In recent years the there has been an increasing recognition of the potential of the innovation systems concept to provide new ways of making more effective use of agricultural research and improve its impact on socially desirable outcomes. This paper documents the experiences of a group of...

The most effective approach to agricultural technology promotion and innovation is still a source of considerable debate, and nowhere more so than in the context of agricultural engineering hardware. Contemporary perspective on agricultural innovation stress the importance of institutional...

Since the end of 2007, countries in Central Asia have been struck by two major consecutive shocks: the food and fuel price increase in 2007-08, and the global economic and financial crisis that began at the end of 2008. Households, both poor and not poor, are directly and adversely affected by...

That innovation and entrepreneurship are important for poverty alleviation and development is well established. However, despite a general agreement that finance affects growth and development by supporting innovative activities in the economy, little has been written specifically on how...

Innovation spurs economic growth and development. Pro-poor innovation in rural areas is more likely to occur through small-scale ventures and entrepreneurs than industrial research and development. Whilst previous rural development policies have focussed on small-holder agriculture, the fact is...

From the perspective of poverty alleviation, socially relevant, or pro-poor, rural innovation is of particular interest in a country like India since it is in rural areas that most of the poor live. Pro-poor innovation in rural areas is more likely to occur through small-scale ventures and...

In many developing countries, pro-poor entrepreneurship and innovation is facing a financing gap. Such innovation suffers from a lack of finance especially from the mainstream (or core) of the financial system. Instead, the little support that exists comes from alternative sources at the...

Sanitation is at the heart of not only environmental security but also food security and health. Today about 41% of the global population or about 2.6 billion people do not have access to toilets and about 42,000 people die every week due to drinking water polluted with faecal matter. The...

This study estimates the rates of return (RoR) of non-contributory social transfer programmes in Cambodia using household data and going beyond standard cost efficiency analyses by developing a dynamic micro simulation. It shows that social protection promotes equitable economic growth by...

Access to energy is fundamental to improving quality of life and is a key imperative for economic development" (Energy Poverty Action). This is particularly true in Central Asia where winters are harsh and long. Changes in energy prices affect the purchasing power of households, hitting the poor...