See attached course overview and application form. Send the completed form to training@iirr.org

Course Overview

The future of African small-scale producers depends on their ability to play an active and meaningful role in market dynamics. It is important that small-holders participate effectively in influencing value chains that link them to suppliers, traders and consumers. This way, they will be able to earn more from their crops, livestock and small businesses.

The “Reaching Agents of Change (RAC): Catalyzing African Advocacy and Development Efforts to Achieve Broad Impact with Orange-fleshed Sweetpotato” project, is implemented by the International Potato Center (CIP) and Helen Keller International (HKI). Its aim is to increase investment in orange-fleshed sweetpotato (OFSP) to combat vitamin A deficiency among young children and women of reproductive age.

Civil society organisations (CSOs) across West Africa are increasingly influencing national policies. These attempts to re-direct policies through policy research and advocacy are one of the difficult challenges that bedevil the sector. In order to identify, analyse, effectively communicate these existing policy gaps and proffer solutions to policy makers, stakeholders and governments, the onus lie on CSOs to conduct evidence-based research that is responsive to the challenges they encounter in conducting policy research.

The West Africa Civil Society Institute (WACSI) is pleased to welcome your application to participate in its course on “Rights-based Approach to Development (RBAD) Training” for CSOs in the Northern Region of Ghana. The RBAD training seeks to introduce participants to the concept of rights-based approach to development; specifically to general development design, programming, implementation and advocacy. The training aims to provide a platform for deep conceptual and operational understanding of rights-based approach, and its importance to development issues in the 21st century.

Agriculture nutrition linkages

Despite the world-wide increase of food availability, there are still around one billion people undernourished. This is far above of the target of MDG 1. There is now substantial evidence that malnutrition has life-long negative impacts on productivity and income-generating potential of the population. Agricultural programmes need to become more nutrition sensitive.

Course Objective

To learn the essential skills to work with communities in all kinds of projects and to design development and humanitarian projects following the Logical Framework Approach.

Intended audience

The course is open to everyone.

It will be especially interesting for professionals involved in international development and humanitarian projects

The course provides an overview of concepts and principles in value chain; development of micro and small scale enterprises and business development services; market assessment; value chain analysis; monitoring and evaluation; and design and management of enterprises to address sustainability and effectively compete with other market players.

Course Description

Leveraging linkages to improve smallholders' access to finance

What is the course about?

Smallholders need access to finance to operate and to invest in their business. By using the links between smallholders and their suppliers and buyers, commercially sustainable financial services can be developed that match the needs of smallholders in the value chain. Improving financial flows along the chain leads to improved performance for all chain actors.

Participants