COMPLETION REPORT APPROVED BY THE PROGRAMME STEERING COMMITTEE

ROUTASIA PHASE II Strengthening Knowledge Sharing

and Scaling-up of Sustainable Innovation using the Learning

Route methodology

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1. Introduction 2. Grant description and implementation

3. Assessment of impact and M&E system4. Project costs, financing, disbursement and co-financing5. Assessment of grant management and partner performance6. Conclusions and lessons learned7. Annexes

Table of Contents

2.1. Grant goal, objectives, components, and target groups 2.2. Grant implementation and changes Review of performance and achievements by component 3.1. Review of main activities and outputs 3.2. Assessment of project effectiveness in achieving component objectives 3.3. Knowledge dissemination and methodological adoption

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Acronyms

ADB: Asian Development BankAFA: Asian Farmers AssociationAIPP: Asia Indigenous Peoples PactAIT: Asian Institute of TechnologiesAM: Aide MemoireAPMAS: Knowledge Sharing & Networking Platform for Asian Project Management Support ProgrammeAPR: Asia and the Pacific Division at the International Fund for Agricultural DevelopmentASEAN: Association of Southeast Asian Nations AWPB: Annual Work Plan and BudgetCBO: Community-Based OrganizationsCLAR: Local Resource Allocation CommitteeCLC: Community Learning CentresCOSOP: Country Strategic Opportunities ProgrammeCPM: Country Programme ManagerCPO: Country Programme OfficerDSWP: Division Strategic WorkplanESA: East and Southern Africa Division at the International Fund for Agricultural DevelopmentEB: Executive BoardFAO RAP: Food and Agriculture Organization Region Asia PacificGIZ: Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit/German Society for International CooperationICIMOD: International Centre for Integrated Mountain DevelopmentICO: IFAD Country OfficeICT: Information and Communication TechnologiesIDE: International Development Enterprises BangladeshIFAD: International Fund for Agricultural DevelopmentIDRS: International Financial Reporting Standards INAFI: International Network of Alternative Financial InstitutionsIP: Innovation PlanIPSARD: Institute of Policy and Strategy for Agriculture and Rural DevelopmentJICA: Japan International Cooperation AgencyKM: Knowledge ManagementKMO: Knowledge Management OfficerLC: Local ChampionLR: Learning RouteM&E: Monitoring and EvaluationMCG: Management Consulting GroupNACCFL: Nepal Agriculture Co-operative Central Federation Ltd.NGO: Non-Governmental OrganizationPROCASUR: Corporación Regional PROCASUR

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ROUTASIAII : Strengthening Knowledge Sharing and Scaling-up of Sustainable Innovation using the Learning Route methodology. Phase II: 2014 – 2016SNV: Netherlands Development OrganizationSOE: Statements of Expenditure SSC: South-South CooperationTA: Technical AssistanceToT: Training-of-Trainers UNDP: United Nations Development Programme

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Executive summary

IFAD-PROCASUR’s ROUTASIA programme enhances learning and the sharing of knowledge within the Asia and the Pacific Region (APR), and the scaling-up of field-tested and validated practical solutions. The programme provides support for the scaling-up of processes that were proven successful during the first phase, based upon three core elements: 1) Documenting and then disseminating innovations, 2) Building the capacity of IFAD-supported projects and institutions to maximize Learning Route outcomes, 3) Providing space for Local Champions to be partners in development and key actors in knowledge management.

The Grant was approved by IFAD in 2013, launched in June 2014 and concluded in June 2016. At the design phase, Phase II total estimated cost was USD 1.38m. IFAD provided USD 1m and USD .38m was provided by PROCASUR and beneficiaries. The effective cost was USD 1,738,648. The contribution from beneficiaries was USD 738,648. This was 195 percent greater than expected.

PROCASUR Corporation implemented the Programme through its regional office in Thailand. A PROCASUR general coordinator in Thailand

managed ROUTASIA II. The regional office played a critical role in building the capacities of 33 IFAD-supported operations and six private organizations to collect, manage and share the knowledge that rural development practices generate. Providing conditions for this knowledge hub to operate has been critical for cost-efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of ROUTASIA.

All ROUTASIA activities were organized in partnership with private and public organizations. This allowed them to upgrade their technical and institutional capacities for implementing Learning Routes, and for the design, financing and development of knowledge management and capacity building initiatives. Six partner organizations should be highlighted. They trained, coached and were recognized as KM services providers to IFAD. The partners organizations are: i. NACCFL - Nepal; ii. INAFI – Bangladesh; iii. MCG – Vietnam; iv. Fresh Solutions- Cambodia; v. AFA – Philippines; and vi. AIPP – Thailand.1

The programme was effective in achieving all of the expected outputs as described in the design. The following tables detail the outputs and outcomes achieved by each of the three components.

Assessment of ROUTASIA II Outputs and Outcomes, by ComponentComponent 1: Reviewing relevant knowledge and interests

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement1. Systematize good

practices1. 15 good practices

systematized1. 22 good practices

systematized147%

1 The participation of partner organizations in the implementation of ROUTASIA II is explained in detail in Chapter 3.3 where Component 3 performance is revised.

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Effectiveness – OutcomesOutput description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement30 good practices systematized by a third party

All projects that received ROUTASIA’s KM training developed skills to identify, capture and share knowledge. This included knowledge products like case studies, stories from the field, etc. This resulted in 30 new good practices systematized by third parties.Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement2. Local Champions

trained as service providers

2. 110 Local Champions trained as service providers

1.2. 131 Local Champions trained as service providers

110%

Effectiveness – Outcomes476 Local Champions acted as service providers in IFAD-supported projects, and national and local institutions, and 11,284 farmers were trained by Local Champions

At least 476 new LCs were trained by IFAD-supported projects, and national and local institutions as result of the ROUTASIA Local Champion engagement. 54 of the Local Champions supported by ROUTASIA in Nepal, Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia trained approximately 11,284 farmers from 2014-2016. The average number of families trained by a Local Champions in a year is 130. Of the 11,284 farmers trained by 54 Local Champions, 4,859 adopted all of the techniques as taught (43 percent). According to the survey, the key factors for this high adoption rate are: 1) Teaching tested and validated techniques have a proven impact on increasing income levels; 2) Local availability of inputs and materials necessary to adopt new techniques; and 3) The opportunity to share their experience in the adoption of new productive techniques in a context of self-sufficiency and access to markets.

Component 2: Design and implementation of Learning RoutesOutput description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement2.1.1 Learning Route designed and implemented

2.1.1 8 Learning Routes designed and implemented

2.1.1 16 peer-to-peer field trainings: 11 Learning Routes and 5 Farmer-to-Farmer training implemented.

200%

Effectiveness – Outcomes20 Learning Routes and other F2Fs organized by projects and partners.The uptake of the Learning Routes as an effective tool for capturing, sharing and scaling-up/out good practices is evidenced by the 20 Learning Routes implemented by third-party organizations and governments.Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement

2.1.2 People training in Learning Routes

2.1.2 120 people training in Learning Routes

2.1.2 249 people training in Learning Routes

208%

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Effectiveness – outcomesApproximately 869 people were trained by 20 projects and third-party Learning Routes and other Farmer-to-Farmer trainings that mobilized their own resourcesROUTASIA’s Learning Routes have played a relevant role in the six countries targeted. This is reflected in that two times the planned number of Learning Routes were organized, the strong mobilization of resources by IFAD- supported operations to participate in Learning Routes and the uptake/mainstreaming of the methodology in Vietnam and Nepal, transforming the Learning Routes in a peer learning tool. The demographics of Learning Route participants are notable: 45 percent are women, 23 percent are young, 57 percent have a management role and there is a relative balance between public and private organizations.Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved by ROUTASIA II Achievement2.2.1 Innovation Plans designed

2.2.1 40 Innovation Plans designed

2.2.1 86 Innovation Plans designed 214%

2.2.2. Innovation plans awarded

2.2.2. 5 Innovation plans awarded

2.2.2. 14 Innovation plans awarded and 3 Road Maps assisted.

280%

Effectiveness – outcomes47,000 households benefited from the implementation of Innovation PlansAccording to a survey, 52 Innovation Plans (IP) benefited more than 47,000 households. 46 percent of the Innovation Plans benefited between 10 and 100 households. Another 26 percent benefited between 100 and 1000 households. Finally, as an outstanding result, 4 IPs in Vietnam are benefiting between 1000 and 5000 households and 8 are benefiting more than 5000 households. Some key indicators: i.) 82 percent of all participants in LRs prepared Innovation Plans (IP); ii.) 60 percent of the IPs have been fully implemented or are almost fully implemented. Most LRs with lower progress in their implementation correspond to the more recent 2016 Learning Routes; iii.) In 65 percent of Innovation Plans additional resources were mobilized to implement them. The resources came generally from IFAD-funded projects, public agencies and some private companies such as DABAR in Nepal and Eyekandi in Cambodia.

Assessment of ROUTASIA II Outputs and Outcomes, by ComponentComponent 3: Knowledge dissemination and methodological adoption

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement5.1.1 Knowledge Products: Publications and videos, apps, etc. available to global audiences

5.1.1 5 Knowledge Products: Publications and videos, apps, etc. available to global audiences

5.1.1 19 Knowledge Products: 9 videos produced and distributed online; At least 10 other publications, including newsletters, reports and toolkits

380%

5.1.2 Stories from the field (evidence cases)

5.1.2 8 stories from the field (evidence cases) produced

5.1.2 10 stories from the field (evidence cases) produced

125%

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Effectiveness – OutcomesStrategic knowledge dissemination in reaching out to multiple audiencesKnowledge products produced by ROUTASIA and partners have been widely shared. At a grassroots level it has been through written, visual and oral material; at an operational level through Learning Routes, trainings, workshops, and other learning events; at the policy level through briefs, papers, and roadmaps; at IFAD´s corporate level uploads and frequent posting on asia.ifad.org has been very important, IFAD Social Blog and the participation in corporate evaluation of South-South Cooperation, Fundraising Strategy, Dialogue with Indigenous People’s Farmer’s Organization, Women’s Empowerment and Rural Youth.Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement5.2.1 Build the capacity of IFAD projects to prepare and implement project-level Learning Routes

5.2.1 Build the capacity of 10 IFAD projects to prepare and implement project-level Learning Routes

5.2.1 Built the capacity of 15 IFAD projects to prepare and implement project-level Learning Routes

150%

Effectiveness – Outcomes33 IFAD-supported projects have improved Knowledge Management through training and 15 IFAD-supported operations have mainstreamed the use of the Learning Routes into their AWPB and KM strategyAccording to the staff of IFAD-supported projects in Nepal and Vietnam, and IFAD project directors in four countries, Cambodia, Nepal, Vietnam and Bangladesh, 1,280 people participated in activities related to knowledge management, where the new skills were observed. Specific areas of improvement include: i.) Empowerment of women and minority groups; ii.) Adoption of new skills by small farmers, projects and staff from public institutions; iii.) Use of Local Champions expertise to share knowledge and learn together in their communities and outside it, iv.) Understanding other perspectives, and v.) Team-work.Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement5.2.2 Methodological transfer to organizations linked to IFAD

5.2.2 Methodological transfer to 6 organizations linked to IFAD

5.2.2 Methodological transfer to 6organizations linked to IFAD

100%

Effectiveness- OutcomesLearning Route service providers in six countries in AsiaROUTASIA developed the capacity of six organizations to implement Learning Routes and strengthened their links with the IFAD portfolio. They have been chosen to work alongside the ICOs and the project implementation agencies. Two of the partner organizations are private companies, two are networks and one is an NGO. The NGO partner organization continues to work closely with government ministries and farmer organizations.

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Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Achievement5.2.3 Individuals trained in LR methodology

5.2.3 50 individuals trained in LR methodology

125 individuals trained in LR methodology

250%

Effectiveness- OutcomesStaff from 195 projects were trained in Learning Routes methodologyIndividuals trained during the ToT shared their experiences and guided 195 project staff (mostly government officials) in the process of designing, Subsequently, staff members in projects in Vietnam, and regional agriculture offices in Cambodia and Nepal, used their training to independently implement Learning Routes and F2F tools. In these countries, staff and project managers/directors recognized the value of Learning Routes methodology, especially in increasing these countries institutional capacity to scale-up processes to efficiently transfer knowledge and good practices to farmers. ToT resulted in the training of 2.5 times the number of individuals originally trained.

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The value-add by ROUTASIA II reflects a combination of technical and social innovation with the opening up of a market of alternative service provision by local learning agents. This synergy greatly contributed to inclusive Rural Transformation in the areas covered by the IFAD projects. The ownership over the learning tools mainstreamed into larger loan projects and public institutions and provided positive prospects for the sustainability of effective alternative service provision on the ground. Here is a summary of the main lessons learned:

I. Environment and Climate Focus: all Learning Routes approached the challenges of NRM and Climate Change Adaptation and described the mitigating effects in their livelihoods through the development of value chains. Moreover, ROUTASIA played an important role in documenting lessons learned from IFAD- supported projects.

II. Gender Focus: ROUTASIA demonstrated a commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment. Over the course of the Programme, four Learning Routes were implemented with a specific gender focus and 45 percent of the participants are women.

III. Indigenous People: the Local Champions Exhibition in Cambodia created a space for free exchange between the collective knowledge of the indigenous, rural development workers and academia. Building bridges between local and scientific knowledge has been fundamental in the success of organic farming in Cambodia and Thailand.

IV. Knowledge Management and Knowledge Sharing: public sector agricultural institutions recognized the knowledge held, generated and shared by a farmer-based peer-to-peer Local Champion system and this was very important in allowing for the testing and introduction of the Learning Route methodology.

V. Monitoring and Evaluation: the usefulness of the ROUTASIA M&E system must go beyond reporting to IFAD. It must also nurture relationships with public institutions such as government ministries through sharing outputs and outcomes. The M&E system of knowledge management programme must be a part of the methodological hand-over and capacity-building efforts. In order to sustain the investment in knowledge management, the M&E system must be capable of showing the value it adds to project performance. This was a critical factor in the appropriation of the methodologies by the projects, partners and Local Champions. The Learning Routes went from being a grant-supported activity to a participant-owned tool for scaling-up best practices.

VI. Innovation: diversification of traditional public agricultural extension services to include private extension and learning agents hired by IFAD projects and third-party public institutions has contributed to strengthening the market for agricultural services.

VII. Sustainability, Replication and Scaling-up: the grant design focusing on a few countries was appropriate for the short duration of the grant. A change agenda is validated by the clear demonstration of attributable change in attitudes and skills (e.g. production increases and enhanced outreach.) Early country-level involvement in the design of IFAD-funded projects has led to accelerated ownership of the Learning Route methodology. This includes corresponding tools and innovation plans. Similarly, the farmers respect for Local Champions based on merit is likely to enhance the sustainability of service provision. The success of grant-trained Local Champions led to an adoption of the learning route methodology by IFAD co-funded projects and national extension programmes. The number

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of service providers tripled. To use a specific example, one local champion will train and coach an average of 150 farmers over a year. The use of recognized local change agents, i.e. the Local Champions, who are committed to learning and sharing solutions in their cultural setting, and who remain in their region thus gaining respect based on merit, is an improvement over the coming and going of non-regional staff from public extension services who enjoy hierarchical respect. This makes the local alternative more sustainable. A cultural fit was secured by leveraging the region’s appreciation for recognition and respect at a public level. Six in-country partner organizations have been trained as Learning Routes service providers, demonstrating the capacity to execute Learning Routes in an autonomous way and adapting tools to different portfolios. Similarly, the 15 projects established to perform Learning Routes considerably increased the number of case studies prepared, Local Champions trained

and Learning Routes organized. As part of this process, public agencies and country partners learned how to scale methodologies and results by making the system appropriate and viable within the administration of the public extension system..

VIII.Linkages to COSOP Strategic Objectives investment portfolio and other development initiatives: the inclusion of Learning Routes in the most recent COSOPs of Nepal and Laos, and the reviews of the COSOPs in Cambodia and Bangladesh, mean that the PROCASUR partnership has institutional backing and thus a high likelihood that the methodologies will continue in time. Furthermore, we’ve learned that it is of great importance for the sustainability of the selected innovations to bring them closer to the IFAD grants related to other strategic activities, such as project design and supervision, the elaboration or review of the COSOP, and the Annual Country Portfolio Reviews.

