GRiSP announces new director

Bas Bouman, new director of GRiSP.

 
Bas Bouman, currently head of IRRI’s Crop and Environmental Sciences Division, has been named director of the Global Rice Science Partnership (GRiSP)—the CGIAR research program for rice—effective 1 September 2012.

GRiSP aligns the rice research activities of IRRI, AfricaRice, and CIAT, as well as the French international research institutes IRD and CIRAD and the Japan International Research Center for Agricultural Sciences (JIRCAS), and brings together more than 900 other international and national research and development partners to focus on innovative integrated solutions to improve rice-based production systems and their value chains.

In his new role, Bas will provide strategic guidance, develop effective implementation mechanisms, and build outstanding teams to implement the GRiSP strategy and work plan. He will be based in Los Baños.

Bas was selected through an open, competitive recruitment process that included an extensive global search over many months. To his new role, Bas will bring a strong background in agricultural research for development, a proven record of strategic thinking and research leadership, and demonstrated experience in managing interdisciplinary teams and large research programs.

Achim Dobermann had led the development of GRiSP and has held the challenging role of GRiSP director, in addition to being IRRI's deputy director general for research, since GRiSP was launched in November 2010. Achim will support Bas in the transition to his new role.

“I join all GRiSP participants and stakeholders in wishing Bas great success in his new role and look forward to his continued contributions,” said IRRI’s director general, Robert Zeigler. “I know he can look to all of us for support in making the vision of GRiSP become reality.”