[Federal Register Volume 75, Number 40 (Tuesday, March 2, 2010)]
[Notices]
[Pages 9388-9389]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2010-4285]
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AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
Board for International Food and Agricultural Development; One
Hundred and Fifty-Ninth Meeting; Notice of Meeting
Pursuant to the Federal Advisory Committee Act, notice is hereby
given of the one hundred and fifty-ninth meeting of the Board for
International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD). The meeting
will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. on March 3, 2010 at the National
Press Club located at 529 14th St., NW., Washington, DC. ``Higher
Education: A Critical Partner in Global Agricultural Development'' will
be the central theme of BIFAD's initiatives and the March meeting.
Dr. Robert Easter, Chairman of BIFAD, will preside over the
proceedings. Dr. Easter is Interim Chancellor for the University of
Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
The confirmation of Dr. Rajiv Shah as USAID's new administrator
will define the work of BIFAD, consistent with
[[Page 9389]]
BIFAD's legislative mandate, for the foreseeable future. Accordingly,
the 159th BIFAD meeting will attempt to respond to Dr. Shah's
priorities. Dr. Shah brings a strong background in global food security
issues. Within this context comes the recognition that only through
broad-based partnerships and multidisciplinary approaches will the US
achieve priority foreign assistance goals in a dramatically changed
development world. It is in the spirit of the Title XII mandates and in
view of today's development realities, underpinned by complex socio-
economic conditions and regional conflicts, that BIFAD is leading as a
``gateway'' to the university community.
It is expected that Dr. Shah will participate in the meeting and
present to the Board his vision and priorities for the Agency. If the
situation in Haiti or other unanticipated contingencies preclude him
from attending, Karen Turner, the Director of the Office of Development
Partners or Carol Grigsby, the Office's Deputy Director, will represent
the Administrator. In the event that new BIFAD members are announced,
there is a possibility that they could be officially sworn in by
Administrator Shah, or Director Turner or Deputy Director Grigsby.
The Board and USAID have been collaborating closely to develop a
Memorandum of Understanding to define our strategic partnership. The
purpose of the MOU is to set forth the understandings and intentions of
USAID and BIFAD with regard to shared goals and to mobilize the
capacities of U.S. universities to implement program components under
Section 103 (Agriculture, Rural Development and Nutrition) and 103A
(Agriculture Research) of the Foreign Assistance Act. Five key areas
were identified for maximum collaboration: USG Food Security Strategy
and Program; USG Global Climate Change Strategy and Program; Education
and Training for Youth; Afghanistan/Pakistan Agriculture Strategy and
Program; and Rebuilding USAID Technical Capacity. The MOU was vetted
during the last BIFAD meeting in October. It should be ready for
signing during the 159th meeting with a brief ceremony.
Next, Gebisa Ejeta, last year's World Food Prize recipient, will
present to the Board a presentation, ``Food Security: the Science,
Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food.'' He
will emphasize the critical need to strengthen science-based thinking
within development planning and implementation and rational decision-
making into the policy formulation process. Dr. Ejeta is currently at
Purdue University. Dr. Easter will also be making a presentation, with
possible responder to Dr. Ejeta.
During 2009, the Board held a number of sessions and activities
related to the agricultural strategy for Afghanistan and how
universities can help USAID turn battle space into development space.
This session will provide an update on the Trilateral Af-Pak process,
building towards a conference later this spring in Doha, Qatar. The
conference will bring together university representatives managing on-
the-ground agricultural projects in Afghanistan with key Afghans and
Pakistanis, to develop a 5 year plan for integrating long-term
agricultural training and capacity building into the agricultural
development strategy.
The devastating earthquake in Haiti will be the focus of a session
to demonstrate how BIFAD and universities can bring value to USAID on
Haiti, as well as the Caribbean region. The session will be led by
Board member Dr. Elsa Murano, University of Texas. Walter Bowen, Acting
Director, International Programs. Institute of Food and Agricultural
Sciences, University of Florida, will share some experiences University
of Florida has had in Haiti. His project, Watershed Initiative for
National Natural Environmental Resources, is aimed at implementing
broad scale investments in sustainable natural resource management at
the scale and density needed to produce future positive landscape level
reductions in environmental, infrastructural, and economic
vulnerability. The Latin America and Caribbean Bureau (LAC) at USAID
will be intimately involved, and there will be discussion on wider
application throughout the Caribbean region.
Concluding the morning session, John Becker, USAID Office of
Development Partners, will make a presentation and lead discussion on
application of the Bumpers Amendment. The Bumpers Amendment forbids the
United States Agency for International Development (USAID) from giving
money to any program that would increase the production of a crop that
could compete with the United States on the world market.
After an executive luncheon (closed to the public) the Board will
re-convene. Scheduled as the afternoon's first session will be a
follow-on to the Board's efforts to highlight the critical role that
Minority Serving Institutions continue to play in international
agricultural development, particularly in improving the livelihood of
small farmers. William DeLauder, Board member and President-Emeritus of
Delaware State University, will lead the session. This discussion is
being designed to open a new dialogue and begin exploring effective
partnering with USAID.
Following the MSI panel, Montague Demment, Director, Global
Livestock Collaborative Research Support Program (CRSP), will lead a
discussion on the Borlaug Leap Program and other BIFAD long-term
training activities, in cooperation with USAID's Economic Growth,
Agricultural, and Trade Bureau (EGAT). These are very important
programs that help build human and institutional capacity in
agriculture.
Concluding the afternoon session, the Board will hear an update on
BIFAD's efforts to establish a Joint Committee on Operations, as called
for in Title XII, to increase the technical capacity of the Board. Such
a Committee would replace the Strategic Partnership for Agricultural
Research and Education (SPARE). Ray Miller, Director of International
Programs, University of Maryland, will lead the discussion.
The Board meeting is open to the public. The Board welcomes open
dialogue to promote greater focus on critical issues facing USAID, the
role of universities in development, and applications of U.S.
scientific, technical and institutional capabilities to international
agriculture. Note on Public Comments: Due to time constraints public
comments to the Board will be limited to three (3) minutes to
accommodate as many as possible. It is preferred to have requests for
comments submitted to the Board in writing. Two periods for public
comment will be provided during the Board meeting--just before lunch
and adjournment.
Those wishing to attend the meeting or obtain additional
information about BIFAD should contact Dr. Ronald S. Senykoff,
Executive Director and Designated Federal Officer for BIFAD. Write him
in care of the U.S. Agency for International Development, Ronald Reagan
Building, Office of Development Partners, 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue,
NW., Room 6.7-153, Washington, DC 20523-2110 or telephone him at (202)
712-0218 or fax (202) 216-3124.
Ronald S. Senykoff,
Executive Director and USAID Designated Federal Officer for BIFAD,
Office of Development Partners, U.S. Agency for International
Development.
[FR Doc. 2010-4285 Filed 3-1-10; 8:45 am]
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