The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) estimates that by the year 2050, global agricultural output will need to increase by almost 50 percent compared to 2012. Achieving this, within a rapidly changing demographic, environmental, and climate context, requires climate-relevant, productive, and sustainable transformation of agriculture and food systems. However, weak capacity to innovate in many low and middle income countries including Malawi, is a real obstacle to this transformation. 

FAO and the Government of Malawi through the Ministry of Agriculture’s Department of Agricultural Extension Services on Monday 14 December 2020 have initiated of a project aimed at strengthening national capacity to innovate in Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) called, Developing Capacities in Agricultural Innovation Systems: Scaling Up The Tropical Agriculture Platform Framework. 

The project, is funded by the European Union (EU) and is part of the wider initiative called Development of Smart Innovation through Research in Agriculture (DeSIRA): Towards climate-relevant Agricultural and Knowledge Innovation Systems, which is being implemented in nine countries of Malawi, Burkina Faso, Cambodia, Colombia, Eritrea, Lao PDR, Pakistan, Rwanda and Senegal.

Speaking on behalf of the FAO Representative, George Mvula, Head of Programme Planning, programming and Partnership at FAO said regarding the significant benefits of strengthened capacities in AIS to the national development agenda and the sustainable development goals:

“Strengthening capacities in AIS aligns very well with FAO’s mandate of achieving Sustainable Development Goal 2 of achieving Zero Hunger. A well-equipped AIS addresses the needs of the farmer through timely and relevant innovations aimed at solving the main challenges in the sector. A well-functioning AIS therefore, has the potential to stimulate agricultural development in Malawi, and contribute to the achievement of the Malawi Development and Growth Strategy (MDGS) III.”

On her part the Secretary for Agriculture, Mrs. Erica Maganga said:

“We need agricultural innovation to help address the complex and interconnected challenges facing agriculture including climate change, low production and productivity, poor markets, and others in the country. The challenges of the agricultural sector call for a collective effort from all stakeholders. Our common threats are hunger and poverty and if we work cooperatively, we will be able to overcome these.”

Globally the AIS approach is an emerging framework to analyse and explore solutions to complex agricultural problems. It emphasizes that agricultural innovation is not just about new technologies but also about social, organizational and institutional change taking place through interaction, knowledge sharing, co-creation, transformation, transmission, storage, retrieval, integration, diffusion and utilization of knowledge and information. The approach puts focus on the need to foster the feedback linkages between key AIS stakeholders. In line with the approach, the inception workshop had participation from multiple stakeholders including government, civil society, research institutions, and academia.

Developing capacities in Agricultural Innovation Systems is being implemented over a four-year period from July 2020 to July 2024. It receives funding of EUR 5 million of which $265,043 is earmarked for Malawi. Specifically, the project will assess countries’ agricultural innovation systems with the aim of identifying capacity needs for a comprehensive capacity development program for selected key innovation support services providers. Lessons from the project shall be documented as part of a learning review process for the evaluation of progress.

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For more information:

Towela Munthali

Communications Officer

FAO Malawi

Email: [email protected]

This news release was issued by the FAO Malawi

Twitter: @FAOMalawi

 Guest of honour, Secretary for Agriculture, Erica Maganga, gives remarks during inception workshop. ©FAO

Participant at the inception workshop. ©FAO

Workshop participants pose for a group photograph. ©FAO