SEARICE - DARE 2014-2015 - 1st year SEARICE is a partner of the Sustainable Livelihoods portfolio of Global Link for a number of years. The recent partnership was for the first phase of Democratizing Agricultural Research and Extension (DARE) with a total grant amount of EUR 600,000 for the period of 2011 to 2013.
Next to that, Oxfam Novib (ONL) entered another partnership with SEARICE for the IFAD Scaling-up Programme years 2 to 4 (A-02253-05) for the period of 2012 to 2015 with an amount of USD 430,000, and a grant of USD 75,000 from Bioversity International to develop the baseline survey for the IFAD Scaling up Programme in 2011-2012 (A-2206-05).
Thus in essence, SEARICE is one of the key co-implementing partners of Oxfam Novib in the IFAD Scaling up Programme for the global/joint activities of the IFAD programme, in particular the country specific activities carried out in Vietnam. Since October 2013, SEARICE is also a co-implementing partner in the recently approved Sida funded programme Sowing Diversity=Harvesting Security (SD=HS) programme primarily for the following countries: Laos, Vietnam, and Myanmar.
The DARE programme, its activities and achievements, and past engagements with SEARICE had been instrumental to the Scaling Up concept in IFAD Programme as well in the SD=HS programme.
Some key DARE achievements (2011-2013)facilitating the Scaling Up concept, are as follows:
-	Overall, adoption of participatory plant breeding (PPB) as part of local  government programmes, including parallel strategy of national plant breeding system, in some of the countries;
-	The DARE programme facilitated social transformation through the work on on-farm conservation, and PPB of plant genetic resources (PGR) for food and agriculture;
-	DARE approach was adopted by a number of government programmes in Laos, wherein farmers engaged actively as partners on seed conservation and development. The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) released special funding support to Phonexay district, Luang Prabang Province USD 20,000 per year to support Pak Gha and Pak Vy villages participation in a project similar to DARE, the Agrobiodiversity Initiative (TABI) funded by ADB and SDC;
-	In Vietnam, relevant key government authorities at the local level, i.e. Seed Centers and Extension Centers provide substantial financial resources to fund the project implementation in many provinces,particularly in the Mekong Delta. In 2011 and 2012 alone, a total of USD 67,650 was provided as (matching) funds in Tien Giang, SocTrang, Ben Tre, An Giang and Hau Giang provinces in addition to materials and other in-kind support valued at around USD 73,000 in all the provinces where the project was implemented. The commitment went beyond financial support as it included contribution in terms of human resources, i.e. training for farmers, technical backstopping and monitoring of the project;
-	In Vietnam, institutional support such as provision of segregating lines for PPB work of farmers despite strict government policy on plant variety protection,shows how these institutions recognise farmers innovations in plant genetic conservation and development.

While on global policy and governance, SEARICEs niche contributing to the scaling up concept includes its ability to link local realities and action to international/global discourses in different global policy arena such as the FAO International Treaty on PGRFA, FAO Commission on Genetic Resources for Food and Agriculture, FAO Commission on World Food Security and UNEP Convention on Biological Diversity. In September 2013, SEARICE representatives were part of the Philippines delegation during the 5th Governing Body meeting of the InternationalTreaty on PGRFA, and jointly with other like minded CSOs delivered the CSO statement for the Farmers Rights Resolution, Multilateral System of Access and Benefit Sharing and Benefit Sharing Fund.

