North African SRO ICT/RAIS Steering Committee

progress Report

Otman Sebbata ICT specialist INRA Morocco

sebbata@inra.org.ma

Regional Training Workshop "Building National Capacities in Information and Knowledge in support

of Agricultural Research for Development in Near East Region" Cairo, Egypt

17-20 May 2009

April 2009

Content: 1.0 Introduction 1 2.0 Maghreb Sub Region organization 1 3.0 Regional Level 2 4.0 National level 2 5.0 Institutional Level 3 5.1 Advocating the project to Decision makers 3 5.2 On going ICT/ICM projects at INRA 3 6.0 RAIS /SC Level 3 7.0 Comments and Observations 4 Appendix 1 List of National Focal Unit at the NASRO 5

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1.0 Introduction: According to recommendations made during Cairo Meeting . The RAIS steering committee has the following Term of Reference:

(a) facilitate the management of an articulated and consistent set of collaborative programmes leading to a three-years plan of work,

(b) monitor and evaluate the activities undertaken within this plan of work, (c) ensure that there is a timely delivery of the expected outcomes of the collaborative

programmes, (d) facilitate the communication between all the stakeholders involved in these activities,

and (e) report to the AARINENA executive Committee. Therefore, each member of the steering committee is representing one of the 5 sub regions and has to establish a network with all stakeholders to facilitate communication and to coordinate activities related to RAIS implementation.at the sub region. As a member of the steering committee during two mandates (2003-2009), I managed to set a network with contact persons either at regional and national level. One of the major tasks was to inform on RAIS project, send questionnaires and request whenever this is needed, to write reports on ICT situations at institutional level and get institutions training needs on ICT/ICM issues. The following progress report is divided into actions made at sub regional, national and institutional levels. 2.0 Maghreb Sub Region organization:

On the occasion of the second SRO Maghreb meeting held in March 2007 in Morocco attended by Algerian and lybian countries in order to (a) develop a common consensus for organizing our North African Research Institutes

in a sub regional organisation (NoA-SRO) in the FARA and AARINENA fora; B. (b) Initiate the discussion on the institutionalisation of the NoA-SRO; and (c) debate the organisational mechanisms through which the NoA-SRO will be coordinated.

A project related to ICM and ICT activities was prepared in order to be submitted to sponsors such as AfBD and others for the benefit of the member countries. This project includes aspects related to :

(1) Information system design and implementation taking into account the four modules related to Institutions, Experts, Research projects and research outputs,

(2) Capacity building including identifying and conducting training needs, besides organizing workshops on high priority topics and information systems performance and impacts on research output

(3) Facilitation: publication of success stories (4) Consolidation: development / sustaining information system interface and activation

of national focal points (5) Coordination by regional fora (FARA, AARINENA) This project was a good opportunity to debate among decision makers within the Moroccan research institute all aspects reviewed at the AARINENA steering committee meetings

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3.0 Regional Level: Contacts were made during the first steering committee mandate in late 2003. Letters were sent to different agric. Institutions of the four countries (Algeria, Lybia and Tunisia, Morocco) to inform them on the RAIS projects and circulate questionnaires on ICT situation and human resources needs. Tunisian IRESA institute www.iresa.agrinet.tn and Algerian INRAA institute www.inraa.org.dz showed interests to collaborate to the RAIS project however at the Lybian level no replies was received. Afterwards, Contacts were kept regular during second Steering committee mandate with Tunisia and Lybia as AARINENA member countries. thus, first contact was made right after the General meeting in Jordan in 2006 to inform on the new SC members and to reports on recommendations made during RAIS meetings. In addition, as a Maghreb representative of the RAIS, I was a contact person for the FARA and in several times i was asked to act as facilitator to provide contact person names of ICT/ICM specialists in the maghreb area. I also had contacts from the RUN Network manager (Mark Beranrd) who wanted to have participants from the maghreb SRO to a distance learning on the RUN network. Only Tunisia provides a list of ICM/ICT specialists besides Morocco. . Finally after the second meeting in Oman 2008, contacts were made with the new focal point in Tunisia and Lybia to circulate information and reports made for this occasion. It is obvious that coordination of the SRO country members could be better made if support is given from either AARINENA or other IARCs such as IACARDA or AOAD in terms of workshops or visits to those countries in other to develop contacts and exchange experience in the field of ICT and ICM. To conclude, National focal point designation from ARC decision makers will facilitate the work of the next SC. 4.0 National Level: Some aspects discussed in this chapter are detailed in the NIFU’s progress report. At this stage, my duty was not very difficult though, I had informal contacts with ICM/ICT persons in the Training and Research institutions during my first and second mandates. At this level contacts were kept regular to inform about progress made for the RAIS project and its impact and implications for the national information system. In Addition, E.mails and on site visits are used to collect data needed for the RAIS SC reports made during first and second SC mandates. As a Moroccan representative in the RAIS project, I was acting as a Steering committee member and National focal point. I was targeting decision makers and ICT/ICM specialists. With regard to Decision makers: I made a synthesis note that summarizes the whole work done within the RAIS project and its impact for the national information systems. For this purpose, and taking into account the need for a pilot project, contacts were made to training and research institutes who are potential information producers and users. Those contacts aimed at advocating RAIS project by arguing on benefits of the project and its positive impacts to the NARIS system.

