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Tag: CGIAR Initiatives

How more inclusive maize breeding can yield better outcomes for women farmers in Zimbabwe

Written by dmedina on . Posted in Blogs.

Farmers in Zaka with their recent harvest of drought tolerant maize (Photo: CIMMYT)

In Zimbabwe, CGIAR, through CIMMYT, runs a maize breeding program to strengthen food security and livelihoods in a country where maize is a staple crop. The program spans diverse testing plots – managed exclusively by men, women, or both – providing crucial insights into real-world farm dynamics. A significant component of our work is the extensive on-farm trials conducted across various regions, helping us understand how men and women farmers interact with and benefit from new maize varieties. Here are two ways we ensure that women-managed plots reap the same benefits as those led by men in Zimbabwe.

Increasing Women’s Representation in Crop Breeding Trials

In many developing economies, women tend to have limited access to fertilizers, leading to lower soil fertility and faster land degradation.

At the same time, although men and women may express similar preferences for improved maize varieties, when faced with the same options, women tend to grow varieties that better meet their specific needs – requiring less fertilizer, for example.

This dichotomy highlights the importance of on-farm trials in the crop development process, as they provide insights into the diverse needs and realities of different farmer groups.

Zimbabwe’s maize breeding program has expanded on-farm trials significantly over the past few years, by over five-fold. However, women-managed plots are often underrepresented in participatory approaches. Research from Kenya also showed that trial participants are often wealthier and more educated, benefiting from stronger access to information and agricultural networks.

Training to Ensure Inclusive Farmer Representation

CGIAR and CIMMYT often rely on partners with direct connections to farming communities to select host farmers for breeding trials. Recognizing the risk of bias and underrepresentation of women farmers in this process, we designed a training program for extension officers to ensure a more representative selection of women farmers from different socioeconomic backgrounds in the country.

Without intentional representation, trial results may skew toward wealthier, male-managed farms – limiting their relevance for the broader farming population. In addition, in Zimbabwe, women-managed households are not a homogeneous group. Our research identified two distinct categories, each with unique challenges and needs. One group was wealthier in terms of agricultural assets and livestock, with a greater area under maize production. The second group of women-managed households was more resource-poor, with smaller livestock herds and greater use of intercropping within maize fields.

Using data from a survey of over 2,000 farmers, we worked to validate farmer selection processes, ensuring that women farmers were accurately represented. Today, this training is conducted annually and has become a key component of our program’s approach.

For too long, on-farm trials did not adequately reflect the diversity of farming realities. Through this gender-sensitive approach, we are now able to fine-tune recruitment methodologies to account for socioeconomic disparities. By ensuring that all groups are included in trials, we can develop and promote maize varieties that truly serve the diverse realities of Zimbabwean farming households.

Farmer in Murehwa District with her drought tolerant maize variety (Photo: Jill Cairns/CIMMYT

Incorporating Gender and Social Considerations into the Testing of Novel Genetic Technologies

In hybrid maize seed production, both male and female plants are planted side by side to facilitate controlled pollination. A critical step in this process is detasseling – the removal of male flowers (tassels) from the female plants to prevent self-pollination. If detasseling is not done correctly, the resulting seeds will not express hybrid vigor, ultimately affecting yield and performance.

This process presents two major challenges. Incomplete detasseling can result in hybrid purity issues that can lead production fields to either being rejected or farmers unknowingly paying for lower-quality seed that impacts productivity. Accidental leaf loss during the detasseling process also reduces female seed yields by approximately 14%.

To address these challenges, a Gates Foundation-funded project we implemented has explored ways to simplify the process of hybrid maize seed production by removing the need to detassel through a novel genetic technology. This technology also had a clear benefit for women farmers.

Why This Matters and How to Scale the Innovation

Although seed production involves multiple steps, this innovation has direct benefits, especially in resource-limited settings. Since only 50% of plants produce pollen, this approach optimizes yield—particularly under low-nitrogen conditions, where many smallholder farmers struggle. The technology is adaptable across different maize varieties, making it a scalable solution.

Ultimately, women farmers, who tend to manage smaller plots with fewer resources, stand to gain from improved seed access and yield stability.

To validate this approach, we conducted station trials, followed by on-farm testing. These trials are helping us understand how both men and women farmers adopt and benefit from these varieties, particularly in drought-prone areas, where women are more likely to recycle seeds.

With the knowledge that in drought-prone years women were more likely to recycle hybrid seed, we refined our testing strategy to evaluate potential yield benefits if recycled. We found the technology provided a small, yet significant yield benefit should a farmer choose to recycle hybrid maize seed in an anticipated drought season.

Our approach provides insights into how gender and social inclusion considerations can be incorporated into breeding testing strategies. By evaluating variety performance across real-world farm conditions and gathering insights to refine and optimize future breeding efforts, new varieties will meet the needs of men and women farmers in Zimbabwe.

Conclusion

When promoting the adoption of new maize varieties and technologies, gender is one factor among many that shape adoption. Early- and late-stage on-farm trials are essential in bridging the gap between scientific innovation and real-world impact, ensuring that the varieties we develop are not only high-performing in research settings but also practical, accessible, and beneficial for all farmers.

To achieve this, a transdisciplinary approach is key. Integrating social scientists into breeding and development strategies provides deeper insights into how different farming groups interact with new technologies. By refining our selection process, testing, and deployment, we can ensure that both women- and men-managed farms benefit equitably, ultimately driving food security and better livelihoods.

Farmer Tariro from Gokwe South prepares maize for milling (Photo: CIMMYT)

Resources: 

  • Snapp, Sieglinde. (2002). Quantifying Farmer Evaluation of Technologies: The Mother and Baby Trial Design. 

*** 

Written with Julie Puech, Breeding for Tomorrow and Accelerated Breeding.

Main image: Farmers in Zaka with their recent harvest of drought tolerant maize.

