This text is an English translation of the blog originally published in French on the website of SUSTLIVES
As part of the SUSTLIVES project (https://www.sustlives.eu), Joseph KI-ZERBO University is continuing its training program on neglected and underutilized species and organized a workshop from February 22 to 24. training on (co)research, popularization and farmer knowledge. Over three days, several training modules were covered by researchers (INERA, IRSAT), teacher-researchers (UJKZ), project managers (FIDA-Niger, ICRISAT-Mali), heads of extension structures (Ministry of charge of agriculture-BF). Around thirty participants benefited from this training, that is to say producers of the project’s target species (sweet potato, fabirama, moringa, amaranth, bissap and voandzou), processors, teacher-researchers, researchers, students, extension workers, leaders of NGOs and farmers’ organizations, etc.
The Joseph Ki-Zerbo University (Burkina Faso), the Abdou Moumouni University (Niger), the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation, the International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies (Italy), the Bioversity International-CIAT Alliance (Italy, Kenya) and Afrique Verte (Burkina) were also present at this workshop as members of the SUSTLIVES project.
During the last day of the workshop, practical co-research work was organized with all the participants, including participatory selections of voandzou varieties. The workshop ended with the presentation of certificates to the participants who thanked the project for this “very enriching” training on a “very relevant” theme which invites us to change paradigm to move from Top-down type research. in a search for co-constructions with all the stakeholders.