Taking into account the intense partnership between SEARICE and Oxfam Novib, ONL team agreed with SEARICE that an external evaluation of the DARE programme was not required at this stage, for the following reasons: a) SEARICE is equipped with an in-house monitoring system that allows a regular internal evaluation with its countrys co-implementing partners.
SEARICE found this exercise more effective as it facilitates critical learning and empowerment of theprogrammes participants to evaluate their own work. (SEARICE to complete) b) In the IFAD programme, ONL engaged intensely with SEARICE in a trimester basis on the progress of the IFAD activities and financial situation, including annual field visit to IFADs sites. A mid term meeting of IFAD to be organised in 2014 and an evaluation of the IFAD programme are well planned in the 3 year logframe/workplan and budget of the IFAD programme. These provide an opportunity for a joint learning amongst the programmes participants. The overlap in Vietnam between IFAD programme and the proposed second phase DARE presents an opportunity to combine the learning objective and exercise.
Some of the lessons gained from the IFAD Programme, implemented by SEARICEs team are as follows (extracted from IFAD year 1 Annual Report):
In Vietnam, the Project Team noted that the continuing conduct of the farmers field school (FFS) andfollow-up FFS activities such as the farmers field day (FFD) and farmer-conducted field studies (FS) on PGRCDU offers an effectivepathway for integrating farmers traditional skills and knowledge with science-based techniques for scaling up the adoption of PGRCDU by farmers as a climate change adaptation strategy.
The baseline study showed that farmers in North Vietnam generally buy seeds, usually hybrids from commercial sources, as farmers do not save seeds anymore for the next cropping. This occured because they do not get good yields from the seeds saved from their previous crop, except for a few local varieties. Also, more often than not, farm-saved seeds are of poor quality and are not pure, as cited by most farmers. Moreover, the Government subsidizes 50% of the cost of hybrids, which is intended to increase the farmers rice production. However, through the FFSs organized through the Project, the FFS-trained farmers have gradually realized the relevance of PGRCDU to conserve their traditional varieties as these are most adaptable to their local conditions and to consciously use or develop varieties that can adapt to the different adverse environmental conditions brought about by climate change. This was reflected in their variety selection criteria, with higher preference to traits or characteristics that address climate change, such as tolerance to drought and salinity, resistance to pests and diseases, early maturing, and high yield, among other things. The eagerness of farmers to the new techniques and knowledge introduced to them and likewise, the openness of local partners to learn from the farmers and share will certainly boost the integration of science and the farmers indigenous practices for developing appropriate local adaptation strategies to climate change.  However, it is crucial to support the learning process of the farmers and the facilitators as well. Thus, SEARICE will continue promoting the FFS and PGRCDU in the coming Year 2 implementation.

The key activities and strategies for this project phase are really meant to lay the ground for the implementation of the IFAD Programme and Sidas SD=HS programma in Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar and to properly endorse the implementation in Bhutan, Philippines and Thailand to the main stakeholders of the project -- the farmers -- for sustained activities beyond 2015.

Objectives of the DARE extension (2014-2015), by December 2015:
1.	The capacity of farmers groups composed of FFS graduates  to take on the task of sustaining on-farm conservation and development of PGRFA and managing community agrobiodiversity will be strengthened;
2.	Farmers innovation systems in national research and extension systems in the implementing countries will be mainstreamed;
3.	Food and agriculture policies and programmes supportive of farmers seed management and farmer innovation systems at local, sub-national and national levels and in the Committee on Sustainable Use of the ITPGRFA are supported;
4.	Country lessons and experiences of the DARE extension programme will be shared through communication materials.

The projected outputs and outcomes of the DARE extension programme are as follows:

Outcome 1: Strengthened capacity of farmers groups for local and innovative researches on on-farm biodiversity conservation, participatory plant breeding, and seed production and management

O utput 1.1: At least 200 organized farmers groups with clear objectives and strategies for sustained operations (in Laos, Vietnam and Myanmar?)

Output 1.2: At least 25 farmers groups able to articulate inclusive seed-related concerns to relevant authorities  	

Output 1.3: At least 5,000 farmers with enhanced awareness on issues related to farmers rights and agricultural biodiversity


Outcome 2: Farmers' innovation systems mainstreamed in national research and extension systems (continue from DARE 2011-2013)

Output 2.1: Upgraded knowledge, skills, attitude,and values of at least 120 FFS facilitators and farmer technicians

Output 2.2: Project advocacies taken on as government program (at least 1 government program per country integrates project advocacies)

Output 2.3: Enhanced understanding of issues on agricultural biodiversity by key government institutions (at least 1 government institution per country providing concrete support to farmersmanagement of agricultural biodiversity)

Outcome 3: Contributed to the formulation of food and agriculture policies and programs at different levels (continue from DARE 2011-2013)

Output 3.1: Policy recommendations/proposal/submission on sustainable use of PGRFA in the intercessional meeting of the committee on sustainable use of the ITPGRFA

Output 3.2: Increased appreciation by formal plant breeding system of farmers innovation on crop improvement (at least 6 plant breeding institutions are providing support to farmers plant breeding through technical assistance and provision of pre-breeding materials)

Output 3.3: Advocacy on conservation and sustainable use of PGRFA discussed in at least one international negotiation

O utcome 4: Project impacts and lessons shared widely

Output 4.1: Project impacts and lessons documented, published and distributed (at least one documentation of project impacts per country and 1 on regional experience are packaged into publication, video or other forms of knowledge products and circulated to relevant institutions and in at least 1 global event)

Output 4.2: At least 1 regional event organized to share project lessons and experiences to relevant stakeholders

Outcome 5: Project proposal approved for implementation beyond 2015

Output 5.1: At least 2 proposals are developed and submitted to at least 6 potential donors


Output 5.2: At least 2 visits to at least 6 potential donors carried out in 2 years

Output 5.3: Organizational brochure and video material produced, webpage improved and made interactive for SEARICE projection and marketing to donors and various publics