Forum: 2013 CTA ICT OBSERVATORY “Strengthening e-Agriculture Strategies in ACP Countries”

Preparatory discussion 25 February – 08 March 2013

These activities are organized by CTA in collaboration with the FAO, the World Bank, the East African Farmers’ Federation, the Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources (Rwanda), The Ministry of Communication (Ghana), the International Institute for Communication and Development (IICD), the NEPAD Agency and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA/ISTD).

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This discussion will gather opinions and recommendations from a wide audience of global ICT and agriculture stakeholders and identify additional initiatives and issues that could be discussed.
 
Even though in most ACP countries there are no specific ICT for agriculture strategies, the background report commissioned by CTA, prior to the workshop, informs that e-agriculture strategy initiatives have been or are being put in place in a few countries such as Ghana, Mali, Ivory Coast, Rwanda. Moreover, in most ICT policies developed with the support of organizations such as the UNECA, IICD, UNDP etc., there are provisions on sectoral strategies for agriculture. The report also illustrates that there is a lack of understanding or a lack of interest, and different approaches on that issue.
 
The specific questions to be addressed during the debate are:
 
Week 1:  The concept, need and state of adoption of e-agriculture strategies in ACP countries and beyond
1. Why are national e-agriculture strategies (also referred to as “ICT for agriculture strategies” or “cyber-strategies for agriculture”) needed for the agricultural sector to fully realize the benefits of ICTs?
2. What examples of ICT strategies targeting the agricultural sector do we have in ACP and in non-ACP countries (“ACP” stands for “Africa, Caribbean and Pacific”)?
3. What are the key target areas and value chain segments for these e-agriculture strategies? And Why?
 
Week 2: Stakeholders, challenges and lessons learned for formulating and implementing inclusive e-agriculture strategies
4. What are the key challenges faced in formulating and implementing these strategies/policies and what lessons learned from on-going or past processes?
5. Stakeholder roles: What are the roles of ICT and agricultural stakeholders in e-agriculture strategy formulation, implementation and evaluation? How can we ensure the full participation of farmers and other non-governmental stakeholders ? What are the role(s) of the Ministry in charge of ICT and the one in charge of Agriculture? What role(s) for international stakeholders?
6. What key policy recommendations can be made to support the implementation of effective e-agriculture strategies or policies?
 
Subject Matter Experts from various organizations will contribute to the discussions. A synthesis will be prepared following the debate and a policy brief, which will take into account key initiatives, recommendations and conclusions, will be prepared following the organization of the ICT Observatory meeting.
 
Subject Matter Experts:
• Benjamin Addom, consultant, ICT for Agriculture
• Justin Chisenga, Regional Office for Africa, FAO
• Aparajita Goyal, Economist, Agricultural and Environment Services, World Bank
• Stella Kamuyu Wanjau, East African Farmer Federation (EAFF)
• Ken Lohento, ICT4D Programme Coordinator, CTA
• Anju Mangal, ICT4D Officer, Secretariat of the Pacific Community
• Mary Rucibigango, Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Rwanda
• Issah Yahaya, Director, Policy Planning, Monitoring & Evaluation, Ministry of Communications, Ghana
• Representative of United Nations Economic Commission for Africa (UNECA/ISTD)