WORKING PAPER No. 9

ORGANIZATIONAL, FINANCIAL, AND

HUMAN RESOURCE ISSUES FACING

WEST AFRICAN AGRICULTURAL

RESEARCH SYSTEMS

International Service for National Agricultural Research

The International Service for National Agricultural Research (ISNAR)began operating at its headquarters in The Hague, Netherlands, onSeptember I, 1980. It was established by the Consultative Group onInternational Agricultural Research (CGIAR), on the basis ofrecommendations from an international task force, for the purpose ofassisting governments of developing countries to strengthen theiragricultural research. It is a non-profit autonomous agency,international in character, and non-political in management, staffing andoperations.

Of the 13 centers in the CGIAR network, ISNAR is the only one thatfocuses primarily on national agricultural research issues. It providesadvice to governments, upon request, on research policy, organization andmanagement issues, thus complementing the activities of other assistanceagencies.

ISNAR has active advisory service, research and training programs.

ISNAR is supported by a number of the members of CGIAR, an informal groupof approximately 43 donors, including countries, development bankS,international organizations and foundations.

WORKING PAPER No.9

ORGANIZATIONAL, FINANCIAL, AND

HUMAN RESOURCE ISSUES FACING

WEST AFRICAN AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH

SYSTEMS

Guy RoeheteauPaul Bennell

Diana MeleanHoward Elliott

May 1988

•ISns,International Service for National Agricultural Research

ISNAR WORKING PAPERS

The ISNAR working papers series is a flexible instrument for sharing

analysis and information about relevant organization and management

problems of the agricultural research systems in developing countries.

In the course of its activities - direct assistance to national

agricultural research systems, training, and research - ISNAR generates a

broad range of information and materials which eventually become the

formal products of its publications program. The working papers series

enhances this program in several important ways:

1. These papers are intended to be a rapid means of presenting the

results of work and experiences that are still in progress, but are

already producing results that could be of use to others;

2. They are intended to be an effective vehicle for widening the

discussion of continuing work, thereby increasing the quality of the

final products; critical comment is welcomed;

3. The series provides an outlet for diffusing materials and information

that because of their limited coverage, do not meet the requirements

of general audience publication.

The series is intended mainly for the diffusion of materials produced by

ISNAR staff, but it is aiso avaiIable for the publication of documents

produced by other institutions, shouid they wish to take advantage of the

opportunity.

CHAPTER 1:

CHAPTER 2:

CHAPTER 3:

CHAPTER 4:

TABLE OF CONTENTS

A FRAMEWORK FOR STUDYING CURRENT ISSUESOF NARS IN WEST AFRICA

Introduction

An Overview of ATMS in West Africa

Donor Impact on Systems

ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUES

Introduction

Historica1 Deve10pment of Research Organizations

Effects on Planning and Management

Reorganization Issues

FINANCIAL RESOURCES

Introduction

Expenditure Breakdowns

Funding Stabi1ity

International Expenditure Comparisons

HUMAN RESOURCES

1

1

3

5

8

8

8

16

22

27

27

27

30

30

36

Introduction 36

Quantitative Overview of Agricu1tura1 Researchers 36

Human Resource Deve10pment 43

Human Resources, Planning, and Uti1ization 58

Human Resources Strategy for Agricu1tura1 Research 66in West Africa

CHAPTER 5:

REFERENCES

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 72

75

CHAPTER 1

A FRAMEWORK FOR STUDYING CURRENT ISSUES OF NATIONAL AGRICULTURALRESEARCH SYSTEMS (NARS)

IN WEST AFRICA

INTRODUCTION

Strengthening national capacities to conduct agricultural research isconsidered by most developing countries and donor agencies as requisitefor economic growth and stability in the agricultural sector. In thispaper. we will address problematic issues facing national agriculturalresearch systems in West Africa. including organizational. financial. andhuman resource issues.

ISNAR recognizes that prescriptions for improving the policy.organization. and management of NARS in West Africa can only be made bytaking the specific country context into account. However. donoragencies are sometimes under pressure to act within a broader framework.often regional in nature. which can be justified to theirdecision-makers. The purpose of this chapter is to suggest an approachto identifying opportunities for improving West African agriculturalresearch which places the recommendations in a policy. organization. andmanagement framework and which takes into account the history of thesystems involved. Sorne understanding of the way in which the systemshave evolved to their current state is necessary if recommendations forimprovement are to be realistic. This is not a history of West AfricanNARS but rather an interpretation of current issues in an evolutionarycontexte

The Agricultural Technology Management System (ATMS)

To structure the discussion. we will use the concept of the agriculturaltechnology management system (ATMS). ATMS describes both the broadsystem and the component parts which affect and encompass agriculturalresearch systems. By definition. the components comprising thetechnology management system both influence and are influenced by eventsoccurring in the system. The process of agricultural technologymanagement involves the creation of appropriate structures and mechanismsto overcome constraints to the generation and diffusion of improvedtechnologies.

The component parts of the ATMS are:

the "technology sector". with its subsectors (the technologygenerating sector. the technology transfer sector. and the technologyusing sector);

the "politico-bureaucratic structure". composed of formairepresentatives of the government and decision-makers. and thechannels through which interests of ail groups in the system are madeknown to policymakers;

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the "externa1 sector", composed of donors, international techno10gygenerating institutions, and multinational firms engaged intechno10gy generation and transfer;

the under1ying "structural conditions", which inc1ude both theresource base of the country and any exogenous constraints imposed bythe nature of wor1d markets for outputs and inputs of theagricu1tura1 sector;

the "po1icy environment", made up of a11 1aws, regu1ations, customs,and practices which 1imit the way in which components of thetechno10gy sector behave.

In the colonial period, the simi1arities between the French, British, andBe1gian research systems were greater than their differences. Whi1e theformer British colonies may have been more decentra1ized in organizationand funding, they a11 concentrated their efforts on the principal exportcrops, participated in international and interco10nia1 exchanges ofmateria1s, and maintained strong links to the production sector. Thecurrent research systems in West Africa, however, are quite diverse, inpart because their national objectives now differ from the ro1e assignedto them during the colonial period and because they have respondeddifferent1y to emerging constraints. It is in this respect that eachcountry becomes a special case, and there is no uniform recommendationfor strengthening a11 systems.

The Review Approach

The approach fo110wed in this report is first to make severa1observations about the structure and evo1ution of West African researchsystems within their broader ATMS environment. The second chapter thenconcentrates on organizationa1 issues associated with particu1arfunctions a system must perform we11 if it is to be successfu1. Theseinc1ude the setting of strategic goals and priorities, and the variousplanning, management, and linkage functions. Chapters Three and Fourthen dea1 with the financia1 and human resource issues which characterizeWest African systems. The avai1ab1e evidence will present a picture ofincreasing pressure on research budgets fo110wing a period of rapidexpansion. This is occurring precise1y at a time when the humanresources, sent for training during the period of growth, need financia1and physica1 resources in order to be productive. This imp1ies that asound human resource strategy might better look at the productive use anddep10yment of scientists in the pipeline than massive training to replacethe scientists who 1eave because of inadequate remuneration and poorworking conditions.

A Classification of Countries for the Ana1ysis

For purposes of this report, we have attempted to group countries withcommon characteristics, ana1yzing them co11ective1y. Because this reportconcentrates on organizationa1 and institution-building questions, aninitial division separates the British, French, and Be1gian systems.Moreover, since the methodo10gy ca11s for an understanding of the basicstructural and environmenta1 conditions facing the NARS, it is usefu1 toseparate the Sahe1ian countries from the humid coasta1 countries. This

3

effective1y divides the former French colonies into two groups. Fina11y,it is necessary to treat the large Nigerian system as a special case,since its weight in the total wou1d bias a11 the indicators for theregion if inc1uded in regiona1 ca1cu1ations as just another case. This1eads to the presentation of country-1eve1 data according to thefo110wing taxonomy: 1) Francophone Sahel, 2) Francophone Savannah/HumidTropics, 3) Anglophone (exc1uding Nigeria), 4) Nigeria, and 5) Zaïre.With the exception of Nigeria, basica11y no system in the region is verylarge, so the discussion of the "sma11-country prob1em" is integratedwith the discussion of the structural, resource uti1ization, andmanagement issues that are faced by the research systems of the region.

AN OVERVIEW OF ATMS IN WEST AFRICA

In a report dea1ing primari1y with organizationa1 and management issues,we do not need to spend much time on the macro issues of both astructural and a po1icy nature. However, they do fix the frameworkwithin which the agricu1tura1 sector and the agricu1tura1 researchsystems operate. It is usefu1, therefore, to compare the countrygroupings with respect to key macropo1icy issues, unusua1 structural ornatura1 events that inf1uenced the evo1ution of the systems, and anyparticu1ar po1icies 1imited to the agricu1tura1 sector which may haveimpinged on the success or fai1ure of the techno10gy-generation andtransfer processes. The evo1ution of the post-colonial systems can becompared with respect to important changes in:

a) the po1icy environment;b) the under1ying structural conditions;c) externa1 influences from donors and the international scientific

community;d) the po1itica1-bureaucratic structures.

With respect to the po1icy environment, it is difficu1t for anagricu1tura1 research system to outperform the economy in which it isoperating. Therefore, the stabi1ity of its economic environment iscrucial to its success or fai1ure. The post-colonial transition of agiven research system, therefore, can be expected to para11e1 the stateof the country's economy. One of the most obvious factors distinguishingthe former French colonies from either the anglophone countries or Zaïreis the stabi1ity of their economies in the post-colonial era.

With the exception of Guinea and Mali (which operated for a periodoutside the franc zone) the former French colonies enjoyed a stabi1ity intheir currencies because they were convertible to French francs. Thesecurrencies tended, however, to be overva1ued, which favored the strongercoasta1 countries (Ivory Coast, Senega1, and Cameroon) at the expense ofthe weaker interior countries. In addition, those countries which 1eftthe franc zone experienced economic difficu1ties which are ref1ected inthe relative deterioration of their systems. Apart from the formerFrench colonies, the Zairian system foundered during the po1itica1difficu1ties of the mid-1960s and has not yet recovered. The Ghanaiansystem enjoyed severa1 good years after independence but suffered from agenera1 economic malaise fo110wing the co11apse of the cocoa market in

4

the mid 1960s. The Nigerian research system, always the strongest inWest Africa, managed to expand in the post-independence period and evenhad difficulty absorbing the money that came its way (in large butirregular amounts) during the oil boom. However, the overall Nigerianeconomy has since suffered an economic retrenchment.

This rather schematic discussion of the economic environment is not meantto raise issues that cannot be dealt with. While national researchdirectors may find the policy environment beyond their reach, donors areable to engage in a policy dialogue at the macro level which can improvethe framework within which research functions.

The stability of policies facing the agricultural sector has varied fromcountry to country. The Ivory Coast has been one country that hasattempted to maintain favorable terms of trade for agriculturalproducers. Producer priees for its principal export crops have beenfixed at levels which generate tax receipts for the government but alsoleave incentives for farmers. The maintenance of its export potential intree crops has been a major concern of the priee and investment policy ofthe government. Similar policies have been in force in Cameroon.

The experience of these cocoa and oilpalm-producing countries is incontrast with that of both Ghana and Nigeria, which failed to protect theterms of trade of their producers during the 1960s and 1970s. In Ghana,the policies of the early 1960s (a concentration of public expenditure onurbanization and industrialization) generated a domestic inflation andovervaluation. This, along with a payment-by-chit system which farmersfound unacceptable, led many farmers to abandon measures to protect theircocoa against disease and insects. It was in the aftermath of thesepolicies that the Ivory Coast replaced Ghana in the world cocoa market.In the case of Nigeria, a combination of domestic inflation,overvaluation of the naira, and escalation of public-sector salariesduring the oil boom turned the terms of trade against the agriculturalproducer.

In Zaïre, the deterioration of infrastructure during the rebellion andits continuing state have made it difficult to establish adequateinternaI marketing systems for both food and cash crops. Therefore, eventhe recent establishment of more realistic exchange rates will not ensurethe success of the agricultural sector without investment ininfrastructure. In the years following the rebellion, the successivepolicies of zairianization, radicalization, and ultimately, retrocessionof plantations were evidence of an instability in policy that madeinvestment not worthwhile and research problematic.

In several Sahelian countries, the government used official (usuallyfood) marketing agencies to control the priee of basic crops. The resultwas a worsening of the terms of trade for the producer. Recent measureshave led to the liberalization of many of these policies.

With respect to changes in underlying structural conditions, it isobvious that the successive droughts in the Sahel have focused bothattention and resources on those countries. Even though the region hadpreviously experienced cycles of extreme low rainfall, in the past thehuman and animal populations at risk were not so large. In response, the

5

inflow of donor resources to the agricultural research sector has beenlarge in relation to the size of the systems; large numbers of traineeshave been sent abroad; and questions of the sustainability of the systemsbuilt on donor money have been raised. Increased attention to Sahelianproblems is leading to more emphasis on sustainable production,environmental protection, and factor-based research.

DaNaR IMPACT aN SYSTEMS

West African countries rely heavily on external donor assistance todevelop and support their national agricultural research systems. Donorassistance most frequently cornes through projects, which may take acommodity, regional, or sectoral approach. In spite of the prevalentunderstanding that research support would be more efficient and effectiveif donor coordination could be improved, donor procedures often keep thisfrom happening. Funding cycles, internal bureaucratic demands, politicalobjectives and, sometimes, neo-colonialist attitudes and a sense ofterritoriality keep donors from collaborating, and they instead crea teindependent pieces of the mosaic of the national research system. Thisis counter-productive to developing a carefully planned and sustainablesystem. National research administrators often find themselves jugglingdonor-sponsored projects in the hope that something sensible will fallinto place, and something will be institutionalized.

