PRESS RELEASE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Marie
Thompson; mkthompson@ifdc.org
DATE: January 14, 2004
IFDC
Taps New Director of its
Africa
Division
 Muscle
Shoals, AL (U.S.A.)-January 14, 2004-"I believe that
agriculture is the engine for development in West Africa and that
development starts at the interface between development research,
farmers, the financial and private sectors, politics, and
trade," says Jan Jacob Robert (Rob) Groot, the newly appointed
Director of IFDC's Africa Division.
"I feel that I will be able to make a significant
contribution to IFDC's impact on sustainable development."
In
announcing the appointment of the Dutch citizen as the new Director,
Dr. Amit H. Roy, IFDC's President and Chief Executive Officer, had
this to say: "IFDC
welcomes
Rob Groot
to our team; his management, communication, and acquisition skills
will enhance IFDC's administrative and scientific slate of officers.
We are excited about having this creative, target-oriented
scientist join us at the beginning of IFDC's fourth decade."
Arriving
at IFDC's
Lome
,
Togo
, office, the new Director brings with him 20 years of experience in
the international agricultural development world, with a primary
emphasis on the food security problems of sub-Saharan
Africa
. He has been involved
in several research initiatives involving soil fertility
improvement, fertilizer use and climate change, and personal
initiatives involving cowpea trade and rice production.
"My
interests are strongly oriented toward development research, the
finance sector and trade, and agricultural inputs procurement and
distribution," Groot says.
"I consider as `my business` the development of
productive, profitable, and environmentally sustainable agriculture
in a region that has my strong personal and professional interest. I
look upon it as a privilege to join the multicultural IFDC
environment, working closely with all stakeholders to overcome the
challenges facing the agricultural sector in the region."
Most
recently Groot served as Executive Secretary of the Plant Sciences
Group of
Wageningen
University
in the
Netherlands
. In this position, he
participated in the successful acquisition of the major National
Genomics Project, a $200 million public-private partnership,
financed by both industry and government.
Prior
to that service, he was responsible for the External Affairs and
Strategic Planning Institute for Agrobiology and Soil Fertility
Research at Wageningen. Previously
he managed several international projects including those projects
focusing on the impact of climate change on water availability,
agriculture, and food security in the semiarid regions, especially
sub-Saharan
Africa
.
For
4.5 years he managed a large multidisciplinary research project-the
Optimal Nutrient Use in Animal Husbandry Systems Project in
Mali
. This project was
financed by the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs (DGIS) and hosted
by l'Institut d'Economie Rurale in
Mali
. After 2 years as
manager of the overall project, Groot concentrated on coordinating
research activities in the field of soil fertility management and
the optimization of nutrient use in primary production."
At Wageningen
University
he was trained as a systems analyst. There he received an M.S.
degree in biology and agronomy; additionally Groot completed a
1-year training program at the M.B.A. level for managers of small
and medium-sized enterprises and government organizations.
With
his optimistic, creative, and target-oriented bent, the new Director
of the IFDC Africa Division will surely "mobilize and inspire
people in a multicultural environment."
IFDC looks forward to a new chapter in its history.
After
8 years at the helm of the Africa Division, Dr. Henk Breman is
moving to
Brussels
,
Belgium
, to manage the operations of the European office of IFDC.
We look forward to many more years of Breman's ingenious
scientific and developmental undertakings.
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