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**Brief 1: What is an Innovation Platform? ** **Brief 4: Power dynamics and representation in innovation platforms. By Ben Lukuyu ** **Brief 10: Facilitating innovation platforms. By Thanammal Ravichandran ** **Brief 6: Innovation platforms for agricultural value chain development. By Julius Bwire **
 * SUMMARY OF DISCUSSIONS ON THE INNOVATION PLATFORMS’ BRIEFS DURING THE MILKIT COORDINATION MEETING IN MOROGORO ON 24TH JANUARY, 2014. **
 * Importance of clarifying the “innovation challenge” although accepting that sometimes the IP actions may not immediately address this challenge but may initially focus on other “quick wins”
 * understanding about the innovation platform principles is important for setting up the innovation platform
 * setting the innovation platform at local level is also important along with regional platform
 * innovation platforms are flexible, the objectives can be changed along the process, different stakeholders have different issues/interest, we can not neglect any members views or points
 * innovation platform is dynamic, there may be change in members, responsibilities.
 * why innovation platform is important? is sustainability of platform is important? it depends upon the type of platform like permanent or temporary. it is decided based on the need, if there is issues need to be addressed long term, permanent platform is needed.
 * sometimes the platforms can be taken to address different issues or problems of the same community.
 * Power diversity is important in Innovation platform (IP) however, this call for good facilitation to balance on ideas and views. Deliberate effort is needed to ensure views of less powerful individuals is heard
 * Innovation platform may empower the less powerful individuals- gives them a chance to interact with more powerful people especially the women. Powerful individual should be discouraged to take up leadership positions in IPs but rather remain participants. However in some communities e.g. the Maasai, culture dictates to the less powerful individual tends to give way for powerful individual to take up leadership positions
 * Discussion and decision making amongst smaller group could enhance wider views being represented in IPs for prioritization.
 * Setting up rules and regulations or guidelines in IPs could help resolves power dynamic issues
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">IPs evolves form value chains hence effort needs to be made to ensure complete representation of all segments
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Stakeholder analysis helps understand their influence and interest and helps overcome potential power dynamic issues.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Members of IPs need to understand why they are in it? What is in it for them? Helps to resolve power dynamics
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Identify potential power dynamics problems and resolve them fast. Use influencer’s in the society to help resolve some of these problems.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Experience of facilitator is important for facilitating the IP meetings
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">What incentives/ motivated for facilitator to facilitate the IP: clear idea or goal, self- motivated, appreciation, recognition, rewards etc.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Sustainability of IP- discussion on why the IP set up, two types-temporary or permanent- matters with the objectives of the IP, if all the issues are solved, may be need for continuation of the innovations or activities rather meetings; can be organized again with different objective for the development of same community
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">In Tanzania: mobilization of stakeholders is challenging, lack of incentives/motivation for stakeholders to participate, need for ideas to encourage them to participate
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Consultant for Tanzania for facilitation of IP will be helpful
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Aspects of facilitation- relationship, participation, planning, organization
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Use influence of peer pressure for participation of stakeholders- ex In India IFAD staffs influence for IP stakeholder participation through their individual contacts at government level
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Tanzania- Facilitation is needed to set a DVC IP at local level apart from regional platform in Tonga
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Flexibility is important when organizing the meetings in IP, there may be different issues arise while discussions, care to given not to ignore any participant interest/issues
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Exposure/training for facilitator will be helpful in start of the project
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Personality of the facilitator matters for the successful brokering of innovations in IP
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Facilitator should be good listener
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Facilitator can be dynamic at different level of project, roles and responsibilities can be shared with other members after few meetings
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">Diversity management is important
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">The markets and value chain approaches are geared towards use of appropriate agricultural development interventions as opposed to traditional approaches which put emphasis on food security for families and occasionally surplus for sale
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">The farmers’ outcry has been lack of markets for their produce but the main problem is low productivity which is caused by low prices, seasonality of production, feeding not to genetic potential and inadequate animal health services. The strategy could be enhancing production through increasing investment in inputs provision to target access and utilization although the question remain to be, Products(milk) prices will it cover the additional inputs provided? the farmers therefore rarely supplements to enhance production
 * <span style="font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 16px;">The innovation platforms (IPs) should address the issues of markets by stepping in the shoes of business Hubs approach whereby IP members will have an opportunity to practice group purchase or individual IP members or bring in traders, and to serve the life of animals check off system can be employed. Capacity buildings for farmers and inputs suppliers on ration formulation techniques will stimulate concentrates supplementation and remove mistrust among the actors. Also it is important that all actors along the value chain be included in the IPs to enhance power dynamics and complete representation