Research Into Use Programme

Supporting Innovation - Changing Lives

Andy Frost

For FANRPAN Workshop May 2007

Overview

Who we are1What is the Research Into Use programme2What we propose to do and how we intend to do it3

Who are the Research into Use management partners?

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NRInternational

UK

NIDAUganda

MichaelFlint

(& PARC)UK

Getting Researchinto Use

Monitoring & Evaluation

Impact Assessment

Key TeamDirector Tim Donaldson

PROGRAMME ADVISORY BOARD

What is the Research into Use programme?

• Research Into Use Programme (RIU) is a new initiative funded by DFID UK – not a traditional research programme

• It proposes to scale up research and maximise impact from DFID’s previous agricultural research investment (1995-2006) in SSA and South Asia

• It will capture lessons to increase the understanding of how promotion and widespread use of such research can contribute to poverty reduction and economic growth

• It is a £37.5 million programme which will run for five years linking to existing scaling up initiatives in SSA and South Asia

• To be launched on 14th June at the FARA AGM

East Africa Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda

Southern Africa Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, Zimbabwe

South Asia Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Cambodia, China, India, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan, Vietnam

West Africa DR Congo, Ghana, Nigeria, Sierra Leone

Where?

How

• Linked to existing initiatives

e.g. the AU NEPAD Comprehensive African Agricultural Development Programme’s round table processes, national and regional initiatives, e.g. FARA, FANRPAN and ASARECA scaling up initiative (TUUSI), the Indian National Agricultural Innovation Programme

Five interlinked themes for scaling up research outputs

• Policy Advocacy & Partnership Development to work with agencies with common purposes in scaling up successes and to broker new coalitions of partners

• Communications and Information Markets to improve access to research information and improve promotion of success stories

• Capacity strengthening to improve stakeholder participation and sustainability of interactions beyond the programme

• Innovation platforms to stimulate new approaches in transforming research knowledge into goods and services for the poor

• Monitoring and learning to assess what has been achieved and how lessons can be shared with wider stakeholders

The RIU concept: Greater focus on research users

Working DOWN from the information supply from research

Interpret, summarise, collate, transfer, annotate,

reformat, organise, archive,

Build users’ capacity to source, evaluate

and apply information in decision-making

Working UP from research users

Information markets www.mpaisuganda.com

Marketplace for agricultural information

www.sictafpiloto.net

El Sistema de Información y Conocimiento Tecnológico para

el sector Agropecuario y Forestal

(SICTAF)

Demand, supply assessments and matching exercise Jan-March 2007

1600 DFID projects

Supply assessment of research information

from 400 outputs

High/Lowdemand in focus countries

25 DFID target countries

Demand diagnoses in 6

focus Countries/regions

High/Low supply of information

Scheme for determining appropriate intervention type for scaling up research outputs (how we will work)

(New research)

Strengthen capacity to supply

Promote ‘best-bet’ technologies and processes

Partnership buildingDevelop information markets

Strengthen capacity to innovate

Strengthen communication and learning

Partnership building

Strengthening communication and learning

Strengthen capacity to demand and supply

(New research)

Partnership building

Strengthen communication and learning

Strengthen capacity to demand

Effective demand for information products and services

High

Low

HighLow

Current Supply of relevant information products and services

Research Into Use work plan(July 2006 - March 2007)

• Scoping studies of the five intervention areas– To identify opportunities and the development of strategic plans

• Establishment of governance structures

• Demand for research knowledge identified through in-country and regional assessments e.g. CAADP Round Table processes and RIU country assessments (six to date)

• Supply of best research knowledge identified (technologies, processes and policies) from previous research activities

• Process to develop a matching exercise to identify priority initiatives in countries and regions and intervention points for RIU

In summary

Acts as a catalyst & conduitto maximise poverty reducing impact of existing and new knowledge

Unblocking the barriers through supporting innovation to improve livelihoods

Thank you