This project report from Wageningen UR (as a contribution to the CGIAR Humid Tropics research program) examines critical issues for reflection when designing and implementing research for development in innovation platforms’. The current document therefore aims to increase awareness about the complexity of research in innovation. The underlying idea is that innovation platforms can facilitate institutional changes and support system innovations through increased interaction, negotiation and learning between stakeholders, including (new) roles of research(ers).
Innovation Platforms (IPs) are seen as a promising vehicle to foster a paradigm shift in agricultural research for development (AR4D). By facilitating interaction, negotiation and collective action between farmers, researchers and other stakeholders, IPs can contribute to more integrated, systemic innovation that is essential for achieving agricultural development impacts. However, successful implementation of IPs requires institutional change within AR4D establishments.
Grants for agricultural innovation are common but grant funds specifically targeted to smallholder farmers remain relatively rare. Nevertheless, they are receiving increasing recognition as a promising venue for agricultural innovation. They stimulate smallholders to experiment with improved practices, to become proactive and to engage with research and extension providers. The systematic review covered three modalities of disbursing these grants to smallholder farmers and their organisations: vouchers, competitive grants and farmer-led innovation support funds.
An innovation platform is a space for learning and change. It is a group of individuals (who often represent organizations) with different backgrounds and interests: farmers, traders, food processors, researchers, government officials etc. The members come together to diagnose problems, identify opportunities and find ways to achieve their goals. They may design and implement activities as a platform, or coordinate activities by individual members. This brief explains what innovation platforms are and how they work, and it describes some of their advantages and limitations.
The international workshop on Agricultural Innovation Systems in Africa (AISA) was held in Nairobi, Kenya, on 29–31 May 2013. Its main objectives were to learn jointly about agricultural innovation processes and systems in Africa, identify policy implications and develop policy messages, and explore perspectives for collaborative action research on smallholder agricultural innovation.The workshop focused on sharing experiences in trying to understand and strengthen multi-stakeholder innovation processes and the role of smallholders in innovation, and identifying and discussing priorities an
Innovation platforms are fast becoming part of the mantra of agricultural research and development projects and programs with an innovation objective.
This paper addresses the question how public-private partnerships (PPPs) function as systemic innovation policy instruments within agricultural innovation systems. Public-private partnerships are a popular government tool to promote innovations. However, the wide ranging nature of PPPs make it difficult to assess their effects beyond the direct impacts they generate for the partners.
Este manual sirve como base de estudio para un curso de capacitación que tiene como objetivo general: Mejorar las capacidades de formulación e implementación de políticas públicas de apoyo a la agregación de valor, como un medio para alcanzar una agricultura más productiva, más competitiva y más decisiva para el desarrollo de los territorios y el bienestar rural.
Este séptimo manual introduce el tema de la gestión asociativa y consta de dos módulos y ocho unidades didácticas que presentan, en primer lugar, el concepto de integración vertical y alternativas para formalizar empresas asociativas. Luego abordan diversos temas relacionados con la gestión del relacionamiento entre actores de una alianza: qué pueden aportar y obtener, los pasos para iniciar una alianza, los roles habituales y algunas metodologías para aumentar el compromiso, reducir los conflictos y monitorear los avances.
Este sexto manual presenta un método para formular un plan de negocios para la agroempresa asociativa orientado a productos de origen agropecuario con valor agregado. Incluye cinco módulos que presentan los distintos capítulos del plan: la descripción del negocio, el plan de mercadeo, el plan de producción, el plan legal y de administración y el plan financiero. En el manual 5 de la serie puede encontrar mayor información para desarrollar el plan de mercadeo.