Technical Advisory Committee Eighth Meeting, 24 July-2 August 1974: Draft Report

TAC met in Washington from 24 July to 2 August 1974. TAC Chairman Sir John Crawford presided, and reported on the meeting jointly to TAC and CGIAR International Centers Week which was held concurrently. After discussion with the center directors, TAC decided to initiate a round of external reviews of centers, starting with IRRI. The reviews would be conducted at five yearly intervals, and be performed by a panel consisting of both TAC and non-TAC members. Sir John presented to the CGIAR TAC's comments on the programs of the IARCs.It was recommended that the headquarters of the new IARC devoted to agriculture in the Middle East and North Africa should be in Lebanon, if suitable land were available, with associate centers to cover the agroclimatic zones within the region. TAC established a subcommittee on plant nutrition to consider how to mobilize broad expertise in this field, how best to monitor relevant work underway at the IARCs and to consider the proposal made by USAID for the creation of a plant nutrition institute. TAC recommended to the CGIAR the establishment of a world food policy research institute to be located in Rome or Washington, and work closely with FAO, the World Bank and UNDP among other institutions. On the basis of the IDRC evaluation of the CARIS Pilot Project in West Africa, TAC recommended that the CGIAR provide transitional support for an expanded CARIS until it could be financed by FAO from 1976. TAC also recommended CGIAR funding of research on one or two species of fish used in aquaculture, a detailed proposal to be worked out between a TAC subcommittee and the CGIAR Secretariat. A proposed bean research network in Latin America was held over for discussion in connection with CIAT's 1976 program request. TAC held a wide-ranging discussion of strengthening national research capability, to be continued at the next meeting. Preliminary comments were made on tropical fruit and water buffalo.