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Activities / Pillar 4: Information and Communications
Pillar 4: Information and Communications
Innovative ways of promoting policy dialogue and communicating research outcomes have been introduced by the Project, particularly since 2003, and integrated into the functioning of NAPC as an agricultural policy research organization: Agricultural Policy Forums, Newsletters, Website, as well as the realization of an extensive Syrian Agricultural Database and the set up of a NAPC Intranet .
Enhancement of NAPC communication capacity is seen as a main issue for the new institution as it aims at establishing domestic and international links. The Project has promoted debates and facilitated extensive dissemination of the Center's publications (reports, working papers, training materials, biannual newsletter and proceedings) on paper, CD-ROM and Internet.
Since the first Phase of the Project, major policy studies have been discussed with policy makers and other stakeholders. To this effect, since 2000, the Project has supported the organization of three National Agricultural Policy Workshops and a number of events under the heading Agricultural Policy Forum, a new institutional feature in Syria, which sees the participation of practitioners from various ministries and universities, as well as stakeholders from the private sector and civil society organizations, allowing policy analysts to present and revis16-May-20063, the Project supported the NAPC in organizing, with FAO, a Regional Workshop on Institution Building for Agricultural Policies in the Near East with the participation of representatives from 15 countries of the region and various intergovernmental and academic organizations. In the Regional Workshop the experience of the Project in building the Syrian National Agricultural Policy Center was presented as an example. Participants from Afghanistan, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey and Yemen, discussed the options for establishing institutional capacity for policy development and analysis in their home countries.
Through these Forums, the Project has been promoting the circulation of ideas and increased the level of awareness in public and private institutions of agricultural development topics.
Intranet
The Project has started up and developed an Intranet website in its effort to build a well-organized information system at the NAPC. Beside providing a basis for sharing information within the Center and to serve as primary resource for data and documents, the Intranet intends to support the coordination of work activity both formally and informally, the building of awareness of people's skills and project experience, and the accumulation of knowledge and expertise over time.
SYRIAN AGRICULTURE DATABASE
The Syrian Agriculture Database (SAD) was launched online in 2003, as a web-searchable service fostering essential information-sharing. It is founded on the policy analysis database and data handbook, published by the Project in 2001, and presents a new user-friendly electronic interface, based on the FAOSTAT database, available on the NAPC website at www.napcsyr.org/sad.htm, on the FAOSTAT site, as well as on CD-ROM.
The Syrian Agriculture Database comprises general economic and agricultural data; production data by governorate and agro-ecological zone for winter and summer crops, fruit and forest trees, livestock products; crop budgets for main field and tree crops. The substantial on-the-job training delivered during the production of SAD has allowed NAPC staff to develop the skills needed to maintain, update, and extend coverage of the SAD, which presently includes also trade and census data.
Newsletter
The NAPC half-yearly Newsletter is one the main tools for enhancing the visibility of the Center and spreading its research results. It keeps the readers abreast of the latest developments in the dialogue on agricultural policy, and is a key element for enhancing the exchange of information and fostering the collaboration of different institutions.
NAPC Web Site at www.napcsyr.org
The Project provided assistance for the establishment and maintenance of the NAPC Web Site, a tool for further fostering international dialogue on agricultural policy. To this effect, a NAPC task force supported by the Project has established the site on the internet, with the objective of ensuring easy accessibility to the Database, the Library, the Newsletter and NAPC publications and to promote international visibility of the Center.
NAPC EVENTS
With the support of the Project, the NAPC has been holding seminars and debates on issues of relevance for Syrian agricultural development. In 2002 the Center institutionalized the Agricultural Policy Forum, a new tool in Syria for raising public awareness of agricultural development, promoting the debate on agricultural policy issues among national and international experts, stakeholders and policy makers in order to provide technical background for the policy making process, and to obtain suggestions for NAPC research and policy advice activities. The forums see the participation of the press, staff from ministries and universities, private sector and other civil society organization.
Agricultural Policy Workshops
• 1st National Agricultural Policy Workshop (held in November 2000, before the official establishment of the Agricultural Policy Forum.) Main Topics and speakers: 1. A proposal for an “Agricultural Development Strategy” (Sarris, Greece); 2. “The Citrus Sub-sector: Analysis and Policy Options” (Westlake, United Kingdom); 3.“Agro-food Marketing in Syria” (Rama, Italy); 4. “The Livestock Sub-sector” (Cummins, Australia, S. A. Madani, FAO RNE, Cairo); 5. “The Olive Oil Sub-sector” (Malevolti, Italy).
• 2nd National Agricultural Policy Workshop. Main Topics and speakers: 1. "Implications for the Syrian Agricultural Sector of a Possible Co-operation and Trade Agreement with the European Union" (Alvarez Coque, Spain); 2. “The Utilization of Water Resources for Agriculture: Analysis of the Current Regime and Policy” (Ortega , Spain); 3. "A Strategy for the Development of Syrian Agriculture” (Sarris, Greece).
• 3rd National Agricultural Policy Workshop. Main Topics and speakers: 1. "The Farming Systems in the Syrian Arab Republic" (Horst, Germany); 2. "Comparative Advantage of Selected Syrian Agricultural Products" (Lancon, France) 3. "Syrian Accession to WTO: Requirements and Opportunities" (Alvarez Coque, Spain; and El Hindi, Syria).
Agricultural Policy Forums
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Proceedings)
• Strategic Options for Syrian Agricultural Policy (De Benedictis and Anania, Italy; Shibani and El Hindi, Syria)
• Organic Farming: European Markets and Opportunities for Syria (Santucci, Italy)
• Economic Liberalization and Agriculture (Kydd, UK)
• WTO Negotiations on Agriculture: Implications for Developing Countries (El Amin, FAO)
• Agricultural Globalisation in Developing Countries (Rao, India)
• Agricultural Policies Changes in the EU (De Filippis, Italy)
• Export of Fruit and Vegetables to the EU Markets (Coque, Spain)
• Food and Agriculture in a Globalizing World Economy (Gorgoni, Italy)
• The Great Arab Free Trade Area: Impact on Arab Economies (Al Abrash, Syria)
• Monitoring Implementation of the GAFTA Agreement (Metz, Germany; Husni, Syria)
• Syrian Accession to the WTO (Mc Clatchy, New Zealand)
• Agriculture and Rural-Urban Migration (Vercueil, France)
• Agriculture in the Syrian-EU Association Agreement (El Hindi, Syria; Zeller, EU)
• New Orientations of Syrian Agricultural Policy (Alloush, Syria)
• The State of Food and Agriculture in Syria 2005 (Grad and Al Droubi, Syria)
Regional Workshop
• Regional Workshop on Institution Building for Agricultural Policy in the Near East . Main Topics and speakers: 1. "Food and Agricultural Policies in the Near East" (Vercueil, France); 2. "Institutional Capacity Development for Food and Agriculture Policies: Requirements and Approaches" (Salvatici)
Ms Maria Grazia Quieti (Part II)
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