December 2002
GFAR Secretariat News
GFAR 2003 Official Announcement
Letter form the New GFAR Executive Secretary
ICT
Facilitation Units
Letter from the New GFAR Executive Secretary
Letter from the New GFAR Executive Secretary
Dear Colleagues,
Let me first wish you all season's greetings, and a very happy and prosperous 2003. A year that I hope will bring each and every one of us joy, happiness and professional satisfaction.
I arrived in Rome to take up this exciting new position as the GFAR Executive Secretary a couple of days ago, and since then, I have often wondered whether it is the 6-hour jet lag I suffered on the way from Ottawa to Rome, or the amount of information I am absorbing that is responsible for the continuous spinning of my head! In any case, I am enjoying every minute of it, and rapidly getting up to speed on many issues of relevance to the GFAR. Let me seize this opportunity to thank the GFAR staff for all the briefings, explanations and guidance I have received to date from them. I look forward to many more of such interactions over the next few weeks.
I do not have to remind you all that the GFAR was born as far back as in 1996. It has since then made some progress towards addressing its mandate and fulfilling its goals. In this regard, one can compare the GFAR and its recent history to an air plane that has been given the green light to proceed on its journey. GFAR, like the aircraft backed out of the loading dock, makes a few twists and turns, sometimes seemingly retracing its steps, as it heads towards the take off runway. Finally it pauses at the beginning of the runway, and with the throttle gradually opening up, races down the run way, takes off at a steep angle, but quickly settles into a comfortable altitude, while still climbing. I believe that my predecessor, the GFAR staff, the steering and management committees have taken the GFAR craft to a comfortable altitude, and it is about to reach its cruising altitude. I invite all of you to join me in taking the craft to that cruising altitude, as we address the objectives we have set ourselves, so that we can, through effective partnerships, our trade mark, contribute to agricultural research that will positively impact on our target beneficiaries.
Thank you.
Yours sincerely,
New GFAR Management Team
The new GFAR Management Team was elected during the 12th GFAR Steering Committee meeting held on 27 October 2002 in Manila, Philippines.
Dr. Mohammad H. Roozitalab of the Association of Agricultural Research Institutions in the Near East and North Africa (AARINENA) was elected Chairman of GFAR with Dr. Willem Van Vuure of the European Forum on ARD (EFARD) and Dr. Marcio Porto of Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (Embrapa) as Vice-chairs of GFAR and NARS Committee, respectively. The newly elected officers will be joined by Dr. Olanrewaju Smith who was recently selected as the new Executive Secretary of the GFAR Secretariat to complete the new Management Team.
The first year of the new team will be an eventful one given initiatives that are lined-up for the next triennium of GFAR. These include the Dakar 2003 Conference in May where about 400 ARD stakeholders are expected to participate; implementation of three projects that will support GFAR stakeholders; launching of several Global Partnership Programmes (GPPs); reinforcing the NARS Committee of GFAR and the challenge to develop a sustainable financing strategy for GFAR.
Dr. Mohammad H. Roozitalab was born on 27th March 1947 in Kazeroon, Iran and is married and has one daughter. He received his BSc degree in 1970 from University of Tehran in agricultural engineering, soil science and obtained MSc (1974) PhD (1978) in soil science from Oklahoma State University, USA. From 1978-1979, he continued the postdoctoral program at the same university in monitoring ground water fluctuation in Western Oklahoma. In 1979, Dr. Roozitalab returned to his native country where he was appointed the leader of a land reclamation and drainage project in Central Iran in1980. From 1983-1995, he served as Director General of Soil and Water Research Institute in Tehran. In 1995, he was appointed Deputy Head of Agricultural Research Education and Extension Organization (AREO), the umbrella institution for national and provincial research institutes and centers in the Ministry of Agriculture. He held the same position until 2001 when all research institutes in agriculture, natural resources, forestry, livestock and fisheries were merged and he was appointed the Deputy Head for International Scientific and Research Cooperation in the restructured Agricultural Research and Education Organization (AREO). He was elected President of Soil Science Society of Iran three times from 1992 to present and is a member of many national research and scientific councils or commissions.
Dr. M. H. Roozitalab has wide experience in agricultural research cooperation at regional and international levels. He was elected the Vice-President of Association of Agricultural Research Institutions in the Near East and North Africa (AARINENA) in 1996-1998 and 2002 and the President of AARINENA in 1998-2000.
He served CGIAR as a member of Consultative Council from 1999-2001. Since 1998 he represented the WANA region in the Steering Committee of Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR-SC) and contributed a great deal in enhancement and development of partnership in ARD at global and regional levels. He was recently elected Chairman of GFAR for a period of 3 years during GFAR-SC Meeting held last October, in Manila, Philippines.
