PCT5

Program coordination team meeting #5 18 July 2014 Venue: Farmers club, London Time: morning

PCT page

=Agenda=

= Overall action points = THE EVENT PAGE HAS BEEN RESTRUCTURED ||  ||
 * Overall action points
 * USAID Update
 * Africa RISING Project update
 * Eastern and southern Africa and West Africa
 * Research update
 * Staff update
 * Work plans and priorities
 * The Ethiopian highlands
 * Research update
 * Staff update
 * Work plans and priorities
 * M & E update
 * Communication update
 * Scientific Advisory Committee
 * AOB: Next Learning Event date and place
 * Next PCT meeting
 * Possible joint activity with SIMLESA around scaling, joint capacity building, and research knowledge sharing
 * Discuss site visits to CSISA
 * || **Action** || **Status** || **Notes** ||
 * 2 || Develop the regional logframes || logframe for ESA completed; WA Project document with kogframe under preparation for the WA external evaluation. Ethiopia in preparation. ||  ||
 * 3 || Update online events lists || See events list. Send updates to Simret
 * 4 || Science Advisory Group || First meeting held at the Farmers Club, London, 17 - 18 July 2014.

See details || First meeting 17-18 July ||
 * 5 || Gender strategy || Peter and Annet have a complete draft gender strategic plan for Ethiopia to be discussed and finalised for circulation next week.

-It was suggested to have an overall strategy

The Humidtropics gender strategy has been circulated. The USAID gender specialist made consrtuctive comments which were forwarded to Humidtropics. ESA and WA were trying to recruit a gender specialist through GIZ/CIM. No candidate identified yet. Process ongoing.

Ethiopia gender plan currently in publication. Peter to share final draft with IHZ cc CA, JG. || - Jerry to connect with the USAID gender person - Peter ,Annet and Irmgard to meet with USAID person to look in to a program level strategy - To look at the humidtropics and use it as a basis gender strategy - Irmgard and Peter to get the copy of the humidtropics Gender strategy - f each project feels there needs a separate one they can work on it and attached to the generic strategy || -We need few specific indicators for research projects, indicators that we could measure in the short project time We needs to be focused -Before USAID commission an external evaluators
 * 7 || Formation of small working group on sustainability to come up with a framework and indicators || Peter and Tracy have discussed this in November

ESA and WA came up with suggestions for sustainability indicators to kick off discussion of appropriateness, measurability, etc. Discussion included MSU, USAID, and WU but did not yield agreement.

Powerpoint summary available for further diuscussion

AAAS Symposium (San Jose, CA, February 2015; Peter Thorne, Cheryl Palm, Sieg Snapp, Gordon Conway?). Possibility of an add on meeting (c. 15 - 20 participants to come up with a core list of indicators for cross project application). We submit candidates beforehand.

Add to agendas for Programme Learning Event / M and E meeting and individual project planning meetings. || - Irmgard to follow up with Asmoha (from the learning event ) - Iain to ask the convener to come up for a draft report by March -Peter T. to feedback from the vital science meeting in London in February ||
 * 8 || Preparation for project program review? || it was suggested to have an evaluation Before USAID commission an external evaluators

WA evaluation will take place September to October 2014. Ch. Okali is part of the review team. ToR were discussed with PCT and SAG. ESA evaluation is planned for February 2015.

Ethiopia: Early 2015? For discussion. || -Suggested to sure that the first advisory committee picks this up for their first meeting || -Peter talked to Eric and he said that we will get the same amount of allocation of the last year
 * 9 || New fund allocation || - Oct 2013- Sept 2014(USAID financial year )

Same amount as in previous years was disbursed on March 2014.

Bolt on projects. AR as a management entity for development activities. Case by case basis. || Jerry to check with Eric an give us update ||

