Outcome of GCARD and implications for
the AARINENA region:
Transforming Agricultural Research for
Development
The Global Forum on Agricultural Research
Secretariat
GCARD: The Context and Challenges

One in six of the world’s population go hungry
“a moral outrage that must be abolished” (Ismael Serageldin)

Agricultural research investment via aid has declined around the world,
yet returns are clear, the incubation period 30 – 50 years

Smallholder farmers and women are last to benefit from research

Over 2 billion more people by 2050, 30% more food required, 70% of
people will be in cities; food demands changing

The poor are increasingly marginalised; South Asia home to 50% of
world’s undernourished children; poverty is already concentrated in
Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia

Increasing climate vulnerability and market volatility

Fast changing land use and diminishing soil, water and biodiversity
resource

Most developing countries off-track meeting the MDGs, especially
MDG1 – halving hunger and poverty by 2015
CONTEXT- the scourge of hunger
42
(+13.5%)
15
(+15.4%)
53
(12.8%)
Asia and the Pacific
Sub-Saharan Africa
Latin America and the
Caribbean
Near East and North
Africa
265
(+11.8%)
642
(+10.5%)
Developed Countries
For the first time > 1 billion
people are undernourished
Source: FAO, 2009
Smallholder farming
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500 million smallholder farms
worldwide supporting around 2
billion people. They:
Farm 80% of the farmland in Asia
and Africa.
Produce 80% of the food
consumed in the developing world
Feed 1/3 of the global population.
Women are increasingly the
farmers of the developing world,
producing between 45% and 80%
of household food.
R. Cooke
Potential for increasing agricultural
productivity
Annual total factor productivity growth, 1992-2003
%
East/SE Asia
2.7
South Asia
1.0
East Africa
0.4
West Africa
1.6
Southern Africa
1.3
Latin America
2.7
North Africa & West Asia
1.4
All regions
2.1
Source: von Braun et al. 2008.
The GCARD Process
Regional Reviews
E-Consultations
Face to Face
Workshops
Regional Recommendations
CGIAR Results and
Strategic Framework
GCARD
CGIAR Consortium
Programs
GCARD Report on Transformation of ARD
Systems
Conference
Draft Action Plan and Road Map
GCARD Synthesis Report and Proceedings
Roadmap
GCARD: a groundbreaking process of learning and
change among all actors
Year 1
Active GCARD
Task Force
Global & regional
reviews & actions
Consultations &
learning
GCARD Conference
Event
Year 2
Year 3
Year 4
Year 5
Year 6
GCARD – Not just a standard Conference

Truly a Global Process, Regional actions and
national ownership emphasized

Collective action, but differentiated
accountability

Over 800 invited participants from all sectors

Participants rated the Conference as highly
successful, median score of 8/10
GCARD – AR4D seeks radical change to
increase food security while:

Abolishing rural poverty

Meeting societal needs

Sustainably managing
environmental resources
Current agricultural
research systems are
fragmented, incoherent
and unable to deliver to
the required scale of
development impacts
Factors determining rural poverty
GCARD:
agricultural
research centred
on meeting
development
needs of the poor
GCARD: Knowledge is essential for development,
but development requires more than knowledge
Innovation pathways
Desired
development
outcome
Enabling environment
& inputs
Policies promoting
agricultural
development &
innovation
Collective research actions
towards development outcomes
GCARD – Broadly common themes across all, but specifics
determined by sovereign national priorities and commitments
 All themes involve trade-offs and synergies
 Need to revisit ‘fit’ of research in national development
frameworks
Outcome based planning of collective AR4D requires common
objectives, defined by national development policies &
frameworks, e.g.:
 National agricultural frameworks & FAO-CFS, GAFSP
 Regional frameworks e.g. CAADP
 GFAR-GPPs – partnerships for action
CGIAR-SRF
Two interlinked approaches of
AR4D:

Collective research and knowledge
sharing actions on key outcome-focused
themes

Transformation and strengthening of
agricultural innovation systems of
developing countries
Why A Roadmap?

A Plan setting out a way forwards for all.

Identifies how all stakeholders can play their respective
roles and commit themselves to action in improving
AR4D:
A consensus on systematic needs of common
international importance and the solutions required to
satisfy those needs;
A mechanism to look forward;
A framework to help plan and coordinate actions
•
•
•
Effective AR4D Systems
commit to action for impact and:
1.
Inclusively define key research priorities and
actions, driven by evolving national, regional and
global development objectives and shaped by
science and society to meet our future needs;
2.
Invest in ensuring equitable partnership and
accountability among all stakeholders, addressing
research in the context of agricultural innovation
and developmental change;
Key system characteristics
required...
3.
Actively achieves increased investments in
human, institutional and financial resources;
4.
Develops required institutional capacities for
generation, access and effective use of
agricultural knowledge in development;
Key system characteristics
required...
5.
Effectively coordinate operational linkages
relating research to development
programmes and policies;
6.
Demonstrate their value and gain
recognition by society through involvement of
stakeholders in effective monitoring,
evaluation and reporting of outcomes.
Road Map Plan to Transform ARD Systems
Advocacy, Policy Support, Capacity Development, Collaborative Mechanisms
Revamping Old Institutions and Building New Institutions,
How?
Extension, NARIS to NARS and Innovation Systems etc
What?
GFAR, NARS
Donors, FGE
Increased, improved and targeted investment in Agricultural development,
research and Innovation
Transformed, Inclusive ARD Systems, related Institutions and Processes that
contribute to development, especially of resource poor small holder farmers
CGIAR, NGOs
Who?
Farmer Orgs.
ARIs,
Greater, Effective Collaboration and Partnerships in ARD globally
Governments
Private Sector
Sharing of agriculture related information, knowledge, skills and technology
increased and embedded in development process
Effective application and use of Science and Technology to meet current
and emerging challenges in Agricultural Development
When (Sequence and Time)?
Scientific
Associations
Reorientation of AR4D


