Greater than the sum of its parts – highlighting how CGIAR is working as one

Claudia Sadoff, director general of the International Water Management Institute (left) visits a global challenges display at a share fair at ILRI in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on 15 May 2019 (photo credit: ILRI/Apollo Habtamu).

This week (15 May 2019, CGIAR hosted a share fair at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) campus in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, showcasing innovations, technologies and products on how CGIAR is working with government, public and private partners to support agricultural transformation in the country. Happening along the sidelines of the CGIAR Council meeting taking place at ILRI in Addis Ababa, the share fair brought together high-level representatives from the Ethiopian agriculture, water and energy sectors, research, academia, non-governmental organizations, businesses, innovators, donors and CGIAR.

‘There has been enormous progress in agricultural development in Ethiopia; yet there is much more to be done. CGIAR is working with the government of Ethiopia to continue the journey towards complete transformation,’ said Jimmy Smith, ILRI’s director general, at the opening of the fair. ‘The 11 CGIAR centres hosted by ILRI in Addis Ababa are working closely with each other and with partners to make this possible.’

The share fair displayed 36 innovations organized along the five CCIAR global challenges: Living within planetary boundaries, sustaining food availability, promoting equality of opportunity, securing public health, and creating jobs and growth. The displays ranged from climate-resilient farming systems and innovative seed and crop products, innovative, affordable mechanizations, nutritious food products to gender- and age-inclusive production and marketing systems, and generated lively discussions and learning opportunities.

Melissa Wood, general manager, global program at the Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research (ACIAR), commended CGIAR and the Ethiopian government on an excellent collaboration on research for development. ‘This is a great opportunity to see, feel, observe, and talk to researchers. It gives us confidence that what we are investing in has an impact for the smallholder farmer in Ethiopia,’ she said.

Hosting 11 CGIAR centres, the ILRI campus in Addis Ababa is an innovative hub for international and national research, development, public and private sectors stakeholders. Complementing public, private and civil society partner interventions, targeted CGIAR investments in Ethiopia help accelerate local adoption of appropriate research-based technologies and the transfer of knowledge along the country’s value chains.

Read more about the CGIAR System Council share fair

See pictures from the share fair

Learn more about CGIAR’s work in supporting agricultural transformation: #OneCGIAR

This post was written by Loza Mesfin, a communications consultant working with ILRI in Ethiopia.