Progress In SADC MAPP Preparation
Establishment Of The Sub-Regional Research Organization
Next Steps

SADC MAPP is organized around a set of priority thematic areas which form the basis for achieving progress on the objectives of improving agricultural productivity. In the first 5-year phase, the programme will comprise the following six themes:

• Farmer empowerment and market access
• Research and technology generation
• Farmer led advisory services and innovation systems
• Education, training and learning systems
• Knowledge, information and communication
• Institutional development and capacity building

SADC MAPP will focus on two major objectives:

• To strengthen research and development (R&D) institutions in the SADC region in their efforts to become more pluralistic, responsive to regional priorities, and to participate in priority R&D activities in the region, and,
• To make a significant contribution to enable farmers, especially smallholders, to have improved access to, and to increase the early adoption of productive, profitable and ecologically sustainable technologies, as well as enhanced access to markets.

The ultimate beneficiaries of the programme are the crop and livestock farmers of the SADC region (well over half of the 238 million inhabitants of the region). The immediate beneficiaries will be the R&D institutions in the region, comprising outreach programmes, training institutes and facilities, farmers' organisations and markets across the region, including both public and private sector actors. The measurable indicators of "success" of the Programme will be the increased proportion of farmers that have access to, have been reached by, or have adopted improved and profitable agricultural technologies.

Implementation of the 15-year SADC MAPP programme requires an institutional mechanism to execute and manage the regional programme. Since the phasing out of SACCAR as a Sector Coordinating Unit in 2001, it has not been possible to mobilize adequate human and financial resources for R&D functions to meet the current and growing needs of the SADC region. Consequently the region has fallen behind and is losing out on development programs and initiatives on the continent and globally. The SADC region is also failing to take full advantage of continental programs being brought about through FARA, an umbrella organization of SROs in Africa. Stakeholders in the SADC region have expressed concern regarding the current status and requested the establishment of a visible, dedicated and effective entity that would be adequately staffed and funded to coordinate regional R&D programs, as has been successfully done by ASARECA in East Africa and by CORAF in West Africa. A dedicated SRO for the SADC region would strengthen the existing collaboration of diverse stakeholders within SADC Member States and between SADC and other regional and international organizations.

At the launch of FARA in 2002 in Maputo, Mozambique, it was emphasised that strong SROs are a pre-condition for the success of FARA, NEPAD and other continental initiatives on agricultural R&D. The regional, continental and global demands for a dedicated SRO in Southern Africa mean that there would be need for a clear separation of the policy and strategy functions of FANR from the function of coordinating the R&D initiatives in the region. This necessitates development of a new institutional arrangement for the coordination of agricultural R&D in the sub-region.

In view of these changing circumstances and the increasing regional, continental and international obligations, SADC FANR commissioned an SRO options study in January 2007 to review various SRO options, taking into account the continental and global trends, and the lessons and experiences from SACCAR and existing SROs in Africa. Based on a detailed SWOT analysis, that study recommended an autonomous SRO for the SADC region. However consultations with national and regional stakeholders showed a clear preference and consensus for a semi-autonomous SRO that is placed outside the SADC Secretariat, but formally and closely linked to the Secretariat.

Since there was unanimity among stakeholders in the choice of the SRO option for the SADC region, a team of regional consultants was engaged by FANR to develop the structure of the preferred semi-autonomous SRO. Based on the consultations among agricultural stakeholders within the region and experiences elsewhere, the consultants recommended the establishment of the semi-autonomous SRO to be called the Centre for Agricultural Research and Development in Southern Africa (CARDESA) that is placed outside the SADC Secretariat, but formally and closely linked to the Secretariat though a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that spells out the nature and scope of the autonomy, the division of roles and responsibilities, and areas of complementarity with the FANR Directorate. FANR, by virtue of its strategic position in SADC, would focus on policy, strategic direction, M&E and advocacy, with CARDESA coordinating the implementation of R&D programs and activities by stakeholder institutions in the SADC Member States.

The CARDESA will thus be a specialized institution focusing on the coordination of a broad and long-term prioritized R&D program of the region. CARDESA is therefore to be viewed as a vehicle for regional cooperation, working through strategic partners and regional and national agricultural research and development institutions.

The report on the proposed establishment of CARDESA was presented to a regional stakeholder consultative workshop held in Maputo, Mozambique, on 11 – 12 December 2007, and to the consultative meeting of Permanent/Principal Secretaries of Agriculture held in Maputo on 13 December 2007. Both the regional stakeholder consultative workshop and the consultative meeting of Permanent/Principal Secretaries endorsed the draft CARDESA report, with a recommendation for its approval by the SADC Ministers of Agriculture. Comments and suggestions from these regional consultations were incorporated into the revised CARDESA proposal report

During the regional stakeholder workshop held in Maputo, Mozambique, from 10 to 14 December 2007, senior government officials and the regional stakeholders who participated in this workshop strongly recommended that appropriate steps needed to be taken so that the region does not lose momentum which has been set during the preparation and consultation process. Also, donor agencies who plan to participate in the proposed SADC MAPP now require that programs and projects meet agreed “readiness criteria” before being formally approved, to ensure that they proceed quickly and in a seamless manner to a smooth implementation process. The majority of stakeholders during national and regional consultations also demanded the same process and an uninterrupted transition from programme preparation to implementation.

Therefore, a number of actions will be necessary to meet the ‘readiness criteria’ and the need for a seamless process from programme preparation to implementation. A transition document giving the details of the activities to be undertaken during the one-year readiness-for-implementation phase has been prepared. These readiness activities fall under two main categories, namely:

• Finalization of detailed implementation procedures and operational manuals, development of baseline values for results based M&E system, and completion of relevant consultation and approval processes, and
• Processes for the establishment of CARDESA, recruitment of CARDESA core staff and phasing in of initial SADC MAPP activities.

A draft Operational Plan is currently being prepared which will be developed further during the readiness phase and refined during programme implementation.

The need to secure funding soon, first for the readiness phase and, subsequently, for the programme implementation will be the most crucial next step for SADC MAPP.

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