PROJECT ASSESSMENTS - Science for Agriculture and Rural Development in Low-income Countries - page 177

• Within four years, numerous presentations have been made on project results to

the local governments and stakeholder platforms in the four regions (at least
twice per year) - moreover, final results for the Chinese case study have been
presented to policymakers (representatives from three Chinese national ministries
and provincial governments, and the agricultural counsellor of the Dutch Embassy
in China). Results have also been presented in three international conferences
and at national workshops and seminars. (many presentations and papers are
available via the project website (12500 hits so far);

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
First, while bio-economic models (i.e., simplified representations of reality) are
useful for exploring the consequences for agricultural production and resource use
for different (plausible) scenarios on technology and policy change, such modelling
studies need to be complemented by empirical studies into 'real-world' constraints
to technology adoption and implementation of policy measures. Such combination
appears to be fruitful but is still very rare.
Secondly, integrated studies and the associated methodology development and
evaluation as conducted in IRMLA require considerable and continued financial
investments - the more so since the research process is dependent on frequent
interaction with stakeholder platforms; this requires time for establishing trust and
flexibility and continuity to respond to changing information needs; moreover, time
and funding needed for capacity-building for such integrated methodologies are
generally high; this seems a weak point in times of declining investments in agri-
cultural research with a tendency to shorter funding periods; strategic partnerships
should be emphasized; means have to be found to maintain long-term research
collaboration.

2) The role of research in generating policy-relevant information in support of LNV
and other policy institutions

Integrated scenario studies (combining farm and regional analyses) are effective in
producing policy-relevant information. Such studies are able to show the integrated
results from different policies, the interaction between different factors (e.g.,
changes in land use, agricultural intensification, environmental protection, changing
consumption patterns, etc.), and the trade-offs between factors (e.g., income and
environmental effects) at farm and regional level. The constraints and opportunities
identified for the farm level can be taken into account in the formulation of regional
interventions to arrive at feasible and meaningful management strategies and policy
options.