In the mid-1990s, various organizations concerned with agricultural development in northern Ghana sought ways to promote joint research, extension, advocacy and learning with farmers as equal partners. They were disillusioned with the conventional agricultural modernization and transfer-of technology approach which all of them had tried to implement but with little success. They had recognized the need to build on the indigenous knowledge (IK) and initiatives of smallholder farmers in order to develop LEISA (Low-External-Input and Sustainable Agriculture) technologies and to strengthen farmers' capacities to interact with formal research and development (R&D).