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<i>Author: Thesis Advisor: </i>
Pooja PRIYADARSHINI (AMI9B) Professor Tony BROOKING
<i>A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of International Business and Management </i>
Submitted to AMI Office
IAE Nice Graduate School of Management
Universite Nice Sophia Antipolis and Thang Long University
October 2019
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 2</span><div class="page_container" data-page="2"><b>ACKNOWLEDGMENTS </b>
I would first like to thank my thesis advisor Professor Tony Brooking of IAE Nice Graduate School of Management at Universite Nice Sophia Antipolis. The door of Prof. Brooking’s office was always open and accessible to me whenever I struggled with writer’s block or had questions concerning the scope of my research. He generously allowed me freedom to work independently, but also directed me towards the right path whenever he thought I needed it.
I would also like to thank the scientific experts who were involved in drafting the proposal for ‘Seed without Border’ initiative at International Potato Center, Hanoi: my company supervisor Dr. Samrendru Mohanty and Project Manager Dr. Sampriti Baruah. Without their guidance and expertise, this proposal would have never seen the light of day.
I would also like to acknowledge Dr. Le Thanh Binh, director of the International Relations Department at Thang Long University for being a pillar of support and facilitating the AMI curriculum very smoothly, and I am gratefully appreciative of her invaluable comments on finding a suitable research topic for the successful completion of my thesis.
Last but not the least, I would like to express my very profound gratitude to my mother, Dr. Rashmi Dash and my sister Priyanka for empowering me with constant support and endless motivation during my master’s program, internship and throughout the process of completing my thesis. I could not have accomplished this feat without their encouragement. Thank you.
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<b>ABSTRACT </b>
The paper reviews the application and practice of the theoretical concepts acquired through AMI curriculum during the four months internship as a Business Analyst at International Potato Center, Hanoi. In the first section of the text, the author derives a link with the assigned project of proposing Vietnam to join the regional cooperation of borderless trade of food crops in South Asia by describing the company background, its structure and organization. In the same vein, the author correlates the link between the subject matter and the mission of the project by identifying three business frameworks studied during the AMI academic year to achieve the ten assigned individual tasks that contributes to the success of the project. Additionally, the paper explores in detail the needs of the stakeholders to come up with a communication strategy while also analyzing its external and internal environment. The author attempts a better understanding of Vietnam’s standpoint on this issue by reviewing firsthand accounts of its seed industry and suggesting three recommendations on how to lobby the government of Vietnam. It is hoped that this study will inform educators and peers about management practices of theoretical concepts in an international context.
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 4</span><div class="page_container" data-page="4"><b>TABLE OF CONTENTS </b>
<b><small>INTRODUCTION ... 1 </small></b>
<b><small>CHAPTER 1: COMPANY BACKGROUND ... 2 </small></b>
<small>1.1 KEY FACTS ... 3 </small>
<small>1.2 AFFILIATIONS AND PARTNERSHIPS ... 4 </small>
<small>1.3 PRODUCTS &SERVICES ... 5 </small>
<small>1.4 TARGET CUSTOMERS ... 6 </small>
<small>1.5 RECENT FINANCIAL FIGURES ... 6 </small>
<small>1.6 CURRENT PROJECT IN ASIA ... 7 </small>
<b><small>CHAPTER 2: COMPANY STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION... 8 </small></b>
<small>2.1 CIP’S STRUCTURAL POSITION IN THE CGIARECOSYSTEM ... 8 </small>
<small>2.2 ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF CIP ... 9 </small>
<small>3.4 CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE COMPANY ... 17 </small>
<small>3.5 THEORETICAL KNOWLEDGE APPLIED ... 17 </small>
<small>5.1POSITIVE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE INTERNSHIP ... 27 </small>
<small>5.2PERSONAL ACHIEVEMENTS DURING THE INTERNSHIP ... 28 </small>
<small>5.3LIMITATIONS OF THE INTERNSHIP ... 29 </small>
<small>5.4KEY RECOMMENDATIONS ON HOW TO APPROACH THE GOVERNMENT OF VIETNAM ... 30 </small>
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<b>INTRODUCTION </b>
