Prolinnova-Cameroon – the most recently established Country Platform (CP) to promote farmer-led participatory innovation development (PID) – organised a PID training workshop on 21-23 July 2011 in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon. A total of 18 people (14 men and 4 women) from five local NGOs and professional associations took part. The workshop was facilitated by Professor Paul Tchawa of Yaoundé University I, who had coordinated an earlier programme in Cameroon with a similar purpose: to promote participatory technology development that builds on Indigenous Soil and Water Conservation (ISWC) practices.
The participants were trained in participatory research and development techniques according to the following programme: identification of farmer innovations and innovators, analysis and prioritisation of local innovations, PID in theory, experience in PID in practice (the night paddock), main Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) tools needed for PID, visit to the farmer innovator Léonard Enama, and developing an action plan for PID in Cameroon.
At the closing ceremony, everyone received a certificate of participation from the coordinator of Prolinnova-Cameroon, Ms Christine Andela, and the facilitator Paul Tchawa.
This training was financed completely out of resources generated by the members of Prolinnova-Cameroon. It is an encouraging example of own initiative taken by a CP to build up its network and programme of activities to achieve Prolinnova’s vision of “a world where women and men farmers play decisive roles in agricultural research and development for sustainable livelihoods”.
link to Prolinnova-Cameroon webpage: http://www.prolinnova.net/cameroon
