“Policy Implementation requires the capacity to identify investment gaps and track progress. Assuming such capacity exists slows down progress.”- Suresh Babu, Senior Research Fellow and Head of Capacity Strengthening Unit for IFPRI
As a measure towards driving innovation in Nigeria’s agricultural sector, on 16 September 2019 in Abuja, the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) introduced 30 senior officials of Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) to tools developed under the Capacity Development for Agriculture Innovation Systems (CDAIS) project.
The Capacity Development for Agriculture Innovation Systems (CDAIS) is a global activity funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
Under the CDAIS project, researchers have developed tools that when implemented, would help players in agriculture working on research education, extension (REE) or policy to effectively analyze themselves and be properly positioned to bring about innovations within their respective agricultural systems.
Prior to this activity with FMARD, Dr. Suresh Babu, Head of the Capacity Strengthening Unit at IFPRI and Dr. Kwaw Andam, Program Leader for IFPRI’s Nigeria Strategy Support Program in collaboration with colleagues from World FISH, Wageningen University and other stakeholders, had already verified the tools with actors in Ibadan, Oyo State . Here, the tools were tested for the aquaculture sector in the states of South West Nigeria (Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo).
The CDAIS toolkit has also been tested in Niger State, where it was applied against multiple value chains and food sectors in the state. This particular activity was also funded by USAID under the Feed the Future Nigeria Agricultural Policy Project.
