About The Project

Building the Capacity of African University Graduates to foster change through Agricultural Innovations

CONTRIBUTING TO AND FACILITATING AGRICULTURAL AND RURAL INNOVATION PROCESSES

Agricultural research for development (AR4D) contributes to poverty reduction through innovative application of new and existing knowledge and practices, thus creating new knowledge for development and social transformation. Agricultural innovation systems (AIS) framework presents a broad, inclusive, and more holistic means to strengthening capacity for creation, diffusion and application of knowledge. If embraced by universities, the effect on quality of graduates would be immense.

The project targets enhancement of capacity for institutional innovation which is still very limited amongst universities in Eastern and Southern Africa at individual, organizational and institutional level in order to improve the contribution of agricultural practitioners towards innovation for rural development. Formal degree training in agricultural sciences in SSA universities is largely discipline based and focused on the development of research skills and discipline bound approaches. The interventions inculcate skills that would enable application of knowledge gained from Science and Technology (S&T).

The action primarily responds to Millennium Development Goal 1 to eradicate extreme poverty and hunger by 2015 and is in lone with the Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme (CAADP) and specifically to CAADP Pillar 4 being implemented by the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) under the principles encapsulated in the Framework for African Agricultural Productivity(FAAP).

The Project is Coordinated by the Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agriculture (RUFORUM). It is funded by a grant from the European Union's ACP-S&T Programme. The ACP Science and Technology Pro¬gramme is an ACP-EU co-operation pro-gramme launched in June 2008 that funds partnership projects through an open Call for Project Proposals. Its overall objective is to support African, Caribbean and Pacific coun¬tries in formulating and implementing science and technology (S&T) policies that can lead to sustainable development and to poverty reduc¬tion through economic growth and progressive integration in the world economy. It specifically aims at strengthening the internal S&T capacity of ACP countries to support research, development and innovation in the ACP region at three levels: (1) Institutional, administrative and policy making; (2) Academic research and technology; and (3) Business and civil society.

The programme promotes interdisciplinary approaches to sustainable development by co-ordination and networking in applied research;, instruments for collaborative research, and management of research activities and reinforcement of research. The programme targets the creation or consolidation of sustainable networks at intra ACP-level with linkages to international networks; increased capacity to assess research needs to facilitate the formulation and implementation of research policies; increased capacity and incentives to research network partners to prepare and submit project proposals to funding agencies, including for example the EC’s ‘Seventh Framework Pro¬gramme for research and technology development’ (FP7); research results better capitalized and disseminated; and improved quality of research results.

PROJECT OBJECTIVES
Overall Objective
Contribute towards poverty reduction in rural areas through strengthening of national and regional capacities to contribute to and facilitate innovation processes for rural development in Eastern and Southern Africa.

Specific Objectives
1. Enhance partnerships for effective networking & institutional change management;
2. Establish and implement a part-time mid-career professional training course on the facilitation of agricultural innovation processes;
3. Strengthen innovation capacity of university graduates for IAR4D;
4. Build cross-disciplinary networks of expertise on the role of agricultural research in facilitating rural innovation; and,
5. Share lessons learnt on the mid-career professional training course and innovation curricula.

TARGET GROUPS
The project aims to benefit a number of groups with the following specifically targeted:
 Graduate students to be trained to prepare them better for the demands of post-graduate work in the field of AR4D..
 Mid-career professionals in the field of agricultural research and development to enroll in the mid-career professional training course on innovation for rural development.
 A variety of stakeholder representatives and other end-users to benefit from facilitation by trainers from the mid-career short courses
 The participating universities will benefit by improving their knowledge in the field of innovation for rural development thereby forming part of the expert network. RUFORUM itself will be strengthened through the process and recognized as an important actors in the field.
 Smallholder farmers and producers as the ultimate beneficiaries gaining from more effective and better poverty focused agricultural advisory services.
 Professionals and experts in the field of agriculture will benefit from information sharing and lesson learning as a result of the formation of the regional network.

FUNDING
This 36 month project that begun on the 9/11/2009 is funded by the African, Caribbean and Pacific-Science and Technology (ACP-S&T) Programme of the EU with a grant toalloing EURO 997,957.00. RUFORUM and Prtner contributions amount to EURO 176,110.00.

PROJECT PARTNERS
Implementing Partners
• RUFORUM
• Egerton University (Kenya),
• Makerere University (Uganda)
• University of Malawi (Bunda College of Agriculture), Malawi,
• Royal Tropical Institute - KIT (Netherlands)

Associate Partners
• Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA),
• Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA);
• Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) and Technical Centre for Agriculture and Rural Cooperation (CTA)

RESULTS AND DELIVERABLES
The project ultimately aims to realize innovation systems thinking mainstreaming for an improved understanding and use of such approaches within disciplinary academic training and a course on the facilitation of innovation for rural development mainstreamed in the universities.

It will put in place:
1. Partnerships for effective networking & institutional change management enhanced;
2. Courses on innovation approaches developed and integrated in graduate training of participating universities;
3. A part-time mid-career training course on agricultural innovation processes tested and running independently of project financing;
4. An international network of experts in the field of agricultural innovation facilitation created and expanding;
5. Experiences with the facilitation of innovation for rural development documented and analysed
6. A strategy for mentoring agricultural innovation facilitators developed, tested and refined.

For More Information Please Contact:
PROJECT COORDINATION/RUFORUM SECRETARIAT
Dr Washington O. Ochola
Project Coordinator/Programme Manager – PME
Regional Universities Forum for Capacity Building in Agricultural (RUFRORUM)
Plot 151 Garden Hill, Makerere University, Main Campus
P.O. Box 7062, Kampala – Uganda
TeL: +256-414-535939
Fax: +256-414-531645
E-mail: secretariat@ruforum.org OR w.ochola@ruforum.org OR babatamara@yahoo.com
URL: http://www.ruforum.org


OR
ACP Science and Technology Programme
Avenue Georges Henri 451
1200 Bruxelles
Tel: +32-2-743 06 00 - 16
Fax: +32-2-735 55 73
E-mail: info@acp.int
Website:www.acp-st.eu