AgrifoodFRN

Lead Organization:

Union Locale des Producteurs de Cereales (ULPC)

Partner Organizations:

Direct partnerships in the project involve ULPC and ICRISAT. ULPC will manage the project, with Mr. Yalaly Traore as the principal investigator (PI). ULPC is responsible for the financial and administrative management, while ICRISAT will provide technical support. Dr. MacDonald Bright Jumbo will be the project focal point at ICRISAT, and M. Mamourou Sidibe will provide technical support for ULPC.

Community of Practice:

West Africa

Countries:

Mali

Duration:

5/2024—5/2027

Overview:

Agriculture plays a crucial role in Mali’s economy, employing 80% of the population and contributing over 35% of the national GDP. National policies highlight the importance of producer organizations for agricultural development, particularly in agroecological transitions. The ULPC, in collaboration with research institutes such as ICRISAT and IER, has developed a farmer research network (FRN) in the Dioila region. The project focuses on creating a self-managed database for ULPC to store and manage socio-economic data and farm information, improving the accessibility of research results for farmers. Additionally, the project will document the diversity of ULPC members and develop a farmer typology to support the scaling of agroecological practices.

Grant Aims:

The AgrifoodFRN project aims to build ULPC’s capacity to manage a farmer research network (FRN), empower farmers through better access to research results, and facilitate the scaling of agroecological practices. This includes establishing a database and developing a typology of farmers to improve decision-making and socio-economic inclusion within the agricultural context. The project also aims to enhance the cooperation between ULPC, farmers, and researchers, ultimately driving food system transformation.

Outputs and Outcomes:

  • Output 1: A database is created and managed within ULPC, containing socio-economic data and information on members’ farms.
    • Outcome 1.1: The creation of a self-managed database will allow farmers to better access research results.
    • Outcome 1.2: The process of setting up and managing the database will enhance the capacity of ULPC facilitators and improve knowledge sharing within the FRN network.
    • Outcome 1.3: The database will facilitate the development of a farmer typology, promoting social inclusion and equity.
  • Output 2: The diversity of ULPC members is documented, and a typology of farmers is developed.
    • Outcome 2.1: The typology will help ULPC understand the specific contexts of its members and facilitate the planning and scaling of agroecological practices.
    • Outcome 2.2: The farmer typology will aid in promoting social inclusion and equity within the organization and its practices.
    • Outcome 2.3: The typology will enable monitoring changes in members’ contexts.
  • Output 3: ULPC member farmers use a diverse range of agroecological options tailored to their contexts.
    • Outcome 3.1: Large-scale trials will evaluate and disseminate agroecological options by context, supporting inclusive scaling-up of practices.
    • Outcome 3.2: The training of endogenous animators in digital data collection will strengthen local capacities and sustain ULPC’s FRN work.
    • Outcome 3.3: Evaluation results from agroecological trials will guide future decision-making for ULPC and its farmers.
    • Outcome 3.4: Rainfall data collected by farmers will contribute to assessing the climate-related risks of specific agroecological practices.

This project will set a foundation for ULPC to efficiently support farmer-led food system transformation in the Dioila region and provide a model for other organizations in Mali. Additionally, it aims to transform the power dynamics between researchers and farmers, ensuring research is more relevant and impactful for farmers.