The CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS) management team lead by Bruce Campbell, Director, CCAFS, visited CIMMYT-CCAFS action sites in India during 23-28 August.

CIMMYT, in collaboration with Wheat Research Institute Sindh (WRIS) and Pakistan Agriculture Research Council (PARC) supported by USAID, initiated pilot testing of a multi-crop bed planter for planting cotton and wheat in a cotton-wheat cropping system in Sakrand, Pakistan under the Agricultural Innovation Program (AIP) for Pakistan.

Maize lethal necrosis (MLN) disease, which can cause up to 100 percent yield loss on farmers’ fields, is threatening this source of food and livelihoods for many in the country. Because of this, 40 county officials, including County Executive Committee (CEC) officials who are responsible for agriculture in Kenya’s devolved government structure, visited the CIMMYT MLN Screening Facility in Naivasha, Kenya on 5 August.

On 9 August CIMMYT-El Batán welcomed a group of 22 students and three teachers from the University of Wisconsin for a week-long stay. The students are enrolled in the university’s course for a Global Health Certificate, which introduces students to a preventive, population-level, interdisciplinary approach to health promotion.

The Agricultural Innovation Project (AIP) for Pakistan, led by CIMMYT and funded by USAID, has accomplished a great deal since its inception in March 2013. Among this year’s most notable AIP achievements by partner institutions were numerous training sessions and workshops, important vaccine developments, progress in baseline surveys and advances in seed improvement and distribution.

The “2nd Annual Progress Review and Planning Meeting for the HTMA Project” was held 22-23 July at UAS, Raichur in Karnataka, India. To take advantage of the presence of renowned scientists at this newly established agricultural university, the inaugural session of the meeting was organized as a special seminar on “Global initiatives on climate resilient crops.”

Research managers and scientists from CIMMYT, Limagrain and Seed Co Limited held a discussion at CIMMYT-Nairobi on 4 July to forge a partnership to effectively tackle the maize lethal necrosis (MLN) disease in Africa.