Outsourcing agricultural advisory services

Improving agricultural productivity, profitability and sustainability requires innovation. For many years, support for innovation tended to focus mainly on strengthening agricultural research. Innovation, however, is the result of interaction among stakeholders rather than a result of research. It is therefore important to involve farmers’ organizations, the private sector, and even policy-makers, as full-fledged partners for enhancing rural innovation.

The challenge is to ensure that agricultural knowledge services, such as research, advisory and training services, directly address the economic development needs of rural actors, and that smallholder farmers in particular become empowered within the rural innovation system, in such away that interactive learning develops.

KIT has over 30 years of experience in agricultural service delivery using innovative, client-oriented approaches. Currently, KIT’s Development Policy & Practice department  is working with farmer organizations to see how knowledge service providers can better reach the poor. Securing quality services and sustainable financing mechanisms are an important aspect of this work.

The department develops methods and tools, adapted to the African context in particular, that increase the effectiveness of all parties - agricultural service providers, farmer organizations, local governments and the private sector - to take part in the innovation process.