An adventure in applied science - IRRI books - International Rice ...

Early research and training results 153in a public address, who pioneered in authorizing USAID to provide generalsupport to IRRI and CIMMYT. Although his profession was law, he understoodthoroughly the importance of agriculture in the developing countries.John A. Hannah succeeded Gaud and was entirely sympathetic to the newpolicy. Soon core support was extended by USAID to all the internationalcenters (IRRI, CIMMYT, IITA, and CIAT), and in 1973 USAID agreed toprovide up to 25% of the core budgets of all the centers that came under theCGIAR umbrella.Back in 1969, however, it took considerable time for the governmentalwheels of USAID to start turning. Even as late as 27 October 1969 at a budgetconference in New York, the USAID representative stated that the agency hadplaced $350,000 in its 1970 program designated for IRRI but that further studywas required before discussions with the Institute could take place. On 12November, back in the Philippines, I had a meeting with Thomas Niblock, thenew deputy director of the USAID Mission to the Philippines, who declaredthat USAID was ready to support IRRI’s core budget but would prefer to havethe money used for training, agricultural engineering, multiple cropping, andsoil and water studies. I agreed that the funds could be restricted to activitiesUSAID wished to support.In 1970 and 1971, IRRI’s problem with the USAID grants was a matter oftiming. There was such a lag between the time when a grant was made andwhen the money was actually received that IRRI had serious cash flowproblems during the latter part of each calendar year. For example, in December1971 I was still trying desperately to get the funds released for the last halfof the year, but without success. Thus, a short-term loan from the First NationalCity Bank became necessary.Funds from other sourcesGrants to IRRI from all other sources came to more than a million dollarsbetween 1963 and 1971. About half of that amount was accounted for by a grantfrom the Netherlands in 1971 for a cooperative project in Indonesia, with fundsto be available over a 5-year period.The first grant to IRRI from outside the Ford and Rockefeller Foundationswas from the National Science Development Board of the Philippines. InJanuary 1963, about $25,000 ( = P 103,440) was given, to be used over a 3-yearperiod to investigate the viral diseases of rice.In the 9-year period from 1963 to 1971, manufacturers of fertilizers, herbicides,insecticides, and the like, or organizations representing them, provideda total of $162,398 for IRRI projects studying the use, generically, of suchproducts as theirs. The largest grant ($10,000) was from International Mineralsand Chemical Corporation.The principal noncommercial grants (besides the one from Netherlands)were received from the National Science Foundation (Washington, D.C.) forthe description and preservation of the world’s rice germplasm; from theNational Institutes of Health (Bethesda, Maryland) for the screening of ricevarieties for amino acid content; and, in 1971, from Japan, its first contribution