CIMMYT personages were present for the official opening ceremonies of the Svalbard Global Seed Vault, held at the facility in Norway on 26 February. The vault is designed to store duplicates of crop seeds from genetic resource collections from around the globe. CIMMYT contributed nearly 50,000 unique maize and wheat seed collections. CIMMYT DG Designate, Tom Lumpkin, passes the polar bear security post, on arrival at the Svalbard airport. Tom Payne, head of wheat genetic resources and prebreeding, personally ensures that the center’s seed gets a good spot.
Capacity development 