Financing agricultural research: International investment patterns and policy perspectives

For much of the post-WWII period, governments in rich and poor countries alike have increased public spending on, and performance of, agricultural research. The public involvement in, and policies toward, agricultural research and development (R&D) have undergone a sea of change in more recent years. In this article we document these changes, focusing on the public and, rapidly evolving, private roles in financing agricultural R&D, and the international dimensions of these funding and policy issues. We restate the principles for government intervention in research, and highlight the financing aspects of these interventions, before concluding the paper with some reflections on the implications of all these changes for internationally conceived and funded public agricultural R&D. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.