West Asia and North Africa

During 2008–2012, Sudan’s total public agricultural R&D spending fell by 40 percent (in inflation-adjusted terms), largely driven by sharp declines at ARC and ARRC.

In 2011 Sudan invested only 0.19 percent of its agricultural GDP in agricultural R&D, giving it one of the lowest agricultural research intensity ratios in Africa.

Tunisia’s agricultural research system underwent important reforms over the past decade, facilitated by the national government’s commitment to the agricultural sector and important World Bank-support agricultural research and extension projects. After a period of stagnation due to a recruitment freeze, total agricultural researcher numbers steadily increased from 1996 until 2002.

Overall, agricultural research staff and expenditures in Syria increased in 2003 compared to the 1998 level. Nonetheless, research intensity levels in Syria are still lower than in other countries in West Asia and North Africa. In 2002, the organization of agricultural research in Syria was consolidated with the merger of nine preexisting agricultural research entities under MAAR to form GCSAR, which is largely funded by the national government but receives limited funding for research projects from  bilateral and multilateral donors.

Since the beginning of the 1980s, agricultural researcher numbers in Morocco have steadily risen. Agricultural R&D spending followed a more erratic trend in response to  fluctuations in national government funding and (foreign) donor support, though spending has trended steadily upward in recent years, given the Moroccan government’s renewed commitment to developing the agricultural sector. Morocco’s principal agricultural R&D agency, INRA, was highly dependent on government funding throughout 1991–2002, particularly because donor funding contracted over that time.

During 1996-2003, total agricultural research staff and expenditures in Jordan rose steadily. In 2003, the country spent close to $13 million (in 2000 prices) on  agricultural R&D. Compared to many other countries in West Asia and North Africa, Jordan distinguishes itself in having a very high research intensity ratio—not uncommon for a country with a low AgGDP share, a small population and high per capita income.

This report presents an overview of Iran’s national agricultural R&D system in terms of institutional developments and recent trends in human and financial resources based on data collected under the Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI) initiative.