Guidelines to participatory innovation development

The Guidelines to Participatory Innovation Development (PID), as a resource manual, is an attempt made by Practical Action Nepal under PROLINNOVA Nepal Programme from which relevant practical mechanisms can be derived to render existing and conventional projects FARMER-LED. The overall focus of the guidelines is on the conceptualization and practice of participatory approaches built on farmer “innovation” and “innovations”. Emphasis has been placed on guiding the reader towards the essence of PID and to recognize the need to promote local innovations as evolving alternatives to development. PID is treated as an alternative approach to development that attempts to strengthen the participatory process. Hence, rather than a separate entity or an altogether ‘new’ concept, it can be best regarded as a way to help “people to do things better”.

The report argues that PID, in global as well as the country-level context rests on the basic hypothesis that:

• Analyzing local innovations provides a focus for groups/communities to examine opportunities and set agendas for R&D.
• Recognition of local capacities and creativity is prerequisite for true partnership in R&D.

Engagement in this PID process strengthens:

• Community organization for development.
• Capacities of agricultural services to support endogenous development, i.e. “from within”

PID is governed by the following principles:

• Start from what farmers have developed or are developing on their own and build on it.
• Prevent adverse effects of PID on others/environment.
• Respect knowledge and experience of all producers and apply as appropriate.
• Disseminate findings by sharing through appropriate media.
• Process has to be context specific.
• Farmers/local people take the lead in the process.
• Idea of replicating within the community.

The report suggests that supporting interventions can be of the following nature:

• Value addition or modification to the existing technologies or processes
• Financial incentives for its further modification or replication
• Capacity building (technical backstopping, training, resources support)
• Establishing sustainable linkages with relevant stakeholders
• Policy influence