The opening of a new Knowledge Transfer Programme under Ireland’s 2023-2027 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) Strategic Plan has been announced today (Friday, July 14).
The programme will foster knowledge exchange and innovation between advisors, farmers and other stakeholders, Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue said.
Farmers will be supported to access information across a wide range of topics, including environmental sustainability, digital and smart technologies, and succession planning.
Welcoming the inclusion of farm health, safety and well-being as a priority topic in the new programme, Minister of State with special responsibility for farm safety, Martin Heydon said:
“Peer learning is a powerful driver of behavioural change and has been shown to be an effective method of improving safety on farms.
“This ensures the programme covers not only economic and environmental sustainability but also social sustainability on farms.”
Commenting that the new programme will also play a “crucial role” in helping farmers meet current and future challenges, Minister McConalogue said:
“I look forward to advisors and farmers engaging with the new Knowledge Transfer Programme – to the benefit of Irish farm businesses – as this is where the programme’s success will be measured.”
Knowledge Transfer Programme
The new programme will contribute to the wider development of the Agricultural Knowledge and Innovation Systems (AKIS) by harnessing the knowledge of those working the agri-food chain, Minister McConalogue said.
Expressions of interest to act as a Knowledge Transfer (KT) facilitator from advisors approved by the Farm Advisory System (FAS) will be accepted online via agfood.ie until Friday, September 1, 2023.
If approved, the KT facilitator will be invited to submit an application for a Knowledge Transfer Group and nominate the group participants on the online KT system by October 31, 2023.
Each KT group can have a maximum of 20 participants and each participant must attend eight group meetings and one-to-one with the KT facilitator each year of the three-year programme.
Rates of payment:
- Participants will receive re-imbursement to the amount of €750 per annum where all the requirements of the programme have been met;
- Facilitators will receive €500 per annum per participant in their group(s) where all the requirements of the programme have been met.
Further information and the Knowledge Transfer Programme terms and conditions is available on the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine’s website.
Earlier this week, Minister of State with responsibility for biodiversity and land use, Pippa Hackett separately announced the opening of the Forestry Knowledge Transfer Group Scheme.