Africa RISING PCT meeting[edit | edit source]

19 January 2017 1400-1630 Papa 2 meeting room White Sands Hotel Dar es Salaam

Participants

Bernard Vanlauwe (BV) - chair Siboniso Moyo (SM) Peter Thorne (PT) Irmgard Hoeschle-Zeledon (IHZ) Carlo Azzarri (CA) Peter Ballantyne (PB) Mateete Bekunda Kindu Mekonnen Asamoah Larbi

Unable to connect: Jerry Glover (JG)

PCT page

Agenda

1. PCT TOR - update Need to emphasise that decisions on program-level issues by consensus. Implementation by members as appropriate Action: Re-circulate for decision at next PCT

2. Program Assistant TOR - decide The PCT decided not to have this position

3. SAG TOR - decide 20 december version with very small changes adopted - see below Provision of SAG support, logistics etc, rotates across the 3 projects

4. SAG membership - decide Action: Check with the current three members before the next meeting. Salvador (PeterT); Moses (Mateete) and Paul (Carlo) Action: Find 3 more: suggest names before the feb meeting (at least 2 per PCT member); and decide. For each, name, gender, nationality, affiliation expertise. Action: PB to prepare and circulate a table.

5. Dar meeting reflections Participants were asked to reflect on the meeting just finished. Comments focused on 1) the event process itself and 2) issues arising that need to be on the PCT agenda going forward.

Event process comments

Irmgard: scaling session too short/too rushed.
Irmgard: west Africa rather quiet/less visible.
PeterT: updated people on Phase2; good.
Kindu: great to dive into the science; and lots of opportunities to publish across projects.
Mateete: should also have field activities linked to such a meeting
Boni: Lost energies this morning. People leaving early (discourage in future).

Action: carry out an evaluation/survey on the meeting. PB

Issues for the agenda

Carlo: need to ensure quality of outputs/publications.
Kindu: the cross-learning visits were powerful and build relations. Need to continue these.
Boni: We need to make sure the gender is also properly cross-project/COP-like.
PeterB: some program-level elements need to be driven/championed (typologies, capdev, SI framework, scaling, program analysis, program questions..), or they wont happen
Asamoah: lots of publishing opportunities across projects.
Bernard: much more scope for interaction/integration. Must operationalize the SI framework.
Bernard: some hesitation to engage in the M&E. MUST ‘help’ make this work.
Bernard: no clarity on what we mean by ‘reach’ across projects (related to adoption, impact measurement, etc.).
Bernard: how do we avoid/reduce the missed opportunities for collaboration across projects? Need a mix of the formal mechanisms plus allowing for some ‘waste’

Actions for future PCTs

Make plan and assign responsibilities for cross-project visits and exchanges (perhaps linked to the COPs)
Establish champions for each major program-wide element and development plans: Si framework, typologies, scaling, program analysis and resaerch questions, capacity development, data management, gender ...
How do we define and measure 'reach' across the projects and the program. Critical for the phase 2 targets.

6. COP next steps

BvL explained that we now: Have themes; Have champions; Have members (Ewen captured the names)
PCT agreed Ewen to be the champion on COP support/facilitation and set up. Jonathan and Simret to formally support specific COPs.
PCT agreed Budgets via the various projects (2 ilri; 2 iita, 1 ifpri) ; need to be able to assess performance. 50K max this year. One –year start up.
Issue: what about other COP ideas, such as Gender / NRM / ICT4ag / IPs / Climate change? They can get together, but no funding yet.
Action: Comms team to produce a COP set up and start up guidance note, also any wiki pages, comms tools, etc. ASAP.
Action: PCT and Chief scientists to all sign up to at least one
Action: Identify co-champions; ask the champions to do this from the list of people signed up
Action: Ask each COP champion to develop a plan and resources for each. Get the priority outputs established/scope. With plan and an indicative budget (max 10K per COP).
Review and activate at next PCT

7. Comms transition after PB leaves ILRI

Advert for new AR person is out - AR project coordinators will be invited on the panel (aiming for March interviews).
ILRI will advertize for PB's replacement very soon.
By end march several comms products/deliverables progressed: phase 1 synthesis; website; phase 2 products set up
PB to continue as ILRI consultant for approx 6 days in the transition period

8. 'Parked' or in pipeline actions areas (from 2015 and 2016)

PCT members decided that all of the topics listed after, except data management, already have ongoing processes to make them happen so they do not need to be added to the PCT agendas: 1) synthesis product 2) Typologies work 3) SI indicators work 4) data management 5) phase 2 comms products 6) evidence of success narratives/briefs 7) cost benefit analyses of technologies and innovations 8) engagement guideline.

9. AOB:

Discussions around data sharing ethics, sharing and guidelines among project partners.
Action: Each project coordinator to contact centre Legal/IP specialists for advice. Discuss at March PCT (PCT22)

10. Next PCT meeting (PC21):February 9, 2017: 1800 Ibadan time Agenda to include:

SAG membership - finalise
PCT TOR - finalise
COP next steps - based on inputs from Comms team and others
Data management - Ckan/dataverse decisions and strategy - Based on briefing note by Carlos
Plans for cross-project visits and exchanges (perhaps linked to the COPs)
Plans for champions for each major program-wide element and development plans: Si framework, typologies, scaling, program analysis and resaerch questions, capacity development, data management, gender ...
Plans for how do we define and measure 'reach' across the projects and the program.

Confirmation CRP alignment ET: LIVESTOCK others: MAIZE