Press Release

OPEC Fund supports international agricultural research with US$800,000 grant

70/2005 June 15, 2005, Seefeld, Tyrol, Austria
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The OPEC Fund for International Development today extended grant assistance in the amount of US$800,000 in support of agricultural research projects at seven research centers sponsored by the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). Founded in 1971, CGIAR is dedicated to increasing the quality and quantity of food production in developing countries through research, training and technical assistance to national agricultural research systems.

CGIAR sponsors a total of 15 agricultural research centers whose projects and activities are spread over some 60 developing countries. Since 1979, the OPEC Fund has extended grants in support of research in 13 centers in excess of US$16.4 million. The Fund’s new grants are directed at seven schemes, all of which address priority research activities:

1. A research project to enhance food and income security in drought prone areas in Sub-Saharan Africa, a scheme launched by the International Center for the Improvement of Maize and Wheat (CIMMYT).

2. A project by the International Center for Potato Research (CIP) to assist in capacity building and improving potato crop management in Latin America and Africa.

3. A two year project of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) that aims to institutionalize and scale-up participatory barley breeding in West Asia and North Africa (WANA) region.

4. A four year project by the International Crops Research Institute for Semi-arid Tropics (ICRISAT) for promoting and improving groundnut production for poor farmers in Asia.

5. A three year research project by the International Livestock ResearchInstitute (ILRI) that aims to improve poor farmers’ livelihood in the Near East and North Africa.

6. A research study by the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) to understand more clearly the policy implications of surface and groundwater interactions in naturally saline, arid environments and develop alternatives for sustainable resource management in Central Asia.

7. A project of the WorldFish Center, which aims to mitigate famine and enhance food security through integrated aquaculture in Southern Africa.