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The European-funded Framework Programme 7 project, Joint Learning in Innovation Systems in African Agriculture (JOLISAA), assessed agricultural innovation experiences focused on smallholders in Benin, Kenya, and South Africa. Fifty-six cases were characterized through review of grey literature and interviews with resource persons, according to a common analytical framework inspired by the innovation systems (IS) perspective. Thirteen of the cases were assessed in greater depth through semi-structured interviews, focus group discussions and multistakeholder workshops. The cases covered a wide diversity of experiences in terms of types, domains, scales, timelines, initiators of innovation and stakeholders involved. Findings revealed multiple triggers and drivers of innovation. For external stakeholders, key triggers included likelihood of offering a technological fix to an existing problem and availability of funding. For local people, access to input and output markets was a powerful trigger and driver. Market types and dynamics varied greatly. Developing functional value chains and accessing markets proved particularly challenging, especially for poorer and weakly organized farmers. Over long periods, determinants of innovation changed dynamically and often unpredictably, including motivations of key stakeholders, triggers, drivers and stakeholder arrangements. The direction of innovation evolved, often moving from a technology entry point to more organizational or institutional issues. A recurring challenge for fostering innovation is whether and how to build on local initiatives and knowledge, and how to sustain externally driven innovation processes beyond the project time frame. A major conclusion from JOLISAA is that innovation has to be seen as a continuously evolving process of ‘innovation bundles’ (a combination of different types of innovation) of various kinds, rather than as a pre-planned, and usually, narrowly-defined technical intervention. Consequently

Water Management, Civil Engineering and Geosciences

Water Management, Civil Engineering and Geosciences

This work reports the synthesis of polydisperse iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) stabilized on green tea polyphenol stabilizing and capping agents.

This work reports the synthesis of polydisperse iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) stabilized on green tea polyphenol stabilizing and capping agents.

This work reports the synthesis of polydisperse iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) stabilized on green tea polyphenol stabilizing and capping agents.

Participatory research was introduced into the Kenyan Agricultural research institute to facilitate a farmer driven research process. The present research analysed the historical and current contexts and practices which could have led to partial achievement of the intended objective. Studies conducted on selected farmer research groups, farmer self organized groups, farmer partnerships and school groups’ provided insights for an enhanced research practice. Analysis of the institute’s history revealed continuities and discontinuities in spatial outlay and mandates, institutional culture and operational policies. The ambivalence in commercial and subsistence focus, diverse collaborators’ and donors’ agenda besides researchers’ disciplinary bias and professional ambitions were shown to influence research implementation Overlooking of farmers’ perspectives was shown to render existent structures like joint planning and evaluation committees mostly symbolic. Farmer flexibility in response to emergent realities was illustrated by the dynamic farmers’ technical and social innovations while harnessing of synergy through mutual interaction was illustrated by partnerships and the school groups’. In conclusion, it is argued that existent structures to enhance mutual interaction ought to be re-juvenated through enabling strategies at various levels. This would enhance utilization of innovations by farmers and incorporation of farmer perspectives by the researchers. Areas proposed for further research include how to create functional partnerships, communities of practice and mechanisms to change researchers’ views of farmers perspectives aimed at a research process with capacity to respond to dynamic contextual changes.