A Considerable Contribution: Parliamentarians Visit Kenya

The Power of Dialogue in a Parliamentarians Visit to Kenya

" Kenya is fortunate to have a strong CGIAR presence. The Centers' contributions to science and agricultural policy are considerable, and their emphasis on interconnectedness in helping find solutions to problems is impressive. The problems of Kenya are the problems of Africa as a whole and, indeed, of the North as well."

Those were among the conclusions drawn by Professor Ben Turok, a member of the South African parliament, in the wrap-up session of a field trip made by members of the Parliamentary Network of the World Bank (PNoWB). Professor Turok was team leader for the visit, which took place on September 10-14.

As part of its continuing outreach to key stakeholders in research for development, the CGIAR jointly organized the Kenya field trip with the PNoWB. Parliamentarians from 12 nations were accompanied by 7 Kenyan parliamentarians in visits to the research Centers supported by the CGIAR in Kenya and to World Bank-supported educational and health projects.

Lotta Hedstrom, member of the Swedish parliament, echoed Professor Turok's comments, noting, "The real issue is food. If small farmers do not have enough food, then nothing else will work. We cannot ignore agriculture."

The parliamentarians particularly valued the field trips organized by the World Agroforestry Centre and International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI). They enjoyed speaking directly with farmers and discussing the benefits and disadvantages of new crop varieties and farming systems. Many noted the remarkable strength of the women farmers they met.

Catherine Wanguni Mwangi, a farmer from Thika, strongly impressed the Colombian delegate Santiago Castro with her enthusiasm for new varieties and approaches. "Even though she works long hours on her small farm and, as head of her household, is the person mainly responsible for supporting her extended family, she still finds a way to support several orphans whose parents have died from AIDS-related infections," he remarked.

Anne Lelia, a Maasai woman who participates in an ILRI program with pastoralists, had a similarly powerful impact on Drifa Hjartardottir, a member of Iceland's parliament. The two shared their experiences of farm life, enabling Hjartardottir to compare her own cattle production on a farm in Iceland with the livelihoods of pastoralists at Kitengela just outside the Nairobi National Park.

Extensive debate followed a presentation on the impact of climate change in Africa by Lou Verchot of the World Agroforestry Centre. He maintained that climate change is an important development issue for Africa, with a potentially major impact on smallholder production. He further argued that investment in science is critical for managing the challenges ahead. Kenyan parliamentarians sought advice on key policy changes that respond to the information presented, and they expressed interest in continuing dialogue with the CGIAR-supported centers to inform local policy development.

Debate following briefings on agriculture, regional trade, agricultural subsidies, biotechnology, avian flu, donor harmonization and Center harmonization continued throughout the week. One outcome was a request from Network members for readily accessible and coherent information, which would better enable them to influence national and international policy in favor of agriculture, science and technology.

The PNoWB was founded in 2000 by a group of parliamentarians who are leading advocates for development and who have a particular interest in transparency and accountability in the Bank's development programs. There are currently over 1,000 members from 110 countries. The delegation visiting Kenya included PNoWB members from Canada, Colombia, Finland, Iceland, India, Liberia, Poland, South Africa, Sweden, Tanzania and Uganda. They were accompanied by Tony Worthington, who was previously a member of parliament in the United Kingdom.

A DVD with a short film of the visit and coverage of the major debates will be available in October.