AATF Inaugural Report - African Agricultural Technology Foundation

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A New Bridge to Sustainable Agricultural Development in Africa AATF at a Glance What is AATF? The African Agricultural Technology Foundation (AATF) is a private not-for-profit organisation dedicated to increasing the productivity of resource-poor farmers in sub-Saharan Africa by providing them with greater access to proprietary agricultural technologies and know-how. The Foundation is registered as a charity under the laws of England and Wales. It was incorporated in the UK in January 2003 and registered in Kenya, its host country, in April 2003. AATF is headquartered on the Nairobi campus of the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). Mission and Objectives AATF’s mission is to increase the productivity of sub-Saharan Africa’s resource-poor farmers by facilitating the transfer, delivery and uptake of appropriate proprietary agricultural technologies, thus contributing to higher incomes and greater food security. The Foundation’s basic objectives are to: • Clearly define the real constraints of the region’s smallholder farmers and identify opportunities to address those constraints through the royalty-free transfer and use of new and existing proprietary technologies; • Facilitate the efforts of public and private institutions, including non-governmental and community-based organisations, working to develop and deliver useful proprietary tools, materials and know-how to farmers; and • Create sustainable markets and enduring private sector participation in the agricultural development process. What AATF Does In pursuing its mission and objectives, AATF collaborates with the many internal and external stakeholders involved in agricultural development within sub-Saharan Africa. The Foundation fosters the creation of new public–private partnerships and networks that address food security, poverty reduction, market development and economic growth. The Foundation works with its many partners to identify, acquire, adapt and deliver appropriate proprietary agricultural technologies to resource-poor farmers. In short, AATF is in the business of transferring proprietary agricultural technologies to those who cannot readily afford to pay for them. AATF serves as the “responsible party” in the technology transfer process and plays a stewardship role as technologies are 4
AATF at a Glance adapted to meet farmers’ needs and are moved through national regulatory systems and the whole product value chain. This ensures that those who provide the technology are protected from liabilities stemming from its application or possible misuse. What Makes AATF Unique? The Foundation is the product of wide-ranging and unprecedented consultations among African, European and North American stakeholders who are actively seeking to improve food security and reduce poverty in sub-Saharan Africa. AATF is unique in several ways: • It provides a much needed “one-stop-shop” for enabling access to proprietary technologies, knowledge and know-how; • It serves as an “honest broker” in negotiating the royalty-free transfer of technologies held by public and private institutes in developed and developing countries; • It works along the full product value chain, from basic research, through adaptive research and development, distribution, production and marketing; and • The Foundation uses its unique convening power to bring together potential partners from the public and private sectors, and in so doing serves as a catalyst for innovations, reforms and the creation of agricultural markets. Current Investors AATF enjoys the financial backing of three key donors who have been with the Foundation since its inception: • The Rockefeller Foundation, a knowledge-based, global foundation committed to enriching and sustaining the lives and livelihoods of poor and excluded people around the world. • The UK Department for International Development (DFID), which is responsible for UK initiatives to promote economic development and reduce poverty globally. • The US Agency for International Development (USAID), which is responsible for providing and managing US economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide. As the scope of the Foundation’s work broadens and the demand for its interventions grows, additional financial backers are being sought. For example, the promise of the Improving Cowpea Productivity Project has attracted support from the UK-based Kirkhouse Trust. They are interested in improving the capacity of the region’s national agricultural research organisations to apply marker-assisted selection techniques for the introgression of the Bt gene into elite cowpea varieties. Partners AATF has numerous partners drawn from among the following groups of people and institutions interested in technology transfer for agricultural development: • Agricultural producers and consumers; • Regional and national institutions and agencies [such as the African Union’s Commission for Agriculture and Rural Development, the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), the United Nations’ Economic Commission for Africa (ECA), the Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa (FARA), and various sub-regional organisations and national agricultural research systems]; 5
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AATF Inaugural Report - African Agricultural Technology Foundation

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