INSARD (INcluding Smallholders in Agricultural Research for Development)
INSARD is an EC-funded project that is working towards making it easier for civil-society organisations (CSOs) – both non-governmental organisations and farmer organisations – to be actively involved in influencing agricultural research systems in Africa. Involving CSOs in agricultural research for development (ARD) helps scientists understand the needs of smallholders. Such organisations are important for shaping ARD because, to have a positive impact on smallholder, the research needs to involve them at all stages: in determining needs, identifying problems and opportunities, designing and testing new possibilities, sharing results, and assessing the way the research is done and the results shared. Incorporating smallholders into ARD in this way will help to better serve their needs and to discover and spread innovations that such farmers have been involved in developing.
Some CSOs are already involved in ARD in different parts of Africa, but they know little about what each other is doing. Their efforts to influence the wider research agenda are not well coordinated. INSARD tries to help change that by:
- Designing a method that allows CSOs to participate effectively in regional and international discussions on ARD
- Creating links between European and African CSOs that try to influence ARD policies and practices
- Helping CSOs define research priorities and the best way to communicate these priorities to researchers and policymakers
- Starting to design research interaction between scientists and CSOs, firmly based on small-scale farmers’ demands
- Working with key African and European research organisations and donors to strengthen demand-driven ARD and to increase funds for such research.
INSARD is a partnership between:
- ESAFF (Eastern and Southern Africa Small-Scale Farmers’ Forum)
- ETC Foundation
- GRET, Professionals for fair development
- PELUM Association
- Practical Action
- REPAOC (Réseau des Plates-formes nationales d’ONG d’Afrique de l’Ouest et du Centre).
For more details on INSARD, please see http://www.repaoc.org/insard/
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