Extending our reach:

Symposium on improving human nutrition and incomes through effective livestock research and extension partnerships

APRIL 25-26, 2019 | Hotel Yak and Yeti, KATHMANDU, NEPAL

Symposium Summary April 2019 (PDF)

PRESENTATIONS & POSTERS

Introduction

In collaboration with national partners in the focal countries, the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems conducts annual Global Nutrition Symposia as one of two premier multi-stakeholder knowledge sharing platforms for participatory priority development, dialogue, and research to development linkages. This ensures that the Lab’s research has practical relevance and leads to solid developmental impacts. The event is held in a different country every year, and the Lab is delighted that the Government of Nepal, specifically the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development, agreed to host the event in Kathmandu this year.

Feed the Future, the U.S. government’s global hunger and food security initiative, supports more than twenty Innovation Labs that leverage research partnerships between US universities and foreign institutions to improve food and nutrition security, agriculture-led economic growth and resilience in target countries.

Since one of the shared goals of the Innovation Labs is to improve human nutrition, The Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Nutrition has been holding an annual Scientific Symposium on Agriculture - Nutrition pathways in Nepal with key stakeholders for the last nine years. Similarly, the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems has been holding Global Nutrition Symposia for the last three years in different countries, and these focus on increasing production and consumption of animal-source foods to improve nutrition, health and incomes. These symposia align with the vision of the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems to sustainably intensify smallholder livestock systems in order to improve the nutrition, health, livelihoods and incomes of the poor.

This Symposium will bring together ministers and other key policy-makers, researchers, public and private sector extensionists, producer organizations, as well as university administrators, to discuss the global relevance of bridging research to extension and agriculture to nutrition linkages for improving human nutrition and livestock production. We will share promising examples of how partnerships between researchers and various types of extension and advisory service providers can increase the production and consumption of nutritious animal-source foods (ASF). Together, we will develop actionable strategies to bridge gaps to improve nutrition, health, and economic outcomes especially for women and children. The Symposium will highlight pathways for connecting research and extension services provided by the public and private sectors as well as civil society in different countries to foster more effective research delivery and diffusion through partnership with extension and advisory services in developing countries.

Symposium Objectives and Outcomes:

At the completion of the symposium, participants will

understand the importance of invigorating partnerships between research and extension for improving human nutrition and livestock productivity;
obtain a broad global perspective of different experiences to achieve this goal;
jointly identify innovative strategies and mechanisms, public-private pathways to better connect livestock research with extension and livestock production with human nutrition;
develop country-focused action plans to enhance human nutrition through better research to extension linkages.

Presentations

Speaker	Presentation
Master of Ceremony: Ms. Neena Joshi, Heifer International Nepal Chair: Dr. Bimal Kumar Nirmal, Director General of Department of Livestock Services, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development (MoALD)	Dr. Adegbola Adesogan, Director, Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems: University of Florida (UF) Dr. Shubh N. Mahato, Country Director, Heifer International Dr. Nick Place, Dean and Director of Institute for Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) Extension, UF Ms. Kristen MacNaughtan, Program Officer, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation Ms. Amy Tohill-Stull, Mission Director, United States Agency for International Development (USAID) in Nepal Dr. Usha Jha, Member of the National Planning Commission (TBC) Mr. Prakash Mathema, Secretary for Livestock Production and Animal Health, MoALD Honorable Minister Chakrapani Khanal, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock Development
Moderator: Dr. Shibani Ghosh, Associate Director, Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Nutrition, Tufts University	Setting the Stage: Animal source foods consumption and safety to improve human nutrition Role of agriculture in achieving human nutrition outcomes: Focus on livestock and animal source foods
Dr. Laurie C. Miller, Professor, Pediatrics, School of Medicine; and Adjunct Professor, Nutrition, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University
Dr. Ahmed Kablan, Senior Nutrition Research Adviser USAID Bureau for Resilience and Food Security	Food Safety & ASF (Animal-source Foods)
Dr. Silvia Alonso, Senior Scientists, International Livestock Research Institute	Animal-human interactions and the nutrition dimension: Considerations for agricultural/veterinary extension services and beyond