Dr. Willem Van Vuure is a Dutch national and is currently the General Advisor for International Relations of the Executive Board of the Wageningen University and Research Center (Wageningen UR) in the Netherlands. He is also the European representative to the GFAR Steering Committee and is member of both the Steering Committees of the European Forum (EFARD) and the Netherlands Forum on ARD.
Previous to this, Willem served as the Executive Secretary European Initiative for Agricultural Research for Development (EIARD) of the European Commission in Brussels from 1995 to 1998. He then became the Senior Scientific Officer for International Relations of the Netherlands' Ministry of Agriculture, Nature Management and Fisheries from 1990 to 1995 after more than a decade (1978-90) as the Coordinator Agricultural Research for Developing Countries at the Department of Agricultural Research in Wageningen.
Willem was the head/soil scientist of the Soil Survey Department of Suriname's Ministry of Development (1970-78); lecturer/soil surveyor at the Njala University College in Sierra Leone (1968-70); and was a soils surveyor for Agricultural University Wageningen in Turkey (1966). He graduated from the Agricultural University of Wageningen in 1967.
Dr. Marcio Carvalho Marques Porto, was born on September 06, 1950 in Salvador, Brazil. He obtained a B.Sc. degree in 1972 at the Federal University of Bahia, Brazil. A Masters degree in Agronomy was obtained in 1975 at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil. Dr. Porto obtained a Ph.D. degree on Agronomy and Plant Genetics (Cellular and Developmental Biology) in 1983, at the University of Arizona, USA.
Marcio Porto joined Embrapa in 1973 as a researcher of Embrapa´s National Research Center for Cassava and Tropical Fruits, located at Cruz das Almas, Brazil, where he was engaged on research on cassava physiology and Head of the Plant Physiology Laboratory and the Agroclimatology Laboratory, Coordinator of the National Cassava Research Program and Director, Research and Development.
In 1989 he joined the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) as a CIAT scientist posted at Ibadan, Nigeria, with the International Institute for Tropical Agriculture (IITA), where he stayed until 1994. At that point he joined IITA as the Agronomist and Assistant Coordinator of the Southern Africa Root Crops Research Network (SARRNET), posted in Maputo, Mozambique and working in the 11 countries members of SADC. In January 1995 he returned to Brazil as the Director for Research and Development at Embrapa Cassava and Tropical Fruits.
In August 1998 Marcio Porto joined FAO as the Chief of the Crop and Grassland Service (AGPC), Plant Production and Protection Division, Department of Agriculture, posted at FAO Headquarters in Rome, Italy. In February 2001 he returned to Brazil to take the post of Head of Embrapa Secretariat for International Cooperation at Embrapa Headquarters, Brasília.
As the head of Embrapa International Cooperation, Dr. Porto is the main counterpart of Embrapa with global, regional and sub-regional organizations, research institutions and governments of developing and developing countries.
Dr. Olanrewaju Smith, a citizen of Nigeria and Canada, has been recruited as the new Executive Secretary of GFAR. Dr. Smith joins GFAR from the International Development Research Centre (IRDC) in Canada, where he had served as a Senior Manager in the Environment and Natural Resources Management sector for the past 13 years. He replaces Dr. Fernando Chaparro who left GFAR in February 2002.
Dr. Smith holds a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree from the University of Liege, Belgium, a Doctor of Tropical Veterinary Medicine (DTVM) degree and a Diploma in Parasitology from the Institute of Tropical Medicine in Antwerp, Belgium, and a Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree in Animal and Poultry Science from the University of Guelph in Canada. After an academic career as Professor of Animal Production and Health at Obafemi Awolowo University in Nigeria spanning 11 years, he joined IDRC, initially serving as Regional Representative for West and Central Africa based at the IDRC Regional Office in Dakar, Senegal, and eventually moving to IDRC headquarters in Canada where he served as a Research Manager.
Dr. Smith brings to GFAR a wealth of agricultural research and development experience accumulated from years of sustained interaction with national and international agricultural research systems, bi- and multilateral development agencies and participation in intergovernmental fora (e.g., UN Convention to Combat Desertification). He is married with two children.
GFAR MeetingsHighlights of GFAR Meetings in Manila
The 2002 GFAR October meetings were held in October 2002 in Manila, Philippines.
One of the highlights of the October meeting was the election of Dr. Mohammad H. Roozitalab of AARINENA as GFAR Chair, Dr. Willem Van Vuure of EFARD as Vice-Chair and Dr. Marcio Porto of Embrapa as Vice-chair NARS Committee. (See related article). They are joined by Dr. Olanrewaju Smith who was recently recruited as GFAR Executive Secretary.
GFAR and NARS Committee meetings discussed issues related to the GFAR 2003 Conference in Dakar; launching of several GPPs; implementation of three projects to support activities of GFAR stakeholders in the region; reinforcing the role of the NARS Committee; and the challenge to develop a sustainable financing strategy for GFAR.