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Secondly, representatives from Moroccan institutions met at the INRA information and communication division in early 2009 to discuss the launching of the NARIS, expectations, needs and recommendations. As a most important recommendation, a steering committee was set among Research institutions made of ICT/ICM specialists that will define the NARIS chart, vision and action plan for the NAIS. Next meeting is expected in early june 2009. 5.0 Institutional Level 5.1 Advocating the project to Decision makers: Reports are currently made to our directorates. I had several discussions with my former DG on RAIS project and its impact to the INRA system. This happens in several occasions before attending RAIS/SC meeting during fisrt and second mandates. One of the most criticisms made from my DG was that RAIS did not yet take some practical steps to translate recommendations into actions due to delays and also limited financial supports as compared to the FARA/RAILS. As a RAIS/SC I was in charge to coordinate contacts made with the FARA and participated to the preparation of the FARA experts’ visits to Morocco. I also joined a group of decision makers at INRA to prepare a project on the SRO AIS to be submitted to the African Bank. After new DG appointment at INRA, a report on RAIS project was prepared and the new DG who was very receptive to the project gave logistic support to the first meeting held at INRA on NAIS.

5.2 On going ICT/ICM projects at INRA:

Thee main project are currently undertaken regarding : - Website enhancement - Virtual library made of INRA’s grey literature - Develop access to online resources: Agora and Science direct - Use of Webagris 2.0 interface to integrate the INRA bibliographic database on the

Net. More details is found in the NIFUs report 6.0 At the RAIS/SC level: Writing progress reports on ICT/ICM situation Participate to all meeting held during first and second SC mandates held in cairo, Iran, jordan, india and oman Contribute to discussions launched before and after meetings to implement recommendations, NIFUs Terms of reference for the concerned focal points, RAIS three years Working plan to be adopted Reports on discussion teams during RAIS meetings Participate to AARINENA forum discussion on RAIS

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7.0 Comments and Observations: Application Tools : Despite recommendations made in the Oman workshop, and Emails sent from the SC members and the RAIS chairmain to circulate the NERAKIN beta version before the AARINENA general assembly among NIFU’s, the regional FAO representatives in Cairo did not fulfil its promess to do so. Lack of support at the SRO from IARCs: As recommended in the oman meeting, the launching of the National agric. Information system needs to be supported by some IARCs that collaborate within the RAIS “ICARDA, AOAD and FAO” to held a one day workshop on NAIS strategy; Organize and sponsor training workshop to ICT/ICM on RAIS tools and procedures (NERAKIN)

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Appendix 1 List of National Focal Unit at the NASRO

Egypt Mahmoud Rafea Director of CLAES, ARC Address: Gamaa st., Giza - Egypt Tel: +202-3317615 Fax: +20-37617628 Mobile: 0105433350 E-mail: mahmoud@claes.sci.eg Ahmed Omran CLAES, ARC Address: Gamaa st., Giza - Egypt Tel: +20-33317609 / +202-3317615 Fax:+20-37617628 Mobile: 010 0695384 E-mail: omran@claes.sci.eg Dr. Kamal El-Siddig Director, Administration of Human Resource Development and Information Agricultural Research Corporation P.O. Box 126, Wad Medani Sudan Tel (H): +249 511 59343 Tel (O): +249 511 30192 Mobile: +249 125 36032 Fax: +249 511 43213 Libya Kamel M. Ben Essa Member of the Libyan National Focal Unit Address: Tel: +21-8925093082 Fax: +21-8925093082 E-mail: benessak@yahoo.com Tunisia Mr Mohsen Krichi Direction du traitement de l'information scientifique Institution de la Recherche et de l'Enseignement Superieur Agricoles( I R E S A ) Ministère de l'Agriculture et des Ressources Hydrauliques 30, Rue Alain Savary-1002-Tunis- Tunisia E-Mail: mohsen.krichi@iresa.agrinet.tn Mahammed Bergaoui Address: IRE SA, 30 rue Alain Savary 1002 Tunisia Tel: +16-71-798244

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Fax: +16-71-796170 E-mail: Bergaoui.med@@iresa.agrinet.tn Morocco Mr. Otman Sebbata INRA,P. O. Box: 6512 RI,Rabat, Morocco Head of information & documentation Unit ,INRA, Morocco Tel:+212-37-203660 Fax:+212-37-774459 sebbata@inra.org.ma