New Initiative to Boost Food Security in South Asia

Six million small, resource-poor South Asian farmers are expected to benefit from the Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA), a new project that aims to substantially boost crop yields and farmer income in the region within 10 years. The project will bring together a range of public- and private-sector organizations, including the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI), International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), to enable sustainable cereal production in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal. CSISA will be led by IRRI with a three-year US$ 19.59 million support from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and US$10 million from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Major objectives of CSISA include better crop management and postharvest technologies and practices; the development and dissemination of improved rice, wheat and maize varieties; and the creation of a new generation of agricultural scientists and professional agronomists. According to IRRI, the project’s 10-year goal is for four million farmers to achieve a yield increase of at least 0.5 tons per hectare on five million hectares, and an additional two million farmers to achieve a yield increase of at least 1.0 ton per hectare on 2.5 million hectares. Increased productivity in the region will reduce hunger and malnutrition for hundreds of millions.

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