Photo credit: CIMMYT.

We express our gratitude to the CGIAR research funders for their invaluable contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund. 

Sustainable Agri-Food Colombia: a boost for resilient agriculture

Written by mcallejas on . Posted in News.

Biofortified corn crop in Colombia (Photo: CIMMYT)

CIMMYT, in collaboration with the Bioversity-CIAT Alliance and the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development of Colombia, is contributing to the Sustainable Agri-Food Colombia project. This transformative initiative aims to reshape Colombia’s agricultural sector by fostering sustainable and resilient agri-food systems. Several research institutions are also part of this mission as strategic implementing partners.

The goal of Sustainable Agri-Food Colombia is to address the environmental and production challenges facing Colombian agriculture, while ensuring food security and sustainability. Through the implementation of innovative technologies, better agricultural practices and adaptation to climate change, it aims to improve the competitiveness of Colombian producers and reduce pressure on natural resources. In this sense, the project contributes to the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially those related to climate action, life on earth and reducing inequalities. 

CIMMYT is collaborating in this project to join efforts to strengthen farmers’ capacities, as Sustainable Agri-Food Colombia focuses not only on agricultural production, but on the entire agri-food system, seeking to build more inclusive and efficient value chains, from production to the consumer, emphasizing community participation and knowledge transfer in an inclusive manner, involving women, youth and marginalized rural communities in decision-making processes and technology adoption. 

The collaboration between international CGIAR research centers, such as the Bioversity-CIAT Alliance and CIMMYT, together with key stakeholders in Colombia, demonstrates that the future of agriculture depends on an integrated vision that combines science, innovation and collaboration. This lays the foundation for transforming agriculture and food in Colombia for the benefit of people and the planet. 

CGIAR Initiative on Diversification in East and Southern Africa

Written by Julian Bañuelos-Uribe on . Posted in Uncategorized.

East and Southern Africa is a climate hotspot, with more than US$45 billion in agricultural production at risk from higher temperatures, shorter growing seasons and more extreme droughts and floods. Maize, a staple crop covering up to 75% of cropland in parts of the region, is particularly vulnerable and is projected to face yield declines of 15%, among other climate impacts if no adaptation measures are taken. Many of the affected areas already have serious levels of hunger and malnutrition, with the highest burden experienced by women and youth from marginalized and vulnerable communities. If these systems are sustainably diversified, they can contribute to stabilizing regional and global agrifood systems.

The next decade will be critical for strengthening food, land and water systems in East and Southern Africa. The agribusiness ecosystem for both regions has been identified as a critical engine for agricultural and economic development, climate change adaptation and gender and youth empowerment. Investment in innovation, capabilities and supportive environments will be essential for driving sustainable growth.

Objective

This Initiative aims to support climate-resilient agriculture and livelihoods in 12 countries in East and Southern Africa by helping millions of smallholders intensify, diversify and reduce the risks in maize-based farming through improved extension services, small and medium enterprise development, supporting governance frameworks and increased investment with a gender and social inclusion lens.

Activities

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Diversifying and sustainably intensifying production by assessing needs and options for the introduction of crops, livestock, mechanization and irrigation, applying innovations in value chains and building capacity while scaling to larger farming communities.
  • Reducing risk and digitalizing value chains by co-designing and delivering “Innovation Package” bundles of digital agro-advisory systems and research management products — including mobile apps, TV programs and social media — to build resilience and improve productivity.
  • Supporting and accelerating value chain business enablers in maize mixed systems by using CGIAR’s expertise and partner network to unlock access to funding, investment and tailored technical assistance.
  • Promoting the governing and enabling of multifunctional landscapes for sustainable diversification and intensification with a focus on strengthening the evidence base for decision-makers.
  • Empowering and engaging women and youth in agribusiness ecosystems by mapping challenges and opportunities to address gender and social inequality and applying inclusive and coordinated interventions for transformative change.
  • Scaling innovations and coordinating CGIAR and partner activities in the region through a scaling hub that uses the “scaling readiness” approach to inform, activate and bring to scale innovations that respond to regional or country demand.

CGIAR Initiative: Crops to End Hunger (CtEH)

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Agriculture offers major solutions to several global challenges – most notably the tightly interlinked challenges of meeting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on hunger (SDG2), extreme poverty (SDG1), and climate change (SDG13). CGIAR, in concert with a wide network of partners, has a vital role to play in transforming agri-food and land systems in the face of the climate emergency – ultimately benefiting low-income producers and consumers who are most at risk.

What is Crops to End Hunger?

Crops to End Hunger (CtEH) is a CGIAR initiative to accelerate and modernize the development, delivery and widescale use of a steady stream of new crop varieties. These new varieties are developed to meet the food, nutrition and income needs of producers and consumers, respond to market demand and provide resilience to pests, diseases and new environmental challenges arising from climate change.

CGIAR’s plant breeding program has made major contributions to global food security since the mid 1960s, but there is evidence that the rate of adoption of new varieties has slowed. CtEH will support the acceleration of breeding cycles and application of modern breeding methods needed for both productivity gains and climate change adaptation. Farmers need varieties bred in and for the current climate, but are generally using varieties selected 20-30 years ago. In addition, many new varieties are insufficiently improved to induce farmers to adopt them. Prioritization of crops by specific geographies is based on projected benefits to poverty reduction and nutrition, and is an integral dimension of the modernization effort. Using market research, crop breeders gain greater awareness of the traits preferred by men and women farmers, consumers and others along the value chain, integrating them into “product profiles” that guide breeding. Delivery of varieties is done through integrated partnerships and linkages to seed systems in-country, in which national regulatory agencies take responsibility for the release of improved seeds, while public agencies, community organizations and private seed companies undertake multiplication, distribution and promotion to reach farmers’ fields.

