Session Title: Dialogue on Research to Support Agricultural Transformation in Francophone Countries of West and Central Africa

Transcription

1 SESSION BRIEFS - MONDAY, 4 TH SEPTEMBER 2017 Session Title: Dialogue on Research to Support Agricultural Transformation in Francophone Countries of West and Central Africa Time/ Duration: IDRC 09:00hrs- 17:00hrs Research and innovation are one of the key drivers of accelerating Africa s agricultural transformation. IDRC, CIRAD, and CORAF have supported national agricultural research institutions, universities, CGIAR centers, NGOs capacity in implementing agricultural research projects covering a wide range of thematic areas such as sustainable intensification, post-harvest technologies, financial services and scaling up of innovation, climate change adaptation, women and youth in agribusiness, ICTs for delivering extension services and achieving impact at scale among others. IDRC, CIRAD, and CORAF also support national agricultural research institutions and universities capacity to deliver graduate training in West and Central Africa. Further, they contribute to building centers of excellence in the region and enhancing the retention of expert Francophone researchers and scholars in the region. The purpose of the side event is to share research results, innovations and development outcomes arising from the IDRC, CIRAD, CORAF, AUF and other partners activities for future scale up and uptake and to inform policies. Why agricultural research systems in most francophone countries are currently characterized by low capacity and low efficiency Which kind of research for development is required to rapidly transform the lives of farmers at a large scale Who to strengthen institutions and take advantage of emerging opportunities in the global agriculture and food security research agenda. Outcome Desired: The expected outcome is the development of a strategic partnership framework between IDRC, the Centre de Coopération Internationale en Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement (CIRAD), Conseil Ouest et Centre Afric-ain pour la recherche et le développement agricoles (CORAF/WECARD), Agence 1

2 Universitaire de la Fancophonie (AUF) and others key stakeholders for strengthening agriculture and food security research in Francophone West and Central Africa. Session Title: Science-driven Balanced Fertilizer Recommendations for Smallholder Farms in Africa YARA and African Fertilizer and Agribusiness Partnership (AFAP) Time/ Duration: 8:00am 4:00pm Over the past decade there have been growing investments by the public, private and development sectors to improve access to affordable inputs by smallholder farmers in sub-saharan Africa (SSA) as part of a broader agricultural transformation process. Preceded by many decades of low and stagnant crop yields, notable improvements in crop productivity associated with positive trends in fertilizer use, among other factors, have been observed in many regions on the continent in the past 10 years. Despite the progress in addressing the constraints to access of fertilizers, major gaps exist on the development of fertilizer recommendations that are appropriate for the complex and highly variable soil, climatic and crop production conditions to support the Uniquely African Green Revolution. There is therefore an urgent need for coordinated and systematic research and development efforts to gain insights into balanced crop nutrition and develop cost-effective improved fertilizer recommendations in parallel with other interventions needed to build fertilizer demand, such as, infrastructural development, access to finance, quality control, and output market access. Significant gaps in the current fertilizer research and development process include inconsistent and fragmented methodologies and approaches for developing fertilizer recommendations, including soil testing and mapping, crop fertilizer response trials and interpretation of geo-spatial information at relevant scales. This has often led to duplication of research efforts and conflicting information extended to important stakeholders including the fertilizer industry, policy makers and farmers. Programs to develop fertilizer recommendations are often implemented ineffectively due to lack of soils information and insufficient crop response data. Other limitations are associated with poor understating of the linkage between research and commercial realties of the fertilizer industry and farmers. This workshop will bring together key stakeholders in fertilizer research in SSA to review the status and weaknesses of the current fertilizer recommendations development process and identify actionable outputs for consolidating research, information gathering and data management processes. The workshop will also establish the groundwork for a collaborative program to develop fertilizer 2

3 recommendations targeted at regions where other investments are being made to enhance impact. i. Review the status of current fertilizer management recommendations and research approaches as assess their effectiveness in providing effective fertilizer recommendation and their relevance to support investment decisions by public, private and development sectors. ii. Examine advances in soil and crop area mapping and field-scale diagnostic technologies for delivery of site-specific fertilizer recommendations in smallholder farming systems. iii. Initiate the process to establish a unified and impartial network for providing regional leadership on fertilizer recommendations, development of an independent knowledge base and communication of scientific evidence for guiding donor and government investments in fertilizer research and development. iv. Identify collaboration opportunities for leveraging R&D investments and farmer outreach efforts by the private and public sectors and development agencies for the development and delivery of agronomic and nutrient management solutions. How to develop methodologies and approaches for developing fertilizer recommendations, including soil testing and mapping, crop fertilizer response trials and interpretation of geo-spatial information at relevant scales. Outcome Desired: The establishment of a collaborative program to develop fertilizer recommendations targeted at regions where other investments are being made to enhance impact. Session Title: Youth Leveraging Agricultural Research, Technology and Innovation to Grow Agribusinesses AfDB, AWARD, SACAU Time/ Duration: 16:00-17:30 Venue: African Development Bank HQ Auditorium, Abidjan To unlock its demographic dividend the continent must come to terms with three distinct realities that are often not considered in concert: 1. There can be no economic growth without actively engaging youth; two out of three Africans are under 25 years of age with 44% of the population under the age of 15. There is no African future without unlocking these young people s potential. 3

