The Knowledge Centre for Agriculture has worked internationally for many years designing and developing agricultural advisory systems. They draw on experiences from Denmark and other countries to help advisory services improve organization, methodology, adviser training, and financing. Their approach focuses on involving users and ensuring advisers have relevant knowledge and can share it. This empowers farmers, ensures food supply, reduces poverty, and manages risk. Advisory systems must be adapted to local communities considering leadership, resources, management, environment, markets, and ensuring flexibility, grassroots perspectives, social equity, environmental sustainability, and gender equality. If women had equal access to resources and services, they could increase yields by 20-30% reducing world hunger. The Knowledge Centre is part of international networks on agricultural

1. +45 8740 5000
vfl@vfl.dk
KNOWLEDGE CENTRE FOR AGRICULTURE
Agro Food Park 15
8200 Aarhus N
Denmark
For many years the Knowledge Centre for Agriculture has worked on designing and developing ad-
visory systems internationally. We draw partly on the experiences of the Danish system, partly from
cooperation with advisory services in many countries – in terms of organisational development,
development of methodology, training of advisers and development of financial models.
Cooperation and local information
Our approach is maximising the user involvement and ensuring that the consultancy services are ef-
fective and that the advisers possess the relevant knowledge and are able to disseminate this to the
users. The result is advisory service systems that can achieve their main objectives, namely to:
• Empower farmers
• Ensure food supply
• Reduce poverty
• Manage risks and uncertainties
These objectives are achieved only through advisory systems that are adapted to the rural commu-
nities in which they are to operate. Rural areas are all different when it comes to political leadership,
resources, methods of management, environmental conditions, market opportunities, etc. This is to
be reflected in the agricultural advisory service and the way it is organised.
Despite the variations, a number of values are repeated in our solutions, including:
• Flexibility at affordable prices
• Grassroots perspective
• Social equity
• Environmental sustainability
• Gender equality
Concept for gender equality
As leader of an international working group we have a thorough understanding of gender equality
an advisory service. And here is much to be gained: FAO has estimated that if women had equal
access to production resources and services on their farms, they could increase their yields by 20-30
per cent – enough to reduce the number of malnourished people in the world by 12-17 per cent.
The Knowledge Centre for Agriculture is a member of internationale networks related to agricul-
tural advisory services, including EUFRAS and GFRAS.
Agricultural Advisory Service
– a key to doubling food production
By 2050, world food production has to be doubled if the needs of 9 billion people are to be met.
This presents a challenge with enormous demands on agricultural advisory service globally. The
Knowledge Centre for Agriculture can help designing and developing effective advisory systems.
MAR2014
Women farming ...
... and learning ...
... all over the world.
Sanne Chipeta
International Senior Adviser
+45 8740 5102 | +45 2025 3405
sac@vfl.dk