ICARDA News

Seed Info aims to stimulate information exchange and regular communication between seed staff in the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region and beyond.

The results of the latest World Resources Institute’s updated Aqueduct Water Risk Atlas clearly highlight the Middle East and North Africa - where ICARDA is active - as the most water-stressed region on Earth by far. In fact, 12 out of the top 17 most water stressed countries listed by WRI are located MENA.

As the present phase of the European Union Joint Rural Development Programme nears its completion, representatives of the European Union and the Ambassador of Italy in Egypt visited Fayoum to see the multiple benefits of raised-bed technologies first-hand.

Soil salinity has been affecting agricultural productivity in many countries worldwide, especially developing countries in arid and semiarid regions. In Iraq, many studies have focused on the relationship between agricultural productivity and salinity of irrigation water, but from a publication standpoint, the relationship between agricultural productivity and soil salinity has been ignored.

A recent travelling workshop assessed improved livestock-based interventions to enhance the adoption of conservation agriculture in the sheep-cereal production systems of North Africa.

A training course on crop management skills and seed production had an emphasis on conservation agriculture. The training targeted 15 Syndicate of Agricultural Engineers for eight days in Lebanon (Terbol Station).

An ICARDA initiative that helped Lebanese farmers better manage their scarce water supplies and cope with the increasing pressures and demands of a growing Syrian refugee population concluded recently.

The heat-wave in Europe poses a significant threat to wheat production across the continent. The breeding of heat-tolerant wheat varieties remains one of the most strategic approaches to cope with extremely high temperatures - but Europe is failing to take advantage of the resilient varieties developed and disseminated by the CGIAR and its partners, which offer a robust defense against the warming effects of global climate change.

CGIAR visit provides opportunity to promote understanding of how Egypt’s agricultural sector can enhance the productivity and sustainability of its water use.