Frequently Asked Questions

Have a question that isn't answered below? Please let us know by sending an email to cgiar@cgiar.org.

Why is the CGIAR Changing?

Recent turmoil in food, energy and financial markets will likely recur in the years to come. Climate change is expected to affect food availability and prices in particular, as shifting climate zones constrain the productivity of crops grown in local environments whose pests and diseases rapidly evolve along with altered temperature and rainfall regimes. The expected higher frequency and intensity of drought and tropical storms will further undermine the food security and well-being of smallholder farmers, fishers and foresters and their ability to supply markets. The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) must step up to these challenges to fulfill its mission to reduce poverty and hunger, improve human health and nutrition, and enhance ecosystem resilience through high-quality international agricultural research, partnership and leadership. Rising to new challenges in a changing world requires changing the CGIAR itself.

How is the CGIAR Changing?

The new business model streamlines and balances the CGIAR partnership by clarifying the responsibilities and accountabilities of research doers and funders. A new CGIAR Fund and a Consortium of the CGIAR Centers are at the core of the new model. The Consortium unites the international agricultural research Centers supported by the CGIAR and provides a single contact point for donors. Similarly, CGIAR donors join together in the CGIAR Fund with the aim of harmonizing their contributions to agricultural research for development, improving the quantity and quality of funding available, and engendering greater financial stability. A Strategy and Results Framework (SRF) guides the development of a results-oriented research agenda in line with the CGIAR's new vision and strategic objectives. The reforms also make the CGIAR more open, with a stronger focus on collaboration with partners, including national agricultural research institutes, civil society and the private sector. Developing countries and partners will get more of a voice in the membership of the Fund Council and through a new biennial event for engaging stakeholders, the Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development.

What are the Strategy and Results Framework and Mega Programs?

The Strategy and Results Framework provides a systematic description of the way in which the CGIAR will focus its work to achieve its vision. It will do this by specifying clear development objectives and how progress towards these will be measured. The mega-programs operationalize and implement the Strategic Results Framework.

Consortium

What is the Consortium?

The Consortium will be a legal entity established by CGIAR-supported Centers to provide leadership and coordination of activities among the Centers. The Consortium will lead the formulation of the Strategy and Results Framework and the development of Mega Programs under the strategy. For further information see the Consortium Constitution .

What is the role of the Consortium Board?

The Consortium Board provides policy direction and leadership for the work of the Consortium. It oversees the development of the Strategy and Results Framework, is accountable for resources received from the CGIAR Fund and reviews the performance of member Centers in the delivery of research supported by the CGIAR Fund. It also mobilizes financial resources, manages the Consortium Office, conducts periodic reviews of the Consortium functioning and performance. The Consortium Constitution sets out the powers and functions of the board.

Who are the Consortium Board members?

The inaugural Consortium Board members are Carlos Pérez del Castillo (Chair), Carl Hausmann (Vice-Chair), Bongiwe Njobe (Vice-Chair), Mohammed Ait-Kadi, Tom Arnold, Ganesan Balanchander, Gebisa Ejeta, Ian Goldin and Lynn Haight. Learn more about the Consortium Board at: http://www.cgiar.org/cgiar_consortium_board_feb2010.html

CGIAR Fund

What is the CGIAR Fund?

The CGIAR Fund is a central multidonor fund that serves as a strategic financing facility for the CGIAR partnership to provide multiyear support for Mega Programs under the Strategy and Results Framework. The World Bank will serve as the trustee to the CGIAR Fund. The Fund donors will enter into Trust Fund Administration agreements with the Trustee with common provisions for all donors.

What is the Fund Council and who are the members?

The Fund Council is a representative body of the Fund donors and other stakeholders and is the decision-making body of the CGIAR Fund. The inaugural Fund Council has 22 members, with representatives from 8 donor countries, 8 developing countries and regional organizations, and 6 from multilateral and global organizations and foundations. The complete list is available here .

GCARD

What is the Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development?

The Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development (GCARD) is a biennial conference organized by the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) in collaboration with the CGIAR to create a development outcome based framework for the global agricultural research and development architecture and to provide inputs to the CGIAR's Strategy and Results Framework (SRF) in the context of the new CGIAR. The Global Conference replaces the GFAR Triennial Conferences and the stakeholder meeting component of the former Annual General Meetings of the CGIAR. The first Global Conference took place in Montpellier, France, March 28-31. Regional consultations in lead up to the global conference engaged some 2,000 stakeholders to identify key themes and issues across the agricultural system.

Change Initiative Background

What has been the timeline for the Change Initiative?
The CGIAR Change Initiative was first called for in 2007. In early 2008, a Change Steering Team and four working groups representing stakeholders and shareholders were established to address: visioning and development challenges; strategic partnerships; governance at the Center and CGIAR levels; and funding mechanisms. Over the course of 2008, the Change Steering Team and working groups held consultations and developed background papers on the topics outlined above that lead to options for a new model for the CGIAR. The Integrated Reform Model was presented to and endorsed by CGIAR Members at their 2008 Business Meeting in Maputo, Mozambique.

The model provided a sketch of the new institutional structure for the CGIAR. Over the course of 2009, this sketch was further developed into concrete plans for how the new elements of the CGIAR would function independently and as a system to deliver agricultural research for development. A Transition Management Team representing the elements of the new CGIAR guided this work that culminated in a set of founding documents for the new CGIAR: the CGIAR Joint Declaration, the Consortium Constitution, the Framework for the CGIAR Fund, and the Monitoring & Evaluation Framework for the New CGIAR. The CGIAR Members formally approved the new working model at their final Business Meeting in December 2009. The new model is becoming operational over the course of 2010.

Additional Resources
The Glossary of the CGIAR Change Initiative and the Founding Documents provide further clarifying information on roles and responsibilities within the new CGIAR. If you have a question you would answered please send an email to cgiar@cgiar.org

page updated May 5, 2010