Historical data claim that neighboring countries that shares similar agro-climatic circumstances tend to have similar food habits and agricultural practices, and as a result have a compatible analogous type of seeds.<sup>1</sup> As a result, in 2013 several countries in South Asia like India, Bangladesh and Nepal were pioneers in entering into a borderless seed trade agreement and paving a way to improve the livelihood of farmers and food scarcity. By mid 2018, five other countries from South and Southeast Asia, including Cambodia, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Bhutan and Sri Lanka joined the agreement barring Vietnam.<small>2</small> While there have been many studies that shows the scope and benefits of the borderless trade agreement in South Asia; seldom have been from the standpoint of Vietnam. As such, it is important to treat the subject objectively, and the best way to do this is to identify and analyze it into specific categories to increase the understanding of management practices in the seed sector in an international context. In doing so, it will enable a genuine analysis of the effectiveness of the theoretical concepts on real business situations in Vietnam, offer a chain of cause and effect, and provide valuable information for agro-businesses, policymakers, educators and peers to conduct business in Vietnam, especially in the agricultural industry. This paper looks at the use of the theoretical concepts during the internship at International Potato Center (CIP), Hanoi to accomplish the mission of the project, and achieves the outcome by dividing it into five stages. First, CIP’s background is addressed followed by a detailed introspection of its structure and organization, then the theoretical concepts that can be applied to the assigned individual tasks will be discussed, and finally detailed theoretical analysis of distinct real life situations using business frameworks will be outlined. Lastly, the paper will highlight the personal achievements and shortcomings of the internship and conclude by making strategic recommendations for the company to propose the Government of Vietnam to join the regional cooperation of Asian countries, especially in the seed sector by signing the borderless seed trade agreement, and be a pioneer in being one of the leading Southeast Asian country to champion the cause of CIP, which is, to improve the livelihood and nutrition of the farmers and achieve food security.
<small>1</small><sub>Dalrymple. D.G., 1978. The Development and Adoption of High-Yielding Varieties of Wheat and Rice in </sub>
<i><small>Developing Countries. American Journal of Agricultural Economics, 67(5), pp. 1067-1073. </small></i>
<small>2</small><i><sub>Baruah, S., 2019, Agreement on Multi-country Seed-sharing reached [Online] (Updated 2</sub></i><small>nd April 2019) Available at: [Accessed 3 September 2019, 3:27 pm]. </small>
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 6</span><div class="page_container" data-page="6"><b>CHAPTER 1: COMPANY BACKGROUND </b>
The International Potato Center is an international organization based in Peru, otherwise known
<i>as CIP, which is, derived from its Spanish origin called Centro Internacional de la Papa. In </i>
1971, the research-for development center was established to provide sustainable solutions. The solutions harnessed the power of potatoes and sweet potatoes to address to mitigate and compensate the challenges caused by food starvation, poverty, gender bias, and preservation of biodiversity in developing nations.
<i>‘Consultative Group of International Agricultural Research’ (CGIAR) is a global collaboration </i>
of international organizations through science and research efforts dedicated to achieving food security, alleviating poverty, improving nutrition and incomes. There are 15 research centers under the parasol of CGIAR’s jurisdiction and CIP is one of the 15 research centers. The 15 research centers headlines most of CGIAR’s initiatives by participating with multiple external stakeholders across the globe. For instance, CIP and its partners focus on improving the lives of farmers by engaging in capacity-building sessions and by conducting exhaustive research on how to provide healthy, nourishing and wholesome nutrition to farmers by researching on potatoes and sweet potatoes. In 2012, following an institutional change by the board of trustees, CIP decided to modify the strategy of its research efforts to ensure the desired impact of its intended implementation by following a new action plan for the year 2014-2023. The new strategy responds to the needs of the growing global population of 9.7 billion and to the pressing issues caused by Climate Change.<sup>3</sup> Forecasts say that by 2050, the world population will reach 9.7 billion, and thus, it becomes even more vital to achieve the optimum output to sustain the entire population of the world. CIP is trying to encourage populations all over the world to get acclimated to a greater variety of potatoes, roots and tubers rather than just depending on to staple foods like rice and wheat. In fact, in order to foresee more about Climate Change, CIP has partnered with NASA with the intended goal of growing potatoes on Mars.<small>4</small> Their aim is to produce potatoes in extreme conditions as a precautionary principle to the perils of Climate Change and as a contingency to food shortage that will have a major impact on minorities.
