Communities of practice and policy to accelerate regenerative school food system-led transformation in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal

This project will establish a network of national communities of practice and policy (CoPP), which will collaborate as part of a regional food system alliance. Through these CoPPs, members will help build a shared, evidence-based foundation for assessing, informing and scaling approaches, policies and investments towards regenerative school food system-led transformation. The focus will be on food system transformation at the intersection of public health, environmental sustainability, equity and food security. The project team will be intentional about gender and equity by understanding how different genders and socio-economic groups would be impacted by the proposed shifts in policy and practice.

These CoPPs will facilitate in-country research collaboration and joint action on priority policies for strengthening regenerative school food system-led transformation, with a focus on those that support gender and social inclusion. The prioritization and joint action will be informed by country-specific landscape analysis, examining the needed policy changes and type of advocacy strategy given the socio-political environment. In addition, the CoPPs will promote global learning through an online learning and knowledge dissemination website that will act as a dynamic hub across Africa for peer learning, showcasing case studies, blog posts and peer-reviewed publications developed by members. The project will be active in Rwanda, Kenya, Ghana, Nigeria and Senegal.

This project is funded through the Catalyzing Change for Health and Sustainable Food Systems Initiative, a co-funding partnership between IDRC and The Rockefeller Foundation.