The Journey to Sustainable Rural Livelihoods
The International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)
is a not-for-profit research and development organization
dedicated to reducing poverty and hunger while protecting
natural resources in developing countries. This brochure describes
who we are, the work we do, and our vision of how science
and technology can help poor people improve their lives, now
and in the future.
The tropical world is often painted as a forbidding zone
of chronic poverty, malnutrition, and environmental degradation.
But these problems, though very real and pervasive, are by
no means intractable. With the right kind of support, rural
people across the tropics, who account for most of the world's
poor, are capable of making the journey to sustainable rural
livelihoods.
CIAT is helping these people reach three intermediate destinations
on their journey:
1. Competitive agriculture
2. Healthy agroecosystems
3. Rural innovation
As rural families arrive at those destinations, they see
marked improvement in their lives. Children no longer go to
bed hungry, and parents know where the next meal is coming
from. They have the means to satisfy this and life's other
necessities, because they have gained access to new seeds
and knowledge that enable them to intensify the production
and value-added processing of diverse agricultural products.
Moreover, they feel reasonably sure of continued advances,
because they and their neighbors have worked together to protect
the natural resources on which future agricultural productivity
depends.
Solutions That Cross Frontiers
 What
kind of help do rural communities in the tropics need to make
the journey to sustainable rural livelihoods?
One of the most necessary ingredients is socially and environmentally
progressive science that offers individuals and communities
the means to solve problems and seize opportunities for improving
their welfare.
CIAT's experience demonstrates that persistent research on
key crops and natural resource management is a highly effective
and direct way to address the needs of the tropical world's
rural poor. Progress in agriculture also helps poor migrants
to the cities by improving urban food supplies and pumping
extra cash into the economy, thus fueling growth and creating
jobs.
In conducting research for development, the Center draws on
expertise in five complementary areas:
- Agrobiodiversity and genetics
- Ecology and management of pests and diseases
- Soil ecology and improvement
- Analysis of spatial information
- Socioeconomic analysis
The outcomes of this research are genetically improved crops,
environmentally sound approaches for managing natural resources,
as well as practical methods and information for solving problems
and guiding decisions.
We refer to these products as "solutions that cross frontiers,"
because they transcend national boundaries and surmount formidable
barriers to improved human welfare. With such products rural
communities are better prepared to compete in globalized economies,
preserve the health of agroecosystems, and build local capacity
for technical and social innovation.
The
Difference Science Makes
The impact, so far, of our joint endeavors with international
and national partners:
- In the last decade or so, bean production in Latin America
has increased by about 25 percent, despite a substantial
decrease in area planted. Steady growth in yield has resulted
to a large degree from widespread adoption of improved varieties
by small farmers. About 240 varieties originating from CIAT
germplasm have been released in the region, generating total
economic benefits estimated at US$1.2 billion.
- African national programs have released 111 CIAT-related
bean varieties, together with improved farming practices.
Production increases resulting from new varieties have an
estimated total value of $102 million. Women have been the
main beneficiaries, since they account for most of the continent's
bean production.
- National programs in Asia and Latin America have released
62 CIAT-related cassava varieties. The cumulative value
of the increased production derived from these varieties
is estimated at more than $432 million in Asia and $81 million
in Latin America.
- CIAT contributed importantly to the search in South America
for natural enemies that could control the cassava mealybug
and cassava green mite in sub-Saharan Africa. These pests
devastated production across the continent, threatening
a major food source for about 200 million Africans. The
highly successful biological control campaign was coordinated
by our sister center in Nigeria, the International Institute
of Tropical Agriculture (IITA).
- In the 1980s the Center launched a series of integrated
projects in Brazil, Colombia, and Ecuador aimed at devising
a research and development strategy that would empower farmers
to establish, operate, and manage local cassava-based industries.
One such project in Colombia created economic benefits totaling
about $19 million through improved cassava production and
processing. An impact study showed that the project also
built local capacity to market crops and identify new economic
opportunities.
- In Latin America the 45 improved tropical forages released
so far by national programs are planted on about 6.8 million
hectares. New grasses have been shown to boost livestock
productivity by a factor of 16 over native species. The
cumulative value of the meat and milk production increases
brought about by new forage grasses and legumes is estimated
at $1.4 billion.
- Under a recent project in Southeast Asia, about 3,000
poor farm families in five countries adopted one or more
improved forages. Their experience has demonstrated the
large potential of forages for boosting livestock production
in marginal upland environments while reducing grazing pressure
on the land.
- Rice production in Latin America has tripled over the
last three decades, partly as a result of the approximately
300 improved rice varieties developed by CIAT and national
programs. Today these varieties account for more than 70
percent of the region's total rice production. More efficient
production has helped lower the price of this vital staple
by about 40 percent, benefiting the urban and rural poor
in particular.
