Today, ILRI Director General Jimmy Smith expressed his great appreciation to the many people who contributed feedback and ideas for a new ILRI strategy.

Dear Colleagues

Just over a month ago I wrote asking for comments and feedback to help shape a new strategy for ILRI.

Many thanks to all of you who responded to our questions – we very much appreciate your valuable inputs.

We have now done a first summary and synthesis of a) your comments on our proposed ‘storyline’, and b) your comments on three ‘tough issues’ where we posed specific questions on adopting a value chain approach in our research, increasing our research on livestock productivity and addressing the interface of animal and human health.

We have published both of these online – Please share any further thoughts you might have!

In terms of our next steps, the ILRI Board of Trustees has asked for a final document to be ready at its November 2012 meeting. This month we are providing the Board with a progress update which will include the feedback you provided as well as our next steps.

Alongside the storyline and issues, we have been analyzing the 5-10 major driving forces we expect to shape livestock development in the next decade. We will post a synthesis of this assessment in the coming week or so – it may be of use to more people than just ILRI.

In July and August, we expect to continue the conversations by organizing several focused face to face meetings with key stakeholders in some of the places where we have a physical presence – Nairobi, Addis Ababa, Delhi, and in Southern and West Africa and Asia. We will share the key recommendations from these online.

Once again, let me express my appreciation for all the various comments and feedback – we still welcome any views you might have.

Jimmy Smith

Director General

International Livestock Research Institute