While this has been the situation in many West African countries, it isimportant to acknowledge that without donor support sorne countries wouldhave conducted little or no research in the years since independence.One must simply be aware of the "costs" of donor assistance and theinefficiencies in the process, so that lessons can be learned from pastexperiences and improved modes of operation can be considered. There aresorne pitfalls that should be avoided.

External donor agencies can be a temporary "easy-out" for researchadministrators - willing partners who come across readily with much­needed infrastructure, equipment, training, and foreign exchange.Project assistance can provide a temporary alternative to attaininginternal political and financial support for a program or institution.Consequently, when external funding ends, securing domestic funds canbecome a problem.

Another "easy-out" from project assistance is that circumstances mayforce research administrators to further postpone the exercise of settingpriorities and sticking to them. Donors bring their own priorities,which may or may not fit long-term national concerns. In the process ofobligating funds, implementing projects on schedule, and satisfying theirown political objectives, donors may unduly influence the timing andcontent of national programs.

Carrying out donor projects may place expensive demands on the limitedtechnical, administrative, and fiscal elements of governmentorganizations. In small countries with limited professional staff, thediverse accounting and reporting requirements of donors may furtherburden the system.

6

Donors - because of their own political and bureaucratie constraints ­are frequently unable to commit funds for more than a 5-to-10-yearperiode Projects are designed and implementation plans are developed inconformity with this externally dictated timeframe. Such a smalltimeframe is not enough for developing or significantly improving anational agricultural research system.

One common mistake of donors has been an extensive and often prematureinvestment in research infrastructure. Perhaps because construction is arelatively easy way to spend money in developing countries - simpler,quicker and more tangible than human resource development, research,policy dialogue, etc. - it is not uncommon to find underutilized orsuperfluous donor-financed facilities in West African countries. Due toa shortage of expertise or foreign exchange, or perhaps for lack of high­level political interest, the facility often deteriorates after projectcomplet ion.

Unfortunately, one other consequence of building up infrastructurequickly can be the perpetuaI drain it places on the government which, forpolitical or technical reasons, continues to support it whether or not itis of national importance. In this case, rather than design a researchprogram around the most pressing technical problems, the program may bebiased to use the research station or laboratory available. The nationalsystems with the least resources are the most vulnerable to this kind ofburden.

Most West African countries face serious recurrent cost problems, andmany must also deal with the additional burden of insufficient foreignexchange. These problems are exacerbated by the demands developmentprojects place on the national system - both during and after projectimplementation. An AID study of recurrent costs in the Gambia found thatthe 19 ongoing donor projects within the agricultural sector wouldconsume 140% of the sector's recurrent cost budget for their continuedimplementation alone. Obviously, in this case either national programsor donor projects will have to be sacrificed when the recurrent costburden is shifted to the Gambian government. CILSS determined that theaverage annual operating cost of project activities after donorwithdrawal was 15% of the value of the initial investment.

With aIl of these cautions in mind, national governments still choose toaccept project assistance from donors. Whether or not the best course isfollowed, aIl parties are gaining enough to perpetuate this mode ofassistance. Under a better scenario of collaboration, donors andnational governments would move from project assistance to programassistance. A national research system which had gained politicalcommitment from the government, which had clear and realistic researchobjectives, and which could obtain donor support for these objectives,would certainly have a stronger program. This is perhaps more difficultto accomplish with the competing demands made by the project system, butit is possible if measures are taken step by step.

In the final analysis, however, some recognition must be given to thepositive aspects of donor assistance. It is not unrealistic to imaginethat in sorne of the poorest economies no agricultural research would havebeen conducted without external assistance. The many people educated are

7

usually not lost to the economy even if they do not remain in research,and much of the appropriate infrastructure built under past projects isalso used. Also, inherent in dealing with donor agencies is aninteraction among professionals in the field; many ideas, much technicalinformation, and understanding can come out of these discussions. ThisaIl contributes to the knowledge base needed for accomplishing technologygeneration and transfer.

Of great impact have been the associations forged between IARCs,universities, and national research systems. These associations haveoften been dependent upon donor funding. The level of involvement andthe benefits realized, of course, are on a country-by-country basis.There is even greater potential for symbiotic interaction among theseelements, and donor financing plays an important role. In addition,donors are increasingly being called upon to support the formation andfunctioning of scientific networks in West Africa. This mode ofassistance offers much potential for information exchange and forcollaborative research among scientists who share common problems.

Finally, donor involvement can have positive and negative effects on thelevel of support research receives from domestic political-bureaucraticstructures. There are only a few cases in the region where agriculturalinterests were important in the struggle for independence, and theirinfluence carried over into policy after independence. An example is theSyndicat Agricole Africain, a union of African planters in the IvoryCoast, which was basic to the creation of the inter-territorial politicalparty (RDA) and which brought French West Africa to independence. Incontrast, the cocoa farmers of Ghana were unable to exercise anyinfluence over the policies of the early 1960s which held back thesector. Groups which are unable to protect their own interests are aweak constituency for research services. Therefore donors often play animportant role in policy dialogue in many African countries, attemptingto secure national support for research.

Conversely, the almost total dependence of many research systems on donorfunding makes it easier for research leaders to seek their politicalsupport outside the system than inside, leaving the system permanentlyisolated from domestic support. Such issues are discussed in Chapters2-4, where the considerations are more operational in nature.

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CHAPTER 2

ORGANIZATIONAL ISSUES

INTRODUCTION

Broad1y speaking, the structure of any organization can be defined as theinstitutiona1 forms and mechanisms through which human, physica1,financia1, and information resources are brought together to achievecertain outputs and tasks. This study examines the past and presentstructures of agricu1tura1 research organizations in West Africa. Itattempts to assess their appropriateness for achieving agricu1tura1deve10pment objectives on the one hand, and their capacity to plan andmanage agricu1tura1 research activities on the other. Whi1e theseaspects of organizationa1 structure are c1ose1y interre1ated, they willbe ana1yzed separate1y in this chapter. The final section of thischapter will then address sorne of the major issues concerning thereorganization of agricu1tura1 research in West Africa during the next20-30 years.

HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT OF RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS

The Colonial Period

During the colonial period in West Africa, pub1ic1y funded agricu1tura1research was heavi1y focused on a re1ative1y sma11 nurnber of export crops- oi1 pa1m, cotton, cocoa, rubber, and groundnuts. Whi1e this wasdirect1y in accordance with the dominant economic interests of thecolonial powers, the demand for food crop research was a1so genera11y1imited due to high 1and-1abor ratios, low rates of urbanization, and thegenera1 abi1ity of traditiona1 farming systems to meet national foodrequirements.

The dominant organizationa1 form for agricu1tura1 research adopted inboth anglophone and francophone West Africa during the colonial periodwas the regiona1 export crop research institute. Table 2.1 1ists themost important of these institutes, plus the three main regiona1 foodcrops and 1ivestock research organizations. There were, however, othertypes of organizations, such as ORSTOM, which were discip1inary inorientation, and research stations such as the Institute of Agricu1tura1Research at Samaru in Northern Nigeria and the Centre de RechercheAgronomique at Bambey in Senega1, which were locationa11y based and whichconducted food crops research.

For a nurnber of reasons, the sing1e-commodity research institute was inmany respects the most appropriate type of organization for agricu1tura1research in West Africa during the colonial period. They focused onspecific commodities and responded to production prob1ems emanating fromre1ative1y we11-defined groups of specia1ist producers (inc1udingsmal1ho1ders). Most were part of extensive international researchsystems and networks and were able, therefore, to draw upon technica1 andmanageria1 support from other research institutions in the metropo1itancountries and elsewhere. They were staffed by mu1tidiscip1inary researchteams which were capable of responding to most commodity productionprob1ems and were large enough to form effective scientific communities.

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Finally, each had a network of smaller stations throughout the region inorder to ensure wider geographical coverage.

Table 2.1: Main export crop and food research organizations establishedon a regional basis during the colonial period in West Africa

Export Crops - British

West African Institute for Oil Palm Research (WAIFOR), NigeriaWest African Cocoa Research Institute (WACRI), Ghana

Export Crops - French

Institute for Research on Cotton and Exotic Textiles (IRCT)Institute for Research on Oil and Oil Products (IRHO)Institute for Coffee and Cocoa (IFCC)Institute for Rubber Research (IRCA)Institute for Fruits and Citrus (IFAC)Tropical Forestry and Technology Center (CTFT)

Food Crops/Livestock - British

West African Institute for Rice Research (WAIRR), Sierra LeoneWest African Institute of Trypanosomiasis Research (WAITR), NigeriaWest African Fisheries Research Institute (WAFRI), Sierra Leone

Food Crops/Livestock - French

Institute of Tropical Agronomy (IRAT)Institute for Livestock and Veterinary Medicine for Tropical Countries(IEMVT)

Probably the main disadvantage of the commodity organizational formduring the colonial period was the relative neglect of discipline basedfactor research (in particular in the areas of soil-water-plantrelationships, soil conservation, and social sciences).

The Post-independence Period

The Nationalization Process. In anglophone West Africa the completenationalization of agricultural research organizations was achievedimmediately at the time of independence in each country so that neitherthe British government nor British research institutions continued tohave any formaI control over these organizations. The regional researchinstitutes were disbanded and became national research organizations.The same decisive break in the control of national agricultural researchorganizations occurred in Zaïre at the time of independence.

10

The immediate nationa1ization of research in anglophone countries wasfaci1itated by the fact that the British had tried to achieve a certaineconomic and administrative autonomy in each co10ny. British citizensworking abroad were genera11y responsib1e to the local government. wereoften a part of the local government. and were considered a part of theco10ny. Consequent1y. at independence - un1ike the French - there was anexodus of British citizens who chose to repatriate to the United Kingdomrather than become citizens of the new country. This po1icy of colonialautonomy. however. had positive effects on the deve10pment of thecountries invo1ved. More effort had been made to educate the indigenouspopulation. infrastructure had been more wide1y deve10ped. and Africanshad enjoyed fu11er participation in the civil service and 10wermanagement 1eve1s than in former French colonies.

Fo110wing independence. there was sorne 10ss of momentum in the researchprograms associated with the repatriation of very experienced Britishresearchers and the dearth of sufficient1y trained nationa1s. In orderto revive the program unti1 nationa1s cou1d assume a11 of theresponsibi1ities. a new though sma11er cadre of British researchers wasinsta11ed under local hire with sa1ary supp1ementation from Britain. Atthe same time, the impending food crisis necessitated a shift in researchfocus from revo1utionary cash crop introductions and techniques toevo1utionary change within the food-crop sector with sma11 farmers.

The ro1e of the universities was stronger in former British colonies thanin former French colonies. With the exception of the Gambia. everyBritish co10ny had we11-estab1ished universities at independence. Thoseoffering agricu1tura1 studies were the University of Ibadan (Nigeria).the University of Science and Techno10gy at Kumasi and the University ofGhana at Legon (Ghana). and Nja1a University Co11ege (Sierra Leone).Whi1e the numbers of university gradua tes at independence were far fromadequate to assume control over the national agricu1tura1 researchsystems. 150 anglophone Africans were trained between 1952 and 1963. A11of these universities conducted sorne agricu1tura1 research. They wereintegrated to different degrees with the national agricu1tura1 researchsystems.

In francophone West Africa. on the other hand. the nationa1izationprocess has been considerab1y more comp1ex and protracted. As can beseen from Table 2.2. on1y two countries - Guinea and Mali - took overcomplete control of the French colonial agricu1tura1 researchorganizations when they gained their po1itica1 independence. E1sewherein francophone West Africa. the colonial pattern of organization remainedre1ative1y unchanged throughout the 1960s. It was not unti1 theear1y-mid 1970s that any serious attempts to nationa1ize and integratethe French institutes into national research organizations wereinitiated: in Cameroon (1974). Niger (1974), Mauritania (1974). Senegal(1975). Burkina Faso (1981). and Ivory Coast (1986). This process isstill to be comp1eted in the 1ast two countries, and four otherfrancophone West African countries (Congo. CAR, Chad. and Togo) stillhave not effective1y nationa1ized their agricu1tura1 research systems.

The nationa1ization of agricu1tura1 research in francophone West Africahas a1so 1ed to a progressive dec1ine in regiona1 and internationalagricu1tura1 research.

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Table 2.2: National agricu1tura1 research institutions in francophoneWest African countries, 1986

Year

19601960196119611962196319641965

19711972197319741974197419741975197519761977

Broad MandateInstitutions

1ER (Mali)INRZFH (Mali)

INRA (Guinea)

CNERV (Mauritania)INRAN (Niger)IRA (Cameroon)IRZ (Cameroon)

ISRA (Senega1)DRA (Togo)LEA (Mauri tania )

SpecializedInstitutions

ITA (Senega1)

INRS (Togo)

CIRES (Ivory Coast)

IHS (Cameroon)CRTA (Burkina Faso)

Mandate

Crop productionAnimal productionFood techno1ogy

Botany, social sciences

Social science

Animal productionAgricu1tura1 productionCrop productionAnimal productionSocial sciencesTrypanosomiasisAgricu1tura1 productionCrop produc tianEntomo1ogy

19811981

198419851986*

IBRAZ (Burkina Faso)IRBET (Burkina Faso)

DRA (Benin)

INlRA (Ivory Coast)

Crop productionTropical eco1ogy

Agricu1tura1 production

Agricultura1 production

* under consideration

Table 2.3:

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Types of nationalization of agricultural researchorganizations among the francophone West African countries

TYPE

1. Creation of a department/"direction" within a ministry

2. Creation ofspecialized researchinstitutes

3. Creation of "transitional"specialized research institutes

4. Creation of several, broad­mandate national researchinstitutes

5. Creation of single nationalresearch institute

COUNTRIES

Benin/CAR/Chad/Congo/Togo

Burkina Faso (CRTA)Cameroon (IHS)Senegal (ITA)Togo (INRS)

Ivory Coast (IDESSA)Senegal (CNRA, CRODT)

Burkina Faso (IBRAZ/IRBET)Cameroon (IRZ/IRA)Mali (IER/IONRZFH)Mauritania (CNRADA/CNERU)

Ivory Coast (INIRA)Niger (INRAN)Senegal (ISRA)

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As can be observed in Table 2.3, a number of specifie organizationalarrangements have been devised in undertaking the nationalization processin the francophone West African countries.

