This annual report addresses the partnerships that have enhanced ILRI's work at national, regional and international levels, highlighting three particularly inspiring ventures - poverty mapping in East Africa, the Crop-Animal Systems Research Network in Southeast Asia, and development of an improved East Coast fever vaccine, which has engaged researchers from three continents. The five research themes into which ILRI restructured its research portfolio are also outlined.

Livestock production plays a key role in tropical Latin America in a changing economic environment. This study focuses on documenting the transformations of extensive production systems by using superior forage germplasm supplied by regional research systems. The adoption of improved Brachiaria grasses was evaluated from 1990 to 2003 to estimate its impact in terms of animal productivity and income in Central America and Mexico.

ACIAR funded a collaborative project between research organisations in Southeast Asia for ILRI and regional partners to explore new ways to control helminth parasites in the tropics. The project aimed to increase small ruminant production in Southeast Asia by controlling internal parasites, which are one of the major constraints to sheep and goat production in the tropics. Control of internal parasites also provides an avenue for general improvement in husbandry methods.

The emergence of social and environmental movements against plantation forestry in Southeast Asia positions rural development against local displacement and environmental degradation. Multi-scaled NGO networks have been active in promoting the notion that rural people in Southeast Asia uniformly oppose plantation development. There are potential pitfalls in this heightened attention to resistance however, as it has often lapsed into essentialist notions of timeless indigenous agricultural practices, and unproblematic local allegiances to common property and conservation.

Rice is a very important commodity in our lives, as it is the staple food of about 3 billion, or three quarters, of the people in the world. Two hundred fi fty million farmers depend on rice cultivation. Ninety percent of the world’s rice is produced and consumed in Asia.

This publication reflects part of FAO's work on soil carbon sequestration within the framework of its programme on the integrated planning and management of land resources for sustainable rural development. The report presents a comprehensive analysis of the scientific aspects and potential for carbon sequestration in drylands – some of the most soil-degraded and impoverished regions of the world. It is based on case studies carried out across different land-use and managaement systems in several distinctive dryland areas.

...The main objective of this research is to examine housing, land, and property rights in the context of Burma’s societal transition towards a democratic polity and economy. Much has been written and discussed about property rights in their various manifestations, private, public, collective, and common in terms of “rights”. When property rights are widely and fairly distributed, they are inseparable from the rights of people to a means of living.

Strong partnerships with national agricultural research systems and other stakeholders constitute the backbone of ICARDA’s research agenda. The outreach programs of the Center play a key role in promoting partnerships in their respective sub-regions and in implementing collaborative research and training programs. To make an assessment of the efficiency and effectiveness of the partnerships, the Board of Trustees of ICARDA commissioned an external review of its outreach programs in 2003.

La presente Ley tiene por objeto la creación del Instituto Nacional de Desarrollo Rural y de la Tierra (INDERT), cuya misión consistirá en promover la integración armónica de la población campesina al desarrollo económico y social de la Nación.

L’objectif général de la Politique Foncière Agricole (PFA) du Mali est d’assurer l’accès équitable de tous les producteurs maliens (hommes et femmes) et des autres utilisateurs aux terres agricoles aménagées bien gérées et sécurisées dans un environnement de bonne gouvernance foncière afin de favoriser des investissements publics, communautaires, individuels et privés maîtrisés susceptibles de rendre les différentes formes d’exploitation plus performantes et viables dans une perspective de souveraineté alimentaire durable.La PFA oeuvre à des systèmes agricoles inclusifs et efficaces.

...The objective of this research paper is to describe specific ways in which the State
Peace and Development Council (SPDC) deprives the people of Burma of their land
and livelihood. Confiscation of land, labour, crops and capital; destruction of person
and property; forced labour; looting and expropriation of food and possessions;
forced sale of crops to the military; extortion of money through official and
unofficial taxes and levies; forced relocation and other abuses by the State...