By Yahya Rauf and Imtiaz Muhammad/CIMMYT
CIMMYT and the government of Pakistan have formally agreed to continue the Host Country Agreement signed in 1984, which allows CIMMYT to host other partners in the country. Thomas Lumpkin, CIMMYT director general, and Iftikhar Ahmad, chairman of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC), signed a memorandum of agreement that will give CIMMYT new avenues to work with the government of Pakistan, PARC, public and private universities, corporations, nongovernmental organizations and farmer associations. In addition, CIMMYT may locate international staff, experts and consultants in the country after getting approval from the government. CIMMYT has already brought international partners like ILRI, AVRDC, UC Davis and IRRI under the umbrella of the Agriculture Innovation Program (AIP).
Nutrition, health and food security 