India will host the ICAR-CGIAR Science and Partnership Week in April 2027 in New Delhi, bringing together researchers, farmers, governments, startups, and businesses from across the world to advance international agricultural cooperation. The event, co-organised by the Indian Council of Agricultural Research (ICAR) and CGIAR, will serve as a platform for exchanging scientific knowledge, technologies, and best practices in agriculture and food systems.

What the Event Will Cover

The week-long gathering will spotlight innovations already reaching farmers while identifying gaps where further research and collaboration are needed, according to an official statement. Themes expected to feature prominently include climate-resilient agriculture, digital agriculture, AgriStack, agricultural mechanisation, millets, natural farming, and sustainable agricultural practices — all areas where India has made measurable strides and can offer models for the Global South.

This follows the inaugural CGIAR Science Week, which took place in Nairobi, Kenya, in April 2025, making New Delhi the second host city in the series.

What Indian and Global Leaders Said

Dr M L Jat, Secretary, DARE and Director General, ICAR, pointed to India's agricultural transformation since the Green Revolution as evidence of what sustained international partnership can achieve. He noted that collaboration with institutions such as CIMMYT, IRRI, and ICRISAT helped India evolve from a food-deficit nation dependent on imports into a major food-producing and exporting country. Dr Jat said India's priority going forward would be to promote South-South cooperation and share its agricultural innovations with African countries and the broader Global South.

Dr Ismahane Elouafi, Executive Managing Director, CGIAR, described the upcoming event as an opportunity to celebrate decades of partnership while charting a forward-looking agenda for the next 50 years of agricultural cooperation. 'In April, we want to build on that exchange and consider together where science can do more,' she said.

Dr Himanshu Pathak, Director General, ICRISAT, said the event would showcase India's agricultural achievements and enable co-creation of solutions for emerging challenges in agriculture and food systems. 'Through CGIAR Science and Partnership Week 2027, we aim to showcase India's agricultural achievements, share our innovations with the world and learn from global advancements to co-create solutions for the emerging challenges of agriculture and food systems,' Pathak said.

India-CGIAR Partnership: Five Decades of Collaboration

CGIAR is an international agricultural research partnership comprising 15 research centres operating across more than 100 countries. Its collaboration with India through ICAR spans more than 50 years, contributing to crop improvement, natural resource management, food security, and agricultural productivity. Currently, 10 CGIAR research centres are active in India, working across crops, water, livestock, fish, nutrition, and policy.

ICAR leads one of the world's largest national agricultural research systems, giving this bilateral partnership both the institutional depth and the global reach to influence food security outcomes well beyond India's borders.

Why This Matters for Global Food Security

India's emergence as a food exporter — after decades as a net importer — offers a replicable model for countries in sub-Saharan Africa and Southeast Asia still grappling with food insecurity. Seed varieties and knowledge generated in India already support farmers in Africa and Asia, according to Dr Elouafi. The April 2027 event is positioned to deepen those knowledge corridors and align research priorities with ground-level realities across the Global South. The outcome agenda is expected to shape agricultural research investment priorities for the coming decades.