Tropical Agriculture Platform (TAP)
Tropical Agriculture Platform (TAP) was initiated by the G20, and focuses on the development of national capacities for agricultural innovation in the tropics, where most of the developing countries are located and the capacity gap is especially wide. By helping to bridge the capacity gap, TAP aims to pave the way for agricultural innovations that meet the demands of its principal users – small farmers, small and medium-sized agribusiness and consumers. To achieve this goal, TAP has embraced the Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS) perspective, functioning as a multilateral dynamic facilitation mechanism that enables better coherence and greater impact of Capacity Development (CD) interventions in AIS.
- Capacity for Change: Common Framework on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems – Synthesis
- Capacity for Change: Common Framework on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems – Guidance Note on Operationalization
- Capacity for Change: Common Framework on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems – Conceptual Background
The Common Framework on Capacity Development (CD) for Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS)
A key component of the TAP Action Plan is the Common Framework developed in 2015. It is designed to promote better coherence and greater impact of CD in support of AIS in the tropics. This TAP Common Framework focuses on:
- Consolidating the diversity of approaches to CD for AIS;
- Promoting a shift of mind set and attitudes using an AIS perspective;
- Providing concepts, principles, approaches and tools to better understand the AIS architecture, assess CD needs, and plan, implement, and evaluate CD interventions;
- Emphasizing the role of facilitation, learning, documentation and knowledge management for enabling innovation.
The Common Framework is now applied in eight pilot countries – Angola, Bangladesh, Burkina Faso, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Honduras, Lao People’s Democratic Republic (PDR) and Rwanda– through the EU-funded project on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation Systems (CDAIS). In Bangladesh and Lao PDR, APAARI is one of the implementing partners supporting the CDAIS project.
TAP Common Framework in an interactive format:
- English: http://bit.ly/2vrFNXx
- French: http://bit.ly/2xf9Ns3
- Spanish: http://bit.ly/2itavyb
TAPipedia
Within TAP, TAPipedia is an information sharing system 
enhancing knowledge sharing in support of CD for AIS. TAPipedia aims to be a global information system for good CD practices, innovation outputs, success stories and lesson learned.
TAPipedia allows TAP partners and other stakeholders to share their own applied and context specific CD for AIS resources and to discover such knowledge from different sources, partners and regions. TAPipedia also assists TAP members to present, explain and promote the Common Framework on CD for AIS, so that it may be more easily tested, improved, adopted and implemented by stakeholders. Ultimately, TAPipedia focuses on facilitation, learning, documentation and knowledge management to enable innovation. And by promoting innovation and sharing knowledge, TAPipedia will help fulfill TAP’s goal of increasing farmers’ income, improving food security and allowing for a sustainable management of natural resources.
The TAPipedia portal offers navigation in three languages: English, French, and Spanish
APAARI’s role
In Asia and the Pacific region, APAARI is providing the following support on the project:
- facilitating participation of CDAIS representatives from Bangladesh and Lao PDR in APAARI-supported capacity development programmes,
- coordinating TAPipedia webinars and facilitating TAPipedia Network expansion,
- facilitating knowledge sharing on CD for AIS within national agricultural research systems in the Asia-Pacific region, using advocacy efforts with higher education institutions to include the Common Framework on CD for AIS in university curricula,
- integrating the Common Framework in APAARI-supported activities,
- and promoting and raising awareness of the Common Framework through dissemination of TAP promotional materials.
Stories from TAP Activities
In this section, you can find stories from the implementation of TAP and CDAIS activities, supported by APAARI and other TAP partners.
- Webinar with Universities on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation – Bringing System-wide Change in Asia-Pacific
- APAARI promotes the work of TAP at the European Development Days, 5-6 June 2018, Brussels
- Webinar on Capacity Development for Agricultural Innovation 30 November 2018
- Latest Newsletter TAP Newsletter No. 1, 2018.
- Training on Transformation of Agricultural Education through Knowledge Management and Capacity Development for More Effective Agricultural Innovation System (AIS) – Synthesis TNAU Workshop 2019.
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