In the late 19th century public agricultural research institutions were set up in the advanced industrialized nations of today. These paved the way for technological change and transformation in the agricultural systems of these countries (Ruttan, 1982). In the last 50–100 years, dramatic changes in agricultural productivity and production have taken place, driven in large part by investments in public and private agricultural research (Alston and Pardey, 2014). These increases in agricultural productivity have by and large occurred across the globe, encompassing high-income (Andersen and Song, 2013; Khan et al., 2017; Thirtle et al., 2008) as well as middle- and low-income countries (Adetutu and Ajayi, 2020; Fan et al., 2000; Suphannachart and Warr, 2011), and involving their respective public sector agricultural R&D organizations. Today, nearly all countries in some form or another have national agricultural research institutes (Fuglie, 2018).

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Thus, public sector agricultural research and development (R&D) has played an important role in increasing agricultural total factor productivity (TFP) across countries (Fuglie, 2018; Rawat and Akter, 2020). These past patterns of growth in agricultural productivity have had important implications for food security and poverty (Alston et al., 2009a). In current times the role for agricultural R&D has expanded further. From boosting agricultural productivity and improving food security, agricultural R&D is now also viewed as a powerful means to ensure environmental sustainability and tackle climate change (Acevedo et al., 2018). The former through interventions and innovations that can minimize ecological damage while increasing productivity (Swaminathan, 2017); the latter through research that focusses on combatting potential threats and adverse effects arising from a mean rise in temperature, and also by mitigating the effects of global green-house gases resulting from agriculture (Lobell et al., 2013).

According to the 2019 Global Agricultural Productivity Report, in order to sustainably meet the needs of an estimated 10 billion people in 2050, global agricultural productivity would need to increase from the current average annual rate of 1.63% to a rate of 1.73% per annum (Steensland, 2019). Given the limited natural resources and degradation of the resources already in use (Fuglie, 2015), increases in agricultural productivity would need to accrue from intensification, i.e. by raising the yield per hectare. This makes the role of public agricultural R&D in raising agricultural productivity critical. Thus, stagnant or declining levels of public investment in agricultural R&D put future agricultural productivity growth at risk (Fuglie, 2015).

 

RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT FUNDING 

Funding for agricultural research and development (R&D), both public and private, has decreased over the years. The success of the Green Revolution may have resulted in a complacent attitude among funding agencies. Given the recognition of the need for food and the cost of research and development, most people now view this reduction in funding as a huge mistake. Several agencies, NGOs, and private sector firms are now reversing this trend. Private funding plays an important role in taking the new developments to the farmer. However, many of the breakthroughs in research happen in the public sector. An investment in the public sector is essential to create breakthroughs in helping the world meet the food demands of the future.

FPI TASK ON AGRICULTURE RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT:

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1. Agriculture Economics

2. The state of public agricultural R&D today

3.  A shift in the traditional bastions of agricultural research

4. Sustainable Food Systems and Agriculture

5. Cluster Farming in Agriculture

6. Agriculture in Fragile States 

7.  Agriculture Production

8. Integrated Management of Soil Fertility

9. The benefits of Technology in Agriculture 

10. AR&D in fighting poverty and Hunger in Africa

11. Agroecology systems in Agriculture