1) The creation of departments or divisions of research within atechnical ministry. Thus, departments of agronomie research havebeen given national responsibility for agricultural research, eithertotally, as in Benin (1984), or partially, as in Togo, CentralAfrican Republic, and Chad, on the basis of the integration of theexisting French applied research institutes.

2) Establishment of national control of existing specialized researchinstitutes such as CIRES (social science) in Ivory Coast and ITA(food technology) in Senegal. One can also add to this category anumber of small research stations and laboratories within productionministries in a number of countries.

3) The creation of specialized institutes (in a commodity or a region),generally based on the reorganization of the responsibilities of theFrench institutes, such as IDESSA (dryland agronomy) in Ivory Coast,and CNRA (groundnuts and foodcrops), and CRODT (oceanography andfisheries) in Senegal.

It is likely that this type of organizational arrangement would havebeen more prevalent if national governments had become more directlyinvolved soon after independence in the management and financing ofthe French institutes.

Despite its apparent success, this model has only been considered bythe national authorities as a transitional arrangement prior to thecreation of more comprehensive national research organizations inwhich the specialized stations and institutes are integrated. It isnot considered a new durable organizational model. In the case ofSenegal, CNRA and CRODT have been integrated into ISRA.

4) The creation of several national agricultural research organizations(Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Mali, and Mauritania), where the principalconcern of the national research authorities has been to establishcrops and livestock research as separate organizations with respectto their mandates. These organizations have two of commoncharacteristics:

They are essentially concerned with applied research, havingimmediately taken over the network of French research institutes.The more basic research activities of ORSTOM have only morerecently begun integration into the programs of these nationalorganizations.

They have national mandates for aIl research within theirrecognized areas of competence.

5) The creation of a single national agricultural research organizationas with ISRA in Senegal and INRAN in Niger, and as is being proposedfor INIRA in Ivory Coast.

There are a number of important differences between the single andmultiple organizational setups:

14

When severa1 research organizations are given the responsibi1ity forresearch imp1ementation, the formulation of research po1icies andinter-institutiona1 coordination must necessari1y be undertaken bythe responsib1e ministry.

When a11 research is undertaken by a single research organization,there is a tendency that a11 responsibi1ities are confined to anadministrative counci1. The 10gic of the mode1, and its interest, isto create an organization which is fu11y autonomous and whichtherefore is able to e1iminate unnecessary bureaucracy and formu1ateand imp1ement comprehensive scientific and administrative plans andpo1icies. It is on this basis that ISRA in Senega1 has beenconstituted as "un établissement public à caractère industriel etcommercial". A simi1ar organizationa1 status is a1so envisaged forINlRA in Ivory Coast.

Shift in Research Priorities. During the 1960s major emphasis continuedto be given to research on the major export crops in West Africa withvery few changes in the organizationa1 structure inherited from thecolonial period. However, with the growing concern about the viabi1ityof traditiona1 systems of shifting cu1tivation to satisfy both rapid1yesca1ating national food requirements and targets for industria1 andexport crops, the appropriateness of the dominant commodity-orientedorganizational structure of agricu1tura1 research, in particu1ar in thefrancophone countries, was increasing1y ca11ed into question. In manyrespects, the success in the commodity-specific approach to research anddeve10pment (e.g., cotton in Mali and northern Ivory Coast) brought thesecountries to a point where the key cash crop was constrained by the1imited productivity in the key food crops and ca11ed for a moreintegrated approach, with particu1ar attention to food crops. To sorneextent, it was this shift in agricu1tura1 deve10pment (and thusagricu1tura1 research) priorities that provided the major impetus for thecoordination, and sometimes nationa1ization, of agricu1tura1 researchorganizations in francophone West Africa from the mid 1970s onwards.

The organizationa1 forms of the main agricu1tura1 research organizationsin each country in West Africa in the mid 1980s are shown in Table 2.4.It is noticeab1e that the export crop research institutes continue toplay an important ro1e in those francophone countries which have not yetnationa1ized their research systems, and a1so in the 1arger anglophonecountries (Nigeria and Ghana). Sing1e-commodity food crop researchorganizations are re1ative1y rare.

The most important consequences for organizationa1 structure of the shiftof research priorities towards food crops have been (1) the establishmentof national research organizations with comprehensive mandates for cropsand 1ivestock research and, (2) within these organizations, increasedemphasis on location-specifie organizationa1 arrangements; i.e., researchstations or institutes with specifie geographica1 and/or agro-eco10gica1mandate and mu1tidiscip1inary teams of researchers undertaking researchon a range of commodities. This latter type of organizationa1arrangement is particu1ar1y appropriate for adaptive research with astrong sys~ems perspective requiL".ill~ l,;uus.i.ùêLciblê vîi-fâL"m,mu1tidiscip1inary research activities. More comp1ex hybridorganizationa1 forms have a1so appeared, where researchers typica11ybe10ng to discipline based departments but participate in specifie

15

Table 2.4: Organizationa1 forms of national agrieu1tura1 researehinstitutes in West Afriea, mid 1980s

Country Disciplinary Commodity Location Hybrid/Multiple

Benin

Burkina Faso IRBET, DSA

INRA

IRA

FCRS-InaFCR-Nigouli

STARDI

& riee)CRI-Nyankapa1aCRI-Kumasi

IRCT, ADECAFIRCT,CILSS-sorghummillet

IRHO-oil pa1mIRHO-eoeonutIRCT-eottonIBRAZ(ClRADeommodity insts)

IRCADOA-Sapu(erop imprvCRIGOPRIAquatie RIYatiga (riee)ONADER (riee)

DRA

CRAL, CTFT

DOA-Yundum(Meehanztn prog)Soils RISRRIFood RIInst.Agr (Bordo)Centre Tindo

CameroonC.A.R.Chad

CongoGabonThe Gambia

Ghana

Guinea

Liberia CARI

Ivory Coast CIRES (soe.sei)

National eommodityprogs.

CRIN, NIFOR IAR, IAR&TNRCRI, NIHORTRRINCDH (Hortieu1 t. )Rokupr RRSDNTA, lRAT, IRCTIRCT, IRCC, INPT

INRAN

IER

ISRA

INERA

(INlRA)IDESSAIRCC, IRHOIRCA, IRFA,IRCT, lRATLORRI(WARDA)

NSPRI

CNRADA

LWDODEPEG, DPVDRA (varieta1imprv)CRAAL

MaliMauritaniaNigerNigeria

Senega1Sierra LeoneTogo

Zaïre

16

national commodity, systems, and/or locational research programs. Whilethis matrix arrangement permits a flexible use of scarce human resources,it considerably complicates the authority and decision-making structuresin a research organization.

EFFECTS ON PLANNING AND MANAGEMENT

The appropriateness of the organizational structures of agriculturalresearch in West Africa must be assessed not only in relation to researchstrategies and priorities but also in relation to the key planning,management, and linkage functions which must be adequately performed by anational agricultural research system and its constituent researchorganizations. Three of the most important functions are strategieplanning, human resource management, and financial resource acquisitionand disbursement. The organizational structures of agricultural researchsystems and institutions have important implications for theimplementation of these functions.

Strategie planning

Strategie planning of national agricultural research involves effectivecentralized control over the determination of research priorities andobjectives, the delineation of research programs and specifieinstitutional arrangements, and the broad allocation of financial and/orhuman resources to both institutions and programs. Without such control,a national agricultural research system cannot develop and mature.

The degree to which the organizational structure of agricultural researchin each country in West Africa is appropriate for strategie planningpurposes depends on the pattern of governmental responsibility and, inparticular, the extent to which this responsibility is concentrated in asingle organization, and the effectiveness of mechanisms which have beendeveloped to coordinate the activities of separately constitutedagricultural research organizations.

In practice, the pattern of governmental responsibility for agriculturalresearch is determined by two main types of organizational fragmentation:inter-ministerial, where important areas of agricultural research comeunder the responsibility of more than one ministry; andintra-ministerial, where a single ministry has sole responsibility butwhere there is more than one agricultural research organization (withtheir own separate management, network of research facilities, andbudgets) within the ministry. From an analysis of West Africanorganization, three generalizations can be made. First, inter­ministerial fragmentation within each of the research areas is notgenerally a serious problem. Food crops research in Zaïre is the majorexception. Second, with the exception of forestry, inter-ministerialdivisions between the different research subject areas are not nearly aswidespread as is commonly asserted. Third, intra-ministerialorganizational fragmentation is very much more pervasive, particularlybetween livestock, foodcrops, and export crop research institutions andwithin export crops. The most important reasons for these patterns oforganizational fragmentation are discussed below.

17

Among the francophone West African countries, the degree of organizationa1fragmentation is direct1y re1ated to the degree to which the Frenchcommodity-based research institutions continue to operate as individua1autonomous organizations outside of the de jure and/or de facto control ofthe responsib1e ministry. As noted ear1ier, there is still considerablevariation among this group of countries, depending on the extent to whichtheir governments have attempted to integrate French research institutionsinto national research organizations. Where this process is re1ative1ywe11 advanced (as in Benin, Cameroon, Mali, Senega1, and Niger), there ismuch 1ess intra-ministeria1 fragmentation compared to those countrieswhere the nationa1ization and integration process has still to beserious1y embarked upon (i.e., Chad, Congo, Togo), or where it is still inits ear1y stage (Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast). The point to stress,however, is that this prob1em has been tack1ed or is current1y beingactive1y pursued by most governments in francophone West Africa and shou1dtherefore be effective1y reso1ved during the next 10-15 years.

There is a1so a colonial 1egacy of separate crops institutes in Ghana andNigeria, and a genera1 fai1ure to appreciate the actua1 and/or potentia1interconnections between crops, forestry, and 1ivestock production in themajority of farming systems in West Africa. In the past, 1ivestockresearch has tended to be dominated by veterinarians and thus has beenprimari1y concerned with animal hea1th prob1ems, whi1e forestry researchhas been oriented main1y towards the commercial plantation sector ratherthan the deve10pment of viable agro-forestry technologies for sma11ho1ders.

Non-institutiona1 research. The organizationa1 fragmentation ofagricu1tura1 research in West Africa, and its implications on strategieplanning, has been further comp1icated by the proliferation ofdonor-assisted research projects and other deve10pment projects withresearch components. The importance of this latter type of"non-institutiona1 research" activity shou1d not be underestimated. Forexamp1e, in Niger the main government agricu1tura1 research organization,INRAN, emp10yed a total of 57 researchers in 1986, and yet another 130researchers were a1so reported as working in deve10pment projects outsideof the forma1 agricu1tura1 research system. At the regiona1 1eve1,between 1975 and 1985, the Wor1d Bank funded 60 agricu1tura1 deve10pmentprojects in West Africa which had adaptive research components. Withinagricu1tura1 research organizations, donor-funded projects have typica11yenjoyed considerable de facto organizationa1 autonomy, with control overthe establishment of research objectives, financia1 disbursement, trainingopportunities and, to a 1esser extent, conditions of service. Notsurprising1y, therefore, this has frustrated attempts to estab1isheffective strategic planning for agricu1tura1 research on a national basis.

University research. Ensuring effective strategic planning withinnational agricu1tura1 research systems in West Africa is invariab1ycomp1icated still further by a second major type of organizationa1division, name1y, that which exists between the ministry(ies) with overa11responsibi1ity for agricu1tura1 research and the university sector. Aswill be discussed in greater detai1 in Chapter 4, most West Africancountries have university facu1ties of agriculture and/or science whichare staffed by re1ative1y large numbers of staff, many of whom have thetraining and ski11s to make significant contributions to the nationalagricu1tura1 research effort. However, given the considerableorganizationa1 independence enjoyed by universities in the past, academicstaff have enjoyed considerable freedom to pursue their own researchinterests, 1arge1y independent of national research priorities.

18

Again t there are both inter- and intra-ministerial dimensions to thisproblem. In the following West African countries t different minis trieshave responsibility for university education and agricultural research:Benin t Congo t Gabon t Ghana t Liberia t Nigeria t Senegal t and Togo. It isnot surprising t therefore t that this has constituted a significantorganizational barrier with respect to strategie planning for the NARS asa whole. Where t however t the same ministry has responsibility for bothuniversity education and agricultural research t as is the case in animportant group of francophone West African countries (Burkina Faso tCameroon t Ivory Coast t Niger) and Zaïre t the formal organizationalbarriers are reduced considerably. In practice t though t there is litt1eevidence to suggest that having this organizational arrangement willnecessari1y 1ead to more effective participation of the university sectorin strategie planning or in the deve10pment of comp1ementary programsbetween universities and research institutes. Serious intra-ministeria1prob1ems may persist which perpetuate the isolation between them.

