How Dynamics of Learning are Linked to Innovation Support Services: Insights from a Smallholder Commercialization Project in Kenya

Purpose: The important role of learning is noted in the literature on demand driven approaches to supporting agricultural innovation. Most of this literature has focused on macrolevel structural perspectives on the organization of pluralistic innovation support systems. This has provided little insight at the micro-level on the dynamics of demand articulation, and the related interplay of matching farmers’ demand with supply of innovation support services. This paper contributes to understanding this interplay using the concept of the dynamic learning agenda. Design/methodology/approach: We present a case study of a project supporting smallholder commercialization of onions in Kenya. Data were collected in selected project sites over seven months using key-informant interviews, focus group discussions, participant observation at various meetings and project document reviews. Findings: The results show that because learning in agricultural innovation processes is dynamic, static notions of demand articulation and related support are inadequate. Supporting learning and innovation requires an understanding of how farmers’ demand evolves, a flexible matching process with various innovation support services to achieve ‘best-fit’, and an awareness of sometimes competing interests of actors. Practical implications: The findings are useful for enhancing support of innovation processes by pointing to the need for paying attention to evolving demands and how these are matched with the right type of services, guided by effective monitoring in order to adapt the dynamic learning agenda accordingly. Originality/value: We add to the debate on demand-driven approaches to innovation with a dynamic analysis of pluralistic innovation support service provisioning, which has mainly been analyzed statically.