In 2017-18, a multi-Funder group, including the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF), the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), agreed to launch a modernization program for public plant breeding in lower-income countries. The CtEH initiative will invigorate breeding for the staple crops most important to smallholder farmers and poor consumers.

How does it work?

CtEH supports focused, science-based, well-resourced and long-term CGIAR Programs and investments in modern plant breeding on priority crops, which build on:

  1. CGIAR’s demonstrated impact on food security and poverty reduction through plant breeding;
  2. CGIAR’s comparative advantages in global public goods research on crop breeding and genetics;
  3. CGIAR’s central role and responsibility for the conservation and characterization of the world’s crop biodiversity, which is held in trust by CGIAR Research Centers for the world community.

This initiative aims to accelerate a transition in CGIAR crop breeding to address very different challenges from those faced in the Green Revolution. Twenty CGIAR crops, including cereals, legumes and root crops, have been chosen for this breeding initiative.

One part of this challenge is for breeding to modernize in terms of its objectives beyond pure yield gain – to address the expanding demand for improved varieties to meet biotic and abiotic stresses, such as climate change and environmental degradation, and to include a wider set of nutritional and market traits, as well as traits relevant to both end-users and value chains, which would increase the adoption rate of newly-bred varieties.

The first step towards modernization of breeding programs is to identify the gaps – the areas that need to be addressed or improved. The Breeding Program Assessment Tool (BPAT) has been developed for this purpose. The deployment of BPAT has been administered by the University of Queensland and has now been used to assess the breeding programs across CGIAR Research Centers. Examples of gaps include cross-CGIAR data management tools, access to low-cost genotyping, and sharing high-quality technical advice across programs and with partners.

What will result?

This process of improvement and modernization of CGIAR breeding programs will provide multiple benefits:

  1. For a given level of investment it is anticipated that each breeding program will achieve increased rates of genetic gain and scale of impact – through adoption of farmer-preferred, market-demanded, climate-resilient varieties.
  2. There will be further opportunity to integrate and support allied CGIAR crop programs, and to apply best practices across CGIAR Research Centers.
  3. A stronger partnership and closer cooperation with national breeding programs, including national research institutes, universities and small and medium-sized enterprises in the private sector in low-income countries, as well as multilateral seed companies and advanced research institutes.
  4. Adopting standardized ways of reporting needs, opportunities and progress will provide Funders with a transparent view of where and how they are getting high rates of return for their investment.

With this new initiative, CGIAR will enhance its contributions to the Sustainable Development Goals towards 2030 through high-priority staple crops tailored for the specific needs of targeted regions and their populations.

CGIAR Initiative: Breeding Resources

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Crop breeding has the potential to significantly contribute to addressing the global challenges of poverty, malnutrition, hunger, gender inequality, environmental degradation and climate change. Rapid population growth, climate change and market crises in low-income and middle-income countries mean that crop breeding must be far more agile and professional than ever before. Data-driven, modernized breeding with tools and technologies such as genomic selection, quantitative genetics, high-throughput phenotyping and bioinformatics, are needed to accelerate and advance improvement in varieties.  

Across the CGIAR-NARES (National Agricultural Research and Extension Systems) crop breeding networks, there is huge opportunity to reach the full potential to improve the lives of farmers and consumers: to share innovations to their full potential; reduce costs associated with services such as bioinformatics; de-fragment disparate data and incompatible technologies; apply consistent standards; and improve access to tools, technologies and shared services.

This Initiative aims to improve the genetic, economic, social and environmental performance of breeding programs across the CGIAR-NARES breeding network.

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Undertaking strategic modernization so that breeding schemes are designed using the most up-to-date methods, namely: quantitative genetics and computer simulation, including modeling of adoption and benefits across the breeding network, and budget forecasting for management of the portfolio and operational improvements. 
  • Delivering cost-effective shared services through coordinating services such as genotyping and data management, leading to efficiency and greater bargaining power in purchasing or contracting equipment, software and services, ultimately enabling the generation and analysis of high-quality and consistent data across the breeding network. 
  • Implementing performance management of consistent, connected operations through a dedicated performance management team supporting breeding programs and data management teams in describing, harmonizing and adopting standard operating protocols, workflow charts and quality controls across the networks. 
  • Making smarter use of data, enabling CGIAR-NARES networks to share standardized data, creating larger and more powerful datasets that can be readily analyzed and interpreted. 
  • Promoting innovation and research exchange through developing and implementing change management plans, and supporting region-specific capacity building to increase global adoption of modernized breeding tools, technologies and shared services across the network.

This Initiative will work with breeding programs serving countries in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, along with Asia and Latin America. High-priority countries for the Initiative include Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Zimbabwe and Zambia in Africa, and Bangladesh and India in South Asia.

Proposed 3-year outcomes include:

  1. Varieties are developed 30% faster for 70% of targeted breeding programs. 
  2. Shared services reduce costs by 25% in a majority of target programs, making modernized breeding more accessible across the global CGIAR-NARES networks. 
  3. At least 70% of targeted breeding programs make data-driven decisions using genomic, phenotypic and environmental data at more than one major decision point. 
  4. At least a 70% improvement of Initiative’s targeted breeding programs in at least 50% of impact area tracking indicators as a result of CGIAR-NARES leadership. 
  5. Increased capacity in at least 15 NARES institutions, demonstrated by increased access to tools, technologies and shared services (of more than one type) more than once a year. 
  6. A least 70% of the Initiative’s targeted continuous breeding programs increase or add at least one target to their modernization plan. 
  7. Standardized protocols shared in a common system. 
  8. Harmonized operations enabling consistent data generation. 
  9. Adoption of quality management system within facilities. 
  10. Establishment of Breeding Pipeline Improvement Monitoring System to support informative performance monitoring that reduces the complexity of breeding activities to the core metrics material for decision-making, as aligned to shared goals. 
  11. Establishment of performance monitoring system to track implementation of standardized processes and quality of operations along with modernization progress and the impacts of the resulting breeding program. 

