Agrecol: Northern Focal Point of the Prolinnova network

During the Prolinnova Oversight Group (POG) meeting and the International Partners Workshop (IPW) in Senegal in mid-May 2019, the Prolinnova network agreed to ask Agrecol Association for AgriCulture & Ecology to serve as the Northern Focal Point (NFP) for the network. The POG felt that Agrecol would be a very suitable “home” for the NFP, as Agrecol and Prolinnova share a similar philosophy.

At the meeting of the Agrecol Board and the annual meeting of Agrecol members in Goettingen, Germany, in late May, the similarities between Agrecol and Prolinnova in terms of values and interests were recognised and it was agreed that Agrecol Association would take on the role of NFP for the Prolinnova network. Agrecol Association is based in the town of Guggenhausen in southern Germany.

12 innovations by men & women farmers in Mertulemariam, Amhara Region

During the Proli-FaNS project, partners in Mertulemariam in the Enebse Sar Mider action-learning site in Gojjam in Amhara Region of Ethiopia identified several innovations by men and women farmers that contribute to improving the food and nutrition security of their families and communities. Twelve of these innovations, referring mainly to biopesticides for crops and livestock but also including sack gardening, making gasoline from weeds, local soapmaking, ploughing with one ox, soil & water conservation, and making beetroot juice, are documented in this report.

IPW 2019 + Proli-FaNS annual meeting in Senegal

The International Partners Workshop (IPW) 2019 and the third annual partners meeting of the Proli-FaNS (Promoting local innovation in Food and Nutrition Security) project was held on 13–17 May 2019 in Centre Mampuya / Sahel Vert near Toubab Dialaw in Senegal. It was hosted by Agrecol Afrique, the NGO that coordinates the Prolinnova Country Platform (CP) in Senegal.

Days 1 and 2 were devoted to the Proli-FaNS project with exchange of experiences between the five CPs involved – Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ethiopia, Ghana and Kenya. The leader of the external evaluation of the project, Rosaine Yegbemy (Benin), presented the report. The findings fed into planning for the final months of the current project, to 31 July 2019. The meeting provided an opportunity for all CPs involved – with advice from other Prolinnova partners – to plan a follow-on project.

Catalogue of local innovations for food & nutrition security in Kenya

Various partner organisations in the Prolinnova–Kenya network have identified and profiled 37 innovations by small-scale Kenyan farmers - women, men and groups – to improve the food and nutrition security of their families and communities. The 48-page well-illustrated Catalogue of Local Innovations was compiled by Makonge Righa and Vincent Mariadho of World Neighbors Kenya, the host organisation of the Country Platform. The innovations were identified in the years 2016–2019 in Kisumu and Makueni Counties within the framework of the Proli-FaNS (Promoting local innovation in Food and Nutrition Security) project funded by Misereor/Catholic Central Agency for Development Aid.

Once in the Prolinnova family... always in the Prolinnova family...

Dharma Dangol has been an active member of Prolinnova-Nepal from its inception. He was also the Country Platform (CP) coordinator in the period during which the CP secretariat was hosted by the Natural History Museum of the Tribhuvan University in Kathmandu. Dharma retired in April this year but is committed to continuing the work of Prolinnova, especially in regards to integration of the approach into education at all levels. Dharma resides in the Kirtipur Municipality of Kathmandu and has started liaising with schools in the area, building on interactions he has had with some of them in the recent past.

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Farmer innovation fairs in Ghana for food & nutrition security

The local NGOs that are facilitating Prolinnova–Ghana’s work with farmers at the two action-learning sites in Bongo and Yendi held farmer innovation fairs at each site. Local media reported on the event organised by the Navrongo-Bolgatanga Catholic Diocesan Development Organization (NABOCADO) in Bongo in two articles: “Innovation fair held for farmers in Bongo district” in Citi Newsroom (3 May 2019) and “Bongo-Soe farmers boost food security” in Ghanaian Times (4 May 2019). These activities form part of the Proli-FaNS (Promoting local innovation in Food and Nutrition Security) project funded by the German Government through Misereor/KZE (Catholic Central Agency for Development Aid).

New Subregional Coordinator in Eastern & Southern Africa

Brigid Letty has been appointed by ACDEP (Association of Church-based Development Projects), the NGO that coordinates the Proli-FaNS (Promoting local innovation for Food and Nutrition Security) project under the umbrella of the Prolinnova network, to take over the role as Subregional Coordinator (SRC) in Eastern and Southern Africa (ESA). She replaces Amanuel Assefa, who resigned as SRC as of 31 March 2019 because of a very heavy workload from other assignments.

Brigid is an agricultural development specialist and Principle Scientist with the Institute of Natural Resources (INR) in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa. She has a BSc in Agriculture (majoring in animal science) and an MSc focused on range and forage resources. She is doing research for a PhD in agroforestry systems at the University of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).

FaReNE writeshop in Mali documents 3 years of experience

The Farmer-led Research Network (FaReNe) project is a joint project of Prolinnova partners in Burkina Faso and Mali with financial support from the McKnight Foundation and technical support from the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT), host of the Prolinnova international secretariat. It looks at how best to organise and use farmer-led innovation approaches, such as Participatory Innovation Development (PID), Local Innovation Support Facility/Fund (LISF) and farmer networking, and how these can contribute to agro-ecological intensification. Approaching the end of the current funding cycle, key members of the partner organisations from the two countries – NGO staff, researchers and farmer organisation representatives – met for a writeshop to document their three years of experiences, share and analyse these together, and work towards well-written papers.

African farmer innovation in biopesticides against fall armyworm

Fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda, FAW) has recently appeared in Africa, where it is threatening food security, as it infests maize, which is a staple crop in many countries. Farmer innovators in Ethiopia and Tanzania (among surely many others) are trying out different ways to combat this new pest. The 4-page report “Towards farmer-led bio-management of fall armyworm in Tanzania” describes how a group of small-scale farmers in Tanzania has been trying out a sugar solution, pig fat oil and palm oil as substances to attract ants as a bio-control agent in maize infested with FAW. The 4-page report “Biopesticide to control fall armyworm: local innovation by Gebreyesus Tesfay” describes how a small-scale farmer innovator in northern Ethiopia developed a biopesticide against FAW.

Seeking external evaluator of Proli-FaNS project!

The Association of Church-based Development Projects (ACDEP), the Ghanaian NGO that is coordinating the implementation of the project “Promoting local innovation for Food and Nutrition Security” (Proli-FaNS), is seeking the services of a consultant to conduct an end-of-project evaluation. The terms of reference, deadline and procedure for submission of expression of interest are indicated here.

The expression of interest should be submitted to the Project Coordinator, Mr Joseph Nchor at nchor@acdep.org or nchor@yahoo.com by 17.00 GMT on Friday, 18 January 2019.

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