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Masa Iwanaga: His legacy to CIMMYT, 2002-2008Three decades of research into drought tolerant maize by CIMMYT anda very strong set of partnerships has made a difference in the lives ofAfrican farmers. In recognition of that achievement, the CGIAR conferredon CIMMYT the 2006 King Baudouin Award, here received by DirectorGeneral, Masa Iwanaga. Having led CIMMYT since 2002, Iwanagawill leave the position in early 2008. His accomplishments includerestoring the financial health of the Center following a severe crisisand maintaining its scientific excellence, relevance, and partnershipsduring difficult times, ensuring that CIMMYT continued to deliver on itshumanitarian mission. (From left to right: left to right: Kathy Sierra,CGIAR Chair; Frans van Daele, Belgian Ambassador to the United States;Masa Iwanaga; Marianne Bänziger, Director of CIMMYT’s Global MaizeProgram and Paul Wolfowitz, 10th President of the World Bank Group.)Trustees and principal staffAs of September 2007Lene Lange (Denmark), Chair, Board ofTrustees, Head, Institute of MolecularBiology, University of Copenhagen,Kobenhavns Biocenter, DenmarkSebastián Acosta-Núñez (Mexico),Director, Agricultural Research,National Institute of Forestry,Agriculture, and Livestock Research,Mexico 2Hisao Azuma (Japan), President,Agricultural and Fishery SavingsInsurance Corporation, JapanUsha Barwale Zehr (India/USA), JointDirector, Research, Deputy Director ofBiotechnology, Maharashtra HybridSeeds Co. Ltd., India 3Julio Antonio Berdegué (Mexico),Vice-Chair, Board of Trustees, Chair,Program Committee, President,RIMISP, Centro Latinoamericano parael Desarrollo Rural, ChileSara Boettiger (USA), Director, StrategicPlanning and Development, PublicIntellectual Property Resource forAgriculture-PIPRA, USA 3Pedro Brajcich (Mexico)*, Vice-Chair,Board of Trustees, Director General,National Institute of Forestry,Agriculture, and Livestock Research,MexicoIsmail Cakmak (Turkey), Faculty ofEngineering and Natural Sciences,Sabanci University, TurkeyAlberto Cárdenas Jiménez (Mexico)*,Secretary of Agriculture, Livestock,Rural Development, Fisheries, andFood, MexicoTini (C.M.) Colijn-Hooymans(Netherlands), Chair, Finance andAdministration Committee; Memberof the Board of Management, TNO,NetherlandsEdwina Cornish (Australia), Chair, AuditCommittee, Deputy Vice-Chancellorand Vice-President (Research), MonashUniversity, AustraliaRobert M. Goodman (USA), Executive Deanfor Agricultural and Natural Resources,Rutgers Cook College, USA 1Salvador Fernández-Rivera (Mexico)*,Coordinator for Research, Innovationand Partnerships, INIFAP, Mexico 3Masa Iwanaga (Japan)*, Director General,CIMMYTRomano M. Kiome (Kenya), PermanentSecretary, Ministry of Agriculture,KenyaTom McKay (Canada), Governor of theInternational Development ResearchCentre and Chair of the Finance andAudit Committee of IDRC, Canada 31Until April 20072Until June 20073Appointed in 2007* Ex officio positionManagement committeeMasa Iwanaga, Director General(m.iwanaga@cgiar.org)Martin van Weerdenburg,Director, Corporate Services(m.vanweerdenburg@cgiar.org)Marianne Bänziger, Director, Global MaizeProgram (m.banziger@cgiar.org)Hans-Joachim Braun, Director, GlobalWheat Program (h.j.braun@cgiar.org)Jonathan Crouch, Director, GeneticResources and Enhancement Unit(j.crouch@cgiar.org)John Dixon, Director, Impacts Targetingand Assessment Unit (j.dixon@cgiar.org)Rodomiro Ortiz, Director, ResourceMobilization (r.ortiz@cgiar.org)Peter Ninnes, Executive Officer-Research(p.ninnes@cgiar.org)

Climate change,agriculture, and globalsecurityClimate change modelsgenerally suggest that risingtemperatures and seas,fresh-water shortages, desertification,and weather extremes will severelyaffect developing countries. Underglobal warming scenarios, cerealgrain yields and quality in manydeveloping countries are expected todecline, nitrogen leaching and soilerosion could intensify, and land andwater resources for food productionwill degrade. Policies promotingbiofuels in industrialized nations areleading to increases in internationalfood prices, reduced food security,and heightened pressure on naturalresources in developing countries.Governments, farmers (particularlysmallholders), and poor consumerswill have trouble coping.CIMMYT is working with partnersworldwide to mitigate these andother effects of climate change on thepoor in developing countries. Theefforts will help maize and wheatfarmers to increase productivityusing tomorrow’s limited landand water resources and to dealwith environmental and marketinstabilities.The weather forecast? Harvestsdrizzle, prices heat upClimate vulnerability in developingworld regions like Africa is alreadyhigh (see figure, p.2). Studies for majormaize and wheat production areasin key parts of the developing worldsuggest that changes in temperature,growing season length, and rainfallpatterns will significantly reduce cropyields, challenging farmers’ ability tomake a living and affecting regionalfood security and livelihoods.Climate change, agriculture, and global security1

Maize in sub-Saharan Africa andLatin America. In their 2003 study, 1CGIAR scientists Peter G. Jones andPhilip K. Thornton took outputs fromleading climate simulation modelsand data from various sources,including the IntergovernmentalPanel on Climate Change and theFood and Agriculture Organizationworld soil maps, to simulate thegrowth, development, and yield ofmaize crops over sub-Saharan Africa,Central America, and South America.The results showed an aggregateyield decline by 2055 for smallholderrainfed maize production of 10%,representing an annual economic losson the order of US $2 billion. Evenmore critical for poverty, the authorssay this figure masks enormousregional and local variation insubsistence farming systems,particularly in the many settingswhere maize stover is fed to livestockin the dry season. Follow-up researchfor sub-Saharan Africa, 2 based onprojected temperature increases andchanges in rainfall patterns, suggeststhat by 2050 the cropping season willshorten in many parts of the region.Under one of the study’s scenarios—that of rapid economic growth andglobalization driving a continued,significant rise in temperature—drought becomes ever more likelyby mid-century, causing failedcrops and making maize farminguntenable in key maize productionareas of eastern and southern Africa.Wheat in the heat. If maize, whichevolved under tropical conditions,will be challenged by risingtemperatures, researchers are sayingthat wheat, a crop which traces itsorigins to temperate climes, willsuffer even more serious effects.In fact, this is occurring even now.Studies in the Yaqui Valley 3 ofnorthern Mexico have demonstratedthat high wheat yields in tropicalareas are strongly associatedwith low average temperatures—especially minimum temperatures—and high radiation levels around thetime the crop flowers. Rising worldtemperatures would make manycurrent, important wheat areas toohot for the crop.A recent CIMMYT study 4 detailspossible climate shifts in the Indo-Gangetic Plains of South Asia, aregion of 13 million hectares thatextends from Pakistan acrossnorthern India, Nepal, andBangladesh. The area is home tomore than one-fifth of humanityand accounts for 15% of the world’swheat production. Much of the regionis currently classed as an irrigated,high-potential wheat productionenvironment. According to the study,by 2050 more than half of its areamay become heat-stressed for wheat,with a significantly shorter season forthe crop. If farmers continue to usecurrent wheat cultivars and farmingpractices, the region’s productivitywill drop dramatically. Dwindlingwater supplies for South Asia, theNorth China Plain, and many otherirrigated wheat zones worldwide willmake the situation even more critical.Harvesting energy or food? Facedwith the high economic, political, andenvironmental costs of petroleumproducts, China, Europe, India,Japan, the USA, and other states havecommitted to ambitious targets forusing biofuels to meet future energyneeds. Bioethanol accounts for nearly90% of biofuel production. Mostcomes from maize grain or sugarcane,but producers will increasingly usecellulose, such as straw, stover, andother crop biomass. Price hikes forbiofuel crops, plus the displacement1 Jones, P.G., and P.K. Thornton. 2003. The potential impacts of climate change on maize production in Africa and Latin America in 2055. Global Environmental Change 13:51-59.2 Thornton, P.K., P.G. Jones, T. Owiyo, R.L. Kruska, M. Herrero, P. Kristjanson, A. Notenbaert, N. Bekele, and A. Omolo, with contributions V. Orindi, B. Otiende, A. Ochieng, S. Bhadwal, K. Anantram, S. Nair, V.Kumar, and U. Kulkar. 2006. Mapping Climate Vulnerability and Poverty in Africa. Report to the Department for International Development, UK. Nairobi: International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI).3 Lobell, D.B., Ortiz-Monasterio, I., Asier, G.P., Matson, P.A., Naylor, R.L., Falcon, W.P., 2005. Analysis of wheat yield and climatic trends in Mexico. Field Crops Research 94:250-256.4 Reference for “Wheat beats the heat.”2 Annual Report 2006-2007