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2 Annex 10 describes the guidelines provided by IFAD for the elaboration of this Grant Completion Report.

1. Introduction

IFAD-PROCASUR’s ROUTASIA programme enhances learning and sharing of knowledge within the Asia and the Pacific Region (APR) and the scaling-up of practical solutions that have been field-tested and validated. Divided into two phases, ROUTASIA I was approved in September 2011, commenced its activities in 2012 and concluded in 2013. The second phase, ROUTASIA II, was approved by IFAD in 2013, launched in June 2014 and concluded in June 2016.

ROUTASIA II continued to support the scaling-up of processes were proven successful during the first phase based upon three core elements; i.) Documenting and then disseminating innovations, ii.) Building the capacity of IFAD-supported projects and institutions to maximize Learning Route outcomes, iii.) Providing space for Local Champions to be partners in development, as well as key actors in knowledge management.

Following IFAD guidelines for Grant Completion, the report is composed of seven chapters and several annexes on the outputs, outcomes and lessons learned from ROUTASIA II.2

PROCASUR Corporation would like to first thank the hundreds of Local Champions who work in solidarity, sharing the most precious solutions for the urgent challenges faced by rural people, including the sustainable management of natural resources during climate change, the startup of profitable rural businesses, and recognition of the women, young people and indigenous who are at the core of our efforts. We would also like to thank the government officials, extension workers, NGOs and entrepreneurs who organized and participated in Learning Routes and other events, committing themselves to act in favor of innovation and change in the rural regions where they live or work. Finally, a sincere recognition to the International Fund for opening the door into a region filled with outstanding and wise people.

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3 Annex 2 presents a chart with an organizational structure of ROUTASIA II.

2. Grant description and implementation

2.1 Grant goal, objectives, components, and target groups

Goal: best practices adopted and innovations scaled-up through the Learning Route methodology contribute to poverty reduction in IFAD-funded projects in APR.

Objective: increase knowledge and enhance the capacity of stakeholders in IFAD-funded projects to adopt and scale-up best practices and innovations for poverty reduction.

Main outcomes: i.) Local Champions act as service providers and disseminate good practices; ii.) The Learning Routes methodology is validated as a useful tool for KM and scaling-up innovations; iii.) The Learning Routes approach and methodology is adopted by national and local organizations as a means to share and leverage knowledge and to improve development effectiveness.

Components: C1 - Reviewing relevant knowledge and interests; C2 - Design and implementation of Learning Routes; C3 - Knowledge dissemination and methodological adoption.

Target groups: ROUTASIA focuses on Bangladesh, Cambodia, Lao PDR, Nepal, Thailand and Vietnam, and is comprised of: i.) Rural women and men; ii.) Indigenous peoples, ethnic groups and youth; iii.) Micro-entrepreneurs, small-scale producers and their associations; iv.) IFAD-supported projects and the technical staff from the government and policy makers, and; v.) Service providers.

The reviewed Log frame is available in Annex 1.

2.2 Grant implementation and changes

PROCASUR Corporation implemented the Programme out of its regional office in Thailand. A PROCASUR general coordinator in Thailand managed ROUTASIA II. The regional office played a critical role in building the capacities of 33 IFAD-supported operations and six private organizations to document, manage and share the knowledge that the rural development practice generates. Creating the conditions for this knowledge hub to operate has been critical for the cost-efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability of ROUTASIA.3

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4 The participation of partner organizations in the implementation of ROUTASIA II is explained in detail in Chapter 3.3 where Component 3 performance is revised.

The regional office has been responsible for: i.) Regular planning and reporting tasks, ii.) Providing training, technical assistance and coaching services to IFAD-supported projects, its own team and partners, iii.) Processing and analyzing M&E field data, iv.) Deploying communications campaigns, facilitating the control and centralization of the financial and administrative tasks, being a liaison with ministries, IFAD and other members in the development community.

All ROUTASIA activities were organized in partnership with private and public

organizations. This allowed them to upgrade their technical and institutional capacities for implementing Learning Routes, and for the design, financing and development of knowledge management and capacity building initiatives. Six partner organizations should be highlighted. They trained, coached and were recognized as KM services providers to IFAD. The partners organizations are: i. NACCFL - Nepal; ii. INAFI – Bangladesh; iii. MCG – Vietnam; iv. Fresh Solutions- Cambodia; v. AFA – Philippines; and vi. AIPP – Thailand.4

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5 Annex 3 presents all the case studies developed by ROUTASIA Phase II.

3. Review of performance and achievements by component

3.1 Component 1: Review of relevant knowledge and interests

3.1.1Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage

Systematize good practices15 good practices systematized

22 good practices systematized

147%

“Some innovative activities were identified at a district level, like support for cattle production by WUPAP in Dailekh, which was not documented anywhere before. But, the Learning Route activities not only enabled us to identify them but also to disseminate that information to other stakeholders. Similar cases were identified in other districts as well.” – Mr. Him Nidhi Neupane, M&E Officer of the WUPAP project in Nepal.

22 experiences were identified, systematized and disseminated through Learning Routes, Farmer-to-Farmer Extension services, workshops and exhibitions. Similarly, knowledge outreach has been facilitated by the use of information and communication technologies (ICT). Best practices have been documented, systematized and published in the form of Case Studies. They have been published at asia.procasur.org and compiled in a catalogue published at IFAD Asia portal. In many opportunities the case studies supplemented IFAD-supported operations with knowledge products experts and evaluation and supervision missions. Furthermore, the availability of most of the case studies in two or more languages has also been considered

a positive factor in the dissemination of the experiences.

The best practices and innovations originate in Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam and focus on the following key rural development thematic areas: i.) Climate Change, ii.) Natural Resource Management, iii.) Rural Microfinance, iv.) Farmer Organizations, v.) Value Chain Development, vi.) Public and Private Partnerships, vii.) Indigenous Peoples, viii. Women empowerment, viii) Rural Youth, and; ix.) Regional Integration.

One of the main lessons learned by the programme is that the identification and packaging of best practices and innovations into knowledge products should include the translation of the case studies into local languages, the compilation of case studies by theme and country and, if possible, joint publication with IFAD. Other lessons learned regarding knowledge products refer to the skills and capacities built among project teams and partners to replicate these practices, as in the Nepal WUPAP example that capitalized on more than 10 best practices using the ROUTASIA toolkit.5

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3.1.1 Effectiveness – Outcomes

30 good practices systematized by a third-party

All projects that received ROUTASIA´s KM training developed skills to identify, document and share knowledge, including how to develop knowledge products, such as case studies and stories from the field, among others. This resulted in 30 new good practices subsequently systematized by third parties.

1. Highlight: In Nepal, ROUTASIA worked in partnership with HVAP, PAF, LFLP, WUPAP and KUBK towards the systematization of ten new best practices in the areas of agricultural cooperatives, seeds, livestock and off- season vegetable value chains, and forest management. Most of the documents have been included in the relevant documents to be reviewed and visited in the field

by different missions, including IFAD, World Bank and country donors.

2. Highlight: In Vietnam, by positioning Local Champions as service providers, IFAD-supported projects have mapped 15 outstanding experiences, packaged them into simplified formats for extension workers and disseminated them through short learning routes, exposure visits and in local and national workshops, including the awards to the National Model Farmers.

3. Highlight: In Cambodia, the Provincial Department of Agriculture has spontaneously rolled out a system for positioning the good experiences in the territories they are working and incentivizing the sharing of knowledge between farmers. Approximately five written products and videos have been produced by PADEE within the framework of the Community Learning Center project.

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6 Local Champions (LC) are people with valuable practical knowledge, who stand out within their organization or commu-nity for their ways of doing things and leading development initiatives that positively affect their territories. Local Champions hold a wide range of technical and empirical know-how as a result of years of experience. Their skills comprise “niche” areas of expertise that are complementary to the traditional extension services system, delivering culturally appropriate training and technical assistance. Local champions are members of natural resource management and users organizations, women, youth, afro-descendant and indigenous people organizations, local governments and line agencies, cooperatives, enterprises and producers groups, among others. Source: Local Champions Toolkit, PROCASUR, 2016

3.1.2

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage

3.1.2 Local Champions trained as service providers

110 Local Champions trained as service providers

131 Local Champions trained as service providers

110%

“I’m able to send my children to university in Phnom Penh because I increased my production and reduced costs after I stopped buying fertilizers and pesticides and improved the quality of my product. This allows me and other farmers to sell as a group directly to the market in Phnom Penh.” – Tim Toueng, Director of the Takeo Community Learning Center, Cambodia.

ROUTASIA trained 131 Local Champions from Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam as Farmer-to-Farmer trainers. It is remarkable that 40 percent are women,

40 percent are young people and a total of 90 percent are directors of Farmer Organizations. Local Champions are smallholder farmers, men and women with outstanding capabilities, skills, relevant knowledge and experience in production and/or social processes that lead to actions, ideas and innovations in rural areas. Almost 100 percent of the Local Champions who are part of ROUTASIA have increased income, production volume and acquired new assets. Furthermore, a significant number improved the quality of their produce (85 percent), began post-harvesting activities (80 percent) and improved market linkages (76 percent).6

Local Champions characteristicsGender Age group Position Type of organization

Female Male Young Adult ElderPolicy

MakerDirective Staff Public

Private

Company

Civil

Society

Farmers´

Organizations

Total 55 76 53 76 2 0 123 8 2 2 9 118

Percentage 42% 58% 40% 58% 2% 0% 94% 6% 2% 2% 7% 90%

The strategy of Local Champions implemented by ROUTASIA II covered all six countries but had a stronger focus in Cambodia, due to the high uptake by PADEE. Regarding Nepal and Vietnam, the M&E process shows that 476 new Local Champions have trained in IFAD-supported projects and national institutions. It stands out that some farmer organizations, such as the members of agricultural cooperatives of NACCFL in Nepal, started to use Local Champions in their activities to transfer knowledge among members. As explained by Mr. Trijan Shrestha, Assistant Program

Manager of NACCFL, “PROCASUR provided technical support to identify and develop profiles of Local Champions within our network. NACCFL had been inviting external resource persons to teach to other farmers, but now we can use our Local Champions to teach to other farmers. This is more cost effective and efficient.”

Vietnam is also innovating the extension service system by hiring Local Champions as local trainers. Thach Huynh Thi Thu Trang, who works in the IFAD-supported Adaptation to Climate

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7 A Community Learning Center (CLC) is a local knowledge enterprise privately managed by Local Champions. They offer peer-to-peer training and technical assistance inside the district and elsewhere. CLCs may be part of an enterprise, cooperative, user groups, etc. A CLC can also bring together several organization of same territory. The extension services provided by the CLC have demonstrated to be cost effective as they reduce intermediation between client and supplier and improve access to already existing extension services in the territories. This has shown to result in higher rates of adoption over traditional ex-tension services systems.

Change in the Mekong River Delta Project (AMD Tra Vinh), explained that the projects select Local Champions in community farmer associations and train them to become a reference to other farmers. Something similar happens in the Sustainable Rural Development Project at Quang Binh – SRDP, which trained 120 new Local Champions.

In Cambodia, Pen Vuth, director of the Project for Agricultural Development and Economic Empowerment (PADEE), explained that training Local Champions have been critical in the dissemination of best practices among farmers. PADEE trained over 50 staff, “to explore and use local knowledge from specific communities to share with other communities at a grassroots level. All this knowledge is kept in extension hubs where it is available for other communities and partners.” From 2015 to 2016, the 26 Local Champions that were enabled by PADEE have gone on to train, through the Community Learning Centers, approximately 4,350 people.7 Regarding gender representation, 2,167 or 50 percent of the farmers trained were women. This is a good signal in terms of inclusion of women in the extension services provided by the LCs. 1,245 farmers trained are less than 35 years old, meaning that only 29 percent of the farmers trained can be considered rural youth.

Effectiveness – Outcomes

476 Local Champions acted as service providers in IFAD-supported projects, national and local institutions and 11,284 farmers were trained by the Local Champions

At least 476 new Local Champions trained by IFAD-supported projects, national and local institutions as result of the ROUTASIA Local Champion engagement. 54 of the Local Champions developed by ROUTASIA, in Nepal, Bangladesh, Vietnam and Cambodia trained approximately 11,284 farmers in the period 2014 - 2016. In one year, a Local Champion will on average train 130 families. Out of the 11,284 farmers trained by 54 Local Champions, 4,859 fully adopted the newly learned techniques or 43 percent. According to the survey, the key factors for this high adoption rate are: i.) Teaching tested and validated techniques whose impact on increasing income has been proven, ii.) Local availability of inputs and materials necessary to adopt new techniques; and, iii.) The opportunity to share their own experience in the adoption of new productive techniques in a context of self-sufficiency and access to markets.

1. Highlight: Vietnam project at Quang Binh – SRDP trained 120 Local Champions, who are then contracted by different

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governmental agencies to provide Farmer-to-Farmer extension services. The payment is regulated by the government, and the services are mostly within the framework of opening new rural micro- enterprises. The outreach is larger than one of the IFAD-supported projects and the Ministry of Agriculture.

2. Highlight: In Cambodia, PADEE originally trained 26 Local Champions, who then formed 5 provincial Community Learning Centers (CLC). The Community Learning Centers are providing post-harvest training and market linkages services in their provinces. They also entered into the agricultural inputs supply market. In 2017, PADEE expects to train over 75 new Local Champions and open new 10 CLCs in their area of operations. The 15 CLC initiated by PADEE will train over 800 farmers in 2017.

3. Highlight: The Nepali Federation of Agricultural Cooperatives (NACCFL) has registered over 50 Local Champions in 2016 and expects to increase registration four-fold in 2017. Among the 200 Local Champions, one special feature is a call to young farmers to strength Agricultural Cooperatives service provision to the members.

4. Highlight: The Government, private sector and farmer organizations have produced products like the Local Champions Exhibition and the KLMPEs, the Local Champions Toolkit and the customized Road Maps for Cambodia and Nepal. This has contributed to the scaling-up of Farmer-to-Farmer Learning Tools, such as the CLC and the Learning Routes. Moreover, better recognition and valuation of local knowledge is strengthening the role of Local Champions as knowledge stakeholders, decision makers and partners of the projects.

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8 The Learning Route (LR) is a tool that draws upon local knowledge and experiences to disseminate and scale-up field-tested innovations and best practices in sustainable rural development. Conceived as an innovation journey with specific learning ob-jectives, the route encourages active knowledge exchange between learners and their hosts. The final objective is to develop the ability of communities, practitioners and decision makers to scale-up solutions that work in favor of the livelihood of the rural people.

3.2 Component 2: Design and implementation of Learning Routes

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage3.2.1.

Learning Route designed and implemented

8 Learning Routes designed and implemented

16 field trainings: 11 Learning Routes and 5 Farmer-to-Farmer training

200%

3.2.2. People trained in Learning Routes

120 people trained in Learning Routes

249 people trained in Learning Routes

208%

“It was useful for me to get the chance to analyze two of the best practices of my project along with high-level staff from other projects and getting recommendations from them for my own work.” – Mr. Manir Hussain, Directive of the Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF), Bangladesh.

The 16 Learning Routes organized by ROUTASIA II played a relevant role in the six countries targeted,

as evidenced by the strong mobilization of resources by third parties, such as IFAD-supported operations and the uptake of the methodology by Vietnam and Nepal. It should be noted that of the 249 participants in the Learning Route, 57 percent have a managing role, 45 percent are women and 23 percent are young people, and that there is a balance between public and private organizations.8

Learning Routes´ participants profilesGender Age Group Position Type of organization

Female Male Young Adult ElderPolicy

MakerDirective Staff Public

Private

Company

Civil

Society

Farmers´

Organization

International

Organization

Total 113 136 57 181 11 5 143 101 102 31 8 95 13

Percentage 45% 55% 23% 73% 4% 2% 57% 41% 41% 12% 3% 38% 5%

ROUTASIA organized Learning Routes in Bangladesh (2), Cambodia (6), South Korea (1), Thailand (2), Nepal (2), Vietnam (2), Kenya (1) and Philippines (1). The thematic areas studied through the Learning Routes were: i.) Natural Resources Management and Climate Change, ii.) Agricultural

Cooperatives and other economic organizations for farmers, iii.) Indigenous People, Rural Youth and Women inclusion in rural development projects, iv.) Rural Microfinance, v.) Public Private Partnerships and Regional Markets, and vi.) Public Consultation and other participation mechanisms.

