Knowledge for Development Challenges
The K4D Challenges are both educational and transformational programmes jointly implemented by K4DP and partner institutions. Participants are joining a comprehensive Knowledge Management Certification Training Programme and apply the learnings directly in the team to solve pressing challenges in the respective knowledge ecosystem.
K4D Challenges are running already since 2001 successfully, like the Africa Knowledge Management for Agricultural Development Challenge (KM4AgD), the Knowledge Management for Public Administration of Uganda Challenge (KM4PAdU), and the global Knowledge Management for Biodiversity Challenge (KM4B). The first global K4D Challenge was implemented successfully in 2025! On 2 June 2026, a K4D Challenge has been started in Uganda within the Power for Food Programme.
The upcoming 2nd global K4D Challenge 2026 is starting on July 8, 2026! Register NOW!
Participate in the K4D Challenge!
I am interested in the K4D Challenge. Please contact me for further communication and details.
2nd Global K4D Challenge 202!
The second global, thematically open K4D Challenge will start on 8 July 2026!
K4D pioneers, practitioners, and newcomers are invited to join forces, learn with each other and co-create the future of K4D – advancing sustainable knowledge societies.
The idea
Knowledge is at the heart of sustainable development and it needs to be developed with a vision and with competence to achieve ambitious goals. Knowledge is a complex domain and it requires a solid understanding of knowledge, its characteristics in society and of knowledge management as a discipline to advance knowledge in an organisation and in society. We need qualified Knowledge Managers in all sectors of sustainable development and in all stakeholder groups to advance knowledge in a professional and coordinated manner. Those qualified Knowledge Managers need to work together in structured and organised partnerships to develop solutions and to implement them together. The K4D Challenge provides the framework to learn about knowledge for development, to identify key challenges in organisations and in societies, develop solutions and to stay together to implement them.
Key components of the K4D Challenge
A K4D Challenge starts with 16 training modules on Knowledge Management and Knowledge-based Development. This assures to bring all partners on the same page – even though perspectives, approaches and strengths may differ – and to qualify all partners to play a leading role in advancing KM in their organisations and to contributing to sustainable knowledge societies. The modules are comprehensive and consistent, enabling participants to qualify as “Certified Knowledge Managers for Sustainable Development” once they have participated in the course.
The 16 modules of the K4D Challenge 2026 will be provided from July to September 2026 online. There will be two implementations, which allow everybody around the world to join at convenient daytimes. The trainings are intensive, but with only 2 hours per week (plus small weekly assignments) it is possible to take them on top of a regular job.
After the training modules, the K4D Challengers work on three Challenges: Once, they work on KM Strategies for their organisations and they get support from their peers and experts. Then, they will form groups to identify challenges in the societal knowledge ecosystems and develop solutions together.
Finally, the write a concluding Statement to the Agenda Knowledge for Development.
All findings will be presented at the concluding K4D Conference in December 2026. The K4D Community was established in January 2026 to sustain the collaboration beyond the K4D Challenge 2025, and the new finalists of the K4D Challenge will be onboarded to this Community. At the K4D Conference, the participants are awarded “Certified Knowledge Managers for Sustainable Development”.
Find here a Power Point introducing the K4D Challenge.
Find here the detailed contents of the 16 modules of the KM4D Certification Course of the K4D Challenge.
The K4D Challenge is a big opportunity to make a change in K4D together. It provides a solid educational programme, access to an amazing K4D Community of Practice and allows to jointly create the solutions for your and our all problems in the knowledge ecosystems
Question? Contact us!
Knowledge for Development Partnership: info@k4dp.org.
KM Training Course
8 days with KM 4D Certificate
K4D Challenges
Individual and group work
K4D Community
Multistakeholder CoP
Organisational KM Strategies
Individual work with coaching
Knowledge Policy briefs
Group work with expert inputs
Agenda K4D / Agenda K4 XYZ
Group work with expert inputs
Global K4D Conference
Virtual
Participate in the K4D Challenge!
I am interested in the K4D Challenge. Please contact me for further communication and details.
Become a member!
Sounds like a great idea? Become a member of K4DP!
Participants are mastering 3 challenges
They develop or advance the KM concepts for their organisations, supported by world-leading KM experts.
They solve KM challenges in the sector/country with knowledge policy briefs.
They contribute with their learnings to the global Agenda Knowledge for Development.
Participants who successfully accomplish the challenges are awarded “Certified Knowledge Managers for Sustainable Development” by K4DP, the partner institutions, and our SKS-Partner Universities.
Previous challenges
Participants
Experts
Countries
The first K4D Challenge is implemented on an annual basis since 2021 in partnership with FARA Forum for Agricultural Research in Africa as the “Knowledge Management for Agricultural Development Challenge”.
About 90 participants from 30 countries have been trained and coached by more than 20 experts, who supported them in the development of KM Strategies for their organisations and National Knowledge Policy Briefs for their countries.
Both KM4AgD Challenges concluded with the “Knowledge Management for Agricultural Development Conference”, held from 6-9 December 2021 and 13-15 September 2022 in Accra, Ghana. On that occasion of the first KM4AgD Conference, the Accra Declaration has been signed, laying the ground for a strategic, systematic and integrated approach to knowledge in agricultural development in Africa.
The KM4Biodiversity (KM4B) Challenge started in 2024, and 600 participants have been trained in Knowledge Management representing all Parties to the Convention on Biodiversity, altogether 195 countries. Since then, a series of Regional KM4B workshops have started, the first one in Bogota/Colombia in October 2024. Regional Biodiversity Knowledge Agendas are developed and regional KM4B communities of practice are launched for the implementation. A KM Strategy for the Convention on Biodiversity has been developed and launched.
The KM4AgD Challenge and the KM4B Challenge are implemented on an annual basis. For more information, go to km4agd.faraafrica.org and km4b.cbd.int.
English
Accra Declaration in English
French
Accra Declaration in French
Further Challenges
Further Challenges are being prepared.
The Africa Water and Sanitation Knowledge Management Challenge in cooperation with AMCOW African Ministers´ Council on Water will train 2 participants from each African countries and work towards a continental Water Knowledge Agenda.
The Knowledge Management for Biodiversity Challenge shall strengthen Knowledge Management on national, regional and global levels, implemented in partnership with the Convention on Biodiversity. The CBD Secretariat is hosted by UNEP in Montreal, Canada.
The KM4PADU Challenge was implemented from February to June 2023, trained KM focal points in all Ministries and key Agencies of Uganda and worked towards a National Knowledge Management Strategy for the Public Administration of Uganda. The project was implemented by the joint K4D-Centre at Makerere University Business School, which is a collaboration of MUBS and K4DP.
Do you want to learn more about it? Are you interested in implementing a K4D Challenge in cooperation with K4DP?
Get in contact with us: info@k4dp.org
Downloads
All documents in one place
Here you find all documents around the Knowledge for Development Challenges