A Critical Review of the Follow-the-Innovation Approach: Stakeholder collaboration and agricultural innovation development
Kwadwo Amankwa
Anastasiya Shtaltovna
Girma Kelboro
Anna-Katharina Hornidge
Abstract
Technological innovations have driven economic development and improvement in living conditions throughout history. However, the majority of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa have seldom adopted or used science-based technological innovations. Consequently, several scholars have been persistently questioning the effectiveness of intervention models in smallholder agriculture. Following the agricultural innovation systems framework (AIS), this paper reviews a participatory framework known as the ‘Follow the Innovation’ (FTI) approach, which was developed in the research project ‘Economic and Ecological Restructuring of Land and Water Use in Khorezm’ (2001 - 2012) and employed in an ongoing BiomassWeb project ‘Improving food security in Africa through increased system productivity of biomass-based value webs’ (2013 - 2018). The review shows a need for a broader definition of innovation as an outcome of collaborative or collegiate participation of multi-stakeholders processes requiring scientists, extensionists, local communities and other stakeholders to perform five key tasks jointly. Salient implications of this review are highlighted for transdisciplinary research (such as in the BiomassWeb project) aiming at agricultural innovation development in complex environments.
Amankwa K., Shtaltovna A., Kelboro G. and Hornidge A.-K. (2016) A Critical Review of the Follow-the-Innovation Approach: Stakeholder collaboration and agricultural innovation development. African Journal of Rural Development 1(1): 35-49. 10.22004/ag.econ.263574
@article{Amankwa2016,
Title = {A Critical Review of the Follow-the-Innovation Approach: Stakeholder collaboration and agricultural innovation development},
Author = {Amankwa, Kwadwo and Shtaltovna, Anastasiya and Kelboro, Girma and Hornidge, Anna-Katharina},
Editor = {},
Journal = {African Journal of Rural Development},
Year = {2016},
Pages = {35-49},
Volume = {1},
Doi = {10.22004/ag.econ.263574},
Abstract = {Technological innovations have driven economic development and improvement in living conditions throughout history. However, the majority of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa have seldom adopted or used science-based technological innovations. Consequently, several scholars have been persistently questioning the effectiveness of intervention models in smallholder agriculture. Following the agricultural innovation systems framework (AIS), this paper reviews a participatory framework known as the ‘Follow the Innovation’ (FTI) approach, which was developed in the research project ‘Economic and Ecological Restructuring of Land and Water Use in Khorezm’ (2001 - 2012) and employed in an ongoing BiomassWeb project ‘Improving food security in Africa through increased system productivity of biomass-based value webs’ (2013 - 2018). The review shows a need for a broader definition of innovation as an outcome of collaborative or collegiate participation of multi-stakeholders processes requiring scientists, extensionists, local communities and other stakeholders to perform five key tasks jointly. Salient implications of this review are highlighted for transdisciplinary research (such as in the BiomassWeb project) aiming at agricultural innovation development in complex environments.},
}
TY - JOUR
AU - Amankwa, Kwadwo
AU - Shtaltovna, Anastasiya
AU - Kelboro, Girma
AU - Hornidge, Anna-Katharina
TI - A Critical Review of the Follow-the-Innovation Approach: Stakeholder collaboration and agricultural innovation development
T2 - African Journal of Rural Development
PY - 2016
SP - 35-49
VL - 1
DO - 10.22004/ag.econ.263574
AB - Technological innovations have driven economic development and improvement in living conditions throughout history. However, the majority of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa have seldom adopted or used science-based technological innovations. Consequently, several scholars have been persistently questioning the effectiveness of intervention models in smallholder agriculture. Following the agricultural innovation systems framework (AIS), this paper reviews a participatory framework known as the ‘Follow the Innovation’ (FTI) approach, which was developed in the research project ‘Economic and Ecological Restructuring of Land and Water Use in Khorezm’ (2001 - 2012) and employed in an ongoing BiomassWeb project ‘Improving food security in Africa through increased system productivity of biomass-based value webs’ (2013 - 2018). The review shows a need for a broader definition of innovation as an outcome of collaborative or collegiate participation of multi-stakeholders processes requiring scientists, extensionists, local communities and other stakeholders to perform five key tasks jointly. Salient implications of this review are highlighted for transdisciplinary research (such as in the BiomassWeb project) aiming at agricultural innovation development in complex environments.
ER -
