The UN Food and Agriculture Organisation and CGIAR, an organisation specialising in agricultural research with a view to sustainable development, have agreed to collaborate more closely in order to increase the effectiveness and impact of their work.

Following the signing of a Declaration of Intent in Rome last Thursday (12^th July), The two groups said they would establish “a strong and long-lasting collaborative effort building on the different institutional strengths of both organizations”.

CGIAR operates a consortium of agricultural research centres and typically unites funders with researchers and the FAO focuses on food policy, driving efforts to eliminate hunger. Following last week’s agreement, the two will begin to work together on joint projects, amongst the first of which will be efforts to deliver new technologies developed by CGIAR to small-scale farmers.

CGIAR research in 2010 accounted for $673 million or just over 10 percent of the $5.1 billion spent worldwide on agricultural research for development. CGIAR research is funded by more than 25 nations and several international organizations and NGOs. It is aimed at reducing rural poverty, increasing food security, improving human health and nutrition, and ensuring the more sustainable management of natural resources.

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