tolerance from gene bank collectionsand other wheat or grass species,including wheat landraces broughtto Mexico by Spanish colonizersand grown for centuries under dryconditions.CIMMYT breeders have workedfor nearly two decades to developheat tolerant wheat. They haveidentified key physiological traitsassociated with higher yields in heatstressedenvironments, includinglow canopy temperatures and highleaf chlorophyll content duringgrain filling. 8 Partly as a result of thedevelopment and release of improved,stress tolerant varieties by CIMMYTand partners, wheat yields improved2-3% per year in dry and heat stressedenvironments in developing countriesduring 1979-1995. 9Saving soil, water, money.Fundamental changes in farmingpractices will be central to gettingmaximum benefits from improvedmaize and wheat and to addressingand mitigating climate change.CIMMYT has studied and fosteredtesting and adoption by farmersof various resource-conservingpractices—including conservationtillage and keeping a crop residuecover on the soil—to save foodproduction costs and resources, andmaintain or improve soil quality.A long-term field experimentbegun in 1991 in Mexico’s centralhighlands involves maize and wheatrotations and varied tillage andresidue management methods, allunder entirely rainfed conditions.Results suggest considerable benefitsfrom zero-tillage, if residues frompreceding crops are kept on the soil. 10The Rice-Wheat Consortium (RWC)for the Indo-Gangetic Plains,an award-winning partnershiporganized by CIMMYT, has fosteredthe adoption of conservation tillageto sow wheat after rice by farmerson nearly 2 million hectares inSouth Asia. The practice results ina net savings of 50 liters or more ofdiesel per hectare, greatly reducedwater use, and lower CO 2emissions.These and other practices beingtested by farmers (for example,sowing on permanent, raised beds)provide a better soil cover, moderatesoil temperatures, and reduce theevaporation of irrigation water.Fertilizer is another resource whoseefficient use can improve cropproductivity and reduce greenhousegas emissions and other damage tothe environment. With the Center’shelp, wheat farmers in irrigatedzones of Latin America and SouthAsia are testing use of infraredsensors to fine-tune fertilizeramounts, timing, and applicationmethods. This saves money forfarmers and cuts emissions of nitrousoxide, a gas with some 300 timesthe greenhouse effects of carbondioxide. Research to date alsosupports the hope of using wheat’sgrassy relatives as a source of genesto inhibit soil nitrification and theassociated release of nitrous oxide.For maize, CIMMYT is promotingconservation tillage and residueretention with smallholder maizefarmers in Mexico and sub-SaharanAfrica to improve soil health andto capture and preserve preciousrainfall. In Africa, work focuses onMalawi, Tanzania, Zambia, andZimbabwe; countries where smallscale,maize-based farming systemsprovide food and livelihoods formillions but degrade soils. Farmershave tested the improved practicesfor several years and generally likethe cost savings and improved soilmoisture. There are still multiplechallenges to adoption—for example,livestock are often a key part oflivelihood strategies in Africa, andcrop residues fetch a better price ascattle fodder than as a soil cover.Experts also predict that a moveto biofuels based on cellulose willeventually raise the price of maize8 Reynolds, M.P., Singh, R.P., Ibrahim, A., Ageeb, O.A.A., Larque-Saavedra, A., Quick, J.S. 1998. Evaluating the physiological traits to complementempirical selection for wheat in warm environments. Euphytica 100:85-94.9 CIMMYT. 2001. Wheat yield potential increasing in marginal areas. In CIMMYT in 2000-2001. Global Research for Local Livelihoods, p. 33. Mexico, D.F.10 Govaerts, B., K.D. Sayre, and J. Deckers. 2005. Stable high yields with zero tillage and permanent bed planting? Field Crops Research 94:33-42.4 Annual Report 2006-2007

and wheat stalks and straw, givingfarmers greater reason to removeand sell those crop residues. Studiesare needed to determine the preciseamounts of residues required tomaintain soil quality and, conversely,how much can safely be removed ineither irrigated or rainfed settings.Socioeconomic research,knowledge-sharing. Resourceefficientcrop varieties andknowledge-intensive, conservationagriculture farming practices mustbe properly tested by scientistsand with farmers. Participatoryand socioeconomic research byCIMMYT supports such efforts,as in the case of the RWC or workon stress tolerant maize for sub-Saharan Africa. It also elucidateseconomic and policy issues relatingto climate change and developingworld agriculture. For example, arecently-completed series of studieson maize production in marginalareas of seven Asian nations isserving as a baseline against whichto gauge changes and deviseinterventions. 11 Addressing newclimate conditions will requirecomplex policies and adjustments atmany levels in developing countryagriculture. Many players in maizeand wheat market chains couldbenefit from reliable information onthe economic opportunities and risksassociated with biofuel expansion.Socioeconomics knowledge will helpguide the use of Center resourcesbest to catalyze relevant changeamong a wide range of stakeholdersand partners.CIMMYT can develop and shareinformation dissemination products/systems about climate change forfarmers, policy makers, and others inagricultural market chains. This willbe crucial, given that farmers willneed to apply knowledge-intensivepractices such as increased croppingdiversification, use of rotations tomanage pests and pathogens, andgenerally more robust systems thatprovide insurance against risks andshocks from climate extremes.Information technology andmonitoring systems. Building onlinkages within the center’s globalmaize and wheat nursery systemsand geographic information systemcapacity and partnerships, it will bepossible to form networks that allowresearchers to follow and anticipatethe movement of pathogens, pests,and invasive species and sharethe information with relevantstakeholders. For example, CIMMYTcharacterizations of heat-stressedwheat environments are beingrefined using spatial analysis andclimatic factors identified throughmulti-location trials in thoseenvironments.No security without food securityIt is already clear that the securityand quality of life of affluent nationsare closely tied to conditions andevents in the developing world. A2007 report by the German AdvisoryCouncil on Climate Change, 12states that “…without resolutecounteraction, climate change…could result in destabilization andviolence, jeopardizing nationaland international security to a newdegree.” Falling agricultural yieldswould block development andheighten poverty, thereby increasingthe risk of conflicts. Decades prior tothat report, CIMMYT wheat breederand 1970 Nobel Peace Laureate,Norman Borlaug, said roughly thesame thing in these terms: “If youdesire peace, cultivate justice, but atthe same time cultivate the fields toproduce more bread; otherwise therewill be no peace.”Now and in the future, CIMMYTcontributes to global security andpeace by improving the food securityand livelihoods of those who dependon maize and wheat farming indeveloping countries.11Available through the CIMMYT web page (www.cimmyt.org) in “Publications/Catalog/Maize production systems.”12World in Transition: Climate Change as a Security Risk. German Advisory Council on Climate Change. Summary report for policy makersavailable at www.wbgu.de. as of 29 May 2007. The full report will be published by Earthscan Publications Ltd. London in spring 2008.Climate change, agriculture, and global security5

Science tobenefit thedisadvantaged:FlagshipproductsCIMMYT puts cutting-edgescience at the service ofdeveloping country farmers,offering them better food securityand livelihoods through nineflagship products encompassingmaize, wheat, research tools,cropping systems, and capacitybuilding.The pages that follow (seepage numbers in parentheses below)highlight recent Center efforts andachievements for each product,describing how we seed innovationthrough science and nourish hopethrough its application to benefitdisadvantaged farmers.

Stress tolerant maize (p. 8). Maize indeveloping countries is commonlygrown under highly-variable, stressproneconditions by impoverishedfarm households. To enhance theirfood security and livelihoods andhelp protect the environment,CIMMYT develops maize thatnaturally withstands drought, poorsoils, pests, and diseases.Specialty maize for sale (p. 10).CIMMYT is working with partnersto offer maize farmers in developingcountries new income-generatingoptions through specialty traits,value addition, or multi-purposeuses of maize. Bio-fortified maizeand wheat. In work with HarvestPlusand partners worldwide, CIMMYTis developing improved, highyieldingmaize whose grain containsenhanced levels of essential aminoacids, provitamins A, iron, and zinc,and improved, high-yielding wheatwhose grain contains enhanced levelsof bioavailable iron and zinc.Bio-fortified maize and wheat(p. 12). In work with HarvestPlusand partners worldwide, CIMMYTis developing improved, highyieldingmaize whose grain containsenhanced levels of essential aminoacids, provitamins A, iron, and zinc,and improved, high-yielding wheatwhose grain contains enhanced levelsof bio-available iron and zinc.Water-use efficient wheat withgood grain quality (p. 14). Waterproductivewheat varieties nowunder development will address theneeds of farmers in irrigated areas,where water is growing scarce, andof resource-poor farmers who growthe crop under rainfed conditions toobtain large portions of their dailycalories, basic income, and fodder forlivestock. They will feature improved,consumer-oriented grain quality.Rust resistant wheat (p. 16).CIMMYT is developing a newgeneration of stable, resilient, andprofitable varieties that possessdurable resistance to the rustdiseases, one of the most significantand ever-present threats to wheatproduction worldwide.New traits through gene discovery(p.18). The center is applyingcutting-edge bioscience to identifyuseful genes in its seed collectionsand other maize and wheat geneticresources. The work will also producestructured, well-characterized setsof experimental varieties; internetbasedinformation management anddecision-support systems; usefulgenetic stocks, lines, gene pools,genetic mapping populations, andmutant stocks—all freely available forbreeding programs of CIMMYT andpartners worldwide.Improved methodologies and toolsfor genetic improvement (p. 20).CIMMYT is developing and testingnew methodologies and tools toenhance its breeding efforts andthose of partners: molecular geneticfingerprinting, marker-assistedselection, double haploids, genetictransformation, advanced biometrics,simulation models, and integratedknowledge-sharing systems.Resource-conserving practices formaize and wheat cropping systems(p. 22). In line with the principles ofconservation agriculture, the centeris studying and promoting practicesthat foster more efficient andsustainable use of farm inputs, lowerproduction costs, better managementof crop pests and diseases, andenhanced cropping system diversityand resilience.Capacity building (p. 24). CIMMYTis well-known for its practicalcourses in maize and wheat scienceand for imparting a pragmatic,egalitarian ethos in research andextension. It also provides technicaland policy analyses promotingfood and income security, and ishelping emerging seed productionentrepreneurs and fostering effectivelinkages among key players in maizeand wheat commodity chains.Science to benefit the disadvantaged: Flagship products 7

Stress tolerant maizeSmall seed witha big footprint:Western Kenya,Zimbabwe, andNepalAccording to Paul Okong’o,retired school teacher andleader of TechnologyAdoption through ResearchOrganizations (TATRO), OchurVillage, Western Kenya, farmers firstdisliked the maize whose seed heand group members are producing.“It has small grains, and theythought this would reduce its marketvalue,” he explains. “But when yousowed the seed, which looked small,what came out of it was not small!”Small-scale maize farmers of theRegional Agricultural AssociationGroup (RAAG), another communitybasedorganization in WesternKenya, have quintupled their yieldsin only one year—now obtainingmore than 2 tons of maize grain perhectare—using seed, fertilizer, andtraining from TATRO, according toRAAG coordinator, David Mukungu.“This has meant that, besides havingenough to eat, farmers were able tosell something to cover children’sschool fees or other expenses,” saysMukungu. “We started with sixfarmers the first year, but after otherfarmers saw the harvest, the numberusing the improved seed andpractices increased to thirty, and weexpect it will continue increasing.”The variety whose seed TATROgrows is called Kakamega Synthetic-I. It is an open-pollinated variety—atype often preferred over hybrids bycash-strapped smallholders, becausethey can save grain from the harvestand sow it as seed the following year,without losing its high yield or otherdesirable traits. The variety is alsodrought tolerant, matures earlierthan other local varieties, and isbetter for making Kenyan’s favoritestarchy staple, ugali. “Women sayit ‘pulls’ the water, which meansyou don’t need much maize flour tomake a good, heavy ugali,” Okong’oexplains. “These things seem small,but when taken together they weigha lot for farmers who eat ugali as adaily staple.”8 Annual Report 2006-2007