<small>3</small><i><small>Dudenhoefer, D., 2018. Revised Strategy And Corporate Plan 2014-2023 [Online] (Updated 8 March 2018) </small></i>
<small>Available at: 30 July 2019, 11:35am]. </small>
<small>4</small><i><small>Lanatta, M., 2017. Indicators Show Potatoes Can Grow On Mars [Online] (Updated 8 March 2017) Available at: </small></i>
<small> [Accessed 30 July 2019, 11:35am]. </small>
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<b>1.1 Key Facts </b>
Table 1: CIP at a Nutshell - Factual Data
<b>Logo </b>
<i>root and tuber systems.” </i>
<i>to enhance to affordable nutritious food, foster inclusive sustainable business and employment growth, and drive climate resilience of root and tuber agri-food systems.” </i>
Contact person: Thi Tinh Nguyen
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 8</span><div class="page_container" data-page="8"><b>1.2 Affiliations and Partnerships </b>
CIP engages in multitudes of research projects directed by CGIAR by collaborating with its network of 15 research centers and other external stakeholders across the globe. CIP’s own flagship project concerns the production of roots and tubers like potatoes and sweet potatoes for bolstering the nutrition and incomes of farmers and other marginalized communities in developing countries. Four of its main partnerships in this project are as follows:
• Bioversity International
• International Center for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT)
• Center for International Cooperation in Agricultural Research for Development (CIRAD) • International Institute of Tropical Agriculture (IITA)<small>5</small>
The next significant research project of CIP greatly addresses the issues of ‘Climate Change, Agriculture, and Food Security’ (CCAFS) and counts on producing sustainable solutions that can be implemented at a local level; thereby improving the lives of the farmers. It is collaboration between CIP and all of CGIAR’s 15 research centers, which is essentially being carried out with support from its donors. A project of this magnitude has CIP conducting groundbreaking research through its network of 15 research centers across key functions, while hundreds of strategic partnerships are formed at national, sub national, regional and global levels to ensure the implementation of solutions at a large scale. Currently, there are 15 CGIAR Research Centers, 13 Non-CGIAR Research Centers, 17 Intergovernmental Development & Policy
<i>Partners and 6 Non-governmental Development Partners involved in the project. See Figure 1. In </i>
the same vein, CIP also enjoys the support of countries that have similar environmental priorities and support the mission of CIP on a large nation-wide scale in the form of receiving funds. Some of the countries that continue to be donors and show interest in the CIP’s research projects by raising huge funds and initiating large-scale environmental initiatives are Peru, India, United Kingdom, South Korea, Austria, Australia, Germany, and Ireland.<sup>6</sup> All of these countries promote national environmental programs and have made apt changes at the policymaking level.
