The Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development GCARD

European regional electronic consultation that will contribute to the Global Conference on Agricultural Research for Development GCARD, Montpellier, France, 28-31 March 2010.

Background
The Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) is organizing the Global Conferences on Agricultural Research for Development (GCARDs) every two years, starting in 2010. The Conferences will be an open and inclusive process for consultation and change to reshape agricultural research and innovation, to improve resources for research and increase its impact on development.

Each GCARD Conference will be preceded by a series of electronic and face-to-face consultations conducted at regional and global levels to capture the contributions and perspectives of all stakeholders in the agricultural research, education and development systems. This will reshape the global agricultural research for development agenda and centre it on the needs of the poor in developing countries.

In carrying out this major undertaking, GFAR is reaching out to all stakeholders in AR4D, working through its constituent agencies and networks, which include: the six Regional Research Fora (FARA, EFARD, AARINENA, FORAGRO, APAARI, CACAARI), who represent National Agricultural Research Systems; the Alliance of CGIAR centres (Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research); FAO, IFAD; and representatives from: farmers associations (IFAP); civil society;  the private sector;  and donor agencies.

In order to provide a baseline for discussion, regional reviews have been commissioned to provide a synthesis of existing national and regional studies, policies and reports on how agricultural research priorities currently match development aims and needs. The outcome of these reviews will be used to frame questions for the e-consultations and the face-to-face meetings at regional and global levels.

The consultations will also contribute to the formulation of the new research strategy and programmes of the CGIAR and provide perspectives from intended partners, end users and beneficiaries on possible strategic themes and their operational implications. To that effect, the CGIAR is currently examining key priority areas for international research.


Objectives of the Electronic Consultation in Europe.
The two week facilitated e-consultation will provide an opportunity for you to share experiences and learn from others who are involved with agricultural research for development. The consultation is open to all and starts from your own experiences and lessons learnt about what has enabled agricultural technologies to achieve development impact. The consultation will refer to the issues raised by the regional review (GCARD-Europe review) and focus on questions like:

·       To what extent do the issues identified in the regional review and the CGIAR analysis capture the key regional research needs for delivering the greatest development impact?

·       What are the mechanisms and partnerships that are required for turning research into development impact?
·       What are the key blockages, barriers and bottlenecks that prevent agricultural innovation from benefiting the poor?

·       How best should these be resolved and what enabling investments, policies, and capacities are most needed?

In view of Europe’s role both as a donor and recipient of ARD funding, the Europe e-consultation will have two dimensions: European ARD for Europe and European ARD for the developing World. Attendees will be challenged with complementary questions to address the uniqueness of the region.

Your input will contribute to shape the future of agriculture: it will inform the regional face-to-face meeting planned for 29^th September in Brussels that will contribute to action plans for agricultural research around the world and in Europe.  Your input will also be acknowledged in the proceedings and might lead to an invitation to attend the GCARD Conference in Montpellier in March 2010.

Outline of the 2 Week events

·       Pre-event activity – we invite you to browse through the regional review key findings. Three documents are appended to this notice. An Executive Summary of the review (5pages) which should be read by all before the meeting; the complete report (ca 60 pages); and an Annex on Poverty in Europe (22pages). These are still draft documents but provide objective background material for the e-consultation; the event provides an opportunity for attendees to add value particularly of a contemporary nature to the review, and/or contradict some of the conclusions drawn by the authors. 

·       Week 1 – Participants introduce themselves and share their experiences and views from the region, relating agricultural innovation to development impact.

·       Week 2 – Participants reflect on the issues raised in the preceding week and put their experiences in perspective of the regional review findings. Participants are invited to suggest and discuss reforms to make innovations help to have greater impact on major development needs of poor European farmers and rural/urban communities and those in the developing world.

·       Week 3 (3 days) – Participants receive a summary of the discussions and make closing remarks.

Language
English and French.

Participation
This event is open to all those who are interested in agricultural research for development and innovation and have a specific interest in the European region. The consultations are based on electronic dialogues with the possibility to consult and participate via a public Web site. Summaries are posted twice a week on the Web site (www.egfar.org) for comments and further discussion.

Schedule of the Regional Consultations
The facilitated consultation will take place between the first and third week of September 2009. The exact dates will be communicated to you upon registration.

Registration
Please go to the following site to register:
Europe: http://www.egfar.org/egfar/website/gcard/regional-consultations/eu/participate

List of documents from GCARD Europe Review

1.      Executive Summary
2.      Full GCARD-Europe Report (final draft)

3.      Poverty in Europe.