As part of GFAR's efforts to formulate a Global Shared Vision , this paper was
assigned the function of analysing significant global changes and trends in agriculture in
and their implications for a Global Research Agenda. While previous efforts in global
research aimed mainly at increasing overall food production, GFAR¿s ToR recognised
the need to focus them on production increases leading to the eradication of poverty, the
improvement of food security and the conservation of natural resources.

The Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) has to do with networking. It
has to do with linking stakeholders of agricultural research for development (ARD) around
the discussion and implementation of a common global strategic agenda that may orient their
efforts in this field, and that may integrate them into learning networks and knowledge
systems that may facilitate the generation and flow of relevant knowledge, and its
application to development. Three factors are making instant connectivity, networking, and

The Objectives of Week 1 were to identify: 1) the changes in poverty: its causes, nature and dynamics, 2) new constraints on productivity in agriculture, forests, and fisheries, and 3) the new threats to sustainability of agro-ecosystems and their natural resource context. Our goal is to have a prioritized list of challenges within the CGIAR mandate and comparative advantage. These need not be ones that the CGIAR is currently addressing.

The Asia Pacific region is agriculturally the most vibrant globally. At the same time it sustains more
than fifty percent of the world population as well as the maximum of poverty. The Green and White
Revolutions have also been witnessed in this region which have provided the means to cope with the
rapidly increasing population and ensure household food security.
.
Fortunately, all these accomplishments could be possible due to the cutting edge of science. The

Livestock is essential to poverty reduction and to prevent rural poor vulnerability in Africa. Moreover, thanks to the increasing demand in animal products and the emerging urban markets, livestock sector development is probably now the best opportunity to fight poverty in rural areas in the region. The proposed collaborative program could play an important role in the process of strategy formulation and implementation. The program arises from strong country demand and is built on lessons learnt from recent country and donor experience in the sector.

The 2nd Inter-Regional Consultation was held at CLAES, ARC, Cairo, Egypt from
the 10th to the 11th of May 2005, to enable RAIS stakeholders of Regional Fora to achieve
the following objectives:
a) To present and discuss their respective regional Plan of Work and Budget (POW&B)
for 2005 in the area of ICM for ARD and the development of their RAIS
b) To take stock of existing initiatives and discuss fresh initiatives from the Regional
Fora in the area of ICM for ARD in order to launch collaborative platforms between
and amongst RAIS