VFRC’s Governing & Operating
Structure
VFRC Board of Advisors
While VFRC legally operates as an initiative of IFDC and is ultimately
the fiduciary responsibility of the Board of Directors (BoD) of IFDC,
it operates with significant autonomy with its own Charter with the
legal force of the IFDC Bylaw and its own Board of Advisors (BoA)
established in May 2010.
A small core staff, led by the Executive Director, is located in
Washington, D.C., to coordinate and monitor the VFRC’s activities
and ensure high scientific quality of its publications. Administrative
support in financial matters, human resource management and
communication is provided by the facilitating units of IFDC. The
Executive Director reports to the President and CEO of IFDC and is
responsible for the day-to-day operations of the VFRC and overall
program and project management.
The VFRC generates its own funding, distinct from IFDC, but legally
reflected in IFDC’s accounts, to cover the VFRC operating budget and
for project grants. Funding for the initial period of five years has been
provided primarily by USAID, supplemented by core funding of IFDC,
contributions of partner institutions in research project, operational
expenses by various sources and funds from research foundations.
Dr. Roelof (Rudy) Rabbinge*
Chair, Science Council of the Consultative Group
on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR)
University Professor, Dean of Wageningen
Graduate Schools
The Netherlands
Dr. Jimmy G. Cheek
Chancellor,
The University of Tennessee
527 Andy Holt Tower
Knoxville, Tennessee, USA
Mr. Peter McPherson
President,
Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities
(APLU)
Washington, D.C., USA
Dr. Frank A. Franklin*
University of Alabama - Birmingham
Birmingham, Alabama, USA
Dr. Fusuo Zhang*
Professor, College of Resources and
Environmental Sciences
China Agricultural University
CHINA
Mr. Satish Chander*
Director General,
The Fertiliser Association of India
New Delhi, INDIA
Dr. Melissa D. Ho
Bureau for Food Security
U.S. Agency for International Development
(USAID)
Washington D.C., USA
Dr. Marco Ferroni*
Executive Director,
Syngenta Foundation for Sustainable Agriculture
Basil, Switzerland
Hon. Ruth Oniang’o
Founder & Chair Board of Trustees, Rural
Outreach Program
Chairperson, Sasakawa Africa Association (SAA)
Nairobi, Kenya
Dr. Juergen Voegele
Director,
Agricultural and Rural Development Department
The World Bank, Washington D.C., USA
Dr. J. Scott Angle
CEO and President of IFDC
Muscle Shoals, Alabama, USA
Dr. Cheng-i-Wei*
Professor, Dean & Director Agricultural
Experiment Station. College of Agriculture &
Natural Resources
University of Maryland
*Appearing on photograph (Weifeng Zhang for Fusuo Zhang and Amit Roy for Scott Angle)
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