Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands (ACSAD)

Overview

The Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands (ACSAD) was established in 1968 in Damascus, Syrian Arab Republic. It is a specialized organization working within the framework of the League of Arab States (LAS) aiming at unifying national efforts to develop scientific agricultural researches in the arid and semi-arid areas and exchanging information and expertise in a way that ensures benefiting from scientific advancements and transferring, developing and localizing modern agricultural techniques in order to increase agricultural production in these areas.
ACSAD’s work is supervised by a General Assembly composing of the member Arab Ministers of Agriculture and an elected Executive Council composing of seven representatives of seven Arab countries. The work is distributed among several specialized departments namely; “Lands and Water Uses”, “Water Resources”, “Animal Wealth”, “Plant Resources”, “Economy and Planning” and “Financial and Administrative Affairs”.

ACSAD conducts its researches, studies and tests at its prevailed research stations in Syria and research centers in Arab countries. It keeps linking the research and study results with their application and dissemination at the widest-range. The accumulated distinguished expertise of ACSAD, throughout its long-term march and good reputation in the Arab World, has made it a house of expertise at both; the regional and international levels.