Clients: small farm holders, poor producers, poor
consumers, women in agriculture
Primary production level:
1.
2.
3.
4.


Sustainable intensification
Agro-ecosystem framework – resource-poor farmer realities
Integrated natural resource management
Risk management: adaptation and mitigation
Holistic: food supply chain (input sector  primary
production  post-harvest/processing/marketing 
markets
Cross-cutting and coordinated: knowledge based,
socio-economic and policy research, capacity building,
participatory
VALUE CHAIN APPROACH:
Input
industry
Primary
Producers
Research
Extension
service
Food
process
industry
Food
retail
industry
Consumers
Options for rural smallholders

Improve basic foods
and staples
• Cash crops: a role
for promising underutilised crops
I
• Integrate livestock to
match rising demand
Developing countries have a major gap to fill
Researchers per million people
4500
4000
3500
3000
2500
2000
1500
1000
500
0
USA
Belgium
China
Malaysia
Uganda
UNESCO 2004
Shaping the new CGIAR
Need to refine core strategy and address fit with ‘the 96%’:
 Role of CRPs in relation to national and regional policies,
programmes & commitments – who owns the outcomes?
 CGIAR’s role and positioning and expected partnership
behaviour vis-à-vis other national, regional & international
actors,
 Shared responsibilities for outcomes need defining
 How SRF can foster change beyond the CGIAR?
 Regional Fora engagement of innovation partners in
national systems around key themes
 SRF currently being refined – INPUT REQUIRED
Evolution of Advisory Services

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Roles -Building capacities, managing risk, improving
market access, sustainable NRM, empowering people
New opportunities/risks – changes in market and food
systems, climate change, price volatility
Partnerships- demand-driven, market led, locally
adapted to farmer-private sector-research (NARES)NGO-Govt. interactions
ICTs - Massive impact on information access and its
transformation into goods and services
Changing the rules
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Adaptive science is not a lesser science; agriculture
embeds science in society & environment
Better integrate education, research and extension and
recognize the new architecture internationally (eg
FGEs) and nationally (e.g. private sector)
‘Publish or perish’ is not the only relevant value
system
Reassess value & rewards placed on forms and types
of innovation that more directly benefit the poor
Rethink research questions through the eyes of a small
farmer
Examine value of research to a country’s development
and the returns from different forms of research
investment
Making the case for agricultural
investment

1% p.a. increase in agriculture growth, on average
leads to a 2.7% increase in income of the lowest 3
income deciles in developing countries (WDR 2007)

Agriculture is 2.5 to 3 times more effective in
increasing income of the poor than is non-agriculture
investment (WDR 2007)

Agriculture growth, as opposed to growth in general, is
typically found to be the primary source of poverty
reduction (IFPRI, 2007)

Agricultural growth the pre-cursor to overall economic
growth: Europe and North America (in the early part of
the 20th century), then Japan and more recently in
China, India, and Vietnam
National commitment to change is
essential
Aggressive advocacy for increased AR4D funding
is needed

Government to provide at least 1% of total
agricultural GDP for AR4D

Agriculture research investments to be doubled

Increased capital investment through publicprivate-partnership
Government
financial
commitments
are
essential, supported by mobilizing ODA
Requires effective M&E and documenting of
successes


GFAR – the multistakeholder catalyst for:

Advocacy for change: Strengthen the voice and demand of
society for agricultural innovation to address key development
issues

Institutions for the Future: Transform agricultural research,
extension and education institutions and systems to better meet
development needs

Inter-regional learning: Equitable partnerships catalysing rapid
and efficient change through collective actions

Knowledge for All: Empower change by overcoming the barriers
to knowledge flow and use
G8 Statement on Food Security 2009:
“We support the fundamental reform processes
underway in the global agricultural research system
through the Global Forum on Agricultural Research"

Outcome-centred, not
technology-centred thinking

Innovative knowledge access
& transformation systems

Stakeholders learning
& innovating together,
managing benefits & risks

Institutional reorientation
& changed attitudes/values

Convergence of
policies and resources
joedale.typepad
Breaking down the walls
Over to You

You have tremendous capability
transform AR4D in the WANA region

GFAR provides the open, inclusive
Mechanism to enable this transformation
and GCARD the Process
 Together
to
we can bring real change...
Thank You
www.egfar.org