- Participatory research approaches are increasing the effectiveness
of technology development and transfer. One method by which
farmers operate local agricultural research committees is
now being used in eight Latin American countries. Other
participatory approaches devised by CIAT and its partners
are being widely applied in Southeast Asia as well as eastern
and central Africa.
Agrobiodiversity and Genetics
 Farmers
at Worka village in central Ethiopia were pleased to find
a new bean variety that doubles their crop yields, is well
suited to local food preparations, and has strong market appeal.
But they weren't so keen on its drab, scientific label-Line
A176. Instead, they named it Roba, or "pouring rain"—the
ultimate tribute to a new crop variety in this drought-prone
region.
As that and many other such experiences show, genetically
enhanced crops are a powerful way to improve rural livelihoods—strengthening
food security and human nutrition, raising incomes, and contributing
to plant and soil health.
To multiply farmers' crop options, CIAT has built a strong
global program for research on plant genetics and agrobiodiversity,
focused on species that are especially important to poor people
living in marginal environments (see box). In this work Center
staff conserve and evaluate the vast array of plant genetic
diversity in our modern gene bank. Drawing on this unique
resource, they improve crops through state-of-the-art methods—from
biotechnology to farmer participatory plant breeding.
With the aid of molecular marker techniques, for example,
CIAT scientists are increasing the speed and reducing the
cost of developing new crop varieties that produce well under
stress and satisfy market demands. These and other biotechnology
tools (which we employ under strictly enforced biosafety standards)
are also enabling our researchers to unlock valuable genes
in crop ancestors and wild relatives. Their work is vital
for preparing tropical agriculture to meet new challenges,
such as global competition and global climate change.
Crop
Focus
CIAT conducts international research on the commodities described
below. Our work on beans, cassava, and tropical forages has
a global reach, while that on rice and tropical fruits targets
Latin America and the Caribbean. (more
information)
Ecology and Management of Pests and
Diseases
 When
farmers in the tropics talk about the whitefly, there's usually
a tone of desperation in their voices. "In some years
we don't harvest any tomatoes at all," Dominican farmer
Freddy de Leon complained to scientists a few years ago. The
words of Ugandan farmer Rehema Nalubowa echo his lament: "Sometimes
I don't harvest anything."
Regardless of the language or location, the message is the
same. Crop damage caused by pests and diseases can deal a
fatal blow to rural livelihoods, jeopardizing food security
and income or giving rise to excessive pesticide use, which
raises farmers' production costs, harms their health and the
environment, and may deny them access to international markets.
But science can and does help farmers evade these threats.
In Central America, for example, varieties resistant to the
whitefly-transmitted bean golden mosaic virus prevented huge
economic losses. In eastern Africa a multi-institutional team
of researchers recently softened the blow of a catastrophic
epidemic of the whitefly-transmitted cassava mosaic disease
by rapidly distributing disease-resistant varieties developed
at IITA.
In collaboration with many national and international partners,
CIAT is battling the whitefly and other such problems through
research on disease and pest ecology. Together, we're building
the knowledge base on which researchers and farmers can develop
safe, effective alternatives for pest and disease control.
These include crop varieties with genetic resistance, biological
control, better crop management practices, and application
of biopesticides as well as judicious use of agrochemicals.
Soil
Ecology and Improvement
 Vietnamese
farmer Ngo Trung Kien and his neighbors at Tien Phong village
have markedly improved their livelihoods in recent years through
active experimentation with diverse options for better managing
steep upland slopes.
One new practice these farmers like is intercropping peanuts
and improved cassava between alternating rows of vetiver grass
and Tephrosia, a leguminous shrub. "Live barriers"
of the latter two halt erosion, while clippings from the legume
help maintain soil fertility, as do residues from the peanut
crop. The improved cassava, which farmers dry for use as pig
feed, enables them to intensify animal production and thus
boost incomes.
These technologies reflect an understanding that soil is
a complex living system, requiring integrated management based
on factors such as nutrient flows through plants and soil
organisms. They also take into account the difficult realities
of poor farmers, who can seldom afford chemical fertilizers
and will opt for integrated management approaches only if
these result in short-term production gains as well as long-term
soil health.
To aid the search for solutions in the soil, CIAT conducts
strategic, global research, using methods that ensure strong
farmer participation and stimulate collective action. The
products of this collaborative work are widely relevant, easy-to-use
tools with which farmers can monitor soil quality and make
better soil management decisions.
In addition to helping rural communities improve their own
livelihoods, healthy soil provides a public "ecological
service," regulating water quality and acting as a carbon
sink to slow global warming.
Analysis
of Spatial Information
In late 1998, as food and medical supplies poured into a Honduras
devastated by Hurricane Mitch, CIAT staff rushed to complete
the "Mitch" version of a new digital atlas of the
country. "Pass the database!" read the photo caption
in an article in The Economist magazine describing how the
atlas had been modified to help target relief efforts.
