Project update: Dec 2009-June 2010

Sally Baden, Project Manager, June 28

Project Plan

Key milestones: planningDue Milestone Progress/ Next Steps

Feb 10 Project plans completed

Overall plan drafted and management system agreed: March 2010

First draft plan completed/updated: April/ May

Revision of plans and first progress report

Feb 10 Research plans completed

Researchers contracted/ Initial country plans developed and reviewed: Jan 2010..\Women & Ag Research Project\workplans\SWLCA Workplan 2010 Final TZ.xls

Detailed plans for survey

Mar 10 Baseline survey completed

Survey tool developed for national stakeholder dialogues. ..\Women & Ag Research Project\monitoring and evaluation\Survey Ethiopia Natl SD v2 revised2.doc

Used in Mali, Ethiopia

Data analysis, widening baselineMar 10 International

Advisory Group convened

Members identified: Dec-March

Initial invitations: April-May

Meeting planning and organisation: May-June

Follow up on meeting recommendations

Key milestones: researchDue Milestone Progress/ Next steps

Feb 10 Literature review completed

First draft Lit review: March

Revised in response to internal comments: May

Next steps: Revisions in line with IAG/ peer reviewer comments

Apr 10 Sub-sectors selected for research

National SDs agree 3 sub-sectors per region in each country (6 total per country): April

Preliminary analysis of sub-sectors carried out: May/June including initial inventory of CA.

Further sub-sector analysis; finalising CA inventory

June 10 Survey sample, design and instruments approved by IAG

Survey methodology note developed based on literature review, country reports, and initial inventory of CA.

Detailed design of survey sample, questionnaire in each country and planning of survey

Key milestones: communications

Due Milestone Progress/ Next steps

Jan 10 Communications specialist in place

Learning and comms coordinator in post - Feb

Review of comms capacity and needs in country underway: May-June

Feb 10 Overall comms strategy and plans agreed

Workshop / planning sessions with countries: April-May

Draft strategy finalised with country inputs – June

Overall and country plans to be finalised

Mar 10 Project ‘ning’/ website launched

Wiki pages launched for project team – April 10

Regular updating of wiki

To link to wider ‘ning’ under development

Key milestones: communicationsDue Milestone Progress/ Next steps

Mar 10 First news update Communication on project start: Jan 2010

Country and global newsletter(s) finalised: June 010

Dissemination of newsletters – quarterly updates thereafter

Mar 10 Plan for ‘webinars’ completed

Content and timeline under development

April 10 First round of Stakeholder dialogues completed

2 regional and 1 national SD completed and documented per country

Wide dissemination of outputs

Consolidation of reference groups

April 10 Existing tools shared

To be shared via ‘Ning’ which is under development

June 2010

First ‘webinar’ hosted

As above: Under development

Key successes and opportunities

• Pulling together a diverse team and developing common understanding

• Initial communications generate wide interest• Stakeholder dialogues: engage rural women;

provide inputs to engagement in research; identify potential linkages

• Good initial progress on research design• Greater visibility of women smallholder and

collective action issues

Key challenges and risks

• Maintaining commitment and quality across large and geographically spread team

• Keeping focus of research and ensuring quality of process and outputs

• Sustaining stakeholder engagement in research process

• Time required greater than anticipated, e.g: stakeholder dialogues; research supervision

Key lessons and adjustments

• Need for project team meetings • Country communications from outset• Consistency of research approach ->

close supervision• Some need to complement resources