Agricu1tural extension t services t and production. The third major type oforganizational characteristic which has had important implications for theabi1ity of national agricu1tura1 research systems in West Africa to planeffectively has been the nature of the organizational linkages andre1ationships between agricu1tural research institutions and the othermajor government-funded extension t service, and production organizations.Effective linkages are required in order to obtain information on priorityprob1em areas for agricu1tural research that are indispensable for thestrategie planning process t to ensure effective operationa1 coordinationin the verification of agricu1tura1 technologies (main1y on the basis ofon-farm tria1s}t and to disseminate these technologies to the producersthemse1ves.

In West Africa t considerable attention has been focused on the separationof agricultura1 research and extension and production organizations amongdifferent ministries. This situation prevai1s in the fo110wingcountries: Burkina Faso t Cameroon t Congo t Ghana t Guinea t Ivory Coast tNigeria t and Zaïre. Note that most of the largest countries in WestAfrica are inc1uded in this group. The main reason for this type ofinter-ministerial fragmentation is the existence of separate minis tries ofscience and technology which were estab1ished from the 1ate 1960s onwardsin West Africa.

Ministry of science and techno1oRY mode1. Whi1e there has been widespreadcriticism of this organizationa1 arrangement in West Africa, few attemptshave been made to ana1yze the specifie historica1 and institutiona1contexts which gave rise to the establishment of these minis tries ofscience and techno1ogy (MST). It is we11 known that this organizationalmode1 for science and techno10gy was active1y endorsed and promoted byUNESCO. However, it is equa11y important to understand why it was adoptedby so many governments in West Africa.

First t at a genera1 leve1 t the MST model t by emphasizing the important andunique role of science and techno10gy in the deve10pment process tcomp1emented the efforts of local agricu1tural and other researchinstitutions to improve the organizationa1 status of their activities.Second t the MST mode1 fitted in wel1 with the traditiona1 conception ofthe agricultura1 research process in West Africa t which was essentia11ytop-down t focusing on app1ied research with limited concern with thetechno1ogy dissemination and adoption processes per se.

19

Fina11y, in most of the francophone West African countries, agricu1tura1research institutes had a1ready deve10ped strong, direct re1ationshipswith producers and parastatal production agencies, and these re1ationshipsremained 1arge1y unaffected by the establishment of minis tries of scienceand techno1ogy.* Existing extension services and production activitieswithin minis tries of rural deve10pment and agriculture were, on the otherhand, genera11y poor1y deve1oped. Furthermore, both institutiona11y andpo1itica11y, these ministries were not considered to be sufficient1ystrong to effective1y integrate the French commodity research institutesinto a national research system. Consequent1y, a new ministry of scienceand techno1ogy was often regarded as the most appropriate organizationa1vehic1e for the rationa1ization of agricu1tura1 research during the 1970sand 1980s in both francophone and the 1arger anglophone countries. It isnoticeab1e that the MST mode1 has not been adopted in those francophoneWest African countries where the influence of the French researchinstitutes has been comparative1y weak.

A different set of research-extension-production linkage issues tends topredominate in the remaining West African countries, most of which arevery sma11 (i.e., population of 1ess than 2 million). Whi1e a singleministry of agriculture or rural deve10pment is usua11y responsib1e forresearch, extension, and services, these activities are still organized inseparate departments. However, given the very sma11 numbers of specia1istprofessiona1 personnel avai1ab1e, agricu1tura1 researchers often becomeheavi1y invo1ved in both direct extension activities with farmers andother service responsibi1ities (most notab1y, seed multiplication, soi1testing, and plant protection services). There is a danger, therefore,that these "other" activities may excessive1y encroach on the researchwork of agricu1tura1 researchers, thereby reducing the potentia1effectiveness of the agricu1tura1 research effort.

Inter-institutional coordination mechanisms. Table 2.5 surnmarizesmain types of organizationa1 arrangements which have been devisedgovernments in West Africa with the objective of coordinating theactivities of agricultura1 research institutions in each country.practice, few of the agricultural research committees and councilshave been established have been able to successfully perform thiscoordinating role. The most prevalent reasons are:

theby

Inwhich

Most are only advisory bodies and therefore 1ack direct control overresource acquisition and disbursement. They often have weak links tokey policymakers and po1iticians and therefore have tended to becomemarginalized in the decision-making process.

They generally lack the necessary technical expertise and otherinstitutional resources to be able to carry through rigorous andcomprehensive strategie planning exercises.

In smal1 countries they can quickly become excessively large andunwie1dy.

* And, as previously noted, a relatively large amount of adaptiveresearch had been undertaken directly by agricultural developrnentprojects and organizations themselves.

Table 2.5:

20

Agricultural research councils and committees in West Africa1985*

COUNTRY

Benin

Cameroon

CAR

TITLE

National Agricultural ResearchCormnittee

Cormnittee in MESRES

National Cormnittee onAgricultural Research

COMMENTS

Limited effectiveness.

Reviews programs and budgetsof IRA and IRZ.

In practice, few efforts havebeen made to formulatenational research plans.

The Gambia Agricultural Research AdvisoryBoard

Established in 1984Limited role to date.

Ghana

Liberia

Mali

SierraLeone

Togo

Zaïre

(1) Council for Scientific andIndustrial Research has fivecormnittees on agriculture.(2) Agricultural Researchand Development Cormnitteein the Ministry of Agriculture

Agricultural Research Council

Agricultural Research Councilsin Ministry of Agriculture &Rural Development

National Agricultural ResearchCoordinating Council

National Institute forScientific Research

Legal prOV1S1on for NationalScience Council but stillunnamed.

Cormnittee has neverfunctioned.

Meets on regular basis andis reasonably effective.

Rarely meets.

Councils convened every twoyears but chairmen meet moreregularly.

Originally independent but nowdirectly integrated into MANR.Recently established but notyet operational.

Official responsibility forcoordination of agriculturalresearch but ineffective.

* incomplete liste

21

Human Resource Management

It is commonly argued that scientific research organizations should havesufficient autonomy from central government control ta be able taimplement their own human resource policies and practices. The basicproposition underlying this argument is that scientific research is asufficiently unique and creative activity that the normal human resourcespolicies and practices typically prevailing in central governmentbureaucracies are inappropriate.

Most national agricultural research organizations in West Africa have verylimited organizational autonomy with respect ta the main areas of humanresources planning and management, namely, recruitment, contractualobligations and control over the dismissal of personnel, trainingactivities, and conditions of service. Thus, regardless of their preciseinstitutional location and title, these organizations have been directlysubject ta civil service or other public administration regulations andprocedures. As noted earlier, only ISRA in Senegal has achieved thesemi-autonomous legal status of "un établissement public à caractèreindustriel et commercial" which, in theory at least, allows sufficientorganizational autonomy ta determine its own human resource policies. Theissue of autonomy in resource procurement and disbursement which is neededta ratify these human resource policies is discussed below.

The other major exception has been within the university sector, inparticular in the anglophone West African countries. In general,universities have enjoyed sufficient organizational autonomy ta be able tamore effectively control recruitment, dismissals, training, and promotionpractices.

Financial Resource Acquisition and Disbursement

Again, it is argued that the special planning and operational requirementsof agricultural research organizations require that they should be givenconsiderable organizational autonomy with regard ta bath the acquisitionand disbursement of financial resources. Logistically, agriculturalresearch involves a highly complex set of operations, requiring precisescheduling of a large variety of inputs for activities often dispersedover extensive and remote geographical areas. Thus, financialdisbursement procedures must be flexible and must allow for a considerabledegree of decentralized decision-making.

The evidence from agricultural research organizations in West Africaindicates that the large majority have had ta cape with highly restrictivegovernment financial regulations which have seriously affected theirability ta undertake agricultural research activities. As discussed inChapter 3, few have their own independent sources of incarne (such as acess on export earnings or other earmarked taxes). Financialdisbursements are highly erratic, bath over time and in actual amountsreceived, and virtually aIl expenditures must be authorized in advance bythe central financial authorities, with very limited scope forreallocation.

22

REORGANlZATION ISSUES

What type of organizational structures are likely to be most appropriatefor ensuring the development of effective national agricultural researchsystems in West Africa during the next 20-30 years?

While there are a number of common themes and problem areas in West Africaconcerning the organization of agricultural research, it is equally clearthat there are no simple solutions that can be prescribed for everycountry. In other words, no one type of organizational structure isuniversally most appropriate or desirable. Appropriate structure can onlybe determined after detailed analysis on a country-by-country basis. Onlyin this way is it possible to appreciate the alI-importanthistorical-political context that has shaped the development of specifieorganizations, and to assess how these have affected the ability of theresearch system to pursue specifie research strategies and to undertakethe necessary range of planning and management functions. Too often inthe past, proposaIs for organizational change have been based on aninadequate understanding of these complex, interrelated issues.

There has also been a tendency to regard organizational change as apanacea. Donors have been attracted to the idea of major reorganizationas the basis for comprehensive improvement strategies, in particular,because such changes are regarded as an indicator of government commitmentto agricultural research. What needs to be recognized, however, is thatthe need for organizational change is often less urgent than the need toimprove other functional aspects of agricultural research organizations.This is likely to be the case in many West African countries, wherechronic resource problems have become so serious that differences inorganizational structures have ceased to have any significant impact onthe performance of researchers and organizations as a whole.

The last fifteen years or so has been a period of unprecedentedorganizational change for many national agricultural research systems inWest Africa. As was discussed earlier, these changes have often been partof longer-term strategies to crea te or strengthen national agriculturalresearch systems. This is particularly the case with regard to thenationalization of agricultural research in the francophone West Africancountries. Thus, initiating a new round of system-Ievel organizationalchanges is likely to be highly counterproductive in the majority of WestAfrican countries. In short, the need for major reorganization is morelikely to be the exception than the rule. And, even where organizationalimprovements are required, these can often be achieved by relatively minormodifications in existing decision-making structures, usually involvingonly small changes to existing legislation and/or internaI governmentregulations.

Research Planning and Coordination

As noted earlier, an essential precondition for the creation of aneffective national agricultural research system is strong, centralizedcontrol and coordination of agricultural research activities via thestrategie planning process. Given that agricultural researchorganizations in most West African countries are under the directresponsibility of a single ministry, there already exists the potential toensure the required level of centralized control and coordination. There

23

seems little point, therefore, in fundamentally altering existingorganizational arrangements. What is most urgently required is to improvethe degree of collaboration and coordination between researchorganizations in those countries where there still exists considerableintra-ministerial organizational fragmentation. Thus, steps need to betaken to establish or strengthen the coordinating mechanisms within eachministry, and to improve the capacity to set research priorities andallocate resources. If effective coordination and collaboration cannot beachieved, the only alternative may be to merge the separate agriculturalresearch organizations into a single institution. For the smallercountries in West Africa, this is probably the most desirableorganizational arrangement in the longer term.

In the past, considerable emphasis has been placed on the role of nationalagricultural research councils as the primary organizational focus for thestrategic planning of agricultural research. It has been argued abovethat in most countries in West Africa these bodies should be firmlylocated within the ministry which has primary responsibility foragricultural research. Furthermore, it is unrealistic to expect extensionand farmer representatives on these councils or commit tees to be able toarticulate with sufficient precision research requirements and prioritiesfor the country as a whole. This can only be undertaken on the basis ofdetailed analyses of existing farming systems by the researchorganizations themselves. Finally, in the very small countries of WestAfrica it is unlikely that a specialized agricultural research council canbe justified, and a more appropriate body would be one that covers ail thekey areas of agricultural research and development.

The fragmentation of the agricultural research effort caused by donor­assisted projects must also be eliminated or, at least, significantlyreduced, if national agricultural research systems are to be able to plantheir research activities systematically. The increased willingness ofdonors to coordinate their support to national agricultural researchprograms is likely to be one of the most promising solutions to thisproblem in the future.

Using major organizational restructuring to achieve greater control overagricultural research undertaken by university personnel is neitherdesirable nor feasible in the majority of West African countries. It isessential, however, that the main ministry or minis tries responsible foragricultural research be able to strongly influence the universityresearch effort. In practice, there is considerable scope for developingmore informai control mechanisms which effectively channel availableresources for agricultural research through a central planning andcoordinating body. Greater centralization of these resources will allowthe responsible minis tries to contract university personnel to undertakespecific research. Under present conditions, donors could play a key rolein fostering the development of linkages of this type.

Organizational Autonomy

Most agricultural research organizations in West Africa have very limitedorganizational autonomy in relation to the main areas of human andfinancial resources management. Given the serious problems this lack ofautonomy has created for agricultural research organizations, workablesolutions must be found as quickly as possible. The most common proposaihas been for the creation of autonomous or semi-autonomous research

24

organizations. While this proposal is superficially very attractive, inpractice there are a number of major problems associated with it. First,evidence from other countries indicates that where organizations of thistype have been created, they have only rarely been able to exercise thefull degree of organizational autonomy that was originally envisaged.This has been due to both political and financial constraints. Only inexceptional circumstances has it been possible to generate and sus tain thelevels of political support necessary for organizational arrangements ofthis kind to function properly. Second, the corollary of greaterorganizational autonomy is likely to be greater organizational isolation.In particular, this can crea te serious problems in developing effectivelinkages with other public-sector extension, service, and productionorganizations. Granting privileged organizational status to agriculturalresearch may aggravate rather than improve relationships with personnel inthese other organizations. Third, organizational autonomy increases theneed for high-quality research management. Where this is deficient,serious problems can arise which may precipitate central governmentintervention. In other words, a research organization will need to havedeveloped a competent and mature cadre of research managers before it isin a position to cope with the additional managerial demands of anautonomous organization.

