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I C A R D A N e w s 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 |
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For
more information contact:
Dr Surendra Varma (s.varma@CGIAR.ORG)
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13 October 2005
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| The Australian Ambassador
to Egypt, H.E. Dr Robert Bowker, who also has responsibilities for
Syria, visited ICARDA on 8 September 2005. He was received at ICARDA
by the Acting DG, Mr Michel Valat. Dr Bowker visited the research and technology transfer projects being undertaken by the livestock, rangeland, entomology and legume pathology teams, several of which are being supported by ACIAR and GRDC of Australia. The projects also involve collaborative work with Australian groups on issues of mutual interest such as testing Australian crop germplasm against pests and diseases that do not occur in, but are a serious exotic threat to, Australia. Dr Bowker's visit coincided with the AusAID/ACIAR Iraq project planning meeting at ICARDA. The visit, therefore, provided him ample opportunity to meet some of the Australian collaborators on the project, including Professor David Coventry from Adelaide University and Professor Kadambot Siddique from the University of Western Australia. He held discussions with them on the initial progress with the crop development project as well as the Australia-funded university development project in Eritrea. Dr Bowker is a political scientist who has lived and worked in the Middle East for over 20 years and written several books on the region. He is from a farming background in southeast Australia, hence his understanding and interest in the project, especially given the similarities of climate and cropping systems between Syria and southern Australia. In his written comments, Dr Bowker said he was "greatly impressed by the development of ICARDA since my last visit 20 years ago, but also by the enthusiasm and the professional achievements of the institution and its staff. I will be reporting to Canberra in the most positive of terms in the light of my visit. I would be grateful if you could convey my thanks to staff who provided me with such valuable insights into their work." |
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 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.