The Evolving Roles of Cassava Drive Research the Agenda
From:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A crop of the chronically poor . . .
The last resort in degraded landscapes . . .
A research strategy based on activities and projects . . .
Thinking at the experiment level . . .
Reliance on public sector investment and public sector
partners . . .
To:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
a driver of livelihood improvement.
the forefront of eco-efficient resource management.
a strategy driven by outcomes and impact.
planning with partners for scaling out.
public-private alliances with a growth-with-equity focus.

From:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A crop of the chronically poor . . .
The last resort in degraded landscapes . . .
A research strategy based on activities and projects . . .
Thinking at the experiment level . . .
Reliance on public sector investment and public sector
partners . . .
To:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
a driver of livelihood improvement.
the forefront of eco-efficient resource management.
a strategy driven by outcomes and impact.
planning with partners for scaling out.
public-private alliances with a growth-with-equity focus.

From:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A crop of the chronically poor . . .
The last resort in degraded landscapes . . .
A research strategy based on activities and projects . . .
Thinking at the experiment level . . .
Reliance on public sector investment and public sector
partners . . .
To:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
a driver of livelihood improvement.
the forefront of eco-efficient resource management.
a strategy driven by outcomes and impact.
planning with partners for scaling out.
public-private alliances with a growth-with-equity focus.

From:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A crop of the chronically poor . . .
The last resort in degraded landscapes . . .
A research strategy based on activities and projects . . .
Thinking at the experiment level . . .
Reliance on public sector investment and public sector
partners . . .
To:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
a driver of livelihood improvement.
the forefront of eco-efficient resource management.
a strategy driven by outcomes and impact.
planning with partners for scaling out.
public-private alliances with a growth-with-equity focus.

From:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
A crop of the chronically poor . . .
The last resort in degraded landscapes . . .
A research strategy based on activities and projects . . .
Thinking at the experiment level . . .
Reliance on public sector investment and public sector
partners . . .
To:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
a driver of livelihood improvement.
the forefront of eco-efficient resource management.
a strategy driven by outcomes and impact.
planning with partners for scaling out.
public-private alliances with a growth-with-equity focus.

RTB and CIAT Asia
• Until late 2013, very little RTB funding for Asia
• New support for Agronomy & Breeding,
multidisciplinary support, gender
• More links to Africa and Latin America
• Increasing opportunities with the evolution
toward larger, integrated “flagships”

Team Growth
• Still a very small group of people. Focus is
essential
• Steep learning curve -- complexity and
variability of local customs, politics,
sensibilities
• Balancing the special relationship with the
host country and our regional roles

Team Growth
• Still a very small group of people. Focus is
essential
• Steep learning curve -- complexity and
variability of local customs, politics,
sensibilities
• Balancing the special relationship with the
host country and our regional roles

Team Growth
• Still a very small group of people. Focus is
essential
• Steep learning curve -- complexity and
variability of local customs, politics,
sensibilities
• Balancing the special relationship with the
host country and our regional roles

The Team Modus Operandi
• Moving from project to programmatic mode –
from a project management mentality to an
integrated team
• Taking advantage of CRPs as an opportunity to
tie projects together, fill gaps
• Integrated goals and strategies between HQ
and regions
• Ongoing coordination and communication

The Team Modus Operandi
• Moving from project to programmatic mode –
from a project management mentality to an
integrated team
• Taking advantage of CRPs as an opportunity to
tie projects together, fill gaps
• Integrated goals and strategies between HQ
and regions
• Ongoing coordination and communication

The Team Modus Operandi
• Moving from project to programmatic mode –
from a project management mentality to an
integrated team
• Taking advantage of CRPs as an opportunity to
tie projects together, fill gaps
• Integrated goals and strategies between HQ
and regions
• Ongoing coordination and communication

The Team Modus Operandi
• Moving from project to programmatic mode –
from a project management mentality to an
integrated team
• Taking advantage of CRPs as an opportunity to
tie projects together, fill gaps
• Integrated goals and strategies between HQ
and regions
• Ongoing coordination and communication

The Ownership of Ideas
“I developed these ideas. They are mine. I know
they are part of someone else’s work area, but I
am not going to share them for developing a
project idea.”
The goal: Combining an institutional culture of
team work with a recognition of individual
creativity, drive, accomplishment

Crop Management
• Our role in scaling up and scaling out of
broadly applicable principles and technologies
• Moving toward site-specific solutions to farm
profitability
• Linking production research with financial
analyses: competitiveness with alternative
options in the marketplace
• Labor productivity and the challenge of laborsaving practices in cassava

Pests and Diseases
• Balancing emergency response and long-term
solutions
• Linking seed systems with IPM
• Linking with the global role of RTB (Africa/LAC)

Breeding: New and Renewed Roles
• Updating/clarifying regional and country goals
for breeding
• Moving germplasm (CIAT to region; region to
CIAT; within region)
• Capacity building
• Facilitating networking
• Integrating molecular and field work

Socio-economics/Impact Analysis
• An ongoing system for staying informed about
production, processing trade – trends and
foresight
• Baseline studies and impact analysis built into
project design, especially gender

Responses to Climate Change
• Management practices that result in
resilience, water use efficiency and soil
conservation (i.e. eco-efficient systems)
• Preparing for the failure of more demanding
crops, with expansion and replacement by
cassava: value chain development in new
areas

CIAT Strategic Initiatives: New Pathways to Impact
What are the opportunities for cassava involvement?
• Tropical forages for eco-efficient livestock
production (medium – crop/forage systems)
• Sustainable food systems for a rapidly urbanizing
world (high – processed products)
• Reducing yield gaps for sustainable intensification
of agriculture (high – public/private initiatives)
• Realizing the value of ecosystem services for
human well-being (high – fragile ecosystems)