Kickoff Roundtable on Pastoralist and resource rights
3 November, 2006 Nairobi, Kenya. As an immediate follow up the of the Nakuru Workshop, pastoralists civil society groups organized, with the support of the SARD Initiative and the Mainyoito Pastoralist Integrated Development Organisation (MPIDO), a roundtable to define priorities for research and policy development with the aim of meaningfully influencing the integration of pastoralist and minorities' issues in both national, regional and international legal and policy frameworks.
Regional workshop on “Improving Tenure Security of the Rural Poor” for Sub-Saharan Africa
22 – 26 October, 2006, Nakuru, Kenya. The workshop, organized by the SARD Initiative, brought together 60 experts in land, pastoral, forest and fisheries property rights from African countries and International Organizations to review current evidence and recent findings about best options for legally empowering the poor through improved property right regimes in Africa. As part of the agenda one day field visit, the “Naivasha Learning Exchange on Pro-poor Property Rights” took place around the lake Naivasha.
III World Rural Forum Congress, Towards development in solidarity: challenge and commitment
19 – 21 October, 2006, Donostia, San Sebastían, Arantzazu, Gipuzkua, Spain. Approximately 300 people assisted to the Congress and participated in a multidisciplinary discussion to understand the economic problems of the Rural World, their causes, as well as the paths to be followed to impulse a development based on Solidarity. Eve Crowley, SARD Task Manager, gave a speech and presented a Paper on the theme “Towards Sustainable Rural Development”, providing an FAO perspective and overview of the role of solidarity in rural development.
Exploratory mission to Gambia and Guinea Bissau
1-14 September 2006. As part of the implementation of the project “Partnerships for capacity building in small-scale fisheries and SARD” jointly managed by the SARD Initiative and the FAO Fishery Technology Service, an exploratory mission to Gambia and Guinea Bissau was undertaken. A national consultant from Gambia and a member of the SARD Initiative team visited seven fishing communities and assessed their priorities, needs and constraints through participatory rural appraisal methods. The team met with government agencies and non-government training institutions working on safety at sea to determine the status of their programmes and identify gaps in the use of extension material.
As a result of the field mission work, the team identified a set of candidate communities suitable for introduction and adaptation of fish drying techniques and contacted a series of potential NGOs capable of providing training on post harvest fish handling and processing. Additionally, the team found there was an interest among fisher cooperatives and different stakeholders involved in safety at sea to form a partnership arrangement for capacity building. Finally, the team conducted a bibliographic search of relevant training material.
2nd Consultation on Cultural Indicators for Indigenous Peoples and SARD
7-9 September 2006. This workshop was organised by the International Indian Treaty Council (IITC) - the Major Group Focal Point for Indigenous Peoples - with the support of the FAO SARD Team and financial contributions from the Government of Norway and the Christensen Fund. It brought together representatives of indigenous peoples worldwide to evaluate the impact of agricultural and rural development practice on SARD, from their perspective.
Canadian Resource Facility Manager joins FAO-SARD Team
August 2006. Under a new agreement between FAO and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the Government of Canada will contribute the expertise of a senior policy advisor to fill the position of SARD Resource Facility Manager for a one-year period beginning in August 2006. Ms. Colleen Hyslop has been appointed to the post with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s (AAFC) Strategic Policy Branch. Her tasks will include promoting demonstrated good practices and appropriate technologies through a web-based inventory, developing communications materials, and analyzing gaps in available information and resources to promote sustainable agriculture and rural development.
She will also collaborate with civil society organizations and the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) to design changes and modifications to enhance the web-based SARD Initiative Resource Facility hosted by FAO, which provides on-line access to information, expertise, training materials to assist rural communities in their progress toward SARD.
Ms. Hyslop brings to the team recent experience as manager of the Risk Reduction program with the AAFC Pest Management Centre. She directs the program’s work with agricultural organizations to develop sustainable pest management strategies and foster the adoption by farmers of beneficial practices. Previously she worked with Environment Canada in areas including endangered species, environmental assessment, and wildlife conservation. Ms. Hyslop obtained a Master of Science degree in biology from the University of Calgary in 1978 and a graduate diploma in International Development & Cooperation from the University of Ottawa in 1989. She can be contacted at: colleen.hyslop@fao.org
