A June 2009 paper (GFAR, 26 pages) takes an in-depth look at funding trends in agricultural research for development. In this briefing paper Ruben G. Echeverria and Nienke M. Beintema examine past and current trends in the funding of agricultural research and analyze various agricultural research funding mechanisms that have been used in the past and should be explored today in order to increase agricultural research outputs in developing countries. Much was discovered through their research and analysis.
Despite recent increased international awareness of the importance of agriculture as a generator of income, employment, foreign exchange and tax revenues as well as its association with poverty reduction and the preservation of natural resources, there is still a need for increased awareness of the important role that agricultural research for development (AR4D) plays in the above issues.
The great potential of AR4D in issues of food security, poverty reduction, and preservation of natural resources must be emphasized in order to overcome the perpetual under-investment in public agricultural research in developing countries.
