Joining in the Linky Party!

I'm joining in a linky party. 

Farley is hosting a linky party over at

Oh' Boy Fourth Grade.  Hop on over to check it out.

Here's my answers for you to peruse. 

enjoy!

The Steering Committee meeting of PAEPARD

6th February, Brussels. The Steering Committee of PAEPARD is the highest organ of the project which decides and approves the policy of the PAEPARD platform proposed by the co-managers and endorsed by the MTM. Its composition is balanced between African and European partners on one hand and between researchers and non-researchers on the other.

The following member institutions of the PAEPARD Steering Committee were represented by their head.

• Africa: FARA (Prof.Monty Jones), RUFORUM (Adipala Ekwemu ), SSA-NGOC (Sylvie Mbog from Odeco), PAFFO (Elisabeth Atangana, excused) and PanAAC (Lucy Muchoki).
• Europe: EFARD (Ann Waters-Bayer from ETC/Prolinova), AGRINATURA (Dr. Andrew Westby of the Natural Resources Institute/UK), CSA (Marek Poznanski), COLEACP (Catherine Guichard), CTA (Judith Francis)
• The European Commission was represented by David Radcliffe (DevCO ARD, Senior Policy Officer, Agricultural Research for Development) and Danila CHIARO (DevCo, programme officer Research in Africa)
  
• Invited: Hans ERICKSSON Mirabel Development Consulting
• PAEPARD management and coordination: Dr. Adewale Adekunle, Dr. Jonas Mugabe, Francois Stepman

The Steering Committee of PAEPARD debated:

1. the PAEPARD Technical and financial report of year 2
2. the Work plan of the different work packages of PAEPARD for year 3
3. the Mid Term Review Briefing by the principal evaluator Hans Eriksson

The overall feeling was that PAEPARD's impact has improved considerably in its 2 years of existence. According to David Radcliffe, PAEPARD would gain credibility if consortia supported by PAEPARD would be selected in a call for proposals. 3 out of 19 consortia presently supported by PAEPARD have submitted their research proposal to a call.

It was recommended that in the future final and not draft versions of the technical report are presented to the Steering Committee. All the indicators of the initial logframe should be revisited against their progress to improve the results based reporting.

PAEPARD on Prezi

Valentine's Day FREEBIE!

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PAEPARD: ARD funding opportunities

A G R I C U L T U R E


Ref: HRST/ST/AURG/CALL2/2012/EuropeAid/132-331/M/ACT/ACP
The African Union Commission is seeking proposals for research focusing on the following thematic priorities articulated in Africa’s Science and Technology Consolidated Plan of Action (CPA) and its Lighthouse Projects: (a) Post-harvest and Agriculture, (b) Renewable and Sustainable Energy, and (c) Water and Sanitation in Africa. The programme is financed through the Financing Agreement between the European Commission and the ACP Group of States under the ACP Research for Sustainable Development Program of the 10th EDF Intra-ACP Envelop. The full Guidelines for Applicants, Application form and other supporting documents are available for downloading from the following Internet Sites:
1. http://www.africahrst.org/stict/rgp
2. http://www.au.int/researchgrant
3. http://webgate.ec.europa.eu/europeaid/online-services/index.cfm?do=publi.welcome
The deadline for submission of proposals is April 20, 2012.

Africa-Brazil Agricultural Innovation Marketplace
Third Call for Proposals. The objective of this initiative is to enhance agricultural innovation for development in Africa through partnerships between African and Brazilian organizations. Themes include productivity enhancement; natural resources management; advances in policies, institutions, and markets; and approaches targeted for poverty alleviation. Applications are invited from public and private organizations in Africa in partnership with one or more of Embrapa's centers in Brazil. Projects should be planned and implemented in Africa; proposals should be prepared in English. The priority is for projects in Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Ghana, Mali, Nigeria, Tanzania, and Uganda. Grants are up to US$80 thousand for projects of up to two years. The closing date for pre-proposals is 29 February 2012.

Agropolis Foundation (France) and CAPES (Brazil)
Research in Agricultural Sciences 2012. The Brazilian Federal Agency for Support and Evaluation of Graduate Education (CAPES) and the Agropolis Foundation invite proposals for Franco-Brazilian research in agricultural and related sciences. Priority is for integrated and interdisciplinary approaches that bring together biological, engineering, and social and human sciences. Requests for funding should not exceed €100 thousand, with a maximum contribution of €50 thousand from the Agropolis Foundation, for projects of up to two years. Research themes and eligibility criteria are included in the call for proposals. The application deadline is 10 February 2012.

