Humidtropics works closely with local extension partner ADDAC to encourage learning processes and strengthen farmer organizations in Matagalpa, Nicaragua.
With the objective of gaining a deeper understanding of the current activities and future directions of organizations working in the Nicanorte Action Site within the Central America and the Caribbean Flagship Project, Humidtropics has finalized its Nicanorte Organizational Analysis. The analysis was conducted with 20 organizations including national civil society organizations, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), farmer organizations, universities and university research institutes, and the public and private sectors.
Aside from assisting in the Program’s regional strategic and collective decision-making processes, the results of this analysis will also serve as an important baseline data set to monitor and evaluate learning and innovation among organizations both at the level of Humidtropics territorial alliances (Innovation Platforms) and at the national level through the Research for Development (R4D) Platform.
The indicators analyzed with each participating organization included an overview of their current projects and initiatives, recent innovations and desired changes, limitations for carrying out innovations, sources for organizational learning, alliances between organizations (including current and potential partners and collaborators), common working themes among organizations, and the relationship between organizational impacts and the desired outcomes of Humidtropics.
The organizational analysis revealed that the major themes of projects, impacts and innovations carried out by local organizations revolve around sustainable productivity, commercialization and access to markets, and innovation, knowledge and learning. Elements of gender and nutrition emerged as work themes that need to be prioritized, with ample opportunity for innovations introduced from the Program’s R4D Platform.
Results also showed a predominance of international NGOs/cooperation agencies as actual and potential partner organizations for the institutions which participated in the study. However, there was a strong expression of interest in diversifying partnerships to include other sectors, as this proved to be one of the most important ways organizations learn from each other.
The study revealed a high potential for up- and out-scaling of ongoing initiatives with local partners, as well as opportunities to engage key actors in a continuous learning process. Linked to organizational learning is the limited extent to which institutions are currently learning from national and farmer organizations. This is a space where Humidtropics’ territorial alliances can motivate organizations and empower them to draw on each other’s expertise, working towards common goals centered around sustainable productivity, which remains a strong theme of desired innovations for all organizational groups in the region.
Blog by Shadi Azadegan, Communication Specialist, Central America and the Caribbean, CIAT, and Wendy Godek, Monitoring & Evaluation Consultant, CIAT. Photo by Shadi Azadegan/CIAT.