Designed originally as a land-use planning aid, the Honduras
atlas demonstrated that information tools are vital for making
sound decisions—whether in the aftermath of a natural
disaster or in the face of a more subtle threat, like soil
erosion.
To help build a solid foundation for decision making—from
local farming communities to national agencies—CIAT scientists
are developing a series of information tools relevant to diverse
agroecosystems. These draw on advances in geographic information
systems (GIS) and modeling techniques as well as on state-of-the
art practice in farmer participation.
In Latin America, for example, we've devised training kits
that help hillside communities learn to map and monitor natural
resources, identify and exploit market opportunities, and
organize collective action, among other tasks. Some of the
tools have been adapted and applied in eastern Africa as well.
Our scientists have also designed a powerful set of rural
sustainability indicators for Central America. These give
decision makers an unprecedented ability to analyze threats
to human livelihoods and the environment, determine their
causes, and weigh the consequences of different options. Far
from simply compiling information, these tools enable people
to acquire new knowledge and skills that lead to action.
Target
Agroecosystems
CIAT's integrated research on crops and natural resource management
centers on three major agroecosystems: hillsides, forest margins,
and savannas. (more information)
Socioeconomic
Analysis
 Nicaraguan
farmer Bertha Adilia Jarquín is a remarkable woman,
with natural leadership skills, an intimate knowledge of local
farming traditions and landscapes, as well as an unshakable
self-confidence. But as even she acknowledges, there's only
so much one person can do to bring about lasting change.
That's why she agreed to represent her community in Campos
Verdes, or Green Fields, an association of local groups that
organizes collective action to improve food security, the
management of water and other natural resources, and the performance
of local institutions and government. She's also a member
of the local agricultural research committee and has taken
a special interest in the community experimental farm set
up recently to serve as a kind of supermarket of new technologies
proposed by both scientists and farmers.
Campos Verdes, the local research committee, and experimental
farm are all mechanisms by which communities can search collectively
for solutions that are superior to what individual farmers
or scientists can develop on their own. The participants in
this work cultivate, not just experimental crops, but organizational
and networking skills, a strong entrepreneurial sense, and
a new ability to articulate needs to R&D organizations.
They can then invest this "social capital" in other
areas of community development, such as health and education.
CIAT has made a significant commitment to developing methods
for fomenting collective action to solve problems in agriculture
and natural resource management, together with participatory
techniques for "hybridizing" local knowledge with
modern science. The Center is also devising methods to measure
the impact of such information-intensive innovations in reducing
poverty and environmental degradation.
Research
Partnerships
CIAT staff work hard to build ties with others through collaborative
research organized around projects.
Our partners include other international centers, national
research institutes, universities, nongovernment organizations,
the private sector, and rural communities. We work with them
under a variety of innovative arrangements, such as consortia
and networks, at the local, regional, and global levels. Through
strategic alliances with advanced institutes, we bring valuable
scientific expertise to bear on the central challenges of
tropical agriculture.
As a service to its partners, the Center provides varied offerings
in training and conferences, specialized services in information
and documentation, and a broad program of communications.
(See the list of partners)
Our
Project Portfolio
CIAT's research is conducted through projects, which provide
the basis for organizing cooperation with our partners and
bringing together experts from different scientific disciplines.
Brief profiles of the projects are available upon request.
(See the list of projects)
Our
Staff
The Center employs a total of nearly 800 staff. About 120
of these are internationally recruited researchers from 37
countries working either at CIAT headquarters in Colombia
or outposted to a dozen other developing countries. (See the
staff list)
CIAT
and the CGIAR
 CIAT
is a not-for-profit organization that conducts socially and
environmentally progressive research aimed at reducing hunger
and poverty and preserving natural resources in developing
countries. CIAT is one of the 15 centers funded mainly by
the 58 countries, private foundations, and international organizations
that make up the Consultative Group on International Agricultural
Research (CGIAR).
Our
Donors
CIAT currently receives funds through the CGIAR or under specific
projects from the countries and organizations listed below.
We gratefully acknowledge their commitment and contributions.
(See the list of Donors)
Traveling
in Good Company
Helping rural people in the tropics achieve sustainable livelihoods
is among the most pressing challenges facing humanity at the
outset of the 21st century. Though there are many upward pathways
to this destination, each entails an arduous journey with
obstacles or difficult choices at every turn.
Millions of poor farmers in the developing world are eager
to make that journey. But they won't get far if they must
travel alone. At CIAT we believe that, by banding together
in the company of dedicated scientists and development professionals,
rural people can reach the intermediate destinations of competitive
agriculture, healthy agroecosystems, and rural innovation.
Our commitment is to offer these travelers "solutions
that cross frontiers" at every step of the way.
Our
Mission
To reduce hunger and poverty in the tropics through collaborative
research that improves agricultural productivity and natural
resource management.
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