The Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), in collaboration with key African Agricultural Research, Innovation and Education Institutions (AARIEI), has been at the forefront of strengthening the continent's Agricultural Knowledge ecosystem. This initiative aims to foster synergies, enhance institutional mandates, and sustain progress in Knowledge sharing, learning and management.
As part of this broader collaboration, the institutions jointly implement the Africa Agriculture Space (AASpace)- A Digital knowledge repository powered by Dspace. This robust and scalable platform enables the seamless integration and management of library resources across institutions, extending its reach to the country and institutional levels. The initiative seeks to enhance Agricultural knowledge management across Africa by leveraging ILRI's Leadership and experience in developing and maintaining CGSpace, a CGIAR-wide Dspace platform. The collaboration will drive experience sharing-sharing, inform best practices, and establish a sustainable roadmap for widespread Dspace adoption within the CAADP-XP4 consortium, ensuring last-mile knowledge accessibility.
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Recent Submissions
Toolkit for Supporting National Implementation of the Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan (2024–2034) & the Soil Initiative for Africa (SIA)
(FARA, 2025-09) FARA
The Toolkit for Supporting National Implementation of the Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan (2024–2034) & the Soil Initiative for Africa (SIA) provides practical guidance for translating Africa's continental commitments on soil health, soil fertility and fertilizer management into coordinated action at continental, regional, national, local and farm levels. The Toolkit complements the Nairobi Declaration, the ten-year Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan (AFSH-AP), and the Soil Initiative for Africa (SIA) Framework, providing implementers and partners with a practical roadmap for domestication and implementation.
The Toolkit contains six principal tools covering stakeholder mapping; country engagement and domestication processes; summaries of the AFSH-AP and SIA Companion Document; coordination mechanisms; monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning (MEAL); and financing mechanisms.
It addresses key systemic constraints to soil health in Africa, including soil degradation, inadequate soil information, limited human capital in soil science, weak extension capacity, low and imbalanced fertilizer use, insufficient financing, and fragmented implementation. It proposes multi-level institutional arrangements, digital data systems, capacity development, knowledge management, farmer-centred extension, sustainable financing and coordinated monitoring to support achievement of the AFSH-AP and SIA objectives.
Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan (2024–2034) & the Soil Initiative for Africa (SIA): Companion Document
(FARA, 2025-09) FARA, Soil Initiative for Africa
The Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan (2024–2034) & the Soil Initiative for Africa (SIA): Companion Document provides detailed technical and analytical guidance supporting implementation of Africa's continental soil-health agenda. It expands the strategic provisions of the SIA Framework and the AFSH-AP by examining the technical, institutional, financial and knowledge requirements for improving soil health, soil fertility, fertilizer efficiency and agricultural productivity across Africa.
The document comprises eleven chapters covering soil information systems; economics of soil degradation and restoration; scaling soil health and integrated fertilizer management; agricultural extension and advisory services; human capital for soil science; soil health and climate change; soil and water management; fertilizer production, marketing and use; monitoring, evaluation, accountability and learning; and financing mechanisms.
The Companion Document identifies widespread soil degradation, limited accessible soil information, insufficient soil-science capacity, weak extension systems, low fertilizer use and inadequate investment as interconnected barriers to sustainable agricultural productivity. It provides evidence, implementation options and institutional recommendations for addressing these constraints through coordinated action at continental, regional, national and local levels.
Regional Consultation on Opportunity Crops in Africa: Book of Extended Abstracts
(FAO, FARA, 2026-08) FAO, FARA
The Regional Consultation on Opportunity Crops in Africa: Book of Extended Abstracts brings together scientific, technical, policy, institutional, and market-oriented contributions presented during the Regional Consultation on Opportunity Crops in Africa, convened by FAO and FARA in Accra, Ghana, from 9 to 11 June 2026. The consultation focused on repositioning indigenous, traditional, neglected, and underutilized crops as strategic assets for Africa's agrifood systems transformation.
The volume examines practical pathways for integrating opportunity crops into research, breeding, seed systems, production, mechanization, markets, nutrition, education, policy, and public investment. It highlights the potential of these crops to contribute to dietary diversity, nutrition security, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation, sustainable livelihoods, cultural preservation, and inclusive economic development.
Organized into four thematic sections, the publication presents evidence and perspectives on strategic framing and institutional transformation; conservation, genetic resources, seed systems and breeding; production systems, agronomy and mechanization; and nutrition, markets, value addition and consumer uptake. Collectively, the contributions provide a multidisciplinary evidence base for translating continental commitments on opportunity crops into coordinated research, policy, investment, and scaling actions.
Reimagining Agricultural Research in Africa: Demand, Innovation and Transformation
(FARA, 2026-07) Fatunbi A. O., Odeke M., Njukwe E., Munoko K., Mabuza M.
Reimagining Agricultural Research in Africa: Demand, Innovation and Transformation examines the current state, challenges, opportunities, and future trajectory of agricultural research systems across Africa. The publication argues that strong, well-funded, and competitive agricultural research systems are fundamental to achieving food security, economic growth, climate resilience, environmental sustainability, and agricultural transformation across the continent.
The book situates agricultural research at the center of Africa’s development agenda and explores how investments in science, innovation, education, and technology can drive the transformation of agrifood systems. It reviews the evolution of National Agricultural Research Systems (NARS), regional research organizations, universities, innovation platforms, and continental initiatives such as CAADP, Agenda 2063, STISA-2034, the Science Agenda for Agriculture in Africa, the Soil Initiative for Africa, and the Africa Fertilizer and Soil Health Action Plan.
The publication introduces forward-looking concepts including Agricultural Research Sovereignty, the Agricultural Research Transformation Index, and the Africa Agricultural Research Transformation Framework, offering practical pathways for strengthening African-led research systems that are globally competitive, digitally enabled, and capable of accelerating innovation and development outcomes.
2026–2030 Knowledge Management Partnership Framework for Agricultural Research for Development in Africa
(FARA, 2026-07) CAADP-XP4 Consortium, CGIAR, KM4AgD CoP, & African Union Commission
The Knowledge Management Partnership Framework for AR4D in Africa (2026–2030) provides a continental strategic framework for strengthening collaboration on knowledge management among the African Union Commission, CAADP-XP4 consortium institutions, CGIAR, and related African agricultural research and innovation partners. The framework repositions knowledge management from a narrow focus on repositories and dissemination toward a broader system of adaptive learning, implementation intelligence, institutional change, and impact-oriented knowledge ecosystems that support the transformation of Africa’s agrifood systems. FARA African Union
Building on the 2023–2025 framework, the document responds to evolving continental priorities under the Kampala CAADP Declaration and the CAADP Strategy and Action Plan 2026–2035, which emphasize science, technology, innovation, learning, foresight, and implementation. It establishes a shared vision of an African agricultural research and innovation ecosystem in which knowledge is intentionally governed, shared, co-created, and applied to accelerate resilient, inclusive, and sustainable agrifood transformation. FARA African Union
The framework defines strategic objectives covering KM governance, adaptive learning, digital knowledge infrastructure, AI readiness, indigenous knowledge integration, coordinated dissemination, and evidence of KM contribution to transformation outcomes. It outlines governance arrangements, implementation mechanisms, monitoring and learning processes, and expected results by 2030, including stronger institutionalization of KM, more coherent continental collaboration, enhanced African agricultural knowledge infrastructure, improved capacity sharing, and greater recognition of indigenous knowledge systems.