The CGIAR at 31 : an independent meta-evaluation of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research - the CGIAR in Africa - past, present, and future

The purpose of this paper is to examine the performance of the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) in Africa, identify problems facing the System, and discuss strategies to improve the performance of the System. The first CGIAR Center in Africa was established in Nigeria in 1967 and it became operational in 1970. Currently, all 16 CGIAR Centers have programs in Africa. The total agricultural research expenditure in Africa is divided as follows: NARS, 75 percent; CGIAR, 15 percent and private, 10 percent The CGIAR is spending about 45 percent of its budget in Africa. The balance of the paper analyzes the historical development of the CGIAR in Africa followed by a discussion of guiding principles to improve the performance of the CGIAR and national agricultural research systems in Africa.