Abstract
Food insecurity and the weak position of smallholders in food value chains are key challenges in many low- and middle-income countries in sub-Saharan Africa. In order to increase food security and make agricultural value chains more inclusive, donors, governments and researchers increasingly stimulate partnerships between multiple actors, in which knowledge exchange, joint learning and knowledge co-creation play a central role in reducing the time lag between research findings and their translation into practical outcomes. Yet, despite the growing body of literature on multi-actor and cross-sector learning in these partnerships, an overview of existing literature and a strong evidence base of results of knowledge co-creation in these platforms is missing. Based on a systematic literature review, this paper documents existing evidence of knowledge co-creation processes in multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) in sub-Saharan Africa. Findings reveal, first, many examples of positive results, including increased yields and income for farmers; policy, regime and institutional changes; and changes in environmental sustainability. Second, there are several limitations to what MSPs can achieve, including limited attention for scaling up and a lack of sustainability due to dependency on donor funding. Third, there are limitations related to the evidence base: there is a tendency to report less on failures and available findings on the effectiveness of MSPs are mixed. Considering the evidence base, we conclude that there is a need to systematically document, report and assess MSPs and not take their effectiveness for granted. A systematic literature review thereby has an important added value because the critical assessment of methodological rigour increases the credibility of results documented in the included studies.
Highlights
Enhancing food security and the position of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa has been high on the agenda of governments and international organizations (Ros-Tonen et al, 2015; Struik et al, 2014)
One-way transfer of knowledge, central in most extension approaches, is no longer seen as being sufficient to achieve this. It is in creasingly acknowledged that different kinds of knowledge and in novation systems, including those of farmers, are to be combined to find solutions for persistent challenges related to food security (Akpo et al, 2015; Cullen et al, 2014; Lamb et al, 2016; Musvoto et al, 2015; Nyikahadzoi et al, 2012; Pamuk et al, 2014; Schut et al, 2018; Shaw and Kristjanson, 2014; Totin et al, 2013; Triomphe et al, 2013)
Expert advice was obtained from scientists at the Africa Centre for Evidence, University of Jo hannesburg, and the Dutch research funding agency NWO-WOTRO Science for Global Development5 at a kick-off meeting of the Science of Using Research (SURe) projects held in Cape Town in September 2017 and a SURe project meeting held in The Hague in April 2018.6
Summary
Enhancing food security and the position of smallholder farmers in sub-Saharan Africa has been high on the agenda of governments and international organizations (Ros-Tonen et al, 2015; Struik et al, 2014). One-way transfer of knowledge, central in most extension approaches, is no longer seen as being sufficient to achieve this Instead, it is in creasingly acknowledged that different kinds of knowledge and in novation systems, including those of farmers, are to be combined to find solutions for persistent challenges related to food security (Akpo et al, 2015; Cullen et al, 2014; Lamb et al, 2016; Musvoto et al, 2015; Nyikahadzoi et al, 2012; Pamuk et al, 2014; Schut et al, 2018; Shaw and Kristjanson, 2014; Totin et al, 2013; Triomphe et al, 2013). Acknowledging that farmers learn from both multi-actor and peerto-peer networks (Dolinska and d'Aquino, 2016), research and devel opment initiatives increasingly embark on multi-stakeholder platforms (MSPs) as a way to bring different kind of knowledge together These MSPs can be seen as a form of ‘innovation network-level interventions’ (Klerkx et al, 2012: 471) and can be defined as ‘arenas of joint learning’ (Ros-Tonen et al, 2015: 534). ‘Joint learning’, re ferred to as ‘social learning’, can be defined as ‘a change in under standing that goes beyond the individual to become situated within wider social units or communities of practice through social
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