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
28 June 2007
                             Media contact: Surendra Varma (s.varma@CGIAR.ORG)
 
FARA Science Week and General Assembly:
ICARDA Poster Wins Second Prize
The Science Week and General Assembly of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) were held in Johannesburg, South Africa, 10-16 June. Six scientists from ICARDA attended the meeting: Drs Kamel Shideed, Khaled Makkouk, Mohamed El-Mourid, Salvatore Ceccarelli, Stefania Grando, and Zewdie Bishaw. The meetings were attended by around 800 delegates from NARS institutions in Africa, IARCs, universities, sub-regional organizations, the private sector, farmers' organizations and policy makers.
ICARDA's poster on collaborative resource management work in Mauritania won second prize at FARA Science Week. Dr Mohamed El-Mourid, Regional Coordinator, NARP, received the award on behalf of the team.

In addition to participating actively in the meetings, the ICARDA representatives helped highlight the Center's work in Africa through an exhibit of posters and publications, participation in the main poster session, and by organizing two "side events" as part of FARA Week, focusing on participatory community research and the Oasis Challenge Program.

Side events. ICARDA and ICRISAT, which jointly lead the Oasis Challenge Program, organized a side event on the Oasis consortium's efforts to combat desertification. Dr El-Mourid made a presentation on ICARDA experience in improved land management in North Africa.

On 11 June, ICARDA organized a symposium focusing on its experience in participatory and community research. There were around 30 participants from NARS, universities, IARCs, GFAR and other institutions. Four ICARDA scientists made presentations: Dr Ceccarelli (Participatory plant breeding for crop improvement), Dr Grando (Participatory plant breeding: a case study on improvement of cereal and food legumes in the highlands of Eritrea), Dr El-Mourid (Community development plan for North Africa: experience gained from the Mashreq and Maghreb project) and Dr Bishaw (Alternative seed delivery through village-based enterprises). The presentations were followed by discussions, which led to six recommendations on ways to promote and strengthen participatory approaches in Africa. These recommendations were presented at the FARA Science Week plenary session (15 June) by Dr Bishaw.

Award-winning posters. The poster session at FARA Science Week included 43 posters submitted by various organizations, including six posters by ICARDA, describing our collaborative research with NARS in Africa. FARA established an Evaluation Committee composed of leading scientists in Africa to assess the quality of posters, following a well-defined set of criteria.

The seven best posters were announced on the last day of the meeting: the top three, plus four others labeled as 'posters of excellence'. Four of the seven were from ICARDA:
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 'Participatory natural resource management in Sahel-Mauritania' by Mohamed El-Mourid et al. won second prize
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 Three others were rated 'poster of excellence': 'Developing and promoting viable options for sustainable livelihood improvement in Africa: ICARDA experience' by Ahmed Mazid et al; 'Improving water productivity in Eritrea: an example of integrated participatory research' by Stefania Grando et al; and 'Village based seed enterprises' by Zewdie Bishaw et al.
     

About ICARDA: Established in 1977, ICARDA (www.icarda.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.

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