Spreading the word

Good communication is vital to ensure that the impact of research outputs, reach the widest audience possible. Public-private partnerships and closer working between the agriculture, education and health sectors, are proving exciting and innovative mechanisms for sharing resources and information to enhance the effectiveness and uptake of research.

In Kenya, collaboration with local non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, has created cartoon books (‘Wambui Finds Out’ series) that pupils colour-in at primary schools. These books, using technical messages from the UK Medical Research Council, communicate human health messages alongside those of livestock production and animal health of cattle, and small livestock species such as goats, rabbits and bees, which can provide income and nutrition for poorer families. Household surveys have shown that through taking the books home, children are spreading messages to community groups such as women and poorer farmers, often marginalised by traditional technical extension services.

In much of Africa, the common bean is a major source of protein and calories for poor people, and is grown largely by women. In Kenya, Tanzania and Malawi, participatory evaluations of traditional technologies (e.g. pesticides made from plant extracts) to control bean pests and diseases, have encouraged farmers to value their local knowledge and to form groups to share this through informal group training, songs, poems, etc. In western Kenya, these networks have been so successful that the Ministries of Health and Education have used them to communicate messages about HIV/AIDS awareness and adult literacy activities.

DFID research is working with the Kenya Agricultural Research Institute, the Ministry of Agriculture and several private sector companies to package fertilisers and herbicides for sale in affordable mini-packs alongside free promotional small packs of disease resistant maize seed. These enable poor farmers to experiment and innovate with products they were previously unable to afford. Herbicides in particular can help to reduce labour intensive weeding. Information on safe and sensible spraying of crops is also provided at retailers and more recently, partnership with the National AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control Programme has ensured that traditional agricultural information disseminated to over 100000 farmers, has also included leaflets in Swahili on prevention and management of HIV/AIDS.

Close collaboration between researchers and policy-makers from the start of a project can encourage and enable the uptake of research findings into policy. Findings suggest that:

• if research is to be made applicable and accessible to national environments, it must be responsive to demand, involve participation, good two-way communication and be useful to intermediary organisations, such as local NGOs, working with poor people
• the content and message from the research findings should be communicated in the appropriate language and format e.g. radio is good for reaching rural communities and women in particular
• farmers rarely want single messages, but packets of information which address a range of their most important farming constraints
• information sources that benefit farmers often become trusted and other messages can then be incorporated
• private sector engagement in research may help to ensure sustainability and the flow of information, although it must be recognised that their aims and objectives may be different from those of publicly funded research.

Networks can facilitate a more cohesive approach between researchers, policy-makers, intermediary organisations and users, and provide more appropriate conditions for learning and sharing messages across sectors.

Dr. Frances Kimmins
Manager, Crop Protection Programmes
Natural Resources International Ltd
Park House
Bradbourne Lane
Aylesford
Kent ME20 6SN
UK
f.kimmins@nrint.co.uk

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