IRRI and ICRISAT Set a Joint Vision to demonstrate Integrated Seed Systems for Dryland Farming in South Asia

Planning Meeting

April 25, 2025

CGIAR centers align efforts to drive inclusive, impact-oriented research from 2025 to 2027

New Delhi, April 2024 — In a significant step toward inclusive and climate-resilient agricultural transformation, the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) have outlined a joint research vision for 2025–2027, focusing on the inclusive delivery, adoption, and scaling of improved germplasms in India’s dryland ecosystems.

The planning meeting, held on April 3–4, 2024, at the ICRISAT Conference Room, NASC Complex, New Delhi, was convened under the CGIAR Breeding for Tomorrow science program, specifically within the focus area of work on Inclusive Delivery.

This partnership builds on the longstanding presence and complementary strengths of both centers in South Asia, particularly in India. By aligning efforts around targeted product bundles, seed system innovations, and market-responsive delivery models, the collaboration aims to support smallholder farmers with integrated solutions tailored for Rice-based cropping systems in water-scarce and fallow-prone geographies.

Building on a Shared Vision

In addition to planning immediate research priorities for 2025, both centers committed to a broader joint vision on:

Co-developing collaborative proposals to attract investments in systemic solutions that strengthen cropping systems, optimize rice fallows, and enhance smallholder livelihoods through innovations in seed systems.
Establishing return-on-investment scenarios from the earliest stages of project design to ensure that every research contributes measurable and scalable impact.

This future-focused approach will support robust, data-backed decisions and build stronger cases for policy and donor engagement.

Farmer-Centric, Evidence-Driven Implementation

To ensure scientific rigor and practical relevance, the research design will include:

Testing rice and non-rice varietal kits on the same farmer plots, allowing comparative insights into cropping system performance.
Testing and demonstrating the efficiency of cropping systems-based seed production and delivery models
Soil sampling before and after interventions to monitor system-wide effects on soil health and productivity.
Varietal selection based on rapid assessments of existing farmer practices, preferences, and local agroecological segmentation.

These efforts will help refine product targeting and ensure that research outputs align with real-world farming contexts.

Aiming for Transformative Impact

The Inclusive Delivery agenda is grounded in a strong commitment to tangible outcomes for communities. The collaboration will work toward:

Strengthening community resilience through more diverse and sustainable cropping options.
Unlocking income and livelihood opportunities along resilient commodity and value chains.
Reducing risks related to crop failure, price volatility, and market shocks.
Supporting improved nutrition and dietary diversity through integrated crop strategies.

A Model for CGIAR Collaboration

This joint planning marks a new milestone in CGIAR’s integrated approach to research for development, demonstrating how cross-center collaboration can accelerate innovation delivery and enhance outcomes at scale through shared knowledge, capacity, resources and vision.

By combining IRRI’s expertise in rice-based systems with ICRISAT’s leadership in dryland agriculture, the initiative is positioned to deliver solutions that are not only scientifically sound, but also socially inclusive, economically viable, and environmentally sustainable.

As the 2025–2027 roadmap takes shape, this collaboration sets a precedent for how CGIAR centers can work together to drive systemic change and community-level impact—from the lab to the last mile.