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Africa
A selection of S&T organisations in Africa.

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International
A selection of international S&T organizations.

The Caribbean
A selection of S&T organisations in the Caribbean.

The Pacific
A selection of S&T organisations in the Pacific.

ACP S&T dialogue

Demanding Innovation
Researchers in ACP countries are facing a growing range of challenges. They are required to respond effectively to the demands of policy makers, private sector investors and donor agencies, farmers and other stakeholders in the agri-food chain. They are being asked to deliver research outputs that will improve agricultural productivity, food quality and food safety, in order to increase their countries competitiveness in global markets, and contribute to food security, poverty alleviation and sustainable development. At the same time, researchers must be socially and ethically responsible and contribute to the advancement of science and technology. As the demands for accountability increase and the levels of funding diminish, researchers need to prioritize and strategize their responses.

Differentiated S&T strategies for improving productivity of ACP farming systems
ACP farming systems are very diverse and the scientific community must be able to provide adequate responses to meet the varied needs of small subsistence farmers who make up the majority of the ACP farming community while simultaneously addressing the needs of the medium to large-scale farming enterprises to compete on price, quality, responsiveness to changing consumer demands and reliability in supply in all markets. Therein lies the challenge as there is no one-size fits all approach that will enable researchers to respond to the needs of small scale farmers who are primarily concerned with sustainable livelihoods or medium to large-scale farms who wish to remain competitive and take advantage of any opportunities despite deteriorating environmental conditions and trade and economic restrictions. Within the last few years, the ACP region has seen a resurgence of emphasis on family farms which are being valued not only for their contribution to maintaining social order but to environmental sustainability. This dossier provides guidance and lessons learned on the need for the ACP region to apply a differentiated strategic approach for using science to enhance the performance of ACP agricultural sector.

Early dialogues on S&T policy
Some of the most relevant briefs, notes and documents related to the pre-2007 ACP Agricultural S&T policy discussions.
EU S&T dialogue
Ethics
Financing ARD
Foresighting
ICKM / MIS / ICT

ICT for transforming research for agricultural and rural development
...
Innovation systems
Intellectual property
Measuring the impact of agricultural research
Participatory R&D
Research collaboration
Tertiary agricultural education

Biofuels
Cassava
Dairy
Fisheries
Fruits
Herbs and medicinal plants
Livestock

Enhancing competitiveness in the ACP poultry value chain
The poultry value chain in Africa, Caribbean and the Pacific (ACP) countries involves both large-scale integrated enterprises and small-scale production systems. The former have benefited from capital investments, access to information and scientific research, whereas the latter remain isolated despite their significance. Family poultry comprises approximately 80% of the world's total poultry stock and plays a key role in many households in ACP countries for food and nutrition security, livelihoods and conservation of indigenous breeds. An analysis of the family poultry value chain, including its poor productivity and low financial and technical inputs, shows that it contrasts markedly with conditions in large-scale commercial poultry enterprises. Governments and researchers would be well advised to thoroughly review the family poultry value chains to identify priorities for science and innovation that can contribute to improved efficiency for the provision of eggs, live birds, fresh-chilled, frozen and other value-added poultry products. This summary is provided by CABI and CTA, July 2012.
Other commodities

Bananas
The ACP Group of States need to adjust the approach to agricultural production, marketing and distribution to be able to compete in national, regional and international markets. Traditional commodities such as banana are no longer assured of guaranteed prices and ready access to international markets. How then should the ACP region respond? Commodities, traditionally considered as food security crops are now being looked at in a different light. Can scientists assist the countries in making informed decisions to improve efficiency, cost effectiveness, quality and competitiveness?

Coffee
The ACP Group of States need to adjust the approach to agricultural production, marketing and distribution to be able to compete in national, regional and international markets. Traditional commodities such as coffee are no longer assured of guaranteed prices and ready access to international markets. How then should the ACP region respond? Commodities, traditionally considered as food security crops are now being looked at in a different light. Can scientists assist the countries in making informed decisions to improve efficiency, cost effectiveness, quality and competitiveness?
Rice value chain
Sorghum
Sugarcane
Vegetables

