Fara strategy and mtop 2014 2018 eob july 2013

Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa

FARA’s Strategic Plan and

Medium Term Operational Plan (MTOP) for 2014-2018

6th FARA General AssemblyAccra, 20 July 2013

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7/27/2013 2Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa

Outline1. Why a new Strategic Plan and MTOP for FARA?

2. Process followed

3. The Strategy

– Strategic Priorities and expected results

– Implementation arrangements

4. Budget

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Why a new Strategic Plan & MTOP?

1. Timing: current MTOP ends Dec 2013

• New MTOP (2014-2018)

• Current Strategic Plan (2007- 2016)

2. Changes in operating environment call for FARA to reposition itself to:

• respond to emerging challenges and opportunities

• take advantage of lessons learned and build upon achievements

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Emerging Challenges & Opportunities

• Globalisation (need to improve competitiveness)

• Attention to regional integration

• Robust economic growth in the South—BRICs;

• Population, Urbanisation

• Increased investments in AR&D (African govts, CGIAR, global initiatives—FtF, G8 New alliance, IntenseAfrica, Multi-lateral FIs)

• Drive to transform African agriculture (CAADP momentum)

• Increased recognition of transformative power of markets and private enterprise

• Economic slow down in developed countries value for money and short term investment horizon

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Achievements on which FARA will build

• A strengthened ARD institutional architecture in Africa

• Strengthened relationship with AUC and NPCA

• Recognition of value of regional level collective action

• FAAP and increased awareness of contribution of ARD to agricultural transformation

• Validated approaches for catalysing innovation and for capacity strengthening

Process followed

Retreat of CAADP Pillar IV Stakeholders (March 2012)

Consultation on position paper by DPs & Pillar IV stakeholders (Brussels)

Draft 1 developed

Stakeholder consultations with Draft 1 as reference

Consultations with DPs and validation by all other stakeholders

Draft 3 developed

Approval by General Assembly

Internal reflection Position paper

Validation by FARA Board

Final Draft

Draft 2 developed

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Stakeholder recommendations1. Recognise maturity of institutions that were ‘clients’ into effective

partners (avoid competing with them)

2. Embrace the entire agricultural innovation system; widen scope beyond focus on research

3. Recognize farmers as key private-sector actors and treat private sector actors as partners in development.

4. Respond appropriately to CAADP’s transformation agenda

5. In absence of mandate to lead implementation of CAADP Pillar IV, draw on wide stakeholder acknowledgement of FARA’s leadership in innovation-related aspects of CAADP

6. Develop an all-embracing and integrated capacity-development framework for African agriculture

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THE STRATEGY2014-18

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Strategic Statements

Goal:To contribute to the sustainable reduction of food insecurity and poverty in Africa while enhancing the environment.

Purpose:To contribute to generating high broad-based and sustainable agricultural growth in Africa Value Proposition Strengthening Africa’s capacity for innovation and transformation, by visioning its strategic directions, integrating capacities for change and creating the enabling policy environment for implementation.

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Core functions of FARA

1. Facilitating Collective Action around the promotion of innovations in Africa

2. Capacity strengthening to enhance the functionality of agricultural innovation systems in Africa

3. Intellectual leadership for ARD in Africa

4. Partnerships to enhance broad-based productivity, competitiveness and markets in Africa

5. Advocacy and communication for improved ARD in Africa

6. Tracking of progress in Africa’s agricultural development

FARA Change Theory

FARA stakeholders (govts, private sector, NGOs, DPs in R&D, policy makers, academia, scientists, change agents, entrepreneurs, farmers, etc)

Stakeholders working in isolation with uncoordinated, fragmented support

Development is about transforming lives of people

By CONNECTING individuals and stakeholder with different capacities, we make them aware of different actors’ capacities and LEARN to harness critical capacities to bring the needed CHANGE in institutional arrangements for collaboration

We undertake VISIONING through foresight and analysis to provide strategic directions that guide new and future actions

By forming PARTNERSHIPS and strategic alliances we combine the strengths of all stakeholders to respond to needs

High RETURNS ON INVESTMENTS in AR&D leading to high broad-based, sustainable agric.growth

HIGH impact on reducing food insecurity and poverty while enhancing the environment

By COMMUNICATING best practice and policy options based on evidence, we ADVOCATE for enabling policies and institutional structures and processes that enable implementation of actions on demand

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Strategic Directions

Strategic Priorities

1. Visioning the kind of agriculture Africa wants and the collective actions needed to achieve it

2. Developing the capacities needed to achieve it

3. Developing the enabling environment to enable effective implementation of needed actions

Currently …. 4 Networking Support Functions

1. Advocacy and Policy

2. Access to Knowledge and Technologies

3. Capacity Strengthening

4. Partnerships and Strategic Alliances

Emerging thematic areas• Climate Change• Bioenergy• Nutrition• Youth

Cross cutting issue• Gender

Generic Services of FARA

Figure 1. Strategic Priorities and Generic services of FARA

Visioning

Networking Support functions

Services supported

1. Visioning Africa’s agric Transformation

2. Integrating capacities for change

3. Enabling environment for implementation

Business

Research

ExtensionEducation

Policy

Overall OutcomesSP1: African agric. stakeholders determining how the sector should be transformed & establishing the needed collective actions in a gender sensitive manner

SP2: Strengthened and integrated continental capacity responding to stakeholder demands within the agricultural innovation system in a gender sensitive manner

SP3: Enabling environment for increased ARD investment and implementation of agricultural innovation systems

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How the results will be delivered

3. Mobilising Forum Members– Pool of Experts: – Core Research and Development

Support team: – FARA Fellows network: – Africa Agricultural Science Week: – Internships– Post-Doctoral Fellowship: Visiting

Scientists – Diaspora

1. Partnerships in line with Subsidiarity

2. Performing core functions & services

The human resources required

Board of Directors

Budget (2014 – 2018) (USD, 000s)

Unit Scenario 1 Scenario 2 Scenario 3

Executive Directorate 11,552 11,552 11,552

Strategic Priorities 102,048 79,188 50,564

Deputy Executive Directorate 5,413 4,750 5,148

SP1: Visioning Africa’s Transformation 24,500 18,709 11,887

SP2: Integrating Capacities for Change 35,489 27,007 20,887

SP3: Enabling environment for implementation 36,646 28,722 12,642

Finance 3,069 3,069 3,069

HR and administration 4,701 4,701 4,701

Grand Total 121,371 98,511 69,886

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Resource Mobilisation

• MTOP is the main tool for resource mobilisation

• Resource Mobilisation strategy to be developed upon approval of the MTOP

• Resources sought from: DPs, African govts, Private sector

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Conclusion

• Strategy and MTOP reflects the aspirations of FARA constituents; is designed to respond to challenges and take advantage of opportunities

• FARA is well positioned to lead the mobilisation of science and knowledge in the transformation of African livelihoods

Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa

Thank you for the attention

www.fara-africa.org

http://www.fara-africa.org/