Food security is a critical challenge – the World Bank includes it among the eight global challenges to be addressed at scale in 2024. Climate shocks, economic instability and geopolitics have significantly impacted crop yields and food supply chains.
The OECD Mission Action Lab critically examines the practice of missions and mission-oriented policies as well as their suitability to different problem contexts. Addressing complex challenges comes first, methods come second. The Lab is, thus, not promoting "missions" as the one and only instrument to address complex problems or societal transitions. Rather, we aim to understand when and how mission as an approach to public policies is useful and, sometimes more importantly, when it is not.
Despite the concept's widespread popularity, the terminology surrounding missions can come across as convoluted. This is understandable, given that the term - which denotes ambitious, time bound, cross-sectoral and measurable policy objectives to address grand societal challenges such as climate change mitigation, biosphere restoration or tackling health inequities - has proven to be both deceptively intricate and remarkably versatile.
The Guide to Effective Collaborative Action is built on the foundation of 10 years' experience in transforming food and agricultural commodity systems by UNDP's Green Commodities Programme. It is broadening the application from support to commodity production to the transformation of food systems. The four building blocks of putting systems change into practice, integrated with backbone support and essential practices for stakeholder actions, provide a framework for Changing Systems through Collaborative Action.
Multi-actors innovation platforms (MAIPs) are increasingly deployed as a model for participatory and inclusive innovation to address the challenges of sustainability in complex systems like the agri-food systems. The facilitation of co-innovation and multi-actor partnerships is critical to the success of MAIPs, as a common lesson learned across the multitude of initiatives around the world. The guideline was developed for Master Trainers to train MAIP facilitators. The guideline first gives an introduction to the definiton, principles, design, establishment and facilitation of MAIPs.
Mission-Oriented Innovation Policies (MOIPs) are one approach that can advance the required transformations. As our colleague Philippe Larrue noted in a 2021 paper, MOIPs are "a co-ordinated package of policy and regulatory measures tailored specifically to mobilise science, technology and innovation in order to address well-defined objectives related to a societal challenge, in a defined timeframe".
Cambodia’s development is strongly influenced by growth in the agriculture sector. In this context, the modernization of agriculture has been highly regarded by the government as a long-term strategy to transform traditional labour-based agriculture into technology-based and with that to effectively enhance the country’s further regional integration within the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. In support of this strategic vision, a participatory assessment of the Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) was conducted in coordination with the General Department of Agriculture (GDA) and su
The 2021 Global Report on Food Crises (GRFC 2021) highlights the remarkably high severity and numbers of people in Crisis or worse (IPC/CH Phase 3 or above) or equivalent in 55 countries/territories, driven by persistent conflict, pre-existing and COVID-19-related economic shocks, and weather extremes. The number identified in the 2021 edition is the highest in the report’s five-year existence. The report is produced by the Global Network against Food Crises (which includes WFP), an international alliance working to address the root causes of extreme hunger.
The national assessment of the agricultural innovation system (AIS) in Malawi was conducted using a framework of four types of analyses: functional, structural, capacity and enabling environment analysis. The approach included five case studies that addressed three methods including the use of indigenous methods for fall armyworm (FAW) control in Farmer Field Schools (FFS), livestock transfer programs, and a horticulture marketing innovation platform in Mzimba, Ntchisi, Balaka, and Thyolo districts.
This report introduces the reader to the concept of agricultural innovation systems (AIS) and the TAP-AIS project being implemented by FAO in nine countries, including Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR). The results of the AIS assessment for Lao PDR are presented, highlighting key barriers and opportunities for agricultural innovation in the country.