The when and where of research in agricultural innovation trajectories: Evidence and implications from RIU's South Asia projects
T.S. Vamsidhar Reddy, Andy Hall & R. Sulaiman
#2011-024
The question of how agricultural research can best be used for
developmental purposes is a topic of some debate in developmental
circles. The idea that this is simply a question of better transfer of
ideas from research to farmers has been largely discredited.
Agricultural innovation is a process that takes a multitude of different
forms, and, within this process, agricultural research and expertise are
mobilised at different points in time for different purposes. This paper
uses two key analytical principles in order to find how research is
actually put into use. The first, which concerns the configurations of
organisations and their relationships associated with innovation,
reveals the additional set of resources and expertise that research
needs to be married up to and sheds light on the sorts of arrangements
that allow this marriage to take place. The second - which concerns
understanding innovation as a path-dependent, contextually shaped
trajectory unfolding over time - reveals the changing role of research
during the course of events associated with the development and
diffusion of products, services and institutional innovations. Using
these analytical principles, this paper examines the efforts of the
DFID-funded Research Into Use (RIU) programme that sought to explore the
agricultural research-into-use question empirically. The paper then uses
this analysis to derive implications for public policy and its ongoing
efforts to add value to research investments.
Key words: Agricultural Innovation, Value Chain Innovation, Research
Into Use, South Asia, Innovation Trajectories, Research for Development,
Policy
JEL Codes: N5, N55, O13, O19, O22, O31, O32, O33, O53, Q13, Q16