A maize that crossesmany bordersKakamega Synthetic-I was released by theKARI research station in Kakamega, Kenya.Its pedigree traces back to the work ofCIMMYT and many partners in southernand eastern Africa—national maize researchprograms, private companies, and nongovernmentorganizations—to develop stresstolerant maize for the region’s smallholders.“Kakamega Synthetic I was selected fromZM621, a long-season, drought tolerant, openpollinatedvariety now released in severalAfrican countries,” says Marianne Bänziger,CIMMYT maize physiologist who createdZM621 and now serves as director of thecenter’s Global Maize Program. “The varietyhas also been released in Nepal, after smallscalefarmers from the mid-hills chose it asone of their favorites in participatory varietytrials.” Bänziger says. This highlights the roleof a global organization like CIMMYT, whichcan draw upon and distribute public goodsand expertise transcending national borders.Finding and fillingentrepreneurial nichesBy reducing risk for small-scale farmers,varieties like Kakamega Synthetic-I encourageinvestment in other amendments, likefertilizer, that can start smallholders on anupward spiral out of low-input, subsistenceagriculture. Good varieties also enticeenterprising farmers and community-basedorganizations like TATRO into potentiallyprofitable businesses like seed production,for niches inadequately served by existingcompanies. “Improved varieties raised yieldsin the past and could do so again,” saysStephen Mugo, CIMMYT maize breeder ineastern Africa, “but only about thirty percentof eastern African farmers grow improvedmaize varieties.”The Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa initiativeThe Drought Tolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA) initiativeaims over the next 10 years to generate maize varietieswith 100% better drought tolerance than those currentlyavailable, thereby increasing the harvests of as many as 60-75million smallholder farmers’ by as much as a third. The workbuilds on partnerships among CIMMYT, the InternationalInstitute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA), national agriculturalresearch institutes in sub-Saharan Africa, advanced researchinstitutions, private sector seed companies, and nongovernmentand community-based organizations—all told,about 50 partner organizations, including generous andcommitted donors.Drought tolerant maize: A reality?“Maize is by nature a highly diverse crop and its toleranceto drought and other stresses can be significantly enhancedthrough appropriate breeding,” says CIMMYT socioeconomistand DTMA leader, Wilfred Mwangi. “Many more farmers couldbenefit from existing drought tolerant maize varieties, ifthey knew about the varieties and quality seed were madeavailable.” CIMMYT and IITA have been working for over 10years with national agricultural research institutes to adaptstress breeding techniques for maize in sub-Saharan Africa andto develop and spread tolerant varieties, according to Mwangi.“More than 30 new maize hybrids and open-pollinated maizevarieties have been provided to seed companies and nongovernmentorganizations for dissemination, and several havereached farmers’ fields,” he says. “These drought tolerant maizevarieties produce about 20-50% more grain than other maizevarieties, under mid-season drought”The DTMA is focusing varietal development efforts on 13countries where maize is the most important crop anddroughts routinely occur. New varieties from the project willbe freely available throughout the region.Organizations who fund the work of public sector DTMApartners include: the Swiss Agency for Development andCooperation (SDC), the Rockefeller Foundation, the FederalMinistry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) inGermany, the International Fund for Agricultural Development(IFAD), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.For more information:Marianne Bänziger,Director, Global Maize Program(m.banziger@cgiar.org)Stress tolerant maize9

Specialty maize for saleGermán Ordóñez and otherfarmers in ConchabónVillage, Ecuador, sow maizeat low densities and weedand fertilize only once. Afterears are picked, village cowsgraze on left-over stalks,leaves, and weeds.From mountainside cropto street-corner snackEdwin Leónidas should bein class, but has been asked toguide visitors. He strideswith swift, nimble steps over theuneven terrain of Conchabón Village,in the Saraguro Valley of southernEcuador. The thin air and ruggedtopography of this Andean localeslow the visitors. The slim, darkhaired10-year-old stops, turns, andsmiles back at them. He is born tothis place and, along with the 16 or soclassmates of Conchabón’s one-roomprimary school, Escuela Fiscal Mixta“Panupali,” his health and nutritionbenefit daily from a national schoollunch program. The fare comprisesa hefty plate that may include rice,tuna fish, beans, and peas servedwith milk or even cookies for dessert.For the last three years, the maincourse more often than not featuresAychasara, a quality protein maize(QPM) variety developed usingCIMMYT maize sources.Leónidas and the visitors havearrived in the maize fields and aresoon met by local farmer, GermánOrdóñez, who has been growingAychasara for the last three years.“We use maize for everythinghere,” says Ordóñez, peeling backthe husks on one plant to exposea large, well-filled ear, “for soups,ears to eat, and for sale. We sowonly a little, and it’s just enoughfor our needs.” As do many of theircounterparts in Asia and Africa,maize farmers throughout theAndes often harvest ears whilehusks are green and market thecorn on the cob to be steamed orroasted for sale on street corners. Akilogram of Saraguro’s local varietysold this way goes for about US $4 per kilogram. Given Aychasara’ssuperior quality, a kilogram ofits ears fetches more than US $ 6,according to Ordóñez.Global connections for goodThe story of Aychasara’sdevelopment highlights therole an international center likeCIMMYT can play in harnessingglobal goods and expertise for10 Annual Report 2006-2007

the benefit of farmers in farawaysites, oft forgotten by commercialseed and service providers. Thename Aychasara embodies the Incaterms for “maize” and “meat,”in reference to QPM’s enhancedprotein quality. The variety wasdeveloped by breeder GonzaloÁvila and his group in Pairumani,Cochabamba, Bolivia, using a QPMversion of Tuxpeño. The latteris a native Mexican maize thatCIMMYT has employed extensivelyand which figures in the pedigreesof more than 150 improvedvarieties sown on some 4 millionhectares in developing countries.Ávila and his team combined itwith maizes of the large and flourykernel types preferred by Andeanfarmers and consumers.In addition to its release to farmersin Bolivia and Peru, Aychasaraseed was requested by CIMMYTmaize breeder, Hugo Cordova.Cordova passed it on to colleagueHugo Vivar, former barley breederfrom the International Center forAgricultural Research in the DryAreas posted at CIMMYT and who,with Ecuador’s National Instituteof Agricultural and LivestockResearch (INIAP), launched and isnow CIMMYT consultant on theSaraguro project.Convinced of its potential forSaraguro, Vivar gave Aychasarato Jorge Coronel, INIAP cerealsspecialist and leader of theSaraguro Development Project.Coronel promptly began testingthe variety on-station and inthe Saraguro Valley, whence itreached and has enthusiasticallybeen received by farmers. “Thelocal variety has a small planttype and small ears, and giveslow yields,” saysJorge Coronel. “EachAychasara ear averages300 grams. Farmers herecall Aychasara ‘diente decaballo’—horse’s tooth—because of its large kernels.”The project is helping Saragurofarmers obtain Aychasara seedand inputs like fertilizer. “There’slots of demand for seed,” saysCoronel. “We need to form seedproducer groups among farmers.”Meanwhile, INIAP is putting thevariety through the tests requiredfor formal release in Ecuador, andCIMMYT scientists in Mexico haveconducted a backcross projectto improve Aychasara’s diseaseresistance, while conserving itslarge ears and grains.For more information:Kevin Pixley, Assistant Director,Global Maize Program(k.pixley@cgiar.org)Baby corn, sweet corn, and green maize areamong the most important vegetables in manylocations worldwide. Moreover, green maize(fresh on the cob) is eaten parched, baked,roasted, or boiled and plays an important rolein filling the hunger gap after the dry season inAfrica. CIMMYT is exploring options for specialtraitmaize, especially as a means by which maizemay be value-added. Maize genetic enhancementfor vegetable uses, children’s food, and otherproducts—silage or bio-ethanol—that addvalue to the commodity depends partly on allelicdiversity from farmers’ fields.Specialty maize for sale11

Bio-fortified maize and wheatBreeding knowledge meetscutting-edge lab workIt is truly one of the great ideasin agricultural research fordevelopment… improving thenutritional value of the staple foodsthat people in developing countriesalready eat. While everyone agreesthat a properly balanced diet witha variety of different foods is mostdesirable, in many part of the worldit is just not possible.“The link between agriculture andnutrition is surprisingly underexplored,”says Kevin Pixley, whomanages the Biofortified Maizefor Improved Human Nutritionproject at CIMMYT. “Agriculturalapproaches can contribute toalleviate micronutrient deficiencies,more cheaply and sustainably thanfood supplements.” The effect ispotentially far-reaching: maize is thepreferred staple food of more than1.2 billion people in Sub-SaharanAfrica and Latin America. However,maize-based diets, particularly thoseof the very poor, often lack essentialvitamins and minerals. Over 50million people in these regions arevitamin A deficient, which can leadto visual impairments, blindness andincreased child mortality.Harvest-plus: More than“just grain”CIMMYT is working under theumbrella of HarvestPlus, aninternational, interdisciplinaryprogram to alleviate nutritionaldeficiency through breedingmicronutrient-enriched staplefoods. This project aims to developvarieties of maize that combinehigh provitamins A, iron and zinccontents with superior agronomicqualities, and disseminate themin partner countries in Africa,Asia and Latin America. Whileconsiderable progress has beenmade, the goals to be met are by nomeans easy to achieve.12 Annual Report 2006-2007