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Effectiveness – Outcomes

20 Learning Routes and other F2Fs organized by projects and partners.

The uptake of the Learning Routes as an effective tool for documenting, sharing and scaling-up/out good practices is evidenced by the 20 Learning Routes implemented by third-party organizations and governments.

1. Highlight: In Vietnam the Learning Routes methodology has been modified to form part of the induction process in the design of Climate Smart Matching Grants projects. It has been also mainstreamed as a practice for access to innovation, hosting and visiting several countries from Asia, such as the Mekong Delta countries and Sri Lanka from South Asia.

2. Highlight: In Nepal, all active projects in the portfolio are implementing Learning Routes after the training and coordination with the focal point and the NACCFL. In the case of PAF, a new Memorandum of Understanding with PROCASUR envisages downscaling the methodology to the district level. The smart package of KM and KS tools include Learning Routes, Local Champions as extension workers, Farmer Field Schools and Community Learning Centers, documentation and dissemination of case studies, and stories from the field.

3. Highlight: In Bangladesh the Pakisma Foundation (PKSF) and LGED, both long term partners of IFAD, have replicated the Learning Routes through small-scale guided field visits and linked them to the performance of different local businesses. Both organizations include budgets for Learning Routes in their AWPB.

Effectiveness – outcomes

Approximately 869 people were trained by 20 projects and third parties who had organized Learning Routes and other Farmer-to-Farmer trainings by mobilizing their own resources.

ROUTASIA’s Learning Routes have played a relevant role in the six countries targeted. There are now double the number of Learning Routes and there is a strong mobilization of resources by IFAD-supported operations to participate in Learning Routes and the uptake/mainstreaming of the methodology in Vietnam and Nepal, where it is being transformed into a peer learning tool. It should be noted that of Learning Route participants 45 percent are women, 23 percent are young people, 57 percent have a management role and that there is a balance between public and private organizations.

1. Highlight: Local institutional partners were crucial to the successful adoption of the Learning Routes methodology in Vietnam and Nepal.

2. Highlight: In Cambodia ASPIRE and PADEE projects demanded a diverse package of knowledge management tools that are in line with the extension services policy and programmes. These tools have been developed within the framework of the Community Learning Center system, which indeed shows notable levels of outreach.

3. Highlight: ROUTASIA developed two specific Roadmaps for the consolidation of Learning Routes and Community Learning Centers. The first one was presented to MAFF’s authorities in Cambodia and guides the new phase of the Community Learning Center project (2016-2017) with a special emphasis on decentralized management by the Provincial Department of Agriculture, the organization directly responsible for most of the extension services in the country.

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9 Annex 4 is a detailed description of the Learning Routes implemented during Phase II.

Short description of the Learning Routes organized by ROUTASIA II9

Year 1: June 30, 2014 to June 30, 2015

1. Scaling-up rural development best practices in Bangladesh: Lessons learned by the Finance for Enterprise Development and Employment Project (FEDEC) for the development of value chains.

Palli Karma-Sahayak Foundation (PKSF), International Network of Alternative Financial Institutions (INAFI) and PROCASUR, with IFAD support, jointly organized the Learning Route from September 7 to 11 2014 in the Satkhira and Jessore districts in Bangladesh.

Twenty representatives of the six different IFAD-supported projects in the country shared the lessons they learned through developing value chains. The Learning Route was based on the Crab and Flowers Value Chains, and successfully carried forward through diverse financial and non-financial services by NGF and RRF, PKSF’s partner’s organizations.

http://asia.procasur.org/bangladesh-scaling-up-bangladesh-rural-development-best-practices-lessons-learned-by-fedec-in-the-development-of-value-chains-september-2014/

2. Lao PDR and Republic of Korea Exchange best practices in the area of public consultation.

In October 2014, between the 10th and the 18th a delegation of the Lao National Assembly, composed of members of parliament, director generals and heads of offices, shared a number of best practices for a better participatory policy development process with South Korean´s public and private institutions.

The Lao delegation took away lessons regarding: i.) Public consultation at the local level through participatory planning and budgeting; ii.) Mechanisms for managing and resolving disputes; iii.) Social and environmental protocols for better design, execution and evaluation of rural infrastructure development projects.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/lao-pdr-rok-Learning Route/

3. Learning Route on post-harvest practices, packaging, processing and market access: Lessons learned by the Community Learning Center and OTOP Program in Thailand.

The renewed collaboration in 2014-2015 between the IFAD Cambodia Country team and ROUTASIA focused on building the capacity of farmers to gain better access to organic markets. Outstanding farmers from Cambodia were trained as Local Champions and then played a key role in the expansion of the organic value chain by managing the first Community Learning Centers in the country.

It is within this context that from November 10-18 a team of 25 farmers and staff from the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries participated in a Learning Route on Best Post-Harvest Practices in Thailand. The Learning Route was hosted by the Ministry of Agriculture and Cooperatives, the Ministry of Interior and five outstanding Farmer Businesses.

h t t p : / / a s i a . p r o c a s u r . o r g / c a m b o d i a -strengthening-farmers-capacities-to-access-the-organic-market-and-provide-peer-to-peer-training-november-2014-2/

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4. Women’s Empowerment, New Businesses and Sustainable Resource Management in Nepal

In December 2014, the PROCASUR team and 20 participants from nine countries travelled across Nepal for eight days. There was crucial support by the hosts - the Leasehold Forestry and Livestock Programme (LFLP), the Poverty Alleviation Fund (PAF), and the Nepal Agricultural Co-operative Central Federation Ltd (NACCFL). Technical support was provided by the IFAD Gender Desk during the design, implementation and follow-up of the Learning Route. Participants traveled in the Chitwan and Kapilvastu districts, which are successfully generating new income-generating opportunities through women-led Private-Public Producer Partnerships (4Ps).

http://asia.procasur.org/journey-through-nepal-reflections-of-a-learning-route-on-womens-empowerment-new-businesses-and-sustainable-resource-management-december-2014/

5. Production and market linkages for sustainable development in Vietnam

In 2015 twenty-five development practitioners participated in the Learning Route, “Production and market linkages for sustainable development,” held in Phan Rang – Thap Cham, a city in the Ninh Thuan province. The three-day journey took them to a model of Quang Ninh Farm (in My Phong Village, Hai Thanh Commune, Ninh Hai district, Ninh Thuan province) from January 27-29. The model demonstrated how strengthening the cooperation of production groups and market linkages can improve sustainable livelihoods among ethnic minorities and rural poor households. This program was jointly organized by IFAD-funded project Agriculture, Farmers and Rural Areas Support Project (TNSP), MCG and PROCASUR Corporation.

ht tp ://as ia .procasur.org/por t fo l io_i tem/journey-through-vietnam-reflections-on-a-learning-route-on-production-and-market-linkages-in-vietnam/ Year 2: July 2015 to June 2016

6. Private Partnership and Market Linkages in the Mekong Delta province (An Giang, Tra Vinh and Ben Tre).

The Learning Route took place in Vietnam between the July 1 and July 6, 2015. The main objective was to build the capacities of 25 outstanding Cambodian farmers and PDA teams to better manage their water resources. Other beneficiaries included Common Interest Groups (CIG) and collective businesses, who learned through in-the field training based on successful models in the Mekong Delta.

The Learning Route covered three thematic areas: i.) Water management and small irrigation systems; ii.) Common Interest Groups and Cooperatives; iii.) Public-Private Partnership and Market linkages.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/water-management-vietnam-2015/

7 - 11. Five Farmer-to-Farmer Trainings Provided by the Community Learning Centers and supported by PADEE

The second generation of Local Champions in Cambodia is now in the training process. A first group of 150 people were trained as Local Champions in the Community Learning Centers on organic agriculture techniques. Through participation in this training they have become Model Farmers.

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The Model Farmers have a Learning Route already organized as an initial event, the Farmer Congress, with over 500 CIG’s member participation. It will be led by Local Champions and PADEE staff and partners. A Farmer Congress is a learning event for 50 to 80 farmers in a community within a single District. The organizers are four Model Farmers who share their experience and knowledge with the participants and try to help them to solve problems. After the Farmer Congress the best candidates are selected to go on to the next phases; becoming Outstanding Farmers (OF), then participating in a ToT, several training activities to create their Community Learning Center and finally becoming Local Champions.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/five-farmer-to-farmer/

12. Learning Route “Boosting the Contribution of Value Chain Development to Gender Justice and Pro-poor Wealth Creation: the Gender Action Learning System (GALS)”

The goal of the Learning Route was to build technical capacities in using the GALS (Gender Action Learning System) methodology (build a vision through an empowerment map and identify challenges and potential actions) within the practice of the two organizations. It aims to promote respect for genders, collaboration and equality among farmers along the animal-and crop-value chains. The Learning Route was held from the Nov. 23 to Dec. 1, 2015, in Uganda. Two IFAD development partners from the Republics of Sudan and Nepal were targeted.

The overall activities recognized the GALS methodology as an effective tool to stimulate both reflection and taking action towards increasing gender equality. Key lessons learned from the cases included: Enhanced communication in the community allows for people to address a diversity of situations both at the household and group levels

(like physical disabilities and polygamy); Successful tackling of the different dimensions of gender inequality, from access to land to decision making to division of labor, must be done holistically; Community and resource management changes can be spread quickly through peer sharing, especially among men. http://asia.procasur.org/report-gals-learning-route-2015/

13. Learning Route “Tools and Innovations to Integrate Rural Youth and Marginalized Ethnic Communities in Agriculture through Small Farmer Agricultural Cooperative Limited (SFACL)”

NACCFL and PROCASUR Corporation jointly organized a Learning Route, “Tools and Innovations to integrate Rural Youth and Marginalized Ethnic Communities in Agriculture through Small Farmer Agricultural Cooperative Limited (SFACL)” from February 5-9, 2016 at SFACL Handikhola and Manohari. The cases studies used were “Experience and learning on integrated farming”; “Integrating marginalized ethnic groups into cooperatives”; “Implementation of learned ideas during foreign employment for agriculture modernization”; and “Lift irrigation managed by cooperative members” of SFACLS in the Makwanpur Districts.

Participants concluded that the Learning Route methodology can be one of the most effective tools to promote networking, successful cases, and in turn reduce poverty. Community development is indeed possible through bringing people together and ensuring accessibility to technical and financial resources. As there is a Learning Route with an established network of farmers working together, NACCFL should begin to identify success stories of innovators and promote them. Based on this network members can develop a Knowledge Management Plan to capture and document the vast knowledge among them.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/tools-and-innova…ve-limited-sfacl/

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14. Learning Route “Experience of Vegetable Village; a Livelihood Improvement Best Practice of HILIP”

HILIP, INAFI and PROCASUR documented the enabling and disabling factors, best practices, and lessons learned from village vegetable cultivation in Radhanagar, Sunamganj of HILIP. The three-day Learning Route took place over three days, from March 30 to April 1. It was titled, “Experience of Vegetable Village; a Livelihood Improvement Best Practice of HILIP,” organised by INAFI and PROCASUR with the support from HILIP and LGED at Sunamganj. This Learning Route offered the participants an opportunity to learn directly from the Radhanagar vegetable cultivation production. The case demonstrates how the project improved the livelihood of participants by providing support at each level of the vegetable production chain, starting at inputs and ending with marketing. This has been achieved through continuous training, demonstrations, technology transfer, building forward and backward linkages, and continuous technical support. HILIP prioritized scaling-up the case within the project. Participants were selected from Progressive Farmers, Livelihood Coordinators and Social Organizers from each of its five working districts.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/learning-route-e…ractice-of-hilip/

15. Learning Route: Strengthening the Role of Agricultural Cooperatives to Address the Challenges and Opportunities of the ASEAN Economic Community for the Benefit of the Smallholder Farmers

This Learning Route focused on best practices by Agricultural Cooperatives participating in regional markets in Thailand and the Philippines. It includes an overview of the different innovations presented by country teams representing ASEAN member states of Cambodia, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Myanmar, Philippines, Thailand and

Vietnam. Participants primarily came from Farmer organizations supported by the MTCP2-AFOSP program and government representatives of the ASEAN Sectoral Working Group on Agricultural Cooperatives (ASWGAC). The Learning Route offered the opportunity to learn best practices directly in the field and from protagonists on: i.) Good management by agricultural cooperatives in the areas of internal organization, service provision to members, networking and market power; ii.) Development of countrywide market strategies and agreements involving public and private sector: iii.) Public policies, national legal frameworks/laws, programs and mechanisms for the support of Agricultural Cooperatives in the framework of the ASEAN Economic Community.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/report-on-lesson…-the-asean-econo/

16. Learning Route “Development and Modernization of Rural Micro-Financial Institutions in Cambodia and Vietnam”

This Learning Route aimed to strengthen the capacities of Women Development Fund Managers, Community Group Leaders and Government Officials of IFAD-supported projects in Vietnam by sharing best practices and innovations in the rural micro-finance sector with Cambodia’s public and private sector. Participants recognized that the Learning Route: i.) Strengthened their understanding of the rural micro-finance system, its structure and functioning, markets, products, players, services and impacts, ii.) Modernized management of micro-finance institutions by use of ICT solutions, iii.) Improved cooperation between rural micro-finance players at provincial levels through the design of Action Plans, iv.) Developed cooperation among countries, projects and grants in the South East Asia Hub.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/learning-route-d…odia-and-vietnam/

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10 Annex 5 – Provides detail on a sample of 60 Innovations Plans analyzed during 2016’s M&E exercise.

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage

3.2.3.Innovation Plans designed

40 Innovation Plans designed

86 Innovation Plans designed 214%

3.2.4Innovation Plans awarded

5 Innovation Plans awarded

14 Innovation Plans awarded and 3 Road Maps created

280%

“With our Innovation Plan we were able to transform the Women’s Development Fund at Quang Binh into a micro-finance institution. Now, the Fund will become a small bank, which is managed and supervised by the State Bank of Vietnam.” – Tran Thi Hong Lien, Women’s Development Fund of Quang Binh, Vietnam

86 Innovation Plans were designed and of them, 14 were co-financed by the implementing organization and partners. This means that the programme achieved 214 percent and 280 percent of the expected outputs. The table below shows the distribution of Innovation Plans

per country. Nepal stands out as a location where the methodology focused on the development of one Innovation Plan by a Cooperative. In other cases, the design of the Innovation Plans is the result of the work of multiple teams of stakeholders, including citizens, and the public and private sectors. About 70 percent of the Innovation Plans address the issues of vulnerable populations, such as ethnic minorities and the indigenous, landless people, women and rural youth. Moreover, 80 percent of the Innovation Plans address inclusion and positioning of smallholders in the development of agriculture, livestock, fisheries and forestry value chains.10

Analysis of a sample of 60 Innovation Plans

Countries#

Innovation Plans

Awarded Thematic Areas

Yes No Rural Microfinance

Vulnerable groups

Value Chain Development

NRM and

Climate Change

Advocacy and policy

supportPPP Farmers

‘Organizations

Bangladesh 11 1 10 6 1 5 5 1 10 5

Cambodia 25 +

Road Map

2 1 1 1 0 1 1 0

Nepal 28

6 +

Road Map

22 25 26 26 25 23 1 5

Vietnam 11 4 7 4 7 10 5 2 7 4

Thailand 1 0 1 0 0 1 0 1 1 1

Laos 2 0 2 0 0 0 1 2 2 1

Others 51 +

Road Map

4 2 5 3 2 5 5 0

Total 60 12 48 38 40 46 38 35 27 16

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Effectiveness - outcomes

47,000 households benefited from the implementation of Innovation Plans

According to a survey, 52 Innovation Plans (IP) benefited more than 47,000 households. 46 percent of the Innovation Plans benefited between 10 and 100 households. Another 26 percent benefited between 100 and 1000 households. Finally, as an outstanding result, 4 IPs in Vietnam are benefiting between 1000 and 5000 households and 8 are benefiting more than 5,000 households. Some key indicators: i.) 82 percent of all participants in Learning Routes prepared IPs, ii.) 60 percent of the IPs have been fully implemented or almost fully implemented. Most of the others with less progress in implementation correspond to 2016’s Learning Routes, iii.) In 65 percent of Innovation Plans additional resources were mobilized for their implementation. The resources came generally from IFAD-funded projects, public agencies and some private companies such as DABAR in Nepal and Eyekandi in Cambodia.

