Group items tagged

"ICTs are always evolving and have been contributing immensely in development policies and programmes in developing countries. Appropriate application of ICTs will help the institutions, organizations, and nations in development plans. In spite of the tremendous potential of ICTs, developing countries have not adapted a sound strategy to utilize ICTs effectively. The application of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in agriculture is increasingly important. If ICTs are utilized fully in agriculture and allied fields, traditional knowledge could be improved and farmers would benefit from this new technology. "

"Faced with the prospect of rising costs, strict limitations on catch sizes and increasing competition from cheaper imports, more and more fishermen are re-evaluating the market potential of their catch and looking for new and more lucrative distribution channels.Zoom on the new Stockholm fish market (Sweden). Report: The FLAG fish Carp is a flagship product and a driving force for sustainable local development in the Barycz valley (Poland). Interview: Aigars Laugalis Report: An emotional business In Salento (Italy), tourism brings some great opportunities for a local fishing sector in search of added value and diversification. Trade winds Four innovative, area-based development projects in fisheries areas. Spotlight: Delivering results FLAGs have to provide evidence that Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) - Axis 4 in the current period - can foster socio-economic development in a way that cannot be delivered by top-down policies."

The key messages in this brief are as follows: 1) Engineering can help Africa unlock its huge potential for economic growth and development and make faster progress toward the Millennium Development Goals. 2) However, there is a serious lack of engineering capacity in Africa and heavy reliance on imported expertise in engineering. 3) Higher education institutions need to change their approach to teaching engineering so that graduates are creative problem-solvers. Engineering courses also need to be oriented towards market and development needs. 4) Women are under-represented in engineering education, constituting less than 10 percent of the student population in Ghana, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe in 2010. 5) Few African countries have established a robust accreditation system. In addition to improving national accreditation, regional accreditation of engineering professionals should be encouraged so that engineers have greater mobility within Africa. 6) A proposed World Bank initiative, the Partnership for Skills in Applied Sciences, Engineering and Technology (PASET) will build capacity for technical, vocational and higher education in African countries.

"The Agriculture Economist will assist the AFTA 1 Sector Manager in delivery of the unit's work program, assurance of quality, interaction with internal and external clients, including the private sector, staff development and partnerships. The primary responsibility of the Agriculture Economist will be to provide technical and strategic support to the development and implementation of the AFTA 1 program in Cote d'Ivoire. In particular, the Agricultural Economist will : * Contribute to policy dialogue on agricultural and rural issues and interactions with the client and partners, and alert management (both country and sector) to issues requiring attention ; * Lead/initiate/participate in analytical and strategic work pertaining to agricultural growth and productivity, including work managed by AFTA1 and that managed by other units, but requiring input from agricultural staff, such as public expenditure analysis ; * Assume an active role in the Cote d'Ivoire country team with the aim to ensure adequate and appropriate integration of relevant aspects of the agriculture and rural development agenda in core Bank products, including country assistance strategy, country economic memorandum and the like"

"Developing and developed countries alike need a paradigm shift in agricultural development: from a "green revolution" to a "truly ecological intensification" approach. This implies a rapid and significant shift from conventional, monoculture-based and high external-input-dependent industrial production towards mosaics of sustainable, regenerative production systems that also considerably improve the productivity of small-scale farmers. We need to see a move from a linear to a holistic approach in agricultural management, which recognizes that a farmer is not only a producer of agricultural goods, but also a manager of an agro-ecological system that provides quite a number of public goods and services (e.g. water, soil, landscape, energy, biodiversity, and recreation) UNCTAD's Trade and Environment Review 2013 (TER13) contends."

"The FARNET meeting of EFF Managing Authorities in Brussels on the 24th and 25th of September as part of the regular programme of Axis 4 meetings focused on 'Successful Programming'. The theme and agenda were developed from the Managing Authorities survey conducted by the FARNET Support Unit during the summer. Four main themes were discussed during the working groups: selection criteria and procedures for areas; selection criteria and procedures for Local Development Strategies, Network development and the definition and allocation of roles. The second day concentrated on evaluation. The group firstly heard from the CapGemini consultants who are conducting the Axis 4 study for DG Mare before inputs and working sessions on the strengthened approach to evaluation for the EMFF. There was a specific focus on the process of evaluation planning, its relevance to MAs and FLAGs and their respective roles."