CGIAR Initiative: Seed Equal

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Inadequate seed supply and delivery systems, sometimes also misaligned with user and market demand, mean that smallholders often recycle seed or use older varieties, leaving them more vulnerable to pests and diseases.  Small-scale farmers, especially women and other disadvantaged groups, are particularly vulnerable to climate-related challenges, such as more frequent and severe droughts and erratic rainfall. Additionally, farmers may not be well informed about varietal options available to them or may be reluctant to experiment with new varieties. These challenges threaten agricultural production and can compromise their ability to meet their own food, nutrition and income needs.  

Improved varieties, innovations and approaches developed and promoted by CGIAR and partners could transform agrifood systems and reduce yield gaps, “hunger months” and other disparities. However, limited access to and use of affordable, quality seed of well-adapted varieties with desired traits, means these bottlenecks remain. 

This Initiative aims to support the delivery of seed of improved, climate-resilient, market-preferred and nutritious varieties of priority crops, embodying a high rate of genetic gain to farmers, ensuring equitable access for women and other disadvantaged groups.

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Supporting demand-driven cereal seed systems for more effective delivery of genetic gains from One CGIAR cereal breeding, as well as improving government, private sector and farmer-based capacity to deliver productive, resilient and preferred varieties to smallholders. 
  • Boosting legume seed through a demand-led approach that builds on growing demand for grain legumes. This multistakeholder approach will strengthen partnerships to provide efficient, more predictable and demand-led access to quality seed of new varieties. 
  • Scaling and delivering vegetatively propagated crop seed through sustainable enhanced delivery pathways that efficiently target different market segments and farmer preferences. 
  • Supporting partnerships (including with smallholders), capacity building and coordination to ensure uptake of public-bred varieties and other innovations by providing technical assistance for national agricultural research and extension systems (NARES) and foundation seed organizations in early-generation seed production and on-farm demonstrations. 
  • Developing and implementing policies for varietal turnover, seed quality assurance and trade in seeds by leveraging global expertise and experience to generate both the evidence and engagement necessary to advance efficient, sustainable, and inclusive seed markets that promote varietal turnover and wider adoption. 
  • Scaling equitable access to quality seed and traits in order to reach the unreached and provide inclusive access while addressing gender and social constraints and the digital divide. 

Engagement

This Initiative will work in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, India, Kenya, Mozambique, Nepal, Nigeria, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania as a priority, followed by other countries in Latin America, South and Southeast Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa. 

Outcomes

Proposed 3-year outcomes include:

  1. Robust tools developed and used by funders, developers, researchers and extension staff to sustainably measure and monitor key seed system metrics. 
  2. Increase of 10% in the quantity of quality seed of improved “best-fit” and farmer-preferred varieties available to farmers in representative crops and geographies due to increased capacity of seed companies and other seed multipliers (including farm-based seed actors).  
  3. Public and private seed enterprises adopting innovative and transformative models for accessing, disseminating and multiplying quality early-generation seed, reducing cost and increasing output. 
  4. Reduction of 5% in weighted average varietal age for priority crops in selected countries.     
  5. Government partners in policy design and implementation actively promote policy solutions to accelerate varietal turnover, adoption and quality seed use. 

CGIAR Initiative: Accelerated Breeding

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Resource-poor farmers in low-income and middle-income countries will hugely benefit from improved crop varieties that perform better in terms of nutritional quality, income generation, water and nutrient use, stability of yields under climate change, and the needs of both women and men as farmers and as consumers.  

However, many smallholder farmers still grow old varieties, in part because they derive inadequate benefits from recent breeding efforts. To trigger timely adoption, new varieties must be widely available and affordable to farmers, and offer a step-change in performance through higher rates of genetic gain. A faster pace of varietal turnover is critical – to enable farmers to adapt and advance rapidly as climatic and market conditions change. 

Breeding programs also need a greater focus on developing farmer- and consumer- preferred varieties adapted to distinct production environments, markets and end uses. This can be facilitated by smarter design of breeding programs; stronger partnerships between CGIAR, National Agricultural Research and Extension Systems (NARES) and small and medium enterprises (SMEs); and strengthened organizational capacity.

This Initiative aims to develop better-performing, farmer-preferred crop varieties and to decrease the average age of varieties in farmers’ fields, providing real-time adaptation to climate change, evolving markets and production systems. 

The objective will be achieved through:

  • Re-focusing breeding teams and objectives on farmers’ needs, in particular the needs of women, through achievable product profiles and breeding pipelines targeting prioritized regions and market segments. 
  • Reorganizing breeding teams to drive efficiency gains through the coordinated engagement of specialists and processes using a common organizational framework, stage gates, key performance indicators and handover criteria. 
  • Transforming towards inclusive, impactful CGIAR-NARES-SME breeding networks with empowered partners, along with customized capacity building, standardized key performance indicators, and by dividing labor and resources across partners according to comparative advantage and aligned with national priorities. 
  • Discovering optimum traits and deployments through agile, demand-driven and effective trait discovery and deployment pipelines, and development of elite donor lines with novel and highly valuable traits. 
  • Accelerating population improvement and variety identification through optimizing breeding pipelines (trailing, parent selection, cycle time, use of Breeding Resources tools and services, etc.), with the goal of assuring all programs deliver market-demanded varieties that deliver greater rates of genetic gain per dollar invested. 

Engagement

This Initiative will work with breeding programs serving countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, and South Asia, along with Asia and Latin America. Priority countries for the Initiative include Ghana, Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe in Africa, and Bangladesh and India in South Asia. 