1. Highlight: In Bangladesh the Innovation Plans have led to an improvement in the performance of several projects. The PACE project stands out for having scaled up the knowledge acquired and learning from its predecessor, FEDEC. The IP designed in 2013 has led to the establishment of the Mud Crab Hatchery, a necessary step in the sustainable development of a value chain based on the extraction of endemic natural resources. The Mud Crab Hatchery will reduce the pressure on the Sundarbans protected area.

2. Highlight: In Cambodia the origin of the Community Learning Centers can be found in the Innovation Plan prepared by MAFF´s PSU and ICO during a Learning Route to Thailand. The CPM

authorized an initial investment in 2014 of approximately USD 100,000 to build capacities and skills of Local Champions. As of today, this project has benefited over 4,000 households through training, organizational strengthening and the development of new income generating activities. In 2017-2018 the model is expected to scale-up and reach over 4,000 additional households.

3. Highlight: Vietnam adapted the Innovation Plans methodology to the existing procedure for farmers to apply for matching grants. After a two-to three-day Learning Route to disseminate successful experiences in the area, farmers are assisted in developing Climate Smart business project proposals. This dynamic, opposite to the traditional isolated design which involves the submission of matching grant proposals by farmer organizations, is allowing projects to identify and co-finance proposals that are already taking into considerations other farmers’ experiences. As the IP tools have been incorporated into the project cycle, they have opened new financial space for their implementation and therefore rapidly increase in quantity and reach to individual households.

4. Highlight: At the ASEAN level, the Roadmap for Agriculture Cooperatives developed during a Learning Route to Thailand and Philippines is supporting Farmer Organizations by positioning them in the economic development agenda as well as boosting the quality of the policy dialogue between producers, government and private sector, which is supported over the long-term by MTCP2. Part of the recent activities of this roadmap included the organization of the 6th ASEAN Cooperative Business Forum on Nov 29-30 in Quezon City, Philippines.

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3.3 Component 3: Knowledge dissemination and methodological adoption

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage

3.3.1.

Knowledge Products: Publications and videos, apps, etc. available to global audiences

5 Knowledge Products: Publications and videos, apps, etc. available to global audiences

19 Knowledge Products: 9 videos produced and distributed online; Ten (10) other publications available to global audiences

380%

3.3.2.Production of stories from the field

Production of 8 stories from the field

Production of 10 stories from the field

125%

“ROUTASIA’s main contribution is to share with the staff the concept of learning routes and their organization. And it is one of the best approaches for learning and motivation. It is an approach of learning and sharing, which is a bit different from others. It involves both service providers and beneficiaries. It applies ground verification through a systematization process, involves most of the beneficiaries and also develops Local Champions who will adopt the approach, learn and sustain the process.” – Balaram Kandel, Project Director for ASHAP and formerly LFLP in Nepal.

ROUTASIA produced and disseminated 19 Knowledge Products, almost four times the expected number of publications, newsletter and videos. This includes a periodically updated, integrated online platform for knowledge dissemination and communications, made up of: i.) A regional portal: www.asia.procasur.org; ii.) A regional Facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/procasur.asia; iii.) A regional Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCGIFp6Ejy_4xa8fN09WQZGw ; iv.) IFADAsia: asia.ifad.org/web/1304-PROCASUR ; v.) An IFAD Social Blog: http://ifad-un.blogspot.com/search/label/procasur

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11 Annex 6 – A list of ROUTASIA Stories from the Field, booklets, newsletters and videos.

This high output and reach of knowledge products is largely due to a well-established communications program within the Asia Pacific regional office. Knowledge management has been a core element of the entire ROUTASIA programme, and despite the fact that all objectives were met by the end of the first year, it continued to be central to the success of the final stages of the programme.

Effectiveness – Outcomes

Strategic knowledge dissemination leads to outreach to multiple audiences

Knowledge products produced by ROUTASIA and partners have been widely shared: i.) At the grassroots level through written, visual and oral techniques; ii.) At an operational level through Learning Routes, trainings, workshops, and other learning events; iii.) At the policy level through briefs, papers, roadmaps and high level forums; iv.) At an IFAD corporate level, with uploads and frequent postings on asia.ifad.org, the IFAD Social Blog and participation in corporate evaluation of

the South-South Cooperation and the Grants Strategy, and the Dialogues with Indigenous Peoples Farmer Organizations, Rural Women and Rural Youth.

1. Highlight: Learning Route on Indigenous People´s Forest Management, which was organized with the support of AIPP and IFAD’s Indigenous Peoples desk, has been published by IFAD and presented in the 2015 Indigenous Peoples Forum, organized by the United Nations in New York.

2. Highlight: 75 percent of the case studies and other publications have been made available in the official country languages, such as Khmer, Nepali, Bangla, Thai, Lao, Vietnamese, and in English, favoring in-country and cross-country knowledge exchanges.

3. Highlight: ROUTASIA made extensive and effective use of new ICT tools to include indirect beneficiaries in the Programme. Particularly effective were social media channels like Facebook, YouTube, Slideshare and LinkedIn, which together had more than 4,000 followers.

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage

3.3.3.

Build the capacity of IFAD projects to prepare and implement project-level Learning Routes

Build the capacity of 10 IFAD-supported projects to prepare and implement project-level Learning Routes.

Built the capacity of 15 IFAD-supported projects to prepare and implement project-level Learning Routes.

150%

“The knowledge and skill of the project staff to organize Learning Routes has been improved. They got a lot of experience through the guidance of PROCASUR. Thanks to that, the project is able to organize by itself similar

activities and programs in the future, in order to promote and replicate good case studies and successful models from the project.” – Le Canh Hau, Director of Tam Nong Support Project at Ninh Thuan in Vietnam

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12 Annex 7 – Chart with the multiple public and private stakeholders in support of IFAD-funded projects that participated in ROUTASIA.

ROUTASIA helped advance 33 IFAD-supported projects in the Region towards the appropriation of KM and KS tools by national institutions. Of these at least 15 IFAD-supported projects have mainstreamed the use of the Learning Routes into their AWPB and KM toolkit, an 150 percent increase over the expected outcome. 125 individuals, directives and staff from projects and partners in the public and private sector were trained as part of this effort, a 250 percent increase over the expected outcome.12

As shown in the graph below, 60 percent of projects directives and staff considered the Learning Routes methodology very satisfactory and 30 percent found it satisfactory. Ten percent did not answer. Related to Innovation Plans, 40 percent found them very satisfactory, 30 percent satisfactory and 20 percent did not participate in their design and implementation. As part of the project’s interest in mainstreaming methodologies, 195 staff and partners have been trained and assisted in the organizations of new Learning Routes. Besides the satisfaction with

Learning Routes methodology as a knowledge management and knowledge sharing tool, users of the training programme indicated that its organization strengthened networking between Government and Farmers.

Thach Huynh Thi Thu Trang, KMO of the project on Adaptation to Climate Change in the Mekong River Delta (AMD Tra Vinh) in Vietnam, said: “Thanks to the Learning Routes organized by PROCASUR, the knowledge management officer as well as other project staff we know more about organizations that have been sponsored by IFAD to implement successful and effective models, and to organize and participate in programs that have many components and actors involved (project staff in provinces, district, communes, villages, members of cooperatives, farmers and the participation of the private sector). Dao The Duy, a staff member from the Agriculture, Farmers and Rural Areas Support Project in Gia Lai, Vietnam, said that, “Learning Routes is a way to share experiences with other IFAD projects and together find solutions to common issues.”

SATISFACTION WITH LEARNING ROUTES ANDINNOVATIONS PLANS OF ROUTASIA

% OF STAFF

0

10

20

30

40

50

60NA

Very Satisfactory

Satisfatory

30

60

10

40

30

20

LR IP

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The Learning Routes programme facilitates the identification and scaling-up/out of good practices, said Him Nidhi Neupane, M&E Officer of the WUPAP project in Nepal: “Some innovative activities were identified at a district level, like support for cattle production by WUPAP in Dailekh, which was not documented anywhere before. Learning Route activities not only helped us identify them but also to disseminate that information to other stakeholders. Similar cases were identified in other districts also”

Evidence that the methodology is scaling-up is shown by the replication of F2F trainings by national agencies and Farmer Organizations. The M&E system identified approximately 20 new Learning Routes at the project level implemented in Vietnam and Nepal between 2014 and 2016, training a total of at least 869 individuals. The Learning Routes implemented at the project level focused on different subjects: i.) Livestock and Forest products Value Chain Development; ii.) Corn production for cattle feed; iii.) Community-Managed Electrification; iv.) Effectiveness of Cooperative Groups in Production; and v.) Marketing and Brand Promotion of agriculture produce.

Uttam Prasad Nagilia, project director of WUPAP in Nepal, explained the positive influence: “WUPAP was a long- term project and due to frequent changes in staff, knowledge was often lost or not recorded. After introducing the Learning Route methodology, the project was able to identify some very old success stories, like a cooperative in Bajhang. Similarly, our staff was trained in Learning Route methodology and we were able to use it as a tool for exchanging knowledge in the districts.”,The impact of identifying good practices helped the project allocate resources to communities that needed them to support initiatives generated in Learning Routes, he said.

In Bangladesh, Gokul Chandra Biswas, the manager of the Finance for Enterprise Development and Employment Creation Project (FEDEC), also sees a positive influence of the methodology on project performance. “The Learning Route showed the participants how to measure project performance and how to improve it to meet the project goals. The participants gathered practical knowledge to evaluate project performance. This learning increased their capacity to contribute in a better way to improve project performance.”

IFAD Country Programme Officers (CPOs) also evaluated positively the Learning Routes contribution to performance improvement of their portfolio. “Project staff was trained and have started implementing the Learning Routes on their own, with project funding. This has improved the knowledge base of the country portfolio,” said Bashu Aryal, Nepal CPO.. Nicolas Syed, the Bangladeshi CPO, pointed out that ROUTASIA organized very successful Learning Routes and have also prepared a number of case studies, which covered all ongoing IFAD- funded projects in the country.

Below are two examples of innovative Training of Trainers organized by ROUTASIA, one in which all the main experts and facilitator champions were from the region and another in which the project affected a complete area.

1. Training of Trainers: “Transforming the Outstanding Farmers to Local Champions and Community Business Leaders”

The objective of the ToT at Prey Pdao Rice Research Center, Kompong Speu Province, Cambodia, held from December 15-19, 2015, was to lay down basic skills of good organization and planning to help our Local Champions manage and assure the sustainability of their community learning center (CLocal Champion). Participants were made up of 26 outstanding farmers from five provinces under

- 36 -

the PADEE project, including five F2F provincial focal points, and five provincial technical advisors.. The trainers reflected on their experiences and successful Local Champion stories from Thailand, GDA, and SNV with the coordination by PADEE and Procasur. Organizing, planning, teaching and managing are the skills needed for all the Local Champions from the five provinces and were transmitted by the trainers using both traditional and non-traditional methods.

http://asia.procasur.org/portfolio_item/report-training-…business-leaders/

2. Recognizing the grassroots of change: Local Champions Exhibition at the Royal University of Cambodia.

A three-day gathering from August 12th until 15th, at the Royal University of Agriculture in Phnom Phen, Kingdom of Cambodia, hosted

over 200 guests from eight countries, including Bangladesh, Cambodia, Laos, Nepal, Philippines, Thailand, Tonga and Vietnam, to combine smart networking and learning tools within an interactive framework. The Exhibition welcomed all kinds of rural development practitioners, Local Champions, project directors, knowledge management professionals, members of civil society and cooperation leaders. It focused on four critical areas: i.) Natural resource management and climate change; ii.) Rural groups for economic and social development; iii.) Agriculture and market: high-value products, organic agriculture, value chain development; iv.) Local knowledge enterprises: community learning centers, farmer field schools, learning routes.

ht tp ://as ia .procasur.org/por t fo l io_i tem/recognizing-the-grassroots-of-change-results-of-the-local-champion-exhibition/

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Effectiveness – Outcomes

33 IFAD-supported projects improved Knowledge Management through training and 15 IFAD-supported operations have mainstreamed the use of the Learning Routes into their AWPB and KM strategy.

According to staff of IFAD-supported projects in Nepal and Vietnam, and IFAD project directors in four countries (Cambodia, Nepal, Vietnam and Bangladesh) 1,280 people participated in activities related to knowledge management and evidence adoption of these skills.

1. Highlight: 100 percent of Learning Routes participants assured that the Learning Routes had been very useful.

2. Highlight: 100 percent of the project staff saw individual performance gains thanks to the Learning Routes. 71 percent improved their teamwork performance; 57 percent improved their organizational capacities and 47 percent acknowledged improvement in project performance.

3. Highlight: Technical areas of improvement include: i.) The empowerment of women and minority groups; ii.) Adopting new skills from small farmers, projects and staff from public institutions; iii.) Using Local Champions expertise to share knowledge and learn in their communities and outside it; iv.) Understanding other perspectives; and v.) Working as a team.

Output description Planned outputs Outputs achieved Percentage

3.3.4.

Methodological transfer to organizations linked to IFAD.

Methodological transfer to 6 organizations linked to IFAD.

Methodological transfer to 6 organizations linked to IFAD.

100%

“The partnership INAFI-PROCASUR has been recognized as provider of expert technical assistance in advanced knowledge management and knowledge sharing activities in Bangladesh. If interested, the projects can develop partnerships with INAFI-PROCASUR to receive hands-on training when undertaking case studies and in systematization methods, documentation, development and implementation of Learning Routes.” – Tasnova Farheem, Programme Officer at INAFI, Bangladesh.

Six in-country organizations collaborated with ROUTASIA in the implementation of activities. These partner organizations were trained and then supported the implementation of Learning Routes, the training of Local Champions, and the systematization and dissemination of good

practices. All of them were able to replicate these methodologies by themselves, organizing knowledge management activities at a national or local level with IFAD- supported projects. All partners indicate that the partnership with ROUTASIA exceeded their expectations.

INAFI – Bangladesh emphasized that the partnership with ROUTASIA strengthened their relation with IFAD-funded KM-related initiatives. They now have six different projects. “INAFI sees the partnership with PROCASUR as a contribution to complement its own vision. INAFI and PROCASUR together, with the support of IFAD, undertook the initiative to identify, document and disseminate the innovations and best practices of IFAD-funded projects in Bangladesh. The participants of Learning Route got the opportunity to interact

- 38 -

with the Local Champions directly, they (project participants) learned first-hand from them about their life, livelihoods and development over time. In the Learning Route, the hosts and the Local Champions become important actors in direct knowledge transfer. Now, the INAFI-PROCASUR partnership is recognized as a provider of expert technical assistance in advanced knowledge management and knowledge sharing activities in Bangladesh. The projects now have the opportunity to use the expertise and experience of INAFI-PROCASUR in innovative knowledge management and sharing this process to develop their own capacities in this area. If interested, the projects can develop partnerships with INAFI-PROCASUR to receive hands-on training in undertaking case studies and in systematization methods, documentation, development and implementation of Learning Routes.“

Ms. Xuan Phung, manager of MCG in Vietnam emphasized the strengthening of cooperation with IFAD-funded projects the country, as well as with development organizations from different countries: “By partnering with ROUTASIA we got the opportunity to attend one of the first Learning Routes on Rural Youth implemented in Kenya. After this experience, it was easier for us to push a pro-youth agenda, we knew what others have been doing and got good examples. Not much longer, the inclusion of rural youth become a must in Vietnam. More recently, we organized a Learning Routes titled, Women Development Funds with Fresh Solutions, with ROUTASIA in Cambodia. 25 micro-finance managers from the Vietnam Women´s Union learned about specific services and products targeting women such as savings and credits, but also insurance and the

use of smartphones, which is a great innovation for our country.”