"The Italian dello Stretto FLAG from Calabria is urgently looking for partners for a transnational cooperation project called SHADES, or "Sustainable and Holistic Approaches to Development in European Seaboards". The project focuses on Integrated Coastal Management (ICM and aims to facilitate an exchange of information and know-how on ICM and develop guidelines for mainstreaming integrated coastal management in partners' areas. Please contact the FLAG by the 23rd December 2013 if this area of work is of interest to you. Cooperation Factsheet - Integrated Coastal Management "

"The Italian dello Stretto FLAG from Calabria is urgently looking for partners for a transnational cooperation project called SHADES, or "Sustainable and Holistic Approaches to Development in European Seaboards". The project focuses on Integrated Coastal Management (ICM and aims to facilitate an exchange of information and know-how on ICM and develop guidelines for mainstreaming integrated coastal management in partners' areas. Please contact the FLAG by the 23rd December 2013 if this area of work is of interest to you. Cooperation Factsheet - Integrated Coastal Management "

Download n° 10 - Spring-Summer 2014 Putting learning into practice In 2006, just eight years ago, the European Commission held a first transnational meeting in Oporto, Portugal, to launch a new "territorial approach" to addressing the challenges faced by Europe's fisheries. Axis 4, as it became known, was born and in 2014 we are starting to see the results and learn from this first experiment in local development for fisheries communities. Zoom: Peer-to-peer learning and mentoring Three examples from Sweden. Report: Partners of the sea Forging a common maritime identity through animation and collective project support in Marennes Oléron (Poitou-Charentes, France). People: Rita Pamplona Report: Axis 4 of the EFF, at the forefront of sustainable development in Romania Two examples in the Danube Delta and South Dobrogea. Four innovative, area-based development projects in fisheries areas. Spotlight:Towards a successful implementation of Axis 4 A study on Axis 4 of the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) in 15 Member States estimates that considerable employment benefits and some important qualitative results have already been achieved by FLAGs and beneficiaries.

The Directorate General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE) of the European Commission (DG MARE), with the assistance of the FARNET Support Unit, is organising a high level conference on the results of Axis 4 of the EFF and the future of Community-Led Local Development (CLLD) in coastal communities. During the 2007-2014 period, Axis 4 of the EFF was the main instrument for the sustainable development of fisheries areas. Implemented by 312 Fisheries Local Action Groups (FLAGs), Axis 4 has supported over 9 000 projects at the local level, applying a bottom-up, local development approach in fisheries and coastal areas across 21 Member States.

"[KUALA LUMPUR] New approaches to agricultural research and development (R&D) that support local innovation are needed in order to tackle global poverty, say agriculture experts. At a conference, Re-imagining Agricultural Research in Development Dialogue, held in Penang, Malaysia last month (29-31 January), experts from the agricultural sector convened to discuss how agricultural research could best be used to benefit the 870 million people still living on less than US$1.25 a day. "The [conference] was motivated by the realization that agricultural research was not benefiting the poorest of the poor," Boru Douthwaite, Knowledge Sharing and Learning theme leader for the CGIAR Research Program on Aquatic Agricultural Systems (AAS), tells SciDev.Net. "

"Ten years ago, the UNESCO International Meeting on Innovation and Excellence in TVET Teacher/Trainer Education held in Hangzhou, China, asked for developing TVET into an internationally acknowledged scientific community in order to professionalize TVET teacher/trainer education and to integrate TVET as sustainable, reproductive and innovative national scientific systems into national systems of innovation. The First World Congress on Teacher Education for Technical and Vocational Education and Training held in 2008 in Bandung, Indonesia reaffirmed this request by demanding that TVET teacher/trainer education should encompass "studies in the analysis, design and evaluation of: (a) vocational learning, educational and qualification processes, (b) occupational work and business processes, and (c) technology as an object of work and learning processes (d) as well as critical pedagogy for social change," and by asking for establishing respective "frameworks for promoting the continuing professional development of TVET practitioners." T"

International Cooperation and Development offers job opportunities at its Brussels' headquarters, as well as in EU delegations based around the world. The European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) is the single point of contact for all EU citizens who wish to work for the European Institutions.

