Rural innovation systems: introduction

"Promoting innovation through user involvement"

Conventional approaches to agricultural research and extension

Technology for innovation dissemination in the agricultural sector used to be organized as a linear and stepwise process: knowledge was acquired and/or generated via research, which was then disseminated by extension services in the form of information adapted to the needs of the end-users and, finally, users were expected to apply this new knowledge leading to innovation.

Conventional approaches, whether "pushed" by the supply of knowledge or "pulled" by the demand for information, put researchers at the centre of the innovation process and have a top-down focus on innovation and knowledge to be applied at production and farmer levels (Hall and Yoganand, 2002).
 

Reforms of National Agricultural Research Systems

The recent reforms undertaken in agricultural research and extension all seek greater actor involvement to strengthen client and user orientation and demand-driven management in order to enhance the impact of the services provided. Reforms are based on the recognition that knowledge relevant for innovation exists with all actors in the system.. Besides the formal, national research and extension organizations of the public sector, private enterprises and farmers’ organizations are now increasingly involved in research and extension (e.g. farmers collaborating in planning and implementation of trials and demonstrations, representing farmers on boards, advisory councils, technical committees, etc.). Changes in actor involvement in research and extension also illustrate the changing attitudes towards managing knowledge and information for agricultural development.

During the 1990s, in line with this broad reorientation of agricultural research and extension, emphasis was placed on reorganizing the National Agricultural Research System (NARS) by:

• reviewing the roles of the public and private sectors with respect to research;
• linking research organizations with (local, national and international) networks;
• improving the governance of the system (setting priorities, including the needs of farmers and accountability to both farmers and funding agencies, inetarction with the private sector); and
• strengthening linkages with extension and other advisory and intermediary organizations.

In this concept of promoting innovation through user involvement, farmers’ organizations and private sector organizations are instrumental in achieving economies of scale for adapting and disseminating new knowledge and information. Creation of a level playing field between research, farmers’ organizations and private sector organizations, as well as intermediary organizations is essential for allowing interactive learning.
 

The Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems concept

Within the context of NARS reforms, it became generally accepted that agricultural innovation requires a much more dynamic and complex interaction between stakeholders: roles can shift among participating actors, sources for acquiring and generating knowledge are diverse, and there are multiple networks for disseminating knowledge. The management of knowledge and information became the central issue in the Agricultural Knowledge and Information Systems (AKIS) concept. Effective interaction calls for functional linkages between stakeholders to ensure that knowledge is shared and information flows smoothly. By linking research, extension and training, AKIS aims to promote mutual learning and to generate, share, use and apply knowledge and information (FAO/World Bank, 2000). An approach based on the AKIS concept clearly allows farmers and their organizations to manage knowledge and information better.
 

The Agricultural Innovation Systems concept

The AKIS approach recently evolved further, based on industrial innovation studies. Instead of providing a "blueprint" for designing systems to promote innovation, attention shifted towards understanding and explaining the successful generation and application of new knowledge.

In addition to the AKIS focus on interaction and linkages, the National Innovation System (NIS) concept emphasizes learning processes and the socio-economic contexts that are considered crucial for applying new knowledge, thus leading to actual innovation (i.e. including adoption). Institutional support to facilitate such learning (e.g. learning from others, learning by doing, learning through use) is therefore considered critical.

Applying knowledge for development becomes the ultimate aim of the NIS, and puts the users in the driver’s seat. However, innovations, particularly technical improvements, often only take place if specific socio-economic conditions are met. Innovation, therefore, comprises technical, as well as organizational and institutional developments, also because interaction between actors is embedded in a socio-economic context (Hall and Yoganand, 2002; Feinson, 2003).

In this context, an Agricultural Innovation System (AIS) is defined as a set of organizations and individuals that are involved in generating, disseminating, adapting and using knowledge and information of socio-economic significance, as well as the policy and institutional context that governs the way such interactions and processes take place.

By Bertus Wennink (b.wennink@kit.nl), Suzanne Nederlof & Willem Heemskerk / KIT Development Policy & Practice

References

• FAO/World Bank, 2000. Agricultural knowledge and information systems for rural development (AKIS/RD). Strategic vision and guiding principles. FAO/World Bank, Rome, Italy.
• Feinson, S., 2003. National innovation systems. Overview and country cases. In: Consortium for Science, Policy, and Outcomes. Knowledge flows and knowledge collectives. Understanding the role of science and technology policies in development. Volume 1: Knowledge flows, innovation and learning in developing countries, pp. 13-38. Arizona State University, Tempe, USA.
• Hall, A., and B. Yoganand, 2002. New institutional arrangements in agricultural R&D in Africa: concepts and case studies. In: Freeman, H.A., D.D. Rohrbach, and C. Ackello-Ogut (eds.), 2002. Targeting agricultural research for development in the semi-arid tropics of Sub-Saharan Africa. Proceedings of a workshop, 1-3 July 2002, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, Nairobi, Kenya. 
• WB, 2006. Enhancing Agricultural Innovation: How to go beyond the Strengthening of Research Systems. ARD, Agriculture and Rural development, World Bank.