Chair: Kristen MacNaughtan

Frameworks and definitions

Chair: Kristen MacNaughtan, EAB members

Diversity is a key strength of extension and agricultural advisory services around the world. Multiple systems, models, and approaches have been created and/or adopted to meet the educational needs of a variety of audiences and contexts. This same strength can also transform into a challenge when researchers, extensionists, and other stakeholders need to communicate with each other. This session will provide an overview and definitions of the main systems, models, approaches, and other topics within extension required to better understand its scope, organizational structure, and linkages necessary for collaboration.

Dr. Sebastian Galindo, Assistant Professor Department of Agricultural Education and Communications, University of Florida

Introducing a framework for describing research and extension systems: Key definitions & examples

Dr. Brian Myers, Head, Department of Agricultural Education and Communications, University of Florida

*Chair: Kristen MacNaughtan*	Sharing models for improving human nutrition and incomes through effective livestock research and extension partnerships - Country level and systems perspective Chair: Kristen MacNaughtan, EAB member
Dr. Saqib Mukhtar, Associate Dean for Extension, UF/IFAS Extension	USA The origins of the U.S. Land Grant system, how it continues to evolve, and how it serves the increasing demand for food and nutrition education
Dr. Nick Place, Dean and Director, UF/IFAS Extension
Dr. Sam Churl Kim, Associate Professor Department of Animal Science, Gyeongsang National University, Republic of Korea	Korea Cooperative extension program in South Korea: The case of Hanwoo (Korean native beef cattle) in Gyeongnam province
Dr. Mahesh Chander, Indian Council of Agricultural Research, Livestock Extension	India Extension interventions for improving livestock production towards better human nutrition: The case of India
Dr. Joseph Mureithi, Deputy Director General (Livestock), Kenya Agriculture and Livestock Research Organization, KALRO, Kenya	Kenya Effective livestock research and extension partnerships: The case of community based participatory approaches for upscaling livestock technologies in Kenya

*Chair: Dr. Harinder Makkar*	Sharing models for improving human nutrition and incomes through effective livestock research and extension partnerships – Case studies
Ms. Neena Joshi, Director of Programs, Heifer International Nepal	Examples from Heifer International Nepal Heifer Nepal: Improving human nutrition & income
Dr. Laurie C. Miller, Professor, Pediatrics, School of Medicine; and Adjunct Professor, Nutrition, Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy, Tufts University
Doj Raj Khanal, Senior Animal Health Researcher, Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC)	Examples from the Department of Livestock Services and the Nepal Agricultural Research Council Sharing models for improving human nutrition and incomes through effective livestock research and extension partnerships: Case studies
Dr. Bimal Kumar Nirmal, Director General, DLS

Prof. Xusheng Guo, Langzhou University, P. R. China	Developing the silage industry to alleviate poverty
Dr. Tek Gurung, NARC, and Iain Wright, Deputy Director General for Research and Development–Integrated Sciences, ILRI, and EAB member	Wrap up for the day

