ADB, IRRI sign knowledge partnership agreement

Asian Development Bank (ADB) president Takehiko Nakao and International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) director general Matthew Morell signed an agreement to promote food security in Asia and the Pacific by scaling up collaboration on disseminating research and other knowledge on the role of advanced agricultural technologies in providing affordable food for all.
Under the partnership agreement signed today during ADB’s Food Security Forum 2016, the two institutions will undertake annual consultations to review and ensure alignment of ongoing collaborative activities, and to develop a joint work programme. The 2016 programme will focus on expanding the use of climate-smart agriculture and water-saving technologies to increase productivity and boost the resilience of rice cultivation systems, and to minimise the carbon footprint of rice production.
“This new form of collaboration with IRRI is another step toward our shared goal of ensuring good food and nutrition for all citizens of this region," Nakao said on the occasion. "We look forward to further strengthening our cooperation in this area to promote inclusive and sustainable growth, as well as to combat climate change."
“I am delighted to build on our partnership with ADB to add a new dimension to our long-standing collaborative work,” Morell said, adding that IRRI looks forward to deepening our already strong partnership as we jointly develop and disseminate useful agricultural technologies throughout Asia.
ADB and IRRI have collaborated since 1975 on agricultural research to provide scientific solutions to a wide array of challenges including low crop yields, vulnerability to extreme weather, pests and disease, postharvest losses, deteriorating land and water resources, and greenhouse gas emissions.
ADB, based in Manila, is dedicated to reducing poverty in Asia and the Pacific through inclusive economic growth, environmentally sustainable growth, and regional integration. Established in 1966, ADB in December 2016 will mark 50 years of development partnership in the region. It is owned by 67 members – 48 from the region. In 2015, ADB assistance totaled $27.2 billion, including cofinancing of $10.7 billion.
IRRI has its headquarters in Los Baños, Philippines, and has offices in 15 countries. It is an independent, nonprofit agricultural research and educational organization established in 1960 through funding from the Ford and Rockefeller foundations, with support from the Philippine government. Its mission is to reduce poverty and hunger, improve the health of rice farmers and consumers, and ensure environmental sustainability of rice farming.

Nepal needs to improve food security situation, Global Food Security Index 2012 ranks the country 79 out of 105

Based on affordability, availability, and quality and safety — the three global parameters — Nepal ranked 79 out of 105 countries, scoring 35.2, in the Global Food Security Index 2012.
According to the Global Food Security Index published by the Economist Intelligence Unit, the country has 17 per cent undernourishment that is strongly associated with a low food security ranking.
"Among the four categories — best performance, good performance, moderate and needs improvement — the country falls under the fourth category that needs improvement," the report said. It mentioned that the country faces food consumption as a share of household expenditure, public expenditure on agricultural research and development, and gross domestic product per capita, diet diversification and protein quality as challenges, whereas nutritional standards, volatility of agricultural production, agricultural import tariffs and food safety are some of the strengths.
Under affordability, the index looks into food consumption as a share of household expenditure, proportion of population under global poverty line, gross domestic product per capita, agricultural import tariffs, presence of food safety net programmes and access to farmer financing.
Under availability, the index looks into sufficiency of supply, public expenditure on agricultural research and development, agricultural infrastructure, volatility of agricultural production and political instability.
Similarly, the index under the third parameter quality and safety, looks into diet diversification, nutritional standards, micronutrient availability, and protein quality and food safety.
Among the three key issues, the country ranks 91 for affordability, 71 for availability and 74 for quality and safety, according to the report that has ranked the US the highest in terms of food security, followed by Denmark, Norway and France, while Burundi, Chad and the Democratic Republic of Congo rank the lowest. Brazil, China, and India fell in the middle of the pack ranking at 31, 38, and 66, respectively.
Nepal’s ranking is the lowest in the South Asian region in terms of affordability given that food prices have been higher than non-food prices.
However, landlocked countries fared nearly as well as those with a coastline. "The 22 landlocked countries in the index on average scored only seven points lower than those that are not landlocked. This suggests that although small countries without seaports may be particularly vulnerable to food shocks, being landlocked in itself does not translate into a significantly greater degree of food insecurity," the report stated.
The Economist Intelligence Unit calculates the Global Food Security Index by considering affordability (40 per cent), availability (44 per cent), and quality and safety (16 per cent).
The 1996 World Food Summit defines food security as the state in which people at all times have physical, social, and economic access to sufficient and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs for a healthy and active life.

South Asian ranking
Bangladesh — 81
Nepal — 79
Pakistan — 75
India — 66
Sri Lanka — 62
(Source: Global Food Security Index 2012)