Challenges or constraints are situations or factors that prevent expected potential from being fully achieved or realized. The potential may be based on extending the area under cultivation, increasing yields, cutting production costs and losses, or raising value added by processing and packaging (ISNAR Online and Janssen and Kissi 1997). Markets refer to National, Regional, Inter-regional, and Global markets. An enhanced understanding of markets is required so that technology choices are responsive to market forces. It is necessary to have market information in place in order to respond to potential demand. The data and analyses on market opportunities will be the driving force to be used to direct/inform technology choices. The market information to be used would be diverse encompassing monetary value and prices, environmental concerns, and other needs of market players. The characteristics of market structures and the different commodities both locally and beyond would be studied in order to assess where to tap new market outlets and how competitive the different countries are with respect to specific commodities. Whereas market information to capture opportunities maybe at one point in time, market intelligence would have elements of dynamism in markets. Market intelligence will captured using information related to:

1. Tracking of commodity prices and using information to make strategic movements
2. Potential and use of Futures markets

Natural Resource Management (NRM) is narrowed to Agricultural Natural Resource Base including the understanding of:

• Quality Environment (air, water, high levels of biodiversity)
• Sustainable Agriculture
• Agricultural Productive Base including soils, plants, animals, aquatic

Technology transfer/dissemination is the diffusion of a technology, for example, through an extension agency, or NGO. Technology dissemination could be broadened to include the diffusion of agricultural innovations to the farmer and the provision of prerequisites needed to make adoption possible (ISNAR Online). A matrix was developed for technology dissemination. It is noted that Methodologies are technologies and therefore form part of this matrix. Demonstrations are defined as "showing how technology is implemented".

This literally means, "What people want". Scientific and technological bodies need to develop technologies in response to existing and potential demand as articulated from the understanding of market opportunities. In this process, the smallholder agricultural sector needs to be given considerable attention, as this is where majority of farmers obtain their sustenance. The utilization of and benefits from these technologies would most likely be enhancing productivity. At another level is demand driven from the perspective of what the consumer and market place "wants" including attributes related to quantity, quality, and variety. Technology as indicated here is further than production of bulk commodities but encompasses production to consumption continuum and hence there is value adding in the process. This includes scientific discovery that precedes the innovation, followed by invention (the first working model). An Innovation can also be described as the process of creating something new that has significant value to an individual, a group, an organization, an industry, or a society (ISNAR Online and Higgins 1995). Technologies include Practices, Methodologies, Transfer, and Varieties. Similarly, reference totechnology refers to the production to consumption chain, hence including elements of value adding along the chain e.g. quality concerns in production, processing and packaging. A matrix will be used to split up technology into production, yield, NRM related, pre-harvest (including biotechnology), and post harvest (including laboratory technologies). Within each cell of this matrix will be contained a metric. ASARECA IRs and Sub-IRs would serve as the SO and IRs for Networks respectively. Technology utilization presupposes that data on technology use is difficult to come by but worth collecting. This can be done through targeted surveys and scaled up to larger levels on an annual basis. Horizontal collaboration of several Networks may do the trick of tracking technologies which saves on time, funds and beneficiary visit fatigue.

A Policy is a high-level overall plan embracing the general goals, guiding principles and acceptable procedures (ISNAR Online). Agricultural Research Policy is a framework guiding investments and activities in the generation and dissemination of agricultural knowledge and technology in a country or region. Policy is developed in a process that links innovation in agriculture to prospects for growth and development in the agricultural sector and in the broader national economy and regional economy (ISNAR Online). It is a consensus statement that is based on a nation's/Region's underlying philosophy, values, and societal aspirations, of what categories of knowledge and technologies to generate and diffuse, how and by whom they are to be generated in the most socially cost effective manner, and to achieve sustainable agricultural development through the realization of stated agricultural research policy objectives (ibid). An Enabling Regional Policy Environment refers to the facilitation/supporting of the provision of regulatory and incentive structures that would stimulate commercial agriculture from production to consumption including production, transport, processing and marketing. ASARECA will table to decision makers recommendations on policies of regional significance. Facilitation of the agricultural transformation is the provision of assistance and support and may involve stimulating, motivating, guiding or providing technical or political support for organizational change (ISNAR Online). Facilitation may be by external or internal agents. Agricultural transformation is moving the Regional Agricultural system (production to consumption continuum) from Subsistence to commercial.

Policy Advocacy is the process of facilitating/influencing the adaptation/uptake of policy results or emerging best policy options. The timely identification of relevant policy information and their analyses is therefore crucial. The identification of key national and regional advocacy groups is also important. Policy proposals will be provided to advocacy groups.

