Project description ‘Innovation Transfer into Agriculture – Adaptation to Climate Change’ (ITAACC) sector project
Context:
It is only through adaptive agriculture and innovative solutions that the emerging challenges in Africa related to adaptation to climate change, food security, poverty reduction and the conservation of soil, water and biodiversity can be overcome. The CGIAR Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers, icipe (African Insect Science for Food and Health) and AVRDC (The World Vegetable Center) play an important role in developing innovations and receive financial support for agricultural research from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ).
Some of these innovative solutions for adaptation to climate change already exist, while others are currently being researched. In practice, however, there is currently a lack of widespread knowledge transfer. Innovative solutions and research outcomes must be shared and made easily accessible to small and medium-sized farms along with a platform for networking about the diverse issues they face. The inherent challenge is to ensure that these innovations are broadly transferred and anchored in practice over the long-term.
Objective and approach of the sector project:
As commissioned by BMZ, the GIZ sector project on Innovation Transfer into Agriculture – Adaptation to Climate Change (ITAACC) has taken up the challenge of putting innovations into widespread use, and aims to close the gap between research and practice.
The project’s term extends until March 2018 and has a commission value of EUR 5 million.
At the continental level, ITAACC aims to link the demand side (small-scale farmers and farmer’s organisations) for innovations to adapt to climate change with the supply side (international agricultural research) and ensure continuous exchange among stakeholders. Specifically, a platform for knowledge transfer, which can function virtually in addition to actual physical forums, is being established with interested partners. A comprehensive needs assessment on each of the respective issues forms the basis for this platform, focusing on both the demand side and agricultural research centres, analysing their available innovations in order to determine marketability, and feeding these into the platform for knowledge transfer.
The external consulting company GFA supported the project in the comprehensive needs assessment.
Many existing innovations have failed to take the final step into practice and/or broader dissemination at the level of small-scale farmers; the ITAACC platform for knowledge transfer can make a considerable contribution in this regard.
Across Africa, ITAACC and various partners support up to six different exemplary pilot projects in order to introduce selected innovations into agricultural practice. The CGIAR Consortium of International Agricultural Research Centers, icipe, and national associations and organisations act as implementation partners.
The dissemination of knowledge and practical exchange constitute a further component of the project. Different Human Capacity Development (HCD) measures take place within various workshops. These are directly integrated into the pilot projects, while at the same time ITAACC uses additional resources to finance and support more training activities.
Results and impacts:
The project contributes to strengthening agricultural development based on the effective transfer of sustainable innovations for climate change adaptation on the African continent.
Utilisation of these disseminated and implemented research innovations leads to an overall reduction in poverty. This dissemination and subsequent application will primarily bring about increases in productivity and income for small-scale farmers, but also improved food security and greater resilience to the impacts of climate change.
Women play an essential role in agriculture in Africa, and increasingly take on upstream and downstream agricultural responsibilities. Nevertheless, due to various circumstances, it is more difficult for women to access innovations and services than men. Therefore, using a target group analysis and gender approach, the project strives to achieve gender equality when providing information and promoting innovations. As knowledge carriers, women continue to be of decisive importance for the creation of a platform for knowledge transfer.
Over the course of the five-year project term, a total of six pilot projects will be implemented, and the developed methodologies and strategies should be used by five international agricultural research centres towards implementation and dissemination of innovations. Five pilot projects are already in an orientation and/or implementation phase at a major international research centre.
The implementation of the pilot projects aims to reach an estimated 1,000 small-scale farmers in different countries across Africa.
However, the dissemination of knowledge within the project also plays an important role. This knowledge must reach stakeholders in the agricultural sector in a well-prepared and comprehensible form. In the end, the different stakeholders should use various knowledge platforms. Whether communicated virtually using social media applications, or through in-person dialogue, the various possibilities will be combined through these platforms.
The project’s successful implementation is ensured within the context of two steering group meetings each year, and a management structure with expert advice from the GIZ Head Office and local CIM experts.