Asia and the Pacific Division (APR) and Near East and North Africa and Europe Division (NEN)

This interactive discussion moderated by Dr Stephan Weise, Deputy Director General (Research), Bioversity International, will shed light on how smallholder agriculture could benefit from advances in science, technology and practice to sustainably intensify food production to ensure food security for growing population, reduce poverty, and improve the environment.

Poor rural communities and smallholders, in particular in Asia and the Pacific and Near East and North Africa and Europe Regions,  depend on natural assets for their livelihoods. Sustainable crop production is, therefore, key to enabling them to play an effective and sustainable role as food producers and stewards of the environment. The current challenges call for plants that:

• are more productive;
• use nutrients and water more efficiently;
• have greater resistance to insect pests and diseases; and
• are more tolerant to drought, flood, frost and high temperatures.

With a particular focus on challenges and opportunities of these two regions to adapt crop cultivation in the context  of climate change, participants will debate how advances in science and research could help smallholders enhance their adaptive capacity vis à vis climate variability, soil degradation and other extreme weather events. The discussion will also help to outline a range of options for regional cooperation to enhance the resilience of smallholder farmers.
The two hour event   will be opened by key note remarks of H.E. Ismat Abbasov, Minister for Agriculture of the Republic of Azerbaijan and Mr Konstantine Kobakhidze, Deputy Minister of the Ministry for Agriculture of Georgia.

Panellists

• H.E. Themina Janjua, Ambassador-designate of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
• Dr Mahabub Hossain the Executive Director of BRAC in Bangladesh, also known for his work on the evaluation of the Grameen Bank microcredit programme, received the first Gold Medal by the Bangladesh Agricultural Economist Association. In his long career Dr Hossain has contributed to research on development economics and agricultural development policy in South and Southeast Asia. He has been instrumental in the development of Asian rice economy. Thanks to his work in identifying the constraints and impact of agricultural technology adoption on income distribution and poverty he influenced the formulation and priority setting of research programmes at the International Rice Research Institute and in several national agricultural research systems. In 2007 he joined BRAC as its Executive Director. In this capacity he led poverty reduction programmes focusing on empowering women in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Haiti, Liberia, Pakistan, Sierra Leone,  South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Tanzania and Uganda.
• Dr Digna Manzanilla, Agricultural Economist, International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), Philippines is passionate researcher. She has worked with the Government of the Philippines and with international organizations and partners in Asia prior to joining IRRI in 2008. At IRRI, she contributed to a number of research projects including the development of response plans, assessment of outcomes and estimation of economic losses of submergence-tolerant rice varieties and associated production practices to Southeast Asia. Dr Manzanilla currently works as a Social Scientist at IRRI and associate coordinator for the Consortium for Unfavourable Rice Environments (CURE) for the consortium of national research and extension systems. Her research focuses on socio-economic dimension of rice research in unfavorable environments, technology validation and dissemination strategies; gender issues and participatory approaches in development; research-to-impact pathways, capacity building, and knowledge management.
• Henry Saragih is the Head of the Indonesian Peasant Union (SPI) and the General Coordinator of Via Campesina – a global network of small-scale farmers and rural workers. Over the years, Mr Saragih has been advocating for farmers’ issues and rights. Thanks to his lobbying efforts with the United Nations, today, the role and rights of smallholder farmers are recognized across the world. In Indonesia, his movement is pushing for a Law on Farmers’ Protection and Empowerment and an amendment of the Law on Food. Mr Saragih  leads a global movement for food sovereignty advocating for a return to locally-produced food to address the global food crisis and environmental degradation. He is also a member of the Steering Committee of IFAD’s Farmers’ Forum.
• Dr Wael Seif, Director of the Water Resources Department at the Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands (ACSAD) is an expert in hydrogeology and integrated water resources management. In 2005, he joined the Department of Water Engineering in the Faculty of Civil Engineering in Damascus University where he still teaches water management, hydrogeology and hydraulics to under- and post-graduates. He has contributed to national water strategy, river basin policies and water policy development at local and national level. Since 2005, Dr Seif has also been working for the Syrian Dutch Water Cooperation  as resident adviser. He supported the establishment of the Raqqa water training centre and led the capacity building programme in integrated water  resources management.
• Dr Mahmoud Solh is the Director General, International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Syria.  After 16 years of working in the International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) in various capacities such as Lentil Breeder, Regional Food Legume Breeder in North Africa, Regional Coordinator of the Nile Valley and Red Sea Regional Program, and Assistant Director General for International Cooperation; and four years of leading the Plant Production and Protection Division at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Dr Solh returned to ICARDA in 2006 as its Director General.  He has a rich experience in donor relations and fund raising, and an in-depth knowledge of needs and aspirations of the national agricultural research and development systems in the Central and West Asia and North Africa region and beyond. Throughout his career, his activities have focused on contributing to food security, alleviating poverty, and developing sustainable agricultural systems; planning, implementation, and evaluation of agricultural research for development; capacity building and human resource development in national agricultural systems; and promoting north-south and south-south cooperation.