Leading work in the lab atCIMMYT in Mexico, researcherNatalia Palacios has been usingsophisticated techniques to measurethe provitamins A content of many,many different kinds of maize.Provitamins A are the precursorsubstances that should allow thehuman body to synthesize VitaminA. The white maize eaten in muchof sub-Saharan Africa contains noprovitamins A, while standardyellow maize varieties containabout 2 micrograms per gram(µg/g)—still insufficient in a dietdominated by maize. The good newsis that there is substantial geneticvariation in maize for concentrationsof provitamins A. The projecthas been screening hundreds ofmaize samples, looking for andthen using those with the bestprovitamins A content. The teamhas now reached the HarvestPlusprogram’s intermediate target formaize of 8 µg/g with its current bestexperimental materials; scientistsanticipate producing materials withthe ultimate target of 15 µg/g withinthe next few years by using cuttingedge lab tools to help select the bestmaterials for breeding.Nutrients: Key tohealthy dietsThe breeding work at CIMMYTis focusing on increasing theconcentration of provitamins A inmaize. Open-pollinated varieties(OPVs) are being developed usingpopular varieties grown in partnercountries and source materialshigh in provitamins A. In addition,the project team is developinginbred lines and hybrids with highprovitamins A content, based on eliteAfrican and Mexican germplasm,which will be freely available topartners for use in producingtheir own enriched hybrids orOPVs. Providing source materialsto other programs is a key partof the project, particularly to keypartners Brazil, Ethiopia, Ghana,Guatemala and Zambia, wheretheir performance is tested in localagro-environments. This work togenerate enhanced maize linesrelies on accurate measurementsof the micronutrient contents ofbreeding materials at every stage.Therefore, a major aspect of theproject has been experimentingwith techniques for analyzingcarotenoids (which includeprovitamins A), iron, and zinc.Carotenoids are a particularchallenge to work with, as theyare very sensitive to both lightand oxygen, making samplesvulnerable and difficult tostore. Palacios and her teamhave adapted and implementedprotocols for analyzing carotenoidcontent using high performanceliquid chromatography (HPLC),in collaboration with others in theHarvestPlus network. HPLC is veryprecise, but it is also expensive andtime-consuming.The next step for the team is abig push to build on this work.“For us it is a great challenge,and an opportunity to supportand enhance the breeding workby providing more and fasterinformation at a lower cost,”says Palacios. The team believesthat Near Infrared Reflectance(NIR), an approach being pursuedin partnership with CIP, willmultiply their screening potentialdramatically: last year they workedat full capacity to analyze 2,000samples, but with NIR they hope toanalyze 10,000 or more per year. Theteam will also explore the potentialof NIR to measure iron and zinc.Unfortunately, natural variability foriron content in maize is very limitedand may be insufficient to breediron-rich lines, and to a lesser extentthe same is true for zinc. However,iron deficiency is an extremelyimportant global problem: it isestimated that nearly three billionpeople are iron deficient. The teamis therefore exploring the feasibilityof breeding maize with increasedbioavailability of iron—i.e. selectingmaize with greater amount of ironthat can be absorbed by humanconsumers, rather than with greaterabsolute amount of iron.The ultimate goal is to reducemicronutrient malnutrition amongmaize consumers by providingmicronutrient-rich maize varietiesthat farmers will want to grow andconsumers will want to eat. We’rebreaking new ground working onthe micronutrient biofortification ofmaize,” says Pixley. “This is excitingscience.” Pixley points out thatCIMMYT has also worked for severaldecades developing maize withmore bio-available protein, known asquality protein maize.For more information:Natalia Palacios:grain nutrition specialist(n.palacios@cgiar.org)Bio-fortified enhanced maize and wheat13

Water-use efficient wheatwith good grain qualityMore wheat on less waterto keep farmers afloatTThe alarm is being soundedaround the developingworld: while wheat grainprices and demand rise sharply,water supplies for wheat crops aredrying up. Worse yet, climate modelspredict increasingly erratic andscarcer rainfall for many developingworld areas—bad news for wheatfarmers on some 60 million hectaresworldwide whose harvests dependsolely on rain or residual moisture.The solution lies partly in the moreeffective use of water resources,which includes practices, such asconservation agriculture, to captureand conserve moisture. But CIMMYThas also made good progress inanother valuable resource fordryland wheat farmers: experimentalvarieties that produce more underboth water-limited conditions andwith adequate moisture.Physiological model: Waterproductivityin the seedCIMMYT researchers have foundthat lower temperatures in the uppercanopy of a wheat stand signalthe plants’ ability to access waterthrough the roots. “We are usingthis to identify the best populationsin early generations, before runningcostly yield trials,” says CIMMYTwheat physiologist, MatthewReynolds.For traits believed to have a moredirect role in drought adaptationin wheat, Center physiologists andbreeders have developed a modelthat groups complementary traits(see figure). “We’re still at thebeginning stages of applying this,”says Reynolds. “We’re just beginningto learn how traits affect each otherand—just as significantly—how theyare affected by diverse croppingenvironments.” But the work hasshown that physiological tools canbe used to characterize parental linesfor the presence of complementaryphysiological traits, thereby allowingplant breeders to combine the traitsin crosses. “Analysis in wheatsof diverse genetic backgroundssuggests that combining water-useefficiency, enhanced levels of solublestem carbohydrates, and the abilityto access water deep in the soil couldincrease yields of modern wheats by30% or more,” says Reynolds.Experimental wheats at CIMMYT aregrown on a desert research stationin northern Mexico under carefullymanaged moisture stress, using dripand gravity irrigation, to find thosethat yield well under dry conditions.The same wheats are also testedunder well-watered conditions andfoliar diseases. “Only those thatyield well in all cases are selected,”says CIMMYT wheat breeder, YannManes. “Over the last year or two,we’ve been monitoring and finetuningthe drip irrigation system toput plants under as much stress aspossible without killing them.”New sources of adaptationto dryness“One advantage of CIMMYT is thecollaboration among crop geneticresource experts, physiologists, andbreeders,” says Reynolds. “We alsohave access to some 160,000 uniqueseed collections of wheat-relatedspecies in our germplasm bank.14 Annual Report 2006-2007

Wild grasses impart hardiness tomodern wheatsFor Arturo Salvador Ortega Ortega,a smallholder farmer in Saraguro,southern Ecuador, and countless of hispeers worldwide, better wheat varietiesfrom CIMMYT research are openingnew avenues of hope. “Here we haveno profession or livelihood other thanfarming,” says Ortega. “Many people haveleft the area for the difficulties of makinga living. We’re returning to work our fieldswith improved seed and fertilizer, andwe’ll be able to get by.”Groups of drought-adaptive traits for wheatWe can evaluate experimentalplants and elite cultivars inrealistic field tests, and we workwith many partners worldwidewho can also test promisingseed under local conditions.”As one example, Centerresearchers discovered severalvaluable traits in Mexicanwheat landraces—cultivarsbrought by Spanish colonistsand grown and selected forcenturies in Mexico’s drylands.Extensive testing showedthat certain of the plants canextract water from deep in thesoil; others have high levelsof soluble stem carbohydratesthat help fill the grain underlate-season droughts; stillothers show vigorous earlygrowth, quickly covering thesoil and safeguarding preciousmoisture from evaporation.“Selected landraces are alreadybeing used in our droughtcrossing program and advancedlines involving landraces andtheir pedigrees have shownpromise,” says Manes.Wheat yields differ underconservation tillageManes has also tested theperformance of varietiesunder drought conditionsand the direct seeding of acrop into unplowed soil andresidues left on the surfacefrom the previous crop. Hefound that this “zero-tillage”is more productive underdrought than conventionaltillage. “We want to studymore the need to breed underzero-tillage to develop wheatadapted to that system,” hesays. The combination ofdrought tolerant wheats andmoisture-conserving practicescould prove invaluable fordeveloping country farmers,as climates change and watersupplies grow short.For more information:Matthew Reynolds,wheat physiologist(m.reynolds@cgiar.org)Several years ago, Jorge Coronel, cereals specialist forEcuador’s National Institute of Agricultural and LivestockResearch (INIAP), introduced a new wheat varietyderived from “re-synthesized wheats,” created at CIMMYTby crossing durum wheat with wild grasses. The newwheats embody the broad diversity and hardiness ofthe grasses, and were selected intensively at CIMMYTfor drought tolerance and the ability to emerge fromvariable depths—a great advantage where farmers sowsimply by tossing seed onto plowed fields. The wheat lineCoronel brought, known locally as “trigo blanco” (whitewheat), has proven popular with Saraguro farmers. “Oneof its chief virtues is that it yields well in years of goodprecipitation,” says Coronel, who has worked closelywith Saraguro farmers for over a decade. “Droughttolerant wheats in the past fell over or suffered fromdisease attacks in rainy seasons.” According to Coronel,the grain quality of trigo blanco is unmatched in theregion, enabling farmers easily to market surpluses, and itmatures about 20 days before other varieties. “This wheatgives good yields, withstands dry spells, and grows well inrough fields or warm or cold plots,” says Ortega.Grain yield (t/ha)1086420Re-synthesized wheat lineLocal checks0 2 4 6 8 10Mean yield (t/ha) of the trialsA treasure trove of stress tolerance traits has been foundin new wheats derived from crosses of durum wheat withwild grasses. This figure shows the superior yields of onesuch derivative line over the best local wheat cultivars at 30semiarid locations worldwide, under both droughted andadequately watered conditions. The new wheats are beingused in breeding programs worldwide.Water-use efficient wheat with good grain quality15

