We recently held the latest SIGMA project team meeting to discuss progress on the project. The theme of this meeting was preparing for our upcoming fieldwork activities, to update on the status of the literature review, and to prepare assessment frameworks and discuss specifics on the fieldwork instruments to be used in data collection, specific stakeholder groups to target, and cross-cutting issues between stakeholder groups to more effectively combine questionnaire approaches.
Currently, the systematic literature review on the five themes identified by the project (technical, environmental, governance, inclusiveness and political economy) is nearing completion, and the issues identified through the literature review are expected to be investigated further through the fieldwork process. We are working closely with our project team members in case study countries (Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania and Senegal) in order to develop effective frameworks for the assessment of the five project themes, and had extensive discussions in the meeting about how best to target stakeholders in the case study countries, the nuances and specifics of interacting with specific stakeholder groups (such as policy-makers contra householders), and how a tailored, modular approach to questionnaire design would be most beneficial for targeting the diverse range of stakeholders we are interested in speaking to as part of the project.
We also discussed plans for upcoming project events and information dissemination activities. Due to ongoing delays caused by the pandemic, and challenges in the research funding landscape, our dissemination plans have not taken the form that was initially anticipated. However, we are planning to host an upcoming dissemination event to present the literature review findings and discuss the project more broadly in late October/early November, details of which will be published on our website. We are also hoping to present some work at the upcoming COP26 meeting in Glasgow, UK in November. Details of this meeting will also be posted here once confirmed.