NACCFL, the implementing partner in Nepal, highlighted the effectiveness of Learning Routes and Local Champions in the dissemination of best practices originating within and going beyond the more than300 member cooperatives. The programme officer, Trijan Singh, said: “Of course we knew that the key factor in the success or failure of a cooperative is in the human capital, but we always felt that for the most part this training was never actually applied. As the work with ROUTASIA started to show its first results, especially the registration of a first set of 25 Local Champions, we understood that a good number of our members were actually capable of linking very challenging issues, such as accountability, marketing or irrigation, with the leadership and team-building component. Just by saying to them: hey, you are a champion, they started to share more and drive the cooperatives to new challenges.”

The organization Fresh Solutions Ltd. also appreciated the work performed by Local Champions in Cambodia. According to the approach’s methodology, community problems have to be solved with the active participation of locals, and this helps governments and citizens move from being beneficiaries to stakeholders. Mr. Seng Sary, Director of Fresh Solutions, said; “It was very important that IFAD and PROCASUR trusted in local organizations for testing the new learning tools. I see that it made a big difference in Cambodia and elsewhere. We will continue to work with the Ministry, the Provincial Department of Agriculture and the farmer organizations.”

- 39 -

PARTNERS MAIN RESULTS ROUTASIA 2014 to 2016PARTNERS MAIN RESULTS

NACCFLNepal

9 best practices systematized 6 staff trained on Learning Route methodology 12 Local Champions trained 2 Learning Route implemented with ROUTASIA

INAFIBangladesh

8 best practices systematized 20 Local Champions trained 5 staff trained in Learning Route methodology 2 Learning Route implemented with ROUTASIA

MCGVietnam

6 best practices systematized 3 staff trained in Learning Route methodology 50 Local Champions trained 4 Learning Route implemented with ROUTASIA

Fresh SolutionsCambodia

4 best practices systematized 55 staff trained to support and train Local Champions 2,000 farmers participating in knowledge management activities 26 Local Champions supported 1,000 new Local Champions trained

Asian Farmers Association

Philippines

1 best practices systematized 3 staff trained in Learning Route methodology 7 Local Champions trained 1 Learning Route implemented with ROUTASIA

AIPPThailand

4 best practices systematized 5 staff trained in Learning Route methodology 12 Local Champions trained 2 Learning Route implemented with ROUTASIA

- 40 -

Effectiveness – Outcomes

Learning Route service providers in six countries in Asia

ROUTASIA built the capacity of a total of six organizations to implement Learning Routes and strengthened their links with IFAD portfolio. They were chosen alongside the ICOs and the project implementation agencies. Two of the partner organizations are private companies, two are networks and one is an NGO. This partner organization continues to work closely with government agencies and farmer organizations.

1. Highlight: Fresh Solutions Ltd. in Cambodia becomes part of the new agreement with PADEE for the scaling-up of the CLC model. It is also preparing a Learning Route on Access to Markets in Thailand for ASPIRE.

2. Highlight: NACCFL in Nepal is adopting the model by forming new Local Champions and implementing new Learning Routes. In the framework of the NACCFL partnership with the WUPAP and KUBK projects, the Farmer-to-Farmer tools acquired are expected to speed up the establishment of Agricultural Cooperatives.

3. Highlight: In Vietnam, MCG Ltd. is providing direct training and technical

assistance to several projects that have mainstreamed the Learning Routes methodology. This partner is also organizing ad-hoc Learning Routes, for organizations like the Women’s Union Fund, who have visited Cambodia to learn about rural micro-finance innovations.

4. Highlight: In Bangladesh, INAFI continues to work with projects supporting the generation of new knowledge products such as case studies and stories from the field. A discussion to implement a 2017 Learning Route with the PACE project is underway.

5. Highlight: Partner organizations in Bangladesh, Cambodia and Nepal will play a relevant role at a country-level during the implementation in 2017 and 2018 of two regional learning initiatives. PROCASUR Asia and the Pacific will be responsible at the regional level: i) Learning Initiative of Multiple-Stakeholders Platform for the development of nutrition-sensitive programmes and policies as it relates to the Scaling-Up Nutrition Movement, and; ii.) The Learning Deltas Initiative for the scaling-up of Integrated Water Resource Management best practices in South Asia and South East Asia, in partnership with the Global Water Partnership.

- 41 -

- 42 -

13 Annex 8 – The ROUTASIA M&E system, including framework, toolkit and main report.

4. Assessment of impact and M&E system

Linkages with IFAD strategic objectives (SO)

ROUTASIA strengthened the technical and institutional capacities of IFAD projects and partners, Local Champions and smallholder farmers, by training them in the methodologies of Learning Routes and Local Champions. ROUTASIA also supported smallholders by developing their ability to access and adopt best practices, an effort aiming to enhance their productive capacity, and increase their income and self-organization.

The M&E system reported on three areas of change: i.) Organization and participation of small farmers and other stakeholders in Learning Routes; ii.) The adoption of Local Champions methodology as a new mechanism of F2F extension services; and, iii.) Documentation, systematization and dissemination of best practices.

M&E takes into account the three main target groups for the Programme: i.) Smallholder farmers in Learning Routes, Local Champions and beneficiaries of the implementation of Innovation Plans; ii.) Staff and directors of IFAD-supported projects and national institutions; and iii.)) Partner organizations of ROUTASIA.13

IFAD Strategic Objectives relevant for ROUTASIA

SO1 Increase the productive capacities of the rural poor: i.) Access to agricultural technology and production services.

SO2 Increase the benefit to the rural poor of market participation: i.) Diversify rural enterprise and employment opportunities; ii.) Rural investment environment; iii.) Rural producer organizations.

SO3 Strengthen the environmental sustainability and climate resilience of economic activities of the rural poor: i.) Environmental sustainability; ii.) Climate change adaptation and resilience.

Understanding the reach of Innovation Plans (IP)

During the Learning Routes participants, who sometimes are individuals but more often are organized into teams, prepare an Innovation Plan to be validated and implemented once back home, in order to apply what they have learned in the field. Innovation Plans are one key instrument

- 43 -

that generates significant changes and achieves sustainability without external intervention in management. The IPs convene diverse actors, such as farmer groups and organizations, IFAD-supported projects, and the specific support of the projects of other cooperation agencies such as WB, ADB, FAO, HIVOS, SNV and GTZ.

According to a survey sample of 52 Innovation Plans, over 47,000 households are benefiting from the implementation of the plans and 65 percent

of them leveraged third-party resources. The resources came generally from IFAD-supported projects like AWPB, other public sector initiatives, farmer organizations and private companies like DABAR in Nepal or Eyekandi in Cambodia.

The following diagrams indicate that there are: i.) Significant changes associated with the implementation of Innovation Plans; and ii.) A number of households benefitting from Innovation Plans.

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80Fully implemented (100%)

More than 50%

Around 50%

Less than 50%

NEPALV IETNAM BANGLADESH TOTAL

2015

0

65

10.3

3134.5

24.1

0

20

40

13

24.122.2

37

0

PROGRESS OF INNOVATION PLAN IMPLEMENTED BYCOUNTRY

ROUTASIA 2013/2016

0

5

10

15

20

25More than 5000

1000 to 5000

100 to 1000

10 to 100

NEPALV IETNAM BANGLADESH TOTAL

16

4

00

79

4

7

21 0 1

25

14

4

8

NR OF HOUSEHOLDS BENEFITED BY COUNTRYROUTASIA 2013/2016

- 44 -

Innovation in the system of extension services through the participation of Local Champions

Local Champions have become key actors in the scaling-up of best practices and innovations. Their inclusion as engines of change on the ground generated multiple benefits: i.) For the Local Champions themselves, who diversified their sources of income by including training and technical assistance; ii.) For rural smallholders, who broadened their productive, commercial and peer networks; iii.) For IFAD-supported projects, who increased outreach and partnership with local actors.

An essential aspect of the Local Champions is its potential to spread and amplify the benefits of training governments and NGOs provide. A sample of 54 LCs participated in a M&E exercise, where they explained the peer-to-peer training of over 11,000 farmers, with follow-up evaluation on approximately 5,000 farmers. According to this follow-up, users showed an average adoption rate of approximately 45 percent, with the highest success rate, 60 percent, in Cambodia.. It is estimated that at least 7,000 households benefited from the engagement of the Local Champions. In other words, one Local Champion is capable of reaching about 130 families. According to the latest survey, the key factors for increasing the rate of technology adoption: i.) Disseminate field-tested technologies with proven positive impact on livelihoods; ii. Develop Research and Development initiatives with the farmers in order to adjust external technologies to the available materials and human resources at local level; iii.) Broaden the space for experience and knowledge sharing beyond the direct target groups,,and; iv.) Invest land and material resources in the preparedness of their farms to effectively receive and retain the knowledge

learned (infrastructure, agriculture tools and inputs).

The M&E system shows that the Local Champions service has the potential to be a cost-effective and sustainable rural extension model. This model reduces the government’s transaction costs by contracting local available trainers, increases the sensitivity of extension services to local needs and opportunities and fits it into existing farmer organizations and public-private partnerships.

As explained by NACCFL, the ROUTASIA partner organization in Nepal, work with projects and partners, “aims to strengthen the capacities of organizations of rural people to improve performance by learning best practices and innovations that will uplift their socio-economic situation. Outcomes include sharing systematized knowledge and best practices from other countries; participate in, adopt and develop the Learning Routes methodology; disseminate best practices in their home countries; gain familiarity with the concept of Local Champions and apply it, thus creating a vibrant knowledge sharing culture in the field.”

Nevertheless, there are persistent challenges that deserve a more systematic approach: i.) Participation by women and youth as Local Champions in order to appeal to more vulnerable groups; ii.) Rolling out a Local Champions certification and registration mechanism for a better formal engagement with public and private sectors; iii.) Open new spaces in existing farmers organizations for the provision of extension services to its members and to create new local knowledge enterprises, such as the Community Learning Centers, that can sustain learning and innovation over time.

- 45 -

Participation by users/beneficiaries in ROUTASIA decision-making

ROUTASIA streamlined its Monitoring and Evaluation System (M&E) by adjusting PROCASUR’s global experience and IFAD’s guidelines to the APR specificities. ROUTASIA took special care in handing over this System to IFAD-supported projects, partners and the ICOs, by ensuring training of KMO and M&E officers and the development of a M&E Toolkit.

The Programme continuously updates this Toolkit and use Survey Monkey to monitor activities in time. Therefore, M&E is not limited to specific learning activities, such as Learning Routes, KM trainings or knowledge sharing events, but monitors the progress made by participants in the adoption of new technologies and partnerships. It specifically stresses the follow-up of Innovation Plans and the progress of Local Champions participation in extension services markets. During its second year, ROUTASIA significantly increased the participatory monitoring and evaluation exercises, capturing qualitative and quantitative data for the assessment of the programme’s effects and impacts.

The M&E system focused on tracking the effects and possible impacts of programme implementation. Each learning activity has a specific format and procedure for making opportune adjustments. For example, as autonomy among projects and partners increased, some criteria in the selection of the participants during the first year of operations became distorted, as only 30 percent of women and less than 15 percent young people participated. By discussing the results of the M&E system by the end of the first year, ROUTASIA and its related projects agreed to establish quotas for these two relevant target groups. Partners applied necessary corrections during the second year, and achieved a significant increase in the representation of women (49 percent) and Rural Youth (35 percent).

ROUTASIA conducted a final M&E exercise between January and May 2016. The objective was to assess the success of ROUTASIA’s main goal: to increase knowledge and the capacity for adopting and scaling-up best practices and innovations for poverty reduction among IFAD stakeholders in the APR. The exercise covered all countries involved.

244 field surveys were carried out in collaboration with the KMO and M&E using Survey Monkey.. The exercise effectively engaged the following key actors involved in ROUTASIA II: i.) 105 participants in Learning Route; ii.) 54 Local Champions providing training services; iii.) 66 KMO and M&E Officers, iv.) 12 Project Directors; v. ) 3 CPOs; and vi.) 4 in-country partner organizations. A critical lesson learned is that the utility of ROUTASIA M&E system must go beyond reporting to IFAD and nurture relations with public agencies, such as the ministerial-level

Surveys

Storiesfrom the

field

Supervision

ProjectsReviews

M & ESystem

- 46 -

14 In 2015, IFAD carried out an in-depth Mid-Term Review of ROUTASIA, including work with the central team in Thailand, field visits to Cambodia and Vietnam and a number of interviews with participants, partners and IFAD staff. While concluding that the Programme was progressing correctly, the review made a number of recommendations for the second and last year of oper-ations. All were identified as pertinent during 2015’s Programme Steering Committee. The impact of these recommendations was verified during the 2016 session.

bodiies, and inform them of the outputs and outcomes. The M&E aspect of a knowledge management programme must be part of the systematic hand-over of the programme and capacity-building efforts. In order to sustain the investment in knowledge management, the M&E system must be capable of showing its added value to project performance. This was a critical factor in the appropriation of the methodology

by projects, partners and Local Champions. Learning Routes transitioned from being a grant-supported activity to a project-owned tool for scaling-up best practices.14

The tables below summarize the main findings and conclusions of this M&E system, including a review and improvement of the system that occurred during the design of ROUTASIA.

- 47 -

M&

E SY

STEM

LOG

FRA

ME

REV

IEW

ED A

ND

UPD

ATED

A. L

EARN

ING

RO

UTE

S M

ETH

ODO

LOG

Y

OV

ERA

LL G

OA

LIn

crea

se k

now

ledg

e an

d th

e ca

paci

ty to

ado

pt a

nd s

cale

-up

best

pra

ctic

es a

nd in

nova

tions

for p

over

ty re

duct

ion

amon

g IF

AD

st

akeh

olde

rs in

the

Asi

a an

d th

e Pa

cific

Reg

ion

(APR

)PR

OJE

CT

OU

TCO

ME

The

Lear

ning

Rou

te m

etho

dolo

gy is

val

idat

ed a

s a

usef

ul to

ol fo

r Kno

wle

dge

Man

agem

ent (

KM) a

nd in

sca

ling-

up o

f inn

ovat

ions

.

COM

PON

ENTS

INDI

CATO

RSAC

TIV

TIES

AN

D PA

RTIC

IPA

NTS

RESU

LTS

1. SK

ILLS

IM

PRO

VED

AN

D N

ETW

ORK

S EX

PAN

DED

1.1 P

artic

ipan

ts im

prov

ed th

eir

skill

s (n

umbe

r and

%)

1.2 L

evel

of i

mpr

ovem

ent o

f sk

ills

(num

ber a

nd %

)

1.3 T

ype

of im

prov

emen

t ob

tain

ed b

y Le

arni

ng R

oute

pa

rtic

ipan

ts

16 L

earn

ing

Rout

es f

rom

201

3 to

201

6 w

ith 4

86 p

artic

ipan

ts f

rom

the

Asi

a an

d Pa

cific

Re

gion

(A

PR):

Nep

al,

Cam

bodi

a, L

aos,

Tha

iland

, V

ietn

am

and

Bang

lade

sh.

The

res

ults

cam

e fro

m 1

05 s

urve

ys o

f Le

arni

ng R

oute

pa

rtic

ipan

ts r

epre

sent

ing

alm

ost

40

perc

ent o

f the

par

ticip

ants

.Th

e m

ain

topi

cs o

f the

Lear

ning

Rou

tes

wer

e:

wom

en’s

empo

wer

men

t, st

reng

then

ing

Farm

er o

rgan

izat

ions

, w

ater

m

anag

emen

t, pr

oduc

tion

and

mar

ket

linka

ge,

and

Tool

s an

d In

nova

tions

to

Inte

grat

e Ru

ral

Yout

h an

d M

argi

naliz

ed E

thni

c C

omm

uniti

es.

-100

per

cent

of

Lear

ning

Rou

te p

artic

ipan

ts s

aid

that

the

Lea

rnin

g Ro

utes

had

bee

n ve

ry u

sefu

l.-P

roje

ct s

taff

reco

gniz

es th

e im

prov

emen

t of p

roje

cts

or p

rogr

amm

e pe

rform

ance

follo

win

g th

e Le

arni

ng R

oute

. 47

perc

ent o

f par

ticip

ants

ac

know

ledg

ed th

e im

prov

emen

t in

the

perfo

rman

ce o

f the

pro

ject

or

pro

gram

me

(this

refe

rs to

the

perc

enta

ge o

f peo

ple

from

pro

ject

st

aff),

and

57

perc

ent i

mpr

oved

thei

r org

aniz

atio

nal c

apac

ities

and

71

perc

ent i

mpr

oved

thei

r tea

mw

ork

skill

s.-S

peci

fic i

mpr

ovem

ents

obt

aine

d fro

m L

earn

ing

Rout

es i

nclu

ded:

i.)