Rust resistant wheatBlowing in the wind:CIMMYT strives to stop anew wheat pathogenThe battle to prevent aglobal catastrophe in wheatproduction took two ominousturns during the past year with thevirulent stem (or “black”) rust race,known as Ug99, becoming an evenmore potent threat than expertspreviously feared. The CIMMYT-ICARDA-FAO Global Rust Initiative(GRI) started a massive screeningprogram in Kenya and Ethiopia,where Ug99 is endemic, to seek newsources of resistance. Of the 11,000wheat accessions tested, includingcultivars from the world’s majorwheat-producing regions, wellover 9,000 succumbed to the newrace. To make matters worse, GRIpartners discovered the diseaseon wheat across the Red Sea inYemen—precisely as predicted twoyears ago by CIMMYT specialists. Ifspores of the new rust, discoveredin eastern Africa in 1999, continuealong the expected path, they couldsoon reach the breadbasket areasof Iran and South Asia (see map),menacing the food security andlivelihoods of more than a billionpeople. To find a crisis of possiblysimilar proportions, one must harkclear back to 1954, when the lastgreat stem rust outbreak destroyedas much as 40% of North America’sspring wheat crop.Time is not on wheat’s sideFinding resistance involves fieldtestinglarge numbers of geneticallydiverse wheat plants under heavy,deliberate infections with the newstrain. Because the pathogen cannotbe brought to uninfected areas,scientists are screening experimentalwheats at two key research stationsin regions in Ethiopia and Kenya,where the fungus has already madeits deadly appearance. Key partnersinclude the Kenya AgriculturalResearch Institute (KARI) and theEthiopian Institute of AgricultureResearch (EIAR).Peter Njau has a look of concern onhis face and urgency in his voice. “Bevery gentle,” he says. “You don’t haveto separate each seedling from theothers.” Njau, KARI-Njoro’s wheatbreeder, is teaching technicians at theKARI’s Njoro Agriculture ResearchCenter to transplant thousands ofdelicate winter wheat seedlings. Thismust occur just before sunset, whencool soil and night temperatures are aptfor plantlets to set roots.In one plot, the Njoro team sowssusceptible wheats three times a year,providing a constant source of infectionto challenge wheat genotypes broughtin for testing. An adjacent nursery hasover 3,000 samples of spring wheat andwill confirm the rust resistance theyshowed in previous seasons. This isnecessary because the new fungal strainseems to be evolving and has recentlyovercome at least one major gene forresistance in wheat. The nurseries alsoinclude CIMMYT and KARI breeding16 Annual Report 2006-2007

populations—hopefully a source ofhigh-yielding, resistant varieties forKenya and the world.Similar efforts are under way atseveral sites in Ethiopia, where thespores also lurk. “We are committedto work with international partnersto fight the looming threat of stemrust,” says Dr. Bedada Girma, leaderof EIAR’s Stem Rust Task Force.Slowing down rustBreeders at CIMMYT seek and use“minor” or “slow rusting” genes,which combine to retard diseasedevelopment on the plant but donot totally impede it. Farmers reapa full harvest, and individual rustorganisms that attack the plantwith greater virulence gain nocomparative advantage in pathogenpopulations. “The good newsis that some breeding lines andvarieties seem to resist all variantsof the fungus,” says CIMMYT wheatscientist, Ravi Singh. “Fourteen linesunderwent multi-location trials inIndia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran,Egypt, Sudan and Nepal duringthe past year and in each of thesecountries researchers identified 2-3wheat lines that have both resistanceand significantly higher yields overcurrently grown cultivars.”Farmers get back their yield and moreKarim Ammar, a durum wheat breeder at CIMMYT, is proudof his new wheat lines growing green and disease-freethis season in the Yaqui Valley, Sonora State, northernMexico. Even with the efficiency of shuttling breedingstocks between the desert Valley and the highland researchstation at Toluca, Mexico—which allows researchers tosow and select twice a year—it still takes six years to getto where Karim is now. “Between preliminary and eliteyield trials, we’ve got about 2,500 lines,” he says. “All areresistant to leaf rust.” This is good news for farmers whogrow durum wheat, the kind used for pasta, couscous, andsemolina. Today, 85% of the spring durum wheat grownin developing countries traces its origins to CIMMYT inMexico and ICARDA, a sister center based in Syria.In addition to improving disease resistance and grainquality, Ammar and his team worked to enhance theirplants’ performance under drought and several importantdiseases. “Now we’re back to the point where we canaddress progress in yield potential, drought tolerance, andquality very effectively because we know we have enoughvariability for rust resistance,” says Ammar.Just one of the many wheat diseases CIMMYT scientistsbreed against, leaf rust, caused by the fungus Pucciniatriticina, is currently the most widespread rust in the worldand of enormous economic importance to farmers.The seriousness of the situation hasbeen recognized by the Food andAgriculture Organization of theUnited Nations (FAO). “Global wheatyields could be at risk, if the stem rustspreads to major wheat-producingcountries,” says FAO DirectorGeneral, Jacques Diouf.For further information:Ravi Singh, wheat geneticist/pathologist(r.singh@cgiar.org)Rust resistant wheat17

New traits throughgene discoveryNew traits throughgene discoveryGenetic resources lie at theheart of CIMMYT’s maizeand wheat improvementprograms. The Center holds some160,000 unique, catalogued samplesof wheat seed, and 26,500 of maize.They represent enormous geneticdiversity and provide a key sourcefor breeders’ work to incorporatenew genes for useful agronomictraits into improved materials.CIMMYT scientists are developingmore effective ways to harnessinformation about genes, theirinteractions, and their responses todifferent environments.Wheat conservation networkstrengthens global linkagesIn collaboration with the Global CropDiversity Trust and as part of a new,global strategy to better conserveand use wheat genetic resources,early in 2006 CIMMYT sent an indepthsurvey to 50 curators of wheatcollections of worldwide importanceand nearly 60 wheat breeders. Inaddition to providing information onthe number and types of collectionsand their accessibility, respondentsgave feedback on the usefulness ofcurrent collections and gaps in thecollections.“The curators valued landraces, whichare varieties that farmers have adaptedover time to suit local needs,” saysThomas Payne, Head of the CIMMYTWheat Collection. “Breeders, on theother hand, valued special mappingpopulations for use with DNA markersand specialized genetic stocks.”Among other things, survey resultswere discussed in a meeting of wheatgenetic resource experts at CIMMYTin 2007. One outcome was the globalstrategy, through which researcherswill make wheat collections worldwidemore accessible through use of publicwebsites, seek to fill gaps in currentcollections, and back up uniquecollections.18 Annual Report 2006-2007

Saving maize diversityfor humanityThe traditional maize landracesof Latin America are slowlydisappearing, as smallholder farmersleave rural areas and improvedvarieties gain popularity. The seedcollections in CIMMYT’s maizegermplasm bank largely comprisesuch landraces, many of which areno longer grown in farmers’ fields.To fill gaps in those collectionsand as a potential source of newdiversity, Center staff and partnersgathered more than 1,700 newseed samples from farmers’ fields,markets, and other sources during2006-07. They focused special effortson obtaining additional seed ofTuxpeño, a tropical maize groupingthat crosses well with many othermaize types and figures in morethan 150 improved varieties sownon more than 4 million hectaresworldwide.The Center also conserves andstudies the wild relatives of maize,such as teosinte and Tripsacum.“Wild relatives can provide valuablegenes for drought tolerance, diseaseresistance, or even increasedbiomass, a trait that’s important forbiofuel production,” says SuketoshiTaba, Head of the Maize GermplasmCollection. A recent monitoringmission in Guatemala by Taba,experts from the Instituto de Cienciay Tecnología Agrícolas (ICTA) ofthat country, and Cornell Universityrevealed that many Tripsacumspecies are in danger of extinction,as development encroaches on theirhabitats. CIMMYT is helping toformulate a strategy for conservingTripsacum in the wild and ingermplasm banks. “Maize breedingcould be constrained in the future, ifwe do not conserve these species,”Taba says. Regarding teosinte—nowknown to be the direct ancestor ofmodern maize—Taba and Mexicanspecialists recently discovered insoutheastern Mexico a new, riverainpopulation that could provide genesto help maize survive flood-pronesettings, like the rice-maize croppingrotations of Asia.Sharing and sifting throughthe wealth of diversitySupplying samples of its thousandsof wheat and maize accessions toresearchers and breeders around theworld remains an essential functionof CIMMYT’s germplasm bank andnetwork of international nurseries.CIMMYT’s Seed Inspection andDistribution Unit manages thiscomplex process, linking withCIMMYT researchers and more than600 partners in over 100 countriesto facilitate the exchange of seedand data. In 2006, the Unit sent 368shipments of small grain cereals(wheat, triticale, barley) to more then100 countries and 298 shipments ofmaize to more than 150 countries.The Unit’s seed health laboratoryobtained accreditation with theInternational Standards Organization(ISO) in 2007, making it unique in theCGIAR system.Access to large and diverse sets ofseed is crucial to identify usefultraits such as drought tolerance ordisease resistance, along with thegenetic markers for those traits. TheDrought Tolerant Maize for Africainitiative is screening hundredsof maize varieties to locate DNAmarkers for drought tolerance (seep. 9). CIMMYT has also testedmore than 2,000 Mexican wheatlandraces for yield under droughtconditions. The best-performingones have been selected forphysiological characterization andDNA fingerprinting. (see “Morewheat on less water to keep farmersafloat,” p. 14)Because it is impossible totest all germplasm bank seed,CIMMYT has created subsets thatrepresent the maximum possibleportion of specific parts of thecollection, leading the way instatistical methods to accomplishthis. Working with the CGIAR’sGeneration Challenge Program,Center researchers have usedgenetic markers to find the mostunique 300 out of 3,000 maize andwheat seed collections. These willbe characterized for physiologicaltraits and with DNA markers,in search of valuable new genes.“We’ve already used the maizecore subset to find new genes forpro-Vitamin A levels in maize,”says Marilyn Warburton, Head ofCIMMYT’s Applied BiotechnologyCenter. “This will help in breedingnutritionally-rich maize for the poorwhose diets center on the crop.”For more information:Jonathan Crouch,Director, Genetic ResourcesEnhancement Unit(j.crouch@cgiar.org)New traits through gene discovery19

