Platform for African – European Partnership in Agricultural Research for Development

Monday, September 10, 2012

Supporting Policy Research to Inform Agricultural Policy in Sub-Sahara Africa and South Asia

6-7 September, 2012. Nairobi, Kenya. Global Development Network. The Global Research Capacity Building Program. One of GDN’s projects is the one on “Supporting Policy Research to Inform Agricultural Policy in Sub-Sahara Africa and South Asia” that is funded by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Some 35 participants attended this workshop that included politicians, researchers, donors, media, and policy analysis institutions, universities, NEPAD and a multinational seed company. Following the presentation and discussion of Case Studies two sets of round table discussions were held on the Case Sties presented.

Over the last 12 months, five research teams from leading
African universities have reviewed extensive published and unpublished
research in five areas that affect agriculture in sub-Saharan Africa
in order to bring forth policy issues that are relevant to the region.
On the second day of the workshop, the Policy Briefs were presented and a press conference held on the Briefs with media representatives from various African countries.
  • Gates Foundation announced that most of their grants in agriculture would now support smallholder agriculture. Other areas of support would be breed improvement in livestock and poultry (a new area), issues of market failure, data collection and policy analysis, supports a Masters degree in Agric Economics and Policy on-going in Kenya and another planned for francophone countries to be based in Burkina Faso. Gates Foundation is interested in issues of policy research for policy formulation and decision making.
  • Syngenta Company is investing US$ 500 m into Africa and will be concentration on South Africa, Kenya, Egypt and Morocco for now. They will support smallhoder farmers. The criteria for country selection are competitiveness in agriculture informed by: infrastructure support, government support in general, macro-economic stability and openness to trade.
1. Agricultural Pricing and Public Procurement.

 
Published on : August 31, 2012
Agriculture plays a major role in the economies of most Sub-Saharan African countries – creating employment, boosting GDP and supporting the livelihoods of many of the region’s poorest households. Yet the region has gone from being a net food exporter to a net food importer over the last four decades. Ensuring an adequate supply offood is a major challenge and governments have employed a range of pricing and procurement measures in an effort to achieve this, with varying degrees of success
2. Irrigation and Water Use Efficiency.

 

Irrigation and water use efficiency in Sub-Saharan Africa
Published on : August 31, 2012

3. Improving the Effectiveness, Efficiency and Sustainability of Fertilizer Use.

 

Improving the effectiveness, efficiency and sustainability of fertilizer use in Sub-Saharan Africa
Published on : August 31, 2012

4. Addressing Long Term Challenges to Food Security and Rural Livelihood.

 
Long term challenges to food security and rural livelihood in Sub-Saharan Africa
Published on : September 3, 2012

5. Managing Agricultural Commercialization for Inclusive Growth.

 


Published on : September 3, 2012

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