Setting In Pakistan Research Articles

Targeting poverty alleviation in priority setting for agricultural research

This paper provides a brief overview of research priority setting methods at various levels in national research systems, noting the changing emphasis from supply- to demand-driven approaches at both macro- and micro-levels of priority setting. The scope for incorporating a poverty dimension into priority setting is then reviewed within a general framework that recognises the complexity of the link between research investments and poverty alleviation. The effectiveness of this targeting is likely to be very situation specific. A case study of macro priority setting in Pakistan shows the limited scope to target benefits to the poor through re-allocation of research resources among commodities, relative to a ranking based on the efficiency objective. Given present knowledge, enhancing the efficiency and effectiveness of research systems in promoting broad-based technical change should be emphasised more than major efforts to target poverty directly. This will involve a combination of supply- and demand-driven approaches to priority setting at different levels in the research system that will enhance both the efficiency and poverty alleviation impacts of research.