Building Capacities for Innovation Management in Extension and

Advisory services

Rasheed Sulaiman VCentre for Research on Innovation and Science Policy

(CRISP), Hyderabad, India,

Main points• The nature of agriculture has been changing

rapidly• Increasing recognition: expanding the mandate of

extension and building new capacities• What are these new areas for capacity

development? • Experience from RIU in Asia reveals a range of

functions- collectively referred to as “Innovation Management” as critical for capacity development

• How can we develop these skills in extension and advisory services?

Building new capacities for extension and advisory services

• Beyond transferring new technologies:– linking farmers to markets

– Mobilisation and organisational development– Reduce vulnerability and enhance voice of the poor

– Enterprise development and non-farm employment

– Strengthening the innovation process, building linkages/brokering relationship with other actors in the AIS

Changing views on innovation and communication

• From• New knowledge to be

transferred by extension to farmers

• Communicating innovation

• Mass media + Interpersonal advisory service + training

• To• Process of generation,

adaptation, diffusion and use

• Promote/enable innovation

• Intermediation/

Facilitation • Interaction and knowledge

flows among multiple actors

DFID 2006 - Asia and Africa

Successor to DFIDs RNRRS [1995-2006]

Objectives :

1: achieve impact at scale

2: generate lessons on putting research into use

“Hypothesis”- a range of knowledge products from the RNRRS projects- with a little push, these could be widely disseminated and adopted

11 projects (2008-2011) in Asia (Nepal, Bangladesh and India)-post research projects

Research Into Use programme

Research products selected for putting into wider use under RIU

• A. Technological artefacts– Improved seeds of rice and legumes (PCI)– Production and processing technologies in

under-utilised crops– Production of fish fingerlings in rice fields– Ecologically based rodent management– Coastal fisheries technologies (crab fattening,

mollusc and seaweed culture)– Harvesting and value addition of forest products

Research products selected for putting into wider use under RIU

• B. Process/Approach

– Participatory Action Plan Development– Adaptive Collaborative Management for NRM– Democratic governance of community forestry– Integrated delivery of rural services (micro-

credit and improved access to inputs and technical advice)

– Participatory market chain analysis

Specific activities undertaken for putting new knowledge into use

• Project teams comprised of different kinds of actors, most of these led by non-research actors

• Originally thought as a conventional extension approach focusing on training, demonstrations, use of media

• But as it evolved, the complexities became more apparent and a number of additional functions had to be undertaken

– Convening, brokering, facilitating, coaching, advocating

and also information dissemination

Innovation Management•Functions Tools

•Networking and partnership building •Setting up/strengthening user groups•Training•Advocacy for institutional and policy change•Enhance access to technology, expertise, markets, credit and inputs•Reflective Learning

Grain cash seed bankCommunity-based user groupsProducer companiesNGO led private companiesMarket chain analysisMarket planning committeesCommunity Germplasm orchardsVillage Crop FairsFood processing ParksUse of lead entrepreneursParticipatory Action Plan Development Community resource centersPolicy Working GroupsThematic CommitteesCluster-level sharing workshops

INNOVATION and IMPACT

Facilitating Access to technology

Communicating research needs Brokering

Network development

Advocating for policy and regulatory change

Facilitating access to input and output markets

Organising farmers into groups

Negotiating access to credit/venture capital

Mediating conflict resolution

Convening innovation platforms

Training and coaching

Incubating social enterprises

Figure 1 Innovation management tasks (Sulaiman et al)

Main findings • Projects clustered all these approaches

– Bundling of tasks • A range of intermediary organisations performed many of

these tasks

• Comparative advantage of certain organisations – (eg: institutional and policy changes, market

development/value chain strengthening)

“Putting new knowledge into use requires partnering with wide range of actors and involves a wide range of functions

Implications• Innovation Management is a potential area

for capacity building– Focus should shift from strengthening technical

expertise to strengthening innovation management

– Some of these can only be learnt through doing though pilot projects or action learning

• Experimentation, reflection and learning

– core group of specialists (limited number of staff within) to support building and strengthening capacities