TAP-AIS
The Tropical Agriculture Platform (TAP)
The Tropical Agriculture Platform (TAP), together with its partners and expert groups, has developed approaches and tools to strengthen capacity to innovate in the food and agriculture sector. The Common Framework for Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation System is the principal guide to the TAP approach to strengthening capacity to innovate at local and national level. In support of its Common Framework TAP has also developed various tools, assessment methodologies and operational guidelines which have been tested, validated and up-scaled successfully under the EU-funded project “Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation System” (CDAIS).
Building on these experiences, TAP is further promoting and integrating its tools and approaches in selected regional and sub-regional research and extension organizations in Africa, Asia-Pacific and Latin America, under the EU-funded project “Developing capacities in agricultural innovation systems: scaling up the TAP Framework” implemented by FAO (TAP/ FAO DeSIRA project).
The overall objectives of the project, with regards to the regional component (Output 3) are to strengthen capacity in regional research and extension organizations to integrate TAP tools and approaches in their work programme to promote innovation processes at the country level; and to facilitate and strengthen collaboration and synergies between research and extension organizations at regional and national level through a joint planning and implementation process.
The action will support the strengthening of national agricultural innovation systems (AIS), through strengthened regional and national research, extension and advisory organizations, considering the mandate of these regional organizations vis-à-vis national constituencies. Regional and sub-regional organizations included in the project are:
- the ‘African CAADP ex-Pillar IV organizations’ (FARA, AFAAS, ASARECA, CCARDESA, CORAF);
- regional research and extension networks and organizations in Asia-Pacific (APAARI and APIRAS);
- regional research and extension networks and organizations and Latin America and the Caribbean (FORAGRO-IICA and RELASER).
APIRAS-APAARI Joint Action Plan
In order to integrate TAP tools into the research and extension organizations and their programmes in the Asia-Pacific region, a joint rapid appraisal ( http://www.fao.org/3/cb5995en/cb5995en.pdf) was conducted by regional research and extension organizations (APAARI and APIRAS) in 2020, resulting in a Joint Action Plan (JAP). The APAARI-APIRAS rapid appraisal allowed to identify entry points for the uptake of TAP approaches and tools: consequently, the JAP includes specific activities to promote TAP concepts and approaches on CD for AIS in the Asia-Pacific region. 
APIRAS participated in the Regional Dialogue on ‘Capacity Development in Agricultural Innovation Systems (CDAIS) in Asia, Africa and Latin America: Lessons and Experiences from the Joint Rapid Appraisals (JRA)’ on 20 November 2020 and presented the findings from South Asia. This event was co-organized by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture (IICA), the Latin American Rural Extension Services Network (RELASER), the Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI), the APIRAS, the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), and the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS) as a side event at the TAP Partner Assembly.
Formation of regional stakeholder working groups (WGs) for the High-Level Regional Innovation Forum (HLRIF) jointly organized by APIRAS and APAARI,
- Facilitate the participation by the WGs to a series of targeted webinars on research-extension interface that will feed into the HLRIF planned in 2022.
- Organize a joint call on good practices in: (a) Partnerships for innovation; (b) Innovations in capacity development focusing on functional capacities; and (c) Policy changes that facilitate innovation.
- Organize a training (TOT) on TAP Common Framework tools and approaches and on the AIS assessment methodology. https://www.aesanetwork.org/training-of-trainers-workshop-on-strengthening-agriculture-innovation-systems-in-asia-pacific-tap-approaches-and-tools-19-20-october-2021/
- Identification of gaps in functional capacities through the following sub-activities:
- Online survey;
- Webinars to respond to the gaps/needs identified; and
- Webinars on Common Framework, functional capacity development and knowledge management strategies.
- Organize advocacy webinar on AIS approach, CD for innovation to tertiary education actors.
