By Suresh Chandra Babu, Irene Annor Frempong, and Kwadwo Asenso-Okyere.
Presented at the ASTI-FARA conference Agricultural R&D: Investing in Africa's Future: Analyzing Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities - Accra, Ghana on December 5-7, 2011. http://www.asti.cgiar.org/2011conf
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Enhancing Capacity for African Agricultural Research: Conceptual Framework, Models, and Lessons
1. Enhancing Capacity for African Agricultural Research: Selected Models and Lessons Agricultural R&D—Investing in Africa’s Future: Analyzing Trends, Challenges, and Opportunities Accra, Ghana December 5-7, 2011
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6. CAADP’s mutually reinforcing pillars/themes FARA is the lead institution for Pillar IV Agricultural Research Technology Dissemination & Adoption, and Capacity Strengthening 1 Increasing food supply and reducing hunger 1 2 3 4
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10. Model for integration of research, extension, education and training under CAADP Pillar IV African Union AUC & AU-NPCA CAADP Increasing scale of domestic investments in agric. Productivity (African Govts) Aligned and coordinated support (Development Partners) Enhanced African Agricultural Innovation Capacity Improved productivity, competitiveness and markets GFAR, GFRAS GCHERA Research SROs, NARS, CGIAR Farmer empowerment PAFFO, PanAAC PANGOC Education RUFORUM, ANAFE REESAO, AAU Extension AFAAS Networking Support FAAP FARA Evolution and Reform of agric. institutions
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20. Thank you for the attention www.fara-africa.org
21. Selected Indicators of Capacity Development in the Context of CAADP Process Selected Process Indicators / Programs ACCI CMAAE SCARDA Demand Driven The program was developed as a result of high need felt by the African agricultural research community The program emerged from several levels of regional consultations The program is a result an expressed need from the stakeholders of FARA through various consultations Needs Assessment The needs assessment revealed the critical need for breeders who could do adaptive research in various African crops. Needs assessment revealed the strengths and weaknesses of various faculties and how to bring the existing capacities together for generating quality capacity The needs assessment indicated the need of application of subsidiarity principles and for strengthening the institutional capacity in addition to individual capacity Capacity Delivery Mechanism Combined both the teaching and rigorous training by the University of Kwazulu-Natal and the practical training through mentors in the local institutions. This helps to address local problems and made the capacity develop highly relevant for the participants’ country Effectively used the African capacity although additional external support was sought to fill the gaps in teaching. The shared facility approach was efficient in increasing the quality of the program jointly. SCARDA’s approach to capacity development focused on strengthening the whole organization giving emphasis on filling the gaps in the skills of the individuals. This is in line with the CAADP process needs for capacity development
22. Selected Indicators of Capacity Development in the Context of CAADP Process Selected Process Indicators / Programs ACCI CMAAE SCARDA Contextualization of the capacity for local needs ACCI participants applied their knowledge to solving problems they faced in their own countries While the theoretical training was common to all the graduates in the applied areas of the program, the participants applied their skills to address the socio-economic problems of their countries Capacity developed under SCARDA was meant to directly influence the organization and management of the research organizations. Such contextualized approach helped to give individual attention to the participating organizations Ensuring utilization of capacity by local organizations The participants came from the research institutions in various countries who went back to their jobs for conducting Thesis research. Thus the capacity developed was used effectively by host institutions. While the capacity developed is of high quality, due to high demand for the applied economics capacity, the graduates have found placements that contribute to the agricultural development process in their countries. SCARDA strengthened the existing capacity without any adverse effect on capacity loss for the organizations. Mutual Learning and Sharing of Knowledge Sharing of knowledge on problems and solutions were facilitated by bringing students to Kwazulu-Natal for common training in methods of plant breeding The Shared facility approach brought students from various participating countries for specific learning goals. This helped in mutual learning among the participants. SCARDA programs provided adequate opportunities for mutual learning. Funding and Sustainability Depends on donor funding to support participation of the international students. Continues to depend on external sources of funding, although recently several self-sponsoring students and government sponsored student have joined the program Uncertainty in funding and the dependency on external resources for program implementation remain challenges for long term planning
Editor's Notes
The CAADP process is driven by the implementation of four strategic pillars (CAADP, 2008). These are: Extending the area under sustainable land management and reliable water control systems (Pillar I); Improving rural infrastructure and trade-related capacities for improved market access (Pillar II); Increasing food supply and reducing hunger (Pillar III); and Agricultural research, technology dissemination and adoption (Pillar IV).
Pillar IV develops a common framework for action to increase agric productivity and supports the mainstreaming of the actions. It also supports the mobilization of the resources (knowledge, funding, partnerships and expertise) & advocacy for policies required to implement these actions effectively. The framework articulates strategic issues, success factors, best practices and policy orientations Pillar IV outputs feed into the pre-compact and post-compact processes. This is the entry point for their impact. In the diagram, commitment is by all actors but especially the policy/political ones.
The productivity referred to here is Total Factor Productivity—covering land productivity, labour productivity and profitability. Thus productivity is not reliant on production efficiency alone but on other factors such as access to productive resources (land & water), infrastructure, well functioning markets, etc— issues that are programmed in other CAADP pillars. Similarly, other pillars rely on pillar IV for inputs regarding research, extension & education. Hence the pillars are mutually reinforcing.
These elements are in line with the CAADP Pillar IV agenda outlined in preceding slides.
For the University of Kwazulu-Natal program, while the university leads the program, it works with the national research institutions in eastern and southern Africa region to bring in young researchers to work with experienced plant breeders towards a Ph.D. degree. The students are supported by the Alliance for Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA). The ACCI currently trains plant breeders from 10 countries in east and southern Africa - South Africa, Mozambique, Malawi, Zambia, Tanzania, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia and Rwanda. The ACCI predicts that a total of 440 breeders are currently needed for crop improvement research of 11 crops in the east and southern Africa region. Yet with the completion of the program by the current cohort of participants ACCI would have trained only 84 breeders. Although other PhD programs in breeding such as the one run by RUFORUM and the MS level programs in Makerere (Uganda), Sokoine (Tanzania), and Eduardo Mondlane (Mozambique), will add to this number, the demand for breeders in the region far exceeds the current supply.
In order to strengthen the policy analysis capacity and the capacity for agricultural economics and farm management issues, the Collaborative Master’s Program in Agriculture and Applied Economics (CMAAE) was established in 2000. It is a network of 16 faculties of agricultural economics and agribusiness in 16 universities in eastern, central, and southern Africa. The major objective of CMAAE is to bring together specialized capacities of the regional universities that are scattered in various departments and faculties to collectively create future capacity for agricultural economics and policy research. The three specific objectives of the program include: produce high quality M.Sc. agricultural and applied economics graduates; upgrade the teaching and research capacity of departments currently in the program and initiate planning for a system to scale out the program to other regions of Sub-Saharan Africa; and strengthen a continental research network to promote agricultural development