Planning Workshop on Agroenterprise in Africa – August 2009

10–14 August 2009

In Southern and East Africa, Catholic Relief Services collaborates with numerous national and international partners in promoting agroenterprise development. A wide range of approaches, methods and tools for linking smallholder farmers to markets are being used. This is particularly true in southern Africa, where a number of large, multi-million dollar food security projects have been, or are being, initiated.

Purpose of the workshop

The workshop brings together staff of CRS, its partners and collaborators with the purpose of:

  • Understanding the agroenterprise demands and learning needs of the participating country programs, partners and collaborating agencies
  • Reviewing the different methodologies (and ICT) that CRS and other partner organizations are currently using to link smallholder farmers to markets
  • Discussing the strengths and gaps of the different methods, and identify potential complementarities and synergies between them
  • Agreeing on approaches for developing one or more “hybrid” methodologies that will be applied and evaluated in on-going or new development programs
  • Agreeing on a format for a continuing “learning alliance” that will bring all of the partners together regularly to evaluate methodologies at the field level, share learning and continuously strive to refine and improve methodologies for linking smallholder farmers to markets over the next 5 years

Program

Monday 10 August 2009

08.30–10.30 Session 1. Introduction to the workshop

11.00–12.00 Session 2. Learning alliances: theory and practice

12.00–13.00 Session 3. Learning needs from the countries

  • Group 1: Lesotho, Zimbabwe

14.00–15.15 Session 3. Learning needs from the countries (cont.)

  • Group 2: Malawi, Zambia, Madagasacar

15.30–16.45 Session 3. Learning needs from the countries (cont.)

  • Group 3: Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia

11 August 2009

08.45–10.30 Session 4. Approaches, methods, tools for linking farmers to markets

11.00–13.00 Session 4. Approaches, methods, tools for linking farmers to markets (cont.)

14.00–15.00 Policies and financing of market oriented agricultural development

  • Alliance for Commodity Trade in East and Southern Africa and Food For Peace

15.15–17.15 Session 6. Cross-cutting themes relevant for agroenterprise development

  • Multiple skill set for farmer groups
  • Agroenterprise and gender
  • Watershed and NR management and agroenterprise
  • Agroenterprise and ICTs

12 August 2009

08.45–10.00 Session 4. Approaches, methods, tools for linking farmers to markets (cont.)

10.15–13.00 Session 7. Building value chains

  • The fish farming value chain (Project Concern International)
  • The sunflower or bird’s eye chili value chain (Emmanuel International)
  • Doing business with smallholder farmers and their organizations (Rab Processors)

Plenary discussion followed by panel commentary

14.00–15.00 Session 4. Approaches, methods and tools for linking farmers to markets (cont.)

13 August 2009

Session 8. Matching demands with supply

  • Content: what needs to be done and where it will be done
  • Process: how it will done and who will do it and in what time frame
  • Management: a) what are common outputs, b) how are we going to communicate collectively, c) how are we going to mentor, monitor and evaluate our progress, and d) how much is it going to cost

14 August 2009

08.45 – 10.00 Session 8. Plenary that pulls together content, process, and management for each working group

10.30-13.00 Session 9. Wrap up.

Comments are closed.