CGIAR Research Programs and Platforms

CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE)

CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (WHEAT)

Comprehensive, science-based solutions with parallel positive impacts for farmers, consumers, and the environment were a hallmark of research for development in 2020 under the CIMMYT-led CGIAR Research Programs on Maize (MAIZE) and Wheat (WHEAT). Scientific advances were all the more remarkable by their impact during a year marked by COVID-induced health, workforce and field research challenges.

WHEAT research partners generated scientific evidence that led to policy changes in India, encouraging smallholder farmers to adopt climate-smart farming practices such as zero tilling, the Happy Seeder, earlier planting and precision nutrient management. These changes could, in the future, benefit around 14 million smallholders with extra production, providing around $1.3 billion additional revenue, while reducing around 3.4 million tons of CO2e greenhouse gas each year.

A farm management approach developed by MAIZE partners, now incorporated in extension programs in countries from western Africa to South Asia, uses comprehensive integrated pest management to control fall armyworm, focusing on indigenous natural enemies, host plant resistance, and environmentally safer pesticides. Under good agronomic management, this approach allows farmers to recover their crop after a fall armyworm invasion, safeguarding their income and avoiding environmentally harmful pesticides. MAIZE developed and announced 48 new varieties across Africa, Asia and Latin America in 2020, as well as three new hybrids with native genetic resistance to fall armyworm for uptake by partners in eastern and southern Africa.

A comprehensive study of MAIZE impacts in sub-Saharan Africa shows that 60% of all maize varieties released between 1995 and 2015 in the region have known or reported CGIAR parentage. In 2015, the aggregate yearly economic benefits of using CGIAR-related maize varieties released after 1994 were estimated to be between $660 million and $1.05 billion.

Under WHEAT, scientists estimated the annual gains in grain yield of CIMMYT’s High Rainfall Wheat Trials – CGIAR-derived wheat grown by national partners around the world – from 2006 to 2017. They found 3.8% annual genetic gains in the high rainfall environment (compared to 1.17% in local varieties), and 0.93% in low rainfall (compared to 0.73%), benefiting farmers on around 61 million hectares of wheat farmland.

A CGIAR-commissioned review of WHEAT found it has “a track record of delivering local solutions with a global perspective” and its work is “essential” to meet the rising global demand for wheat.

Likewise, a MAIZE Phase II review determined that MAIZE “uniquely fills a gap at the global and regional level.”

As both CGIAR Research Programs enter their final year, their achievements and impacts will serve as the foundation for future CGIAR research on essential cereal crops and cropping systems that are affordable, accessible, climate-resilient, an often-overlooked source of nutrition, and widely eaten by the world’s most vulnerable populations.

For more information about MAIZE and WHEAT innovations, outcomes and impacts, please use the CGIAR results dashboard.

The CGIAR Research Program on Maize (MAIZE) receives Windows 1 & 2 support from the governments of Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the World Bank.

The CGIAR Research Program on Wheat (WHEAT) receives Windows 1 & 2 support from the governments of Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, India, Japan, Korea, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the World Bank. The International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) is a primary research partner.

CGIAR Excellence in Breeding Platform

In a year of global challenges, CGIAR Excellence in Breeding (EiB) pushed forward with modernizing CGIAR and national agricultural research systems (NARS) breeding.

EiB described over 320 market segments and 120 breeding pipelines; led development of new breeding KPIs; launched shared genotyping services; and supported major operations upgrades through assessments, continuous improvement processes, breeding simulation use, a program costing process, and more. Integrated data management advanced to the next level and EiB developed a new model for collaboration between CGIAR and NARS. Meanwhile partners showed progress on delivering higher genetic gain and varietal turnover in market-focused products.

EiB is set to continue maximizing the full potential of Crops to End Hunger (CtEH) investments, helping partners meet six funder requests, and leading the One CGIAR transition.

For more information, visit 
excellenceinbreeding.org

© 2021 International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
We would like to thank all funders who supported this research through their contributions to the CGIAR Trust Fund.