It may be possible to alleviate sorne of the most serious constraints tothe utilization of human and financial resources without creating asemi-autonomous institution. Management's room for maneuver will dependon a range of factors. Of particular importance, however, is the abilityof research managers to identify precisely the main problem areas and,with the concerted support of other key organizations (including the majordonors), to present a strong case to the relevant government authorities.If important concessions cannot be achieved through negotiation of thiskind, it is probably naive to expect that government will be prepared togo even further and sanction major reorganizational changes to theresearch system as a whole.

Linkages with Extension and Production

It is commonly argued that agricultural research and extension should bepart of the same ministry. For this reason much concern has beenexpressed about the pervasiveness of separate minis tries of science andtechnology in West Africa. However, as was pointed out earlier, it is byno means certain that incorporating agricultural research organizationsinto minis tries of agriculture or rural development will improve thetechnology dissemination process. Indeed, sorne would argue that extensionservices are often so inefficient that it is in fact better to keepagricultural research activities separate from them. More realistically,however, it seems clear that serious attention needs to be given to theprecise nature of the interface between research, extension, andproduction. At the operational level, the impetus for this will beespecially strong where research and extension personnel are jointlyinvolved in the implementation of on-farm research and extension trialswhich are of central importance to location-specifie adaptive researchstrategies. Similarly, extension methodologies such as the training andvisit system call for very close organizational links between research adextension.

25

In the very small countries of West Africa, the most satisfactoryorganizational arrangement may well be the complete elimination ofseparate research and extension institutions, with professional staffbeing formally employed with both adaptive research and extensionresponsibilities. The attractiveness of this arrangement would beconsiderably enhanced where there is also a relatively well-developeduniversity faculty of agriculture, whose staff could be contracted toconduct more specialized research.

Specific Organizational Arrangements

Having discussed sorne of the main organizational considerations concerningthe overall planning, management and linkage functions of agriculturalresearch systems in West Africa, the appropriateness of more specificorganizational arrangements for agricultural research in the region cannow be examined. As was emphasized earlier, it is only possible at thislevel of generalization to identify sorne of the major issues that willneed to be addressed by comprehensive and detailed country-level reviews.

Agricultural research in West Africa must be specifically organized so asto facilitate the implementation of national and regional agriculturalresearch strategies during the next 20-30 years. It is generally agreedthat these research strategies will be based on two main types of researchactivity:

(l) The development of clearly focused applied research programs for themajor commodities and agro-ecological areas in the region. Thisresearch will be mainly undertaken by agricultural researchorganizations in the larger countries (Ghana, Nigeria, Cameroon, IvoryCoast, Senegal, and Zaïre) in addition to regional researchorganizations (most notably the international agricultural researchcenters for food crops). To avoid unnecessary duplication of effortand to ensure that major research problems are effectively covered,there should be close collaboration and coordination between theseresearch organizations.

(2) Strong emphasis on adaptive research throughout the region, inparticular in the countries with populations of less than fivemillion. These countries will need to rely heavily on the appliedresearch generated by the larger national research systems andregional organizations as the primary source of new technologies fortheir adaptive research activities.

What are the organizational implications of such a research strategy?First, steps must be taken to develop a coherent regional organizationalframework for agricultural research which will provide the basis for thenecessary direct collaborative work, especially among those organizationsengaged in applied research. In addition, this framework will ensure theeffective dissemination of information, in particular to and from thesmaller countries that will have to rely on imports of agriculturalknowledge and technology from elsewhere in the region. The mostappropriate organizational arrangement would likely be the development ofcarefully conceived regional research programs delineated on both acommodity and disciplinary/factor basis. Clearly, numerous political andfinancial problems are involved in designing and implementing regionalprograms of this kind. From past experience, it seems likely that theseprograms will have to be funded and coordinated largely by external

26

donors. This may be particularly so for sorne export commodities t becausethe pressures of international competition and self-interest may make itdifficult for agricultural research organizations in sorne countries todirectly collaborate or share information with each other. Where thisproblem is particularly serious t the only solution may be theestablishment of a regional research organization which will ensure thefree dissemination of new knowledge to aIl interested parties.

Second t the dominant organizational form for most of the more appliedresearch institutions (at both the national and regional levels) shouldcontinue to be commodity based t although there will be a need for a fewdisciplinary research organizations e.g. t soil and water conservation forthe Sahel region.

Third t the most appropriate organizational form for adaptive researchwithin the national research systems is likely to be the location­specifie research station or institute which has a multi-commodity mandatebased on well-defined systems approaches t with a complement of researcherscovering the main agricultural and scientific specializations. Among thesmallest countries in West Africa such location-specifie researchinstitutions may also need to be directly responsible for extension andservice activities.

FinallYt regardless of the specifie organizational arrangements t eachnational agricultural research system should have clearly defined nationalresearch programs to provide the unifying organizational framework whichoverlays aIl institutional activity. These programs should be based onsound management of financial and human resources t preferably through asystem of program budgeting.

27

CHAPTER 3

FINANCIAL RESOURCES

INTRODUCTION

The following discussion summarizes the funding of agricultural researchin West Africa for the last 20 years. It must be pointed out, however,that the quality of the available data is generally poor, so thatconsiderable caution is required in interpreting them. Expenditures onagricultural research in the university sector, in agriculturaldevelopment projects, and at regional or international agriculturalresearch organizations have not been included in the national totals.

Major Trends, 1965-1985

Given the paucity of continuous time series data, total agriculturalresearch expenditure (including both national and donor contributions) ineach West African country has been averaged over five-year intervalsbetween 1965 and 1985. It can be observed in Tables 3.1 and 3.2 thatthere have been sizeable increases in real expenditures on agriculturalresearch in all countries during this period as a whole with the exceptionof Mauritania, Niger, Benin, and Zaïre. However, it would appear thatthere has been sorne deterioration in total financial provision (measuredin real terms) in the following countries since the early 1980s: Benin,Ivory Coast, Togo, Niger, Liberia, and Nigeria. On the other hand therehave been significant increases in Cameroon and Ghana, and probablyBurkina Faso and The Gambia.

In the mid 1980s, external sources of funding constituted between 40 and85% of total national budgets in the francophone West African countries(see Table 3.3) but appreciably smaller percentages (with the exception ofLiberia) in the anglophone West African countries. Unfortunately, dataconcerning major trends in donor funding are not available. Untilrecently, donor funding has been concentrated in specifie agriculturalresearch projects and has been generally confined to three types ofexpenditure: capital investments, training, and technical assistance.

Income derived from the sales of agricultural products (including seeds)appears to be of minor importance in most countries, with the notablyexception of Ivory Coast and, ta a lesser extent, Benin.

EXPENDITURE BREAKDOWNS

The breakdown of expenditures into capital investment and recurrent costsis presented in Table 3.4. Most countries have been heavily dependent ondonor funding for capital investments in agricultural research facilities,equipment, and vehicles. Although time series data are unavailable, itseems clear that the proportion of total expenditure allocated torecurrent costs has increased significantly in many countries during thelast 10-15 years. This is mainly attributable to an increase in thenumbers of agricultural researchers and staff employed, which requires anever-increasing proportion of financial resources for salaries and otherpersonnel costs. While the breakdown between operating and salaryexpenditures does not appear at first sight to be as unba1anced in Manycountries as is commonly suggested, total expenditures per researcher havedeclined appreciably in Many agricultural research organizations in recentyears (see Chapter 4).

Table 3.1: Five-year averages of agricultural research expenditures in millions of constant 1980 US$

Sub-region and Country 1965-1969 1970-1974 1975-1979 1980-1984 Latest Year Available

FRANCOPHONE-SAHEL

Burkina Faso 0.720 0.585 N.A. 6.282 7.885 (2)Cape Verde N.A. N.A. N.A. 0.179 0.179 (3)Chad- 0.890 1.146 1.602 0.622The Gambi a- 0.037 0.041 N.A. 0.360 N.A.Guinea Bissau N.A. N.A. N.A. 0.408 0.408 (2)Mali 1.519 3.384 N.A. 7.819 7.819 (2)Mau ri tani a N.A. 0.848 0.175 0.142 0.142 (4)Niger N.A. 2.283 1.163 1.622 1.142 (1)Senegal 4.328 5.405 8.166 9.767 13.369 (1)

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

Benin N.A. 2.019 2.298 1.430 1.271 (2)Cameroon 2.032 2.121 4.567 9.200 11.289 (1)CAR N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.Congo 0.521 N.A. N.A. 3.967 3.967 (1)Eq. Guinea N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.Guinea N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.Gabon- N.A. N.A. N.A. 0.583 2.642 NIvory Coast N.A. 11.165 N.A. 27.326 20.600 (1) 00

Togo N.A. N.A. N.A. 3.655 2.386 (1)

ANGLOPHONE (Exc1. Nigeria)

Ghana 5.419 5.166 9.437 17 .966 25.803 (2)Liberia 0.388 0.648 N.A. 3.297 3.236 (1 )Sierra Leone 0.386 N.A. N.A. 0.987 0.987 (1)

Nigeria 14.338 N.A. 99.302 94.129 62.889 (2)

Zaïre- N.A. 8.230 8.608 5.098 5.016

Note: In latest year available, number in figure denotes year referred to: 1984 • (1), 1983 = (2), 1982 • (3), 1981 • (4).

Source: Preliminary data fram the ISNAR data base on agricultural research indicators. (June 1986).

- Data fram P. Oram, Report on National Agricultural Research in West Africa, IFPRI, 1986.

29

Table 3.2: Financia1 growth indices for agricu1tura1 research in WestAfrica, 1965-69 - 1980-84

Sub-region 1965-69 1970-74* 1975-79 1980-84and Country

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina Faso 123 100 N.A. 1073Chad 78 100 N.A. 140The Gambia 90 100 N.A. 878Mali 45 100 N.A. 231Mauritania N.A. 100 N.A. 17Niger N.A. 100 51 50Senega1 80 100 151 181

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAHHUMID TROPICS

BeninCameroonCongoIvory Coast

N.A.96

100N.A.

100100N.A.100

114215N.A.N.A.

71433761245

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Nigeria)~,-

Ghana 105 100 183 348Liberia 60 100 N.A. 508Sierra Leone 100 N.A. N.A. 255

Nigeria

Zaïre

100

N.A.

N.A.

100

692

105

656

62

*1970-74Source:

= 100 un1ess otherwise indicatedPre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1research indicators. (June 1986).

30

Table 3.3: Breakdown of total expenditures by source of funding (1)

Sub-region National Sale of InternaI Externaland Country Year Budget Products Sources Sources

(Total)

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina Faso 1982 N.A. N.A. 14 86Chad N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. 66*Guinea Bissau 1983 65 0 65 35Mali 1983 40 0 40 60Mauritania 1985 55 2 57 43Niger 1984 N.A. N.A. 52 48*Senega1 1984 19 13 32 68

FRANCOPHONE - SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

Benin 1983 60 20 20 80Cameroon 1984 N.A. N.A. 49 51CAR N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.Congo 1984 N.A. N.A. 38 62Ivory Coast 1983 18 41 59 41Togo 1984 44 7 51 49

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Nigeria)

Ghana 1983 80 10 90 10Liberia 1984 55 6 61 39Sierra Leone 1984 N.A. N.A. 82 18

Nigeria 1983 90 10 100 0

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tural researchindicators. (June 1986).

This source inc1udes sale of products, cess on export commodities.

*Data from P. Oram, Report on National Agricultura1 Research in West Africa,IFPRI, 1986.

31

The seriousness of the recurrent cost burden has resulted in anincreasing willingness of donors to meet some or MOSt of the recurrentcosts of agricultural research projects in West Africa. This has alwaysbeen the case among the GERDAT/ClRAD and ORSTOM research institutes,where the expatriate researcher was accompanied by an operating budget,and the institutes were closely tied to their metropolitan headquarters.

FUNDING STABILITY

Available data on the annual percentage fluctuations in agriculturalresearch expenditures at the country level in West Africa between 1975and 1985 are presented in Table 3.5. For the majority of countries,financial provision has been highly erratic, which has had highly adverseconsequences on the ability of research organizations to sus tain anddevelop their research activities in an orderly manner. Clearly, themain reason for these fluctuations is the increasingly severe fiscalcrises confronting MOSt governments in West Africa. In addition, thesporadic and lumpy nature of MOSt donor-assisted agricultural researchprojects, coupled with often dramatic currency devaluations (especially'in more recent years), have also been important factors.

INTERNATIONAL EXPENDITURE COMPARISONS

As can be observed in Table 3.6, total expenditure per agriculturalresearcher in West Africa appears to be significantly higher thanelsewhere in the developing world. In anglophone West Africa, however,drastically over-valued exchange rates are likely to be a majorexplanatory factor. If shadow exchange rates are used, expenditures perresearcher measured in U.S. dollars would be at least half the nominalestimates for the early 1980s. In other words, much of the seeminglyhigh research cost in these countries is illusory. A major factor infrancophone West Africa is the relatively high percentage of expatriatesemployed - 23% in the Sahel countries and 54% in the humid tropics. Thetotal cost of employing these foreign personnel is generally very high.

Local salaries for researchers in West Africa are not, in real terms,however, considerably higher than elsewhere in the developing world, ashas sometimes been suggested. The conditions of service of nationalresearch personnel in West Africa have not been adequately studied. Inparticular, it is very difficult to get the agreement of nationalgovernments to look into non-salary benefits (housing, car, variouspremiums paid by donor projects). However, based on personalcommunications with people working in the field, we assert that localsalaries for agricultural researchers in West Africa are not, in realterms, higher than elsewhere in the developing world. Nigerian salarieswere once very high, but today they are quite low in real terms.

