At their meeting in June 2017, the GFAR Steering Committee appointed Ms. Bongiwe N. Njobe from South Africa as Chair of GFAR. She is joined by Mr. Raffaele Maria Maiorano from Italy as Vice-Chair. At the start of their term, we took the opportunity to ask the new Chair and Vice-Chair their thoughts about GFAR’s work and their vision for the future of our Global Forum.
Ms. Njobe and Mr. Maiorano addressed the following questions during the interview:
- What is GFAR’s value in bringing the right knowledge and innovations to farmers and producers?
- How can involvement in GFAR give farmers and farmers’ organizations more opportunities to be heard?
- How can we use the experience and knowledge gained from farmers to develop a strategy for action?
- How do you see the future of GFAR and your role in shaping it?
More information and bios of the Chair and Vice-Chair can be found in the appointment announcement here. Ms. Njobe and Mr. Maiorano take on the roles previously held by Dr. Juan Lucas Restrepo and the Honourable Professor Ruth Oniang’o.
“GFAR is unique because of its agility, its ability to discuss and get things done.”
– Bongiwe N. Njobe, GFAR Chair
“GFAR is the perfect link between all the players [in agricultural research and innovation].”
– Raffaele Maria Maiorano, GFAR Vice-Chair
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