COMPREHENSIVE INNOVATION BUILDING BETTER SYSTEMS “TECHNOLOGY DOES NOT FAIL AFRICA’S FARMERS, SYSTEMS DO”
When the actors that make up systems
interact strategically, innovation can spread and scale.
Unless we treat system building as a generational investment rather than a political instrument, agricultural transformation will remain largely out of reach By Justina Adwoa Onumah, Principal Research Scientist, STEPRI Ghana
A cross much of Africa, growth in agricultural productivity remains slow despite decades of investment in improved seeds, fertilizer subsidies, mechanization programs and donor-supported initiatives. The challenge is rarely the absence of technologies or innovation initiatives. Rather, it
Justina Adwoa Onumah
Justina A. Onumah is Principal Research Scientist and Head of the Agriculture, Medicine and Environment Division at CSIR– STEPRI in Ghana, and a Senior Research Associate at the University of Johannesburg. Her work lies at the intersection of innovation and development economics, focusing on poverty, agricultural innovation systems, enterprise development, impact evaluation, gender and evidence‑informed policymaking. She is also active in policy engagement and mentorship.
reflects weaknesses in the systems used to support their development, dissemination and sustained use. All too often, the actors that make up these systems – farmers, agents, universities, cooperatives, agribusinesses, financial institutions, NGOs and policy-makers – operate in silos, with limited coordination and continuity. Far too frequently, their efforts become isolated interventions that fail to build a functional system for all relevant actors.
The problem is one of perception and purpose. An agricultural innovation system (AIS) should not be viewed as a project, but rather as a network of relationships through which knowledge is generated, shared and applied. When these actors interact strategically, innovation can spread and scale. However, many initiatives are organized around short-term project cycles; an innovation platform here,
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