AFRAS Community
AFRAS is a growing community of extension and Rural Advisory Services (RAS) champions from across the Arab World and beyond, as depicted in the below map.
The boundaries and names shown and the designations used on this map do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of FAO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers and boundaries.
AFRAS is a growing community of champions, experts and practitioners interested in advancing extension and rural advisory services in Arab countries. It currently comprises 120 members spread over 4 continents, including independent experts, policy makers, researchers, representatives of national, regional and international organizations, of the private sector, of non-government organizations, producer organizations and cooperatives.
Such a variety in sectors and stakeholders reflect the pluralistic landscape of Today’s advisory service systems where civil society, private sector, cooperatives, resource partners and international organizations work alongside the public sector to enhance access to key productive services, knowledge, and information in rural communities.
AFRAS Community members bring together a wealth of experience in relation to RAS from the research, policy, practice and advocacy perspective and with focus on one or more AFRAS thematic areas. They display a genuine interest in and commitment to creating meaningful connections across the region and beyond for advancing RAS, and in leveraging synergies and complementarities, while valuing inclusion, ethics, accountability and solidarity.
AFRAS members are both individuals and institutions. Institutional members include
- Association of Agricultural Research Institutions in the Near East & North Africa
- The Arab Center for the Studies of Arid Zones and Dry Lands – ACSAD
- Arab Organization for Agricultural development
- Arab Women Organization – AWO
- National Agricultural Research Center of Jordan – NARC
- Middle East and North Africa Social Policy Network