DAERA Knowledge framework
The Department’s statutory authority for involvement in education and training comes from the Agriculture Act (Northern Ireland) 1949 as amended by the Agriculture (Northern Ireland) Order 2004.
The Knowledge Framework is a high level document that sets out the rationale for DAERA’s involvement in education, knowledge and skills, what the Department seeks to achieve and the nature of its interventions.
The future success of the Northern Ireland agri-food industry, like any other industry, will be determined largely by the ability of its people to acquire, assimilate and deploy knowledge that equips them to prosper in changing markets and trading conditions and how quickly and efficiently they can do this in comparison with competitors in other regions.
Currently the Department provides a range of full time and part time education as well as industry short courses at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE).
The DAERA Knowledge Framework aims to ensure that individuals, organisations, and businesses within the agri-food industry have access to high quality, relevant and accessible education, training and technology exchange to improve productivity, resilience, environmental performance and sustainability. The Framework firmly establishes the principle that involvement in education, training and technology exchange provision should be driven by DAERA’s policy objectives and strategic goals.
The Framework acts as the point of reference against which all of the Department’s current and future knowledge interventions can be tested and anchored. The Framework itself will be subject to review commencing 2024.