Fund's commitment to ICARDA's role, and assure you of our continued support to its programs." Dr Guido Gryseels, BoT Chair, said that ICARDA was happy to have this opportunity to present major achievements made possible with the financial support of the Arab Fund since the inception of the Center in 1977. He also acknowledged the Arab Fund's contribution to the governance of ICARDA. The late Dr Mervat Badawy served as a Board member from 1992 to 1997; and Dr Isamil El-Zabri from 1998 to 2003, and both of them actively contributed to the growth and development of ICARDA. Dr Gryseels pointed out that the Arab world has the distinction of being the birthplace of agriculture and a treasure trove of agrobiodiversity. Many of the food, feed, vegetable and fruit crops, which provide over 40 percent of the world's food, originated here and their wild relatives are found in the region even today. Agriculture in the region faces multiple challenges. These include high population growth, rural to urban migration, acute water scarcity, land degradation, loss of biodiversity, climate change, weak research capacity and infrastructure, inadequate investment in agricultural research, and weak information technology infrastructure and expertise. The pace of development has been slow and poverty in the region is widespread--one in every five Arabs still lives on less than US$2 a day. The recent Arab Human Development Report from the UNDP clearly highlighted these challenges. These problems can only be addressed successfully by working together both at the regional and international levels, Dr Gryseels said. Dr Gryseels, who is also the Director General of the Royal Museum for Central Africa, in Tervuren, Belgium, urged greater cultural interconnectedness between Arab societies and the rest of the world so that the rich contributions of the Arab art, crafts, architecture and science would be more widely appreciated. Dr Mahmoud Solh, Director General, gave an overview of the AFESD/ICARDA collaboration. "With the AFESD's highly valued support, ICARDA has successfully implemented a number of collaborative projects to build the capacity of human resources and national institutions in advanced science and technology," he said. Dr Solh presented examples of successes achieved by each project supported by the Arab Fund. "ICARDA is grateful to the Board of Directors and the Chairman of the Board and Director General of AFESD, H.E. Mr Abdlatif Al-Hamad, for their unwavering support to the Center," Dr Solh said.
Dr Ahmed Moustafa, Regional Coordinator APRP presented specific achievements from 10 years of effort in the Arabian Peninsula Regional Program (APRP); Dr Ahmed Sidahmed, Acting Director, DSIPS, and Acting Head of TCU, gave a summary of human resource capacity development; Dr Mohammad El-Mourid, Regional Coordinator, North Africa Regional Program, summarized the achievements of the Mashreq and Maghreb Project, now in its third phase and one of ICARDA's most successful projects; Dr Sanjaya Rajaram, Director BIGMP, described the emergence of Ug99, a virulent race of wheat stem rust, and the possibility of its spread in the Arab world as a matter of deep concern; Dr Theib Oweis, Director, IWLMP, discussed management of water resources; Dr Michael Baum gave an overview of biotechnology development in Arab countries and discussed the establishment of a containment facility for work on GMOs; and Dr Mohamed Aaouine, Date Palm Specialist, described ICARDA’s collaborative work in several countries of the Arabian Peninsula.
Several important dignitaries and key stakeholders were present at the opening session of the BoT meeting. They included: Dr Mona Bishay, Director of the Near East and North Africa Division of IFAD; and Dr Asaad Moustafa, formerly Syria’s Minister of Agriculture and Agrarian Reform; Dr Ahmed Osman, Director, Technical Department, AFESD; Dr Samir Jarrad, AFESD; Dr Mohammad Al-Attar, Former Director General, ICBA; Dr Fawzi Al-Sultan, Chairman, ICBA Board of Directors; Dr Ali A. Al-Shamlan, Director General, Kuwait Foundation for the Advancement of Sciences; Dr Haider Ali Murad, Deputy Director General, Public Authority for Agriculture Affairs and Fish Resources (PAAAFR); Mr Faisal Yousuf Al Sedeqi, Assistant Director General, PAAAFR; and Dr. Yousef Al- Shayji, Department Manager, Biotechnology Division, Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research. Approval of the new Strategic Plan After the opening session, the Board meeting continued to address the items on its agenda. One of the important items was the review and approval of the final draft of ICARDA's new Strategic Plan (2007-2016). The draft presented was developed based on the comments and suggestions made by the Board at its 41st meeting, held in Aleppo, 2-4 May 2007. After a careful scrutiny of the revised draft, the Board made a few suggestions for improvement and approved the draft. ICARDA's new strategy was developed through extensive consultations with stakeholders throughout the non-tropical dry areas—national authorities, research and extension agencies, civil society organizations, universities, donors, regional and international bodies, and other partners. The strategy development process went through several steps over a two-year period. The Board and the management team of ICARDA are grateful to its partners, and all those who commented on early drafts and gave useful insights and guidance, and to donors for their continuing trust in, and support to, the Center's research and training activities. Meetings of the Standing Committees of the Board Prior to the full Board meeting on 4 November, the Program Committee, the Nomination Committee and the Audit Committee met on 3 November to discuss and develop recommendations in their respective areas of responsibility.
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About
ICARDA: Established in 1977, ICARDA (www.icarda.org) is one of the 15
international research centers supported by the Consultative Group on
International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). ICARDA 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 countries, international and
regional organizations, and private foundations supporting15 international
research centers that mobilizes cutting-edge science to promote sustainable
development by reducing hunger and poverty, improving human nutrition
and health, and protecting the environment.