PROJECT ASSESSMENTS - Science for Agriculture and Rural Development in Low-income Countries - page 138

F) Lessons learned
What lessons have you learned from science, policy-oriented and capacity building
activities that could improve:
1) Future research on Rural Development and Sustainable Agriculture
An integrated, multi-disciplined approach is crucial to analysing sustainable land use
issues in poor regions. The problems in these regions are usually multi-dimensional
and technical solutions should always be combined with an analysis of the socio-
economic settings and conditions.
2) The role of research in generating policy-relevant information in support of LNV
and other policy institutions
Research questions should closely be aligned to the priorities and interests of
policymakers. But research that does not answer a very specific, short term policy
question because it is more long-term and general in nature, can still be valuable to
policymakers.
3) Partnerships and development efforts in the South
Good partnerships with (research) institutions in the South are crucial to the success
of an international research project. Establishing and developing networks with
partners in the South are important to Wageningen UR. Vice versa, research insti-
tutions have a benefit in collaborating with Wageningen UR institutes with respect
to extending their research agenda into new areas or working with new models (and
software), obtaining funds and receiving training.
4) Interactions between research and decision makers, both in The Netherlands and
the South
One cannot expect policymakers to read research reports. Discussions with policy-
makers, giving them information on research results (orally or in policy paper) are
more effective. Targeting of policymakers is also crucial (knowing which person
within which department to interact with).
5) Which insights were gained by employing a multi-disciplinary methodology that
would have been missed by disciplinary research?
The fact that certain technological options (integrated nutrient management) for sus-
tainable agriculture were not feasible, once other factors (and disciplines) were taken
into account. The multi-disciplinary nature also expanded the scope of the project,
enabling answering various issues at once.