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Introduction

For more than 40 years, CIAT has had a major positive impact, both direct and indirect, on agricultural institutions in developing countries through its capacity building and capacity strengthening activities. Since 2005, CIAT has made significant progress in its efforts to engage with its stakeholders in innovative ways, through the use of collaborative tools and knowledge sharing methods.

CIAT’s Capacity Strengthening and Knowledge Management Initiative (Capacity) is an opportunity to build on those gains, to enrich research partnerships and processes. We do this by facilitating and mainstreaming the use of participatory tools and methods in areas such as strategic planning, research, monitoring and evaluation, and documentation, at the same time drawing on more traditional approaches to training when needed. This mix of techniques should enable us to make well informed decisions and act together with partners on issues of mutual concern. Creating a shared context among actors makes it possible to learn together, innovate, and document relevant content for effective adoption and adaptation of research results, as well as for broader communication of those results.

1. Training: Administration of visiting researchers; organization of training events; development of training materials.
2. Knowledge management interventions.
   Training in knowledge management (facilitation; monitoring and evaluation; social network analysis, social media); Participatory strategic planning; participatory M&E; knowledge sharing through social media; design and facilitation of face-to-face and virtual engagement processes; multimedia documentation of research processes and stakeholder engagement.
3. Capacity Strengthening Platforms for Latin America and the Caribbean
   Initiation of dialogs with partners to determine their interest in participating; analysis and mapping of demand, supply, and gaps in key themes; carrying out of events and workshops with partners to socialize the initiative and identify thematic opportunities; and design of integrated proposals to mobilize resources. A capacity strengthening platform on seed systems was launched in 2011.
4. Colombia Eastern Plains “Orinoquia”
   Implementation of activities related to communications, training and technology transfer, knowledge management, including monitoring and evaluation of the agreement between CIAT, Corpoica, and the Colombian Ministry of Agriculture.

All the main activities listed above should contribute significantly to strengthening CIAT’s research partnerships and team work while allowing for wide adoption of collaborative research results.

About Capacity Strengthening at CIAT

Up to date more than 12,000 professionals from Latin America, Africa, and Asia have benefited from training at CIAT through specialized courses, group events, individualized training, and thesis work.

CIAT offers several capacity-strengthening modalities at both undergraduate and graduate levels:

• Group events combine conferences, training courses, laboratory practices, and fieldwork. They also include distance-learning courses.
• Individualized training, practices, internships as well as thesis work towards postgraduate degrees.

See our brochure

Figure out training opportunities at CIAT

About Knowledge Management

The figure below illustrates the various components of knowledge management and capacity strengthening in agricultural research − from research design and implementation, to communication and M&E. All these components are interdependent and do not necessarily take place chronologically. Interventions in each component (see examples in the ovals) create shared context, enable actors to make well informed decisions, and promote joint action by partners on issues of mutual concern.

Number of people reached in 2011 

• Training: 10 special courses organized for 210 participants; 102 visiting researchers received; 2 Open House events organized for 124 participants
• Platforms LAC: Launch of the Seed systems platform;  two workshops carried out for 125 participants; Concept note written collaboratively; activity plan 20012 established
• Knowledge Management: 10 training events on KM carried out for CIAT staff and partners with 300 participants; 7 presentations held at conferences for 420 participants,; 4 workshops designed for 110 participants
• Orinoquia: For a total of 588 participants: Launch of the Convenio Orinoquia; Workshops organized, events participated; Corpoica staff trained; Planning meetings designed and facilitated; Project blog set up and promoted, including newsletter
• Capacity Blog: 6000 unique visitors; 10,000 visits; 173 blog posts published

Partners: IICA, ICT-KM Program of the CGIAR, EMBRAPA, FAO, KM4Dev, CATIE

Our Vision

Who we are

Simone Staiger-Rivas
Simone is a Knowledge Sharing specialist. She is a trained social communicator with 13 years experience in the coordination of international communications projects. Her interest lies in the enhancement of collaboration in institutional settings that contribute to organizational learning and change in agricultural research for development. Simone has been working for CIAT and the CGIAR through ICT-KM Program for 9 years.

Sophie Alvarez
Sophie is a monitoring and evaluation specialist with training in sustainable development. Working in the Challenge Program on Water and Food and as a consultant for several other CG centers and non- CG programs, Sophie has participated in the development of a participatory planning and impact assessment methodology- the Participatory Impact Pathways Approach. Her main areas of expertise are the facilitation of participatory processes and research related to M&E frameworks and social network analysis. Sophie has been linked with CIAT for 6 years.

 José Antonio Arana
José Antonio is a social communicator, a specialist in international cooperation and social management and MA in cultural management. He has worked on various projects of communication and social development in Colombia and Spain, which has contributed to capacity building process with different stakeholders, including vulnerable communities for different reasons. In his 11 years of experience, has participated in various publications that explore the relationship between culture, art and community development. His main areas of interest include ICT4D, intercultural dialogue and implementation of communication tools for knowledge management.

Eleonora Izquierdo
Eleonora has been in charge for the past 20 years of visiting researchers in CIAT HQ, and the documentatión and information related to capacity building activities in the regions of Africa, Asia and Central America. Aside from her logistics and administrative tasks, Eleonora has been CIAT’s ‘face’ for the more that 1000 professionals who have benefitted from capacity building in agricultural research topics in the center. Her main interests are internal communications and the use of knowledge management tools.

Wilson Celemin
Wilson is a specialist in business and tourism management, with ample experience in financial management systems. He has been connected to CIAT since 2004, tand during his time at CIAT has provided support to different projects in administrative and field work. Wilson brings to the team his administrative and organizational capacity, while he explores his interests in logistics, service provision and internal communication and team work practices.

Flávia Cunha
Flávia  is a Brazilian international consultant that has experience and knowledge at interpersonal and interinstitutional communications; virtual and presence events moderation and logistic; and empathy to understand the needs of stakeholders and the public goal of a project. Since 2006 Flávia is acting at non-profits, environment and international organizations. Currently Flávia is acting in CIAT like Andes Practice Community (CoP Andes) facilitator, an initiative promoted by CIAT-DAPA (Decision and Policy Analysis) and PNUMA-ORPALC (Caribbean and Latin American Regional Office) in the REGATTA Platform.