4 2. Agriculture is critical to economic transformation of the continent; agriculture accounts for 25 percent of the continent s GDP, and 70 percent of employment. There can be no economic transformation for the continent without a vibrant agricultural sector. 3. Without concerted effort, ongoing attempts to increase the productivity of African agriculture risk exacerbating already existing gender inequality and leaving African women worse off. Africa cannot afford economic growth at the expense of the 99%. 4. Young Africans are at the forefront of the technology revolution on the continent. Youth are setting the trends that will determine the continent s future. Between these facts is the undeniable reality that effectively engaging youth in agribusiness is key to unlocking inclusive, agriculture-driven prosperity for the continent and that technology and innovation trends mark the way forward. Despite this reality, the voices of African youth remain underrepresented in conversations about the role of agribusiness in Africa s growth. This session places youth agripreneurs at centerstage with a panel comprised of some of the continent s most successful youth agripreneurs. The session is designed to have youth entrepreneurs learn from each other sharing not only the challenges, but strategies for success. Stakeholders are invited to listen and learn from the experiences of the youth as they design interventions that respond to the needs that will be articulated by the panelists and their peers. 1. What are the day to day challenges that young people are experiencing in growing their agribusinesses and what are the successful strategies they are using to overcome these challenges? 2. What are the current technology and innovation trends and how are youth agripreneurs leveraging technology and innovation to give their businesses a competitive edge? 3. How can governments, investors, policy makers and other stakeholders better support youth agripreneurs succeed? 4. Can and should youth be expected to grow agribusinesses that respond to the need for enhanced profits but also social transformation? 5. How can we ensure that agribusinesses grow in ways that do not worsen existing social inequities including bridging the gender gap in African agriculture? Outcome Desired: Youth participants will be inspired by success stories from fellow youth agripreneurs and learn about strategies for success that are working for their peers. Stakeholders serving youth in agribusiness (including those offering ICT and other technology solutions) will learn from the first hand experiences of youth agripreneurs on how the ecosystem can better support youthled agribusinesses. 4

5 Session Title: Launch of UNDP-GEF Study on Value Chain Sustainability and Resilience in Sub-Saharan Africa Time: Outcome Desired: United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Regional Service Centre for Africa (RSCA), in collaboration with Global Environment Facility (GEF) 14:00 17:30hrs While food value chains are gaining importance as part of the broader effort of achieving food security and improving nutrition - thus transforming African agriculture and contributing to the SDGs - little is known about best practices that generate global environment benefits in value chains in Sub-Saharan Africa, and the entry points to harness those benefits are yet to be identified. Against this background, UNDP and GEF produced a study to assess options and opportunities to make food value chains more environmentally sustainable and resilient. Disseminate the findings of the UNDP-GEF study on value chain resilience and sustainability in Sub-Saharan Africa. Provide an opportunity to interact around the study s findings in order to be able to take advantage of them, especially its Framework for Action, in the context of the GEF Integrated Approach Pilot (IAP) Programme on Food Security, and beyond. Taking stock: Is sustainability a core strategy for food value chain development or what practical courses of action exist which can be applied to make food systems sustainable and resilient in Sub-Saharan Africa? What are the available approaches and technical practices throughout Sub- Saharan Africa to reduce environmental impact and externalities? What is the role of positive incentives in the path towards sustainable and resilient food systems in Sub-Saharan Africa? How can an operational tool facilitate the collective action required for the much needed shift towards environmentally sustainable and resilient food value chains in Sub-Saharan Africa? What are the roles of the different stakeholders, including technical government staff, expert practitioners, the private sector, bilateral donors, UN bodies, researchers, NGO personnel and academics? Value chain stakeholders are familiar with information that helps them to understand and make a compelling argument for integrated and innovative policy, management or investment choices that promote and advance environmentally sustainable and resilient food value chains eventually encouraging concrete action on the ground. 5