=USAID Update= Enter MAJOR ongoing/planned and completed tasks =ESA Update= Enter MAJOR ongoing/planned and completed tasks Steering committee members were not available at the time when USAID visited the fields. ASARECA and Chair of Steering committee attended launch of R4D platform in Babati in April and in continuation went on a 2-days field visit. ||  || Mateete, Sieg and I went on field visit to Chipata in January. Critical feed back was provided on some of the CA trials. SIMLEZA baseline survey data were shared with Wageningen after long discussion. RALS data compiled by MSU and national partners could not be obtained because they are protected by an MSU-USAID mission agreement. Wageningen team had 2 trips to Chipata to implement activities and farming systems analysis. ||  || Concept note to the USAID mission in Tanzania is under preparation for scaling technologies for rice, maize, beans, vegetables, soil fertility (fertilizer), strengthening seed systems, post harvest handling (4.5-5m for 3 years) ||   || visit in Tanzania || USAID Washington, Tanzanian mission and IITA DDG Research visited implementation sites in Tanzania in 17-22 March.
 * **Task** || **Status** || **Notes for PCT review** ||
 * Possible links with BMGF || Jerry in contact with various Gates staff to explore potential activities. ||  ||
 * Funding for scaling up || Various opportunities via missions that we are exploring on a continuing basis. ||  ||
 * SI Innovation Laboratory || Announcement by the end of August. || Jerry to keep the team in the loop ||
 * **Task** || **Status** || **Notes for PCT review** ||
 * Oct 2013 - March 2014 report || REPORT PREPARED AND SUBMITTED ||  ||
 * 2013 -2014 workplan and budget || work is being implemented, field season is over; entire budget including carryover from last year committed ||  ||
 * USAID FIELD VISIT TO TANZANIA || ASARECA AND COSTECH (STEERING COMMITTEE MEMBERS) WILL BE INVITED.
 * Africa RISING - SIMLEZA || AGREEMENT WITH SIMLEZA SIGNED, FUNDS DISBURSED. DATA SHARING STILL TO BE DISCUSSED (LED BY TRACY). MATEETE AND I WILL VISIT THE SITES LATER THIS MONTH.
 * New partnerships || USAID Africa Bureau has provided US$ 350k to IITA for contracting MSU to carry out a desk study with Zambian national partners to provide the scientific evidence base for the links between field and farm level SI interventions and climate change mitigation and biodiversity conservation. This is a 12-months project until March 2015. Follow up on-ground research is expected after evaluation of the study report.
 * Field

||

|| =WA Update= Enter MAJOR ongoing/planned and completed tasks
 * Scientist Exchange visit || Scientists from Zambia and Tanzania visited field experiments in Mali in March ||  ||
 * **Task** || **Status** || **Notes for PCT review** ||
 * Annual review and planning meeting || MEETING TOOK PLACE 3-5 FEBRUARY IN BAMAKO ||  ||
 * Sept 2013 - March 2014 report || PREPARED AND SUBMITTED TIMELY ||  ||
 * Scientist visit to Tanzania || Did not take place due to lengthy preparation of new workplan; Visit of Mali scientists to Ghana planned for August has to be postponed ||  ||
 * Project document || under preparation, will be ready for the project evaluation ||  ||
 * Implementation of workplan

New project component in Mali || Field activities are starting slowly in Ghana a because of lack of rain

USAID mission Mali provided $9m for three years to ICRISAT to disseminate sorghum and millet technologies, the scaling project operates and reports under Africa RISING ||

=Ethiopia Update= Enter MAJOR ongoing/planned and completed tasks =M&E Update= Enter MAJOR ongoing/planned and completed tasks Version 2.0 demo at the M&E meeting PMMT updated based on feedback at the M&E meeting AR data management protocol Actions: Version 3 to be ready by end of June PMMT seminar at USAID; internal M&E training PMMT training end of July/beginning of August in all countries/sites Finalize data management plan by March (for April PCT meeting) || Completed Completed Completed Draft for discussion
 * **ask** ||< **Status** || **Notes for PCT review** ||
 * Value chain studies ||< Complete. Some reports available. Others currently being finalised. ||  ||
 * Meher season action research ||< c. 20 research protocols implemented across all sites after participant selection meetings. ||  ||
 * Other initiatives || Fertilizer project (Ethiopia mission, partner / led by CIAT); Barley / Beans (BFS, partner / led by ICARDA or ATA). JG to keep PT in loop. PT to follow up with potential partners. ||  ||
 * Oct 2012 - Mar 2013 report ||< Completed ||  ||
 * April 2013 - Sep 2013 report ||< Completed ||  ||
 * October 2013 - March 2014 report || In preparation ||  ||
 * 2013 -2014 workplan and budget ||< Complete. I will insert links when I can find the files. c.20 research protocols implemented by multi partner teams ||  ||
 * IP establishment || All IPs established (Woreda and Kebele level). Training of local facilitators in IP maintenance and comms tools planned for 6 - 7 September. ||  ||
 * Planning meeting ||< November 2014. Major focus on Meher season activities leading into an initial broad plan for scaling ||  ||
 * **Task** || **Status** || **Notes for PCT review** ||
 * Joint Africa RISING (AR)-Cereal Systems Initiative for South Asia (CSISA) M&E meeting: || Completed || Custom indicators ||
 * Web-based mapping and monitoring platform (Project Mapping and Monitoring Tool -PMMT-)

Completed Completed Ongoing Draft for discussion || Level of reporting for FtF indicators ||
 * AR baseline surveys (Implementation)
 * Malawi
 * Tanzania
 * Ghana
 * Mali
 * Ethiopia

Data cleaning and documentation for Malawi and Tanzania Data cleaning and documentation for Mali, Ghana, and Ethiopia Actions: Follow up with Zambia and Wageningen team (for SIMLEZA data access); with Thom Jayne (MSU) (for RALS data access) || Completed

