aatf: a decade of enduring partnerships in technology access and delivery
TRANSCRIPT
AATF: A Decade of Enduring Partnerships in Technology Access
and Delivery
Presentation at the AATF side event during the 6th Africa Science Week and FARA General Assembly
15-20 July 2013Accra Ghana
Dr. Denis Tumwesigye Kyetere Executive Director AATF
Changing the lives of smallholders
Mebo Chebor is the mother of three children, has a clothing business, and grows maize to support her family’s food needs. Attacked by striga, Mebo’s maize crop was yielding just half a bag of maize from her .2 acre plot. Running low on capital in her clothes business due to having to draw money to support her food expenditures, Mebo decided to try the new maize seed variety she’d heard about that could kill striga.
Planting StrigAway, Mebo’s harvest yielded 1.5 bags from a .1 acre plot, which normally would obtain only 2 kg containers. Her land is now nearly free from Striga, while neighbouring farms are heavily infested.
Mebo has reimbursed her clothing business and plans to buy at least 2 kg of maize seed in 2012. She also is calling on her neighbouring farmers to buy StrigAway.
The mother of four children, Catherine Otiende, never believed that her ¾ acre farm could feed her family and extended family. For years, it had only yielded less than two bags of maize, due to a high density of striga.
In 2011, Catherine heard about an improved maize variety that could kill the striga weed and bought five kilos. She had dramatic results and her farm is now a learning centre for other farmers who want to try the new seed.
Catherine expects to harvest eight bags of maize this season, which will be enough to feed her family and her extended family. She has also intercropped groundnut, which is supplying her with extra income, and has planted several banana stools. Already demonstrating to others, Catherine is eager to see the technology used by all farmers in the region.
Mebo Chebor, Nyanza region, Kenya
Catherine Otiende, Kisumu District, Kenya
African Agriculture Improving
• Annual growth strong in a number of countries (IFPRI 2012)– 12-15% in Angola and Liberia– 7% in Botswana, Ethiopia & Malawi– 5% in Rwanda– 4% in Ghana & Tanzania
• Fuelled largely by – increased investment in agriculture; Increased fertiliser
use; Adoption of high yielding varieties
• Poverty rates down but hunger & malnutrition still high
Need for advanced agricultural technologies
• African governments and institutions have recognised Africa’s need to access new and better agricultural technologies (PRSP’s, NEPAD)
• Agricultural science & technology can improve food security and reduce poverty in SSA
• Some of these technologies are proprietary
• Challenge – Cost & IP management
Meeting a critical need
– Effective mechanisms to negotiate the access and transfer - on humanitarian grounds (taking on business models)
– Partnerships to manage the development & deployment of these technologies
– Thus AATF’s creation
To access, develop, adapt, and deliver appropriate agriculturaltechnologies for sustainable use by smallholder farmers in SSA thru’ innovative partnerships and effective stewardship along
the entire value chain.
African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF)
Mission Why we Exist
A Prosperous and a food secure Africa
Vision What We Want to Achieve
Advancing practical solutions
African-based and –led, AATF has three unique skill sets:
1. Accessing and delivering proprietary technology - utilising expertise in IP and regulatory affairs to enable technology to reach farmers
2. Promoting information sharing and awareness – accelerating the rate at which solutions can reach farmers and agri-businesses
3. Managing complex partnerships – bringing the best of public & private sectors together for farmers
Molecule to molecule
• A constraint• How to solve
Identify
• Technology, royalty free
Broker• Testing by
African researchers and farmers
• Regulatory controls
Adapt
• Agri-businesses
• Smallholders
Deliver • Best
practices• Sustainable
use
Steward
Through partnership
Who we are
• Founded in 2003 as not-for-profit by RF, DFID,USAID
• Major investors -RF, DFID, USAID, HGBF, BMGF
• Annual budget $20 million
• Core staff of 30 - SSA operations
• Incorporated in UK January and in Kenya– Registered as charity under the laws of England & Wales
• Granted tax-exempt status in the US in May 2006
HOW AATF CONDUCTS BUSINESS
Working Across Value ChainSeeks innovative ways of creating synergies between players in
the value chain
