Agricultural innovation in low-income tropical countries contributes to a more effective and sustainable use of natural resources and reduces hunger and poverty through economic development in rural areas. Yet, despite numerous recent public and private initiatives to develop capacities for agricultural innovation, such initiatives are often not well aligned with national efforts to revive existing Agricultural Innovation Systems (AIS).
It has long been recognized that investment is needed to build capacity in Science Technology and Innovation (STI) particularly in low and medium income (LMI) countries. Yet there is little understanding as to how to do this.