Grants for agricultural innovation are common but grant funds specifically targeted to smallholder farmers remain relatively rare. Nevertheless, they are receiving increasing recognition as a promising venue for agricultural innovation. They stimulate smallholders to experiment with improved practices, to become proactive and to engage with research and extension providers. The systematic review covered three modalities of disbursing these grants to smallholder farmers and their organisations: vouchers, competitive grants and farmer-led innovation support funds.

This paper outlines key areas of intervention that are identified as the core of FAO's strategy on strengthening Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) across multiple areas of work (e.g. research and extension, agroecology, biotechnology, green jobs, resourcing etc.) for achieving sustainable rural development.

The 2016 Rural Development Report focuses on inclusive rural transformation as a central element of the global efforts to eliminate poverty and hunger, and build inclusive and sustainable societies for all. It analyses global, regional and national pathways of rural transformation, and suggests four categories into which most countries and regions fall, each with distinct objectives for rural development strategies to promote inclusive rural transformation: to adapt, to amplify, to accelerate, and a combination of them.

Afghanistan-ICARDA programs have field tested a range of rural development approaches and practices. Many of these are ripe for scaling-up at national level and can contribute to the EU-Afghanistan National Priority Programs (NPP) 2017-2021.

This study has been produced with the overall goal to document and analyse exisiting best practices in the field of RWHI management in sub-Saharan Africa, with a special focus on Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. This is meant to determine the suitability of RWHI management under multivariate biophysical and socioeconomic conditions. The best practices include specific information and know-how on the performance, cost-efficiency and impacts of RWHI technologies.

These recommendations are a compilation of 2 regional studies at sub-Saharan Africa level which focused on research and technology transfer in the field of rainwater harvesting irrigatio nmanagement on one hand (section 3), and effective policy recommendations on the use of rainwater for off-season small-scale irrigation on the other (section 4). The regional studies upon which this transnational study is based come from the analysis of national studies in Ethiopia, Kenya, Mozambique and Zimbabwe.

The CCAFS (CGIAR Research Program on Climate Change Agriculture and Food Security) annual report for 2016 describes impact through policies and partnerships, capacity development and innovative communication, breakthrough science and innovation and integrating gender and youth. It features regional highlights and publications, and lists the people involved, financial summary, and our donors. 

Working with women in the agriculture sector in Pakistan poses a challenge as agricultural extension and development staff are predominantly male and interactions for women with men outside the family are culturally not acceptable. At the same time, women in Pakistan play an equal role in agriculture as well as taking responsibility for household chores, including cooking and taking care of the nutrition of the family.