July 2013: The July 2013 newsletter from the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) documents recent workshops, meetings and collaborations undertaken by ICARDA over recent months. It features an article on the International Conference on Policies for Water and Food Security in Dry Areas, which brought together experts from 28 countries to share experience on putting research into action.

The Conference, which was held in Cairo, Egypt, from 24-26 June 2013, was co-organized with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) and other development partners. Policy makers underscored the need for more support from researchers on selecting appropriate, tailored solutions. Participants stressed that there can be no food security without water security, that small farmers need to be involved in solutions, and that investment is required alongside policy and capacity building. The Conference proposed a new collaborative framework between ICARDA, FAO, IFAD and the International Development Research Centre (IDRC) to strengthen policies for water and food security.

In its newsletter, ICARDA announces a new collaboration on drylands research with the University of Western Australia and Lanzhou University in China. It also describes investment in rice-lentil intercropping systems in India that enrich soil, enhance nutrition, augment yields and reduce environmental degradation. Additional updates focused on opportunities for laser leveling of fields to improve soil health, cotton productivity enhancement through US-Pakistan collaboration, and legume breeding to bolster food security across Central/West Asia and North Africa. ICARDA is a member of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR). [ICARDA Newsletter July 2013]