Outcomes

Proposed 3-year outcomes include:

  1. At least 75% of breeding pipelines are oriented towards specific market segments, enabling greater focus on farmers’ needs, drivers of adoption, distinct impact areas and the strategic allocation of resources. 
  2. At least 70% of breeding pipelines use a revised organizational framework that provides operational clarity and effectiveness for specialized teams pursuing breeding outputs. 
  3. At least 80% of the breeding networks have implemented documented steps toward stronger partnership models where NARES and SMEs have increased breeding capacity, and make greater scientific, operational and decision-making contributions to the breeding process. 
  4. At least 50% of breeding pipelines are supported by a dedicated trait discovery and deployment program that delivers high-impact traits in the form of elite parental lines. 
  5. At least 70% of breeding pipelines have increased the rate of genetic gain in the form of farmer-preferred varieties, with at least 50% providing significantly improved varieties delivered to seed system recipients.    

CGIAR Initiative: Market Intelligence

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Decisions on how to invest scarce resources in CGIAR-NARES genetic innovation systems have been predominantly supply-driven and therefore potentially out-of-sync with the demands of smallholders, consumers and agro-industry. The turnover of improved crop varieties developed by CGIAR and its NARES partners (National Agricultural Research and Extension Services) has been slow. Small-scale seed businesses lack incentives to actively promote new varieties given weak demand. Little is known about the drivers of varietal replacement and product substitution, and the role of downstream market actors such as traders, processors and consumers in this process.  

There is a clear need for demand- and data-driven processes to guide genetic innovation systems, but efforts to advance this remain incomplete and fragmented within CGIAR. Current product profile design is strongly biased towards agronomic and stress-tolerance traits, with little systematic identification and integration of traits that contribute to wider social impact. 

This Initiative aims to maximize CGIAR and partners’ returns on investment in breeding, seed systems and other Initiatives based on reliable and timely market intelligence that enables stronger demand orientation and strengthens co-ownership and co-implementation by CGIAR and partners.

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Gathering market intelligence by collecting data to map global and regional challenges across CGIAR’s five impact areas, translating them into regional market segments and priorities for genetic innovation by identifying drivers of demand as well as variation by gender, age and social group.
  • Designing new-generation, gender-intentional target product profiles for each market segment using market intelligence. 
  • Generating behavioral intelligence based on what drives farmers, consumers and private-sector decisions to adopt new varieties and supporting other Initiatives in identifying cost-effective inclusive strategies for accelerating varietal uptake. 
  • Developing pipeline investment cases by estimating the potential impact and return on investment across CGIAR’s five impact areas of the portfolio of breeding pipelines serving the market segments and developing recommendations for the portfolio optimization and prioritization. 
  • Developing institutional scaling and monitoring, evaluation, learning and impact assessment (MELIA) by establishing a collaboration hub across Genetic Innovation Initiatives and partners to develop scaling mechanisms for the adoption of institutional standards and processes in market segmentation and gender-intentional product profile design, and to conduct rigorous MELIA of the portfolio. 

Engagement

This Initiative has a global and regional focus, with countries being prioritized as a result of the Initiative’s work. 

Outcomes

Proposed 3-year outcomes include:

  1. At least three transdisciplinary teams across CGIAR and partners in prioritized regions are empowered in co-implementation of market and behavioral intelligence and co-design of product profiles. 
  2. At least 10 CGIAR partners in prioritized regions adopt institutional standards and processes for market segmentation and product profile design, sharing of market and behavioral intelligence and monitoring of outcomes. 
  3. At least five seed suppliers, food companies and NGOs in prioritized regions use market and behavioral intelligence from the Initiative in strategic decision-making. 
  4. At least three research leaders and investors make investment decisions using pipeline investment cases and the Initiative’s investor dashboard and the increased availability of information and transparent, holistic analyses of high-impact opportunities attract increased investments in underinvested and new-opportunity market segments.

A renewed CGIAR can better support South Asia to determine its food future

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in In the media.

In this article, Temina Lalani-Shariff, Regional Director of South Asia at CGIAR, explores the evolution of CGIAR to meet changing global needs, such as the critical challenge of ending hunger, poverty and inequality across South Asia by 2030 while reaching the climate goals of each country. “A reinvented CGIAR can offer greater flexibility and leadership in three key areas to accelerate the region’s agricultural development and its multiplier benefits for livelihoods, health and climate action,” said Lalani-Shariff.

Highlighting work by the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) to target the spread of crop pests and diseases in Kenya, Lalani-Shariff explains how this success can transfer to fighting fall armyworm (FAW) in South Asia. She cites CGIAR’s experience in scaling innovations and solutions in a variety of agroecologies and environments in partnership with national research institutes, as well as examples from the Seeds Without Borders Initiative and climate-smart villages.

Lalani-Shariff explains the purpose of CGIAR’s Regional Integrated Initiative Transforming Agrifood Systems in South Asia (TAFSSA), which is combining efforts in South Asia to achieve agrifood systems that are more productive and environmentally sound, and support equitable access to sustainable, nutritious diets. Collaboration between CGIAR research centers on Initiatives like this offers opportunities to build effective networks and partnerships for addressing future challenges.

Read the original article: A renewed CGIAR can better support South Asia to determine its food future

FFAR’s food security webinar at COP27 highlights need for genebank collection diversity research

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Press releases.

Shelves filled with maize seed samples make up the maize active collection in the Wellhausen-Anderson Plant Genetic Resources Center at CIMMYT’s El Batán headquarters, Mexico. (Photo: Xochiquetzal Fonseca/CIMMYT)

As part of the Agriculture Innovation Mission for Climate (AIM for Climate) Roadshow at the 27th annual UN Climate Change Conference of the Parties (COP27), the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) and its partners are hosting a webinar on November 11, 2022 to highlight the Fast Tracking Climate Solutions from CGIAR Genebank Collections program and the importance of crop improvement research for building climate resilient supply chains.