Improved methodologies andtools for genetic improvementShibin Gao, visiting scientist from China,uses a new technique for extracting DNAtissue samples directly from maize seed.Cutting the cost ofDNA markersSignificant CIMMYTbiotechnology efforts focuson DNA marker-assistedselection to complement traditional,field-based breeding approaches.Markers are identifiable genomesegments that lie near genes for traitsof interest. Use of molecular markersin maize has been constrained by alack of reliable markers, particularlyfor traits such as drought tolerancethat involve many genes, and therelatively high cost of DNA analyses.CIMMYT biotechnologists have beenaddressing both limitations, andappear to have scored a success incutting marker costs.Marker labs “going to seed”Extracting DNA samples fromleaves—the current method, whichincludes collecting and processingleaf tissue and tracing samples backto source plants—is time-consumingand costly. Use of leaf tissue meansthat lab analysis of markers has been“after the fact;” in essence, scientistsneed to wait for plants to developto obtain samples. Moreover, theymust grow large numbers of plants,of which only a few will contain thedesired genes.To get around this, CIMMYTresearchers began asking whatwould happen if they took andanalyzed samples directly from seedtissue, prior to sowing. Tests haveproved successful. “Maize seedsare large, and we take only a smallsample that doesn’t damage theseed,” says maize molecular breederYunbi Xu. Once the results are in,breeders can then sow seeds thatcontain the desired genes. “Before,if you planted 1,000 plants, only10 might be useful. Now, we knowwhat seeds to plant ahead of time,”says Xu. The practice can thus savean entire breeding cycle, meaningthat farmers get useful productssooner and breeding programs makemore effective use of field and otherresources.Ending the dearth of droughtmarkers for maizeDrawing on information from manysources, CIMMYT scientists aredeveloping, refining and applyingDNA markers for diverse agronomictraits in both wheat and maize. Ajoint effort involving CIMMYT,the CGIAR Generation ChallengeProgram, and Cornell Universityhas resulted in 1,536 new markers.About half point to candidate genesfor drought tolerance, and the restprovide general information aboutthe genome. These potential markersare being used in the DroughtTolerant Maize for Africa (DTMA)20 Annual Report 2006-2007

initiative (see p. 9). Participantshave screened hundreds of maizelines from different environmentsfor drought tolerance. The best300 will be field tested for droughttolerance and other physiologicalcharacteristics and screened usingeach of the new markers. Thosemarkers found to be associated withactual drought tolerance in the fieldwill be applied in DTMA breedingefforts. “This project is one of thefirst to combine on a large scalenew tools from DNA sequencingwith conventional plant breeding,which CIMMYT has been doing verysuccessfully for decades,” says MarilynWarburton, Head of CIMMYT’sApplied Biotechnology Center.A DNA window on thewheat genomeIn wheat, markers are alreadyavailable for many agronomictraits, and these are being used tocharacterize potential parents and tomonitor the inheritance of valuablegenes during breeding generations.There are numerous markers forresistance to important wheat pestsand diseases—cereal cyst nematode,root lesion nematode, crown rot,fusarium head blight, barley yellowdwarf virus, and leaf and stem rustresistance—as well as for tolerance tosoil boron, semidwarf plant height,and key grain quality traits. Incurrent Center breeding programs,DNA markers are used to select intwo or three generations, includingthe early ones to boost the frequencyof favorable alleles and in advancedprogeny to confirm the presence ofthese alleles.“Markers allow the breeder to‘see’ what he cannot see with hiseyes,” says Yann Manes, CIMMYTwheat breeder, “particularly soilpathogen resistance traits. Wehave near ‘perfect’ markers forseveral genes associated withcomplete or strong resistanceto nematodes. We don’t haveall these constraints (for fieldscreening) in Mexico. Even ifwe did, it would not be easy toscreen for resistance to them inindividual plants.” Elite breedinglines who resistance to soilbornepathogens is enhanced inMexico using marker-assistedselection are sent to Julie Nicol,CIMMYT wheat nematologistbased in Turkey, for phenotypingand confirmation of resistance.“Marker-assisted selection hasmade our work more targeted,efficient, and reliable,” says Nicol.“We are now sharing several ofthese materials with our partnersin national breeding programsand other wheat pathologists.”CIMMYT wheat breeders alsoroutinely use markers to select forresistance to the rusts—amongthe oldest and most damagingdiseases of wheat.Creating and managingmounds of dataUse of DNA analyses generatesenormous amounts of data.To provide the computingand statistical tools neededfor managing and using thatinformation, CIMMYT and theInternational Rice ResearchInstitute joined forces in 2006to launch the Crop ResearchInformatics Laboratory (CRIL).Scientists at the new joint facilitiesare developing a single cropinformation system and comparativebiology infrastructure for rice,wheat, and maize.Researchers from CIMMYTand the Chinese Academy ofAgricultural Sciences (CAAS)have also developed a faster andmore effective way to detect andmap genome regions, known asquantitative trait loci (QTL), thatcontain a single or several genesassociated with useful traits.Called inclusive composite intervalmapping (ICIM), it has been madefreely available in a user-friendlysoftware package called QTLIciMapping, and is already used byscientists around the world.For more information:Jonathan Crouch,Director, Genetic ResourcesEnhancement Unit(j.crouch@cgiar.org)Improved methodologies and tools for genetic improvement21

Resource-conserving practices formaize and wheat cropping systemsStemming the loss ofAfrican soils’ life bloodFarmer HendrixiousZvamarima, of Shamva,in Mashonaland CentralProvince, Zimbabwe, becameinterested in conservation agriculturewhen he saw a neighbor who, insteadof cultivating the soil, sowed hismaize seed directly into unplowedsoil and residues from last year’scrop. “I was wasting my time usingthe plow,” says Zvamarima, “so Idecided to try the new methods.”Several of Zvamarima’s neighborshad been taking part for as longas three years in demonstrationsorganized by CIMMYT, Zimbabwe’sDepartment of Agricultural Researchand Extension (AREX), and localorganizations like Development Aidfrom People to People (DAPP). Notwanting to be left out, Zvamarimaset up his own “trials” comparingthe effects of direct seeding, use ofa rip tine to sow and, as a control,conventional plowing. Copying theapproach of a university studentwho visits the area, he took detailedinformation on all the treatmentsand, above all, how much labor eachentailed. When members of the threeorganizations mentioned aboverecently came to Shamva to checkprogress on the trials, Zvamarimaproudly presented his experimentand the fine crop he obtained withdirect seeding and keeping cropresidues on the surface.More time, less drudgeryThe work is part of efforts byCIMMYT to test and spread a suiteof resource-conserving practices—inthis case, eliminating plowing andkeeping residues on the soil surface.Activities in sub-Saharan Africaare focusing initially on Malawi,Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe;countries where small-scale, maizebasedfarming systems provide foodand livelihoods for millions but, yearby year, expose soils to severe erosion,degrade soil structure and extractmore nutrients than they put back.“The big selling point straightawayfor most southern African farmersis the dramatic savings in labor andtime, which they can then allocateto cash crops, off-farm employment,or other activities,“ says MirjamPulleman, a CIMMYT soil scientistwho, among other things, studies thesoil quality effects of conservationtillage in Mexico and Africa.22 Annual Report 2006-2007

Other near-term benefits of conservationagriculture include erosion control andmoisture retention: crop residues protect thesoil surface from rain and sun; raindropsbreak down soil crumbs, which blockspores, and the sun evaporates soil moisture.Will cattle eat whatconservation needs?Challenges to widespread adoptionof conservation agriculture includecompetition for residues: farmers typicallyfeed maize stalks and husks to cattle orother farm animals. Conservation tillagesystems also require careful weed control oruse of herbicides.But the botton line, according to PatWall, CIMMYT agronomist in southernAfrica, is that smallholder maize systemsin the region are currently extractive andunsustainable: “This means workingwith farmers, researchers, and extensionagents to find ways to put the basicprinciples of conservation agriculture intopractice in the community. It also meansusing our limited resources to catalyzeactivities among diverse stakeholders andpartners, including research and extensionagencies, input suppliers, farm implementmanufacturers, local officials, policy makers,farmer associations, and community-basedorganizations.”Signs of farmer interestand adoptionIn Malawi, CIMMYT has been working withpartners at seven location, and results areencouraging, according to Pulleman, whorecently visited the country with projectpartners: “In Nkhotakota village in centralMalawi, for example, we saw that thetrials looked good. One farmer said ‘If thistechnology had come 50 years ago, Malawiwould be somewhere else!’ “For more information:Pat Wall, CIMMYT agronomist, Zimbabwe(p.wall@cgiar.org)Conservation tillage a winner for winter wheat in TurkeyConservation tillage trials in rainfed, winter wheat-fallow systemsare showing smallholder farmers on the Anatolian Plains a wayto double their harvests. Muzzafer Avci is an agronomist with theCentral Field Crops Research Institute of the Turkish Ministry ofAgriculture. In recent years he has been working with CIMMYT wheatagronomist, Ken Sayre, and over time has become convinced thatconservation tillage—the direct seeding of a crop into the residuesof a previous crop, without plowing—can work for rainfed winterwheat, a key crop for small-scale farmers on the Anatolian Plateau.On the Anatolian Plateau, farms are typically less than 10 hectaresin size. Wheat farmers obtain just a single harvest every secondseason from each field. Sowing takes place in autumn before theonset of winter. The wheat germinates quickly, lies dormant over thewinter, and matures the following summer. After harvest the fieldis left fallow for a year before being sown to wheat again. Duringthe fallow, farmers plow the weeds under two or three times. Evenwith the long fallow, which one would suppose helps conserve orimprove soil fertility, typical wheat harvests on these farms reachonly 2 tons per hectare, far below the crop’s genetic potential. Oncehighly productive, the winter wheat farming system has becomemore and more dependent on fertilizer as soils degrade, making itunsustainable.Model farm showcases conservation tillage. A former state farmthat was recently privatized, the Ilci Cicekdagi farm is not typical. Itcomprises 1,700 hectares and supports modern, diversified farminginvolving dairy and beef cattle, sheep, and many crops, among themwheat. Farm manager Nedim Tabak says he hopes the farm will bea model for local farmers. He is proud of his conservation tillagetrials and shows them off to Avci and to Carla Konsten, AgriculturalCounselor from the Royal Netherlands Embassy in Ankara. TheNetherlands, Canada, and Australia have funded pilot conservationtillage work in Turkey for the past two years and representatives ofthose countries’ funding agencies are pleased with the result. “Thistechnology will clearly benefit farmers on the Anatolian Plateau,” saysAvci, who learned about conservation tillage first-hand at a CIMMYTcourse on the topic.Of course, use of conservation tillage and retaining crop residueson the soil do more than simply capture and hold soil moisture. Thepractices reduce production costs and diesel fuel burning, and helpprevent topsoil erosion from the strong winds that often sweep thePlateau during fallow. The elimination of repeated tillage to buryweeds also helps retain soil structure, aiding aeration and waterfiltration. The tillage trials have obtained demonstration yields ofmore than 4 tons per hectare—double what farmers currently get.Farm manager Tabak says his trials were sown late for lack of timelyaccess to a conservation tillage seeder. He is planning to modifyone of the seeders on the farm for next season. Already somelocal farmers have looked at his test plots and said they will tryconservation tillage too next season.Resource-conserving practices for maize and wheat cropping systems23

