SEEDS FOR LIFE: Climate proofing future food systems with the new ICARDA Morocco genebank

On May 18th, 2022, the new ICARDA Morocco Genebank officially opens in Rabat, Morocco. This state-of-the-art facility safely stores one of the world’s most unique and extensive collections of wheat, barley, chickpea, faba bean, lentil, and forage genetic material, providing the ‘building blocks’ that global researchers and breeding programs need to develop high-yielding, resilient, and climate-adapted crops and domestic alternatives to the widely imported staple crops under pressure today.

The new genebank will be inaugurated by His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Sadiki – Morocco’s Minister of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development, and Water and Forests, along with Mr. Aly Abousabaa, CGIAR’s Regional Director of the Central and West Asia and North Africa Regional Office, and ICARDA’s Director-General.