Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR)
The Global Forum on Agricultural Research (GFAR) is a multi-stakeholder initiative to discuss and act on issues of global concern related to agricultural research for development (ARD). It is a neutral platform expected to facilitate the flow of information and knowledge among ARD stakeholders as well help them voice their needs.
The integration of Web 2.0 technologies and an overall Web 2.0 approach allow EGFAR, the Web site of GFAR, to electronically mimic the role of GFAR.
The flow of information among stakeholders is facilitated through an RSS aggregator of ARD news coming from partner Web sites. A customized and integrated Google Custom Search Engine (GCSE) allows unified searches on EGFAR partner Web sites thus improving information sharing. The GCSE, through its collaboration facility, also allows stakeholders to collectively build a searchable base of Web contents. The wiki-like open site on EGFAR allows publishing by all registered participants and creates a truly neutral platform for sharing views and knowledge. EGFAR also employs RSS and “Representational State Transfer” (REST) based technologies to make its local content available to partner Web sites and for displaying data coming from external services.
Among other advantages, Web 2.0 technologies, through light-weight programming and pluggable tools, can help solve problems related to poor ICT infrastructures that some stakeholders face. However, there are also challenges, the major one being that of building awareness among stakeholders so that the EGFAR Web space is effectively used as a collaborative platform.
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