Fast Tracking Climate Solutions from CGIAR Genebank Collections is expanding CGIAR’s and other organizations’ crop improvement research. This initiative is key to developing new crop varieties adapted to the stresses of climate change, including disruptions caused by drought, heat and flooding. Through this ambitious research program, scientists have already developed critical traits using the genebanks, strengthening the identification of high-value genetic diversity from germplasm collections and more efficiently leveraging this diversity to develop new varieties of climate-resilient crops.

Join virtually to learn more about this program’s pioneering research, the value of collaboration in this research and opportunities to engage further.

WHEN: November 11, 2022, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. EST

WHO: Jeffrey Rosichan, FFAR (moderator)

Bram Govaerts, director general a.i. (secretary general and CEO), the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), CGIAR

Éliane Ubalijoro, member of the Global Diversity Crop Trust executive board, Global Crop Diversity Trust

Gary Atlin, senior program officer in the agricultural development initiative, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Sarah Hearne, principal scientist, CIMMYT, CGIAR

RSVP: Please register for the webinar to receive call-in information. This event is free and open to the public.

AIM for Climate is a joint initiative by the United States and United Arab Emirates seeking to address climate change and global hunger. The initiative brings together partners to increase investment in climate-smart agriculture and food systems innovation. Specifically, AIM for Climate is advancing research through Innovation Sprints. As an AIM for Climate Knowledge Partner and an Innovation Sprint Partner, FFAR has two other Innovation Sprints in addition to the genebanking project: AgMission and the Greener Cattle Initiative.

For more information, contact Jamie Nickel, communications & legislative affairs associate, at jnickel@foundationfar.org.

About the Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research

The Foundation for Food & Agriculture Research (FFAR) builds public-private partnerships to fund bold research addressing big food and agriculture challenges. FFAR was established in the 2014 Farm Bill to increase public agriculture research investments, fill knowledge gaps and complement USDA’s research agenda. FFAR’s model matches federal funding from Congress with private funding, delivering a powerful return on taxpayer investment. Through collaboration and partnerships, FFAR advances actionable science benefiting farmers, consumers and the environment.

Cover photo: Shelves filled with maize seed samples make up the maize active collection in the Wellhausen-Anderson Plant Genetic Resources Center at CIMMYT’s El Batán headquarters, Mexico. (Photo: Xochiquetzal Fonseca/CIMMYT)

Refresher webinar on fall armyworm management in South Asia

Written by Alison Doody on . Posted in News.

Banner for the refresher webinar on fall armyworm management in South Asia. (Photo: CIMMYT)

The fall armyworm is a destructive polyphagous pest that feeds on more than 300 crop species, with a particular appetite for maize. The pest was first reported in Asia in 2018 and has been spreading in the region since then, especially in maize-producing countries of South Asia.

Several campaigns on identifying and managing fall armyworm have been conducted in South Asia, yet the challenge to control the pest remains. The damage caused by fall armyworm to farmers’ fields was reported widely during the 2022 spring maize season in Pakistan and Nepal’s Terai region. Many maize farmers complained about the current economic downturn, price hike of agricultural commodities and the unavailability of safe pesticides to reduce crop losses.

On 21 July 2022, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) initiated a refresher webinar to share the latest scientific advances and best practices for identifying and managing fall armyworm in South Asia. The platform extended an opportunity for the participants to understand and learn about effective integrated pest management (IPM) approaches being practiced in the region. It also addressed the importance of enabling policies that are crucial to foster innovations to reduce crop yield loss and save the environment from hazardous effects of toxic pesticides.

The Nepal Seed and Fertilizer Project (NSAF) team, supported by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and implemented by CIMMYT, organized the virtual event in collaboration with Nepal’s Plant Quarantine and Pesticide Management Center, the Nepal Agricultural Research Council, Nepal’s National Maize Research Program, the Maize and Millet Research Institute in Pakistan, the University of Agriculture Faisalabad and CGIAR’s Plant Health Initiative.

Govinda Prasad Sharma, Secretary of Nepal’s Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development and Jason Seuc, director of the Economic Growth Office at USAID Nepal, delivered their opening remarks during the inaugural session. The Secretary emphasized the use of safer methods, including but not limited to mass rearing and releasing of natural enemies of fall armyworm and the deployment of fall armyworm tolerant maize varieties.

“USAID will continue working with partners to advocate and promote IPM practices till the pest becomes of non-economic importance,” said Seuc.

BM Prasanna, director of CIMMYT’s Global Maize Program and OneCGIAR Plant Health Initiative lead emphasized the importance of IPM practices to manage the pest. Prasanna discussed the global efforts to control the pest and shared the progress of fall armyworm tolerant maize seeds which are being released and deployed by CIMMYT partners to help resource poor farmers, especially in Africa.

AbduRahman Beshir, NSAF’s seed systems lead, emphasized the importance of the event and acknowledged the participation of approximately 525 attendees from public and private research institutions, academicians, civil society, private sector, policy decision-makers, CGIAR centers and USAID Nepal. The webinar gathered attendees from 15 countries, including Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Thailand, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and China.

Experts from South Asia presented on a range of topics including the status of fall armyworm and its management in Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh and the Pacific Region, IPM practices and experience of using safe pesticides, breeding for native genetic resistance to fall armyworm, and biological control and push-pull strategies. The experts emphasized on the need for collective efforts to strengthen national and international coordination, favorable policies, deployment of fall armyworm tolerant maize varieties, and best response interventions to help farmers battle the fall armyworm and limit its spread.

Efforts to mitigate the impact of fall armyworm attacks are still ongoing. CIMMYT is continuously working to alert farmers and stakeholders on the IPM practices of fall armyworm in the region.

CGIAR Initiative: Excellence in Agronomy

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Smallholdings represent over 80% of the world’s farms, mostly located in the Global South, and supply 50% of global food. Enhanced agronomy management has a great potential to increase productivity, sustainability, efficiency and competitiveness of these smallholdings, which is characterized by low and variable yields and profitability, smallholder farming challenges include water scarcity, climate change, low resource use efficiencies and declining soil health. These result in negative impacts on food and nutrition security, equitable livelihoods and ecosystem health.  

