[1] It identifies, tests and introduces resource-efficient, climate-smart crops and technologies that are best suited to different regions affected by salinity, water scarcity and drought.

Through its work, ICBA aims to improve food security, nutrition and livelihoods of resource-poor farming communities around the world.

[2] It is also a member of the Middle East and North Africa Network of Water Centers of Excellence[3] and the Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI).

Subsequent consultations between the IsDB and the General Secretariat of the Gulf Cooperation Council led to the selection of the United Arab Emirates as the host country for the center.

The IsDB and the Government of the UAE, represented by the Food Security Office and the Environment Agency - Abu Dhabi, remain the core donors of the center.

ICBA established a genebank in 2000 to conserve crop diversity and is officially part of the Multilateral System of Access and Benefit-sharing of the International Treaty on Plant Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture.

ICBA’s genebank is home to one of the world’s largest collections of plant species and crop varieties that are tolerant of heat, drought and salt.

The refreshed strategy for the remaining period of 2019-2023 is mostly aligned with its predecessor but also takes into account emerging fields like genomics and controlled-environment agriculture, including vertical farming, that hold great potential for future food, nutrition and water security in marginal environments.