Another learning session was successfully implemented to support the DeSIRA projects’ understanding of the complexities of Agriculture Innovation Systems (AIS) in their specific contexts.
The module “Identifying your (potential) contributions to AIS strengthening and related challenges” was the first one in a series of activities of the course “Conducting Action-Research for strengthening Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS): Successes and challenges of DeSIRA projects”, implemented by DeSIRA LIFT SA1.
Two sessions were carried out on March 21st with the aim to provide for lively interactions between English speakers in the first session and French and Spanish speakers in the second session.
During these intense two-hour discussions, 73 professionals from DeSIRA projects shared their significant contributions to improve AIS, as well as the challenges they face at the niche level when working with service providers, and in their endeavors to influence policy.
To introduce the topic, Aurelie Toilier, DeSIRA LIFT´s project leader, indicated that the purpose of AIS thinking is to approach innovation from a systemic perspective by paying attention to the way in which innovation emerges from complex interactions between a wide range of actors in particular conditions.
The project’s representatives remarked on their activities to increase farmers’ capacities to deal with the challenges they face at the niche level. Thus, several projects provide training to farmers and their organizations (IRFFS in Liberia, ESSA in Ethiopia and Kenya, InACC in Nigeria, ABRIGUE in Colombia, TRANSFORMA-INNOVA in Costa Rica) and to the extension services (IRFFS). ABRIGUE and ESSA carry out participatory research, and Malawi DeSIRA is developing and deploying climate-smart agriculture technologies.
To the same extent, the projects are aware of the need for flexibility in their tasks and the roles they perform: researchers will need to step outside of their area and respond to concrete problems in the niches; agricultural advisory service providers have to switch from extending research outputs to users and to facilitate collaborations among multi-stakeholder partners. These changing roles require a set of new skills to navigate the complexity of AIS.
All projects seemed to agree that connecting with development actors, including NGOs, is a must in order to better understand and respond to realities regarding how innovation and change occur. For this purpose, several projects are setting-up multi-stakeholder innovation facilities, such as Living Labs, innovation platforms and innovation poles, such as the projects Santés&Territoires (in Laos, Cambodia and Benin), Malawi, and INV-Niger. Various initiatives work in non-formalized multistakeholder processes (GRAPE in Nepal, FO4RI, ABRIGUE), while others are facilitating dialog among AIS actors (InACC, ABRIGUE). Also, several projects indicated that they have sought specific partnerships through contractual arrangements of the involvement of private sector providers to facilitate support to farmers for acquiring inputs such as seeds and small machinery.
Several challenges at the managerial level were highlighted. For example, the project ABRIGUE, indicated the need for methodologies and tools to promote the exchanges to better incorporate diverse local knowledge. Also, FO4RI, a global project with 13 subprojects working in very dissimilar conditions, stressed the necessity to work more effectively to strengthen capacities for agroecological transition. Several projects are promoting dialogue among AIS stakeholders (ABRIGUE, TRANSFORMA-INNOVA) in an attempt to help coordinate the many interventions that frequently occur in the territories, which often have similar objectives but are disconnected.
There were also multiple action points pointed out during the webinar, for example: using communication about AIS thinking and the development and dissemination of AIS-related knowledge products to enhance the embracement and implementation of AIS thinking in the future.
Finally, several of these topics will be further discussed during the upcoming modules:
- Module 2: Acting at the innovation niche level (28th of March)
- Module 3: Acting at the level of innovation support services (4th of April)
- Module 4: Acting at the level of institutional and policy environments of innovation (20th of April)
- Module 5: Conclusion and joint reflection on action research strategies to strengthen AIS in the DeSIRA Initiative (TBD)
For more information and registration to these modules, please see here
For more information: community@desiralift.org
Please see the PowerPoint presentations from the session below
Conducting Action-Research interventions for strengthening national Agricultural Innovation Systems: successes and challenges in DeSIRA projects. INTRODUCTORY MODULE –French/Spanish-speaking session
Image 1: Screenshot Spanish group discussion, photo Ricardo Ramirez