Smallholder farmers seasonally make critical agronomic decisions regarding crop choice, planting dates and pest, disease, weed, soil fertility and water management, often based on suboptimal practices and information. Traditional agronomic research enhances our understanding of basic processes, but with limited connection to stakeholder demand and often based on outdated approaches. The development, deployment and uptake of interventions is hampered by social, economic and institutional constraints, further confounded by adherence to conventional supply-driven innovation strategies.

Objective

This Initiative aims to deliver an increase in productivity and quality per unit of input (agronomic gain) for millions of smallholder farming households in prioritized farming systems by 2030, with an emphasis on women and young farmers, showing a measurable impact on food and nutrition security, income, resource use, soil health, climate resilience and climate change mitigation.  

Activities

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Facilitating the delivery of agronomy-at-scale solutions, including development and technical/user-experience validation and the co-creation and deployment of gender- and youth-responsive solutions to smallholder farmers via scaling partners. 
  • Enabling the creation of value from big data and advanced analytics through the assembly and governance of data and tools; application of existing analytics and solutions for specific use cases; supply of information on climate impacts, inclusivity and sustainability of agronomic solutions; and national agricultural research system capacity strengthening. 
  • Driving the next generation of agronomy-at-scale innovations by addressing key knowledge gaps and facilitating innovation in agronomy research through engagement with partners. 
  • Nurturing internal efficiencies for an agile and demand-driven agronomy research and development community through internal organization and external partnerships for prioritization, demand mapping and foresight. 

CGIAR Initiative: Plant Health

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Effective plant health management is critical for improving the productivity, profitability, sustainability and resilience of agrifood systems. Yet, farming communities, especially in low- and middle-income countries, struggle to contain existing and emerging plant pests and diseases. Each year, these threats cause on average 10–40% losses to major food crops, costing the global economy around US$220 billion. The highest losses are associated with food-deficit regions with fast-growing populations. 

Increasing international trade and travel, coupled with weak phytosanitary systems, are accelerating the global spread of pests and diseases. The situation is exacerbated by climate change, with agricultural intensification and diversification driving the emergence of new threats. These burdens fall disproportionately on poorly resourced communities, especially women and youth in rural areas. 

Diagnostic capacity, global-scale surveillance data, risk prediction/forecasting and rapid response and management systems for major pests and diseases are still lacking. Inadequate information and knowledge of and access to climate-smart control options leave smallholders and marginalized communities ill-equipped to respond to biotic threats. Environmental and health effects of toxic pesticides, exposure to mycotoxins and acute unintentional pesticide poisoning are major concerns.

Objective

This Initiative aims to protect agriculture-based economies of low- and middle-income countries in Africa, Asia and Latin America from devastating crop pest incursions and disease outbreaks by developing, validating and deploying inclusive innovations, and by leveraging and building viable networks across an array of national, regional and global institutions.

Activities

This objective will be achieved by:

  • Bridging knowledge gaps and networks for plant health threat identification and characterization, focusing on strengthening the diagnostic and surveillance capacity of national plant protection organizations and national agricultural research and extension systems, and facilitating knowledge exchange on pests and diseases. 
  • Building capability of relevant national stakeholders for risk assessment, and data management and guiding preparedness for rapid response, focusing on controlling the introduction and spread of pests and diseases by developing and enhancing tools, standards and policies. 
  • Improving integrated pest and disease management, focusing on designing and deploying approaches against prioritized plant health threats in targeted crops and cropping systems. 
  • Designing and deploying tools and processes for protecting food chains from contamination, specifically, through innovations for reducing mycotoxin contamination to protect health, increase food/feed safety, enhance trade, diversify end-use and boost income. 
  • Promoting gender-equitable and socially inclusive scaling of plant health innovations to achieve impacts through multistakeholder partnerships, inter-disciplinary research, effective communications and capacity development.

CGIAR Initiative: Digital Innovation

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Uncategorized.

Digital innovations can enable an unprecedented transformation of food, land and water systems for greater climate resilience and sustainability. To realize this potential, multidisciplinary expertise across the CGIAR must find solutions to three challenges affecting the Global South: 

  1. The digital divide: digital technologies and infrastructure do not meet people’s needs, especially women and rural populations. More than 600 million people live outside the reach of mobile networks, two-thirds of them in sub-Saharan Africa. 
  2. Weak information systems: available information is inadequate or does not reach those who need it most. More than 300 million small-scale producers lack access to digital climate services. Weak information systems prevent evidence-based policy responses and lead to missed opportunities to reduce poverty and increase economic growth. 
  3. Limited digital capabilities: digital literacy and skill levels across the Global South remain low, particularly for marginalized and food-insecure individuals and groups such as women.

Objective

The Digital Innovation Initiative aims to develop and support digital innovations to stimulate the inclusive, sustainable transformation of food, land and water systems in the areas of investments that policymakers could make to close the digital divide, information delivery systems that allow more people to take action against predicted risks, and ways for partner organizations and marginalized communities to enhance digital capabilities, access resources and opportunities. 

This objective will be achieved through:

  • Generating evidence on impacts of digital innovations and collaborative partnerships to create an enabling environment for digital ecosystems, unlocking local innovators’ access to investments and advanced technologies. 
  • Developing a suite of tools and guidelines to bridge the digital divide, ensuring that gender equality and social inclusion underly the development of digital innovations, research programs and their implementation. 
  • System dynamics modeling to understand complex dynamics in agrifood systems and support natural resource management authorities in equitably allocating water and land resources and managing risks. 
  • Real-time food system monitoring to provide timely and reliable information to stakeholders by applying AI-driven analytics of satellite remote sensing, internet-connected sensors, and other ground-truthed data from multidisciplinary sources. 
  • Strengthening partners’ capacity to collect real-time data, conduct data analytics and make data-driven decisions to enable equitable digital platforms and services.

