Biography:

Dr Mahmoud Solh is a Lebanese agricultural economist and genetic scientist.

Dr Solh holds a PhD in Genetics from the University of California, Davis, USA, and has an impressive record of scientific publications. He has rich experience in donor relations and fund raising, and an in-depth knowledge of needs and aspirations of the national agricultural research and development systems in the Central and West Asia and North Africa (CWANA) region and beyond. Throughout his career his activities have focused on contributing to food security, alleviating poverty, and developing sustainable agricultural systems; planning, implementation, and evaluation of agricultural research for development; capacity building and human resource development in national agricultural systems; and promoting north-south and south-south cooperation.

He is Director General of International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, ICARDA based in Aleppo, Syria. He has been associated with international agricultural research and development in the dry areas when he became a staff member of the Arid Land Agricultural Development (ALAD) Program in the Near East, the predecessor of ICARDA.

Dr Solh returned to ICARDA after serving as Director of Plant Production and Protection Division at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) for four years. Prior to that he had served ICARDA with distinction for nearly 16 years in various capacities - as Lentil Breeder, Regional Food Legume Breeder in North Africa, Regional Coordinator of the Nile Valley and Red Sea Regional Program, and Assistant Director General for International Cooperation.

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