European Commission (EC) - Diversifying Farm Income in Malawi. 
The Farm Income Diversification Project (Phase II) for Malawi seeks to improve the livelihoods of rural households through conserving natural resources and strengthening smallholder agriculture. The current call for proposals focuses on post-harvest storage and processing; increasing and diversifying agricultural productivity; and promoting agri-business. Eligibility for grants is open to nonprofit organizations in the EU, the European Economic Area, and EU candidate countries; ACP and least-developed countries (including Malawi); and inter-governmental organizations. Grants will range from €900 thousand to €1.0 million, subject to co-financing requirements. Reference EuropeAid/132284/M/ACT/MW. The closing date for concept notes is 06 February 2012.

Projects in Sub-Saharan Africa 2012-2013.
The Scottish International Development Team announces calls for proposals through the Malawi Development Program and the Sub-Saharan Africa Program (focusing on Rwanda, Tanzania, and Zambia). Priority areas of support include food security, renewable energy, climate change, and water. Grants are up to £400 thousand for three years in the Malawi program; and an average of about £1.3 million for three years in the Sub-Saharan Africa program. Applicants must have a Scottish presence. The closing dates for applications are 06 February 2012 in the Malawi program, and 02 March 2012 in the Sub-Saharan Africa program. Link Malawi Program   Link Sub-Saharan Africa Program


Innovations Against Poverty. 
"Innovations Against Poverty" makes grants to private companies that supply services, products, or processes that benefit people living in poverty. Eligibility for grants extends to enterprises that are based in or operate in developing countries in any sectors, e.g., agriculture, energy, natural resources, and all others. Small matching grants are up to €20 thousand (50% of project costs) to explore innovations or new markets. Larger matching grants up to €200 thousand (50% of project costs) support companies to put development projects to market tests, or to adapt existing products to be affordable and accessible by the poor. Applications for large grants require prior submission of concept notes. The third round of applications closes 30 April 2012


Australia-Africa Community Grants 2011-2012. 
The AACGS supports community-based activities across Africa. Funding is open to NGOs for projects that promote sustainable economic and social development. Thematic areas include agriculture and food security; environmental awareness; and conservation of natural resources (among others). Grants range from AUD30 thousand to AUD75 thousand (in rare cases, the AACGS will consider requests for larger amounts). The program is managed at Australia's diplomatic missions in Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Nigeria, and South Africa. Applicants should check the websites of Australia's diplomatic missions in those countries to locate the correct contact and application materials for the AACGS. Applications are accepted throughout the year (i.e., through 31 December 2012).

B I O D I V E R S I T Y 


Fondation Ensemble - Programs Fund 2012. 
The Programs Fund supports projects in renewable energies, sustainable agriculture, alternative waste management, biodiversity, and others. The Fund makes grants for a minimum of €50 thousand per year for at least two years, up to a maximum of €250 thousand -- limited to 50% of total project costs. Eligible countries are in Africa are: Benin & Mozambique.. The deadline for applications (French or English) is 12 February 2012.

AXA Research Fund - Calls for Proposals 2012. 
The AXA Research Fund supports research to help understand risk management and prevention, including risks related to natural disasters and climate change. The Fund calls for Projects applications. Applications can be submitted by pre-registered research institutions in EU member states and collaborating countries in the FP7 research program (including a number of developing countries). Closing date: 08 March 2012.


New England Biolabs Foundation -- Grassroots Conservation.
The Foundation makes grants to grassroots and charitable organizations to support conservation of biological diversity; ecosystem services; community food security; and marine environment. The geographical scope focuses on selected countries of the Gulf of Honduras; the Andean region; and West Africa (in addition to Papua New Guinea, Tanzania, Nicaragua, and El Salvador). Maximum grant size is US$10 thousand, but most grants are smaller. The next deadline for letters of inquiry is 15 February 2012.