Strengthening capacity and building national and regional partnerships in the seed sector

Written by Sarah McLaughlin on . Posted in Features.

Hybrid seeds exhibit a significant potential to boost on-farm productivity and attain food security. Still, the availability, affordability and accessibility of such quality seeds remain a challenge for farmers in South Asia. Primarily driven by the demand from the poultry industry, maize productivity in the region is increasing annually. Yet, the hybrid maize seed coverage is below 50% in most South Asian countries.

In continuation of its capacity-building initiatives, the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) conducted an International Training Workshop on Quality Hybrid Maize Seed Production and Seed Business Management in South Asia on August 15-18, 2022, in Kathmandu, Nepal. The four-day hybrid training was jointly organized by Nepal’s Seed Quality Control Center, Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), Seed Entrepreneurs’ Association of Nepal and CGIAR’s Seed Equal Initiative. Primarily, the event aimed at strengthening the capacity of seed stakeholders on the latest advances in quality hybrid maize seed production and establishing competitive hybrid seed business strategies.

Around 60 participants comprising of private seed company owners, national and international seed system specialists, maize breeders, crop inspectors, seed agronomists, marketers, policymakers and researchers working in hybrid seed production and marketing attended the training. Representatives were invited from Nepal, India, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Principal trainer, John MacRobert, shared examples and knowledge in the principles of hybrid maize seed production and seed business. Former principal scientist of CIMMYT, MacRobert is currently the managing director of Mukushi Seeds Pvt Ltd in Zimbabwe and director of Quality Seed Pvt Ltd in South Africa. The training also involved group discussions and exercises on preparing a seed road map as well as developing profitable seed business plans. The participants used a seed business model canvas tool to chart their production plans, develop marketing strategies and diagnose profit. In 2018, MacRobert trained 15 private seed companies from Nepal and Pakistan on hybrid seed business mentorship course in Kathmandu. Since then, the participants brought in and shared rich practical experiences from their own businesses and regulatory organizations during this year’s program.

Joining MacRobert were 14 national and international experts from CIMMYT and other institutions, who delivered sessions related to hybrid maize breeding principles and techniques, seed quality control measures and regulations, and variety registration and licensing policies and procedures.

The forum offered an excellent learning opportunity for the national and international participants to exchange knowledge and experiences from seed specialists on developing competitive hybrid maize and seed production technologies that will bring cost-efficiency in production and maximize crop yields and business profits. It also served as a ground for establishing networks and collaborations. The mutual learnings will contribute to building national and regional partnerships in the seed sector.

Participants reflected on the learnings and benefits gained from the comprehensive course, which they would apply to improve maize productivity in their respective countries.

Muhammad Aslam, assistant professor from the University of Agriculture Faisalabad in Pakistan, acknowledged the opportunity provided to him and his university. He mentioned the support of CIMMYT in Pakistan in strengthening the local maize seed industry, where the market share of local seed companies is gradually increasing due to the elite germplasm support and capacity development efforts by CIMMYT. He added that the practical knowledge gained from the training will enhance the university students’ skills.

Attendees at the International Training Workshop on Quality Hybrid Maize Seed Production and Seed Business Management in South Asia. (Credit: Bandana Pradhan/CIMMYT)

An ode to seeds

During the closing session of the training, Govinda Prasad Sharma, Secretary of the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, handed over diverse maize seeds to the NARC and seven private seed company partners of the Nepal Seed and Fertilizer (NSAF) project. CIMMYT acquired the elite maize parental lines and breeder seeds from its international maize breeding hubs in Mexico, Zimbabwe, Colombia and India. The seeds have the potential of yielding 6-7 metric tons per hectare for synthetics and more than 10 metric tons for hybrids–a significant increase from 3-5 metric tons of local seeds. More importantly, given the current climate challenges Nepali farmers are facing, these climate-resilient seeds reach maturity earlier than local varieties which reduces their exposure to drought. These seeds will also withstand Fall Armyworm infestations, a devastating pest threatening maize production in Nepal.

“Genetic materials that will not only enhance yield but diversify the gene pool of crops in Nepal is extremely important,” said Lynn Schneider, deputy director of the Economic Growth Office at United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Nepal. “Agriculture must combat climate change and malnutrition, which are critical for the South Asia region. So, I am really proud that we are working on these areas,” shared Schneider.

“Food security is a priority for the Government of Nepal,” explained Sharma. He mentioned maize as an essential commodity from the food and feed perspective for South Asia and plans to collaborate with the private sector and donor organizations to increase maize productivity in the country. “The event will definitely help in augmenting the activities and accelerate the pathway towards achieving food and feed security,” he added.

Moreover, a certificate of appreciation was presented to Nepal’s National Maize Research Program to recognize their effective collaboration in hybrid maize varietal promotion and source seed distribution. Similarly, three partner seed companies of the project were also recognized for the breakthrough in becoming the first recipients of the Government of Nepal’s research and development license to register and produce hybrid seeds on a commercial basis.

CIMMYT also launched an assessment report on Cereal Seeds Value Chain in Nepal that provides evidence-based recommendations for developing Nepal’s formal cereal seed sector, specifically maize and rice. The publication highlights the need for a well-performing seed system where high-quality seeds of a wide range of varieties and crops are produced and available in time and affordable to farmers.

Deepak Bhandari, executive director of NARC, also congratulated the authors and expressed the significance of formulating and implementing inclusive strategies to build a vibrant seed industry in Nepal. He also acknowledged the event organizers for conducting an exceptional international workshop on hybrid maize seeds for the public and private seed stakeholders.

Cover photo: Training attendees gather to discuss competitive hybrid maize seed production technologies and build relationships with seed systems professionals. (Credit: Bandana Pradhan/CIMMYT)