Task 3.1: Organisation of training sessions for assessment of innovation cases

Capacity-strengthening will target 15–20 members of each of the three national innovation platforms, with particular emphasis on individuals involved in the light and in-depth studies of selected innovation cases. It will be implemented mostly through two training sessions included as part of national events N-X1 (Month 8) and NX-2 (Month 18).

Generally speaking, the capacity-strengthening will focus on two broad areas : (a) a better understanding of innovation systems and of knowledge management within them; and (b) coordination and facilitation skills to design and organise reflection sessions in a multistakeholder setting. Specific topics to be covered during the two capacity-strengthening sessions will be identified ex-ante  in close concertation with participants in WP1 and WP2 and with members of each national innovation platform. The topics will be discussed and validated during global event G1 and national events N-X1. If validated, they may include, among others: identifying innovation processes and systems, describing the innovation system (structure, conduct, performance), rapid appraisal of the innovation system (in time and in space, and in terms of actor- and stakeholder-networks involved), participatory analysis of the innovation system in terms of knowledge networks and management, sources of knowledge and degree of interaction of L/TK with “external” formal ARD services, understanding the factors that stimulate innovation, documenting change, joint learning etc.

Task 3.2: Organisation of local-level reflection sessions

Once trained, the corresponding individuals – and especially those involved in the in-depth case studies – will contribute to organising reflection sessions after each workshop on their respective innovation cases. They, along with local and foreign students possibly involved in case-study development, will receive coaching/mentoring support provided mostly by ICRA staff, national convenors and other resource persons from the national innovation platform. The results of the reflection sessions will feed into the case-study assessment process and outputs (WP2 Task 2.3) and will constitute a critical input for the training session for the national innovation platform members during the final national events (NX-3).

Task 3.3: Strengthening the capacity of national innovation platforms

As part of the series of country-level workshops N-X3 involving members of national innovation platforms, capacity-strengthening sessions will be organised to foster a better understanding of the institutional environment and the interfaces that enable or constrain innovation processes at the local or sub-national level. The capacity-strengthening will be made more concrete by using reports of in-depth innovation cases as key inputs. It will focus on: (1) the capacity of farmers and other local actors to articulate demand for (external) research services; and (2) the capacity of formal research and development services – both public and private – to respond to demand from highly diverse and complex rural settings. At the end of these workshops (which also correspond to the end of the project), the national innovation platform members will have developed their ability to play more active roles in facilitating innovation at the local, sub-national and national level, in brokering for research and extension services, and in advocating and building increased capacity for institutional change geared towards providing a more enabling institutional environment for innovation.

Task 3.4: Assembling sets of training materials

As ingredients and outputs of capacity-strengthening sessions in events N-X1, N-X2 and N-X3, a set of electronic training materials covering the major topics will be developed, based on available related materials collected through networking (as part of WP4 activities). They will be illustrated (including multimedia sources) with experiences from the literature and the case studies (coming out of activities in WP1 and WP2) and testimonies from the participants in the capacity-strengthening sessions. Once validated by participants at large, the corresponding materials will be shared widely on the project website and through CD-ROMs, so that they may be used and adapted to further capacity-strengthening activities of project partners and network members.

Deliverables WP3

D3.1  Six training reports (2 per country, as output of training sessions held during NX-1 and NX-2, and of the corresponding reflection sessions conducted in the field after the events) (Months 9 and 18).

D3.2  Set of electronic training materials made available on the project website and in CD-ROM format, in both English and French (Months 9, 18 and 30)

D3.3  45–60 trained individuals (15–20 each in Kenya, South Africa and Benin) at local and national level capable of assessing and facilitating multistakeholder innovation processes (Month 30)