C L I M A T E   C H A N G E

Global Development Alliance, Annual Program Statement 2011. 
The Global Development Alliance is a program to leverage resources for development in a ratio of at least 1:1 with USAID. The current Annual Program Statement (APS) includes priority themes in agriculture and livestock, water resources, and climate change (among others). USAID invites partnership proposals from private businesses, social entrepreneurs and investors, foundations, private philanthropists, diaspora communities, and other non-governmental organizations in the USA and worldwide. Matching resources can be cash and/or the value of in-kind contributions. The deadline for concept papers has been extended to 29 February 2012.


French National Agency for Agricultural Research (L'ANR) 
Agrobiosphère 2012. The ANR's research in "Agrobiosphère" focuses on the relationship between agriculture and ecosystems in the context of global warming, threats to biodiversity, and related issues. France's AIRD (Agence inter-établissements de recherche pour le développement) makes grants to co-finance research teams from developing countries to participate in Agrobiosphère. The closing date to apply is 22 March 2012.

It's Groundhog Day!

Yup, it's Groundhog day. This is just a quick post today.  Check out the FREE printables over at activity village.

Click here to go get your freebies!



Workshop on information & communication management for PAEPARD

31st of January - 1 February 2012. Montpellier. PAEPARD organised a workshop on information & communication management for the partners. The objective was to understand the different stakeholders’ tools and needs in terms of communication and information in partnerships & to adapt the existing PAEPARD tools to the stakeholders’ needs.

The main tools built by WP3 of PAEPARD are:

• Website. Ready to be used but need discussion on content and how to feed it.
• PAEPARD blog
• D-groups. Are currently used by PAEPARD and by some subgroups to discuss thematic and share documents.
• Matching tool on the PAEPARD website (wiki). The objective is to match different stakeholders around specific thematic of interest by using a database (based on previous mapping) and key words. The database would contain information about organizations (identity, thematic of interest/work, etc.). This tool is ready but the database is to be completed and the modalities of use are to be defined (types of data, privacy

The results of the workshop are:

1. A simple methodology is applicable to all categories of stakeholders represented at the workshop: farmers' organizations, NGOs, private sector, research
2. A tool to collect and interpret data gathered from this methodology.
3. A comprehensive and precise overview of the intentions, the opportunities and the constraints of the participants on the development of multi-stakeholder partnerships
4. Recommendations to strengthen partnerships and to circumvent bottlenecks.
5. A practical approach to assess the practices and tools used in the partnership process
6. A synthetic vision at each category of stakeholder of existing partnership mechanisms and tools used to implement.
7. Recommendationson improvingpracticesand tools already implemented.
8. A good knowledge and understanding of the tools developed in the project PAEPARD and their potential usefulness in the context of earch and development partnership
9. The possible selection of new tools not yet implemented at different levels (central level or at the stakeholder level)
10. Requests for modification of the tools currently in use so that they meet expectations
11. An initial mastery of tools ensuring an autonomous use by participants of these tools after the workshop
12. The exhaustive list of tasks to be done to implement the recommendations of the workshop.
13. Prioritization of these tasks according to the constraints of the participants
14. The development of a realistic road map for a first level of early implementation of the recommendations.
15. The selection of information to be disseminated
16. A selection of tools for communication and information within the project team
17. A clear procedure for the implementation of a strategy of information and communication within the project team
18. A consensus view on the topics discussed and proposals for implementation.
19. These proposals were forwarded to the Communication Working Group of Work Package 3

Growth and Productivity in Agriculture and Agribusiness: Evaluative Lessons from World Bank Group Experience

Enhanced agricultural growth and productivity are essential if we are to meet the worldwide demand for food and reduce poverty, particularly in the poorest developing countries. Between 1998 and 2008, the period covered by this evaluation, the World Bank Group provided $23.7 billion in financing for agriculture and agribusiness in 108 countries (roughly 8 percent of total World Bank Group financing), spanning areas from irrigation and marketing to research and extension. This was, however, a time of declining focus on agricultural growth and productivity by both countries and donors.

The cost of inadequate attention to agriculture, especially in agriculture-based economies, came into focus with the food crisis of 2007–08. The crisis added momentum to an emerging renewal of attention and stepped-up financing to agriculture and agribusiness at the World Bank and International Finance Corporation (IFC), as well as at several multilateral and bilateral agencies. World Bank financing rose two and a half times from 2008 to 2009, although this increased lending seems to have been accompanied by a decline in analytical work, which this review finds valuable in achieving results. This evaluation seeks to provide lessons from successes and failures in the Bank Group’s activities in the sector to help improve the development impact of the renewed attention. More >