A key component of the TAP Action Plan, the Common Framework is designed to promote better coherence and greater impact of Capacity Development (CD) in support of Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) in the tropics. 

The TAP Common Framework focuses on 1) consolidating the diversity of approaches to CD for AIS; 2) promoting a shift of mind set and attitudes using an AIS perspective; 3) providing concepts, principles, approaches and tools to better understand the AIS architecture, assess CD needs, and plan, implement, and evaluate CD interventions; 4) emphasizing the role of facilitation, learning, documentation and knowledge management for enabling innovation.

The Common Framework was developed in 2015 through a highly participatory process, incorporating inputs from a wide range of experts chosen from donors, research, extension and education institutions as well as international organizations involved in the field of agricultural innovation. 

After being approved by TAP partners in January 2016, the Framework is now applied in eight pilot countries (Angola, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, Laos and Rwanda) through the EU-funded project on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems (CDAIS).