Pillar 4: Agricultural research
What's on this page?
Find out here what the aim of Pillar 4 is, what progress has been made, what the Partners in Support of CAADP initiative is, who is leading the Pillar and what documents are available.
What is the aim of CAADP Pillar 4?
Pillar 4 aims to improve agricultural research and systems in order to disseminate appropriate new technologies.
In addition, by working closely with partners like DFID UK's Research into Use (RIU) programme, Pillar 4 also aims to boost the support available to help farmers to adopt such new options.
What progress has been made so far in CAADP Pillar 4?
The adoption of the Framework for African Agricultural Productivity, prepared under the leadership of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa, has allowed a broad group of development partners to start scaling up support to science and technology programmes at the regional and national levels.
This support includes funding for the sub-regional research organisations such as the Conseil pour la Recherche Agricoles en Afrique in West Africa and the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in East and Central Africa, as well as national programmes in Ghana, Mali, Senegal and Kenya. The launching of the Research Into Use Programme by the UK is also a major activity under this pillar.
What is the Partners in Support of CAADP initiative?
Another important aspect of CAADP Pillar 4's work to boost agricultural research and ensure that the results are disseminated, is that it ties in strongly with the DFID UK Research Into Use (RIU) Programme. Specifically, RIU focuses on ensuring that research results are put into use in the field, and on outscaling and upscaling workable options that can improve farmers' lives.
The Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA, which leads Pillar 4) and the CAADP Secretariat (led by Professor Mkandawire), have therefore worked hard to develop strong links with RIU. Research Into Use was, for example, officially launched at the FARA General Assembly in 2007 with full support from FARA - led by World Food Prize winner Professor Monty Jones.
Research Into Use has reciprocated, by strongly supporting both FARA and CAADP in return - by funding events, providing training, and (through links with the RIU Communications Component led by Dr Wyn Richards), helping CAADP to develop the key partnerships used to produce the CAADP brand and this website.
A good, concrete example of the ways that FARA, CAADP, and RIU work to boost the development and use of practical new agricultural options is the Partners in Support of CAADP booth at the CGIAR annual general meeting. This large booth gives CAADP, FARA, RIU, and a range of representatives from other partners, the opportunity to professionally showcase their work and achievements to other key players, decision makers and potential new partners - at what is known as the major annual event in the sustainable agriculture calendar.
Who is leading Pillar 4?
Lead technical agency
- Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA): Contact Dr Monty Jones, Email mjones@fara-africa.org, http://www.fara-africa.org
Pillar 4 NEPAD contact person
Dr Sloans Chimatiro: Email sloansc@nepad.org
Pillar 4 documents
Click Here for Pillar 4 documents
