CIMMYT Annual Report 1997-1998: change for the better
As stated in last year’s Annual Report, we are in a process of transformation at CIMMYT in order to reposition the Center to meet the changing needs of our many partners and the new global challenges which together we must overcome. We believe that significant progress has been made in the past three years, ensuring the strengthening of CIMMYT as a modern, first-class international research institute. Perhaps the single most important evaluation of progress in 1997 was the External Program and Management Review, which concluded that: The Centre conducts high-quality science and has an impressive record of achievements as well as impact on the daily livelihood of hundreds of millions of rural and urban poor. CIMMYT is well managed, has strong leadership, and is a flagship centre of the CGIAR System. The Panel firmly believes that CIMMYT merits continued strong support from the donor community. CIMMYT is providing muchneeded services and products for which it has a definite comparative advantage and for which there are no alternative suppliers. There is no perceived diminution in the uptake of CIMMYT’s enhanced germplasm by NARSs throughout the world. There are also substantial spillovers to other organizations in countries that are financial partners of the CGIAR . . . . The Centre is not resting on its laurels, but is taking steps to position itself strategically to meet the challenges of a changing internal and external environment. In this year’s Annual Report, we take the opportunity to review several facets of our changing environment, especially in the regions where we work, and to review our role as an agent of change. With our partners, we share the belief that research towards sustainable agriculture in developing countries is one of the few ways to bring about positive change in an increasingly volatile era. We know from experience that research has impacts that extend beyond farmers’ fields to many areas of global concern. These concerns include the civil and economic stability of nations; the availability of food and better nutrition for poor people, wherever they live; and the preservation of genetic and other natural resources that are the foundation of a stable, more productive agriculture. Unfortunately global support for agriculture continues to decline, and I believe that we have grossly underestimated the challenge of meeting the 2020 targets for food production. There is a belief in many quarters that food comes from supermarkets, but in reality it comes from farms—farms that are subject to constantly changing pests and diseases; to heat and to drought; to cold and to waterlogging. If these farms and farmers are indeed to meet the challenge of doubling food production in the next 20 years, they require a constant supply of new technologies and skills—the products of research and development. We and our partners still believe that our research can make a difference in the lives of poor farmers and consumers. How does CIMMYT bring about change for the better? We have significantly re-positioned the Center to meet the demands of our partners, both South and North. A more inclusive and participatory process in the workplace— encompassing issues of gender and diversity—has been reflected by changes in research management. We have established multidisciplinary project teams whereby plant breeders, biotechnologists, physiologists, agronomists, economists and other social scientists, and natural resource specialists work together to achieve the outcomes described in our Medium-Term Plan (1999–2001+). As I have indicated in a recent publication, Sustainable Intensification of Agriculture, we have also adopted a new research paradigm—germplasm x environment x management x people—that fosters a broader range of external partnerships with national research systems, non-governmental organizations, advanced research institutes, other international research centers, and, where appropriate, the private sector.
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| Format: | Annual Report biblioteca |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
CIMMYT
1998
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| Subjects: | AGRICULTURAL SCIENCES AND BIOTECHNOLOGY, Centro Internacional de Mejoramiento de Maíz y Trigo (CIMMYT), WHEAT, ECONOMIC ANALYSIS, MAIZE, ORGANIZATION OF RESEARCH, |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10883/622 |
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