HASTEN Lecture: Advancing agrifood innovation systems through inclusive approaches in science, technology and innovation – Key lessons from Ethiopia and Peru

04/12/2025

RWANDA, 2025.

©FAO/Jean Baptiste Nkurunziza

Background

In 2024, FAO launched the HASTEN project to empower the next-generation of agrifood leaders in Lesotho, Sierra Leone, and Rwanda to drive sustainable agrifood systems transformation. This lecture series is the second element of the project’s capacity-building component, designed in response to country-identified priorities and knowledge gaps. Targeting young professionals across public, private and academic sectors, the series emphasizes transdisciplinary systems thinking and SDG interlinkages. The sessions build on findings from inception missions and a capacity survey, as well as insights from a 2025 study visit to Ireland. The lectures aim to deepen understanding of systems transformation and inspire context-relevant leadership and innovation across sectors.

Lecture: 'Advancing agrifood innovation systems through inclusive approaches in science, technology and innovation – Key lessons from Ethiopia and Peru'

This lecture explored how inclusive digital innovations can help tackle major challenges in agrifood systems transformation and advance the Sustainable Development Goals. Focusing on the experiences of small scale and family farmers and micro-, small- and medium-sized enterprises, it looked at persistent barriers that limit the identification, access and adoption of digital technologies, and explored practical ways to overcome them. The lecture featured case studies from Ethiopia and Peru presented by practitioners, offering concrete examples of how digital solutions are already unlocking new opportunities for farmers and agrifood enterprises.

Speakers

	Moderator Hajnalka Petrics Programme Officer, Office of SDGs, FAO Hajnalka Petrics is a Programme Officer at FAO's Office of Sustainable Development Goals, where she leads the Prototyping and Acceleration Portfolio. She heads the FAO SDG Agrifood Accelerator Programme and the HASTEN FVC Project, which promote eco-inclusive and social agripreneurship. Previously, she was the Global Coordinator of the RBA-EU Joint Programme on Gender Transformative Approaches for Food Security and Nutrition. She also served as a Gender and Development Officer in FAO’s Gender Team, leading work on CEDAW implementation, gender-responsive policies, and rural advisory services. Earlier in her career, she was a Rural Development and Gender Technical Officer at FAO's Regional Office for Europe and Central Asia. Hajnalka holds a PhD in International Cooperation and Sustainable Development Policies, and an MA in Policies and Governance of European Integration from the University of Bologna.
	Henry van Burgsteden Senior Innovation Officer, Digital Agriculture Lead, Office of Innovation, FAO Henry is a national of the Netherlands with more than 20 years of experience in digital innovation. He has always explored new boundaries for the use of digital solutions for agrifood systems transformation and accelerating the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. He firmly believes digital technologies are a powerful means of implementing agrifood systems transformation through speed and scale of uptake; reduced deployment costs; growth in public awareness; delivery of innovation, connectivity, productivity and efficiency gains across sectors. In the framework of FAO’s work, it is about creating value and impact for achieving the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31, the FAO Science and Innovation strategy and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) action agenda, leaving no one behind. This means special attention for the most vulnerable people; women, youth and the rural poor. He leads the FAO Programme Priority Area on Digital Agriculture that is part of the FAO Strategic Framework 2022-31, and leads the Digital Agriculture Unit in the FAO Office of Innovation, and acts as Lead Technical Officer of the Global Network of Digital Agriculture Innovation Hubs.
	Fruit Tessema Innovation Specialist Digital Agriculture, Office of Innovation, FAO Fruit serves as an Innovation Specialist in Digital Agriculture at the FAO Office of Innovation, where she advances initiatives to transform agrifood systems using inclusive and scalable digital solutions. She plays a pivotal role in the establishment of Digital Agriculture & Innovation Hubs, providing support to agri-tech startups and rural innovators and actively promoting youth engagement within rural communities. Her portfolio includes the development of digital advisory services, design of capacity-development programmes and creation of knowledge products that facilitate the widespread adoption and scaling of digital innovations. Before joining FAO, Fruit held a pivotal position at the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), where she led strategic efforts to cultivate ICT-driven innovation ecosystems for startups and SMEs. Her role extended to policy design, institutional alignment, capacity building, and the management of innovation funds, with special emphasis on fostering entrepreneurship among women and youth through innovative financing models. Fruit’s strategic vision for digital transformation was further honed during her tenure at Ethiopia’s Ministry of Innovation and Technology, where she served as Senior Product and Service Engineering Expert and team leader. She spearheaded technology-driven productivity enhancements in agro-processing, managed end-to-end product lifecycles and provided technical guidance to MSMEs, startups and smallholder farmers, reinforcing the foundation for digital innovation in the sector. A committed advocate for gender equity in science and technology, Fruit is a fellow of the African Women in Agricultural Research and Development (AWARD) program and an active member of the Society of Women in Science and Technology (SEWIST), championing the advancement of women in STEM and digital agriculture.
	Robinson López Monzón Founder of IDENTI Robinson López Monzón is a mechanical electrical engineer and holds a Master’s degree in Automation and Process Optimization from the University of Piura. He is a member of the Royal Academy of Engineering UK and was recognized in 2020 as a "Visionary" in the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Under 35 list. He is the winner of the Inclusive Innovation Challenge 2019, organized by the prestigious MIT in the United States, as well as the Everis Award 2019, granted by the renowned international consultancy Everis NTT DATA. He achieved first place in the Financial Inclusion Laboratory of the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) in 2020. Additionally, he was chosen as one of the 21 heroes of the bicentennial in Peru and is currently featured in the book “Disruptive Innovators in Peru.” He has also managed and executed projects funded by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), World Food Programme (WFP), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), and USAID. Regarding prestigious acceleration programmes, he has participated as an Alumni in: HZero from the WFP Innovation Hub, Startup Chile, Endeavor, Seedstars, Nxtp Labs, UNESCO, Social Lab, and Utec Ventures. He is the founder and president of IDENTI, a non-profit association that provides blockchain technological infrastructure, backed by the IDB LAB, to companies and organizations from various sectors to develop projects that enhance their triple impact. His purpose is to work on developing technologies that positively impact vulnerable communities, to build a more inclusive, equitable, and sustainable world.