Completed Completed Completed Completed Under completion

Close to completion Ongoing Ongoing ||  || Wageningen team FAO: Memorandum of Understanding signed Vital Signs VS shared documentation on indicators, data use policy, shape files for TZ and Ghana Done Done
 * Collaborations:
 * Chief scientist to review VS agricultural intensification thread and select key indicators
 * IFPRI aligned AR control sites with Vital Signs sites in northern Ghana
 * But access to VS's household-level data can become a problem || Done/ongoing

Done

Done, data on 250+ plots completed ||  || Talks b/n IFPRI Finance and IITA/IWMI for WA and ESA M&E coordinators (positions)
 * Site/field visits
 * Tanzania, Ethiopia
 * Ghana, Mali || Completed ||  ||
 * Update
 * Update

M&E coordinator for Ethiopia (consultant) A survey resident for Ghana (consultant); a survey resident for Mali (consultant) A consultant/programmer to assist with electronic data collection for all the surveys

Actions Finalize negotiations and sign contracts for the new positions in January || ESA position advertised, CVs under review
 * WA canceled for lack of funds

Hired Hired Hired Hired

Done ||  ||   ||

=Comms Update= Enter MAJOR ongoing/planned and completed tasks Suggest regular review and update as part of each annual learning event (living document) || ELB: This is supposed to be addressed early this year again but is not strictly a 'Comms' item || http://africa-rising.wikispaces.com/program_comms_plan_2014 )and comment - the three project pages in the wiki to get updated - what to be done about the action points from the learning event -to comment on the institutional history (also on Yammer ) - to see the new websit and give feedback/comment || Simret to send all the links for the PCT
 * **Task** || **Status** || **Notes for PCT review** ||
 * ESA poster || finalized ||  ||
 * WA poster || under preparation ||  ||
 * ESA brochure || finalized ||  ||
 * WA brochure || finalized ||  ||
 * Malawi video || finalized || On agro-ecological intensification options to be used in training workshops for extensionists and development partners ||
 * Program generic presentation en and fr || drafted and will be shared to the concerned people for review ||  ||
 * Wiki usage guidelines || Not yet started || ELB: What is this? Clarify and I'm happy to help. The wiki structure and content have been majorly overhauled over the turn of the year ||
 * Program framework || Version 1 published
 * IITA comms person for ARISING || person was recruited in November but resigned in April; position has been upgraded to IRS; interviews have been completed and offer made to a candidate ||  ||
 * Virtual comms catchups || Irregular || Simret/Ewen/ comms people ||
 * Half-yearly comms metrics/stats ||  || Latest report ||
 * Blog updates || ongoing || Need regular stories from all regions. ELB: However for 2013 very balanced inputs from all regions (granted, thanks to the 3 posts about Ghana, otherwise WA would be lagging behind): 8 from ESA, 10 from Ethiopia, 10 from West Africa, 10 from program level. ||
 * Wiki gardening/management || regular || (ELB) Major update done on the wiki over the turn of the year. Data management and M&E pages have to follow (ELB in touch with M&E team about this shortly) and regional project pages need to be updated by respective comms officer with regional management's help. ||
 * Documents to CGSPACE || regularly updated || IITA to join cgspace training late october (tbc) ||
 * Use of yammer for internal updating || initiated || Needs wider promotion and buy-in. (ELB) This would be a useful topic to discuss properly in a PCT at some stage - we need a good platform to share information on a regular basis, it's not a 'nice to have' it's a 'non-negotiable' for a program which has to show strong integration across components, teams and regions... ||
 * Photo sharing on flickr || regularly updated || Simret to follow with Catherine and Katy - to inform partners to send four-five pictures with captions ||
 * Presentations shared on slideshare || regularly updated ||  ||
 * ARISING calendar updating || regularly updated ||  ||
 * Branding Guidline || Finalized ||  ||
 * Template and banners revison || due to the ftf logo change we have revised most of our templets and logo banners ||  ||
 * Website revision || the website now has a new look, still open for comments ||  ||
 * wiki revision || we have revised the wiki || See above ||
 * Photojournalist work -Next year, Ethiopia || Informed the PCT that the Next Photographer will be commistion to take pictures in ethiopia and planned for October 2014 ||  ||
 * **Key things to be considered by the PCT** || - PCT to look at the global communication plan (

- PCT to give comment on the communication plan by the end of January - To Update the project page of the wiki – mid February and WA and EA mid-march - Simret to circulate the action points from the learning and PCT to look at them and decide how to go about them - Simret to send the institutional history link and the website and the PCT members to send feedback as soon as they can ||
 * **Next Learning Event** (when and where ) || Tanzania, September || Irmgard and her team to come up with the date ||