Tuesday, 28 June 2011

1st Africa College International Conference: Food security, Health and Impact Knowledge Brokering

22nd - 24th June 2011, Devonshire Hall, University of Leeds, UK. The goal of this conference was to demonstrate and share lessons on how to translate research results into impact on food security and human health in sub-Saharan Africa. It had two objectives:

  • To determine how the results of basic science and inter-disciplinary research lead to impact on food security and human health.
  • To explore how partnerships between research and development organisations deliver innovation and impact.
The conference programme had eight elements:

Plenary Sessions with presentations from leading African, British and European scientists and research users setting out the challenges to be addressed.

Knowledge exchange and brokering sessions an opportunity for participants to share experiences with small groups of delegates in a 30 minute sessions.
Thematic sessions focused on how impact has been achieved in different thematic areas.
Learning sessions focused on how to achieve impact on specific issues.
Poster sessions will be held to highlight the work of delegates and their organisations. There will be a prize for the best poster on impact, how this was achieved, and lessons learnt.
Exhibition stands Organisations and individuals had the opportunity to book exhibition stands to display and share their experiences.
Side events and networking sessions Space were provided in the programme for delegates to run side meetings and networking sessions on specific topics and ideas.
Behrens Lecture and Award Ceremony Dr Monty Jones delivered the Behrens lecture, and took part in announcing winners of the Africa College Competition on impact.

Presentations for download

Plenary and Keynote Speakers

Behren's Lecture

Presentations by Workshop

Workshop I: How can Integrating agriculture and transport research enhance food security and reduce post harvest losses?

  • Zambia National Marketeers Credit Association (Zanamaca) Lusaka – Zambia - Agness Luo Laima

    • Workshop II: What were the lessons on best practice from the BBSRC Excellence with Impact (EWI) Competition?
  • Linking Transport Research to Food Security in Nigeria - Fatima L. Adamu

  • African distribution systems: Transport, food security and the MDGs - Africa's need for action - Margaret Grieco


  • Excellence with Impact: Best Practice - Adam Staines

    • Workshop III: How reinventing agriculture with trees can improve food security and livelihoods?
  • Achieving culture change to deliver impact - Kerrie Farrar


  • Land Tenure and Property Rights in the Agricultural Areas of Kenya: Economic & Environmental Implications - Mike Norton-Griffiths

  • Rural Resource Centres Transform Lives and Landscapes through Participatory Tree Domestication in West and Central Africa - Ann Degrande

    • Workshop IV: How can impact be enhanced by better understanding of value chains and farmer organisations?
  • Key approaches for achieving impact from research: The Uptake of Fodder Shrubs among East African Smallholders - Steven Franzel


  • Farmer Organisations as Research Partners? - Chris Penrose Buckley

  • Co-operatives and organizational development - Beatrice Okeyo

    • Workshop V: How integrating Research with Development in sub-Saharan Africa for food security has helped to deliver impact. The case of sub-Saharan African Challenge Program.
  • The challenges and opportunities of working with other value chain actors - Bill Vorley


  • IAR4D impacts on food security in LKPLS - Moses Tenywa

  • Integrating Research with Development for increased impact in ARD - Adewale Adekunle

  • Analysis of Rice Innovation Platform Processes towards Achieving Greater Impacts on Food Security and Improved Smallholder Livelihoods in Northern Guinea Savannah of Nigeria - Constant Dangbegnon

  • Economic impacts of integrated agricultural research for development in Sahel Savanna of
    West Africa     - Adeolu B. Ayanwale

  • Learning for Change: The impact of Capacity Building in IAR4D on NARO in Uganda - Richard Hawkins

    • Workshop VI: How can impact be delivered through working with the private sector?
  • Impact of adoption of improved crop varieties in food security: evidence from adoption of improved beans and Irish potato innovations in Lake Kivu Pilot Learning Site (PLS) - Joachim Nyemeck B


  • Public-private partnership for harnessing the benefits of agricultural technology innovations in Africa. - Jacob D.H. Mignouna

  • Research impact through the private sector: some GALVmed experiences - Steve Sloan

  • Working with the private sector: some thoughts from an academic - Tim Benton

    • Workshop VII: How can climate knowledge help to achieve impacts on food and security, and health?
  • Perspective from the private sector on how research and make an impact - Katie Knaggs


  • All's well that ends well: reflections on impact of a decade of rainwater harvesting research in Tanzania - John Gowing

  • Making the most of both pure and applied research to link climate food and health: lessons from EQUIP and CCAFS - Andrew Challinor

  • The ESCAPE programme: an inter-disciplinary study on vulnerability, resilience and adaptation of rural societies to environmental changes in Africa - Benjamin Sultan

  • Linking research with operational practice in West Africa: achievements and lessons learned from AMMA - Jan Polcher

    • Workshop VIII: How can a holistic approach to food, nutrition and health deliver impact?
  • Climate and weather research: priorities for the Met Office on the impacts in Africa - Dan Bloomfield


  • Responding to high food prices: lessons from a food voucher programme in Burkina Faso - M Savy

  • Food security, adequate care and environmental quality: development and testing of eco-nutrition guidelines for community actions in the context of climate change - Joyce Kinabo

  • Micronutrient Fortification strategies for improving food security in Africa - O.O. Onadipe

    • Workshop IX: How can plant science research be translated into impact on food security?
  • SUNRAY - Sustainable nutrition research for Africa in the years to come - Patrick Kolsteren


  • Improving crop variety choices of marginal farmers of the rainfed areas in Ethiopia - D.S. Virk

    • Workshop X: How can mycotoxin research make an impact on food safety and policy?
  • Managing Cassava Brown Streak in East Africa: the experience of the Great Lakes Cassava Initiative - Julian Smith


  • Status of aflatoxin contamination of foodstuff in Uganda - Archileo N. Kaaya

  • How climate and crop modelling can contribute to improved food safety - Andy Challinor

  • Strategies to reduce exposure of fumonisins from complementary foods in rural Tanzania - Martin E. Kimanya

  • EFSA CONTAM Panel: how it carries out risk assessments on contaminants - Mari Eskola

  • Brief introduction of mycotoxin management in China - Feng-Qin Li

    • Workshop XII: How can understanding the management of ecosystem services make and impact on real world problems?
  • Mycotoxin exposure assessment in Africa - Gordon S Shephard


  • Convention on biological diversity, the Nagoya Protocol and food security - Fabian Haas

  • Harnessing pollination service for improved agricultural production and livelihoods in Africa - Mary Gikungu

  • Malaria and mosquito research at icipe - Richard Mukabana


    • Conference Videos

    Dr Rajinder Saini of ICIPE believes impact can be seen in how are we changing the life of farmers

    Professor Isaac Akinyele of the Food Basket Foundation International gives his viewpoint on how researchers can achieve impact by clearly defining the social change they want to make

    Joyce Kinabo of Sokoine University of Agriculture, Tanzania on building capacity of people to do research to achieve greater impact.

    Dennis Garrity, Director General of the World Agroforestry Centre, describes the multiple benefits of Evergreen Agriculture and its impact across sub-Saharan Africa.

    Dr Akin Adesina, Vice-President for the Alliance for a Green Revolution in Africa (AGRA) highlights the need for home-grown African policies to take agricultural impacts to scale.

    Professor Molly Jahn, Special Advisor to the Chancellor and Provost for Sustainability Sciences, the University of Madison-Wisconsin, emphasises the need to live within our means if we are to meet the challenges we face.

    Professor Adewale Adekunle, of the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA) emphasises the need for bringing different stakeholders together to achieve greater impact.
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