Inclusion is a key issue for Agricultural Research for Development (ARD). Development goals in and of themselves call for better livelihoods and opportunities for the less privileged actors working in agriculture. They also call for greater equity and balanced representation of the population at an institutional level. This brief focuses on how ARD processes can more sensitively address gender relations and youth issues. Women and young people have distinctive needs and interests which can be less visible within broader “Producer Organizations”, for example.
Networks and organizations need to find ways to be more effective in pursuing their objectives and thus seek to “learn” to be able to respond, innovate and adapt to complex, changing social and environmental conditions, thus bringing about social change. An essential capacity for ARD (Agricultural Research for Development) partnerships is therefore the ability to reflect and learn. Learning is not simply about increasing knowledge and skills or changing attitudes; it is about making sense of complexity to act more effectively.
Although it is not always acknowledged, power differences between partners fundamentally affect Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) partnerships. In referring to its African-European ARD partnerships, PAEPARD has often alluded to aspects of power without naming them as such. The project was established to create “equitable and balanced partnerships” between: a) researchers and research users, and b) African and European partners.
The nature of the issues around which Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) partnerships are formed requires a different way of conceptualizing and thinking to that commonly found in many agricultural professionals. This brief clarifies the components of a system of interest to an ARD partnership.
The purpose of this paper is to compare and analyze agricultural transition periods in order to provide a new framework for agricultural development in Iran. Considering the foreseeable future, an innovative or knowledge-based economy will substitute the obsolete economy. In that respect, agriculture sector must adapt to these alternations in order to cope with the posed challenges. Multifunctional agriculture seems to be an enhanced alternative in which entrepreneurship is at the center of it
Development processes, economic growth and agricultural modernization affect women and men in different ways and have not been gender neutral. Women are highly involved in agriculture, but their contribution tends to be undervalued and overseen. Sustainable agricultural innovations may include trade-offs and negative side-effects for women and men, or different social groups, depending on the intervention type and local context. Promising solutions are often technology-focused and not necessarily developed with consideration of gender and social disparity aspects.
Information and Communication Technology (ICT) development strategy in Chinese rural areas is an indispensable part of national development strategies. This paper reviews the ICT framework in agriculture and rural areas launched by the Department of Agriculture in China. It compares the rural ICT policies and strategies between China and the European Union (EU). The ICT development strategy framework is analyzed based on the situation in Chinese rural area and the experiences of the EU. Some lessons and suggestions are provided
China is at a critical stage of transformation from traditional to modern agriculture and its agriculture and rural economic sector faces severe challenges of shortage of natural resources, environmental degradation, agricultural disasters, sluggish income growth of farmers and widening disparity between urban and rural areas. The fundamental solution to these problems lies with the advancement of agricultural science and technology.
Under the guidance of the agricultural system theory, operational research theory and decision-making support system theory, the regional agricultural development decision support system (RADDSS) was developed in this study ,in which different analysis method and models was integrated. By providing data, right models and analysis methods, RADDSS can assist decision-makers and administrators to solve half-structured and unstructured problems, improving level of management on agriculture. The agriculture in Xuchang has been analyzed using the system constructed in this study.
This paper highlights lessons learned from the development of PAEPARD-supported consortia, which illustrate various impacts of brokerage. The preliminary conclusions and recommendations may appear obvious at first sight, but will be useful for informing the implementation of brokerage activities until PAEPARD activities come to an end in December 2017.