As the year 2020 has come to an end, time has come to report to the forum’s members and plan for the future at FCA Madagascar. Given the context that the country and the world is going through, the organization of FCA’s General Assembly was quite singular.
Unprecedented. This simple word summarizes the way the General Assembly 2020 was held. Indeed, facing a 2nd wave of COVID-19 spread, the FCA Madagascar team had to be more innovative in order to organize a General Assembly within the various limitations imposed by health measures. Online solutions were particularly favored and the GA was hybrid: the broadcast of the event on Zoom allowed members to participate to the meeting remotely while Board members and representatives from nine regions of Madagascar (Analamanga, Vakinankaratra, Itasy, Bongolava, Atsinanana, Haute-Matsiatra, Amoron’i Mania, Vatovavy-Fitovinany, Sofia) were invited to meet physically at the Madagascar Development and Learning Center in Anosy, Antananarivo.
Four big agenda points were covered during the hybrid event:
Retrospective of year 2020
For FCA, 2020 was marked by the implementation of the CAADP XP4 project. A project in partnership with AFAAS and funded by the European Union through IFAD. During the year 2020, the Forum has collaborated closely with five member organizations, namely: AsProd, Ecovillage Madagascar, SAF/FJKM Ambanitsena, the AEAS & GP Consortium, and FTA. The first three organizations were engaged in the documentation of climate-smart agricultural practices, and the last two were more focused on the digitalization of agricultural extension, particularly through the use of video.
New strategic plan and new organization
FCA is growing. And as part of its development, a new strategic plan (2021 – 2023)[1] was presented to members for discussion and to be debated during this General Assembly. The three main components of the new strategic plan are (i) Professionalization of agricultural advisory services, (ii) Digitalization of agricultural advisory services and (iii) Climate-Smart Agriculture. These three main components are put forward to align with the strategy of the Malagasy Government and AFAAS.
To carry out this new strategic plan and ensure a successful implementation, FCA is in the process of putting in place a new organization. As stipulated in FCA’s Constitution since the year 2017, the organisation should be managed by an Executive Director in it’s daily operations. The decision was taken during the General Assembly to start the recruitment process.
Election of new members on the FCA Board of Directors
This General Assembly was also the occasion to renew the members of FCA Board of Directors with representatives from different regions of Madagascar and from different stakeholders groups (Government, Private Sector and Civil Society Organisations).
Mrs. Lalaina RALAMBOHARISOA, the former president was re-elected for a second term.
[1] Summary of the new strategic plan is available here: http://bit.ly/Plan-stratégique-FCA-2021-2023