Second phase of global research partnership for strengthening rice production worldwide kicks off

Around 40 scientists from major partner institutions participated in the kickoff meeting for the CGIAR Research Program on rice agri-food systems (RICE) at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) headquarters on 6-8 March. RICE, the second phase of the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP), provides a single strategic plan and unique new partnership platform for impact-oriented rice research for development. It streamlines current rice research for development activities of the CGIAR and aligns them with more than 900 rice research and development partners worldwide.

Scientists from the Africa Rice Center, International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT), Centre de coopération internationale en recherche agronomique pour le développement (Cirad), Institut de recherche pour le développement (IRD), Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences as well as representatives from the CG System Management Office attended the RICE inception workshop. Along with IRRI scientists, the participants conducted a detailed planning of the 2017 activities and budget by flagship projects. They also reviewed the theory of change, updated the list of outputs and outcome milestones, and discussed several cross-cutting issues such as gender; capacity development; monitoring, evaluation, learning (ML&E); impact assessment; communication; open access; publications; cross-CRP collaboration/site integration; and intellectual asset management.

The RICE Program Planning and Management Team, represented by deputy director generals and senior scientists from the partner centers and the flagship project leaders also discussed budget and operational issues. On 9-10 March, the RICE Independent Steering Committee (ISC) convened to review the GRiSP experience and the terms of reference of the new ISC. The ISC is composed of seven external experts; representatives from the respective Board of Trustees of IRRI, AfricaRice, and CIAT; and the director generals of IRRI and AfricaRice. The committee assessed the targets, indicators, milestones, and budget of the flagship projects and cross-cutting activities. The ISC will formulate recommendations and continue to monitor activities under RICE CRP.