Capacity (knowledge, skills, tools) in policy analysis is the ability of individuals, countries and NPPs to perform policy analysis effectively, efficiently and in a sustainable manner. It indicates strengthening the ability of scientists to carry out policy analysis. The persons receiving these skills would then be those to implement country level policy work by transforming the national data to regional. Policy analysis may be done at two levels, the national level and regional level. A means of verification of the types and skills and tools imparted could be captured via lecture notes and participant lists. Project proposals would be used as a means of verifying the number of policy analysis research being done. It is to be noted that ASARECA may have trained in policy analysis but the skills and tools may not be applied as result of other factors especially the lack of resources to carry out policy analysis. However, it will be necessary for ASARECA to concern itself in matters of institutionalization to ensure delivery of the SO. A database is an organized collection of related sets of data, managed in such a way to enable the user to view the complete collection, or a logical subset, as a single unit. It typically comprises, in descending hierarchical order, tables, records and fields (ISNAR Online). The generation of Comparable National Data will involve the design of a structured means of characterizing Agricultural R&D information within the ECA Countries. It is an agreed format of data collection and presentation, which would allow cross-country comparison. Harmonization of national databases refers to the standardization of data in order to compare across countries. It refers to the design format for data collection depending on the issue(s) to be analyzed as identified, prioritized and agreed upon when establishing the Regional Policy Agenda. This would entail development of conceptual frameworks for regional analysis. It is to be noted that many factors affect the availability, reliability and comparability of data across countries. Time series data rarely exist and therefore ASARECA will try to harmonize cross-country data as much as is possible in order to show trends and highlight major differences among the different economies. There is some inconsistency in national data and many countries do revise their national data from time to time. ASARECA will use international databases because of these inconsistencies. It is to be noted that international databases lag a year behind.

The Agricultural System is that which embodies the continuum from production to consumption and is composed of agricultural production and processing, trade, policies and institutions, and information. The Regional Agricultural System encompasses Training, Research, Technology Transfer, Agricultural Related Industries, Farmers/Traders/Processors/Agro-industry, Input/Output Suppliers, and Natural Resources. Value added might be captured using two possible indicators, 1) value added in the pre-harvest sector, 2) Value added in the post-harvest sector. Quality change contribution needs to be captured at the pre-harvest sector for example fortified cassava. A benchmark quality needs to be in place for each of the commodities. For this reason, Real prices as an indicator for post-harvest value added will need to be used here, unlike in the SO where weighted prices were chosen. There is a concern on value added dimensions with respect to NRM. The agreement is that these aspects are captured through productivity, and more specifically for ASARECA under the identification of opportunities and challenges for natural resources. Competitiveness is the ability to develop and use technology to reduce National/Regional cost of production and its trend to show how a nation/region is competing with itself by reducing production costs over time, as well as improve quality, innovate new products, marketing strategies (post-harvest processing and packaging, health and sanitary standards, infrastructure), under a favorable policy environment (e.g. exchange imbalances: if rates not in order there may be no competitive edge despite lowered production costs). It is the ability to produce and provide commodities/products and services for the market sustainably so that future production is able to respond to changes in technology, market demand, and input/output prices. Competitiveness is more than just price and quantity and has more parameters including quality, and convenience. Looking at the effectiveness in the use of markets could capture competitiveness outside the region. A choice indicator may be value of exports of ASARECA commodities. However, it is observed that this relates to international markets, which are subject to factors such as subsidies taxes that are beyond ASARECA's manageable interests. There are three dimensions to this issue:

1. Farm level productivity plus agricultural GDP that embodies value added,
2. Competitiveness as measured by international trade (export market),
3. Value added, especially in non-internationally traded commodities.

Enhanced Utilization of Information is perceived as a crosscutting issue, fed by and feeding into the identification, generation and utilization of demand driven technologies; the facilitation of an enabling policy environment for agricultural transformation; and the promotion of performance driven institutional arrangements. It is also perceived to entail generation and compilation of data; data analysis/ processing/ storage/ retrieval; and provision of access to the information by technology generators and end-users.

A Resource is a reserve (includes examples such as good air, knowledge, etc.) or what is required to accomplish an activity. Physical resources are equipment, facilities, funding, or anything else needed by organizations in order to perform their activities. Human resources are knowledge, skills, and attitudes used by people to accomplish an activity and use resources productively (ISNAR). The focus is not on generic capacity building but specifically addresses NARS' expectations from ASARECA. ASARECA's activities in strengthening human and physical resources at the regional level, adds value to what already exists at country level. These would basically entail strengthening human and physical resources. Training is the process of designating knowledge, skills, and attitudes and is to be developed through training programs. Training can be more or less formal, ranging from classroom instruction to on the job assignments. Training in the regional agricultural research system includes choosing goals for formal training (degree and non-degree) and specifying what, where, and how training programs should be undertaken and by whom.