32

Table 3.4: Distribution of total expenditures (%) br major category

Sub-region and Country Year

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

CapitalInvestment

RecurrentCosts

OperatingCosts

Salaries& Re1ated

Costs

Burkina FasoCape VerdeChadThe GambiaGuinea BissauMali*MauritaniaNigerSenega1

FRANCOPHONE - SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

BeninCameroonCARCongoEquatorial GuineaGuineaGabonIvory CoastTogo

1982N.A.N.A.N.A.19831983N.A.19841984

19831984N.A.1984N.A.N.A.N.A.19831984

27N.A.N.A.N.A.

4019

N.A.o

18

1448

N.A.19

N.A.N.A.N.A.

4020

73N.A.N.A.N.A.

6081

N.A.10082

8652

N.A.

N.A.N.A.N.A.

6080

49N.A.N.A.N.A.

3314*

N.A.1535

4773

N.A.

N.A.N.A.N.A.

3325

51N.A.N.A.N.A.

6786

N.A.8565

5327

N.A.

N.A.N.A.N.A.

6775

ANGLOPHONE (exc1. Nigeria)

GhanaLiberiaSierra Leone

Nigeria

Zaïre

198319841983

1983

1983

13oo

30

2

87100100

70

98

46N.A.

25

47

29

54N.A.

75

53

71

Notes: Recurrent costs are taken at 100 in ca1cu1ating the percentagedistribution between salaries and operating costs.

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1 researchindicators. (June 1986).

*Data from P. Oram, Report on National Agricu1tura1 Research in West Africa,IFPRI, 1986.

33

Table 3 5: Annua1 fluctuations of agricu1tura1 research expenditures inWest Africa, 1975-1976 - 1984-1985

Sub-regionand Country 75/76 76/77 77178 78/79 79/80 80/81 81/82 82/83 83/84 84/85

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina FasoMauritaniaSenegal

NA NANA NANA 3

NA NANA -23-1 0

NA NA-5 NA

-19 33

NA -34NA NA16 93

NANA11

NANA

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAH1HUMID TROPICS

Benin -9 -1 -10 6 -34 -2 NA NA NACameroon 34 30 -24 3 38 28 24 28 10 NAIvory Coast NA NA NA NA NA NA 03 4 -19 NATogo NA NA NA NA NA NA NA NA 06 NA

ANGLOPHONE (exc1. Nigeria)

GhanaLiberia

Nigeria

62 -31 -28 28NA NA NA NA

NA 51 1 -23

-22 NANA NA

12 -5

NA NANA NA

019 11

NA-2

NA

NANA

NA

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1 researchindicators. (June 1986).

34

Table 3.7 below summarizes empirical information for sorne of the WestAfrican systems. Field work would be required to obtain more preciseinformation and to integrate the non-salary benefits. However, it isclear that high base salaries of national researchers do not account forthe high cost per researcher in West Africa. This is even more evidentwhen one recognizes that in many of the poorer countries of the region thegovernments are in arrears in the payment of even these low salaries totheir research personnel.

The apparently high cost of researchers may be associated with two otherfactors. First, there may be a tendency to employ excessive numbers ofunskilled and semi-skilled personnel, which seriously inflates recurrentcosts. Second, in the larger francophone countries, the researchinfrastructure was inherited from a colonial system which had differentgoals and different resources. Because each of the commodity institutesfunctioned separately, each had its complete complement of scientists,laboratories, and disciplines in order to perform commodity research whoseresults were exchanged on an inter-territorial basis. When the systemsbecame nationalized, and the commodity institutes were fused intomulticrop national institutes, the now excessive infrastructure was leftas it was. In Zaïre, a serious effort is under way to adjust the INERAsystem. A national study team recommended the reduction of the systemfrom 21 stations to 10. In Nigeria, the large staff and infrastructure ofNIFOR is an example of the imbalance between tasks to be done andresources employed accounting for high costs. In short, the problems ofhigh costs in West Africa appear to be associated more with management ofresources than with the high real costs of researchers.

Table 3.6:

35

Total expenditures per researcher (1980-84 average)in constant 1980 US$

Region

Central America and CaribbeanSouth AmericaSoutheast AsiaPacificMiddle East

North Af ricaEast AfricaSouthern AfricaWest Africa

1980 US$

54,10452,06225,79276,70227,256

17,11238,86046,41579,802

FrancophoneFrancophoneAnglophoneNigeria

- Sahel- Hwnid- Hwnid

42,38889,396

104,29793,720

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1 researchindicators. (June 1986).

Table 3.7: Month1y salaries of national agricu1tura1 researchers*

LCV Junior Middle Senior

Burkina Faso (1982) CFA 50,000 ($166)

Senegal (1986 ) CFA 166,000 ($553) 291 ,000 ($970 )

Nigeria (1986 ) N 916 ($203) 1,250 ($277)

The Gambia (1986 ) ($85) ($105) ($125 )

Zaïre (1983 ) ZNational Program 3,000 ($83) 5,500 ($152) 8,000 ($222)l NERA 1,945 ($54) 2,625 ($73 ) 7,775 ($216 )

* Figures are 1ike1y to be imprecise because they are based on personalcommunication.

36

CHAPTER 4

HUMAN RESOURCES

INTRODUCTION

The success of agricu1tura1 research in West Africa is, as e1sewhere,dependent on the quantity and qua1ity of the hurnan resources which aredep1oyed. Of particu1ar importance are the ski11s, attitudes, andcommitments of re1ative1y sma11 national and international groups ofprofessiona1 agricu1tura1 researchers and their technica1 andadministrative support personnel. This chapter has two objectives. Thefirst is to describe the main characteristics of the personnel emp10yed atnational and regiona1 research institutions in West Africa, and to thenconsider sorne key issues which have affected their uti1ization and overa11productivity. The second is to out1ine sorne of the desirab1e features ofa human resources strategy for agricu1tura1 research in West Africa forthe next 20-30 years.

The paucity of data on hurnan resources in agricu1tura1 research in WestAfrica poses a serious prob1em for a review of this kind. Primari1y forthis reason the fo11owing discussion focuses mainly on the emp10yment ofagricu1tura1 researchers. This is not comp1ete1y satisfactory, however,in that insufficient ana1ysis is devoted to the critica1 ro1e p1ayed bytechnica1 and administrative support personnel.

QUANTITATIVE OVERVIEW OF AGRICULTURE RESEARCHERS

Three main groupings of professiona1 personnel undertake agricu1tura1research in West Africa: a core group comprised of fu11-time researchersemp10yed by institutions direct1y under the responsibi1ity of centralgovernment ministries; members of university facu1ties who are norma11yinvo1ved in undertaking agricu1tura1 research on a part-time basis; andresearchers emp10yed by international and regiona1 agricu1tura1 researchinstitutions. The national tota1s for each of these groups in West Africaare presented in Table 4.1.

Central government institutions. Table 4.2 shows that the numbers ofagricu1tura1 researchers emp10yed by government institutions increasedfrom around 750-800 in the 1ate 1960s to 2500 in 1984-85; i.e., a three­to four-fo1d increase in a fifteen-year period. In addition, sizeab1enumbers of researchers have been emp10yed independent1y by agricu1tura1projects. Data on the overa11 size and country breakdown of this morehigh1y dispersed group of researchers are unavai1ab1e, a1though there are1ike1y to have been at 1east 150-200 in francophone West African countriesin the ear1y 1980s.

There have a1so been significant changes in the intra-regiona1distribution of agricu1tura1 researchers, notab1y a doub1ing (from 15.0%

Table 4.1: Agricultural researchers* in West Africa by main institutional grouping. 1983/84

Sub-region and country

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burki na FasoCape VerdeChadThe GambiaGuinea BissauMaliMau ri taniaNigerSenegal

SUB-TOTAL

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

BeninCameroonCARCongoGuineaGabonIvory CoastTogo

SUB-TOTAL

Government

110142823

8185

1557

233

673

5617626203524

20258

597

University

46

72

44125

287

287511

416

5625

611

Regional/Internati onal

13

21

167

57

211

2

15

Total

1691428238

27815

117365

1017

86262

3720

45124

26083

1223

Govt. as ~

total

65.1100.0100.0100.0100.066.5

100.048.763.8

66.2

65.267.270.3

100.07.8

100.077 .769.9

48.8

Uni versi ty as ~

total

27.2

25.0

37.634.2

28.2

32.628.629.7

92.2

21.530.1

50.0

Regional/Internationalas ~ total

7.7

7.6

13.71.9

5.6

2.24.2

0.8

1.2

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Nigeria)

GhanaLiberiaSi erra Leone

SUB-TOTAL

Nigeria

Zaire

1683554

257

739

111

7441

108

223

722

21

175

22

109

4

24293

167

502

1570

136

69.437.632.3

51.2

47.0

81.6

30.644.164.7

44.4

46.0

15.4

18.33.0

4.4

6.9

3.0

Note *: Includes national and foreign personnel with first degree university qualification.

Source: Preliminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricultural research indicators (June 1986), andP. Benne11 "Agricultural Researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Quantative Overview". ISNAR Working Paper No.5. The Hague, 1986.Annual reports of CGIAR centers.

Table 4.2: Five-year averages of full-time government researchers in West Africa

Sub-region and country 1965-1969 1970-1974 1975-1979 1980-1984 Latest year % Total % Totalavailable- 1965-69 latest year

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burki na Faso 9 10 33 120 110 1.2 4.4Cape Verde 0 0 0 14 14 0.0 0.6Chad 20 25 N.A. 28 28 2.7 1.1The Gambia 7 5 10 20 23 0.9 0.9Guinea Bissau 0 0 N.A. 8 8 0.0 0.3Mali 21 37 N.A. 185 185 2.8 7.4Mauri tania 4 5 4 16 18 0.5 0.7Niger 0 13 16 50 77 0.0 3.0Senegal 51 121 148 233 233 6.8 9.3

SUB-TOTALS 112 216 N.A. 702 696 14.9 29.3

FRANCOPHONE - SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

Benin 10 19 32 45 56 1.3 2.2Cameroon 81 93 0 163 176 10.9 6.9CAR 19 22 0 0 54 2.6 2.1Congo 29 29 26 0 50 3.9 2.0 I..ùEquatorial Guinea N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. coGuinea 0 17 N.A. N.A. 35 0.0 1.3Gabon N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. 24 N.A. 1.0Ivory Coast 80 120 N.A. 210 232 10.8 9.1Togo 0 11 0 47 54 0.0 2.1

SUB-TOTALS 219 311 N.A. N.A. 681 29.4 26.7

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Ni geri a)

Ghana 126 137 160 168 176 17 .0 6.9Uberia 28 18 23 35 38 3.8 1.5Sierra Leone 29 32 N.A. N.A. 54 3.9 2.1

SUB-TOTALS 183 187 N.A. N.A. 268 24.7 10.5

Nigeria 192 333 N.A. N.A. 739 25.8 29.0

Zaïre 37 66 N.A. 111 111 5.0 4.4

TOTAL 743 1113 N.A. N.A. 2495 100.0 100.0

Source: Preliminary data fram the ISNAR data base on agricultural research indicators. (June 1986) .

39

to 29.31) in the proportion of Sahelian country researchers between1965-69 and 1980-84, and a corresponding percentage decline among theanglophone countries (excluding Nigeria). This is also indicated by therelatively higher research growth indices among most of the Saheliancountries. (See Table 4.3). Recent trends in the overall growth ofresearchers are more difficult to discern from the available data, but itwould appear that while growth rates are still generally high, there hasbeen sorne leveling off, particularly in the larger countries.

The national breakdowns between national and expatriate* agriculturalresearchers employed by central government institutions in 1970 and1983/84 are presented in Table 4.4. What is particularly striking aboutthe francophone West African countries is that it was not until the early1970s that nationals were recruited as researchers in any significantnumbers. In the Sahelian countries, while there were only Il nationalagricultural researchers in 1970 (just 111 of the total), the figure hadincreased to 477 by 1983, representing 73.31 of aIl governmentagricultural researchers. Similarly, in the francophone savannah-humidtropics subregion, the number of national agricultural researchersincreased from 33 in 1970 to 310 (excluding Guinea) by 1983. In bothregions the numbers of expatriate researchers increased slightly inabsolute terms during this period.

In anglophone West Africa there were already sizeable numbers of nationalagricultural researchers by 1970, which was largely the outcome of activelocalization policies coupled with major training programs. In the twolargest countries, Ghana and Nigeria, 461 and 801 respectively of aIlagricultural researchers employed in government organizations werenationals in 1970. In these countries the proportions continued toincrease steadily thereafter, so that by 1983 expatriate researcherscomprised less than 101 of the total number in both countries.

When expressed in terms of researchers per million total rural and ruraleconomically active populations, the number of full-time agriculturalresearchers employed by government institutions in West Africa as a wholecompares favorably with the corresponding figures for east and southernAfrica, as weIl as south and east Asia (see Table 4.5). If Zaïre (whichhas an exceptionally small researcher/rural population ratio) is excluded,then the West African figure is considerably higher. However, it shouldalso be pointed out that in industrial countries the number ofagricultural researchers per million of the agricultural labor force istypically in the region of 2000-4000, or 40-80 times the aggregate WestAfrican figure.

Universities. Universities are the other major institutional component ofnational agricultural research systems (NARS) in West Africa. While thefaculties of agriculture and veterinary science (which have beenestablished in 16 countries) are of particular importance, there is a widerange of other disciplinary areas in both the sciences and social scienceswhich are of direct relevance to agricultural research activities.

* working for national agricultural research organizations; i.e., notfor international or regional institutions.