Project-specific roles include• Technology negotiation, incensing & regulatory approval• Freedom to operate (FTO) assessments• Licensing for regional distribution• Liability protection• Product Development and testing• Commercialisation• Stewardship• Partnerships Management• Communication and public awareness
AATF Approach to Technology Transfer
Focus• Food & high value crops produced by smallholder farmers in SSA
Technological interventions criteria• SSA priority agricultural constraints • Technologies that are accessible, transferable, adaptable & proven • Achievable within reasonable time• Reasonable geographic balance
Partnership & Stewardship• AATF acts as the ‘responsible party’ ensuring technologies are
appropriately and responsibly developed and used across the value chain
Priority Areas for AATF• Impact of climate change on
agriculture
• Pest Management
• Soil Management
• Nutrient enhancement in foods
• Improved breeding Methods
• Mechanization
Enabling activities
• IP Management, Licensing and Technology Stewardship
• Regulatory Science and Management
• Communication and Issue Management
• Market linkages
• R&D Management and Coordination
1. Effective mechanism to negotiate the access and transfer of proprietary technologies
Technologies valued at approximately $110 million• 17 technologies & 2 protocols • 6 technologies developed• 3 technologies initiating uptake & up-scaling
o 1 is being grown by farmers o 2 at advanced testing stages
2. Appropriate partnerships to manage the development & deployment of technologies• 10 PPP projects across 60 plus organisations in 10 countries
Is the AATF ‘Idea’ working?
AATF Approach to Partnerships
Boundary Principle
• AATF Partnerships– Must fit Foundation vision and mission;– Focus on problem areas and/or projects;– Build on Foundation strategy– Add value– Centre on SSA farmer interests
Types of AATF Partnerships• Strategic Partnershipse.g – HCA, AU, FARA
• Operational Partnerships
e.g – Academia Sinica/banana; AFTSA
Types of Engagements
1. Alliances - MoU and/or collaborative agreements based
2. Formal - Contractual based
3. Informal (temporary) affiliations
CURRENT ACTIVITIES
Developing high quality insect-resistant cowpea varieties for use by smallholder farmers - CFTs show little to no damage
Maruca-Resistant Cowpea
Maruca-Resistant Cowpea Partners
• AATF• Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)• Council of Scientific and Industrial Research- Savannah Agriculture
Research Institute (CSIR-SARI) Ghana• Institute of Agricultural Research (IAR), Nigeria• National Biotechnology Development Agency (NABDA), Nigeria• Institut de l’Environnement et de Recherches Agricoles (INERA), Burkina
Faso• Monsanto• Network for the Genetic Improvement of Cowpea for Africa (NGICA) • United States Agency for International Development (USAID) • Program for Biosafety Systems (PBS), USA • Kirk House Trust
Improving Banana for Resistance against BXW disease
Developing BXW resistant transgenic banana from East African germplasm, using two genes found in sweet pepper - pflp and hrap
BXW Partners
• Academia Sinica, Taiwan• The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture• The National Agricultural Research Organisation, Uganda• Public and private tissue culture laboratories in the Great Lakes
region of Africa including Burundi, Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda
• AATF
Improving Rice Productivity
Developing rice varieties with Nitrogen-Use Efficency, Water-Use Efficiency, and Salt Tolerant Traits
Hybrid Rice
• Increase rice production among small scale rice producers in Africa through breeding
• Develop and expand 2-line hybrid rice technology
Rice Productivity Partners
• Arcadia • Public Intellectual Property Resource for Agriculture (PIPRA) • International Centre for Tropical Agriculture (CIAT) • National Agricultural Research Organisation, Uganda• Crop Research Institute, Ghana• AATF• Hybrids East Africa Limited (HEAL)• aWhere, Inc. of the USA• National Agricultural Research Systems of Kenya, Ethiopia,
Uganda, Tanzania, Nigeria and Ghana
Aflatoxins control in maize & PeanutsUsing bio-control product, Aflasafe, with holistic strategies to address aflatoxin problems in maize and peanuts
Aflatoxin Control Partners
• United States Department of Agriculture• The International Institute of Tropical Agriculture • Department of Plant Protection Senegal• Kenya Agricultural Research Institute• ACDI/VOCA in Kenya• AATF
Water Efficient Maize for AfricaDeveloping white hybrid maize varieties adapted to moderate drought conditions in SSA and insect resistant to increase yields 20-35%, through conventional, marker assisted breeding and transgenic technology
