African farmers shall increase production of food products to meet local and international demand. Therefore there is a recognised need for more effective agricultural advisory services. That is the objective for a project between an African organization and the Knowledge Centre.
African governments have decided to work for growth in the agricultural sector of at least 6% annually to increase food production. That means that productivity in African farming must increase significantly, and thus farmers must have access to more effective advisory services.
Therefore the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS), an umbrella organization for African organizations working with agricultural advisory services in 16 countries in Africa has initiated a project to establish and strengthen national networks of agricultural advisory services. This is a major project that International Advice, the International Department of the Knowledge Centre, has become a partner in.
- We have worked for a number of years together with AFAAS to establish networks and we have through that work and other assignments in Africa developed a knowledge base about agricultural advisory services in a number of African countries. We participate in the assignment using our knowledge and experience with development of partnerships in advisory services,” says Sanne Chipeta, senior adviser, International Advice.
An important partner
The development objective of the project is to develop an effective, committed and stimulating partnership between advisory organizations in the African countries in order to improve advisory services to African farmers. Our input will run for 3 months and Sanne Chipeta hopes the experience will give International Advice further opportunities to work with development of agriculture in Africa.
- Implementation of the assignment will specifically assist in developing our network and competence in Africa and make us an important and strong partner in future development in Africa” she says.
Read more about African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS) on their homepage.
See further international project references.