ASEAN and CGIAR stakeholders convened to build a stronger cooperation to address the various agriculture and food security challenges and build a more resilient agri-food system in the region in a three-day hybrid planning workshop from 27-29 July 2022 titled “ASEAN-CGIAR Innovate for Food Regional Program Planning Workshop” in Muntinlupa City, Philippines.
Representatives from ASEAN, CGIAR research centers, government agencies and funders gathered to discuss potential areas of engagement which represent a combination of priority areas for research and innovation development across the ASEAN region including regenerative agriculture and aquaculture, carbon neutrality and climate change, and enhancing value chains and regional trade, to name a few.
These were developed after a series of national consultations with all of the ASEAN Member States (AMS) in the first quarter of this year. Through the three-day event, ASEAN and CGIAR seek to identify the next steps in the development of a regional program and engagement process among CGIAR and its research centers with the different ASEAN stakeholders.
“In line with CGIAR’s mission of ending hunger by 2030 through science, this planning workshop is an important step to ensure the proposed research and innovation agenda is aligned with the needs and priorities of its stakeholders and partners in ASEAN,” said Dr. Stephan Weise, Asia Managing Director, Alliance of Bioversity International CIAT.
“These opportunities cannot happen in a vacuum. We need close collaboration with all stakeholders: governments, civil society, national research partners and CGIAR centers in the region. We also need to create an enabling environment and a platform in which partners are able to co-design, collaborate and contribute to the food systems research agenda in the region, for a continuous cycle of impact,” International Rice Research Institute Regional Representative for Asia Dr. Nafees Meah said during the event.
The workshop captures how this program can be linked and can complement other on-going initiatives of the CGIAR and ASEAN. The inputs from participants throughout the series of discussion activities help further hone the research for development agenda of CGIAR.