The following are the highlights of the discussion:
- Three projects, to be implemented in 2003, are expected to boost the level of GFAR support to regional/sub-regional fora and to various ARD stakeholders. These projects include: (1) Programme DURAS funded by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs; (2) Strengthening Civil Society Organizations' (CSOs) participation in Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) which is expected to be supported by the European Commission/DG AIDCO; and (3) the Global-RAIS (Regional Agricultural Information System) Project to be financed by the EC/DG-Research.
- Coordination among the Facilitation Units on Direct Sowing, Mulch-based and Conservation Agriculture (DMC), on Underutilized Species, and on Coconut will be carried out by designing webpages and in ensuring regular electronic and face-to-face dialogue among the three Facilitators to share experiences in coordinating the Global Partnership Programmes (GPPs), among others. (See related article)
- The GFAR 2003 Conference will be held on 22-24 May in Dakar, Senegal with the theme "Linking Research and Rural Innovation to Sustainable Development". About 400 participants from various stakeholders in agricultural research for development (ARD) are expected to attend the Conference. It will be preceded by the FARA General Assembly (19-20 May) and Senegal Agricultural Day (21 May).
- The re-organization of the GFAR Secretariat was generally endorsed by the GFAR-SC members. This implies enhanced monitoring, reporting and resource mobilization role of GFAR Secretariat; and having a flexible staffing policy to more effectively respond to the demands of RF/SRF and issues resulting from the regional priority setting exercise were also recognized.
- Members supported the idea of reinforcing the role of the GFAR/NARS Committee in the light of the iterative process of Regional Priority Setting (RPS). This will involve transforming the traditional NARS Committee into a programming committee. As such, the NARS Committee will focus on how inter-regional collaboration, based on the identified regional priorities, can be best achieved, including ways this can be facilitated by GFAR. They will collectively present, discuss, analyze and articulate regional stakeholder demands as well as the type and level of support the GFAR Secretariat could provide. Support from GFAR could include the allocation of catalytic funds as well as facilitating the development of sets of activities leading to the launch of Global Partnerships Programmes (GPPs). This will enhance the sharing of information among RF/SRF leading to synergy and economies of scales.
- With regards to sustainable financing strategy, stakeholders share the view that the ideal would be to move towards having its activities funded by its stakeholders, i.e., each NARS contributing to its sub-regional forum, the sub-regional forum in turn contributing to its regional fora, and the latter contributing to the Global Forum. In the meantime, it was suggested to explore other interim measures such as membership fees based on a NARS' capacity to contribute; soliciting in-kind contribution such as the case of the current NARS Senior Fellow from the Gambia, secondment of Senior Officers from ARIs (such as the case with CIRAD) and IARCs, and APOs such as in the case of Italy and previously, the Netherlands; and exploring the possibility of having GFAR sponsors. Stakeholders underscored the need to look for ways to ensure the sustainability of GFAR and the Secretariat. The financing strategy should pursue both a short and long-term measures and should consider having financial or in-kind contribution coming from GFAR stakeholders such as through secondment of staff members to and from RF/SRF.
- The scheduled Signing Ceremony of GFAR-IFAD-FAO Memorandum of Agreement (MoU) was called off due to the last minute changes on the part of FAO.
- Ms. Monica Kapiriri of Environment Alert in Uganda will be the NGO representative to GFAR-SC with Ms. Mariam Jorjadze of ELKANA Biological Farming Association in Georgia as her alternate.
- GFAR representation to the CGIAR Executive Committee will be rotated on a yearly basis among the five Regional Fora. FARA will follow AARINENA as GFAR representative to the CGIAR ExCo.
The meeting was concluded after a brief ceremony during which incoming GFAR Executive Secretary Ola Smith presented a plaque of appreciation to outgoing GFAR Chairman Raj Paroda and Vice-Chairman Henri Rouillé d'Orfeuil (in absentia) "in recognition of their invaluable contribution to the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR)".
ICTGLOBAL.RAIS Project is on its Way for Signature
Finally GLOBAL.RAIS Project is under signature and the process should be concluded by the end of the year so that the project can officially start in January. The first Regional Workshop, as already announced, will be hold by AARINENA, in Cairo, Egypt.
AARINENA, GFAR and WAICENT are currently working on the agenda and the background document, also helped by the contribution from other RAIS and organizations which have gone through similar processes of building information networks.
Because of the willingness of having a true participatory approach, AARINENA and GFAR intend to consult all organizations and interested participants in this preparation work by launching an electronic discussion on EGFAR based on the background document in order to come to the workshop with a final document already discussed by all participants.
For further details on AARINENA Workshop, please see the related article.
e-Discussions to be Launched on EGFAR
EGFAR Section Discussion Fora was enriched by a new subsection that will help the discussion launching process. The subsection Submitted Fora will allow registered users to propose a new theme to be discussed and also show interest in joining a previously proposed discussion. When an adequate number of participants is reached for a given proposed forum, it will be moved to the active subsection of Discussion Fora and the discussion can start.
