AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH FUNDING: TRENDS AND CHALLENGES

Abstract

Agricultural research is very significant to ensure that all people get sufficient food, climate is more resilient and development would be durable.  Funding mode of agricultural research has considerably shifted in the past few decades. It has witnessed a massive shift in support between the private and the public sector.  Through consequential qualitative analysis of institutional data and international research published literature, this paper will examine closely the past and present trends of funding, regional variations, and theme-driven research objectives.  We see that as the past has demonstrated new ideas have been created through public investment, particularly, the idea of the Green Revolution, but today the private sector contribution outrages the amount of revenue spent in various issues by the government.  However, this shift has resulted in the research priority being shifted towards crops and technology that can be commercialized, which is usually detrimental to the smallholder farmers and environmentally friendly practices. Quantitative analysis shows that wealthy nations obtain more than 60 percent of agriculture research and development (R&D) investments in the world. Conversely, Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia are areas that remain underfunded, although these regions are more susceptible to climate change.  Further, staple and native crops which play a significant role regarding food security in the local communities, e.g. millet and sorghum, receive less than 15 percent of funds on the international level. This indicates that the priorities of the crops are systemically biased.  On graphical analysis, crevices between funding are increasing, research fields are decreasing, and not very much finance is flowing towards new agroecological concepts.  The findings also indicate that the partnership between the government and people and international collaborations are emerging possible solutions to close gaps on equity and promote research that embraces all. The research demonstrates the high priority of the balanced and diverse funding schemes and the combinations of the governmental responsibility and the business creativity.  It is demanding careful investment with crops and regions that have been left out, equitable intellectual property legislation, and more powerful research centers in the Global South.  The concepts assist in policy dialog and strategic planning, which is intended to transform international agricultural research into one more concerned with sustainability, fairness, and resilience.