Wom

en a

nd m

inor

ity g

roup

s em

pow

erm

ent;

ii.)

Ado

ptin

g ne

w

skill

s fro

m s

mal

l far

mer

s, p

roje

cts

and

staf

f fro

m p

ublic

inst

itutio

ns;

iii.)

Usi

ng L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons

expe

rtis

e to

sha

re k

now

ledg

e an

d le

arn

toge

ther

insi

de a

nd o

utsi

de t

heir

com

mun

ities

, iv.

) U

nder

stan

ding

ot

her p

ersp

ectiv

es, a

nd; v

.) Te

amw

ork.

2. I

NN

OVA

TIO

N

PLA

NS

(IP) S

CALE

U

P TH

E BE

NEF

ITS

OF

LEA

RNIN

G

ROU

TES

TO O

THER

SM

ALL

HO

LDER

S

2.1 #

of I

Ps d

esig

ned

and

% o

f IP

s de

sign

ed b

y Le

arni

ng R

oute

pa

rtic

ipan

ts2.

2 #

. of I

Ps fu

lly im

plem

ente

d2.

3 Im

plem

enta

tion

rate

of I

Ps (%

)2.

4 Le

vel o

f im

plem

enta

tion

prog

ress

of I

Ps2.

5 #

and

% o

f hou

seho

lds

bene

fited

by

IPs

2.6

Mos

t im

port

ant c

hang

es

resu

lting

from

IPs

to b

enef

icia

ry

hous

ehol

ds2.

7 %

of I

Ps th

at m

obili

zed

new

re

sour

ces.

54 In

nova

tion

Plan

s ha

ve b

een

prep

ared

by

105

surv

eyed

pa

rtic

ipan

ts.

-Acc

ordi

ng to

the

resp

onse

s pro

vide

d by

the

part

icip

ants

in th

e su

rvey

–a

nd c

onsid

erin

g th

e lo

wer

val

ue o

f eac

h ra

nge

(thus

taki

ng th

e m

ore

cons

erva

tive

data

– a

t le

ast

47,9

95 o

f ho

useh

olds

hav

e be

nefit

ted

from

Inno

vatio

n Pl

ans.

- 82

perc

ent o

f all

part

icip

ants

in L

earn

ing

Rout

es p

repa

red

Inno

vatio

n Pl

ans w

hich

wer

e im

plem

ente

d in

thei

r com

mun

ities

and

org

aniz

atio

ns.

- 60

per

cent

of

IPs

have

bee

n fu

lly i

mpl

emen

ted

or a

lmos

t fu

lly

impl

emen

ted

(mor

e th

an 5

0 pe

rcen

t im

plem

enta

tion

rate

). M

ost o

f the

ot

hers

with

a lo

wer

pro

gres

s in

the

ir im

plem

enta

tion

corre

spon

d to

re

cent

Lea

rnin

g Ro

utes

(201

6), s

o th

eir i

mpl

emen

tatio

n is

still

in p

roce

ss.

- 65

per

cent

of

Inno

vatio

n Pl

ans

wer

e ab

le t

o m

obiliz

e ad

ditio

nal

reso

urce

s for

impl

emen

tatio

n. T

he re

sour

ces c

ame

gene

rally

from

IFA

D

proj

ects

, PRO

CA

SUR,

pub

lic a

genc

ies

and

som

e pr

ivat

e co

mpa

nies

su

ch a

s D

ABA

R in

Nep

al.

- 48 -

B. LO

CAL C

HA

MPI

ON

S A

S EX

TEN

SIO

N S

ERV

ICE

PRO

VID

ERS

OV

ERA

LL G

OA

LIn

crea

se k

now

ledg

e an

d ca

paci

ty fo

r ado

ptin

g an

d sc

alin

g-up

bes

t pra

ctic

es a

nd in

nova

tions

for p

over

ty re

duct

ion

amon

g IF

AD

st

akeh

olde

rs in

the

Asi

a an

d th

e Pa

cific

Reg

ion

(APR

)PR

OJE

CT

OU

TCO

ME

Loca

l Cha

mpi

ons

act a

s se

rvic

e pr

ovid

ers

and

diss

emin

ate

good

pra

ctic

es.

COM

PON

ENTS

INDI

CATO

RSAC

TIV

TIES

AN

D PA

RTIC

IPA

NTS

RESU

LTS

3. LO

CAL

CHA

MPI

ON

S IM

PRO

VEM

ENT

3.1.E

cono

mic

im

prov

emen

ts o

f Lo

cal C

ham

pion

s w

ith

ROU

TASI

A (i

ncom

e, c

osts

, in

vest

men

ts, m

arke

t ac

cess

, etc

) (%

and

leve

l of

impr

ovem

ent)

by c

ount

ry

and

tota

l.

-Hos

t or

pa

rtic

ipat

e in

Le

arni

ng

Rout

es

in

APR

co

untri

es

betw

een

2013

an

d 20

16

rela

ted

to

orga

nic

prod

uctio

n,

post

- ha

rves

ting,

sm

all

irrig

atio

n sy

stem

s, e

mpo

wer

men

t of

m

argi

naliz

ed g

roup

s an

d ot

hers

.-T

rain

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s in

Cam

bodi

a to

pro

vide

rur

al e

xten

sion

ser

vice

s.

(201

4/20

15)

-Loc

al C

ham

pion

exh

ibiti

on in

201

5.-T

oTs

prog

ram

me

for

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s in

C

ambo

dia

(201

5)

rela

ted

to

mar

ketin

g,

man

agem

ent

and

teac

hing

sk

ills

to

deve

lop

com

mun

ity le

arni

ng c

entre

s.-F

arm

er

cong

ress

in

C

ambo

dia

orga

nize

d by

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s an

d fa

rmer

s to

exc

hang

e kn

owle

dge

and

good

pra

ctic

es (2

016)

-54

Loca

l Cha

mpi

ons

part

icip

ated

in

the

surv

eys.

-Ado

ptin

g an

d te

achi

ng n

ew te

chni

ques

, and

exp

andi

ng n

etw

orks

with

ot

her f

arm

ers,

pro

ject

s an

d ot

her o

rgan

izat

ions

had

the

follo

win

g re

sults

:-1

00 p

erce

nt o

f the

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s in

crea

sed

thei

r inc

ome.

-Alm

ost 1

00 p

erce

nt h

ad re

duce

d th

eir p

rodu

ctio

n co

sts,

incr

ease

d th

eir

prod

uctio

n an

d as

sets

. -8

5 pe

rcen

t im

prov

ed th

e qu

ality

of t

heir

prod

ucts

. -8

0 pe

rcen

t im

prov

ed a

nd/o

r inc

reas

ed th

e pr

oces

sing

of t

heir

prod

ucts

.-7

6 pe

rcen

t im

prov

ed th

e m

arke

ting

of th

eir p

rodu

ct.

-The

bes

t re

sults

com

e fro

m C

ambo

dia

beca

use

the

PAD

EE p

roje

ct,

with

the

supp

ort o

f PRO

CA

SUR,

has

pro

vide

d Lo

cal C

ham

pion

s tra

inin

g an

d co

ntin

uous

sup

port

. Th

anks

PA

DEE

sup

port

, Lo

cal

Cha

mpi

ons

of

Cam

bodi

a ar

e cu

rren

tly e

xpan

ding

the

ir fa

rms,

exp

erim

entin

g w

ith

new

pro

duct

s an

d se

ekin

g fo

r ne

w m

arke

t ch

anne

ls. A

dditi

onal

ly, t

hey

crea

ted

thei

r C

omm

unity

Lea

rnin

g C

entre

to

prov

ide

train

ing

to o

ther

fa

rmer

s an

d sh

are

know

ledg

e an

d ot

her i

nitia

tives

. 15

4.LO

CAL

CHA

MPI

ON

S AC

HIE

VEM

ENT

WIT

h FA

RMER

S

4.1 P

eopl

e tra

ined

(#, %

an

d de

mog

raph

ic d

ata

(wom

en, a

ge) b

y co

untr

y.)

4.2

Ado

ptio

n ra

te o

f Loc

al

Cha

mpi

ons

by c

ount

ry a

nd

tota

l.

-Acc

ordi

ng to

sur

veys

in N

epal

, Ban

glad

esh,

Vie

tnam

and

Cam

bodi

a, a

t le

ast 1

1,284

farm

ers

wer

e tra

ined

. -O

ut o

f the

11,2

84 fa

rmer

s tra

ined

by

54 L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons,

4,8

59 a

dopt

ed

the

lear

ned

tech

niqu

es.

The

next

gra

ph s

how

s th

e ad

optio

n ra

te.

Acc

ordi

ng t

o th

is d

ata,

the

ado

ptio

n ra

te, w

eigh

ted

acco

rdin

g to

the

nu

mbe

r of L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons

by c

ount

ry, i

s 41

.3 p

erce

nt, m

eani

ng th

at fo

r ev

ery

10 fa

rmer

s tra

ined

by

Loca

l Cha

mpi

ons,

4.1

adop

ted

the

tech

niqu

es

or p

ract

ices

and

use

d th

em to

impr

ove

thei

r liv

elih

oods

.

15 Q

ualit

ativ

e in

form

atio

n ob

tain

ed d

urin

g w

orks

hops

hel

d in

Cam

bodi

a w

ith th

e pa

rtic

ipat

ion

of L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons’

dire

ctor

s an

d Lo

cal C

ham

pion

s in

Tak

eo P

rovi

nce

help

to u

nder

-st

and

the

proc

ess

of c

hang

e th

ey e

xper

ienc

ed. L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons

expl

aine

d th

at th

e ne

w te

chni

ques

redu

ce th

e co

sts

of p

rodu

ctio

n be

caus

e th

ey s

tart

ed to

use

thei

r ow

n or

gani

c fe

rtili

zers

, pre

pare

d m

ostly

bas

ed o

n th

eir o

wn

farm

’s re

sour

ces.

The

y ha

d be

en a

ble

to u

se m

ore

effic

ient

ly th

e se

eds

and

othe

r inp

uts

on a

muc

h he

alth

ier s

oil t

hank

s to

org

anic

m

etho

ds. T

he u

se o

f org

anic

fert

ilize

rs a

nd m

ore

effic

ient

use

of i

nput

s in

crea

sed

thei

r pro

duct

ivity

, so

that

they

now

obt

ain

mor

e pr

oduc

ts in

the

sam

e su

rface

of l

and.

Fin

ally

, the

y al

so h

ad b

een

able

to p

rodu

ce m

ore

for t

heir

own

cons

umpt

ion,

a p

ract

ice

lear

ned

espe

cial

ly in

Tha

iland

thro

ugh

the

hous

e ga

rden

s m

odel

, red

ucin

g th

e co

st o

f foo

d an

d im

prov

ing

thei

r fam

ily n

utrit

ion

and

heal

th. A

ll th

is p

roce

ss a

llow

ed th

em to

incr

ease

thei

r inc

ome

by re

duci

ng c

osts

, pro

duci

ng m

ore

and

selli

ng a

pro

duct

of b

ette

r qua

lity

at h

ighe

r pric

es.

- 49 -

4.3

Loca

l Cha

mpi

ons

inve

stm

ent i

n tra

inin

g ac

tiviti

es.

(% b

y ty

pe o

f inv

estm

ent)

4.4

Num

ber o

f ben

efic

iary

ho

useh

olds

by

coun

try

and

tota

l4.

5 Lo

cal C

ham

pion

s de

man

d

-Pre

para

tion

of

Loca

l Ch

ampi

ons

tool

s:

1. Ro

adm

ap

of

effe

ctiv

e Fa

rmer

-to

-Far

mer

ex

tens

ion

serv

ices

by

co

mm

unity

le

arni

ng

cent

ers

– RO

UTA

SIA

PA

DEE

201

6.2.

To

olki

t of

ef

fect

ive

Farm

er-

to-F

arm

er

exte

nsio

n se

rvic

es

by

com

mun

ity

lear

ning

ce

nter

s –.

RO

UTA

SIA

PA

DEE

201

63.

Roa

dmap

to

deve

lop

a st

rate

gy

of

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s fo

r N

epal

A

gric

ultu

re

Coo

pera

tive

Cen

tral

Fede

ratio

n (N

ACFF

L).

3.

Tool

kit

for

mai

nstre

amin

g Lo

cal

Cha

mpi

ons

4. L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons

prof

ile d

irect

ory

1-C

ambo

dia

has

the

high

est

adop

tion

rate

with

57

perc

ent,

whi

ch

mea

ns th

at m

ore

than

hal

f of f

arm

ers t

rain

ed a

dopt

ed th

e te

chni

ques

. Th

is c

ould

be

expl

aine

d by

the

prio

rity

give

n to

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s by

th

e IF

AD

-sup

port

ed p

roje

ct P

AD

EE, i

n w

hich

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s ar

e cr

eatin

g C

omm

unity

Lea

rnin

g C

entre

s in

the

fiv

e pr

ovin

ces

whe

re

the

proj

ect i

s un

derw

ay.

-Con

side

ring

the

aver

age

of a

ll th

e ca

tego

ries

it ca

n be

ass

umed

th

at e

ach

Loca

l Cha

mpi

on is

abl

e to

reac

h ar

ound

130

fam

ilies

. Thi

s m

eans

tha

t ac

cord

ing

to t

he n

umbe

r es

timat

ed b

y th

e 54

Loc

al

Cha

mpi

ons,

the

y be

nefit

ed a

roun

d 7,

000

hous

ehol

ds.

Taki

ng i

nto

acco

unt t

he lo

wer

val

ue o

f eac

h ca

tego

ry, i

t mea

ns th

at in

the

case

of

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s w

ho b

enef

ited

betw

een

500

and

1,000

farm

ers,

th

e ca

lcul

atio

n w

as b

ased

on

500

farm

ers

per L

ocal

Cha

mpi

on.

Mos

t Lo

cal C

ham

pion

s pl

an t

o co

ntin

ue t

rain

ing

farm

ers

beca

use

shar

ing

is p

art

of t

heir

stra

tegy

to

expa

nd t

heir

netw

ork,

and

sha

re

and

impr

ove

thei

r kn

owle

dge

and

good

pra

ctic

es.

Als

o, m

ost

of

them

wan

t to

cont

inue

exp

andi

ng th

eir k

now

ledg

e to

ada

pt to

thei

r fa

rms

by re

sear

chin

g an

d se

arch

ing

for

new

trai

ning

opp

ortu

nitie

s.

Fina

lly, a

gro

up o

f the

m p

lan

to m

obili

ze fa

rmer

s fo

r pur

pose

s su

ch

as c

olle

ctiv

e se

lling

, tra

nsfo

rmin

g an

d pr

oces

sing

the

ir pr

oduc

ts

toge

ther

, and

obt

aini

ng lo

ans

for i

nitia

tives

.

- 50 -

B. P

ROJE

CTS

AN

D PA

RTN

ERS

PERF

ORM

AN

CE

OV

ERA

LL G

OA

LIn

crea

se k

now

ledg

e an

d ca

paci

ty fo

r ado

ptin

g an

d sc

alin

g-up

bes

t pra

ctic

es a

nd in

nova

tions

for p

over

ty re

duct

ion

amon

g IF

AD

st

akeh

olde

rs in

the

Asi

a an

d th

e Pa

cific

Reg

ion

(APR

)PR

OJE

CT

OU

TCO

ME

The

Lear

ning

Rou

tes

appr

oach

and

met

hodo

logy

is a

dopt

ed b

y na

tiona

l and

loca

l org

aniz

atio

ns, a

s a

mea

ns to

sha

re a

nd s

cale

-up

kno

wle

dge

and

to im

prov

e de

velo

pmen

t effe

ctiv

enes

s.CO

MPO

NEN

TSIN

DICA

TORS

ACTI

VTI

ES A

ND

PART

ICIP

AN

TSRE

SULT

S

5. R

OU

TASI

A

KM S

TAFF

AC

HIE

VEM

ENTS

5.1

Ach

ieve

men

ts b

y pr

ojec

t st

aff

to

repl

icat

e Lo

cal

Cha

mpi

ons

mod

el (

#

and

type

of i

mpa

ct)

5.2

Ach

ieve

men

t by

pro

ject

sta

ff an

d na

tiona

l in

stitu

tions

in

di

ssem

inat

ing

and

syst

emat

izin

g be

st

prac

tices

: #

, ty

pe o

f be

st p

ract

ices

and

lev

els

of

satis

fact

ion.

