What three agricultural research pilots taught us about partnerships
Three agricultural research pilots in Ethiopia, Rwanda and Senegal reveal what country-led partnerships require in practice: strong institutions, enabling systems, peer learning, and a CGIAR that is better aligned to support national leadership.
- Capacity development
- Capacity Sharing
- research network
For years, CGIAR has talked about strengthening country ownership and moving from ad hoc project delivery to genuine long-term partnerships. The principle is widely accepted: national agricultural research systems (NARS) should define priorities and lead implementation, while CGIAR contributes technical expertise and global knowledge.
But what does that actually look like in practice?
Over the past three years, we tested this question through three Capacity Sharing (CapSha) pilots in Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Senegal. The objective was not simply to deliver research outputs. It was to understand what happens when national institutions genuinely lead and CGIAR plays a supporting role.
The pilots revealed that country-led partnerships are possible. They also showed that making them work depends far less on science than many of us assume.