29–30 October 2026 | Johannesburg, South Africa
The Southern African Confederation of Agricultural Unions (SACAU), in collaboration with AgriCord, organised an African farmer-hosted dialogue on agricultural research and innovation on 29–30 October 2026 at the Southern Sun OR Tambo International Airport Hotel in Johannesburg, South Africa. Under the theme “Research, Differently: From Research on Farmers to Research with Farmers,” the two-day dialogue brought together farmers' organisations, agricultural researchers and development partners to explore how African farmers could play a more decisive role in shaping agricultural research agendas, generating knowledge and influencing innovation systems.
The dialogue was guided by a fundamental question: “Who defines the agrifood research we want, and for whom?” It challenged conventional approaches in which research institutions and funders largely determine research priorities, budgets and success indicators, while farmers are frequently consulted without exercising meaningful decision-making authority.
From farmer participation to farmer leadership
The opening session featured contributions from Ishmael Sunga, Chief Executive Officer of SACAU, and Benito Eliasi (SACAU), who facilitated the introductions. The programme included a presentation by Professor Oluwole Fatunbi of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) and a message from Professor Joachim von Braun of the University of Bonn.
The programme also provided opportunities for reflections from representatives of the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS), Centre for Coordination of Agricultural Research and Development for Southern Africa (CCARDESA), Food, Agriculture and Natural Resources Policy Analysis Network (FANRPAN), International Water Management Institute (IWMI), University of the Free State, and African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF). Their participation was listed as provisional in the workshop programme.
A central theme was the need to move beyond conventional participatory research towards genuine co-research, in which farmers' organisations helped define research questions, govern partnerships, allocate resources and determine how findings were applied.
The dialogue built on three complementary principles: researchers possessed knowledge that farmers did not; farmers possessed knowledge that researchers did not; and important challenges existed that neither group could resolve independently.
Building on the FORI programme and lessons from farmer-led research
The discussions drew on the experience of the Farmers' Organisations Leading Research and Innovation in Agroecology for Sustainable Food Systems (FORI) programme, financed by the European Union and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS).
Implemented between 2022 and 2026 across 17 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Pacific, FORI supported 13 farmer organisation-led action research projects, accompanied by AgriCord's member agri-agencies, with advocacy and knowledge exchange supported by the Pan-African Farmers' Organization (PAFO) and regional farmers' organisations.
The dialogue also drew on the findings of the 2025 SACAU–AgriCord webinar series, synthesised in the September 2026 publication Research, Differently: Rebalancing Knowledge and Power for Agroecological Innovation.
The publication identified five important lessons for transforming agricultural research partnerships:
Start with farmers' questions: Farmers and their organisations should participate in defining research priorities before methodologies and funding arrangements were established.
Combine scientific and experiential knowledge: Research should recognise farmers' practical knowledge alongside scientific expertise.
Invest in relationships and capabilities: Trust, communication, facilitation and organisational capacities were essential for effective collaboration.
Bring decisions and resources closer to farmers: Farmers' organisations needed greater influence over research governance, coordination, budgets and data rights.
Measure impact beyond scientific publications: Research success should also reflect practical relevance, adoption, farmer empowerment and wider institutional and societal change.
Experiences documented through FORI, including farmer-led experimentation, collaborative variety trials and farmer-to-farmer learning, illustrated how research could become more relevant when farmers exercised greater ownership of the innovation process.
Rethinking research priorities, institutions and financing
The Johannesburg dialogue examined six interconnected challenges: building trust between farmers and researchers; expanding research beyond agronomy to markets, value chains, finance and equity; recognising farmers' knowledge and data rights; scaling innovations beyond individual projects; transforming agricultural extension into continuous co-learning; and establishing financing arrangements that enabled farmers' organisations to lead research.
Particular attention was given to the institutional changes required to make farmer-led research sustainable. Traditional research systems often rewarded scientific publications and short-term project deliverables, while co-research required longer-term relationships, flexible financing and shared accountability.
The discussions also provided an opportunity to consider how farmers' organisations could become recognised research and innovation actors rather than remaining primarily beneficiaries, consultation partners or channels for technology adoption.
These questions were closely aligned with GFAiR's Partnership Principles, which emphasised equitable collaboration, shared decision-making, mutual accountability and the recognition of diverse knowledge systems in agricultural research and innovation.
From dialogue to action
The second day was structured around presentations from four breakout groups, followed by plenary discussions on commitments and the way forward.
Participants were invited to share examples of successful research collaborations, identify institutional or financial obstacles and propose practical changes that their organisations could undertake to strengthen farmer-led research.
The dialogue was designed to move beyond exchanging experiences towards developing a practical agenda for more equitable partnerships among farmers, research institutions and development partners.
The overarching message was that transforming agricultural research required more than introducing participatory methodologies. It required rebalancing power over research priorities, knowledge, financing and decision-making. Recognising farmers and their organisations as genuine research partners offered a pathway towards agricultural innovation that was more responsive to local needs, socially inclusive and capable of supporting sustainable agrifood systems.
References
SACAU and AgriCord (2026). Research, Differently: Rebalancing Knowledge and Power for Agroecological Innovation
African Farmer-Hosted Dialogue, Johannesburg, 29–30 October 2026 — workshop programme and dialogue agenda.
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