The Gross Domestic Product is defined in the usual standard manner as measuring the value of goods and services for final use produced by residents (and non-residents?) regardless of the allocation to domestic and foreign claims (WB). The movement of this over time will indicate improvement or the lack of improvement in social welfare (social income) and economic progress. When GDP/Capita is expressed in current US dollars to facilitate aggregation and comparison, the values may reflect exchange rate fluctuations as well as underlying economic and demographic changes (WB). The decision was made to use international data for this indicator, as this was readily available and comparable across countries and regions. It was noted that there could be a time lag in data availability therefore reports in year 2002 will be indicative of year 2001 data. Regional GDP Growth Rate (% per year) is presented in real terms and provides average annual growth rates calculated from GDP at constant prices. The movement of this indicator shows the extent of economic progress and since national time series data will be used, trend analysis for the individual ASARECA countries as well as cross-country comparisons can be monitored. The activities of ASARECA will contribute to enhancing the quality of the environment by engaging in work that does not degrade the environment; is able to increase current level of production, or attained higher levels of production are maintained. There is a higher probability of maintaining current production/productivity for continued benefits. It was observed that it could be too complex to measure the environment (NRM) at Goal Level. In the circumstances, ASARECA will contribute to the Goal by developing technologies that are purposively designed to be environment friendly.

ASARECA taking steps to strengthen its core functions especially with respect to providing support and advice to NPPs, NARS, and agricultural R4D in the region. This entails empowering scientists, policy decision makers and communities through capacity building to have in place a R4D framework that addresses food security. An integrated regional agricultural research for development portfolio will be used as an indicator to track performance driven governance system for ASARECA. This is a descriptive and process indicator and also long term in nature. The means of verification is the document that is the integrated regional agricultural research for development portfolio and an institutional review of new approaches to governance. It also includes amended bylaws, constitution, reviews of roles and responsibilities of CD and secretariat.

An "institution" is a socially sanctioned and maintained set of established practices, norms, behaviors, or relationships (e.g. trade regulations, land tenure systems, Regional Agricultural Research for Development, family) that persist over time in support of collectively valued purposes. According to Burki and Perry (In ISNAR ONLINE), "institutions are formal and informal rules and are enforcement mechanisms that shape the behavior of individuals and organizations in society. Performance driven refers to the execution (generation) of activities (outputs and outcomes) in relation to objectives. Institutional Arrangements refers to operating under an environment with better definition, stability, transparency, enforceability, predictability, and better alignment of conceptual framework with capacity. It is recognized that institutions now exist, but are not necessarily performance driven. The undertaking on the part of ASARECA is to catalyze processes and systems to ensure delivery of quality and timely results. It is recognized that even the best catalytic role might not successfully establish performance driven institutional arrangements. Thus, the decision is to commit ASARECA to promote necessary processes and systems. A pre-condition is to carry out a study to identify institutional arrangements and how to measure them and establish the criteria to be used to establish performance driven. Number of performance-based institutional arrangements and Innovative institutional approaches and methodologies for demand led research for development will be used as indicators. The latter is a process indicator. An institutional system is said to be "organized" when the rules and norms for using a new organizational system (e.g., a CRF, M&E system) have been established and capacity has been developed in this area (ISNAR, ONLINE). The system is said to be "institutionalized" when users accept and value the new system and use it routinely and it becomes part of the standard operating procedures (ibid).

Stakeholders are the groups whose interests are likely to be affected by interventions/technologies/policy options or, conversely, whose activities will affect interventions/technologies/policy options. These are people who have a vested interest in the outcome of the interventions/technologies/policy processes. They are agencies, organizations, groups, or individuals who have a direct or indirect interest in these options. National and Regional research and extension, policymaking bodies or persons able to effect policy changes (inform practical policymaking) are key stakeholders. Given that the stakeholders will tend to vary from issue to issue, it will be necessary to define the specific stakeholders applicable in each instance. Generic categories will include: Interest groups and decision makers. Disaggregating these two categories further would reveal - NGOs, private sector, community based organizations, farmer organizations, and the state itself. Quite often, in policy formulation processes, coalitions of different interest groups will be found playing important roles. Policy options are results from policy analysis that would be tabled to policy advocacy groups and policy decision makers.

Strategic Partners are individuals and/or organizations that collaborate to achieve mutually agreed upon objectives. It pertains to having shared goals, common responsibility for outcomes, accountability, and reciprocal obligations. These partners may include NPPS, governments, NGOs, Universities, private sector, etc. It is recognized that institutions currently associated with ASARECA alone cannot deliver the SO. Hence the need to pro-actively pursue strategic partnerships. These partnerships will be based on the twin principles of comparative advantage and subsidiarity. That means every partner will be expected to add value; and that each activity will need to be carried out at its lowest level of operation possible.