Healing Wounds: How the International Centers of the CGIAR Help Rebuild Agriculture in Countries Affected by Conflicts and Natural Disasters

Surendra Varma and Mark Winslow

Working Papers from eSocialSciences

Abstract: This study first reviews current thinking on the underlying causes of conflicts and disasters, identifying poverty as a major driver of both. Poverty breeds frustration, compelling the poor to turn to violence. Most of the poor are involved in rural agriculture, so pro-poor investments in agricultural development can alleviate poverty and thereby reduce the possibilities of conflict and also contribute to natural disaster preparedness. History shows that agricultural research is a particularly high-payoff leverage point for stimulating economic growth and poverty reduction. Based on case studies for 31 countriesfrom 12 CGIAR Centers, the study then describes major Center contributions and lessons learned in five key areas: alleviating hunger by rebuilding seed and food systems; safeguarding and restoring agrobiodiversity; rebuilding human and institutional capacities; reducing future vulnerability to these crises; and making relief aid more effective and efficient. It highlights how the Centers’ work addresses the root causes of conflicts and disasters, in addition to providing immediate relief by working together with a diverse group of partners, including donors and relief and development agencies, and by building bridges between the various partners for implementing long-term work plans.

Keywords: Poverty; violence; disasters; rural agriculture; pro-poor investments; agricultural development; natural disaster; economic growth; agrobiodiversity (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016-01
Note: Institutional Papers
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
http://www.esocialsciences.org/Articles/show_Artic ... ionalPapers&aid=8901

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ess:wpaper:id:8901

Access Statistics for this paper

More papers in Working Papers from eSocialSciences
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Padma Prakash (padmaprakash@esocialsciences.com).