In this way all Stakeholders interested in a particular theme are free to propose it to GFAR community, without an intermediary. This tool will enhance the sense of ownership of EGFAR by all Stakeholders.
A consultation submitted by WAICENT on the AGRIS strategy paper, in order to redefine the role of AGRIS and better coordinate it in the present information landscape has been recently proposed on EGFAR.
In the near future three different discussions will be launched on the following topics:
- The evaluation of the impact of CGIAR training activities, proposed by the TAC
- The organization of AARINENA Workshop to be held at the end of February, in order to finalize documents to be presented during the workshop, and
- A consultation proposed by the European Commission on Terms on reference for a study to formulate guidelines on donor support to development and use of green, red and white biotechnology in developing countries.
The Back Office System of EGFAR
The EGFAR back-office (EBO) is an integrated tool for managing the web site.
Its web interface allows users and administrator to update piece of information without knowledge of database or HTML code.
Main features of the EBO are:
- 4 access levels (1 anonymous, 3 password restricted)
- management of database records (events, institutions, related fora)
- management of web pages contents
- strong control on data integrity
- email alerts between users and administrator
- administrator validation before any online publication
- automatic index updates
- extended use of XML and XSL.
EBO will be available online in January 2003
First Facilitation Units Coordination Meeting
Coordinators of Facilitation Units (FUs), together at GFAR Steering Committee Meeting in Manila, decided to set up a Plan of Action to better coordinate activities between themselves.
The development of different strategies for disseminating information about different activities is distinctive for each unit.
Because FUs are launched under the umbrella of GFAR, one of GFAR's task is to help FUs in developing their strategies and in disseminating their information.
EGFAR has a section dedicated to Research Partnerships that was designed also to host information about FUs. The section is articulated into 4 main themes and divided in several sub-themes. At present only Commodity Chains contains information on two sub-themes (Cocoa and Underutilized Species). The third sub-theme (Coconut) is under construction and there are no constraints in adding new pages dedicated to other FUs (i. e. DMC).
The general idea of the pages hosted on EGFAR, is to give users an introduction to the FUs and then to provide access to individual portals that can be developed by FUs.
Underutilized Species unit has already commissioned the development of its portal to a consultant and, at present, a Mock-up of the portal is hosted on EGFAR in order to receive feedback before finalizing it (see related article).
FUs coordinators called attention to the importance to highlight the relationship between FU portals and GFAR; this can be done by placing the GFAR logo on the portal home page or on every page, as coordinators prefer, together with a short statement that should be further discussed between GFAR and FUs.
Additionally, GFAR proposed to create a specific directory in the Document Repository section, containing all interesting documents (pdf format) submitted by FUs.
FU coordinators expressed their need to better communicate between themselves in order to set up a common strategy for their development and sharing of their experiences.
One of the new tools that EGFAR offers to all stakeholders is the electronic discussion fora. These are managed in a very simple way by EGFAR Webmaster and can be made public or restricted to a limited number of users.
GFAR has proposed to create a closed forum for FUs coordinators and interested persons indicated by coordinators.
Underutilized Species Mock-up
The Facilitation Unit for Underutilized Species has developed a Mock-up (test version) of the portal it is intending to launch as soon as possible. The purpose of this tool is to enhance and ease communication and knowledge exchange amongst experts and organizations working on underutilized species as well as between groups or individuals in need of information on the topic. This mock-up is now on line - temporarily hosted by GFAR - so that it can be tested and that potential users can make their comments regarding content, user friendliness, etc. which will help us to further shape it. You are therefore kindly requested to have a look at it and to give us your critical opinion. The website contains a mock-up questionnaire which will ease your feedback.
We would be also very grateful if you could contribute in spreading out the information to whom you think may be interested. So please, take a little of your busy time and let us know if you think this tool of information will be useful to you.
We are also collecting information through another questionnaire for a database "Who-is-doing-what in the field of underutilized plant species" and to identify information needs of research institutions with regard to underutilized plant species.
Access to the database will be available through our web portal. Therefore you are kindly asked to spend another few minutes to answer even this questionnaire, save a copy as: "your_name_SURVEYGFU" and e-mail to attaching the file. Please, inform other research institutions in your country about it and encourage them to fill it in.
Thank you very much for your kind cooperation.
Wishing you a Merry Christmas and all the best for the New Year.
Irmgard Hoeschle-Zeledon
Coordinator GFU for Underutilized Species
GFAR Secretariat
c/o FAO, SDR, Viale delle Terme di Caracalla - 00100 Rome, Italy
Tel. +39.06.5705.3413 Fax +39.06.5705.3898
E-mail: