Visit the CPWF website: http://www.waterandfood.org                          Print version

Welcome to the 25th Issue of water and Food - the CPWF Bimonthly newsletter, August / September 2007

In this issue

This 25th Edition of Water and Food Bi-Monthly sees Sanjeev Hewavitharne take over from Felicity Woodhams as editor.  In this issue you can read about how advances with aerobic rice in Anhui province, China illustrate its broader potential; how CPWF together with IFS prepare to support young scientists from the Volta basin countries and about an indigenous approach to land and water management that sidesteps the practice of ‘slash and burn’…

Advancing Rice Cultivation in Mengcheng

A predominantly agricultural area, Mengcheng County lies in Anhui province, China. With an annual rainfall value between 700 and 900 mm, tributaries from the Huai He River Basin are the main sources of irrigation water that flows through field canals. Groundwater provides supplemental irrigation in the winter and summer cropping seasons.

Groundnut in former lowland rice field in Tao Zhuang village (Photo: Liz Humphreys, June 2007)

Twenty years ago, the main crops were wheat (in winter) and lowland rice (in summer, the wet season). Now, having been replaced by upland crops such as maize, soybean and legumes, there is very little lowland rice. According to Prof. Xie Guanghui, and Ms. Yan Jing, researchers from China Agricultural University (CAU), this could be due to reduced physical availability of canal water for irrigation and increased fuel prices for pumping groundwater. Dams and distribution canals in the Huai He River were once created by the government to allocate water to industries, urban areas, and agricultural areas. As industries and urban areas increase, water supply for agricultural areas decreases. Furthermore, although the government once made farm ditches for irrigation and drainage and supplied irrigation water to the field, today, if farmers want to plant lowland rice, they have to make the ditches and pay the cost of pumping water themselves.

Tube for measuring water table (Photo: Liz Humphreys, June 2007)

CPWF project 16 on aerobic rice, in collaboration with CAU, identified Mengcheng as a potential area for adoption of aerobic rice as it used to be a rice growing area, and productivity of non-rice summer crops is reduced in some years by water-logging. CAU has been conducting field experiments in Mengcheng for the last four years. PhD and MSc students regularly visit the field to get data and samples for analysis. For her PhD, Yan Jing is conducting field experiments on both aerobic rice-wheat / broad bean / fallow rotation, and variety / sowing date / nitrogen (V x SD x N) effects and interactions for aerobic rice.  

In June, 2007, a team of CPWF researchers including Liz Humphreys (Theme 1 Leader), Bas Bouman (Project 16 Leader), and Bing Bayot (Theme 1 Assistant) joined Yan Jing and Prof. Xie on a visit to the project’s experiment sites.

A few days before the field visit, Bas Bouman and Chinese colleagues from CAU attended the Impact Pathways Workshop in Zhengzhou where they produced a map of network of influence for the project. They first constructed the “now” network; and referring to their vision of impact for the next two years, they re-drew the network map. The “future” network map shows more collaboration with government and donor agencies for upscaling, and linkages for outscaling. Their timeline of activities also focused on their strategies for out- and up-scaling.

While developing the network map and timeline, they recognized different actors in the network. In their “now” network map, they describe the farmers as the ultimate beneficiaries of the technologies. During the visit to Mengcheng, the team met two farmers who also work as “technicians,” introducing new technologies to farmers (e.g. new seeds and management, including aerobic rice, methods for controlling insects etc.). Bas identified them as important “agents of change” who had not previously been recognized in networks for impact. 

Bas Bouman and Yan Jing meet with farmers in Shuanghu village (Photo: Liz Humphreys, June 2007)

After visiting Yan Jing’s experiment sites, the team talked to farmers participating in the project. One of them is called a farmer-technician. His name is Zhang Hua. Zhang Hua did not attend an agricultural school, nor is he a government extension agent. He is a farmer who is initiating Han Dao (aerobic rice) cultivation in the field and is selling seeds to his farmer neighbors. He told the team that he has a friend from another village who introduced him to Han Dao. They got their seeds in Kaifeng, and tried it in their own village. They started cultivating Han Dao in 2004, and continued until 2006.

These farmers tried Han Dao because lowland rice production requires high input cost (i.e., water, fertilizer, labor for transplanting, and labor for weeding). However, the yield of Han Dao is not as high as that of lowland rice. The wife of the farmer even commented that it takes more time to cook Han Dao. Nevertheless, they said that the eating quality of aerobic rice is good.

They stopped Han Dao cultivation in summer 2007 because it was no longer profitable. The low yield is only enough only for household consumption. Zhang Hua and Prof. Xie report that the percent grain filling is low. Both farmers also spoke of severe insect infestation and saw this as a major yield limiting factor.

When asked about the Han Dao variety that they used, the researchers learned that the farmers only used Han Dao 277. Bas suggested that they try other Han Dao varieties to determine if there will be a difference in the grain filling. He proposed to Prof. Xie to conduct a participatory variety selection in the farmers’ fields using different Han Dao varieties. The project will supply the seeds to the farmers for this experiment.

Han Dao as an emergency crop

Based on responses from farmer interviews, it appears that many are planting aerobic rice as an emergency crop. Occasional flooding in the area during the summer growing season results in yield instability of upland crops. If they have Han Dao in a part of their fields, they would be guaranteed with a crop harvest at the end of the summer season. Aerobic rice can stand both aerobic and submerged conditions. However, yields of aerobic rice are currently too low for it to be attractive, and while considerable amounts of aerobic rice were grown in 2005 and 2006, hardly any will be planted in 2007, hence the need for better aerobic rice varieties.

Yan Jing in her laboratory, where she measures yield and yield components, and analyzes data (Photo: Bas Bouman and Bing Bayot, June 2007)

Cross-learning from the Rainfed Conservation Agriculture Project (Project 12)

During their visit, the CPWF team observed that after harvesting wheat, farmers burn the standing stubbles (about 30 cm high) in the field prior to direct seeding (or cultivation then seeding) the next crop, despite the government ban on burning. Prior to burning they collect the loose residues and sell them to paper factories. Aerobic rice cultivation could potentially be grown using conservation agriculture techniques (zero till, retention of residues on the surface, crop rotation). This is something that is beyond the scope of the current projects, but should be investigated seriously in the future.

For more information, please contact Liz Humphreys, Theme 1 Leader, e.humphreys@cgiar.org; Bas Bouman, b.bouman@cgiar.org; or Bing Bayot, Theme 1 Assistant, b.bayot@cgiar.org

CPWF and the International Foundation for Science (IFS): Supporting Early-career Scientists in the Volta River Basin

To date, CPWF has had successful experiences providing interdisciplinary and transboundary training platforms for young scientists through its research projects¹. Drawing from these experiences, CPWF has started a new capacity building collaboration with the International Foundation for Science (IFS), based in Stockholm, Sweden. Both CPWF and IFS are interested in supporting young scientists from developing countries to excel in science and in promoting interdisciplinary perspectives on water resources and agricultural research; the first such activity will be carried out in the Volta River Basin.

The mandate of IFS is to strengthen capacity for relevant and high quality research in developing countries. The thematic focus is on biological and water resources, as well as the social and economic aspects important to the conservation, production, and renewable utilization of the natural resources base. Since 1972, IFS has provided over 6,000 grants to early career researchers in more than 100 countries.

In July 2007, CPWF and IFS signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) which launches a three year collaboration during which time IFS will host special calls for researchers from CPWF basins. CPWF will assist with the recruitment of good applicants to the calls and will provide scientific mentorship to both the applicants and to the successful IFS grant recipients. 

Each IFS-CPWF special call seeks to recruit a pool of early career scientists from a number of disciplines who prepare independent applications that are conceptually linked to one another through concepts of water, food, poverty, and the environment. Successful applicants will be professionally mentored as an interdisciplinary team, drawing from international and regional expertise within CPWF’s wide network of active research projects, as well as from new capacity building partners.

The first call, announced 1 August 2007, recruited applicants from Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Mali and Togo to contribute to the expansion of research questions developed by the CPWF Small Reservoirs Project (SRP), which focuses on both localized and basin scale agro-economic dynamics of small reservoirs and small reservoir ensembles.

Small Reservoirs in the Volta River Basin provide important economic, agricultural, and environmental benefits. IFS-CPWF Research Grantees will explore the dynamics and tradeoffs of water management associated with small reservoirs in an interdisciplinary and transboundary context

Small reservoirs researchers from the International Institute for Water and Environmental Engineering (2iE) in Burkina Faso will also contribute to the mentorship of the IFS Grantees. 2iE is a regional and traditionally francophone institute of research and higher learning. Through collaboration with CPWF, 2iE and the IFS Grantees from Francophone countries in the Volta, participants will have the opportunity to take part in research activities which will not only strengthen their English language skills but will also allow them to work together on research concerning the future management of their shared river basin, in conjunction with Ghanaian and international peers.

For more information about the joint IFS-CPWF call and activities please refer to the CPWF website, where the call is posted in both English and French:

¹African Models of Transboundary Governance, Enhancing Multi-scale Mekong Water Governance, and Groundwater Governance in Indo-Gangetic and Yellow River Basins
For more information, please contact Marcia Macomber, CPWF Capacity Building Officer: m.macomber@cgiar.org

The Quesungual Slash and Mulch Agroforestry System (QSMAS) - CPWF Project 15

The Quesungual Slash and Mulch Agroforestry System (QSMAS) is a production system practiced by resource-poor smallholders on steep slopes in the sub-humid tropics of the southwest Honduras. It has been the basis of a successful development strategy promoted by the FAO-Lempira Project that has focused on improving rural livelihoods in the Lempira Department, formerly the poorest region in Honduras. During the initial implementation of the project by FAO it was found that, although slash and burn practices were extensively practiced by small farmers there was a small group of farmers in the village of Quesungual who planted crops under a slash and mulch system without burning. The project concentrated on efforts to improve and generalize this practice in the region, initiating a process to test the technological components of the QSMAS with the active participation of farmers. Local organizations, farmer communities, and small enterprises developed over time along with the process of supporting the adoption of improved land and water management practices associated with the QSMAS. Burning was banned by local government officials and resulted in an almost 100% reduction of fire in several villages of the region.

A unique system

QSMAS is proving to be a unique system, capable of improving food security and maintaining resource quality. Farmers cite a number of advantages to QSMAS, including improved soil water availability (moisture retention and longer duration of moisture availability for crops in the extended dry season) resulting in considerably reduced crop losses due to drought. A two-fold increase in crop yields (maize from 1200 to 2500 kg/ha, beans from 325 to 800 kg/ha) and cattle stocking rates, and significant reduction in costs associated with agrochemicals and labor in comparison to the traditional slash and burn (SB) system has lead to the widespread adoption of QSMAS by more than 6,000 households in 7,000 ha.

Quesungual system promotes natural regeneration with no burning, no tillage, soil cover and spot fertilization  (Photo: Juan Cobo, 2002)

QSMAS is based on planting annual crops in an improved (through practices adapted by technicians and farmers) indigenous slash and mulch management system that avoids burning. Management of the system includes annual production of maize as a main crop in the first rainy season (long) and beans or sorghum as a second rainy season (short) crop using zero-tillage, seasonal slashing and mainly pruning of native trees and shrubs, maintaining soil cover through mulching, spot application of fertilizers, and application of pre-emergence herbicides. The main objective of the CPWF Quesungual project is to define the key driving forces and principles behind the social acceptance and the biophysical resilience of QSMAS (by determining the role each of the components of the system plays) and its buffer capacity to sustain crop production and alleviate water deficits on steeper slopes with high risk for soil erosion.

Achievements to date

QSMAS in Nicaragua advanced mainly through farmer-to-farmer dissemination (Photo: Jorge Olivares, 2005)

So far, the collaborative research between the project’s partners, the TSBF-LA (Tropical Soil Biology and Fertility Institute of CIAT-Latin America) and MIS (Integrated Soil Management) consortium (with active participation from 14 students) in Central America, contributed to the following major findings:

• QSMAS is a production system with small farms (size of 0.5 to 1.0 ha) inserted into the landscape.
• Tree cover is similar in QSMAS and secondary forest
  Local biodiversity is favored through the conservation of trees and shrubs within the system
• The combined effect of permanent soil cover and other components of the system reduce soil erosion and improve crop water productivity and water quality, compared to the SB system
• The layer of mulch derived from pruning of trees and crop residues is a source of essential plant nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus
• QSMAS markedly improves the activity of soil macrofauna (earthworms, termites) that enhances nutrient availability and soil aggregation
• The system is an important source of firewood for domestic consumption and has no significant negative effects on greenhouse gas emissions
• Dissemination mechanism of farmer-to-farmer has contributed to testing and validation in other parts of Central America (Nicaragua)

The way forward

Future challenges for the project include:

• Defining dynamics of water, nutrients and greenhouse gases in the system and understanding their relationship with productivity and sustainability
• Identifying key principles and components that contribute to the agronomic success of the system
• Analyzing the socioeconomic impact of QSMAS and the driving forces for its adoption
• Identifying suitable sites for the validation of the system
• Develop guides for the establishment and management of QSMAS as part of a dissemination strategy.

By understanding the capacity of QSMAS to improve water quality and water productivity and its potential application to regions in the world with similar biophysical and socioeconomic constraints, the project can facilitate further adoption of the system, thereby improving crop water productivity and natural resource management, access to water, and water quality for upstream and downstream users. QSMAS contributes to increasing and stabilizing productivity in areas where large populations risk their food security due to water scarcity. A significant effort will also be made to develop guides for the establishment and management of QSMAS as part of the strategy for its diffusion and dissemination.

For more information, please contact the project leader Dr. Idupulapati M. Rao on i.rao@cgiar.org

A Workshop on the Soil and Water Assessment Tool

Introduction

Scientists now face new challenges arising from the complexity of having to address issues in a holistic manner. To respond effectively to these challenges scientists have to greatly expand their repertoire of skills and knowledge. The Challenge Program on Water and Food (CPWF) through the activities of Theme 2 (Water and People in Catchments) and Theme 4 (Integrated Basin Water Management System) contributed to this capacity building challenge by organizing a five-day training workshop on the Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), held 6 - 10 August 2007 at the ICRAF Campus in Nairobi, Kenya. The workshop was supported by the CPWF project, Payment for Environmental Services (PES) and was attended by 16 participants from Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda.

SWAT is used in hydrological modeling to determine the impact of soil technologies on the landscape and watershed. Its original objective was to improve the capacity of the AfNet Members in conducting soil research that results in not only plot level sustainability, but also in ensuring landscape scale watershed management and stability in Africa.

Workshop content

The Nyando Basin in Kenya was used as the study area and the training was focused on answering the question “can better soil management at field and farm level contribute to enhancing basin-wide benefits both sustainably and equitably?” The workshop sessions included:

• Introduction to Nyando Basin natural resources and socio-economic issues
• SWAT model overview and ARCVIEW and AVSWAT commands and operations
  
• Basin delineations and characterization (processing topographic, soil and land use data)
  
• Land management (plant characteristics and management data)
  
• Water management (ponds and reservoir data)
  
• Interpretation of results
  
• Setting management scenario (land use change, changes in cropping system management - conservation tillage and use of manure and fertilizer)
  
• Improving model accuracy (data quality, calibration and validation).
  
• Most of the time was spent in acquiring hands-on experience in running the model and formulating modeling scenarios.
• Real field experiences in the Nyando Basin were presented by the participants and by Dr. Alex Awiti who reinforced the workshop material and training. Mr. Job Kihara illustrated how a DSSAT model could complement a SWAT model by generating some of the crop growth modeling data required by SWAT.

What’s next?

Participants were pleased to note that the model, though requiring a lot of data, was relative easy to run. Within two days they were able to carry out simulations with default data sets. They also noted that most of the data may not be readily available and specifically identified the need to work closely with land resources and soil survey units to ensure that the required data is available at the appropriate spatial and temporal resolution. The participants went onto identify follow up SWAT simulation studies which they would undertake shortly.

The inputs received from the workshop will contribute to a follow up workshop focusing on the economic, social, and environmental evaluation of land-uses (ECOSAUT). This will take place after the AfNet (African Network for Soil Biology and Fertility) Symposium from 17 - 21 September 2007.

Seated (right to left): A. Bationo (AfNet Coordinator), J. Odongo, F. Gichuki (Course facilitator) and B. Waswa Standing (right to left): J. Mukalama, J. Kihara, K. Kaizzi (Uganda), O. Semalulu (Uganda), J. Meliyo (Tanzania), N. Sanginga (Director, TSBF), Z. Mkangwa (Tanzania), A. Esilaba (Kenya), P. Kamoni (Kenya) and F. Maina

For more information, please contact Francis Gichuki, Theme 4 Leader and Workshop Coordinator on f.gichuki@cgiar.org

Staff Changes

Kim Geheb

Kim Geheb has stepped down as Basin Coordinator, Mekong River Basin in order to take up a position with the CPWF in the role of Basin Network Coordinator (BNC), a new position that serves to support, coordinate, and streamline the work of the Basin Coordinators. As Basin Network Coordinator he will continue to represent the basins on the CPWF Management Team. Kim will be based in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia hosted by IWMI, and is contactable at k.geheb@cgiar.org

Felicity Woodhams left the CPWF Secretariat on 31 July for Australia, after six months of excellent work as Communications Assistant. She begins a new career with the Bureau of Rural Sciences in the Department of Agriculture Fisheries and Forestry in her hometown of Canberra. We wish Felicity much success in her new position. Felicity is succeeded by Sanjeev Hewavitharne who joined the team as Communications Assistant on 1 August. Sanjeev studied Arts & Economics in Sri Lanka and in the UK. You can contact Sanjeev, at s.hewavitharne@cgiar.org. CPWF welcomes Sanjeev to the Secretariat.

Augusto Castro

In August, we said good-bye to Catalina Ramirez, Coordination Assistant for the Andean System of Basins who took on a position with the environmental department of the World Bank in Washington D.C. We thank Catalina for her dedication and excellent work over the past two years. Augusto Castro, joins the team as Catalina’s successor. He is a qualified Agricultural Engineer and a specialist in water resources. He will be based in Lima with CIP-Condesan and you may contact him on a.c.castro@cgiar.org. CPWF extends a warm welcome to Augusto.

Announcements

CPWF Annual Report 2006 now available online        

You can download the report here.

New Website for CPWF Andes System of Basins
The new website can be found at http://www.condesan.org/andean. Here you will find geographic, socio-economic and biophysical information about  Fúquene and La Miel (Colombia), El Angel and Ambato (Ecuador), Jequetepeque and Alto Mayo (Perú) and Tunari (Bolivia), the seven basins where CPWF carries out its research in the Andean region. 

CPWF Workshop in the Karkheh River Basin, Iran, 10 - 11 September 2007
An International workshop to discuss and disseminate research findings of the two CPWF projects in Karkheh River Basin (projects 8 and 24), with partners, stakeholders, and invited scientists including ICARDA and AREO, was held in SPII Campus Conference Halls in Karaj City, Iran. For more information contact: nrheydari@yahoo.com

CPWF Basin Focal Projects Review, Colombia, 19 - 21 September 2007

Representatives from BFP leading institutes met to share results and outputs to date and to plan next steps for the initiative. For more information contact: s.cook@cgiar.org

Assessment of Live stock Water Productivity in Basins: A BFP Workshop, Ethiopia, 27 - 29 September 2007
CPWF Basin Focal Projects together with the BMZ Project on Crop-Livestock Systems facilitated a technical workshop in Addis Ababa to review and compare methods of assessing the influence of livestock on water balance, and on other water uses.  It is aimed at organizing stakeholders from key benchmark basins to work collaboratively to produce a multi-basin comparison of livestock-water interactions and their implications for livelihoods and poverty reduction. For more information please email Maya Janamma: maya.janamma@ucd.ie

Project 15 Poster wins award
A poster about the CPWF project ‘Quesungual slash and mulch agroforestry system (QSMAS) was judged the winner at the 2007 Scientific Poster Competition during the Knowledge Sharing Week (18 - 25 May 2007) at CIAT, Colombia.

The poster titled “QSMAS: Improving crop water productivity, food security and resource quality in the sub-humid tropics”, won this award in the Science for Social Benefit category. The poster was selected by a panel that included CIAT staff, CIAT-BOT and other visiting EPMR (external project management review) members.

For more information: http://www.ciat.cgiar.org/epmr_ciat/ks_week.htm

What’s on…

IWMI - CPWF Workshop: Strategic Analyses of India’s River Linking Project, India, 9 - 10 October 2007
Held at the NASC Complex Lecture Hall in New Delhi, India, this will be the first national workshop for CPWF project 48, led by IWMI which aims to assess India’s future in Water -2025 - 2050- and analyze alternative policy options for meeting the country's future water demands. For more information please contact u.amarasinghe@cgiar.org

The Third International Yellow River Forum (IYRF), China, 16 - 19 October 2007
“Sustainable Water Resources Management and Delta Ecosystem Maintenance” will be the main theme and focus of this year’s forum, hosted in Dongying City in China's Shandong Province - the delta area of the Yellow River. For  more information visit http://forum.yellowriver.cn

International Workshop on Aerobic Rice, China, 22 - 25 October 2007
The China Agricultural University (CAU) and the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) will organize this workshop in Beijing, China. It is a joint undertaking by the Water Workgroup of the Irrigated Rice Research Consortium and the project “Developing a System of Temperate and Tropical Aerobic Rice (STAR) in Asia” of the CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food. For more information contact Ruvicyn Bayot: r.bayot@cgiar.org

Capacity Building: New Workshop for Graduate Students, The Netherlands, 29 October - 10 November 2007
An interdisciplinary graduate course in Economic and Environmental Tradeoffs in Agricultural Systems: Integrating Bio-Physical and Economics Models. The course is jointly organized by the C.T. de Wit Graduate School for Production Ecology and Resource Conservation and the Mansholt Graduate School of Social Sciences .

GECAFS International Conference on Food Security and Environmental Change: Deadline for submission of Abstracts 31 October 2007
GECAFS, one of CGIAR's strategic research partners, calls for Abstracts in both Oral and Poster Presentations to help disseminate information on an international conference titled “Linking Science, Development and Policy for Adaptation on Food Security and Environmental Change” scheduled for 2 - 4 April 2008 at the University of Oxford, UK. For more information visit http://www.foodsecurity.elsevier.com

CPWF Poverty Mapping Workshop, Thailand, 31 October - 02 November 2007
The CPWF's Basin Focal Projects are organizing a small Technical Workshop in Chang Mai to further the analysis of livelihoods and agricultural water management. For more information please email Maya Janamma: maya.janamma@ucd.ie

DELTA 2007: A Technical Workshop, Thailand, 07 - 09 November 2007
CPWF together with IWMI, IRRI, WFC, FAO-RAP and the Burapha University in Bang Sean, Thailand has scheduled a workshop to discuss and organize the management of the Coastal Land-Water Interface in Tropical Delta Systems. For more information contact Dr. Chu Thai Hoanh: c.hoanh@cgiar.org
   
Symposium on “Impact of Irrigation on Poverty and Environment (IIPE) in Ethiopia, 27 - 29 November 2007
This Symposium promises to bring together various stakeholders from the regional bureaus, federal and academic institutions, NGOs as well as other international level participants engaged in research endeavors related to improving and understanding basin water resources and agricultural water management, and the link between irrigation and livelihood, the economy and the environment. For inquiries email: s.bekele@cgiar.org or tslemma@cgiar.org  

CGIAR Photo Competition 2007 titled “Portraits of Impact of Agricultural Science”, China, 3 - 6 December 2007
This professionally judged Photo Contest is being organized as part of the upcoming Annual General Meeting 2007 (AGM07) to be held in Beijing, China. The Contest is open to all CGIAR staff based on certain conditions. All entries should be received by close-of-day on Friday 12 October 2007. To submit your entries online and for more info on the competition: http://www.cgiar.org/cgphotos/index.cfm?Page=EntryForm

Share your news and views!

To make this newsletter a successful and useful tool for all of us, share your progress, results and stories, or simply send us snippets that your colleagues might find interesting! Contributions can be short and simple — ideally with a nice photo or graphic.

We would appreciate your feedback. Is it useful? What would you like to see more of? Do you like the layout?

The newsletter is available in HTML, PDF, printed and text-only version. Visit http://www.waterandfood.org for back issues.

We maintain a mailing list for the distribution of this newsletter. If you have colleagues who may find the newsletter useful, please send us their email address(es) or alternatively forward it to them.

Send your contributions and comments to:
Sanjeev Hewavitharne - s.hewavitharne@cgiar.org
The Editor, Water and Food
CGIAR Challenge Program on Water and Food

For further information about the program contact the CPWF secretariat at cpwfsecretariat@cgiar.org