One CGIAR Announces Global, Regional and Senior Director Appointments

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    12.11.21

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The CGIAR Executive Management Team is excited to announce that a major milestone has been reached in the transition to One CGIAR with the appointment of the membership of a Senior Leadership Team 

“This is a big step on the road to a unified and integrated One CGIAR. We are pleased to have such a diverse team with such deep expertise now in place,” said Elwyn Grainger-Jones, Managing Director, Institutional Strategy and Systems. 

With a complete Senior Leadership Team directing three core streams of research, institutional strategy and systems, and global engagement, CGIAR is ready to deliver on its promise of greater institutional integration and a unified country and regional presence. The transition will make it possible for CGIAR to deploy scientific innovations faster, at a larger scale, and at reduced cost, ensuring greater impact where it is needed most. 

“Our One CGIAR leadership team reflects the diversity and strengths of our international workforce and the people we serve. The team is in place to operationalize our vision to transform food, land and water systems, ensuring that our innovations and research are as inclusive and impactful as possible,” said Claudia Sadoff, Executive Management Team Convener and Managing Director, Research Delivery and Impact. 

The One CGIAR transition includes ambitious goals that confront and address the interdependent challenges facing today’s world. The team in places stands ready to do so. 

“It is wonderful to see the progress we are making towards our goals. This new team has a world-changing mandate, and our new operating structure and approach will enable us to respond to the needs on the ground and deliver bigger impact through our partnerships and innovative financing,” said Kundhavi Kadiresan, Managing Director, Global Engagement and Innovation. 

Executive Management Team 

Claudia Sadoff, Executive Management Team Convener and Managing Director, Research Delivery and Impact
Elwyn Grainger-Jones, Managing Director, Institutional Strategy and Systems
Kundhavi KadiresanManaging Director, Global Engagement and Innovation 

Global Directors   

Research Delivery and Impact

Barbara Wells, Genetic Innovation  
Johan Swinnen, Systems Transformation  
Martin Kropff, Resilient Agri-Food Systems  

Global Engagement and Innovation

Andre Zandstra, Innovative Finance and Resource Mobilization
Juan Lucas Restrepo, Partnerships and Advocacy
Lotte Pang, Communications and Outreach 

Institutional Strategy and Systems

Fiona Bourdin-Farrell, People and Culture
Karmen Bennett, Governance and Assurance
Khuloud Odeh, Digital Services 
Marion Barriskell, Business Operations and Finance  

Regional Directors

Aly Abousabaa, Central and West Asia and North Africa 
Harold Roy-Macauley, East and Southern Africa  
Jean Balié, South-East Asia and the Pacific
Nteranya Sanginga, West and Central Africa 
Temina Lalani-ShariffSouth Asia
Joaquin LozanoLatin America and the Caribbean 

Senior Directors*  

Gareth Johnstone**, Aquatic Food Systems 
Jimmy Smith, Livestock-Based Systems 
Mark Smith, Water Systems  

* Multiple Senior Director and other senior positions to be filled in the next phase of key managerial appointments.
** Update: Essam Yassin Mohammed was appointed to take over this role, with effect from January 4, 2022. 

 

Photo: Concepta Makokha, a farmer who also runs the seedbank at Vihiga, Kenya, holds an array of seeds. Photo by G. Smith/Alliance of Bioversity and CIAT.

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