The workshop Mainstreaming access and benefit sharing in agricultural Research and Development: a workshop for researchers, practitioners and policy makers in selected African countries and organizations was held at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) in Addis Ababa from the 21st to the 24th of November 2022.
The workshop was co-organized by the African Union Commission, ILRI and the CGIAR Genebank Initiative, and funded by the CGIAR Genebank Initiative.

Digital tools and technologies are transforming the way we monitor and manage food systems and natural resources, but to date there is scant credible collection and analysis of evidence of their impacts on well-being, environmental sustainability, and broader goods and services. The development of information communication technology (ICT) has a crucial role to play in the timely provision of information to guide management and investment decisions by small-scale fisheries (SSF) stakeholders, from coastal fishers to government officials.

In its endeavor to improve agricultural productivity, food security, and livelihoods, Nigeria has pursued several approaches in fertilizer policy. Most of these approaches revolved around variants of government-financed subsidy programs. This paper assesses the history of fertilizer policies in Nigeria and the tenets of the fertilizer policies in two recent national agricultural policy documents – the Agricultural Transformation Agenda (ATA) (2010/11-2016) and the Agricultural Promotion Policy (APP) (2016-2020).

Big data and mobile technology are widely claimed to be global disruptive forces in agriculture that benefit small-scale farm-ers. Yet the access of small-scale farmers to this technology is poorly understood. We show that only 24–37% of farms of <1 ha in size are served by third generation (3G) or 4G services, compared to 74–80% of farms of >200 ha in size. Furthermore, croplands with severe yield gaps, climate-stressed locations and food-insecure populations have poor service coverage.

The Agriculture Sector Gender Policy has been reviewed and revised through six key thematic areas – Gender and Social Inclusion (GeSI) and the five thematic areas in Agriculture that intersect with gender, namely, Agriculture Value Chain Development (AVCD); Food and Nutrition Security (FNS); Climate Change (CC); National and Devolved Governance; and the Strategic Analysis Knowledge Support System (SAKSS), in eight Regional Economic Blocs (REB). Evidence of gender gaps and their determinants in agricultural productivity in Africa exists.

With economic development agricultural systems in the Global South transform from subsistence farming to higher productivity with market integration and increase in rural income and food security. In Nepal, agriculture continues to provide livelihoods for two-thirds of the predominantly rural population, largely at a subsistence-level. Rice is the staple food and covers the largest land area but yields are relatively low, with an annual import bill of USD 300 Million. The study uses data from 310 households from two distinct rice producing areas to assess farmers' rice production systems.

A substantial body of research on these important issues comes from a research theme of the CGIAR Research Program on Policies, Institutions, and Markets (PIM) that focused on the governance of natural resources (Flagship 5, or PIM5). Research in Flagship 5 examined the policy and institutional foundations for improved natural resource management. It analyzed how tenure security affects sustain¬able management and how individuals, groups, and communities govern the land, water, fish stocks, and forests.

CGIAR’s Independent Advisory and Evaluation Service (IAES) provides operational support as the Secretariat for the Independent Science for Development Council (ISDC) and the Standing Panel on Impact Assessment (SPIA). IAES implements CGIAR’s multi-year, independent evaluation plan, as approved by the System Council. The IAES multi-year workplan authorizes the IAES Evaluation Function’s continued role in supporting evaluation standards, guidance, and capacity within CGIAR.

An enabling environment with clear, inclusive, and transparent seed laws, policies, regulations, and guidelines is the foundation for an efficient and effective seed sector. If well designed and implemented, the legal and regulatory framework can facilitate market diversification, supervision and quality control of seed and other forms of planting material, promotion of private sector participation, farmer access to improved seed varieties, reduced barriers for the movement of seeds across borders, and food security.

The purpose of this report is to describe work presented and discussions resulting from an event jointly convened by the CGIAR Research Initiative on Fragility, Conflict, and Migration (FCM) and the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) in Abuja, Nigeria on May 11, 2023. The event, titled “Rethinking food Crisis Responses,” drew many participants from Nigerian civil society, government, and the private sector, in addition to representatives of international organizations, local and international NGOs, and the donor community.

The Central African forest ebony, Diospyros crassiflora Hiern, is a small tree native to the moist forests of the Congo Basin. Its appealing black heartwood was one of the first products to be exported from the Gulf of Guinea in the 17th century and is today one of the main sources of ebony globally. Like for other ebony species, its commercial exploitation raises serious questions about the long-term sustainability of its trade and the viability of its populations, but the dots are yet to be joined.

This study was commissioned by the Alliance of Bioversity International and CIAT to assess the viability of enhancing forage selection and dissemination and targeting breeding and selection efforts focusing on the specific needs of South-East Asian farming systems. The opportunity to be assessed is to strengthen the Alliance’s collaboration with the Thai government in the framework of improved Tropical Forages. The study aims to address bottlenecks for forage seed supply systems for:
a) the internal Thai market;