<small>5</small><i><sub>CCAFS, 2017. Annual Reporting for 2017 [Online] (Updated 15 July 2017) Available at: 30 July 2019, 11:35am]. </small>
<small>6</small><i><small> Dudenhoefer, D., 2017. Annual Report 2017: Harnessing Potato and Sweet Potato’s Power. In: South and Southeast Asia Seed Policy Workshop on Protocol of Discussions, June 9-10, 2017, Siem Reap, Cambodia. </small></i>
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Figure 1: Global Partners of CIP in CCAFS Program
<b>1.3 Products & Services </b>
CIP is essentially a globally recognized research organization for its scientific and technological expertise in the agricultural industry. Its main products are producing climate resilient potato and sweet potato seeds that can grow in extreme conditions. After amassing a database of best standard practices, CIP aims to provide an assortment of sustainable solutions to clients that can be scalable and has a wider scope of engagement and implementation at a local level, especially in developing nations. Additionally, CIP also offers contract research services to clients who may want to outsource their research to obtain optimum results.<small>7</small> Accordingly, it has divided its services into five main categories:
• Technical Consulting • Laboratory Rental
• Contract Research and Project Management • Courses and Corporate Training
• CIP Science Park- Business Space Solutions
<small>7</small> <i><small> Dudenhoefer, D., 2018. Services for Business [Online] (Updated 8 March 2018) Available at: </small></i>
<small> [Accessed 30 July 2019, 11:35am].</small>
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 10</span><div class="page_container" data-page="10"><b>1.4 Target Customers </b>
• Farmers: CIP’s main customers have always been farmers. The organization aligns with its vision to achieve food security and improve incomes and nutrition of marginalized people in developing nations. CIP holds capacity building sessions for farmers to enhance their capacities in farming and producing nutritious food faster than any crop. Along with that they also train the farmers with the best practices of farming and provide them with the latest seeds.
• Private Companies: This includes seed companies like Syngenta, and transnational companies like Pepsi. For instance, in India, four multinational companies- Coca Cola, GlaxoSmithKline, Nestle and Cadbury have agreed to conduct product development with research partnerships at CIP to develop hybrid crops. In the same vein, involving foreign seed companies as seed providers will bolster the development of the seed sector in developing nations.
• Non-CGIAR Research Centers: This includes Agricultural departments of leading universities such as Columbia University, University of Copenhagen, and Wageningen University and Research.
• Intergovernmental Development and Policy Centers: This includes institutes like World Bank and Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and NASA.
<b>1.5 Recent Financial Figures </b>
Most of the research programs embarked upon by CIP are through the umbrella channel of CGIAR initiatives and CIP being one of 15 CGIAR research center naturally gets it funding from CGIAR research programs. Apart from in-house funding, CIP also manages to raise funds from its partner-countries and from private sector institutions. In 2018, the total revenues recorded were $65 million USD. Similarly, the expenses reported were $64.1 million USD, while reflecting an excess of USD 0.9 million in 2018. As a matter of fact, CIP’s revenue increased by USD 1.4 million when compared to its earnings in 2017. One of the key reasons behind this growth could be the contribution from its donors and investors. The success of bilateral funding also must have added to the revenue growth. See Figure 2. CIP’s financial health seems to be in
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good health and they have a good credit score, as they didn't even need to use any overdraft facility in 2018.<small>8</small>
Figure 2: Basic Financial Figures of CIP from 2015 – 2018
CIP’s main flagship project is Asia is the “Seed Without Border” Initiative. This project aims to facilitate farmers of countries sharing similar agro-climatic zones into farming with high quality seeds; thereby, improving the income and nutrition of the minorities. The concept behind the project is to get the neighboring governments of similar climatic zones to agree to be part of a policy that allows the movement of seeds across borders without imposing any tariffs and taxes.
