Shocking! You think? This was the reality shared by Jacques Wery, the Deputy Director and Director of Research of the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), Egypt; a keynote speaker at this year’s Tropentag.



Jacques Wery exuded great personality, as much as his works at ICARDA. ICARDA is a member of the CGIAR-15 research institutions, with research focus centred on proffering solutions to global water scarcity, as well as desertification. In the words of Jacques Wery; “ICARDA simply works to combat today’s drought and climate realities”. While trying to do justice to his keynote speech titled,” Sustainable Food systems and Job creation under water security”, He shares critical insight on the theme of food security as affected by water scarcity and desertification. He notes that desertification is an issue with multiple effects, it is in fact a sociological driver. Its effects are better felt in dryland areas, with their agri-food systems consequently in systemic crisis. Ripple effects of water scarcity and increasing rate of desertification would include- high unemployment unrest and migration; gender and demographic changes; urbanisation and heat islands and also loss of agrobiodiversity. Indeed, quick and practical actions are needed to combat these issues. He was no prophet of doom, when he affirmed that the world is only 10 harvests away from achieving the 2030 SDG goals. The sad reality is we might only have these 10 harvests to contend with, if we do not nip these issues in the bud.

ICARDA continues to play an active role in finding solutions to these challenges faced by drylands. Jacques Wery acknowledges that there is no one-size fits all solution to these peculiar challenges. He advocates for systemic innovation and agro-ecosystem diversity. Farmers in a concerned region would need to be supported with technological knowledge and capacity building; their local water conservation techniques should also be well exploited. A wholesome package of diversity that includes crops, trees, livestock, agro-ecosystem, farm types and farm scales should be targeted. However, he was careful to mention that diversification should not be a dogma, water availability should be a major decision tool. ICARDA provides these workable solutions and more using sound data and model. A good example is the dry arc project facilitated by ICARDA in partnership with other CGIAR institutes.

A lasting solution would be to bridge the gap between research and policy makers. He emphasizes that the success of the work they do at ICARDA is dependent on the academic world and decision makers understanding each other. Only then, can technology adoption and acceleration be possible. Jacques Wery was kind enough to grant an interview session with student reporters. A take-away from his session would be - we can combat desertification; we only need to start now.