people and planet

2
In many regions, climate change will result in more
frequent drought and low rainfall, making current
farming practices less viable. Such conditions call for
the introduction of new methods and technologies.
This could include the application of sustainable
organic farming methods, which have been shown to
produce higher yields than conventional agriculture
under drought conditions, as well as reduce negative
environmental impacts (Reganold and Wachter, 2016).
Agricultural research can help answer some of the
dilemmas extension services face. Through a crossdisciplinary
lens vital to the systemic change needed, it
can bring about more sustainable practices. Generally
based at universities and technical institutes, agricultural
research includes collaboration by a wide variety of
scientists, industrial partners and government agencies.
An analysis of more than 1,000 scientific publications
by France’s National Institute for Agricultural Research
provides insight into the types of research taking place:
methods and techniques to improve productivity and
the environmental, health and socio-economic impact
of agriculture, ways to improve coordination between
public research and industry, and scientific advice to
inform policy-making (Gaunand et al., 2015).
Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Rwanda and Uganda
show that the IAR4D approach has some benefits
for farmer income compared with conventional
research approaches (Ayanwale et al., 2013; Nkonya
et al., 2013).
Climate change and associated food security concerns
are prompting growing calls to reverse reductions
in government investment in agricultural research,
development and extension. Many countries have halted
or reduced investment in agricultural research, whether
directly or as donors. The key challenge is in sub-Saharan
Africa, whose share in global expenditure on public
agricultural research declined from 10% in 1960 to
6% in 2009. By comparison, Brazil, China and India
together accounted for 31% in 2009. In 2010, public
agricultural and food research worldwide received about
US$35 billion, while private research totalled between
US$20 billion and US$22 billion, which was heavily
concentrated in high income countries and focused on
innovations in off-farm sectors such as food processing
(Alston and Pardey, 2014; Mellor, 2014). Much more
investment is justified – the FAO estimates the returns
to public spending on agricultural R&D in Uganda at
more than 12% (Dobermann and Nelson, 2013).
Such research highlights a shift from isolated
campus research centres towards active engagement
with farming communities and industry partners,
and public programmes to encourage experimentation
and innovation. New research provides insights from
many areas, including innovation studies, socio-technical
transition studies, rural and political geography,
resilience thinking and climate risk management
literature (Rickards and Howden, 2012).
The Integrated Agricultural Research for Development
(IAR4D) concept is an example of this interdisciplinary
approach. IAR4D is based on a systems science
approach which includes many of the underlying
principles of sustainability science. These include
economic growth by linking farmers to markets,
conservation of natural resources, biodiversity,
limited carbon dioxide production, food security,
and social inclusion and equity. This integrated
approach to farming facilitates research on rural
services and policies in order to understand farmers’
access to markets, credit and other key rural services.
Empirical evidence for the integrated approach is
positive, although still sparse and weak. Impact
analyses of household surveys in the Democratic
EDUCATION AND LIFELONG
LEARNING CONTRIBUTE TO
LONG-TERM ECONOMIC GROWTH
Mainstream economic analysis has highlighted increased
levels of primary and secondary education as a key driver
of long-term economic growth. Data show that initial
levels of educational attainment explain about half the
difference in growth rates between East Asia and sub-
Saharan Africa between 1965 and 2010 (UNESCO, 2014).
At the individual level, the knowledge and skills workers
acquire through education and training make them more
productive. Provision of good quality education can
improve the knowledge and skills of a whole population
beyond what traditional or informal systems can achieve.
For business, educated and highly skilled workers foster
productivity gains and technological change, through
either innovation or imitation of processes developed
elsewhere. At the societal level, education expansion
helps build social and institutional capital, which
has a strong impact on the investment climate and
growth; it also helps in building social trust, developing
participatory societies, strengthening the rule of law
2016 • GLOBAL EDUCATION MONITORING REPORT 47