Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10)

Location: Guadalajara, Mexico
Dates: 1 - 4 March 2010

Agricultural Biotechnologies in Developing Countries (ABDC-10) took place in Guadalajara, Mexico from 1 to 4 March 2010. A major objective of the Conference was to take stock of the application of biotechnologies across the different food and agricultural sectors in developing countries, in order to learn from the past and to identify options for the future to face the challenges of food insecurity, climate change and natural resource degradation.

Read the Conference Report.

ABDC-10 was hosted by the Government of Mexico and co-sponsored by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD). The Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR), the Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR), the International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB) and the World Bank were major partners in this initiative.

The Conference was dedicated to “agricultural biotechnologies”, a term covering a broad range of biotechnologies used in food and agriculture for a variety of different purposes such as the improvement of plant varieties and animal populations to increase their yields or efficiency; characterization and conservation of genetic resources; plant or animal disease diagnosis; vaccine development; and improvement of feeds and the safety of foods. The Conference was cross-sectoral, covering crops, livestock, forestry, agro-industry and fisheries and aquaculture.

During the Conference, 22 different organizations, including international and national research institutions, intergovernmental and non-governmental organizations, also participated in the 'Knowledge Share Fair' (read its report) to promote good knowledge sharing practices in the field of agricultural biotechnologies.

To provide any comments or feedback, send a message to ABDC@fao.org