Member states of the Tropical Agriculture Forum (TAP) committed themselves to foster innovations in agriculture to boost the sector in the respective countries.

Speaking at the opening of a three-day TAP third partner’s assembly, on Tuesday, Dr Geraldine Mukeshimana, the Minister for Agriculture said innovation in agriculture is key to dealing with challenges facing agriculture in tropical countries.

She observed that agriculture is crucial for the economies of tropical countries accounting for a substantial share of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP), employment opportunities and export earnings.

However, Mukeshimana noted that the challenges facing agriculture in Rwanda and elsewhere in the tropics, have changed dramatically of recent, due to effects of climate change, such as drought, floods, depletion of natural resources and at the same time increased and changed food demands.

"Applying the common TAP framework on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems will catalyse synergies among organisations and development agencies investing in capacity developing, particulary in creating coherence of initiatives and programmes in organisational and institutional capacities.”

According to Mukeshimana, despite the importance of innovation, many tropical countries still lack the resources and capacities to develop their agricultural innovation systems.

"This means providing an environment conducive for innovation in agriculture and making institutions function efficiently in collaboration with private and non-governmental sector. Such a system allows putting new knowledge and technologies into use that farmers can address the challenges they face today and in the future,” she explained.

The Tropical Agricultural Platform (TAP) was set up in 2012 by Ministers for Agriculture of the G20, (an informal group of 19 countries and the European Union, with representatives of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank to promote national capacities for agricultural innovation in the tropics with a particular focus on small- and medium-scale producers and enterprises in the agribusiness sector.

TAP brings together over 40 partners from research institutions, government, the private sector, farmers’ organisations and development agencies.

Attaher Maiga, the representative of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) for Rwanda, said reconciling technologies with potentialities in tropical countries would lead to sustainable agricultural development.

He said, "We need to build capacities so that implementation of agricultural innovations can be carried out with quality facilitators to reconcile technologies with existing initiatives.”

He noted that fostering innovations in agriculture will help cope with the dynamic interaction of socio-economic and environmental factors that are increasingly transforming agriculture such as the global markets, intensification and climate change to ensure equitable benefits to actors along the value chain.

Dr Nur Ahamed Khondaker, the FAO assistant representative in Bangladesh, said there is a need for close collaboration with key actors who have the experience or track record in agricultural innovation systems and those who need greater support to improve their capacities to innovate.

Eight tropical countries, namely Bangladesh and Laos in Asia; Angola, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso and Rwanda in Africa; and Guatemala and Honduras in Latin America, will be supported in enhancing innovations in agriculture.

Euros 16 million three year project, dubbed "Capacity Development for agricultural Innovation Systems.

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