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CREDITS

Editors-in-chief
Marcia MacNeil, Rodrigo Ordóñez
Project coordination
Leslie Domínguez, Emma Orchardson
Art directors
Alfonso Cortés, Nancy Valtierra
Layout and design
Nancy Valtierra
Web design
Ricardo López
Graphics and illustrations
Marcelo Ortiz, Eliot Sánchez, Nancy Valtierra
Writers and editors
Nima Chodon, Madeline Dahm, Leslie Domínguez, Alison Doody, Wasim Iftikar, G. Michael Listman, Marcia MacNeil, Steven McCutcheon, Marta Millere, Emma Orchardson
Contributors
T.S. Amjath Babu, Frederic Baudron, Hans Braun, Shiela Chikulo, Olaf Erenstein, Velu Govindan, M.L. Jat, Timothy Krupnik, Sylvanus Odjo, B.M. Prasanna, Harminder S. Sidhu, Jelle Van Loon
Photography
Francisco Alarcón, Alfonso Cortés, Wasim Iftikar, Peter Lowe, Ranak Martin, S. Mojumder/Drik, Matthew O'Leary, Love Kumar Singh/BISA, F. Sipalla, Dhruba Thapa/NARC, Szefei Wong/Dreamstime, CIMMYT Archives
Video
Silvia Rico
ISSN
0188-9214
Correct citation
CIMMYT. 2021. Resilience. Renewal. Transition. CIMMYT Annual Report 2020. CDMX, Mexico: CIMMYT.
AGROVOC descriptors:
Maize; Wheat; Plant breeding; Genetic resources; Innovation adoption; Plant biotechnology; Seed production; Food security; Sustainability; Research policies; Economic analysis; Cropping systems; Agricultural research; Organization of research; Developing countries. Additional Keywords: CIMMYT. AGRIS category codes: A50 Agricultural Research; A01 Agriculture– General Aspects. Dewey decimal classification: 630

© International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), 2021. All rights reserved. The designations employed in the presentation of materials in this publication do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of CIMMYT or its contributory organizations concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city, or area, or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. CIMMYT encourages fair use of this material. Proper citation is requested.

ACRONYMS

ADB
Asian Development Bank
AGG
Accelerating Genetic Gains in Maize and Wheat
ACIAR
Australian Centre for International Agricultural Research
BBS
Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics
BIOFOCS
Bioactive food components
BISA
Borlaug Institute in South Asia
CCAFS
CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security
CIAT
International Center for Tropical Agriculture
CIMMYT
International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center
CMGRL
CIMMYT Maize Genetic Resource Lines
C02e
Carbon dioxide equivalent
CSISA
Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia
CtEH
Crops to End Hunger
EIAR
Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research
EiB
CGIAR Excellence in Breeding Platform
EMT
Executive Management Team
EU
European Union
FAO
United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization
FACASI
Farm Power and Conservation Agriculture for Sustainable Intensification
FCDO
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office of the United Kingdom
FHB
Fusarium head blight
IAAA
Innovative Applications in Analytics Award
ICAR
Indian Council of Agricultural Research
ICARDA
International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas
IFPRI
International Food Policy Research Institute
IIASA
International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis
IITA
International Institute of Tropical Agriculture
IRD
Institut de Recherche pour le Développement
IRRI
International Rice Research Institute
ITDA
Integrated Tribal Development Agency
JAAS
Jiangsu Academy of Agricultural Sciences
KALRO
Kenya Agricultural & Livestock Research Organization
KPI
Key performance indicators
MAIZE
CGIAR Research Program on Maize
N20
Nitrous oxide
NARC
Nepal Agricultural Research Council
NARS
National Agricultural Research Systems
ORMAS
Odisha Rural Development and Marketing Society
PAU
Punjab Agricultural University
PROGRESS
Program for Growth and Resilience
SADER
Mexico's Secretariat of Agriculture and Rural Development (Secretaría de Agricultura y Desarrollo Rural)
SDGs
Sustainable Development Goals
SeeD
Seeds of Discovery
STMA
Stress Tolerant Maize for Africa
ZBRF
Zimbabwe Resilience Building Fund
UN
United Nations
UNDP
United Nations Development Programme
USAID
United States Agency for International Development
WFP
United Nations World Food Programme
WHEAT 
CGIAR Research Program on Wheat
$
Unless otherwise indicated, all amounts are expressed in U.S. dollars

Sustainable Development Goals

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations (UN) Member States in 2015, provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity, for people and the planet. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries to achieve a better and more sustainable future for all.

The SDGs set the pathway for agricultural, social, and economic development. They address the global challenges we face, including poverty, inequality, climate change, environmental degradation, peace and justice.

CGIAR transformed its approach to ensure that its work is aligned with the ambitious goals. CIMMYT, through its research-for-development activities, contributes to empower women, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and improve the health and nutrition of the world's poorest people.

CIMMYT’s work contributes to the following SDGs:

About CIMMYT

CIMMYT – the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center – is the global leader in publicly-funded maize and wheat research and related farming systems. Headquartered near Mexico City, CIMMYT works with hundreds of partners throughout the developing world to sustainably increase the productivity of maize and wheat cropping systems, thus improving global food security and reducing poverty. CIMMYT is a member of the CGIAR System and leads the CGIAR Research Programs on Maize and Wheat and the Excellence in Breeding Platform. The Center receives support from national governments, foundations, development banks and other public and private agencies.

For more information, visit www.cimmyt.org.