The productivity and overall efficiency of the rice value-chain depends on type and number of productive linkages between actors. AfricaRice has demonstrated the role played by the innovation platform in increasing the productivity, efficiency of the rice value chain and the sustainability of project funded actions in some sites in Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, and Nigeria. The process of the creation of the Goronyo Rice Innovation Platform was executed simultaneously with the diagnostic survey. The actors were educated on the composition and functioning of an innovation platform. It was observed that the actors are well organized as far as water usage is concern but are not organized with respect to rice production, processing, and marketing. After discussions between stakeholders, there was a unanimous decision to create the Goronyo Rice Innovation Platform (GRIP) with the vision being “Production of quality rice for remunerative markets” The stakeholders identified two entry points. The primary entry point was “The production and marketing of high quality parboiled milled rice” while the secondary entry point was “The production and marketing of quality paddy”. The stakeholders meeting in their first general assembly after the IP creation unanimously agreed and elected the executive of the Apex (the highest organ of the Water Users Association) as the GRIP management committee. The different actors and their roles in the innovation platform (IP) were identified the day the IP was created as shown in Table 1 below. 

 

Table 1: Members of the first management committee of the Goronyo Rice Innovation Platform 

1 

Alhaji Amino Goronyo 

Chairman  

08062615172 

2 

Alhaji Ibrahim Abubakar 

Secretary  

08035459007 

3 

Alhaji Ibrahim Adamu 

Treasurer  

08035042156 

4 

Rabi Adebayo 

Women leader 

07061502322 

5 

Mallam Bello Usman 

Public Relation Officer 

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