News & Events

Public development banks are “part of the solution” to ending hunger and transforming agri-food systems, as they have the power and reach to narrow funding gaps and consolidate bridges between stakeholders, QU Dongyu, Director-General of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), said today. With their unique combination of development mandate, long-term perspective and ability to finance both the private and public sector, such banks can inject not only more financing into agri-food sectors

The genetic basis of cleistogamy (in which pollination occurs before the flower opens) in barley is centered on the Cleistogamy 1 locus (cly1). The sequence of the microRNA (miR172)-targeting site in the gene, which belongs to the APETALA2 family, differs between cleistogamous and chasmogamous cultivars at a single nucleotide position, resulting in the differential ability of the lodicules to swell. Here, mutagenesis of the barley cultivar ‘Misato Golden’ (which carries the cly1.b allele), achieved using sodium azide

The ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus (COVID-19), an infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), has raised concerns about the effectiveness of current preventive pharmaceutical and nonpharmaceutical interventions (1). In addition, the upward global trends in the numbers of emerging and reemerging infectious diseases

A frontier mentality has been a defining aspect of human history. Often this sentiment is optimistically framed in the language of aspirations and opportunities. But it can also be accompanied by unsavory narratives of over-exploitation, inequity, and conflict (1). If any place on Earth can be considered a final frontier, it is perhaps the ocean’s “areas beyond national jurisdiction” (ABNJ), which are both distant (generally starting some 370 km from coastlines) and vast (covering nearly 40% of the planet’s surface).

CONSTANS (CO) is a key gene that responds to photoperiod and in Arabidopsis can promote flowering under long-day (LD) conditions. Brassica napus L. is a major oil crop and close relative of Arabidopsis, and arose via allopolyploidization from the diploids B. rapa (A genome) and B. oleracea (C genome). In this study, we confirmed that B. napus has two CO genes located on the A10 (BnaCO.A10) and C9 (BnaCO.C9) chromosomes.

Building upon the positive results of the first edition of the Finance in Common Summit (FiCS), Public Development Banks will convene for a second time to reiterate and reinforce their commitments in support of common actions for climate and sustainable development. The Summit will be hosted by Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP), the Italian National Promotional Institution and Financial Institution for Development Cooperation, in partnership with IFAD and with the support from all the members of the Finance in Common Coalition.

Women are major contributors to the rural communities where IFAD works but they continue to face barriers that inhibit their – and their families’ – livelihoods. Compared with men, women have less access to resources and services – including land, finance, training, inputs and equipment. In addition to their agricultural work, they are overburdened with domestic chores and caring tasks.

Carrot taproot color results from the accumulation of various carotenoid and anthocyanin pigments. Recently, the Or gene was identified as a candidate gene associated with the accumulation of β-carotene and other provitamin A carotenoids in roots. The specific molecular mechanisms involved with this process, as well as the interactions between Or and the other genes involved in this process are not well understood.

As a premier institution for dryland agricultural research for development, ICRISAT is uniquely positioned to make a difference in the lives of smallholder farmers in the global drylands. With a new Strategic Plan 2021-2025, under the leadership of Dr Jacqueline Hughes, Director General, ICRISAT launches a rolling three-year Medium-Term Plan 2021-23 to operationalize the Strategic Plan.

Globally women comprise over 37 percent of the world’s rural agricultural employment, a ratio that rises to 48 percent for low-income countries.The year 2020 marked the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, and represents an unprecedented opportunity to mobilize global action to achieve gender equality and rights of all women and girls.

Nitrogen fertilization is known to increase disease susceptibility, a phenomenon called Nitrogen-Induced Susceptibility (NIS). In rice, this phenomenon has been observed in infections with the blast fungus Magnaporthe oryzae. A previous classical genetic study revealed a locus (NIS1) that enhances susceptibility to rice blast under high nitrogen fertilization.

Ma Thi Ninh thought farming would be relatively easy. The Yen Duong area of Viet Nam where she lives has excellent, arable land and offers many sought-after products, including organic sticky rice, seasonal vegetables and bamboo used for traditional handicraft products. But once she started to farm and trade in local products herself, she realised that whilst harvests were generally fruitful, the earnings were few and she, and many farmers like her, remained stuck in poverty.