5.3

Ach

ieve

men

ts

by

proj

ect

staf

f an

d na

tiona

l in

stitu

tions

in

ad

optin

g Le

arni

ng

Rout

es

met

hodo

logy

: N

umbe

r of

far

mer

s, s

taff

train

ed o

n Le

arni

ng

Rout

e m

etho

dolo

gy

and

satis

fact

ion

of L

earn

ing

Rout

e re

sults

.5.

4 A

chie

vem

ents

by

proj

ect

staf

f an

d na

tiona

l in

stitu

tions

in

adop

ting

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s as

a m

ains

tay

of F

arm

er-t

o-Fa

rmer

met

hodo

logy

: Ty

pe a

nd le

vel

of im

pact

, # o

f sta

ff tra

inin

g ne

w L

ocal

C

ham

pion

s,

#

of

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s su

ppor

ted,

ne

w

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s tra

ined

.5.

5 St

reng

then

ing

of

netw

orki

ng

impa

cts:

exa

mpl

es o

btai

ned.

Ado

ptio

n of

Loc

al C

ham

pion

s an

d Le

arni

ng R

oute

s m

etho

dolo

gies

–

deve

lope

d by

PRO

CA

SUR

– in

IFA

D

proj

ects

, go

vern

men

t st

aff

and

part

ners

of P

ROC

ASU

R, a

s a

mea

ns

to s

hare

and

bro

aden

kno

wle

dge

and

to im

prov

e in

stitu

tiona

l ski

lls o

f na

tiona

l sta

keho

lder

s, a

mon

g ot

her

effe

cts

foun

d du

ring

the

eval

uatio

n.U

se o

f an

d pr

epar

atio

n of

too

ls t

o tra

in a

nd s

uppo

rt L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons:

Ro

adm

ap

and

tool

kit

for

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s st

rate

gy

incl

udin

g fo

rmat

s to

re

gist

er

and

prof

ile

actu

al L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons.

CAM

BODI

A P

ADE

E:M

ore

than

90

perc

ent

said

tha

t th

ey h

ad im

prov

ed t

heir

skill

s to

org

aniz

e an

d im

plem

ent

train

ing

activ

ities

lik

e “t

rain

ers

of

train

ers”

(To

T), f

ollo

w-u

p on

the

ado

ptio

n of

new

tec

hniq

ues,

an

d or

gani

zing

and

exe

cutin

g ot

her

activ

ities

with

far

mer

s.

Alm

ost a

ll re

spon

dent

s be

lieve

that

it is

ver

y im

port

ant t

o le

arn

how

to tr

ain

train

ers a

nd to

follo

w-u

p w

ith th

e fa

rmer

inno

vatio

n pr

oces

s, a

s wel

l as t

o id

entif

y fu

ture

Loca

l Cha

mpi

ons.

82

perc

ent

of p

artic

ipan

ts b

elie

ve t

hat

key

ele

men

ts a

re p

rom

otin

g F2

Fs

and

acqu

iring

stro

nger

teac

hing

ski

lls to

repl

icat

e th

e pr

oces

s an

d to

redu

ce th

e co

st o

f sca

ling-

up th

e C

omm

unity

Lea

rnin

g C

entre

mod

el.

Acc

ordi

ng

to

the

resu

lts

of

IFA

D-s

uppo

rted

pr

ojec

ts

staf

f w

orki

ng in

KM

, 1,2

80 p

eopl

e pa

rtic

ipat

ed in

act

iviti

es re

late

d to

th

e pr

evio

us a

reas

, inc

ludi

ng s

taff

of IF

AD

pro

ject

s, o

f par

tner

s an

d of

the

gove

rnm

ent.

- 51 -

6. R

OU

TASI

A

PART

NER

AC

HIE

VEM

ENTS

6.1

# o

f go

od p

ract

ices

sys

tem

atiz

ed

and

diss

emin

ated

.6.

2 A

dopt

ion

of

Lear

ning

Ro

ute

met

hodo

logy

: Fa

rmer

s tra

ined

by

Le

arni

ng

Rout

es

from

pa

rtne

rs,

Lear

ning

Rou

tes

orga

nize

d by

par

tner

s an

d ot

hers

.6.

3 A

dopt

ion

of

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s st

rate

gy: n

ew L

ocal

Cha

mpi

ons

train

ed

and

staf

f tra

ined

on

Loca

l C

ham

pion

s st

rate

gy.

6.4

Stre

ngth

en

netw

orki

ng

impa

ct:

exam

ples

obt

aine

d

PART

ICIP

AN

TS:

The

mai

n so

urce

of

inf

orm

atio

n fo

r th

is a

naly

sis

is

a su

rvey

of

proj

ect

staf

f, pr

ojec

t di

rect

ors

and

IFA

D

Cou

ntry

Pr

ogra

mm

e O

ffice

rs

(CPO

s)

in

Nep

al,

Vie

tnam

, C

ambo

dia

and

Bang

lade

sh.

It al

so

incl

udes

th

e im

pact

on

PRO

CA

SUR

part

ners

like

co

oper

ativ

es a

nd N

GO

s in

volv

ed

in R

OU

TASI

A a

ctiv

ities

. 85

sur

veys

w

ere

cond

ucte

d w

ith th

ree

type

s of

acto

rs: 1

) 66

surv

eys

of k

now

ledg

e m

anag

emen

t st

aff

of

IFA

D-

supp

orte

d pr

ojec

ts

and

part

ners

w

orki

ng i

n C

ambo

dia,

Nep

al a

nd

Vie

tnam

; 2)

12

su

rvey

s to

IF

AD

pr

ojec

t di

rect

ors

and

man

ager

s in

V

ietn

am,

Nep

al,

Cam

bodi

a an

d Ba

ngla

desh

; 3)

3

surv

eys

to I

FAD

CPO

s; a

nd 4

) 4

surv

eys

to

PRO

CA

SUR

part

ners

di

rect

ly

invo

lved

in t

he im

plem

enta

tion

of

ROU

TASI

A a

ctiv

ities

.

73

best

pr

actic

es

wer

e m

entio

ned,

do

cum

ente

d an

d sy

stem

atiz

ed.

Acc

ordi

ng t

o th

e gr

aph

belo

w,

50 p

erce

nt

of t

he s

taff

foun

d th

e pr

oces

s of

doc

umen

tatio

n of

bes

t pr

actic

es a

nd in

nova

tion

very

sat

isfa

ctor

y, 4

0 pe

rcen

t fou

nd it

sa

tisfa

ctor

y an

d 10

per

cent

did

not

par

ticip

ate

in th

e pr

oces

s,

so th

ey d

id n

ot a

nsw

er. A

lso,

70

perc

ent f

ound

the

publ

icat

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elat

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and

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it

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perc

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rdin

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Plan

s, 4

0 pe

rcen

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30

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and

20 p

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Inno

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peop

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surv

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195

staf

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f pro

ject

s, n

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genc

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and

part

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trai

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to re

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Rou

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The

Lea

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reng

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ed n

etw

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amon

g pr

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over

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es t

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to

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ds o

f th

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are

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new

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mpi

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train

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by

IFA

D-

supp

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Rega

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pact

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by

the

part

icip

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on

the

surv

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here

are

som

e ou

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g fa

rmer

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pera

tives

su

ch

as

NAC

CFL

in

N

epal

, w

hich

st

arte

d to

us

e Lo

cal

Cha

mpi

ons

in th

eir a

ctiv

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to tr

ansf

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now

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d go

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prac

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am

ong

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mem

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of t

he c

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IFA

D p

roje

ct d

irect

ors

also

con

firm

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he i

ncre

asin

g us

e of

Lo

cal

Cha

mpi

ons

as

loca

l re

sour

ces

to

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ate

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d go

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ract

ices

.A

ll th

e st

aff o

f pro

ject

s, n

atio

nal a

genc

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par

tner

s an

d IF

AD

C

POs

cons

ider

that

RO

UTA

SIA

has

met

thei

r exp

ecta

tions

and

th

ey w

ant t

o w

ork

with

PRO

CA

SUR

agai

n in

the

futu

re.

- 52 -

- 53 -

5. Project costs, financing, disbursement and co-financing

Phase II total cost was estimated to be USD 1.38m for the design phase, with a contribution of USD 1m from IFAD and USD,.38m provided by PROCASUR and beneficiaries. The actual cost was USD 1,738,648, with a contribution from beneficiaries and others of USD 738,648, equivalent to 195 percent more than what was expected. Table 1 presents the project costs by component.

Table 1Project Costs by Components

ComponentIFAD funding in

design (USD)

IFAD funding, execution

(USD)

Co-funding by design

(USD)

Effective co-funding (USD)

I. Review of relevant knowledge and interests

85,000 84,486.52 60,000 125,680

II. Design and implementation of Learning Routes

375,000 372,244.47 170,000 468,868

III. Knowledge dissemination and methodological adoption

400,000 404,369.78 100,000 128,600

IV. Programme Regional Facilitation

140,000 138,899.23 50,000 15,500

Total 1,000,000 1,000,000 380,000 738,648

The increase in co-funding by IFAD-supported projects of the operational and technical costs of the preparation and implementation of the Learning Routes, the training for new knowledge management methodologies and the support for the Innovation Plans corresponds with an increase in output, detailed in the previous chapters. PROCASUR and beneficiaries contributed in the following ways: i.) Domestic and international land and air transportation, accommodation, meals and per-diem expenses, ii.) Learning materials, soft and hard publications,

iii.) Technical assistance towards the design of training and follow-up efforts for innovation plans, iv.) Rental of workshop and training venues, fees for resource persons, videos and press releases and, v.) Seed capital for the startup of Innovation Plans.

ROUTASIA II financial management system and performance is satisfactory. The disbursement rate was in line with AWPBs and the effective execution of activities. Financial reports matched the quality and timeliness requested

- 54 -

16 PROCASUR uses “SoftLand for Enterprises” accountability Software. It fulfills the necessary parameters to record all ROUTA-SIA requirements.. This software allows PROCASUR to report to IFAD and others in a timely manner and according to the desired formats.17 Annex 9 – PROCASUR Financial Operations Manual

by IFAD standard practices. There are regular monthly meetings between the Technical Area and Finance and Accounting Area.16

PROCASUR trained the finance and administrative team of ROUTASIA and met at least once a month for budgeting and cash flow planning, discussion

of the status of the programme and necessary updates on policy changes, procedures, reporting, templates or any other matters.17

Table 2 describes the expenditure of IFAD funds granted to ROUTASIA according to types of expenditures.

Table 2Project Costs by type of expenditures (USD)

Type of expenditure Design Year 1 Year 2 TotalI. Salaries and Allowances 130,000 69,565.27 60,985.50 130,550.77II. Professional Services/Consultancies 55,000 32,723.03 22,229.94 54,952.97III. Travel and Allowances 50,000 43,254.9 7,163.45 50,418.35IV. Goods, Services and Inputs 60,000 22,859.23 37,105.93 59,965.16V. Operational Costs 105,000 52,785.14 51,327.61 104,112.75VI. Training, Capacity Building, Workshops 600,000 235,171.7 364,828.30 600,000Total 1,000,000 456,359.27 543,640.73 1,000,000

- 55 -

- 56 -

6. Assessment of grant management and partner performance

The strong support provided by the CPMs and project managers to align grant activities with the ongoing work of the loan projects enabled faster delivery of services to target populations. The mid-term supervision of the grant was greatly appreciated and led to a better understanding of challenges and opportunities. PROCASUR, as part of this completion report, engaged in a self-assessment of the outreach and effectiveness of the grant, which was found to be highly satisfactory since all planned targets were exceeded and within budget.

The use of learning and implementation partners associated with PROCASUR, like NGOs such as INAFI in Bangladesh, MCG in Vietnam, NACCFL in Nepal and Fresh Solutions in Cambodia, greatly contributed to the full use of local knowledge and cultural fit of institutional solutions and alternatives. Effective guidance from the grant Steering Committee, broadly composed of project directors and IFAD staff, allowed for strong ownership and synergies of grant activities with the IFAD portfolio in the Region.

• ROUTASIA II was managed a senior member of PROCASUR based in Thailand. Their main functions were planning, coordinating, supervising and evaluating projects. This person also was responsible for engaging with the international and national development community. The coordinator of ROUTASIA II organized the selection, training and other

means of support to the partner organizations teams in the six countries of action.

• ROUTASIA has frequent interaction with IFAD CPM, ICO and IFAD-supported operations and partners in the country in order to address effective demands, circulate appropriate information at the right moment and decide on the strategic aspects of the programme. For this, a multilevel approach was used.

• PROCASUR’s specialists provided backstopping and technical assistance to ROUTASIA II in the areas of Extension Services Innovation, Monitoring and Evaluation, Communications and ICT, Experience Capitalization, Rural Youth in Development, Gender and Indigenous People Inclusion.

• PROCASUR’s Administration and Finance Unit supported and supervised all administrative and financial tasks through an operational manual, training, coaching, internal financial control mechanisms and monthly meetings with the administration and finance officer based in Thailand.

ROUTASIA II put special effort into the engagement of multiple stakeholders along the two years of implementation. Communications with stakeholders facilitated the selection of priority learning areas and regions of focus, the collection of feedback on activities, access to knowledge products and M&E, reports and the opportunity put into practice recommendations. The table below details the participation mechanisms utilized by ROUTASIA II:

- 57 -

ROUTASIA’s engagement strategyStakeholders Participation mechanisms

Beneficiaries

1. Consultation, Focus Groups2. Contracting services of Local Champions3. Monitoring and Evaluation Exercises4. Policy Support Workshops, Local Champions Exhibition

Operations/Projects

1. Annual Programme Steering Committee meetings2. Annual Survey to Project Directors for capturing the demand and interest of

projects3. Participation in operation milestone events, such as the AWPB discussion, and

supervision of loans and grants4. Partnership Agreements (AWPB), Letter of Agreements, Memorandum of

Understanding5. Monitoring and Evaluation Exercises6. Policy Support Workshops, Local Champions Exhibition

National agencies

1. Annual Programme Steering Committees (PSC)2. Partnership Agreements (AWPB), Letter of Agreements, Memorandum of

Understanding3. Monitoring and Evaluation Exercises4. Policy Support Workshops, Local Champions Exhibition

ICO

1. Programme Steering Committee (PSC) advisory team2. Annual Survey to CPMs and CPOs for alignment with the COSOP and portfolio

strategies3. Participation in COSOP missions and reviews, portfolio reviews and other in in-

country events held by IFAD, operations and other grants and organizations.4. Country partner workshops.

SEA Knowledge Hub

1. Publishing case studies, reports, videos, champions profiles, call for learning routes and other learning activities in IFADASIA, the IFADASIA Facebook Group and the South East Asia Development Facebook Group.

2. Promotion of connections between the SEA Knowledge Hub and the ROUTASIA social network.

3. Continuous exchanges between the Mekong Delta: Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam and Thailand.

IFAD HQ (IFAD APR and other

divisions)

1. Participation in the Regional Portfolio Reviews, management of the regional knowledge management session.

2. Participation in the cross-regional activities of South-South Cooperation, Scaling-Up Agenda, Farmer’s Forum, Indigenous Peoples Forum, Gender Desk, Climate Change Adaptation, IMI.

3. Periodic publication in the IFAD Social Blog and IFAD Facebook.

- 58 -

- 59 -

7. Conclusions and lessons learned

The value added by ROUTASIA II is a combination of technical and social innovation with the opening up of a market of alternative service provision by local learning agents. This synergy has greatly contributed to inclusive Rural Transformation in the areas covered by IFAD projects. Ownership over the learning tools, mainstreamed into larger loan projects and public institutions provides positive prospects for the sustainability of effective alternative service provision on the ground.

