AFAAS supports the emergence of associations of AEAS stakeholders (not only AEAS service providers but also other interested parties that stand to gain from AEAS) under a common umbrella where they can identify, from among the issues that AFAAS has to address, priority areas of concern that can be addressed through collaborative information sharing, joint activities and partnerships.
The CF are necessary to enable AAS actors to relate to each other within a framework of a set of agreed principles, rules and well defined roles and responsibilities. This is the pre-requisite for the AEAS to be embedded within the national agricultural innovation systems so that they are continuously aware of the factors in the system that influence their effectiveness. The CF enable the stakeholders monitor the performance of the system and identify the issues that they need to respond to.
Hence the general objectives of supporting CF are;
- To strengthen the capacity of AAS stakeholders at country level to lead advisory service development
- To proactively and responsively support the CF to mobilise, reflect and learn about how to improve advisory service provision within an agricultural innovation system framework
- To act as the arms of the country CAADP implementing organs in linking with AAS stakeholders
- To be able to utilise (within and between countries) the human capacity that is being developed for undertaking reforms in AAS.