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Supporting Smallholder Farmers in Asia and Pacific-Islands Region with Agricultural Advisory Services

Quick Facts:

  • 6 June 2016 to 30 June 2019
  • Bangladesh, Fiji, and the Philippines
  • International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)

The goal of the project is to empower poor smallholder farmers and producer organizations in Asia-Pacific Region (APR) through access to improved, more effective, and demand-driven agricultural advisory services (AAS). The objectives are to:

  1. Strengthen individual and organizational capacities of agricultural advisory services stakeholders in the target countries and at regional and sub-regional level which will directly benefit poor farmers, indigenous communities, and producer organizations.
  2. Facilitate the availability and accessibility of appropriate and up-to-date knowledge and evidence on innovative advisory services from a range of sources in the APR region (through country fora and through Asia-Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services network (APIRAS)) and worldwide (through Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS)).

Key activities by component:

  1. Strengthen capacities of AAS to effectively serve the accessibility needs of smallholder farmers:
    1. Identify demand-driven needs for AAS in specific countries by gender;
    2. Facilitate establishment of demand-driven country platforms, and establishment and strengthening of sub-regional networks of APIRAS;
    3. Support APIRAS strategic planning workshop to develop regional, sub-regional, and national strategies for AAS and integrate/synthesize common programs across country fora (individual, organizational, policy levels);
    4. Validate identified capacity development needs from previous studies through a capacity workshop in the region, and develop capacity plans for country platforms at all levels;
    5. Review curricula within AAS educational and training programs and improve the same through conducting capacity strengthening and networking with the Extension Education Consortium of GFRAS;
    6. Promote inter-regional, inter-sectorial, and south-south networking, capacity strengthening, and exchange; and
    7. Collaborate with others in the region undertaking similar capacity development activities.
  2. Knowledge sharing of best-fit practices and evidence in AAS:
    1. Develop a database of innovative and sustainable extension approaches that work at scale as a public good;
    2. Document and share good practices in AAS provision through websites and also APIRAS Regional Forum 2017;
    3. Undertake studies and regional syntheses of AAS and conduct institutional analysis of AAS provision (public as well as private) in the region using the GFRAS "global good practices" framework; and
    4. Compile existing material/ information/publications on AAS and updates from APIRAS members and sharing through websites.
  3. Evidence-based policy advocacy for AAS:
    1. Identify AAS issues in need of quick response studies; organize think tank ad hoc groups to analyze issues and give recommendations;
    2. Represent AAS in national, sub- regional, regional, and global discussions and fora on agricultural and rural development; and
    3. Influence policy by organizing policy dialogs on AAS at national and sub-regional and regional levels.

Associated Firms

  • Agricultural Training Institute – Department of Agriculture (DA-ATI)
  • Asia-Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services Network (APIRAS)
  • Bangladesh Extension Network (BAEN)
  • Agricultural Extension in South Asia (AESA)-Centre for Research on Innovation and Science Policy (CRISP)
  • Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC)
  • Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services Network (PIRAS)
  • Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS)

Project Details

  • Supporting Smallholder Farmers in Asia and Pacific-Islands Region with Agricultural Advisory Services
  • Completed
  • Bangladesh, Fiji, and the Philippines
  • International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)
    • Agricultural Training Institute – Department of Agriculture (DA-ATI)
    • Asia-Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services Network (APIRAS)
    • Bangladesh Extension Network (BAEN)
    • Agricultural Extension in South Asia (AESA)-Centre for Research on Innovation and Science Policy (CRISP)
    • Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC)
    • Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services Network (PIRAS)
    • Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS)
  • 6 Jun 2016 31 Dec 2019