Board of Trustees
IRRI's Board of Trustees (BOT) sets IRRI policy. Its 15 members are world leaders in their respective disciplines. Three are ex officio: the Philippine secretary of agriculture, the president of the University of the Philippines system, and the IRRI director general. The board meets twice a year (April and October) to review IRRI's research priorities and its allocation of resources and to set the Institute's scientific directions, policies, and strategies. The Director General is responsible for carrying out these policies. Dr. Emerlinda R. Roman is the current chair of the BOT.
Made history not only as University of the Philippines (UP)’s Centennial President but also as its first woman president. Aside from having been Chancellor of the UP Diliman campus from 1991 to 1993 and from 1999 to 2004, Dr. Roman’s experience in university administration includes former positions as vice chancellor for administration, secretary of the university and of the Board of Regents, vice-president for administration, and member of the Board of Regents representing the faculty.
She has 30 years of experience in tropical agricultural R&D, including 15 years of experience in CGIAR centers — as Plant Pathologist for the Tropical Pastures Program, CIAT, Colombia and as Director of the Crop Protection Division and Deputy Director General-Research of ICRISAT, India.
A Eugene W. Price Distinguished Professor in the Department of Agronomy and Horticulture at the University of Nebraska. He earned degrees from Harvard University in biochemical sciences, and from Purdue University in plant breeding and genetics.
Since July 2008, he has been Chairman of the Board of Directors of CropLife International, the global federation that represents the plant science industry.
President of the Society for the Techno-innovation of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (STAFF). STAFF is a nongovernment organization established in 1989 to promote and coordinate R&D for advanced technology that has potential for techno-innovation for agriculture-related industries.
A professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology, Makerere University, in Kampala, Uganda. She received her M.S. in food science and technology from the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, and her Ph.D. in food science and nutrition from the University of Reading in the United Kingdom.
Former Director General of the National Institute of Crop Science (NICS), Rural Development Administration (RDA), Suwon, South Korea. He now serves as consultant to various projects of the Korean government and is lecturing on plant physiology and experimental statistics at Dankook University.
Secretary to the National Advisory Council (NAC) of the Government of India. Since 1974, Dr. Sharma has worked at various levels of government in India in agricultural development, food security, poverty alleviation, rural livelihood strategies, natural resource management, gender issues, and financial management.
Director General of the Indonesian Agency for Food Security, Ministry of Agriculture. Before he assumed this job, he worked for various institutions within the Ministry of Agriculture. He was Director General of the Indonesian Agency for Agricultural Research and Development (2004-2008), the Interim Director General of Food Crops (2005-2006) and Director General of the Agency for Food Security (2000-2004).
Current Chair of several companies and institutions in Bangladesh, including BOC Bangladesh Ltd., a subsidiary company of the BOC Group in the United Kingdom; Bangladesh Rice Foundation; Bangladesh Chapter of the Policy Analysis Network for South Asia (PANSA); and the Credit Rating Agency of Bangladesh.
The Chief Technology Officer at Maharashtra Hybrid Seed Company Limited (MAHYCO), India. She is responsible for research on plant biotechnology; technology transfer to farmers; and the use of new technologies and tools, including biotechnology, to improve the quality and productivity of seeds and agriculture.
President of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS) and Former President of Nanjing Agricultural University (NAU). He was instrumental in the organizational design and reform of both institutions. His major contributions are in the areas of quantitative genetics and crop breeding research, gene location and genetics research on hybrid rice, capacity building for crop breeding programs, and science innovation.
Internationally respected plant pathologist with more than 30 years of experience in agricultural research in the developing world. Dr. Robert Stewart Zeigler became Director General of the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) in 2005.
Prior to his appointment as secretary of agriculture, Mr. Alcala was a member of the House of Representatives of the Philippine Congress representing the 2nd District of Quezon Province.
An accomplished finance professional who made significant contributions to progress in the Asia-Pacific region as an international development banker and educator. Working in the Asian Development Bank for 19 years until 2008, he pursued pioneering projects and institution-building initiatives that helped the bank respond to the emerging financing needs of the region and catalyze investments in the region’s developing economies, particularly in the infrastructure and financial sectors.
