Audit of international agricultural research centers

Audit report covers the period through 6/85 and is based on site visits and discussions with research and official personnel. Since significant A.I.D. funding began in the late 1960"s, IARC"s have made very few technological breakthroughs, and, except for wheat and possibly rice crops, the new technologies they have developed are not widely used by farmers. The main reasons for the latter are that: national agricultural research centers (NARC"s) are unable to adapt IARC technologies to local conditions; no viable extension methods exist; countries lack adequate seed production capability, fertilizer, and storage facilities; and policies on crop prices and other inputs have been unfavorable to the farmer. An A.I.D. study of agricultural development projects notes that small farmers generally lack access to new technologies and often fail to adopt them when they do have access. Also, many IARC publications remain unused because they are too technical for most A.I.D. agricultural personnel, are often not translated into Spanish and French, and are not well distributed. A.I.D. has not closely monitored IARC activities. No formal analysis of IARC performance and contributions has been conducted. Although funding has increased by $20 million over the past 6 years to $45 million annually, there is little evidence that crucial factors were considered in setting funding and allocation levels. A.I.D. management comments were considered in preparing the audit, but for the most part were deemed not pertinent to the issues raised therein. It is recommended, inter alia, that A.I.D.: (1) require the integration of IARC results into agricultural research and production projects; (2) require Project Papers for pertinent bilateral projects to contain a specific and detailed description of ways to coordinate IARC and NARC efforts in the project; (3) advise USAID"s of the importance of creating direct linkages between NARC"s and farmers and provide USAID"s with lessons learned on this subject from recent evaluations; and (4) establish guidelines for determining the funding for each IARC, including an analysis of the actual impact each has had on A.I.D."s specific objectives.