The success of this initiative and partnership between the countries shall enable the farmers to improve their livelihoods, as they will not need to undergo the lengthy trial and evaluation process of the food crops that takes 10 years to harvest and produce the results. Seeds successful in India can be easily allowed to grow in Bangladesh and vice versa. This policy has already been activated and proven successful in South Asian countries like India, Bangladesh and Nepal. The next step is to propose the project to the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD), Vietnam and suggest it to be part of this strategic partnership with its neighbors.<sup>9</sup>
<small>8</small><i><small> Dudenhoefer, D., 2018. Annual Report 2018: Towards food system transformation. [Online] (Updated 6 August </small></i>
<small>2019) Available at: [Accessed 6 September 2019, 1:15 am]. </small>
<small>9</small><i><sub>Morell, M., 2017. Siem Reap Protocol of Discussions. In: South and Southeast Asia Seed Policy Workshop on </sub></i>
<i><small>Seed Without Border Agreement, June 9-10, 2017, Siem Reap, Cambodia. </small></i>
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 12</span><div class="page_container" data-page="12"><b>CHAPTER 2: COMPANY STRUCTURE AND ORGANIZATION </b>
CIP’s headquarters are located in Peru for the following reasons: (1) Lima provided a large area that included most of the ecological requirements needed to conduct research and development on potatoes; (2) the country promoted a national potato program; (3) availability of housing, training and educational facilities for staff; (4) international travel logistics could be arranged at impromptu notice from Lima (5) the government expressed a strong interest in the research program.<small>10</small>
In order to understand the organizational structure of CIP, it is important to learn about its strategic positioning in the CGIAR ecosystem. CGIAR has a network organizational structure that is very decentralized and flexible. In this agile structure, more communication is clearly evident between CIP and its stakeholders (both internal and external), and this leads to more control, less constraints and a bottom flow of decision-making from the top.
In the agriculture industry, CGIAR is the most prominent public-funded international agency. It was conceived by a group of organizations informally that shared recognized the vulnerabilities of Climate Change and food scarcity. The participants included developing countries, co-sponsors, scientists, and representatives from non-donor developing nations. While Food & Agricultural Organization (FAO), UNDP and World Bank are organic co-sponsors, some of the donors include countries, international and regional organizations. CGIAR is advised by the Technical Advisory Committee (TCA) whose Chairperson and secretariat are chosen by the co-sponsors like the World Bank in Washington D.C.<sup>11</sup> It is one of the major components when it comes to filling gaps in international agricultural research and strengthening national programmes of developing nations.
GGIAR has an assortment of 15 research centers that has a specific mandate and aims to solve a particular global issue respectively. All the 15 research centers are located in various developing
<small>10</small><i><sub>Sawyer, R.L., 1972. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. In: Technical Advisory Committee </sub></i>
<i><small>Third Meeting on International Potato Center, April 10-13, 1972, Rome, Italy. </small></i>
<small>11</small><i><sub>Asopa, V.N., 1997. Management of agricultural research: A trial manual. 1</sub></i><small>st ed., FAO. </small>
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nations and are funded via CGIAR. CIP is one the 15 CGIAR research centers, and it has an umbilical cord relationship with CGIAR. CIP focuses its international and regional research on potatoes and sweet potatoes while also collaborating with other research centers in programs that
<i>requires multi-disciplinary effort. Figure 3 below clearly depicts the structural position of CIP in </i>
the CGIAR ecosystem and various international agricultural research centers under it.