40

Table 4.3: Index of five-year averages of fu11-time government agricu1tura1researchers in West Africa

Sub-region & country 1965-1969 1970-1974 1975-1979 1980-1984 Latest yearavailab1e*

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina Faso 90 100 330 1200 1100*Cape Verde 87 100 N.A. 175 189*Chad 80 100 N.A. N.A. 112**The Gambia 140 100 200 960 1440**Mali 57 100 N.A. 500 500*Mauritania 80 100 80 320 360Niger N.A. 100 123 385 592Senega1 42 100 122 193 193*

TOTAL 52 100 N.A. 325 344

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

Benin 53 100 168 237 295*Cameroon 87 100 a 175 189**CAR 86 100 a N.A. N.A.Congo 100 100 90 N.A. 172Ivory Coast 67 100 N.A. 175 193Togo N.A. 100 N.A. 427 490*

TOTAL 70 100 N.A. N.A. 219

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Nigeria)

Ghana 92 100 117 123 128Liberia 156 100 128 194 211**Sierra Leone 91 100 N.A. N.A. 169

TOTAL 98 100 N.A. N.A. 143

Nigeria 58 100 N.A. N.A. 221

Zaïre 56 100 N.A. 168 168

Note: *1985, un1ess otherwise specified: (*) = 1983; (i(*) = 1984

Source: Preliminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1 researchindicators. (June 1986).

41

Table 4.4: National and expatriate researchers emp10yed by governmentagricu1tura1 research organizations in West Africa, 1970 and 1983/84

Sub-region & Country N F1970Total

Nationa1st

Total N1983

F Total

Nationa1st

Total

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina FasoCape VerdeChadThe GambiaGuinea BissauMaliMauritaniaNigerSenega1

o 9NA NA

1 11o 4

NA NA7 15o 6o 103 35

9NA12

4NA22

61038

oNA

8o

NA32oo8

78112018

7174

NA22

147

34 1123 148 285 23

11 811 185NA NA26 4886 233

707971788894NA4663.1

SUBTOTALS 11 90 101 11 73.3

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

BeninCameroonCARCongoGuineaGabonIvory CoastTogo

NA NA NA13 84 97o 22 229 20 299 8 17o 5 52 133 1352 7 9

NA13o

3153o1

22

52 4 56109 67 176

13 41 54*16 4 20NA NA NA12 12 2464 152 21644 14 58

93622480NA503076

SUBTOTALS 33 272 305 11 310 294 604 51.3

ANGLOPHONE (exc1. Nigeria)

GhanaLiberiaSierra Leone

76 879 18

12 11

1632723

473352

161 7 16826 9 35NA NA 54

9674NA

SUBTOTALS 97 116 213 46

Nigeria 242 61 303 80 NA NA 739 70

Zaïre 15 16 31 48 111 0 111 100

Association for the Advancement of the Agricu1tura1 Sciences inAfrica "Towards Trained Manpower for Agricu1tura1 Research inAfrica", Mimeo, Addis Ababa, 1970Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1research indicators. (June 1986).

Notes: N: Nationa1s F: Foreigners*: Figures inc1udes national and foreignersA. Tota1s exc1ude NA: WAARR/Oram ReportSource:1970 figures:

1983 figures:

42

Table 4.5: Nurnber of agricu1tura1 researchers per million totalpopulation, rural population, and economica11y activepopulation, 1985

Region

Central America &CaribbeanSouth AmericaSoutheast AsiaMiddle EastAfrica

North Af ricaEast AfricaSouthern AfricaWest Africa

Francophone SahelFrancophone Hurnid­

SavannahAnglophone Hurnid­

SavannahNigeriaZaïre

Agric.res./totalpopulation

1929132320

41121414

22

23

1513

4

Agric.res./agric.population

4893214430

74162023

27

33

2716

5

Agric.res./economicactivepopulation

155294

55143

81

255434956

62

71

745112

Expatriateresearchersas t total

2.71.01.37.4

30.0

0.213.737.519.1

24.7

48.7

10.710.0 (est)3.0 (est)

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1research indicators. (June 1986).

43

The total nurnber of national and expatriate academic staff members offacu1ties of agriculture and veterinary medicine in West Africa in 1976and 1983 are presented in Table 4.6. Among the francophone West Africancountries, it was not unti1 the 1970s that any significant deve10pment ofuniversity-1eve1 agricu1tura1 training capacity was initiated. However,by 1983 university-based agricu1tura1 science professiona1s typica11yrepresented between 20 and 30% of the total national stocks of thesepersonnel in most francophone West African countries (see Table 4.1).Whi1e this represents a potentia11y sizeab1e pool of ski11s which cou1d beuti1ized for agricu1tura1 research in the future, at their present ear1ystage of deve1opment, most of these institutions are focusing theirefforts on bui1ding-up teaching capacity at the undergraduate 1eve1.

In anglophone West Africa, on the other hand, a network of agriculturefacu1ties was a1ready we11 estab1ished by the late 1960s. In Nigeriathere was a1so further major expansion in university-1eve1 agricu1tura1education from the mid 1970s, with a three-fo1d increase in professiona~

staff between 1976 and 1983. It can be observed in Table 4.1 that, insimple nurnerica1 terms, university agriculture facu1ty members in each ofthese countries now represent sizeab1e proportions (30% in Ghana, 40-50%in Liberia and Nigeria, and over 65% in Sierra Leone) of agricultureprofessiona1s potentia11y capable of undertaking research activities.

Expatriates make up rough1y the same proportion of agriculture facu1typrofessiona1s in francophone West African countries as in governrnentagricu1tura1 research institutions (approximate1y 40% in aggregateterms). In the anglophone West African countries, whi1e on1y around 5% ofagricu1tura1 researchers emp10yed by governrnent agricu1tura1 researchinstitutions are expatriates, this figure rises to 15% in the agriculturefacu1ties.

International institutions. Slight1y over 200 researchers were emp10yedin West Africa by the CGIAR international agricu1tura1 research centers in1983/84 (see Tables 4.6 and 4.7). Among these, lITA accounted for near1y60%, WARDA/IRRI 18%, ICRISAT 14%, and ILCA 10%. The geographica1distribution of these researchers was as fo11ows: francophone-sahel27.5%, francophone-savannah hurnid tropics 7.2%, anglophone West Africa(exc1uding Nigeria) 10.6%, Zaïre 1.9%, and Nigeria 52.6%. It can beobserved from Table 4.1 that CGIAR researchers norma11y comprise 1ess than10% of the total stock of agricu1tura1 scientists in those countries wherethey are working. From a global perspective, the per capita nurnber ofCGIAR researchers in West Africa is approximate1y 4-5 times the averagefor a11 the continents combined (exc1uding China).

HUMAN RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

University training and recruitment. The fo11owing discussion brief1yexamines the extent to which agricu1tura1 research institutions in WestAfrica have been able to recruit the required nurnber of universitygraduates with the inte11ectua1 capacities, technica1 ski11s, andattitudes needed to become productive agricu1tura1 researchers.

Table 4.6: Professional staff members of faculties of agriculture and veterinary medicine in West Africa. 1976 and 1983

1976 1983

FOA FOVI1 TOTALS FOA FOVH TOTALS ~SUB-REGION AND COUNTRY N F N F N F All N F N F N F Al1 increase

FRANCOPHONE SAHEL

Burkina Faso 10 10 10 29 17 29 17 46 360l1ali 53 16 53 16 69 60 12 60 12 72 4Niger 2 7 2 7 9 10 6 10 6 16 78Senegal 6 6 6 6 12 30 93 30 93 123 925

SUS TOTAL 61 39 61 39 100 129 128 129 128 257 157

FRANCOPHONE-SAVANNAH 1HUHID TROPICS

Benin 2 4 2 4 6 18 10 18 10 28 200Cameroon 45 24 4 2 49 26 75 45 16 6 8 51 24 75 0.0C.A.R. 1 12 1 12 13 2 9 2 9 11 -18Congo N.A N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.Gabon N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A. N.A.Ivory Coast 15 18 15 18 33 37 19 37 19 56 70 .j::-

Togo 21 10 21 10 31 18 7 18 7 25 -19 .j::-

SUS-TOTAL 84 68 4 2 88 70 158 120 61 6 8 126 69 195 23

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Nigeria)

Ghana 76 6 76 6 82 73 1 73 1 74 -10Liberia 35 7 35 7 42 34 7 34 7 41 -2Sierra Leone 30 6 30 6 36 86 20 86 20 106 94

SUS TOTAL 141 19 141 19 160 193 28 193 28 221 38

Nigeria 188 58 13 9 201 61 262 443 97 155 23 598 120 718 168

Zai re 34 43 34 43 77 29 3 26 23 55 26 81 5

TOTALS 527 235 20 24 547 259 806 945 347 194 54 1139 401 1540 91

-Note: N • nationals F • foreigners

Sources: 1976 figures: Association of Faculties of Agriculture in Africa, Comparative Study of All Institutions of Higher Agricultural Education in Africa,1982. Parts II and III.

1983 figures: Paul Sennell. Agricultural Researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Quantitative Overview, ISNAR Working Paper No. 5. Table 5 and FAOOirectory of Agricultural Education and Training Institutions in Africa.

Table 4.7: Agricu1tura1 researchers emp10yed by the CGIAR international agricu1tura1 research centers in West Africa1978-1984

lITA WARDA ICRISAT ILCA CIMMYT TOTAL CENTERSOther Arid & Humid &

Year HQ Outreach HQ Outreach HQ outreach semi arid sub humid(Mali) (Nigeria)

1978 91 2 13 21 1 12 140

1979

1980

80

67

7

13

15

15

20

22

1

1

12

13

131

155

--------------------------------------------------------e;1981

1982

1983

1984

76

65

87

97

14

29

18

23

18

19

17

25

23

23

5

6

11

15

13

13

16

14

9

11

10

11

11

15

10

9

2

1

2

171

183

193

171 (exc1.WARDA)

Source: Annua1 reports of CIMMYT, ICRISAT, ILCA, lITA and WARDA.

46

With regard to undergraduate training, the following factors have been ofparticular concern:

The quality of university entrants to agriculture and science degreeprograms. In most of West Africa these subjects are much less popularfirst-career choices than medicine, engineering, law, and commerce.Consequently, agriculture and science faculties have not been able toattract the highest-quality students.

Type of training. Much of the concern about the type of trainingreceived by agriculture and science graduates relates more generallyto wider issues of the role of universities in fostering nationaldevelopment. More specifically, however, agricultural degree trainingin West Africa has been criticized as being too academic, withinsufficient emphasis on promoting skiIls and attitudes that willenable graduates to work effectively for their main clientele, namelyfarmers. Furthermore, in more recent years, standards of instructionhave suffered mainly as a result of acute shortfalls of resources.

The ability of agricultural research organizations in West Africa torecruit the required numbers of agriculture and other graduates hasdepended to a large extent on the degree of competition from otherpotential employers. In West Africa as a whole, agricultural researchorganizations typically employ between 10 and 20% of aIl nationalagricultural professionals, most of whom are confined to the publicsector. In the past the relative size and growth of the universitysector, especially in the anglophone West African countries, has stronglyinfluenced the ability of government research organizations to recruitoutstanding graduates and to retain the more experienced researchers. Inthe francophone countries, on the other hand, the main competition hascome from agricultural development projects which usually pay highersalaries and provide attractive fringe benefits.

In more recent years, many governments in West Africa have had to contendwith a surplus of agricultural and science graduates in relation to thefinancial capacity of public-sector institutions to productively employthem (i.e., effective demand). This poses a potentially serious problemfor agricultural research organizations because they may be required toemploy more graduates than they need and thus lose control over therecruitment process.

Career preparation: The professional apprenticeship. Before he or shecan become a productive agricultural researcher, the university recruitmust undergo a relatively prolonged period of structured training. In thepast, major emphasis has been placed on learning by doing and on-the-jobtraining under the supervision of experienced researchers. Such anapproach is concerned as much with ensuring the proper socialization ofthe graduate recruit as with the acquisition of the technical skillsrequired by specifie disciplinary specializations. The major problem withimplementing this approach in most West African countries has been theshortage of sufficiently experienced and competent senior researchers toprovide the kind of intensive on-the-job training and supervision that isrequired to complement the academic training received with training intechniques of conducting research. This has been further exacerbated bythe dependence on expatriate researchers who, although usually experienced

47

and technica11y competent, have not a1ways been successfu1 in bringinga10ng younger researchers. Expatriate researchers often do not stay longenough to supervise an apprentice or they have discip1ine-based interestswhich are oriented to their scientific advancement in the deve10ped wor1d.

Postgraduate degree training. The postgraduate degree is wide1y regardedas a key qua1ity indicator of the competence of agricu1tura1 researchers.Avai1ab1e data on the postgraduate degree profiles of nationalagricu1tura1 researchers in West Africa are represented in Table 4.8. Inthe anglophone West African countries it can be observed that over 50% ofagricu1tura1 researchers have received postgraduate training, whichcompares favorab1y with equiva1ent qualification profiles for agricu1tura1researchers e1sewhere in the deve10ping wor1d (see Table 4.9). For Zaïrethis figure is near1y 37%, which is a1so re1ative1y high. However, exceptfor a few institutions, these countries have genera11y been unab1e tobui1d up sizeab1e cadres of Ph.D.-1eve1 researchers, main1y because of there1ative1y high attrition among this group. In extreme cases, such as inGhana, the relative size of this group has fa11en considerab1y in recentyears - from 28.2% of the total in 1981 to 20.8% in 1985.

