CIRAD was present at several points in France's presidency of the Council of the European Union (PFUE), as regards research for development in support of French international cooperation activities within the EU framework.
Africa
One of the three key ambitions set for the PFUE was a renewed relationship with Africa. In particular, this was reflected in the 6th European Union - African Union Summit, in February 2022. CIRAD contributed to several preparatory workshops. The final declaration made at the Summit contained references to the issues of food security and plant protein.
For CIRAD CEO Élisabeth Claverie de Saint Martin, "the event served to hammer home the messages we drafted with our African partners at the New Africa-France Summit held in Montpellier in October 2021".
On 8 October 2021 in Montpellier, the New Africa-France Summit was attended by over 3,000 African and French participants, bringing together numerous scientists and partners working on both continents, including CIRAD. It was the culmination of the Montpellier Global Days organized by Montpellier University of Excellence and its partners, a week abounding in discussions and meetings that illustrated the intensity and merits of these partnerships for training, research and innovation.
Alongside the 6th EU-AU Summit, CIRAD also took part in Africa-Europe Week. Its participation served to promote and strengthen partnerships with Africa, particularly in the fields of value chains and innovation.
CIRAD's expertise in those fields is backed by more than seven decades of experience of the main value chains and the presence of researchers on the ground, working with producers and in direct contact with the different stakeholders in value chains.
CIRAD is taking part in Africa-Europe Week throughout the week beginning 14 February, alongside the European Union-African Union Summit. The aim is to promote and boost partnerships with Africa, particularly in the field of value chains.
Our CEO had the honour of attending the meeting of EU Development Ministers in Montpellier on 7 March 2022. During her address, she stressed the necessity of supporting research for development and international cooperation, notably around agroecology and biodiversity preservation in the global South.
More than ever, we must bank on mobilizing European expertise to benefit sustainability and our partners.
Élisabeth Claverie de Saint Martin
CIRAD CEO
Food security and the Ukraine crisis
The Food & Agriculture Resilience Mission (FARM) initiative for food security in the world's most vulnerable countries, announced last March by French President Emmanuel Macron, was launched on 6 April 2022. CIRAD has contributed, in the form of two expert assessments by its specialists in food security issues. Those assessments fuelled a discussion document by the academic working group of the French interministerial task force, of which Élisabeth Claverie de Saint Martin is a member.
One Health
The PREZODE Conference "Joining forces to escape the era of pandemics", organized on 11 February 2022 as part of the PFUE served to look at the political support from EU countries and the European Commission for the PREZODE global health initiative, which CIRAD is coordinating along with IRD and INRAE.
The conference brought together all the scientific, operational and political partners in the initiative, to discuss prevention and monitoring policies and unveil the recommendations drafted at co-construction workshops held in 2021, in Europe and beyond.
This conference served to reach a consensus about a paradigm shift towards prevention, the importance of global cohesion, and the determining role that Europe could play in structuring operations.
Marisa Peyre
PREZODE Coordinator for CIRAD
The PREZODE conference "Joining forces to escape the era of pandemics" brought together a number of prestigious experts on 11 February. It was organized within the framework of the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union, and served to consolidate political support of the PREZODE initiative on the part of EU member countries and the European Commission.
CIRAD also participated in another event, Building European Health Union: Taking Global Responsibilities!, organized by the One Sustainable Health Forum as part of the PFUE.
Partnerships
Lastly, CIRAD participated in European Development Days 2022, on the topic of the "Global Gateway", the new EU strategy to "connect the world".
Along with the University of Liège, the University of Zimbabwe and the Vietnam National University of Agriculture, CIRAD organized a lab-debate on platforms in partnership for research and training (dPs). This novel partnership instrument is making a concrete contribution, on both a local and an intercontinental level, to the "Global Gateway" approach, via exchanges of new knowledge and support for innovation in agriculture.
With the participation of CIRAD, on the topic of scientific partnerships for sustainable, resilient agriculture.