Capacity buildingCapacity building at CIMMYT:Where tried-and-true meets new“Iwas fortunate to obtainpractical experience insome of the most importantprocedures in plant breeding.”Robert Crowther Lindeque (thirdfrom the right in the picture above),senior research technician at theSmall Grains Institute, AgriculturalResearch Council of South Africa,is an experienced researcher, buthad high praise for the knowledgeand skills he gained in the wheatimprovement course conductedat CIMMYT in Mexico during 26February-25 May. “The trainee groupwas involved in the whole selectionprocedure, right from plant selectionfor specific traits to comparison offield results.” Lindeque and theothers also benefited from direct andfrequent interaction with CIMMYTscientists in specific subject areas.The course had not been offeredsince 2002, according to CIMMYTknowledge-sharing and capacitybuildingcoordinator, Petr Kosina.“We’re rebuilding the traditionof longer, hands-on courses,” hesays. Their advantages includeparticipants gaining an intimateacquaintance with the countlessdetails of running a field breedingprogram, but Kosina alsocommends the life-long professionalrelationships that derive from livingand working together.“The linkages between CIMMYTwheat researchers and thesenational program scientists areactually the basis of all the Center’sresearch and outputs, he explains.“Life-long partnership” aptlydescribes the fruitful interactionbetween CIMMYT and South Africanresearch institutes, according toLindeque. “CIMMYT was alreadyworking with South Africa since themid-1970s.“ Lindeque also says thata “…unique virtue of CIMMYT hasbeen the availability of its germplasmto national breeding programs.” Aspart of courses, participants gainknowledge of the Center’s breedingstocks and methods, facilitating theiraccess to and effective use of thematerials to benefit the farmers theyserve. “Among other things, theymake their own selections and obtainbreeding materials in the earlierstages of development,” says Kosina.24 Annual Report 2006-2007

Bringing trainingcloser to homeThe Center has offered over 70training courses and workshopsat locations outside of Mexicoin 2007. Such events generallyfocus on specific needs orcapacities for a particularproject or group, and ofteninvolve personnel from nationalresearch programs, nongovernmentorganizations,and small- and medium-scaleenterprises. Just one exampleis the workshop “Molecularcharacterization of inbred linesand populations in maize”given in New Delhi, India,by CIMMYT scientists andcollaborators during April 2007.“In the lab where I’m working,we have a number of problemsusing SSR markers,” saysShirangi Imalka Samararatne,researcher in Sri Lanka’s PlantGenetic Resources Centre, whoattended the workshop. “I’mhappy (now) that my problemsare solved.”The workshop, which washosted by the Indian AgricultureResearch Institute (IARI) andsponsored by the GenerationChallenge Program of theCGIAR, drew 19 participantsfrom 10 countries in Asia andAfrica, with interest in a broadrange of crops. Nine resourcepersons from five countriesgave lectures, lab presentations,computer training, and handsonpractice.Worldwide knowledgeon key cereal cropsAs part of a strategic alliancebegun several years ago, IRRIand CIMMYT—the first andsecond centers formed in whatbecame the Consultative Group onInternational Agricultural Research(CGIAR) 40 years ago—are leadingan initiative to gather and makewidely available precious globalpublic goods like data, information,and knowledge on key food staplecrops. “The idea of this ‘CerealKnowledge Bank’ is to address thecurrent fragmentation of extensionand training materials, makingthem available in an accessible andinteractive web-based platform,”says Kosina.According to Kosina, the Bank willcontain information from a widelyusedRice Knowledge Bank createdby IRRI; interactive diagnostic andcrop management applications,Maize Doctor and Wheat Doctor;Maize Finder, a tool to identifysuitable varieties for specificsettings; and information aboutdiverse cropping and intercroppingsystems and constraints indeveloping countries.“With our help and initial supportthrough the platform, countrypartners will eventually be able tobuild their own knowledge banks,”says Kosina. Several applications ofthe Cereal Knowledge Bank shouldbe operational by the end of 2007.For more information:Petr Kosina, Coordinator,Knowledge Sharing and CapacityBuilding (p.kosina@cgiar.org)Supporting and cultivating studentsThe Center assists scores of university students inagricultural science worldwide, advising them orworking directly with them on thesis research, aswell as helping to identify funding sources. BothCIMMYT and the students benefit.A recent is example is the case of Gul Erginbasand Elif Sahin, two committed and talentedyoung people from Turkey who hope to make adifference in their own country and are alreadymaking a difference for CIMMYT. “We work inclose collaboration with the Turkish Ministry ofAgriculture and several universities,” says JulieNicol, the CIMMYT soil-borne disease pathologist,based in Turkey. “Both women have started workon doctoral degrees, supervised by key universityexperts and myself. This is a highly effective way tobuild capacity in applied research both for Turkeyand the world.” Erginbas is screening wheat forresistance to crown rot disease. Sahin is focusingon an underground pest called the cereal cystnematode. Both organisms are especially damagingto wheat grown under more marginal conditionsor under conservation tillage with crop residuemulches, and so figure prominently in CIMMYTwork on conservation agriculture and for smallscale,rainfed wheat farming. Having a CIMMYTscientist like Nicol as a co-advisor helps, accordingto the students. “She brings us a global perspectiveand makes sure we work with care and precision,and she really knows the field,” says Sahin.“Inasmuch as nearly all CIMMYT activities involveextensive collaboration, they help strengthenCIMMYT and partners’ capacities,” says Kosina. “TheCenter’s efforts over the years have easily reachedupwards of 9,000 persons, essentially creating anagricultural community of knowledge that hasbenefited maize and wheat farmers in developingcountries. We aim to build on that community, bothwith modern tools and tried-and-true approaches.”Capacity building25

CIMMYT Financial Overview2006 FINANCIAL STATEMENTSA summary of the 2006 combined statements of activitiesand changes in net assets and combined statements offinancial position for CIMMYT, Int., and CIMMYT, A.C.,is set out in Table 1. Total revenues for 2006 amounted toUS$ 35.95 million.Total net assets increased by US$ 0.39 to US$ 22.56million (2005 US$ 22.17 million). Unappropriated,unrestricted net assets increased to US$ 7.57 million.2006 FUNDING OVERVIEWTotal funding for 2006 was US$ 35.95 million (2005US$ 39.87 million) and included other income ofUS$ 1.79 million (2005 US$ 1.85 million). Grantincome amounted to US$ 34.16 million, comprisingUS$ 14.87 million in unrestricted grants and US$19.29 million in restricted grants (Table 2).Table 1. Financial Statements, 2006As of December 31, 2006 and 2005(Thousands of US Dollars)ASSETS 2006 2005Current assetsCash and cash equivalents 23,645 13,052Accounts receivableDonors - net 4,711 8,104Other 1,073 1,252Inventory and supplies 437 374Prepaid expenses 55 10Total current assets 29,921 22,792Non-current assetsProperty and equipment, net 14,991 14,952Total non-current assets 14,991 14,952TOTAL ASSETS 44,912 37,744LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETSCurrent LiabilitiesCurrent portion of employee retirement obligation 1,390 1,190Accounts payable:Donors 9,377 6,202Challenge program and collaboratives 7,464 6,103Other 1,639 973Accruals and provisions 1,152 572Total current liabilities 21,022 15,040Statements of Activities, 2006 and 2005.For the years ended December 31, 2006 and 2005(Thousands of US Dollars)2006 2005Revenues and GainsGrants / revenue 34,165 38,020Other revenues and gains 1,789 1,855Total revenues and gains 35,954 39,875Expenses and lossesProgram related expenses 28,502 31,022Management and general expenses 6,019 6,498Other losses and expenses 1,039 354Total, expenses and losses 35,560 37,874NET SURPLUS 394 2,001Expenses by natural classificationPersonnel costs 16,596 18,022Supplies and services 10,352 9,816Collaborators / partnership costs 5,588 6,176Operational travel 2,035 1,907Depreciation 989 1,953Total 35,560 37,874Non-current LiabilitiesEmployee retirement obligation 877 535Contingencies 450 -Total non-current liabilities 1,327 535Commitments and contingenciesTotal liabilities 22,349 15,575Net assetsUnrestrictedDesignated 14,991 14,952Undesignated 7,572 7,217Total unrestricted net assets 22,563 22,169TOTAL LIABILITIES AND NET ASSETS $ 44,912 37,74426 Annual Report 2006-2007

Table 2. CIMMYT sources of income from grants by country/entity, 2006 and 2005.For the years ended December 31, 2006 and 2005(Thousands of US Dollars)Donors 2006 2005UnrestrictedAustralia 568 506Canada 1,044 946China 120 130Denmark 481 438France 152 143Germany 430 162India 113 113Japan 1,045 1,297Korea 50 50Mexico - 25Netherlands 795 842New Zealand - 252Norway 318 303Philippines 8 7Sweden 324 345Switzerland 489 491Thailand 10 11United States 4,048 3,956United Kingdom 1,672 1,541World Bank 3,204 1,750Subtotal - unrestricted 14,871 13,308RestrictedADB (Asian Development Bank) 209 318AustraliaAusAID - 234Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research 488 131Australian Centre for Plant Functional Genomics Pty Ltd. 10 -CRC Molecular Plant Breeding 420 330Grains Research and Development Corporation 991 1,105Belgium - 196Brazil - 6CanadaCanadian International Development Agency 1,603 2,045CGIARCentro Internacional de Agricultura Tropical 18 9International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas 40 40International Crop Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics - 7International Livestock Research Institute 41 32International Plant Genetic Resources Institute 5 10International Rice Research Institute - 20International Water Management Institute 7 62Standing Panel on Impact Assessment - 4Challenge ProgramBiofortification 1,026 983Generation 1,447 1,603Water and Food 409 262ChinaCAAS - 300Lamsoo Milling Company - 4ColombiaFENALCE (Federación de Cultivadores de Cereales y Leguminosas) 208 165Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development - 5Denmark 247 140European Commission 190 1,905FAO 41 49GermanyBASF 42 41Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development 736 882Donors 2006 2005IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) - 15IFAD (International Fund For Agricultural Development) 678 558IDB (Inter-American Development Bank) 10 -Iran, Islamic Republic of 60 241India-ICAR 294 -ItalyENEA 6 6Societa Produttori S.p.A. 31 11JapanEconomic Cooperation Bureau, Ministry of Foreign Affairs 1,321 1,315Nippon Foundation 687 719Sasakawa Africa Association - 25Kazakhstan, Republic of 18 15Korea, Republic ofRural Development Administration 87 120MexicoCONACYT (Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologia) 242 95SAGARPA (Secretaria de Agricultura, Ganaderia,Desarrollo Rural y Pesca) 157 7Fundacion Guanajuato Produce A.C. 46 35Fundacion Sonora 38 72ICAMEX 64 30INIFAP 37 -Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico - 8Miscellaneous Research Grants 376 15NetherlandsEnvironmental Assessment Agency 9 12OPEC Fund for International Development 64 86Other 266 178Peru 35 46Rockefeller Foundation 1,280 1,899Sehgal Foundation - 50South AfricaNational Department of Agriculture 60 60SpainAgrovegetal, S.A. 79 149Ministerio de Agricultura, Pesca y Alimentación 323 324Sweden 11 27SwitzerlandSwiss Agency for Development and Cooperation 858 1,219Syngenta Foundation 395 885The Global Crop Diversity Trust 92 -Turkey, Republic ofMinistry Of Agriculture And Rural Affairs 165 253United Kingdom 449 669USABill and Melinda Gates Foundation 191 -Cornell University 68 66Pioneer Hi-Bred International 63 31Stanford University - 33United States Agency for International Development 1,885 2,058United States Department of Agriculture 232 385Washington State University 139 204World Bank 300 3,067Subtotal - Restricted before provision 19,294 25,876Provision for non-recoverable items - (1,164)Subtotal - Restricted after provision 19,294 24,712Total Grants - Donors Unrestricted and Restricted 34,165 38,020CIMMYT Financial Overview 27

