Activities

The core activities of the Forum include facilitation of stakeholder consultation, provision of policy advisory services, and stakeholder networking and information sharing. The Forum is also involved in the monitoring of Poverty Reduction Programmes.

Stakeholder Consultation
The Agricultural Consultative Forum facilitates stakeholder consultation by deliberately and consciously bringing stakeholders together in formal and informal interactive meetings. The ACF aims to hold at least one regular meeting for the main ACF at least once every month. Other meetings involving special interest groups and sub-fora are arranged, facilitated and hosted by the Forum Secretariat as demanded.

Policy Advisory Services
One area in which the ACF will be expected to make primary impact is to influence agricultural policies by providing advice to the Government. Forum meetings provide a channel through which stakeholders will comment on the direction and performance of agricultural policies and programmes. Stakeholders will also make suggestions on critical actions required to overcome the policy constraints identified. The main output from the Forum with respect to provision of advisory services is a Policy Advisory Note (PAN) to the Minister of Agriculture and Cooperatives and other authoritative bodies. The Secretariat plays the role of crystallizing and synthesizing issues discussed during the Forum meetings and transforming them into a PAN that is cleared by the ACF Board.

Stakeholder Networking and Information Sharing
In order to position itself as a credible advisory body and a centre for information generation and sharing amongst members, the ACF through its Secretariat has developed partnerships with a range of sister projects and institutions involved in generating information. Information collected will either be presented to the forum by stakeholders or collected by the Forum through meetings, special studies and study visits. It is this information that helps the ACF provide advice to some members on their activities.

The ACF website is another key tool utilized by the Forum to disseminate key information on agricultural development.

Monitoring and Evaluation of the Agricultural Component of the Poverty Reduction Programmes

One of the core activities added to the portfolio of the ACF is the Monitoring and Evaluation of the Agricultural Component of Poverty Reduction Programmes (PRPs). The main objectives of this function are:

• to systematically assess the impact of poverty reduction programmes through the development of tools and instruments for an independent monitoring system;
• to create network linkages to capture lessons learnt, analysis and feedback; and
• to provide a link to stakeholders at provincial and district level, especially the District Agricultural Committees.

The ACF monitor and evaluate the PRPs utilizing an independent indicator system based on the indicator systems of the agricultural component of the PRSP and the ACP. Among one of key focal areas of the ACF M&E System are private-public sector interactions. The ACF shall, to the greatest extent possible, involve the district level in data collection and development feedback mechanisms for this level.

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