Figure 3: CIP’s Structural Position in the CGIAR Ecosystem
<b>2.2 Organizational Structure of CIP </b>
CIP is an international research center of CGIAR. Its mission is to address the pressing issues of food shortage, while researching on potatoes and sweet potatoes. In order to implement its mission, CIP receives an adequate amount of resources and scientists. Following the policy of CGIAR, it incorporates an effective project management system through interdisciplinary teamwork and a robust client network. Some of CIP’s features as a CGIAR research center are as follows:
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 14</span><div class="page_container" data-page="14">• Autonomous center • Network driven
• Located in an ecological zone appropriate to its mandate of focus on potatoes (present in 27 developing countries across 3 continents)
• Guaranteed core-funding
• Competent international scientific staff
Figure 4: Organizational Structure of CIP
Legally in host countries (in this case, Hanoi, Vietnam), CIP has an autonomous status, similar to qasi-diplomatic status. CIP has a Director-General (DG) – Ms. Barbara Wells as the head of the center, while the board of trustees act as the highest governing body. The board of trustees consists of people representing developing nations, CGIAR sponsors, and members of host countries. The board elects the Director General and also supports the appointment of the DG as the member of the board of trustees. Each member has an appointment for 2-3 years and that
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suggests the continuous replacement of the board.<small>12</small> Director General’s responsibilities are divided into two major parts: Management and Scientific Research. There is a third peripheral part in the form of External Relations that also falls under the responsibilities of the DG. Most of the primary activities of External Relations include public relations and communications with the media. The center’s organization is very similar to a process-based structure to maintain an independent end-to-end flow of different operational processes. It has a clear chain of command from top to bottom as well as a cross-section of supportive services that bridges the Management division and Scientific Research division. The DG appoints a Deputy Director General (DDG)
<i>for each major bloc. See Figure 4. </i>
There are three main regional offices of CIP across three continents: Latin America (Headquarters), Sub-Saharan Africa, and Asia. Each region has a Regional Director (RD) that manages the affairs of the Center in the host country. In this case, Asia Regional director is Mr. Samrendu Mohanty. A Regional Director acts as the bridge that connects the Management and Scientific Division as it directly reports to the DDG of Management and DDG of Scientific Research simultaneously. Thus, in order to eliminate the potential barriers between two different divisions, the position of a Regional Director needs to be dynamic with the following characteristics:
• A leading scientist with management experience at a research center • A diplomat in host developing countries with local language prowess • Proficient in public relations
• Entrepreneurship with fundraising experience with the support of donors
Under the umbrella of Management, the DDG is managing over six sub-divisions that consist of Human Resource, Finance, Grants & Contracts, Information & Technology, Administration and Business Development under the leadership of the Regional Director. The Head of each sub-division directly reports to the Regional Director and are relatively independent of each sub-division. CIP in Hanoi, however, doesn't have a fully operating Grants & Contracts sub-division. Similarly, under the umbrella of Scientific Research division, there are five sub-divisions that include Genetic Resources Global Science, Genetics and Crop Improvement, Genomics,
<small>12</small><i><sub>Asopa, V.N., 1997. Management of agricultural research: A trial manual. 1</sub></i><small>st ed., FAO.</small>
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 16</span><div class="page_container" data-page="16">Integrated Crop and Systems Research and Social and Health Sciences. Each sub-division has a Scientific Leader that reports to the Regional Director directly. The Regional Director approves the research programs and scientific tests that are identified and proposed by the Scientific Leader. The Regional Director, in turn, gets the approval from the DDG of Scientific Research after conducting an in-house discussion and workshops with the board of trustees and DG who eventually green lights the research program. Only then, the scientific leader can execute the research program.
<b>2.3 Intern’s Position </b>
Figure 5: Intern’s organizational fit at CIP
The position of my internship opened in the Business Development sub-division of the
<i>Management division in the host country of Hanoi, Vietnam. See Figure 5. The Business </i>
Development dub-division comprised of two small taskforce consisting of two members respectively. Each taskforce had an independent project and one member of each taskforce acted
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as the communication channel to the Head of business Development that included weekly and monthly written and oral updates. In Hanoi, the Head of Business Development was Ms. Sampriti Baruah. My role as a member of one of the taskforce also included being the communication channel reporting to Ms. Baruah about the progress of the report on a weekly and monthly basis. Additionally, every month, there was a review meeting with the Regional Director of Asia regarding the development of the project. The research based project that I was working on concentrated on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). As a result, it demanded the participation of all the 15 CGIAR Centers and every CGIAR center had a stake in the project. The nature of the project required a lot of secondary research to do a preliminary background analysis. Additionally, it also required me to construct survey questions for primary marketing research, focus group meetings and due diligence. As a result, I conducted several field trips and end-to end interviews with officials from non-CGIAR institutions like Syngenta and top leadership officials from governmental institutions like the Ministry of
<i>Agricultural and Rural Development (MARD) as well. See Figure 6. Findings and observations </i>
from the meetings helped in filling the initial gaps to ask the right questions.
