22 June 2017 – CABI contributed to the Asian Development Bank (ADB)Â’s Knowledge Intensive Agriculture Workshop, held at the ADB headquarters in Manila, Philippines on 15-16 June 2017. Â The workshop was one of a number of special events held to commemorate the 50th anniversary of ADB, an international development finance institution dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific.
Together with over 60 delegates from ADBÂ’s member country governments development agencies, academic institutions, NGOs and the private sector, CABI Memberships Director Dr Qiaoqiao Zhang, and CABI SE Asia and South Pacific Regional Director Dr Sivapragasam Annamalai, took part in wide ranging discussions around the importance of Knowledge Intensive Agriculture (KIA).
The workshop focused on the transformation of agriculture post the green revolution era, and included sessions looking at ICT, climate smart agriculture, Â e-agriculture, and public-private partnerships (PPPs).
Participants shared learning from past successes and failures, together with ideas on how to develop, disseminate and deliver appropriate knowledge and technology to farmers in order to build a knowledge intensive agriculture model.
The workshop ended with discussions on the future direction for KIA. Dr Zhang was a panellist for a session on the role of PPPs, and discussed the critical factors that need to be considered when pursuing effective and successful PPPs, as well as explaining why PPPs can be beneficial for an organisation such as CABI.
Dr Zhang said, “CABI’s 48 member countries have asked us to help improve many aspects of their agricultural practices, from food and nutritional security, through to plant health systems and invasive species management, to trade development and market access, knowledge management and more. Developing a wide range of partnerships, including PPPs, enables CABI to achieve these goals.”
Dr Zhang added, “We have many years of experience working with the private sector, through our publishing business and international development programmes such as mNutrition, Plantwise and GODAN. These initiatives have demonstrated that cross-sectoral knowledge partnerships and PPPs can help put agricultural research to practical use, and communicate appropriate knowledge to farmers effectively.”
Dr Sivapragasam, CABI’s newly appointed Regional Director for SE Asia and South Pacific said, “This trip enabled us to call on our National Implementing Agency for the Philippines’ – the Bureau of Agricultural Research (BAR) at the Philippines’ Department of Agriculture. Our Liaison Officer, Mr Nicomedes P. Eleazar, Director of BAR, has asked CABI to help build capacity in the Philippines’ agricultural sector, enabling the country to overcome some challenges in this KIA era. We were therefore able to share these urgent needs with ADB colleagues and workshop participants. CABI and ADB share much common ground, not least similar missions and values, as we both work towards an Asia and Pacific region free from poverty. We hope that the re-launch of ADB’s Operational Plan for Agriculture and Natural Resources in September 2015 will provide further opportunities for our two organisations to work together more closely.”
As pictured above, Dr Zhang (second left) and Dr Sivapragasam (centre) networking with ADB colleagues and delegates.
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