The Agribusiness for Trade Competitiveness Project (ATC-P), branded as Katalyst, is a pioneer market systems development project contributing to sustainable poverty reduction in Bangladesh. It is implemented by Swisscontact under the umbrella of the Ministry of Commerce, Government of Bangladesh. The project has been operating in Bangladesh since 2003 in three phases.
This publication is providing a glimpse into how Katalyst is realising systemic change by making market systems more inclusive. As a result of the systemic changes, farmers are empowered to increase their incomes and improve their livelihoods, private companies are changing their business models as they recognize the buying power of small farmers and cater to their needs, and the public sector fulfills its role of supporting the poor more effectively by creating conducive enabling environments.
Often, farmers excessively use chemical pesticides with detrimental effects on environmental and human health.The ‘Commercialising Bio-Pesticides in Bangladesh’ mini case study explains how the Katalyst project and private sector partner Ispahani Agro Ltd. formulated a policy recommendation on the amendment of the 1985 Pesticide Act to make the proper registration and marketing of “Bio-Pesticides” possible, allowing companies to market and distribute IPM products to a mass audience.
The case studies use a framework developed jointly by Katalyst project and Springfield Centre to capture changes of market systems supported by the project. They describe developments in input markets of vegetable, farmed fish and in the maize production and how they contribute to an inclusive economic growth with benefits for small and poor farmers and for private companies in Bangladesh.
The extensive case study on ‘Improving Public Agricultural Extension Services in Bangladesh Using the M4P Approach’ illustrates Katalyst project’s experience in terms of designing interventions in the Local Government Services (LGS) sector, from testing them in small scale towards scaling-up and the accompanying challenges. The case study shows how innovative public-private partnerships create a vast impact on the lives of poor farmers in Bangladesh.
Inclusive Market Development (IMD) has potential to promote the economic development of the country through the collaborative efforts of different stakeholders (both public and private), by establishing new norms, delivering well-targeted programmes, and providing support to accelerate the pace of change.
The Guidance Note on Operationalization provides a brief recap of the conceptual underpinnings and principles of the TAP Common Framework as well as a more detailed guide to operationalization of the proposed dual pathways approach. It offers also a strategy for monitoring and evaluation as well as a toolbox of select tools that may be useful at the different stages of the CD for AIS cycle.
To enhance integrated rainwater management in crop-livestock systems in the Volta basin of Burkina Faso, innovation platforms (IP) comprising of multiple stakeholders were established in the districts of Koubri and Ouahigouya. Quarterly IP meetings were organized to collectively identify and prioritize constraints and opportunities, and to design and implement strategies to address them. IP represents an example of putting the agricultural innovations systems’ perspective into practice.
The capacity scoring questionnaire is an instrument that can be used when assessing the systems capacities of innovation partnerships or organizations in order to identify strengths and weaknesses and monitor change over time. It thus supports the design and implementation of successful capacity development interventions for agricultural innovation. This questionnaire has been developed in two versions (Version 1 and Version 2) and has been piloted in several countries in the context of the Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems (CDAIS).
The capacity scoring questionnaire is an instrument that can be used when assessing the systems capacities of innovation partnerships or organizations in order to identify strengths and weaknesses and monitor change over time. It thus supports the design and implementation of successful capacity development interventions for agricultural innovation. This questionnaire has been developed in two versions (Version 1 and Version 2) and has been piloted in several countries in the context of the Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems (CDAIS).