Figure 6: Intern’s interaction with other stakeholders
</div><span class="text_page_counter">Trang 18</span><div class="page_container" data-page="18"><b>CHAPTER 3: THE MISSION - ASSIGNED TASKS AND GOALS 3.1 Tasks Assigned </b>
The project that I was working on was a research based development project that focused on Climate Change, Agriculture and Food Security (CCAFS). CCAFS main aim was to secure the regional cooperation of all nations in the seed sector to form a borderless trade agreement that led to a decline in food shortage. In the Hanoi Country office of CIP, CCAFS main focus of the
<i>project was on the regional cooperation of Vietnam in the ‘Seed Without Border’ Initiative. </i>
As Business Analyst, I part of the two-membered taskforce that was specifically assigned to
<i>work on the benefits of borderless trade of food crops, climate-smart agricultural practices and services across South Asia. Some of the primary tasks involved skills like secondary research, </i>
preparing survey questions, conducting interviews of stakeholders, and data analysis. The tasks performed are as follows:
• Review, reflect & discuss the seed releasing policies of India, Bangladesh and Nepal. • Compare the benefits of 'Seeds without Borders' initiative in the regions of Bangladesh,
India & Nepal for benchmarking purposes.
• Assist the Team on fieldwork and due diligence, and find the process of varietal seed release process in India, Nepal and Bangladesh and its developments in the process. • Conduct phone interviews with Program officers from IRRI and major seed companies to
collect historic data and record the benefits and challenges of best climate-smart agricultural practices in South Asian countries.
• Review the domestic and international laws of India and Bangladesh contracts, MOUs, proposals to benchmark it for Vietnam.
<b>3.2 Links Between the Subject Matter and the Mission </b>
The aim of CCAFS is to form a worldwide borderless trade agreement that achieves food
<i>security. Many countries in Africa, Europe and South Asia are already a part of the ‘Seed Without Border’ initiative. The attractiveness of the initiative is the easy availability of quality </i>
seeds among farmers of developing and developed nations that share similar agro-climatic conditions during Climate Change. This agreement will curtail the otherwise lengthy trial and
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evaluation process from 10 to 2 years, considering the sample seeds are already tested and approved for commercial use in the neighboring host countries that share similar climatic conditions; thus, strengthening the cause for food security and increasing opportunities for better opportunities for marginalized communities. CCAFS’s mission is to get Vietnam to be a part of this initiative with the aid of CIP. In 2017, Southeast Asian countries like Bhutan, Cambodia, Sri Lanka, and Myanmar decided to be part of this agreement but Vietnam decided to stay out of this agreement. So, CIP decided to circle back and approach the MARD with a new proposal suggesting the government to be part of the agreement.
I was in a two-membered taskforce supervised by the Head of Business Development who divided the mission into a two components:
• The benefits of borderless trade of food crops, climate-smart agricultural practices and services across South Asia.
• <i>The impact and implication of Vietnam entering the ‘Seed Without Border’ initiative </i>
and facilitating the borderless trade of seeds.
I was responsible for the first component. In light of the mission, my responsibilities were to highlight the success stories and progress of other countries, especially in South Asia (India, Bangladesh and Nepal) with regard to harmonization of seeds owing to their commitment since
<i>joining Seed Without Border Imitative. My findings out would later assimilate with the second </i>
component as evidences and as recommendations to benchmark the best practices while drafting the proposal to MARD.
<b>3.3 Goals to Reach </b>
One of the main goals during my internship was to understand the significance of seed harmonization across borders. In order to achieve that goal, I had a total of ten individual deadlines to meet. Apart from my individual tasks, I was also acting as the main communication channel between my taskforce and the Head of Business Development. As a result, I had to give weekly reports of updates of our progress. There were also four monthly review meetings with Asia Regional Director regarding the progress of the project. Below is a table showing my
<i>individual action plan speeded across four months with specific tasks, goals and deadlines. See Table 2. </i>
</div>