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Judith's blog

Judith's pick - August 2014

25/08/2014 -

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Dear readers, The upcoming August/September newsletter is being prepared and will be sent tto you in the second week of September. If you don’t yet receive the newsletter, please subscribe to it on the Knowledge for Development website (www.knowledge.cta.int).Below, we're sharing a number of recent developments we spotted during out web research. We like ASARECA’s Situation analysis of the current status of tissue culture application in the Eastern and Central Africa region an... read more >>

Judith's pick - End of July 2014 - Calls and events edition

29/07/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,First, I wanted to share three developments which are directly linked to universities. One is Bill Gates' acceptance speech given in July 2014 at Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia. Notable keywords: "the countries of Africa are learning from each other", "support programs developed by Africans, for Africans", "emphasize two things: health and agricultural development", "modernized approach to development finance"... Well, an o... read more >>

Judith's pick - July 2014

20/07/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear readers, The upcoming July/August newsletter is being prepared: it will feature a new dossier on the sorghum value chain with two commissioned articles on the subject and relevant recent developments. We have updated our newsletter mailing system and are excited to test it! You will receive a shortened version of the newsletter in your inbox and be able to download the extended content in a PDF file (it's not an email attachment any more). Below, we're sharing a number of... read more >>

Judith's Pick - End of June 2014

25/06/2015 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,Please find here below a selection of recent developments and publications that may be of interest to you. The LEI report on food waste in the EU highlights the need for ACP governments to mandate their national and regional universities to find similar evidence that can support decision-making. As explained in Hauff and Nguyen's paper, universities are potential actors for sustainable development. For undergrad students in food science for example, collecting data on food was... read more >>

Judith's pick - June 2014

11/06/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear all,A number of interesting developments we wanted to share with you.--Funding: 'Sustaining Health – second call for entries now open'The deadline for Concept Notes is 25 July 2014.See: http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/funding/Innovations/awards/sustaining-health/index.htm--Event: 'Agriculture and Climate Change – Adapting Crops to Increased Uncertainty'15 - 17 February 2015, NH Grand Krasnapolsky Hotel, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.Abstract submission deadline: 17 October 2014See: ... read more >>

Judith's pick - Early June 2014

01/06/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,The May 2014 newsletter is being readied: it will include new feature articles on post-harvest management of cassava and pumpkin, and also a new dossier on nutrition research. Please find here below a selection of recent developments and publications.--Discussion paper: What is a sustainable healthy diet?In this paper, Tara Garnett, of the Food Climate Research Network (FCRN, UK), considers the increasingly topical question of 'What is a sustainable healthy diet?' She begins b... read more >>

Judith's pick – May 2014

20/05/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,Here below a short selection of recent developments that may be of interest to you. More information on th--Horizon 2020 opportunities The Work Programme on ‘Food security, sustainable agriculture and forestry, marine and maritime and inland water research and the bioeconomy’ offers opportunities in finding diverse and innovative solutions to well-identified challenges in key EU policy priorities. Through generic or dedicated topics, a broad multidisciplinary parti... read more >>

Judith's pick – Early May 2014

12/05/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,Some recent developments of note. African science, technology and innovation plan cleared for adoption"Africa’s 10-year blueprint for science, technology and innovation has been cleared for adoption by heads of state next month. African science ministers met in April to sign off the Science, Technology and Innovation Strategy for Africa (STISA) ahead of the continent’s presidential summit scheduled for 20-27 June in Malabo, Equatorial Guinea. However, some delegates... read more >>

Judith’s pick – End of April 2014

25/04/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,Find below a short selection of recent developments and publications relevant to agricultural research and development in ACP countries: work on soil data is going global while diets around the world are losing their diversity, putting the agricultural systems' capacity for resilience at risk.The next K4D newsletter will feature new lead articles on "Research Collaboration in a Globalised World".The expert meeting 'CTA Top 20 agricultural innovations for ACP smallhol... read more >>

Judith’s pick – End of March 2014

26/03/2014 - Judith Francis

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Dear colleagues,Another short selection that may be of interest to your work. Don't forget to register to the newsletter, as the next one (March 2014) will feature, among other things, the extended abstracts of the 3rd Africa-wide science competitions.--UNESCO's 'Women in Science' interactive toolWomen in Science, a new interactive tool produced by the UNESCO Institute of Statistics (UIS), presents the latest available data for countries at all stages of development. The tool allows for explo... read more >>

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