Progress Report April 2012

CWANA Region

Presented to the Institutional Management Committee

AVRDC – The World Vegetable Center

The AVRDC – CWANA Region Program established recently to include the CAC office established in Jan 2005 and Dubai office established in Oct 2009.

1. Human Resources
Current status of personnel, changes from the previous report and any staff capacity building.
Dubai office established in October 2009 and located in ICARDA office in Dubai and run by Dr Ahmed Moustafa, Regional Director who is a joint position (50/50) with ICARDA. The office is relaying temporary on the support of ICARDA’s support staff. Additional staff will be required based on future activities and projects in the region. But for now, ICARDA office staff will be utilized as part time based on requirements.
CAC office is located at the Program Facilitation Unit (PFU) of CGIAR Program for Central Asia and the Caucasus (PFU-CAC), Tashkent, Uzbekistan.
The office is run by Dr Ravza Mavlyanova, Regional Coordinator, and Ms Y. Kopilova, secretary in addition to three part time support staff, accountant; administrative officer and cleaner whom are shared with PFU (with 15% part time). This is the personnel situation since the opening of AVRDC-CAC office in January 2005.
PFU-CAC (and ICARDA-CAC office accredited in Uzbekistan) is responding to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for vehicles allowances to all ten international centers (PFU members). In accord with this policy PFU-CAC requests to open a driver position (it can be part time) for a new car of AVRDC-CAC office in 2011.
Additional staff position for AVRDC-CAC office could be opened if a new regional project would be financed by potential donors in the future.
2. Operational
Brief report on operational status: estate and infrastructure management, operational efficiencies of essential and support functions, and budget allocation and constraints.
CAC office rent space (two rooms) in PFU-CAC building. Office has all necessary estate furniture and equipment. Management of all AVRDC-CAC office activity including a stuff management is conducting by the AVRDC-CAC office regional coordinator.
Dates conducting of region and national events (workshops, farmers’ days, and trainings) are agreed with PFU-CAC Head for his further information of MFA to have official permission. Financial out payments from ICARDA-CAC bank account for AVRDC-CAC office sub-account is conducting on the base of internal request letter. Regional coordinator informs the Head of PFU_CAC when it will be necessary about conducted activity for including to the common PFU report.
Monthly inter centers meetings are conducted at PFU-CAC since 2010 when PFU-CAC Management Comity has been established on recommendation of 12th CGIAR Meeting in Georgia in 2009. Members of this Management Comity are Heads and coordinators of all international centers’ offices located at PFU-CAC (including AVRDC-CAC) and this comity has all authorities for decision making on all questions. This type of management is acceptable for operational efficiencies of essential and support functions of offices.
Budget allocation is agreed with AVRDC HQ annually. It includes allocution funds for personnel cost, facility cost sharing with PFU, office supplies and equipment, traveling, collaboration with NARS partners, and regional R&D costs. Main constrain for the office activities enlargement is an absence of projects financed by potential big donors (GTZ end etc.).
Dubai office requires no rent of utility cost. Office facilities including communications and Internet are available in ICARDA office where AVRDC hosted. A modest budget was allocated last year for support staff, communications and travel but need to be enhanced for the coming year.
3. Administrative and management achievements
What are the administrative and management priorities and goals? Have the previous report’s goals been achieved? Give reasoning.
The priority for CWANA offices in Dubai and Tashkent is to bring funds for activities though a new projects to the region. Based on this, different meetings and contacts were established with local and international donors and few proposals and concept notes were prepared and some were presented.
Another priority is to introduce and disseminate AVRDC technologies through experiments and demonstration at research stations and also through adoption by growers. Introduction of new lines and new vegetable crops to the region is also a priority and successfully achieved in CAC and some of the Arabian Peninsula countries.
Another priority is to spread the news about AVRDC activities and its roll in research and development in food and nutrition security.
AVRDC-CAC office regional coordinator has responsibilities written in the employment contract with AVRDC HQ. Also the administrative and management priorities of the regional coordinator are composed from existing real situation. The administrative priority is to promote to a good reputation of AVRDC in CAC region and its innovative activity for agriculture and a population and enlargement of the activity on new projects. Management priorities are to involve more partners in activities on various directions for development of vegetable R&D in the region by means of project proposals preparation, more meetings and decisions with policy makers, organizations heads and potential donors also. The goal is to promote to research and vegetable production development in the region for a food security, diversification of a diet, better livelihood and income increasing, vegetables export potential, capacity building and etc.
Previous report’s goals have been achieved as more partners have been involved in the activity on research and seed production and other activity presented in annual reports.
4. Partnerships
Efforts to strengthen relationships with local, regional and international partners: exploration and establishment of collaboration.
The efforts to strengthen relationships with local, regional, and international partners include meetings, visits, and negotiations with existing and potential partners.
1.  An MoU between AVRDC and Ministry of Agriculture in Oman was finalized and ready for signature.
2.  Dr Jackie Hughes, DDG-R visited UAE,Oman and Qatar during Jan 2012. Dr Hughes met with ADFCA and Farmer’s Services Center senior management in Abu Dhabi. Dr Hughes visited one of the pilot vegetable growers in UAE, 8 Jan 2012. In Oman Dr Hughes Met with Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries senior management in Oman and visited the research station and one of the pilot vegetable growers. In Qatar, Dr Hughes visited SAIC, Biotechnology Center, DG of Agricultural Research & Development Sector.
3.  Three project proposal was presented to QNRF normal cycle.
4.  Numbers of concept notes were sent to SQ University in Oman.
5. Constraints and opportunities
List any constraints hindering the regional effective management, and opportunities to be pursued to support the management undertakings.
Constrain: Limited resources for regional director and coordinator to visit different countries in the region for meetings with policy makers, potential donors and partners to improve of the R&D vegetable activities.
Opportunity:
· There is some indications of increasing interest of Russia in CAC. This could be of a good opportunity to emphasize the capabilities of AVRDC on R&D for the region.
· Requests from Armenia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Qatar, UAE and Oman to develop joint projects.
6. Additional remarks
List any remarks, suggestions and recommendations
Important to identify potential donors having interest to finance projects for CAC in particular and CWANA in general.