Activating institutional innovations for hunger and poverty reduction: Potential of applied international agricultural research

International agricultural research centers (IARCs) have a mission to reduce poverty, improve food security, human health and nutrition, and to ensure sustainable management of natural resources. Their role in the research for development (R4D) continuum has long been a subject of discussion, often with emphasis that they should conduct research that produces international public goods (IPGs). However, national agricultural research systems (NARS) in many developing countries have insufficient capacity to translate these products into welfare benefits. This - coupled with higher dependence on bilateral donors that exert pressure to show impacts - has increasingly driven IARCs to engage in participatory downstream work. This project analyzes the rationale for setting up IARCs under the consultative group on international agricultural research (CGIAR), their governance and transformation over the years, and the critical question of how the centers should position themselves. Empirical analysis is conducted on the groundnut and chickpea improvement program of the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT) in three countries (India, Malawi and Ethiopia) that differ with regard to the capacity of their agricultural research systems and the state of their seed systems.