Friday, April 26

Chair: Iain Wright, Deputy Director General for Research and Development–Integrated Sciences, International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), and EAB member	Improving human nutrition and incomes through effective livestock research and extension partnerships – Examples from the focus countries of the Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems
Panel sessions with high level ministry and academic representatives from the focal countries debating the following questions:	What, if any, barriers exist in your country in linking (livestock) research and extension, both public and private, which limit livestock productivity and improved nutrition through consumption of animal source foods? If yes, are these technical? Institutional? or policy related? Please describe them. What would it take to have a seamless integration of nutrition, research, and extension in your country - and to achieve the vision of ending malnutrition and stunting?
9:00 am
9:05 am	Nepal & Cambodia Moderator: Dr. Varijaksha Panicker Padmakumar, ILRI Panelists: Mahendra P. Shrestha, Chief, Coordination Division, Ministry of Health and Population Mr. Prakash Mathema Secretary for Livestock Production and Animal Health, MoALD Dr. Mana Raj Kolakshyapati, Registrar, Agriculture and Forestry University (AFU) Mr. Kim Savoeun, Deputy Director General, General Directorate of Animal Health and Production Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, Cambodia
9:30 am	Ethiopia & Rwanda Moderator: Dr. Emily Ouma, Senior Scientist, ILRI Panelists: Dr. Laetitia Nyinawamwiza, Principal, University of Rwanda, College of Agriculture, Animal Sciences and Veterinary Medicine, Rwanda Mr. Fabrice Ndayisenga, Director of Livestock Research and Extension, Rwanda Agriculture and Animal Resources Development Board, Ministry of Agriculture and Animal Resources, Rwanda Zeleke Mekuriaw, Coordinator for East Africa, ILRI Mulu Balehegn Gebremikael, Coordinator for Equip projects, UF
9:50 am	Burkina Faso & Niger Moderator: Dr. Moctar Karimou, Mercy Corps Niger, and Dr. Larbi Asamoah, EAB member Panelists: Dr. Bangana Ibrahim, Technical Advisor to the Minister, Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock, Niger Mr. Aboubacar Mahamadou, Head, Nutrition Unit and Knowledge Management Division, Office of the High Commissioner for the 3N Initiative, Niger Prof. Abdourahamane Balla, Professor in Agronomy and Biological Engineering. Scientific and Pedagogic Coordinator of CRESA Niger, University Abdou Moumouni, Niger Dr. Issa Sawadogo, Director General of Animal Production, Ministry of Animal and Fishery Resources, Burkina Faso Prof. Valérie Bougouma-Yaméogo, Research Director, Nazi Boni University, Institute for Rural Development, Burkina Faso
10:15 am	Coffee and tea break

Session VI: 10:40 am	Developing actionable strategies Chair: Dr. Joyce Turk, EAB member
10:45 am	Break out into parallel thematic groups Innovative approaches to effectively link livestock research and extension practice Behavioral change communication strategies and partnerships to improve human nutrition Youth, gender, and livestock extension systems
11:45 am	Working group presentations and discussions in plenum Summary statement of actionable strategies from each thematic area (15 minutes each), then time for questions and comments from the audience.
12:30 pm	Lunch break
Session VII: 1:30 pm	Policy initiatives Chairs: Dr. Bimal Kumar Nirmal, DLS
1:30 pm	Panel discussion Panelists: Representatives of each country. Government representative comments first and university representative responds Which two of the following options are the most critical areas requiring policy change in your country and why? Breaking down of institutional barriers between agriculture and nutrition Breaking down institutional barriers between research and extension Providing adequate funding and other incentives for conducting research and/ or improving extension Ensuring continuity of important research despite changing political priorities Ensuring adoption and sustaining impact of new technologies Commercialization and scaling of technologies/innovations developed by researchers Greater engagement of the private sector in commercializing technologies or innovations
2:30 pm	The way forward Chair: Dr. Nick Place, UF/IFAS Statements from country representatives about what they recommend policy makers and key stakeholders should change based on what they learned here
Session VIII: 3:00 pm	Closing Closing remarks by Dr. Bimal Kumar Nirmal and Dr. Iain Wright Vote of thanks by Dr. Adegbola Adesogan, UF

Previous Symposiums

Review the presentations from previous symposia:

2018 Global Nutrition Symposium	2017 Global Nutrition Symposium

For questions, contact: livestock-lab@ufl.edu

Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems is part of Feed the Future

This work was funded in whole or part by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) Bureau for Resilience, Environment and Food Security under Agreement # AID-OAA-L-15-00003 as part of Feed the Future Innovation Lab for Livestock Systems. Additional funding was received from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation OPP#060115. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed here are those of the authors alone.