United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification

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Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research:
A commitment to science-for-development partnerships

Desertification and land degradation are global challenges, adversely impacting the lives and livelihoods of over one billion poor people a majority of whom depend on agriculture for their survival. Desertification affects 115 countries. Land, a basic and vital resource for productive agriculture, is being degraded severely. Erosion, salinisation, compaction, and other forms of soil degradation already affect 70 percent of the world’s rangelands, 40 percent of rainfed agricultural lands, and 30 percent of irrigated lands. Problems are most severe in Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) is a strategic alliance, supporting a network of 16 international agricultural research Centres that mobilise agricultural and environmental science to reduce poverty, foster human well-being, promote agricultural growth, and protect the environment. CGIAR genebanks hold in public trust, for the benefit of all, over 533,000 samples of crop, forage, and agroforestry genetic resources. These are unique resources for plant breeders working to develop high-yielding crops that withstand droughts and pest attacks while thriving in sparse, degraded soils. Working within a public goods framework, CGIAR scientists and partners are developing a range of new agricultural technologies and fostering improved policies that address the multifaceted challenges posed by ecosystem degradation. A few examples are:


	Scientists at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) are drawing on indigenous knowledge for developing improved water harvesting techniques for arid areas; these are boosting wheat yields in Syria (www.icarda.org)

	The International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in India has developed innovative techniques that use low-cost soil and water conservation structures to fight recurrent droughts, the leading cause of low crop yields in the dry tropics. The Desert Margins Program is developing sustainable land management practices that are helping reverse desertification (www.icrisat.org)

	Scientists at the Mexico-based International Wheat and Maize Improvement Center (CIMMYT) have released two maize varieties, Grace and Zm521, that provide 30 to 50 percent higher yields compared to traditional varieties and are suited for southern Africa’s drought-prone and nutrient-depleted soils (www.cimmyt.org)

	The Africa Rice Center has developed New Rices for Africa (NERICAs) that are boosting rice yields in Sub-Saharan Africa and can better withstand drought and acidic soils (www.warda.org)

	The World Agroforestry Centre in Kenya is leading an effort to improve soil fertility by promoting the use of nitrogen-accumulating leguminous trees (Sesbania); scientists are also developing alternatives to slash-and-burn agriculture, a deleterious farming practice that reduces soil biodiversity and contributes to global warming (www.worldagroforestrycentre.org)

	The International Water Management Institute (IWMI) in Sri Lanka is working to raise water productivity in agriculture through pro-poor irrigation projects, and has launched a comprehensive assessment to provide data and tools for informed policymaking and investment decisions (www.cgiar.org/iwmi)

In a world where 75 percent of poor people depend on agriculture, new knowledge must be mobilised for creating agricultural technologies that promote growth, reduce poverty, and make more prudent use of the earth’s dwindling natural resources.

For over 30 years, CGIAR scientists and their collaborators have demonstrated the value of science-for-development partnerships. Their efforts are fully complementary and supportive of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD).

For more information, please visit www.cgiar.org