Presented by Berhanu Gebremedhin at the LIVES Research Planning Workshop, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 26-28 March 2013

1. LIVES Research Framework
Berhanu Gebremedhin
LIVES Research Planning Workshop
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 26-28 March 2013

2. Presentation Outline
• LIVES research objective and research statement
• The research impact pathway
• LIVES action-oriented research approach and
process
• The types of research, research areas and outputs
• Research partnership and implementation
• Role of graduate students
• Promotion of R4D outputs

3. LIVES Research Objective
• To generate knowledge through
action-oriented research and
synthesis of results/lessons learnt
about value-chain development

4. LIVES Research Statement
• Research in the LIVES project will be conducted
on priority research topics for each commodity
in relation with:
– value chain stages,
– input supply and service provision support functions,
– value chain institutional environment, and
– cross cutting issues of gender, knowledge management
and capacity building, food safety and the environment
• Aimed at generating and synthesizing
knowledge to scale out and up best practices in
market oriented agricultural development.

5. The Research Impact Pathway
Resources
(Staff time, finance,
equipment/materials,
transportation etc.)
Activities
(Problem identification,
research design,
implementation,
evaluation)
Outputs
(technologies, institutional/
Organizational/policy
recommendations,
publications, briefs etc.)
Outcomes
(Research
outputs are taken
up/adopted by
intended users)
Impact
(economic,
social and environ-
mental changes)

6. LIVES Action-oriented Research Approach
Experimental Developmental
(controlled setting) (uncontrolled setting)
 Technology application
Focus  Technology generation  Organizational issues
 Institutional issues
Methods  Lab-based  Diagnostic research
 On-station  Action research
 On-farm  Impact research

7. The Types of Research
• Diagnostic
– Research conducted to identify, describe, quantify value chain
constraints and opportunities, and technological, organizational
and institutional intervention requirements
• Action Research
– Research aimed at generating qualitative and quantitative
knowledge on the development process and performance of a
single or combination of interventions, which can be used to
modify the interventions, and/or identify context specific
adoption factors that can be used to scale out/up best practices
• Impact research
– Research aimed at generating qualitative and quantitative
knowledge on the impact of interventions on economic, social
and environmental conditions of farm households.

8. LIVES Action-oriented research Process
• Priority setting and targeting within target areas to best
address needs and opportunities
• Identifying and piloting technology and other interventions
to improve productivity and market performance
• Outcome and impact assessment to evaluate the benefits
emanating from project investments
• Analysis of innovation processes to better refine and design
capacity building and scaling out of activities
• Complementing this action-oriented research will be the
RBME&L framework from which the strategic lessons will
be learnt about the processes and innovations

9. Research Focus
• Action-oriented research will be required:
• how to improve productivity and
• How to strengthen the functioning of value chains and
associated business development services,
• Hence both technical and socio-economics
research
• Research on the gender implications of the
different value chains, technologies, and
organizational and institutional innovations
• Research on the environmental implications
of value chain development

10. Research Areas
• Input supply and services
– Input supply
– Credit
• Extension
– Knowledge management
– Capacity building
– Market information and linkages
• Production
– Production technologies
– Production management
– Production systems

11. Research Areas (2)
• Post harvest handling, processing and
marketing
– Post harvest handling and management
– Processing
– Marketing and distribution
– Consumption and food safety
• Cross cutting issues
– Gender in market oriented development
– Environmental implications of market oriented
development

12. Research partnership
• Collaborative research between LIVES, IWMI,
ILRI programs, ICARDA, EIAR, RARIs, and
universities
• Joint supervision of graduate students
(MSc/MA).
• Collaborative research expected to contribute to
building capacity within the knowledge systems
of the regions
– strengthened capacity of Ethiopian researchers and research
institutions
– promote results to policy makers, implementers, farmers and
investors.

13. Research Implementation- LIVES
Structure
Project Manager
Research Coordinator
Research Regional
Officer Coordinators LIVES
(Livestock & Irrigation Scientists
RBM&E Experts/Coordinators) (ILRI, IWMI)
Expert
Database
Analyst
Zonal Research
GIS Coordinators Assistants
Analyst

14. Research Implementation
• Research team by commodity composed of
– National coordinator(s)
– RARI Scientists
– LIVES HQ Scientists
– IWMI Scientists
– LIVES regional expert
– LIVES research assistant
– ILRI/ICARDA Scientists

15. Overall implementation framework
Research Partners
Role Dairy Beef Shoats Poultry Apicult Irrigated Cross-
ure ag. cutting
issues
National Methods,
Coordinat syntheses ,
ion backstopping
Impleme Implementati XX X X XX XX XX
ntation- on, analysis,
Tigray write-up
Impleme Implementati XXX XX X XX X XXX XXX
ntation- on, analysis,
Amhara write-up
Impleme Implementati XX X XX XX XX XXX XXX
ntation- on, analysis,
Oromia write-up
Impleme Implementati X X XX XX XX
ntation- on, analysis,
SNNPR write-up

16. Role of Graduate Students
• A key component of capacity building is the
strengthening of adaptive research through
graduate training
• 100 students fully sponsored for tuition and Theses
• 100 students supported for theses only
• Selection criteria to identify suitable
candidates
• Research topics fit into LIVES research
priorities
• Ensure Gender balance
• Joint supervision of students

17. Research Outputs
• Working papers- series
• Electronic publications
• Book chapters and Conference proceedings
• Case studies and syntheses papers
• Manuals and guides
• Journal articles
• Briefs and leaflets
• TV and Radio programs
• Videos

18. Project Committees
(that will facilitate promotion of R4D outputs)
CIDA
PROJECT STEERING COMMITTEE
(PSC)
REGIONAL PROJECT
PROJECT COORDINATING TEAM
IMPLEMENTATION
(PCT)
COMMITTEES (4) (RPIC)

19. Promotion of Research Outputs
• Briefings to policy/decision makers
• National and Regional conferences
• Technical support to our national/regional
partners for strategy/policy/curriculum
development
• International conferences
• LIVES Website
• Ethiopian Agricultural Portal
• Published hard copy materials
• Mass media programs
• Videos

20. THANK YOU!!