CIMMYT contact informationMexico (Headquarters) • CIMMYT, Apdo. Postal 6-641, 06600, Mexico, D.F., Mexico• Tel. +52 (55) 5804 2004 • Fax: +52 (55) 5804 7558 • Email: cimmyt@cgiar.org • Primarycontact: Masa Iwanaga, Director GeneralAfghanistan • CIMMYT, PO Box 5291, Kabul, Afghanistan • Email: m.osmanzai@cgiar.org• Primary contact: Mahmood OsmanzaiBangladesh • CIMMYT, PO Box 6057, Gulshan, Dhaka- 1212, Bangladesh• Fax: +880 (2) 882 3516 (send c/o CIMMYT Bangladesh) • Email: s.waddington@cgiar.org• Home page: www.cimmyt.org/bangladesh • Primary contact: Stephen WaddingtonChina • CIMMYT, c/o Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, No. 30 Baishiqiao Road,Beijing 100081, P.R. China • Fax: +86 (10) 689 18547 • Email: z.he@cgiar.org; zhhe.@public3.bta.net.cn • Primary contact: Zhonghu HeColombia • CIMMYT, c/o CIAT, Apdo. Aéreo 67-13, Cali, Colombia • Fax: +57 (2) 4450 025• Email: l.narro@cgiar.org; ciat-maize@cgnet.com • Primary contact: Luis Narro LeónEthiopia • CIMMYT, PO Box 5689, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia • Fax: +251 (1) 464645• Email: d.friesen@cgiar.org; cimmyt-ethiopia@cgiar.org • Primary contact: Dennis FriesenGeorgia • CIMMYT, 12 Kipshidze Str., Apt. 54, Tbilisi 380062, Georgia • Email:d.bedoshvili@cgiar.org • cimmyt@caucasus.net • Primary contact: David BedoshviliIndia • CIMMYT-India, CG Centre Block, National Agricultural Science Centre (NASC)Complex, DP Shastri Marg, Pusa Campus, New Delhi 110012, India • Fax: +91 (11) 25842938 • Email: o.erenstein@cgiar.org • cimmyt-india@cgiar.0.5org • Primary contact: OlafErensteinIran • CIMMYT, c/o Seed and Plant Improvement Institute, Mahdasht Avenue, P.O. Box4119, Karaj 31585, Islamic Republic of Iran • Email: jalalkamali2000@yahoo.com; cimmytiran@cgiar.org• Primary contact: Mohammad Reza Jalal KamaliKazakhstan • CIMMYT, House # 4, Microregion # 3, P.O.Box 1446, Astana, 010000,Kazakhstan • Fax: +7 (3172) 343713 • Email: m.karabayev@.cgiar.org; mkarabayev@nets.kz• Primary contact: Muratbek KarabayevKenya • CIMMYT, PO Box 1041, Nairobi, Kenya 00621 • Fax: +254 20 7224601 • Email:m.banziger@cgiar.org; cimmyt-kenya@cgiar.org • Primary contact: Marianne BänzigerNepal • CIMMYT, PO Box 5186, Singha Durbar Plaza Marg, Bhadrakali, Kathmandu, Nepal• Fax: +977 (1) 4229 804 • Email: cimmytnepal@mos.com.np; g.ortiz-ferrara@cgiar.org •Primary contact: Guillermo Ortiz-FerraraPakistan • CIMMYT Country Office • National Agricultural Research Centre (NACAR),Park Road, Islamabad 44000, Pakistan • Fax: +92 (0)51 240909 • Email: reshem@comsats.net.pk • Primary contact: Naeem HashmiTurkey • CIMMYT, PK 39 Emek, 06511 Ankara, Turkey • Fax: +90 (312) 287 8955• Email: a.morgounov@cgiar.org; cimmyt-turkey@cgiar.org • Primary contact:Alexei MorgounovZimbabwe • CIMMYT, PO Box MP 163, Mount Pleasant, Harare, Zimbabwe • Fax: +263(4) 301 327 • Email: j.macrobert@cgiar.org • cimmyt-zimbabwe@cgiar.org • Primary contact:John MacRobertKabul,AfghanistanCIMMYT® (www.cimmyt.org) is aninternationally funded, not-for-profitorganization that conducts research andtraining related to maize and wheat throughoutthe developing world. Drawing on strongscience and effective partnerships, CIMMYTworks to create, share, and use knowledgeand technology to increase food security,improve the productivity and profitabilityof farming systems, and sustain naturalresources. CIMMYT belongs to the ConsultativeGroup on International Agricultural Research(CGIAR) (www.cgiar.org). Financial support forCIMMYT’s work comes from the members ofthe CGIAR, national governments, foundations,development banks, and other public andprivate agencies.© International Maize and Wheat ImprovementCenter (CIMMYT) 2007. All rights reserved.The designations employed in the presentationof materials in this publication do not implythe expression of any opinion whatsoeveron the part of CIMMYT or its contributoryorganizations concerning the legal status ofany country, territory, city, or area, or of itsauthorities, or concerning the delimitation of itsfrontiers or boundaries. CIMMYT encouragesfair use of this material. Proper citation isrequested.Correct citation: Seeding innovation... nourishinghope: CIMMYT Annual Report 2006-2007. Mexico,D.F.: CIMMYT.ISSN: 0188-9214.AGROVOC Descriptors: Maize; Wheat;Plant breeding; Genetic resources; Innovationadoption; Plant biotechnology; Seed production;Food security; Sustainability; Researchpolicies; Economic analysis; Cropping systems;Agricultural research; Organization of research;Developing countries.Additional Keywords: CIMMYT.AGRIS category codes: A50 AgriculturalResearch; A01 Agriculture—General Aspects.Dewey decimal classification: 630.Printed in Mexico.El Batán,MexicoCali,ColombiaAnkara,TurkeyNairobi/Njoro,KenyaKaraj,IranGeorgia,TbilisiIslamabad,PakistanAddis Ababa,EthiopiaAlmaty,KazakhstanKathmandu,NepalDhaka,BangladeshNew Dehli,IndiaBeijing,ChinaCREDITSWriting/editing/creative direction:G. Michael Listman, David Mowbray,and Eloise Phipps.Design/production/creative direction:Marcelo Ortiz S. and Miguel Mellado E.,with assistance of Antonio Luna A., andEliot Sanchez P.Photography:Ana María Sánchez, David Mowbray,G. Michael Listman.28Annual Report 2006-2007Harare,Zimbabwe

CD—CIMMYT in Review 2006-07:Seeding innovation...nourishing hopeThis year we are accompanying our corporate annual report with a CD ROM that contains the full text of CIMMYT’smedium-term plan, new studies on the impacts of the center’s work, reports from our monthly electronic newsletter,and other documents that provide an overview of activities and accomplishments in the past year, as well as what weexpect to accomplish in coming years. We hope you enjoy it, and welcome your comments.ContentsSeeding innovation, nourishing hope: CIMMYT Annual Report 2006-2007.Maize and wheat science in action: A collection of reports from CIMMYT’selectronic newsletter, 2006-2007.“CIMMYT 2008-2010 medium-term plan: Translating strategic vision to a vibrantwork plan.”Proceedings of CIMMYT fusarium head blight workshop on global fusariuminitiative for international collaboration, 14-17 March, El Batán, Mexico.KARI and CIMMYT. 2007. Insect resistant maize for Africa annual report 2006.KARI / CIMMYT IRMA Project. IRMA Project Document No. 27. Mexico D.F.:KARI and CIMMYT.Gerpacio, R.V., and P.L. Pingali. 2007. Tropical and subtropical maize in Asia:Production system, constraints, and research priorities. Mexico, D.F.: CIMMYT.Langyintuo, A.S., and P. Setimela. 2007. Assessment of the effectiveness of maizeseed assistance to vulnerable farm households in Zimbabwe. Mexico,D.F.: CIMMYT.VideosMowbray, D. 2007. Wheat matters.Mexico, D.F.Mowbray, D. 2007. Farmers get theiryield back and more. CIMMYTe-News 4:3.Mowbray, D. 2007. Value from buildinghuman capacity. CIMMYT e-News 4:6.Mowbray, D. 2007. Brothers on theland. CIMMYT e-News 4:7.Mowbray, D. 2007. Forward baseKulumsa. CIMMYT e-News 4:9.BrochuresBergvinson, D., A. Ramírez, D. FloresVelásquez, and S. García-Lara. 2007.Mejoramiento de maíces criollos porintegración de alelos. Mexico, D.F.:CIMMYT.García-Lara, S., C. Espinosa Carrillo,and D.J. Bergvinson. 2007. Manualde Plagas en granos almacenados ytecnologías alternas para su manejo ycontrol. Mexico, D.F.: CIMMYT.García-Lara, S., N. Saucedo-Camarillo,and D.J. Bergvinson. 2007. Silometálico Manual técnico defabricación y manejo. Mexico, D.F.:CIMMYT.