Monsanto
• World leader in MAB, gene discovery, trait development and trait licensing
CIMMYT
• World leader for breeding maize for African agro-ecological zones
AATF• Unique African
institution mandated to access and deliver proprietary technologies to smallholders African farmers
NARS
• Expertise in Field trials • Test DT maize• Capacity building opportunities
WEMA
WEMA Partnership
Striga Control in Maize FieldsApplying Striga-killing herbicide, Imazapyr, to maize seeds that are bred to be herbicide resistant, increasing yields 300% on average
Striga Control Partners(IR-Maize Seed)
• AATF• BASF• CIMMYT• Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel • Extension services – government and
non-governmental • Seed companies – Ke, Ug, Tz
• Western Seed Company• Kenya Seed Company• Freshco Seeds Ltd in Kenya• Nalweyo Seed Company• Tanseed International Ltd
Cassava Mechanisation & Agro-processing (CAMAP)
Brokering access to mechanisation and agro-processing equipment for development and use in Africa, accelerating planting, harvesting and processing
CAMAP Current Partners
• Zambia – Agricultural Research Institute– Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, Zambia
• Nigeria– National Root Crops Research Institute, Nigeria– National Centre for Agricultural Mechanisation,
Nigeria– Kwara State, Nigeria– Osun State, Nigeria
Seeds2B
Making seeds available at the right time, place, price and quality
Problem• Availability of quality seed varieties is constraint• Reliable access to, and supply of improved seed
needed by farmers in SSA
Intervention• business model to link available seeds from national
and international technology owners (public and private) with seed companies in Africa
Open Forum on Agricultural Biotechnology in Africa (OFAB)
• Established by AATF in 2006 for frank discussions on the benefits and challenges of biotechnology
• To enhance knowledge-sharing and awareness on biotechnology
• Increased appreciation of agricultural biotechnology
• Contribute to building an enabling environment for decision making
• Countries: GH, UG, NG, BF, KE, TZ
OFAB Partners
• AATF• ISAAA - Kenya• UNCST - Uganda• COSTECH - Tanzania• NABDA & ARCN - Nigeria• CSIR - Ghana• INERA – Burkina Faso• PBS
Managing Partnerships
Partnerships can be complicated in nature – Critical to identify and nurture common ground. Therefore – Coordinator should:
– Drive the process of partnership formation– Base partnership decision making on
agreements– Encourage strategic management of
partnerships– Be responsive to change - exercise
flexibility– Anticipate and resolve differences
PPP Governance Structure
• Executive Advisory Board with officials of each country and other partners
• Operations Committee – supporting Project Manager
• Functional Task Committees – Technical, Regulatory, Communications
• In-country teams to implement the project and raise awareness– Stakeholder meetings
Establishing Partnerships
Success depends on relationship envisaged 1. Clarity on partners’ capabilities, attitudes and
interests to establish partnerships that deliver
2. Complementarity of skills & shared understanding
3. Clarity of purpose - goals, roles, responsibilities
4. Relevance of partner motivation to the goals
5. Agreement on governance structure, lifespan and dispute resolution, communication & IP
6. Resources available
7. Sensitivity to institutional, political & cultural differences
General Challenges with PPP’s
• Trust Building – Skepticism PPP’s• Work cultures – public sector vs private sector• Policy environment - Young emerging
regulatory frameworks• Seed systems & related stewardship –
commercialisation challenges• Considerable time - commitment needed • The ‘virtual nature’ could affect involvement of
partners and timely execution of plans & activities
Belief in smallholder farmers in Africa
• Deserve the best agricultural technology available to mitigate lowest farm productivity
• Science and technology can and must play a vital role – make a difference in SSA
• Success depends on all working together - effective partnerships
• People in Africa can and must take the lead in providing the answers to Africa’s challenges.
Conclusion
• Billions of dollars are lost due to constraints whose solutions exist
• Small-holder farming can contribute to Poverty Eradication and Food Security– Access to appropriate agri technologies is
paramount – Effective Public-Private-Partnerships
• Agriculture is a business and part of economy
AATF STAFF FEBRUARY 2013