“…First, growth in public expenditure on agricultural R&D has stagnated in many developing countries, with noticeable declines across SubSaharan Africa (Pardey & Beintema, 2001;Pardey et al, 2006). Public research organizations are increasingly viewed as inefficient and inflexible bureaucracies, dependent on donor funding and declining in their ability to produce much-needed high-quality R&D outputs (Byerlee, 1998;Rukuni, Blackie, & Eicher, 1998). The international agricultural research system is struggling to redefine its own strategic roles and responsibilities, raising issues about its ability to support and strengthen its national public partners (Spielman, 2007;World Bank, 2004).…”