Publication cover

Authors:

Beintema, Nienke M.; Magalhaes, Eduardo Castelo; Randriamanamisa, Rivonjaka

Year:

2003

Publisher

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI); International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR); and National Center of Applied Research and Rural Development (FOFIFA)

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Although the total number of fte researchers in agricultural R&D has continued to grow (albeit at a very low rate in recent years), Madagascar experienced a dramatic decrease in public agricultural R&D spending over the past 30 years. This was the result of declining government contributions combined with the completion of NARP in 1999.

Under NARP, FOFIFA underwent major institutional changes. Total nontechnical staff numbers declined considerably—allowing a rise in researcher numbers—and research was decentralized through regional improvements and incentives that successfully attracted researchers from headquarters to regional centers, at least for the duration of the project (World Bank 1998). Since the completion of NARP, FOFIFA’s funding situation has worsened considerably. A second World Bank project, RDSP, was initiated in 2002, which will provide added financial support to FOFIFA and FIFAMANOR. RDSP is scheduled to run until 2006.