FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (1/7/05)

Contact Information:
Tony Wagner, ALO
Tel: 202-478-4704
E-mail: wagnera@aascu.org

ALO AWARDS THREE NEW PARTNERSHIPS TOTALING $3.4 MILLION
Partnership to Strengthen Agriculture in Southern Africa

Washington, DC (January 7, 2005) – The Association Liaison Office for University Cooperation in Development (ALO), in cooperation with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID)/Regional Center for Southern Africa, has awarded three partnership awards totaling more than $3.4 million to Oregon State University, Iowa State University and Rutgers University.

The partnerships are intended to strengthen agronomic research, technology transfer, macro and micro-economic policy dialogue, and advocacy and entrepreneurship necessary to address poverty and hunger reduction in Southern Africa:

• Oregon State University, Washington State University, Michigan State University, Pennsylvania State University, and Tennessee State University will work to create a consortium of U.S. and African universities and other partners to improve rural livelihoods through applied agricultural research and appropriate technology development and transfer (award $2.2 million).

• Iowa State University, the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, the Southern Africa Development Community Seed Security Network, and other partners will conduct economic research and agriculture policy harmonization by examining existing investments, new approaches, and current programs towards increasing the availability of new seed technologies, stimulating market development, enhancing seed availability, and building a framework for a sustainable seed sector (award $669,965).

• Rutgers University and the University of Zambia, along with other key partners, including the University of Stellenbosch, are collaborating in a germplasm development partnership to assess the status of genetic materials available to growers and researchers in Southern Africa for specialty and non-traditional crops (award $550,000).

ALO, established in 1992, assists the nation's six major higher education associations build their partnership with USAID and help their member institutions foster cooperative development partnerships with colleges and universities abroad. Uniquely positioned to promote the involvement of U.S. higher education in global development, ALO seeks to encourage international partnerships to address development goals. For more information about ALO, please visit: http://www.aascu.org/alo.

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