News Overview

BY SWATI MALHOTRA The Ceres2030 project has shown the urgent need for additional investments—a yearly average of $14 billion from donors and $19 billion from low-income countries for the next decade—to meet Sustainable Development Goal 2, ending hunger by 2030, and to build more sustainable food security. But how should that money be spent? The latest cost report from Ceres2030 (led by IFPRI, the International Institute for

Visiting Margaret Nalujja with Elliot Baligeya of UFVEPA. You can see the charcoal cooler behind her. Margaret sells peeled fingers in 2kg bags. She said the main value is the increased speed of purchase because they are ready to go and you can buy and put them in a vehicle. Photo credit Graham Thiele Agricultural innovation arises through the

BY TIMOTHY KAROFF On Jan. 1, the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) formally took effect. The AfCFTA’s 55 countries make it one of largest free trade areas in the world, and it could increase the continent’s total real income by $445 billion by 2035, according to a World Bank estimate. However, whether countries reap these benefits depends on how

The International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) announced last week the appointment of Dr. Sudhanshu Singh as the new Director of IRRI South Asia Regional Centre (IRRI SARC) in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India. IRRI Director General Matthew Morell said of the selection and appointment to this strategic and coveted assignment in South Asia for the Institute, “Dr. Singh brings a wealth

Agricultural research and innovation to transform our food system is the only way to cut the Gordian knot entangling food security, climate emissions, biodiversity collapse and human health. For CGIAR, the CERES2030 study was both a reminder and validation. A reminder that a portfolio approach to food systems research is required. And a validation of CGIAR’s efforts through targeted research

BY TIMOTHY KAROFF Millions of people in Africa rely on informal trade for their livelihoods. In some African countries, the share of informal exports nearly surpasses the share of formal exports. Nevertheless, data surrounding informal trade remains scarce. This problem of invisibility makes it difficult for researchers and policy makers to understand the realities of informal trade, including the daily

New research by an international team of scientists, including scientists from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) and the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR), shows that adopting a portfolio of conservation agriculture and crop diversification practices is more profitable and better for the environment than conventional agriculture. Reported last month in Nature Scientific Reports, the results of the study

We caught up with Professor Guy Poppy, member of the IAES Evaluation Reference Group, to shed some light on the pivotal role of the newly established UK-CGIAR Centre for Collaboration and Innovation in Science and Technology. During the interview he was in Washington DC, USA, speaking at the National Academies at their Food Forum. The new UK-CGIAR Centre for Collaboration and Innovation