FAO and IFAD collaborate to establish rural advisory services in the region

Cairo, Egypt – “There is no doubt that the role of more effective and responsive extension and rural advisory services for transforming food systems and rural areas is of utmost importance,” said AbdulHakim Elwaer, FAO Assistant Director-General and Regional Representative for the Near East and North Africa. 

This came during a regional meeting on the establishment of the Arab Forum for Rural Advisory Services (AFRAS): Vision and roadmap, held by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), in collaboration with the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), in Cairo, Egypt, on 24 and 25 July 2023. 

“Making available to the region a wide array of knowledge, experiences and practices, putting experts and practitioners in contact, and favouring cross learning are certainly key factors for accelerating the modernization process that we would like to see in extension and rural advisory services across our region,” added Elwaer during the meeting. 

AFRAS is dedicated to promoting networking, cross learning, experience sharing and knowledge management on extension and rural advisory services (RAS) in the Arab region. The forum is envisaged to operate under the umbrella of the Global Forum for Rural Advisory Services (GFRAS), hence joining the array of existing regional networks of RAS across the globe. 

“We will continue providing our support and guidance until the official establishment of AFRAS, and we are committed to supporting AFRAS in operating and implementing its functions with the ultimate goal of realizing more effective, pluralistic and market-oriented service systems,” said Mohamed Abdelgadir, head of IFAD Multi-country Office for Middle East and North Africa in Cairo. 

AFRAS was conceived following a recommendation of a regional study on extension and RAS conducted by FAO Regional Office for Near East in 2021. The study assessed RAS from the perspective of their market-orientation, pluralism and responsiveness to the specific needs of different categories of farmers, with a focus on smallholders and vulnerable producers. 

The opportunity of establishing such network was concertedly discussed and endorsed in the context of a regional consultation organized in June 2022. In that occasion, stakeholders from the region considered the strategic importance of regional networking to advocate for and favor the modernization of RAS in the region and their central role in contribution to the broader process of rural transformation. 

The regional meeting aims to discuss and reach consensus on AFRAS’ vision, mission and functions, as well as on the steps involved towards its official launch, tentatively planned in the first months of 2024. Drawing on the experience and insights from GFRAS regional networks, the meeting will enable participants to explore a suitable institutional and governance structure for AFRAS and agree on its technical and operational modality. The meeting will also provide an opportunity to solicit the interests and options of potential hosting institutions for AFRAS. 

The meeting will bring together designated government representatives from the Near East and North Africa region who are concerned with and able to make decisions on extension and rural advisory services, along with interested stakeholders, experts and champions on extension and RAS, representatives of pertinent international and regional organizations and of GFRAS. The meeting will alternate technical presentations, panel sessions, open debate and group work.