This international technical webinar is part of the series organized by the FAO elearning Academy, Agreenium (French training and research alliance for agriculture, food, environment and global health), UN-ESCAP (United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific), and Future Food Institute. This webinar is also part of the series Bridging the knowledge gap on the holistic risk management approach in developing countries, organized together with the Platform for Agricultural Risk Management (PARM) and the Forum for Agricultural Risk Management in Development (FARM-D) – which are hosted by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).
These webinars are an opportunity for all of us to share experiences and lessons learnt, discuss challenges, and propose innovative solutions and models. They aim to provide a holistic and comprehensive view of current trends in thematic areas related to global challenges, by combining development research and innovation perspectives.
The main objective of these technical webinars is to give practitioners the opportunity to interact with international experts, United Nations officers, University professors, researchers and fellow participants, throughout the world. Webinars can be attended as interactive online sessions on Zoom, where sharing perspectives and asking questions to experts is encouraged. These sessions are also recorded and therefore available at any time, through the FAO elearning Academy: elearning.fao.org.
Building on the previous session, this webinar will further expand on the crucial role of capacity development for agricultural risk management. The event benefits from the key lessons drawn from the series of four e-learning courses on agricultural risk management (ARM) developed by PARM and FAO elearning Academy, in partnership with IFAD and NEPAD. The discussion will start with a first overview on the different tools and strategies available to manage risk in agriculture and how to select the most appropriate one based on the context and target groups. The exchange will continue with how different organizations and stakeholders work on strengthening their capacity, capitalizing on their experiences at the regional and global level.
OBJECTIVES OF THIS SESSION
Cristina Petracchi heads the FAO elearning Academy. She manages and coordinates the design, development, delivery and language adaptations of an extensive portfolio e-learning courses and blended learning programmes for the benefit of FAO member countries, and is responsable for the creation of University Masters’ and Post Graduate Degree Programmes. She engages actively in consolidating partnerships across United Nations agencies, academic institutions and universities, regional organizations, CSOs and NGOs, for capacity development initiatives. In addition to a University Degree in Biological Sciences, Ms Petracchi holds a PhD in Nutrition and Food Science, and has several years of experience of capacity development activities, in a number of countries.
Carlos E. Arce is a lawyer and development economist with over 30 years of experience working on issues of agricultural productivity and risk management. After working with various international agencies on agriculture and rural development, Carlos joined the World Bank addressing issues related to agricultural risk analysis, weather index-based insurance, and risk mapping applications. Today, he works as a consultant advising developing economies in agriculture policy and the design of agriculture risk management strategies and applications.
Dr Kisan Gunjal has been working as Senior International Consultant for IFAD, FAO, and WFP. Some of the high-profile assignments that he covered include – food security implications of Ebola, the impact of El Niño, development of four e-learning courses on Agricultural Risk Management (ARM) for FAO/IFAD, and support in the preparation of ECA Regional SOFI 2020. He is currently working with FAO-RAF on impact of COVID-19 on Africa, and Risk Mapping in Africa for ARM. He also worked as a Consultant with the World Bank on Ethiopia and Mongolia. Kisan leads the NGO iREAMDev-Canada and India and is considered a leading authority on global food security. He taught at McGill University, Montreal, Canada, for 20 years and served as Food Security Economist for FAO’s Global Information and Early Warning System for 12 years.
Dr Samson Eshetu is a development professional with proven experience in areas such as food and nutrition security and livelihood. As agricultural extensionist, he participated in several international meetings, workshops, and conferences. He has conducted different research, training, and consultancy works with various local and
international organizations, and published his works in journals and books. Currently, he is working for the African Forum for Agricultural Advisory Services (AFAAS) as Capacity and Institutional Development Specialist. He was also providing technical support for the PARM Ethiopia team on Capacity Development for ARM as Lead Learning Facilitator for the joint Regional Learning Events organized by AFAAS and PARM Ethiopia in the three regions (Afar, Amhara and Oromia) in Ethiopia.
Dr Muriel Mambrini Doudet is Research Director at the board of the French Institute for Research in Agriculture, Food and Environement (INRAE). She is also developing a think tank for the major stakeholders of the French
agriculture innovation ecosystem (GIS Relance Agronomique), currently working on new terms of the social contract of agriculture. She is the Director of the doctoral school of the Center of Research and Interdisciplinarity and invited
scientist at the Chair for Design theory and methods. She headed the largest research center at INRAE, and was the Director of the Institute of Advanced Study for Science and Technology. Her background is in livestock nutrition and genetics. She is currently grounding a “Science of science management”. She has authored more than 70 international publications and books in the diverse academic fields that she merges.
Dr Moussa Waongo is an agrometeorologist with more than 10 years of experience. He is currently a researcher and head of the agrometeorology training programme at the AGRHYMET Regional Centre. His main interests
are climate prediction, climate variability and climate change impact studies on agricultural production. He has conducted studies in the West African region on the added value of seasonal climate forecasts, improved water
management in agriculture and the impact of climate change on crop yields.