1.  Implements project activities in five districts (woredas) (Gurawa, Haramaya, Kombolcha, Metta and Habro).  Aims at identifying and scaling up farmers’ best practices and technological innovations, through validation, generating and documenting evidences, and identifying key factors for success.  Identifies and documents model farmers’ best practices, production constraints, and opportunities through PRA, scoping studies, and district platform reviews.  Based on these studies and review workshops at district, regional and national levels, eight innovation themes were identified and are being implemented. CASCAPE Project at Haramaya University, Eastern Oromia, Ethiopia CASCAPE East Oromia Approaches and Mechanisms of the Innovations Success Stories  Haramaya University’s (HrU) CASCAPE does Participatory Action Research Different stakeholders involve in problem and opportunity analysis, planning, implementation, and evaluation of innovations.  FRGs (Farmers’ Research Groups) and Farmers’ Research and Extension Groups (FREGs) comprising men and women, and model and non-model farmers are organized to: Facilitate validation of best practices Enhance group learning and experience sharing Enhance adoption and scaling up of best practices  35 FRGs and 13 FREGs each consisting of 8-16 farmers (2-3 women) are working on the different innovations.  So far, 1065 farmers have been involved and benefiting from different activities of the innovations.  Mechanisms used for the evaluation and dissemination of best practices, and transfer of knowledge: Farmer-to-farmer linkage within the CASCAPE groups Farmers’ field days On-spot trainings Cross visits and knowledge sharing events Community forums Printed media (leaflets and posters) and mass media (television and radio)  Participatory evaluation and promotion of high yielding and disease-resistant Irish potato varieties (Bubbu, Zemen, Chiro, Badhassa, and Moti)  On-farm trials conducted in 2012 on eight farmers’ fields in Kombolcha and Haramaya districts.  The varieties produced twice as much as tuber yields as that of the local varieties.  Highly preferred due to high resistance to late blight for planting in the rainy season, high market and food attributes such as pleasant taste, low bruising and skinning while transporting in jute sacks for long distance markets, and compact tuber setting for easy cultivation, harvesting and economy of space.  Seed tubers multiplied by 33 FRGs members during the off-season of 2012/2013 using irrigation with support and follow-up from CASCAPE team and Bureau of Agriculture (BoA).  Linked with CASCAPE pre-scaling activities, the varieties are being now multiplied by 78 farmers.  Some farmers are deriving benefits from seed tubers that they are disseminating to other farmers for about 5-7 Birr kg -1, which is twice as much as the market value of table potato.  A farmer Mr. Abdi Mussa, is one of such farmers Produced about 2.6 tonnes of seed tubers during the off-season Retained about 0.5 tonnes for his own planting Sold 2.1 tonnes for 14,650.00 Birr  Currently, 115 on-farm trials, pre-scaling activities on 474 farmers’ fields income diversification and natural resource rehabilitation activities on 11 community groups, 10 MSc thesis researches (four finalized) and 1 PhD and 4 MSc scholarship studies are underway  Activities are implemented through: Demonstration trials Experimental trials Pre-scaling Survey and Capacity building FRGs evaluations (left) and field days (right) on different activities of different innovations PRA and scoping studies Local variety Improved variety Variety evaluation phase during 2012 main cropping season Variety multiplication during the off-season using irrigation Farmer Mr. Abdi Mussa and his family (Haramaya) CASCAPE IT supervising the field (Kombolcha) Abdi Mussa’s Wife “We are very happy! We have never experienced such innovations before. We are extremely happy to work with CASCAPE on other activities too”. Abdi Mussa’s Wife “We are very happy! We have never experienced such innovations before. We are extremely happy to work with CASCAPE on other activities too”. CASCAPE Team Members, Haramaya University Maize-common bean intercropping and tef relay cropping trial, 2012 Gibe-2 pre-scaling, 2013  Promotion of improved synthetic maize variety (Gibe-2) in Gurawa  Maize variety Gibe-2 was used as a test crop in maize-common bean intercropping and tef relay cropping trial during 2012.  Gibe-2 was highly preferred by farmers due to: High yielding (about 9.6 tonnes ha -1 in sole cropping) Tolerance to high and low moisture stresses Tolerance to diseases Good food quality  Based on farmers’ interests, the variety was multiplied in a pre-scaling activity on 130 farmers (~ on 20 ha) in 2013  Recent evaluation on the field day have created further demand. Nigussie Dechassa (PhD) Coordinator Mengistu Ketema (PhD) Assistant Coordinator Haile Deressa Agronomist (FTI) Tamiru Amanu Agr. Economist (FTI) Olkeba Birru SWCexpert (FTI) Jembere Tariku RDAE Expert (FTI) Feyisa Hundessa Livestock Expert (FTI) Samuel Tegene IPM Expert (PTI) Addisu Sebsibe Nutrition Expert (PTI) Muktar Mohamed (PhD) Agroforestry Expert (PTI) Kebret Ketema Agr. Economist (PTI) Note: FTI: Full-time innovator PTI: Part-time innovator