Ismahane Elouafi

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Dr.

Ismahane A. Elouafi
Ismahane Elouafi.jpg
Elouafi visiting a quinoa plot at ICBA
Born (1971-08-15) 15 August 1971 (age 50)
Youssoufia, Morocco
NationalityCanada/Morocco
Alma materHassan II Agronomy and Veterinary Institute (Morocco), Cordoba University (Spain)
TitleChief Scientist of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations in Rome, Italy
Term2020–present
Board member ofInternational Food Policy Research Institute; CABI

Ismahane Elouafi (Arabic: أسمهان الوافي) is Chief Scientist of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Ranked among the 20 most influential women in science in the Islamic world, she is internationally known for her work on promoting neglected and underutilized crops, use of non-fresh water in agriculture, and empowerment of women in science.[1][2]

She has nearly two decades of experience in agricultural research and development in Asia, Africa and the Middle East. She led the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA), based in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, from 2012 until 2020.

Education[]

Initially, Elouafi trained at the Aviation High School in Morocco to be one of the country's first female fighter pilots. However, the plan to have women piloting the nations fighter planes was shelved and she had to choose on a new career.[3]

Elouafi went on to attend the Hassan II Institute of Agronomy and Veterinary Medicine, Morocco, where she earned a B.Sc. in Agricultural Sciences in 1993 and an M.Sc. in Genetics & Plant Breeding in 1995. In 2001, she received a Ph.D. in Genetics from the University of Cordoba, Spain.[4]

Career[]

In 2006–2007, Elouafi served as Senior Adviser to the Assistant Deputy Minister, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) Research Branch in Ottawa, Canada, where she led the development of a new peer-review-based internal process for AAFC research.

In May 2007, she joined the Canadian Food Inspection Agency as the National Manager of Plant Research Section. In 2010, she was promoted to Director of Research Management and Partnerships Division at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and developed novel partnership models with Genome Canada, scientific departments in Canada and the private sector.

In 2012, Elouafi was appointed Director General of ICBA, where she has overseen the development of the center's strategy for 2013-2023.[5]

In her 2019 role, she initiated a flagship program to empower Arab women scientists working in agricultural research and development called Awla, which is supported by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Islamic Development Bank and CGIAR Research Program on Wheat.[6]

In 2020, Elouafi became Chief Scientist at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), a new position created within FAO’s core leadership structure. Her appointment was announced by FAO Director-General QU Dongyu at the 35th FAO Regional Conference for the Near East in September 2020.[7]

Elouafi sits on the boards of the International Food Policy Research Institute and the Centre for Agriculture and Biosciences International (CABI).[8][9]

She has also been a member of strategy experts panels of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) since September 2020,[10] and the .

Previously, she had also worked as a scientist with several international research organizations, including the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), (JIRCAS), and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT).[11]

Awards[]

Elouafi is a recipient of several prestigious awards and accolades, including the National Reward Medal by His Majesty Mohamed VI, the King of Morocco (2014),[12] and the Excellence in Science Award from the Global Thinkers Forum (2014).[13]

In 2014, Muslim Science ranked her among the 20 Most Influential Women in Science in the Islamic World under the Shapers Category.[14]

In 2014–2016, CEO-Middle East Magazine listed Dr. Elouafi among the World's 100 Most Powerful Arab Women in Science.[15]

In 2016, she won the prestigious Arab Women of the Year Award by the London Arabia Organisation for Achievements in Science.[16]

Personal life[]

She has two daughters and is a dual national of Canada and Morocco.[17] She is fluent in English, French, Spanish and Arabic.

References[]

  1. ^ Arbaoui, Larbi (2014-02-01). "Moroccan among top- 20 most influential women scientist in Islamic World". Morocco World News. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  2. ^ "Helping women in research navigate career challenges : House of Wisdom". blogs.nature.com. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  3. ^ "Moroccan scientist hunts for resilient plants to feed a warming Middle East". Reuters. 2019-11-20. Retrieved 2020-07-03.
  4. ^ "Quantitative trait loci (QTL) determination of grain quality traits in durum wheat (Triticum turgidum L. Var. Durum)". Helvia-UCO. 2003. Retrieved 2020-10-11.
  5. ^ "ICBA Board Meeting: Approves ICBA 2013-2023 Strategy". International Center for Biosaline Agriculture. 2015-04-05. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  6. ^ "Arab Women Leaders in Agriculture (Awla) fellowship program opens call for applications". International Center for Biosaline Agriculture. 2019-03-07. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  7. ^ "FAO Leadership: Ismahane Elouafi, Chief Scientist". www.fao.org. Retrieved 2021-01-18.
  8. ^ "IFPRI Board of Trustees". www.ifpri.org. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  9. ^ "Dr Ismahane Elouafi welcomed to new post on CABI Board". www.cabi.org. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  10. ^ "FAO Appoints Morocco's Ismahane Elouafi as First Ever Chief Scientist". Morocco World News. 22 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Dr. Ismahane Elouafi". International Center for Biosaline Agriculture. 2018-12-09. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
  12. ^ ICBA - ag4tomorrow (2015-01-11), IE National Award Morocco, retrieved 2019-04-07
  13. ^ "Dr. Ismahane Elouafi". Global Thinkers Forum. Retrieved 2019-04-15.
  14. ^ Arbaoui, Larbi (2014-02-01). "Moroccan among top- 20 most influential women scientist in Islamic World". Morocco World News. Retrieved 2019-04-07.
  15. ^ "The World's 100 Most Powerful Arab Women". ArabianBusiness.com. Retrieved 2019-04-07.
  16. ^ "Arab Women Awards". londonarabia. Retrieved 2019-04-07.
  17. ^ SciDev.Net. "Ismahane Elouafi, agriculture pioneer by chance". SciDev.Net. Retrieved 2019-07-21.
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