GFAR lines of action are to support stakeholder development of a Global Shared Vision on Agricultural Research for Development in the new, globalised context of ARD; to facilitate information and knowledge exchange within and among stakeholder constituencies; and to strengthen stakeholder constituencies including NARS, Sub-regional and Regional Fora so as to mobilize and to facilitate the participation of all stakeholders in their efforts to relieve poverty, increase food security and promote the sustainable use of natural resources.

GFAR is mobilizing the scientific community and all stakeholders in Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) to work together to face the new challenges and take advantage of the new opportunities presented by the deep changes that are influencing agricultural research. These challenges are coming to global attention and include facilitating access to and dissemination of the large volume of globally extant knowledge and information on ARD, managing natural resources such as forests and water, global food security, animal and plant genetic resource conservation, promoting local innovation and traditional knowledge, Integrated Pest Management, biodiversity protection, and improvement of post-harvest systems, just to name a few. A concerted effort from all stakeholders in the global ARD community is required to address these challenges and several changes in agricultural science are facilitating the process by offering new tools and new approaches: the information and communication revolution, proprietary technology, the emerging normative framework related to key aspects of agricultural research, changes in the organization of research and the emerging sense of commonality around ARD issues.

To address these changes, GFAR is supporting the development of a multi- stakeholder Global Shared Vision in ARD to focus research at the global level through the activities of the Sub- Regional and Regional Fora, by promoting multi- stakeholder involvement in ARD, innovative research partnerships- including GFAR- facilitated GPPs- and facilitating information and knowledge exchange among ARD stakeholders.

Information and Communication Management
In the new globalised world ARD stakeholders can take advantage of better and faster communication and information management systems to facilitate information flows among stakeholders and facilitate access to knowledge by end users. The capacity to access and manage information and knowledge, and to exchange experiences, lessons learned and modes of best practice is one of the main factors that influences the effectiveness of agricultural research across the world. Access to information and knowledge is particularly important as the ARD field is becoming increasingly technical and GFAR is working to ensure that the opportunities of ICM are available and used at the global, regional and sub regional level. This has lead to the development of Regional Agricultural Information Systems (RAIS) and global agricultural information systems (EGFAR).

Support to Stakeholders
The new globalised agricultural research environment necessitates cooperation, efficiency and focused research and development activities specific to each nation, sub-region and region. The Regional Priority Setting process is a communal identification of priorities relevant to all ARD stakeholders including research centers, NGOs, the private sector, Farmer's Organizations and donors. This minimizes duplication and a strong sense of commitment from all stakeholders is established. These priorities can then be raised to subsequent levels, and ultimately the global level, encouraging cooperation and maximum impact through reciprocal relationships.

Such a process requires that all stakeholders have the capacity to participate equally in ARD and Regional Priority Setting exercises. GFAR is working to ensure that all stakeholders can participate in these exercises and in the new global initiatives that are emerging.