(APIRAS-APAARI-FAO-TAP) 2nd Meeting of the Working Group on Agroecology
In this second online meeting of the Working Group held today (18 July 2023), the participants reflected on ways to enhance functional capacities in agricultural education in the context of agroecology. To promote agroecology at scale, there is a need to have more professionals who can understand, appreciate, adapt and promote agroecological principles to suit varied agroecological settings. 21 participants representing different organisations interested and involved in development of courses on agroecology participated in the meeting. FAO-TAP-APIRAS-APAARI (Online)Training Workshop (18-20 September 2023) MULTI-STAKEHOLDER POLICY ENGAGEMENT IN AGRIFOOD SYSTEMS The objective of this training is to strengthen participants’ capacities to effectively engage in policy processes to realize the potential of innovation in agrifood systems.  APIRAS-APAARI: GOOD PRACTICES NOTES The Asia-Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services Network (APIRAS) and the Asia Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI), in close collaboration with the Office of Innovation (OIN) at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations, are committed to strengthening agriculture innovation systems (AIS) in the Asia-Pacific for the sustainable transformation of agrifood systems. The Tropical Agriculture Platform (TAP) hosted by FAO, has developed approaches and tools to strengthen innovation capacities in the agri-food sector. As part of the TAP-AIS project funded by the European Union, TAP and its partners aim to strengthen capacities in regional research and extension organizations to integrate TAP tools and approaches into their work programmes. This effort will promote innovation processes at the country level and facilitate and strengthen collaboration and synergies between research and extension organizations at regional and national levels.  Despite encouraging signs that AIS approaches are being more widely integrated into national innovation policies and programmes, their successful adoption remains a challenge, long with limited documentation and evidence of existing successful practices. Considering the growing recognition of the importance of institutional innovations in promoting more efficient and productive collaboration and knowledge flow among different actors in the AIS, the APIRAS, APAARI and OIN-FAO team published the following GPNs considering cases from Asia-Pacific through a joint call. Third Meeting of the Working Group on Agroecology, (APIRAS-APAARI-FAO-TAP-AIS) Mainstreaming Agroecology in Agricultural Education  The main purpose of the Working Group is to sharing experinces in designing and promoting course in agroecology especially in higher education. Rasheed Sulaiman V, Centre for Research on Innovation and Science Policy , set the scene for the meeting. G V Ramanjaneyulu, Executive Director, Krishna Sudha Academy for Agroecology (Centre for Sustainable Agriculture) India and Cesar Ortinero, Dean of Admissions and Professor of Environmental Sciences, Central Luzon State Universtiy (CLSU), Philippines shared their experiences with agroecolgy course development in the meeting. Pierre Ferrand (UN Food and Agriculture Organisation) moderated the discussions. |
APIRAS participated in the TAP side event on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems-lessons learnt and future action of the TAP partnership on 5 July 2021 as part of the science days of the UN Food Systems Summit 2021. Regional Research and Extension Organizations including APIRAS highlighted their efforts to integrate TAP tools and approaches into their work and shared some lessons learnt through their collaboration in the context of the TAP-AIS project.
The training was organized by the Tropical Agriculture Platform – Agricultural Innovation Systems (TAP-AIS) project, ‘Developing Capacities in Agricultural Innovation Systems: Scaling up the Tropical Agriculture Platform Framework’, implemented by FAO’s Research & Extension (R&E) Unit, funded by the European Union (EU) as a component of the ‘Development Smart Innovation through Research in Agriculture (DeSIRA): Towards Climate-relevant Agricultural and Knowledge Innovation Systems’ initiative. The project aims to strengthen AIS by promoting the Common Framework for capacity development of the TAP.
These include:
08 march 2022, The Asia-Pacific Association of Agricultural Research Institutions (APAARI), in collaboration with the Asia-Pacific Islands Rural Advisory Services Network (APIRAS), and the Tropical Agriculture Platform (TAP) hosted by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), organizied a webinar on ‘Women in research and extension: Advancing gender equality in innovation’.
These meeting were held to:
