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Building capacity for Integrated Natural Resources Management/Competitive Agricultural Systems and Enterprises in GhanaOur PartnersICRA’s work in Ghana is focused thorough two initiatives:
Within the scope of the “Thousands to Millions” project, ICRA is supporting the efforts of IFDC-A and its partners to promote the “competitive agricultural systems and enterprises approach” (CASE). ICRA’s role in this project is to strengthen the capacity of national partners of IFDC in Benin, Burkina Faso, Ghana and Mali to collectively mainstream and scale out the use of the CASE approach (see IFDC-CASE). Achievements to datePartnership with KNUSTBetween 1993 and 2004, ICRA field teams (comprising international participants on ICRA’s training programmes) conducted nine field studies in Ghana; these teams including several staff from KNUST. In 2005, and in anticipation of the NPT project, a core team of six teaching staff - representing each of the departments/institutes integrated into the newly formed CANR - participated in the ICRA Anglophone ARD Programme, conducting fieldwork in Ghana.
With support from the Dutch consortium, the KNUST-CANR team started in 2005 to design new experiential learning materials, experiment with new modes of learning and create an enabling learning environment for these programmes at KNUST. As part of this process, ICRA provided input into the development of the project strategy and work plans, trained CANR staff in curricula development, course management and facilitation skills, and helped develop mechanisms for feedback and exchange of experience gained in the different project activities. ICRA’s partners in the Dutch consortium have also strengthened CANR staff capacity to supervise interdisciplinary teamwork and develop business plans for short courses through short courses at WI. The UvA-ECDO has also exposed some 50 graduate students of CANR to its trans-disciplinary and intercultural learning programme, these students being joined by European students in teams to engage with Ghanaian stakeholders addressing selected environmental management problems. In 2007, with support from the consortium, one Transdisciplinary Student Platform Approach (TSPA) programme (20 students) and a short course (20 professionals) were successfully completed. A draft proposal for an MSc in Sustainable development is available. Through these experiences, CANR staff enhanced their capacity to design and deliver new experiential INRM learning programmes and materials for students and professionals. They experimented with new modes of learning and promoted an enabling learning environment for these programmes at KNUST. Mechanisms have been developed for reflection and exchange of experience gained in the different project activities. Mid 2008, the project entered a second phase, to fully integrate the INRM approach into the learning programmes of CANR and engage stakeholders as partners to make it sustainable. Partnership with IFDCA more widespread use of the CASE approach requires the strengthening of the capacity of a inter-institutional national capacity strengthening team (NSCT) in Ghana to jointly design and provide capacity building services to teams of actors in the grass roots business clusters. This capacity strengthening of the NCST was partly achieved by its participation in the ICRA Anglophone ARD learning programme in 2007. This programme included important periods of application in the field where the NCST learned through experience by engaging in the application of the CASE approach in a selected business cluster in Ghana: The NCST, jointly with stakeholders, analysed the pepper market in Tamale in Northern Region and the maize market in Wenchi in Brong Ahafo Region. In both cases the team facilitated collaboration between farmers, input dealers, traders and processors, and connected them to business development services, research, extension and credit institutions. Jointly, all actors discussed options for improving linkages in the market chains and developed actions plans to support the development of local agri-business clusters of pepper and maize. In additon the team developed guidelines for building capacity of local innovation teams in facilitating development of any other agri-business clusters.In 2008, ICRA will help complete the capacity strengthening of the NCST by supporting the team learning in designing, organising and implementing learning programmes for strengthening multi-actor groups around the various business clusters that are to be developed under the initiative (see also ICRA partnership with IFDC). |
PartnersKwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources (KNUST-CANR)International Fertilizer Development Center - Africa (IFDC-A) Dutch ConsortiumTropenbos International (TBI)Wageningen International (WI) Expertise Center for Sustainable development at the University of Amsterdam (UvA-ECDO) Funding SupportNetherlands Organization for International Cooperation in Higher Education (NUFFIC)Field Study ReportsRecent Field Study Reports, Ghana, 2003-2005ARD ApproachesIntegrated Natural Resources MangementCompetitive Agricultural Systems and Enterprises |
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