ASARECA Strategy for Scaling Up Agricultural Technologies and Innovations: 2014 - 2018

From the time the Association for Strengthening Agricultural Research in Eastern and Central Africa (ASARECA) was founded 20 years ago, its role has been facilitation, coordination, capacity development and mobilisation of financial and other resources for the sub-region agricultural research and development. However, throughout implementation of its first operational plan (2009 - 2013) under its strategic plan 2008 - 2018, ASARECA and its national agricultural research system (NARS) stakeholders have been under mounting pressure to achieve greater impact with its research and development effort. Such impact can only be realised through greater efficiency and effectiveness not only of the generation but also of the delivery and utilisation of the research outputs. The strong commitment of ASARECA to improving the delivery, utilisation and impact of science and technology in order to bring about agricultural transformation in the sub-region is evident in its mission. The Association has responded to these concerns in various ways. Among the responses is a study ASARECA conducted in the sub-region to understand the causes of the low adoption, scaling up and impact of proven technologies and innovations. The study provided insights into the root factors that contribute to low adoption and came up with recommendations for improvement. In its second operational plan (2014 - 2018), ASARECA is focusing more of its interventions in research and development on scaling up. This strategy draws on the insights from the findings of the study on causes of low adoption and borrows experiences and lessons from other regions to provide a holistic way to spur technology uptake and scaling up in ways that will trigger agricultural transformation in sub-Saharan Africa.