User:Hkabir75/sandbox

== Technologies and Practices for Small Agricultural Producers (TECA) ==

What is TECA?

TECA is a web-based platform for the sharing and exchange of sustainable technologies and practices for small agricultural producers (http://teca.fao.org/). TECA aims to make information available to smallholders to help improve the production and protection of plants and animals, to better manage natural resources, to better adapt to climate change and reduce the risks of disasters, to improve nutrition from agriculture and to better access markets. Registering as member on TECA allows for the provision of feedback on practices of the knowledge base, participation in online discussions with practitioners on challenges faced by small producers, and for joint development of sustainable solutions to address the challenges.

Who is the target of TECA?

The information available in TECA is provided to benefit small rural producers, but the users of the platform also include professionals from rural extension and advisory services, NGOs, research organizations, universities, producer organizations and the private sector.

TECA reaches out to its target groups through two main functions of the platform: the Knowledge Base and the Exchange Groups and through partnering with organizations working in extension.

The Knowledge Base

The Knowledge Base contains well-described practices that have been validated by farmers, from trusted sources, presented in an easy format (text, photos, or video) and simple language. It is interactive and allows TECA members to comment online on the practices. Users can search for practices by keywords or one of the following categories:

•	Agricultural mechanization •	Forestry •	Capacity development •	Livestock production •	Climate change and disaster risk reduction •	Natural resources management •	Crop production •	Nutrition for better life •	Fishery and aquaculture •	Post-harvest and marketing

The Exchange Groups

The Groups consist of a Farmer Innovation Exchange and a Beekeeping Exchange Group. To become a group members users have to register on the TECA website (free-of-charge). Members include smallholder farmers, beekeepers, rural advisory services agents, small entrepreneurs, scientists, and others from around the world interested in discussing and sharing innovative practices for sustainable agri-food systems including beekeeping.

Partnerships

TECA partners include a wide range of organizations that wish to increase the visibility and outreach of their work by sharing practices on TECA, or by facilitating or contributing to online discussions, to support small producers. The sharing of practices through the TECA Knowledge Base requires signing a co-sharing license between the partner and FAO. Other organizations use TECA content to identify sustainable practices for their extension activities with small producers.

Languages

Technologies and practices can be shared in three languages: English, French and/or Spanish.

Major achievements:

Sources: TECA has practices from 64 content providers.

Content: The TECA knowledge base contains 546 practices and technologies (March 2014)

Membership: More than 2,100 people registered as TECA members that allows them to regularly receive updates on technologies, news and discussions, to comment on practices and engage in discussions (March 2014).

Events: Users are regularly informed on training programs, scholarships, seminar, and conferences related to documentation, sharing and adoption of practices and technologies or extension related subjects.

Discussion: Members have easy access to discuss on different issues of Farmer Innovation issue and or Beekeeping Exchange issue. Respective experts can have responded to the any queries or comments. Members are actively discussed on 155 issues related to TECA technology.

For further information contact:

Research and Extension Unit,

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

Viale delle Terme di Caracalla - 00153 Rome, Italy

E-mail: teca@fao.org, Tel: +39 06 57055529

Website: http://teca.fao.org/

© FAO 2013