I. Environment and Climate Focus• The Programme’s commitment to sustainable

management of natural assets is demonstrated through the content of the activities being implemented. All Learning Routes deal with NRM and Climate Change Adaptation and the effects on participant livelihoods through the development of value chains. Moreover, ROUTASIA played a relevant role in documenting lessons learned from IFAD-supported projects in this area.

II. Gender Focus• As the development of previous programmes

demonstrated, gender equality and women’s empowerment should be a cross-cutting theme adopted in Learning Routes activities. For their primary role in rural development, women’s empowerment is a key factor to ensure successful changes both at community and at institutional level. The extensive work with Local Champions has shown that

remarkable improvements in rural livelihoods and sustainable results can be achieved when women’s capacities are reinforced, their leadership skills enhanced, they are included in decision-making, and there is an equal distribution of roles and responsibilities between both men and women.

• ROUTASIA demonstrated a commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment. Under the entire Programme, four Learning Routes have been implemented with a specific gender focus and 45 percent of the participants are women

• Good progress was made in the empowerment of women as Local Champions by the use of gender responsive quotas and campaigns to include women during the second year of activities. We’ve learned that women trainers will have greater influence on women trainees than men trainers.

III. Indigenous Peoples• Phase II of ROUTASIA learned from the

growth of the Northern Thailand Indigenous People’s alliance around two Innovations Plans. The establishment of a Community Learning Center and Medicinal Gardens and the formation of the first women self-help groups.

• In partnership with NACCFL, IFAD Nepal, and the PAF, LFLP and WUPAP organized several learning routes addressing the challenges of indigenous peoples and ethnic groups.

- 60 -

• The Local Champions Exhibition in Cambodia was an open space of exchange between indigenous knowledge, the knowledge of rural development workers and academia. Building bridges between local and scientific knowledge has played a fundamental role in the success of organic farming in Cambodia and Thailand.

IV. Knowledge Management and Knowledge Sharing

• The vibrant exchange among Mekong or South-East Asia countries (Laos, Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia) has been facilitated by IFAD’s promotion of sub-regional Knowledge Hubs that requires the active leadership of the ICOs.

• The recognition by public sector agricultural institutions of knowledge held, generated and shared by a farmer-based peer-to-peer Local Champion system greatly allowed for the testing and introduction of the Learning Route methodology.

• Key in sharing farmer knowledge is the use of local languages and using culturally appropriate learning support tools (e.g. storytelling, new ICT, Local Champions toolkit in Cambodia and Nepal).

• The planned gradual shift from, ‘handholding for delivery/implementation’ of Learning Routes and IPs to IFAD projects, to ‘Training-of-Trainers’ of regional and/or national partner organizations for scaling-up of the Learning Route approach proved successful for sustainability.

• Despite the wide range of different KM and KS services provided, PROCASUR is often still associated to the “Learning Route” tool. This is because the Learning Routes have been the first method for KS tested within IFAD-supported projects, and over time it has been widely promoted in different regions. There is still the need to make IFAD’s divisions familiar

with the other KM tools and approaches that complemented and upgraded the Learning Routes in ROUTASIA II, including the Training of Trainers, Local Champions System, the Local Champions Exhibition, among other field tested tools.

V. Monitoring and Evaluation• A critical lessons learned is that the utility of

ROUTASIA M&E system must go beyond reporting to IFAD and nurture relations with public agencies, like ministries, and communicate outputs and outcomes. The M&E system of a knowledge management programme is that this must be part of the methodological hand-over and capacity building efforts. In order to sustain the investment in knowledge management, the M&E system must be capable of showing its added value to the project’s performance. This was a critical factor in the appropriation of methodologies by the projects, partners and Local Champions. The Learning Routes transitioned from being a grant-supported activity to a project-owned tool for scaling-up best practices.

VI. Innovation

• Diversification of traditional public extension services by using private extension and learning agents hired by IFAD projects and third-party public agricultural institutions has contributed to strengthen a service provision market.

• The formal recognition of Local Champions and the learning route methodology by state agencies has led to an opening up of this market of service providers. The Innovation Plans, as the final step of this learning route methodology, allowed participating farmers in Vietnam to access additional resources in the form of matching grants for the implementation of said plans.

- 61 -

• The development of ad-hoc learning tools that were not included in the design, such as the Community Learning Centers, the Farmer-to-Farmer Trainings, the Local Champion Exhibition and the Road Maps, is a sign of PROCASUR and partner capabilities to creatively adapt to the demand and interest of IFAD-supported projects.

• An important lesson is that an intensified and wider use of communication channels and ICT tools can contribute to reach different types of target groups, as an example, the PROCASUR Asia and the Pacific Facebook accounts for over 4,000 followers.

VII. Sustainability, Replication and Scaling up

• The grant design to focus on a few countries was appropriate vis a vis the short duration of the grant payoff to embed a change agenda through a clear demonstration of attributable changes in attitudes and skills (e.g. production increases and enhanced outreach).

• Earliest possible involvement and co-design with IFAD-funded projects at a country level led to accelerated ownership of the Learning Route methodology, along with the corresponding tools and innovation plans. Similarly, the farmers’ respect for Local Champions based on merit is likely to enhance sustainability prospects of service provision.

• One outstanding case is in Vietnam where in a few provinces short Learning Routes accompanied with an Innovation Plan design make part of the cycle for application to matching grants for climate-smart small infrastructure. Furthermore, it is estimated that overall over 44,000 Households benefited from the implementation of innovation plans. Several of them have been co-funded by third parties.

• The success of grant-trained Local Champions led to an adoption by IFAD co-funded projects and national extension programmes

of the Learning Route methodology and a triplication of potential private service providers. As shown, one Local Champion will train and coach an average of 150 farmers in the period of a year.

• The use of recognized local change agents, i.e. the Local Champions, committed to learning and sharing solutions in their cultural setting, and who remain in their local region thus gaining respect based on merit, compares favorably with the coming and going of out-of-region staff from public extension services who enjoy hierarchical respect. This makes the local alternative more sustainable. Cultural fit was secured by using the region’s appreciation for recognition and respect and at the public level.

• Six country partner organizations have been trained as Learning Routes service providers, and demonstrated their capacity to execute Learning Routes in a more autonomous way and adapting the tools to the context of the different portfolios. In the same way, the 15 projects enabled to organize Learning Routes considerably increased the number of case studies prepared, Local Champions trained and Learning Routes organized. In the process, public agencies and country partners are learning how to scale-up methodologies and results by making the system appropriate and viable within the public administrative system of extension.

VIII. Linkages to COSOP Strategic Objectives investment portfolio and other development initiatives

• The explicit inclusion of the Learning Routes in the new COSOPs of Nepal and Laos, as well the reviews of the COSOPs of Cambodia and Bangladesh, indicates a new incentive for partnership with PROCASUR. It was learned that it is of high importance for the sustainability of the innovations to bring the Grants closer

- 62 -

to IFAD strategic activities, like project design and supervision, the elaboration or review of the COSOP and the Annual Country Portfolio Reviews.

• The Programme demonstrates consistent and continuous linkages with the IFAD investment portfolio in the Region, having actively engaged 33 IFAD-supported projects as participants of the Route, as well as having systematized amongst the good practices many IFAD’s projects or good practices linked to IFAD’s development initiatives.

• Moreover, the direct contracting by PROCASUR and partners of PADEE and ASPIRE in Cambodia, PAF and KUBK in Nepal for the years 2017-2018 will consolidate the collaboration initiated by IFAD in 2012 in these two countries. The lesson has been learned that assisting Grants and Loans in further opening the financial space inside the AWPB can result in a larger adoption of innovations promoted in limited periods of time.

Other lessons from ROUTASIA

In addition to the lessons learned contemplated in IFAD´s guidelines, PROCASUR would like to share some others experiences related to the programme management and the support to the operations in the field

Programme management

I. An innovative programme needs close supervision and regular guidance. A synergetic and cross-regional program, that builds bridges between IFAD loan projects and other partners, needs careful operational planning and follow-through from the Programme Steering Committee (PSC). This ensures that the programme’s annual workplan and budget (APWB) incorporates the necessary and complementary financial space to best develop the programme’s services.

II. Consider an appropriate preparatory period to strengthen operational capacities as a precondition for success. The previous identification of IFAD-supported project demands and interest for innovation is a key condition to ensure the quality and sustainability of the programme’s learning activities. Subsequently, the programme has to connect with those partners, consultants, experts and champions that hold the specific knowledge to suit IFAD’s demand and interest. Within this framework, the strengthening of capacities of Champions, IFAD’s teams and partners for innovation, could be strategically guided by the mapping of demands, interest and knowledge providers.

Supporting IFAD operations in the field

I. Working with agents of change. Time and financial resources need to be carefully planned for the identification of Local Champions, the strengthening of their capacities and the building of networks between them and with the public and the private sector. Although the valorisation of local knowledge and know-how of local actors is globally improving there is in APR still a gap to fill between traditionally recognized knowledge service providers as professionals and technicians, NGOS and educational centres - and knowledge champions and their organizations.

II. Planning together is key. The PROCASUR experience shows that a careful selection of thematic areas, timelines for implementation and cost containment/sharing arrangements is vital for effective participation of IFAD-supported projects. This includes assistance in the process of selecting participants, budgeting participation fees and travel expenses and allocating the required financial and human resources for follow-up. Planning

- 63 -

together, from the very inception of the grant and its main operational modalities, is fundamental to scale-up innovations.

III. Build knowledge in a participatory and bottom-up way. Peer-to-peer transfer of knowledge has been recognized as an asset to facilitate the incorporation of new concepts and methods in the rural milieu. For example, the composition of mixed working teams (composed by IFAD stakeholders and project staff and/or partners) is demonstrated to be a successful practice to improve

communication and collaboration among different actors to benefit from different competencies, knowledge and abilities, and to improve team-working skills, supporting the creation of enabling environments for knowledge sharing at a project level. Furthermore, the active involvement of IFAD project staff and stakeholders in the development of the learning initiatives generates higher degrees of ownership over the KM activities and results, such as the Innovation Plans and the certification of Local Champions.

- 64 -

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and

proj

ects

in

redu

cing

rura

l

pove

rty.

- 65 -

Obj

ectiv

es-h

iera

rchy

Obj

ectiv

ely

verif

iabl

e in

dica

tors

Ach

ieve

men

t lev

elM

eans

of

verif

icat

ion

Ass

umpt

ions

Out

puts

C1: R

evie

win

g re

leva

nt k

now

ledg

e an

d in

tere

sts.

1.1 G

ood

prac

tices

syst

emat

ized

and

doc

umen

ted;

1.2

Proj

ect s

taff,

com

mun

ities

and

farm

ers

orga

niza

tions

trai

ned

as k

now

ledg

e

serv

ice

prov

ider

s

C2: D

esig

n an

d im

plem

enta

tion

of

Lear

ning

Rou

te. 2

.1 Le

arni

ng R

oute

s

succ

essf

ully

impl

emen

ted;

2.2

IPs

desi

gned

, im

plem

ente

d an

d m

onito

red

C3: K

now

ledg

e di

ssem

inat

ion

and

met

hodo

logi

cal a

dopt

ion.

3.1

Know

ledg

e pr

oduc

ts d

isse

min

ated

;

3.2

Org

aniz

atio

ns,,

inst

itutio

ns, p

roje

cts

train

ed in

impl

emen

tatio

n of

the

Lear

ning

Rou

te m

etho

dolo

gy

• 15

goo

d pr

actic

es

syst

emat

ized

• 11

0 Lo

cal C

ham

pion

s

train

ed a

s TA

pro

vide

rs

• 8

Lear

ning

Rou

tes

impl

emen

ted

• 40

Inno

vatio

n Pl

ans

desi

gned

, 8 c

o-

fund

ed

• 10

pro

ject

s, 6

orga

niza

tions

, 50

indi

vidu

als

train

ed

in L

earn

ing

Rout

e

met

hodo

logy

• 5

publ

icat

ions

and

vide

os, a

pps,

etc

.

avai

labl

e to

glo

bal

audi

ence

s

• 8

stor

ies

from

the

field

prod

uced

• 22

goo

d pr

actic

es

syst

emat

ized

• 13

1 Loc

al C

ham

pion

s

train

ed a

s TA

prov

ider

s

• 11

Lea

rnin

g Ro

utes

impl

emen

ted

and

5 Fa

rmer

-to-

Farm

er

Trai

ning

s pe

rform

ed

• 86

Inno

vatio

n Pl

ans

desi

gned

, 12

co-

fund

ed

• 15

pro

ject

s, 6

orga

niza

tions

, 125

indi

vidu

als

train

ed

in L

earn

ing

Rout

e

met

hodo

logy

• 10

pub

licat

ions

and

9 vi

deos

, app

s, e

tc.

avai

labl

e to

glo

bal

audi

ence

s

• 10

sto

ries

from

the

field

pro

duce

d

Com

pilin

g of

info

rmat

ion

by

PRO

CA

SUR;

Ass

essm

ent s

heet

s;

IFA

DA

sia;

Rec

ords

of R

OU

TASI

A

Foca

l poi

nts;

Cas

e

stud

ies

and

IPs;

Lear

ning

Rou

te

repo

rts;

web

site

s,

docu

men

ted

stor

ies

of th

e fie

ld.

Exis

tenc

e of

repl

icab

le a

nd s

ound

inno

vatio

ns; N

atio

nal

auth

oriti

es, p

roje

ct

and

prog

ram

me

staf

fs w

illin

g to

sha

re

info

rmat

ion

for M

&E;

Effic

ient

inte

rnet

acce

ss a

nd d

istri

butio

n

syst

ems.

Reso

urce

s fo

r co-

finan

cing

acc

essi

ble.

- 66 -

Key

Act

iviti

es1.

C1.

1.1 U

pdat

e th

e ca

talo

gue

of b

est

prac

tices

and

inno

vativ

e so

lutio

ns

in th

e re

gion

; 1.2

Ena

ble

Loca

l

Cha

mpi

ons

to a

ct a

s tra

iner

s an

d

tech

nica

l ass

ista

nts

durin

g Le

arni

ng

Rout

es; 1

.3. E

stab

lishm

ent o

f an

onlin

e pl

atfo

rm fo

r sup

ply

and

dem

and

of tr

aini

ng a

nd te

chni

cal

assi

stan

ce b

y lo

cal r

ural

Cha

mpi

ons.

2.

C2

2.1 D

evel

opm

ent o

f Lea

rnin

g

Rout

es a

t nat

iona

l, re

gion

al a

nd

inte

r-re

gion

al le

vel;

2.2.

Ass

ist t

he

desi

gn a

nd im

plem

enta

tion

of

Inno

vatio

n Pl

ans.

3.

C3

3.1 T

rans

fer t

he L

earn

ing

Rout

es m

etho

dolo

gy; 3

.2 P

rovi

de

assi

stan

ce to

pro

ject

s an

d

prog

ram

mes

at t

he d

esig

n an

d

early

sta

ges

of im

plem

enta

tion;

3.3

Upd

ate

ROU

TASI

A’s

com

mun

icat

ion

stra

tegy

; 3.4

Upd

ate

Mon

itorin

g an

d

Eval

uatio

n sy

stem

.

The

polit

ical

situ

atio

n

and

logi

stic

s of

the

coun

tries

allo

w fo

r the

prop

osed

Lea

rnin

g

Rout

es to

take

pla

ce.

- 67 -

- 68 -

Procasur Corporation is a global organization specialized in harvesting and scaling-up homegrown innovations. The organization’s mission is to foster local knowledge exchange to end rural poverty. By sharing innovations through customized local knowledge-management tools and methodologies, the organization connects global institutions with local talents, providing the structured learning platforms necessary to spread innovation. Procasur has facilitated learning opportunities in over 30 countries in Africa, Asia, and Latin America and the Caribbean, affecting the lives and livelihoods of thousands of rural talents across the globe. To learn more, visit www.procasur.org.

The International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) invests in rural people, empowering them to reduce poverty, increase food security, improve nutrition and strengthen resilience. Since 1978, we have provided over US$18 billion in grants and low-interest loans to projects that have reached about 462 million people. IFAD is an international financial institution and a specialized United Nations agency based in Rome – the United Nations’ food and agriculture hub. visit www.ifad.org