About AgriFoSe2030

The AgriFoSe programme has been granted a phase 2 extension, enabling the continued development and institutionalization of the programme at three partner university hubs in sub-Saharan Africa. This phase will also enhance collaborations with research partners in South and Southeast Asia, supporting long-term capacity building and knowledge transfer. 

The Challenge

Despite economic growth and millions of people having been lifted out of poverty, food insecurity and a lack of nutrition remain daunting challenges in many parts of the world. The number of people suffering from hunger is on the rise, and two-thirds of the global extreme poor work hard to earn their livelihoods in agriculture.

The challenges of achieving food and nutrition security are largest in sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia, where smallholder farmers provide around 80% of the food consumed. Hence, transforming smallholder farming in these regions to increase productivity, profitability and environmental and social sustainability will be a key to reaching Sustainable Development Goal 2, as well as and many other SDGs.

This transformation is, however, complex, and may have both negative and positive outcomes for large groups in society. The magnitude of the challenge increases in the face of climate change and loss of ecosystem services (including loss of biodiversity and soil fertility), which seriously threaten food and nutrition security for humanity.

Transforming smallholder systems

To reach SDG2, there is a need for a transformative agenda that includes science-based, well-crafted and, crucially, context-specific government interventions and policies, as well as improved and innovative agricultural practices.

It is therefore critical to assist countries in sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia to develop their capacity to catalyse and govern this transition. Science and scientists have a crucial role to play in this transformation, and in supporting vulnerable and poor people in meeting future food and development demands. Science can offer technical and social solutions and support policy reform and new practices. This means going beyond academic journals and finding ways to collaborate with policymakers and practitioners to jointly frame problems, generate new knowledge, and make that knowledge relevant to specific contexts. This is what AgriFoSe2030 sets out to do.

The work of the programme entails the following:

Training and capacity building with researchers and other stakeholders through exchanges, courses and workshops to increase their capacity to synthesise, analyse and communicate science. High-quality synthesis and analysis on smallholder farming systems that is relevant to policy and practice and tailored for key actors. Innovative platforms and knowledge networks that connect scientists, practitioners, policymakers and others for knowledge exchange and action at multiple scales. 

Hub structure

The diagramme illustrates the hub organisational structure of the Agrifose2030 programme.

The programme is structured around three key hubs; Nairobi University, Kyambogo University and Chinhoyi university. In each hub, the lead university incorporates two or more partner universities connected to it. The hubs are also supported by a communication and engagement team and an expert team, both based in Sweden.

Each hub then connects further with other national universities suggesting a cascading structure of collaboration at the national level. The three hubs are expected to be engaged in active collaboration and sharing of knowledge. While each hub operates within its national context through its university networks, there is also a strong cross-hub learning and synergy within the Agrifose2030 programme.

Building upon the organisational structure, the universities within each hub (Kyambogo University, University of Nairobi, and Chinhoyi University, along with their respective partner universities) will collaborate on one or several AgriFoSe2030 change projects. The change projects aims to strengthen multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary research teams.

This will involve fostering collaboration not only within each core university and its partner institutions but also potentially across different disciplines to address complex agricultural challenges. The project is designed to encourage the integration of diverse expertise from various institutions to generate impactful research outcomes. The other national university networks connected to each hub, as well as the engagement of the other regional hubs, will be engaged through the delivery of training courses and workshops. This is a tiered approach where the core hubs drive the research, while the broader network serves as a conduit for disseminating knowledge and building capacity through targeted training activities. This structure allows for focused research efforts within the hubs while leveraging the wider network for broader capacity building and impact.