UNESCO is celebrating its 70th anniversary in 2015, a crucial year for the international community's efforts to reach a consensus on limiting global warming and the creation of cleaner environments for individuals, communities and countries. In the coming months, UNESCO will continue supporting efforts to meet these challenges by focusing on several major events ahead of the UN General Assembly's scheduled adoption of new international development goals known as Sustainable Development Goals (MDGs). In education, the natural sciences and culture, UNESCO will continue using the soft power of advocacy, diplomacy and networking with civil society, to reduce the devastating effects of conflict and help make lasting peace possible. In the month of May, the World Education Forum, which brings together UN partners, national governments and international stakeholders, will hold its third session in 25 years in Incheon (Republic of Korea). The Forum will take stock of progress made towards the Education For All goals established in 2000 and define future objectives. As the Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, says, "this forum is truly the threshold to the future of education, and a springboard for the post 2015 agenda," in which UNESCO is pressing for an "equitable, quality education and lifelong learning for all".

"(30/01/2014) Today in Bucharest, European Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Maria Damanaki, and the Romanian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Titus Corlăţean, opened the conference "Sustainable development of the blue economy in the Black Sea. Enhancing marine and maritime cooperation". "

"The relationship between Tertiary Agricultural Education (TAE) and its siblings - Research, Policy and industry actors- can make or break Africa's agricultural sector. Strengthening the link between these four components not only ensures food security in the continent but also bolters - significantly - the continent's socio-economic development.Africa's agricultural potential can only be optimally harnessed if deliberate efforts are made to ensure that agricultural education is aligned to industry needs and research findings generate innovative products and approaches for industrial application and also feed into national and regional policies."

"The relationship between Tertiary Agricultural Education (TAE) and its siblings - Research, Policy and industry actors- can make or break Africa's agricultural sector. Strengthening the link between these four components not only ensures food security in the continent but also bolters - significantly - the continent's socio-economic development.Africa's agricultural potential can only be optimally harnessed if deliberate efforts are made to ensure that agricultural education is aligned to industry needs and research findings generate innovative products and approaches for industrial application and also feed into national and regional policies."

"After Brussels 2008, Rome 2009, Gijon 2010, Gdansk 2011, and Gothenburg 2012, the 2013 European Maritime Day will be held in Malta. The European Maritime Day conference in Malta shall be held on Tuesday 21st and Wednesday 22nd of May 2013 at the Mediterranean Conference Centre in Valletta, the capital. The main theme of the European Maritime Day 2013 Conference will focus on coastal development and sustainable maritime tourism in the wider context of Blue Growth. It will be an occasion to reflect, at high level, on how to make Blue Growth happen through sustainable tourism, connectivity and coastal management. A special focus will be made on the Mediterranean Region."

"Staging debates in a relatively high-class hotel in Monrovia about how the world should abolish absolute poverty in 2030 might seem on the more surreal side of life, especially as the world confronts austerity and terrorism. But the UN high-level panel, including David Cameron and set up last summer, is in Liberia to try to keep alive one of the few successful international efforts to address poverty: the UN Millennium Development Goals, which expire in 2015."

"Thanks to Abudala Napuru from FAO for these photos showing training and development in commercial monosex tilapia production at Richard Toll, Senegal Nov 2012- Jan 2013"

"Bulambuli Valley " Repérée par Rue89, cette vidéo parodique assure en fait la promotion d'une campagne de crowdfunding sur le site Indiegogo lancée par une ONG (Communities for Development) qui aide les populations rurales de l'est de l'Ouganda à développer leur activité.

"The quantification of greenhouse gases (GHG) emissions represents a critical issue for the future development of agro-food produces. Consumers' behaviour could play an important role in requiring environmental performance as an essential element for food quality. Nowadays, the carbon footprint (CFP) is a tool used worldwide by agro-food industries to communicate environmental information. This paper aims to investigate the role that CFP could have in consumers' choices in three significant agro-food sectors in the Mediterranean area: wine, olive oil and cereals. A critical review about the use of CFP was carried out along the supply chain of these three sectors, in order to identify opportunities for enhancing food quality and environmental sustainability and highlighting how environmental information could influence consumers' preferences. "