KIT's Involvement
 

• KIT, AKIS and RAAKS
• Cases of the use of RAAKS in AKIS
• Area Sustainable Economic Development (SED)
• RAAKS & rural service delivery
• RAAKS & decentralization
• RAAKS & value chain development
• Contact relevant KIT staff
• Projects
• Publications
   

KIT, AKIS and RAAKS

Most of KIT’s work involving RAAKS actually uses RAAKS as originally intended by its creators, namely for improving the Agricultural Knowledge and Information System (AKIS), see below KIT publications and the online RAAKS Resource Box. Different RAAKS tools are being used in KIT's capacity building programmes in Tanzania, Mali and Nigeria, and have been incorporated in various KIT manuals and tools. Recent trends in international development cooperation further underline the need for this toolbox: emphasis is currently given to the interaction between public and private sector and civil society for poverty reduction at both national and sub-national levels. Although RAAKS has been developed in the agricultural sector with its complicated stakeholder environment, RAAKS methods and tools can be used in other sectors.

Cases of the use of RAAKS in AKIS

Two examples of the use of RAAKS (Rapid Appraisal of Agricultural Knowledge Systems) in AKIS by staff of the Sustainable Economic Development (SED) section of the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) are:

• Client-Oriented Research Management Approach (CORMA): the agricultural research system of Cape Verde (2005). Various tools from the RAAKS Toolbox were used to analyse the interaction between the different actors and to assess the performance of INIDA (the National Institute for Agricultural Research and Development) of Cape Verde (Heemskerk, 2008). Read more … CORMA has adapted a number of tools from the RAAKS toolbox for analysing the social organization of innovation, including actor configurations, the knowledge network, co-ordination, and communication. In addition, CORMA looks at the internal organization of research in 5 management areas, including human resource development, financial management, and monitoring & evaluation. For more information on the CORMA approach see Heemskerk et al. (2003) and Wennink and Heemskerk (2006).
• Agricultural Innovation Systems Analysis (AISA) of the Kenyan cut flower industry. Kenya’s floriculture Agricultural Science, Technology and Innovation System was analysed using many of the tools from the RAAKS Toolbox that contribute to the understanding of the social organization of innovation, including tools for policy analysis, actor identification, actor analysis, the linkage matrix, and actor x function analysis (Heemskerk, 2008b). Read more …

Area Sustainable Economic Development (SED)

The Area Sustainable Economic Development (SED) of the Royal Tropical Institute (KIT) is engaged in research, training, and consultancy to improve the livelihoods of vulnerable producers in developing countries. SED uses the RAAKS Toolbox for analysis of multi-stakeholder environments to promote value chain development, rural decentralization, and rural innovation. For more information on the activities of SED, click on the links to the home page of SED on the KIT web site and the fact sheet of SED on innovation for rural development, which also provides a list of projects on rural innovation in which SED is currently involved.

RAAKS & rural service delivery

The Agricultural Knowledge and Information System concept has been widely adopted in KIT's approaches, but also brought further in e.g. agricultural innovation systems. In accordance with the recent trends towards interdisciplinarity at decentralised level, the concept of 'The Innovation System' seems more appropriate than the AKIS and involves the implementers/innovators/farmers in the analysis. Fortunately, the tools in the RAAKS toolbox can be and are also used in Innovation System Assessments, though some additional emphasis on participation and particularly on participatory monitoring and evaluation of institutional and organisational innovation. KIT is currently working on these additional dimensions of RAAKS. The KIT information portal on rural and agricultural innovation systems provides access to hundreds of free, online resources at http://portals.kit.nl/rural_innovation_systems.

RAAKS & decentralization

Multi-stakeholder processes surrounding local governments in rural and urban areas are complex. Elected local government members have become central actors within an already existing network of actors, interests and power relations. Although legal, with powers and responsibilities enshrined in law, they have to earn legitimacy and develop effective working relations with (informal) authorities, service providers and other organisations. KIT is using RAAKS tools in support of decentralization programmes and training to build capacity within institutions like ministries, NGOs, citizens' organisations and projects to make them able to effectively accompany local governments, facilitate multi-stakeholder process management and enhance social learning. This is essential to move the decentralization process forward and to enlarge the quality and equity of local governance and the capacity of local government to deliver. The KIT information portal on rural and agricultural innovation systems provides access to free, online background material at The KIT information portal on decentralization in developing countries provides access to hundreds of free, online resources at http://portals.kit.nl/rural_decentralization_and_local_governance.

RAAKS & value chain development

In relation to economic chain development, multi-stakeholder analysis and consequently the use of RAAKS tools are essential elements of the assessment of the roles of different actors at various levels in the chain. An example is the analysis of the alpine medicinal plant chain in India as described by Belt (2003). The KIT information portal on value chain development provides access to hundreds of free, online resources at http://portals.kit.nl/value_chains_for_development.

Contact relevant KIT staff

To contact staff, click here.