Data limitations prevent qualification profiles being compi1ed for thefrancophone West African countries. One of the reasons for this is thedifficu1ty in distinguishing between strict1y first-degree training (up tothe ingenieur agronome 1eve1) and subsequent, more specia1ized,postgraduate degree programs (M.Sc., DEA, troisième cycle, of Ph.D.,doctorat d'état). However, with the rapid growth in recruitment ofnational personnel in these countries from the ear1y 1970s, a largeproportion of agricu1tura1 researchers have been sent overseas forpostgraduate training, with the resu1t that probab1y 25-40% are qua1ifiedat this 1eve1 in the majority of francophone countries. Furthermore,considerable numbers of West African agricu1tura1 researchers arecurrent1y undertaking postgraduate training (e.g., 20 Niger, 11 SierraLeone, 11 Ghana, 121ER/Mali, 15 Liberia) so qualification profiles shou1dimprove considerab1y during the next five years.

The postgraduate qualification profiles of members of facu1ties ofagriculture and veterinary medicine in West Africa are presented in Table4.10. The re1ative1y large concentrations of Ph.D.-trained personnel inthese facu1ties in the anglophone countries serve to under1ine thepotentia11y important ro1e the university sector cou1d play in thedeve10pment of agricu1tura1 research in these countries in the future.

Manager and researcher attitudes. Agricu1tura1 research managers in WestAfrica have consistent1y maintained a strong commitment to postgraduatedegree training for a11 professiona1 research personnel. At a genera11eve1, this has been based on the view that first-degree training inagriculture, science, and social sciences cannot, except under exceptiona1circumstances, provide the know1edge and ski11s needed for a productivecareer in agricu1tura1 research. Moreover, research managers have on1yhad to look at agricu1tura1 research institutions in the deve10pedcountries, where most of their researchers have Ph.D.-1eve1qualifications, for further confirmation of this view. Two additiona1factors, however, have a1so been important: Where it has been difficu1tto provide experienced supervision for trainee researchers, there has beena tendency to re1y more heavi1y on forma1 postgraduate training as a

48

Table 4.8: Forma1 degree profiles (percentage) of national researchersemp10yed by central government agricu1tura1 researchorganizations in West Africa, 1984/85

Country

Cape VerdeGuinea BissauMali

BeninCameroon

GhanaLiberiaSierra LeoneNigeriaZaïre

Ph.D./T.C.

9.10.03.1

11.514.6

20.217.8

7.726.4

9 9

M.Sc.

36.471.4

59.6

50.439.261.543.727.0

B.Sc./I.A.

54.528.668.9

28.885.4

21.442.930.829.963.0

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1turalresearch indicators. (June 1986).

Table 9: FormaI degree qualification profiles of agricultureresearchers by major geographica1 region, ear1y 1980's

Region 'f. 'f. 'f.Ph.D M.Sc. B.Sc.

Central American &Caribbean 5.5 20.8 73.5

South America 8.9 35.9 55.3South and East Asia 8.8 34.0 57.2Middle East 7.7 9.7 82.6Pacifie 16.3 22.4 61.2

North Africa 26.0 34.3 39.7East Africa 4.8 42.6 52.6Southern Africa 8.0 26.3 65.7

Francophone Sahel NA NA NAFrancophone Savannah

& Hwnid NA NA NAAnglophone(exc. Nigeria) 20.4 45.5 34.0Nigeria* 26.4 43.7 29.9Zaïre 9.9 27.0 63.1

*includes IAR and IAR&T

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tural researchindica tors. (June 1986).

49

Table 4.10: Qualification profiles of professiona1 staff (national on1y)emp10yed by facu1ties of agriculture and veterinary medicine inWest Africa, 1984

Sub-region Agriculture Veterinary Medicine Tota1sand Country Ph.D. Other Ph.D. Ph.D.

TC TC Other TC Other Al1

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina Faso 26 20 0 0 26 20 46Chad 2 5 0 3 2 8 10Mali 14 58 0 0 14 58 72Niger 5 11 0 0 5 11 16Senega1 11 114 0 0 11 114 125

SUBTOTAL 56 203 0 0 56 203 259

FRANCOPHONE - SAVANNAH/HUMID TROPICS

Benin 18 10 0 0 18 10 28Cameroon 33 28 7 7 40 35 75Guinea 34 382 416Ivory Coast 4 52 0 0 4 52 56Togo 15 10 0 0 15 10 25

SUBTOTAL 70 111 7 7 111 500 611

ANGLOPHONE (excl. Nigeria)

Ghana 38 36 0 0 38 36 74Sierra Leone 50 58 0 0 50 58 108Liberia 11 30 0 0 11 30 41

SUBTOTAL 99 124 0 0 99 124 223

Nigeria 350 190 89 89 439 279 718

Zaïre 14 18 15 34 29 52 81

Source: Paul Benne1l. Agricu1tura1 Researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa: AQuantitative Overview, ISNAR Working Paper No. 4. The Hague, 1986.

50

partial substitute for on-the-job training. Where first-degree standardshave dec1ined appreciab1y, postgraduate training is seen increasing1y as aremedia1 measure.

The demand for postgraduate-degree training by agricu1tura1 researchersthemse1ves has a1so been high throughout the West African region.However, the under1ying motives are invariab1y difficu1t to disentang1e.On the one hand, there is the genuine desire by young researchers toreceive whatever training is required in order to become fu11yproductive. On the other hand, there is quite often a strong e1ement ofmore 1imited se1f-interest which can serious1y undermine the potentia1value of such training. Of particu1ar concern is the very high prestigevalue of the postgraduate degree, with the resu1t that obtaining the Ph.D.is regarded as the pinnac1e rather than the starting point of theresearcher's career. Such an attachment to paper qualifications has a1sobeen common1y associated with a progressive esca1ation of minimumqualification requirements which become, therefore, increasing1y divorcedfrom the actua1 ski11s required for effective performance. Whi1e this isnot to suggest that postgraduate training for agricu1tura1 researchers isunnecessary, there is an urgent need to comprehensive1y review the pasteffectiveness of this type of training in West Africa before embarking onany major expansion in the future.

There is very 1imited postgraduate training capacity in the mainagricu1tura1 science disciplines in West Africa. On1y Nigerianuniversities had any significant number of doctoral and master's degreegraduates in these areas in the ear1y 1980s (see Table 4.11). Whi1e theabsence of postgraduate training programs in the more recent1y estab1ishedfacu1ties of agriculture in francophone West Africa and Nigeria is notsurprising, the older facu1ties have a1so faced serious difficu1ties ininstitutiona1izing training at this 1eve1. There are severa1 reasons forthis:

There has been insufficient national demand for regu1ar master'sdegree programs, even in broad areas of specia1ization. The demandfor postgraduate training in agricu1tura1 sciences stems from two mainsources - the agricu1tura1 research institutions and the facu1tiesthemse1ves. Given the sma11 size of these institutions in most WestAfrican countries, there seems 1itt1e alternative but to organizepostgraduate training on a regiona1 basis using, wherever possible,facu1ties which have a1ready deve10ped some postgraduate trainingcapacity.

The attitude of agricu1tura1 research managers and researchers towardslocal postgraduate programs has been 1ukewarm or ambivalent. This isbecause opting for overseas training a110ws greater scope to selectuniversities with high teaching and research standards, which localuniversities (and especia11y those just starting postgraduate degreetraining) find it hard to match. Faced with this preference foroverseas training, there is a danger that local agricu1tura1 andscience facu1ties which offer postgraduate degree programs come to beregarded as "training institutions of the 1ast resort" by bothresearch managers and researchers.

There is often difficu1ty in maintaining the commitment of a nationaluniversity ta serve as a regiona1 training center. Financia1 crises,

Table 4.11:

51

Numbers of agricu1tura1 and veterinary medicinegraduates in West Africa, 1982

Sub-region Fac. of Agriculture Fac. of Veto Med. TOTALand country and Forestry and Livestock

Ph.D. M.Sc. B.Sc.* Ph.D. M.Sc. B.Sc. Ph.D. M.Sc. B.Sc.

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Burkina Faso 0 0 57 0 0 29 0 0 86Mali 0 0 105 0 0 52 0 0 157Niger 0 10 4 0 0 2 0 10 6Senegal 0 0 55 0 0 13 0 0 68

SUBTOTAL 0 10 221 0 0 96 0 10 317

FRANCOPHONE - SAVANNAH/HUMID TROP ICS

Benin 0 0 38 0 0 7 0 0 45Cameroon 0 0 152 0 0 24 0 0 176Guinea 0 0 354 0 0 40 0 0 394Gabon 0 0 8 0 0 0 0 0 8Ivory Coast 0 0 134 0 0 15 0 0 149Togo 0 0 35 0 0 0 0 0 35

SUBTOTAL 0 0 721 0 0 86 0 0 807

ANGLOPHONE (exc1. Nigeria)

Ghana 0 4 47 0 2 39 0 6 86Liberia 0 0 53 0 0 0 0 0 53Sierra Leone 0 0 107 0 0 0 0 0 107

SUBTOTAL 0 4 207 0 2 39 0 6 246

Nigeria 23 148 440 7 44 97 30 192 537

Zaïre 0 0 36 0 0 102 0 0 138

TOTAL 23 162 7 46 30 208

* B. Sc. : Inc1udes Ingenieur agronome/agricole

Source: FAO, Directory of Agricu1tura1 Education and Training Institutionsin Africa. 1984.

52

political problems, or simply the drawing off of senior staff by othersectors (or new universities offering higher rank and rapid promotion)have hampered such concentration strategies in the pasto As West Africa'sleading university, the University of Ibadan was once selected fordevelopment as a center of postgraduate education in agriculture forNigeria and for surrounding countries. However, its senior staff weredrained off by the creation of new state universities, and the absence ofa federally funded research station held back its development. Thisexample clearly points out that the problem of agricultural research andtraining for research cannot be solved in isolation, and any futureinitiative to develop national and/or regional postgraduate trainingcapacity must squarely address these issues.

Overseas Postgraduate Training. For the reasons discussed above, themajority of agricultural researchers in West Africa who have receivedpostgraduate degree training have attended overseas universities.However, there is an increasing awareness of certain problems that arecommonly associated with or exacerbated by excessive reliance onpostgraduate training overseas.

Relevance issues: Overseas postgraduate programs often lacksufficient relevance for students who wish to work in tropicalenvironments. Similarly, research theses are often based on topicsthat are of little direct or indirect value to research priority areasin the student's own country.

Degree of specialization: A high degree of specialization, especiallywhen this involves sophisticated equipment and large teams of supportpersonnel, is often undesirable because developing-country researchinstitutions neither require nor can they support research of thistype. This can result in a distortion of research priorities if theresearcher is allowed to pursue his/her area of specialization orsimple frustration if they are note Postgraduate training should alsoenable the student to adopt a holistic approach to the role ofagricultural technology in the development process. Unduespecialization can undermine this, since it encourages a partial andreductionist scientific approach to agricultural research.

Selection and sequencing: In West Africa, overseas postgraduatetraining has increasingly become to be regarded as the right of everyagricultural researcher, with the result that candidate selection nowtends to be based more on seniority than merit. The selection processhas also been seriously constrained by the fact that the bulk ofoverseas postgraduate training has been tied to specifiedonor-assisted projects. This has prevented agricultural researchorganizations in West Africa from implementing comprehensivepostgraduate training plans which would allow aIl researchers toembark on this training at the appropriate point in their careers. Inthe past, limited training opportunities have often meant thatcandidates have had to wait much longer than was desirable. Morerecently, however, an increasing number of organizations haveexperienced the opposite problem as the result of a rapid increase inthe availability of donor-funded postgraduate training opportunities.Here trainee researchers are sent for training before they havereceived sufficient on-the-job training and experience.

53

Duration and costs: Agricultural researchers in West Africa havetypically had to spend relatively long periods overseas in order toobtain their postgraduate degrees (a minimum of 2 years at themaster's level and another 2-4 years at the doctoral level). Thisproblem is further compounded when instruction has been in a foreignlanguage, or when students have had to repeat years and/or courses asremedial or preparatory training. Others have succeeded in prolongingtheir stay overseas for personal reasons. While there is no preciseinformation, there is general concern that the longer individuals areoverseas the less likely they are to return to or remain in theresearch organization sufficiently long to yield an acceptable returnon their training. This has led sorne West African governments toimpose fairly stringent restrictions on the number of years ofoverseas training that will be permitted.

The cost of overseas postgraduate training has also become anincreasingly important issue. In recent years, total annual costshave been in the range of US$20-30,OOO at most universities in Europeand North America. Even when these have been met by donors,opportunity costs have not been zero, simply because the funds couldhave been utilized for other purposes. Of greater concern is wherethe agricultural research organization has itself financed thetraining, as is the case under loan-funding arrangements.

Overseas training linkages: Agricultural research organizations canenhance the effectiveness of their postgraduate training programs bydeveloping "special relationships" with one or ideally a number ofoverseas universities. Targeting postgraduate training in this wayencourages the development of close links with teaching and researchpersonnel at the overseas institution(s) which provide the basis for amore effective training effort. However, arrangements of this kindhave not been common in West Africa. An important reason for this hasbeen that donor-supported agricultural research projects havegenerally been too limited in scope and too short in duration toseriously contemplate the development of such links. And agriculturalresearch organizations have themselves often preferred to sendtrainees to a dispersed group of universities. This shotgun approachis justified on the grounds that it enables the specifie needs of thetrainee to be matched with the specifie competencies of overseasuniversities in different subject areas.

Recognition of the drawbacks of overseas postgraduate training has ledto renewed emphasis on the need to strengthen regional and nationaltraining capacities; to date, this has mainly focused on increasingthe role of the international agricultural research centers, and inparticular lITA. There have also been increased instances of "splitdegree" postgraduate vraining, where the student completes sorne of therequired coursework at an overseas university and the remainder at alocal university; and, as another means of improving upon thedrawbacks of overseas training, financial provision is increasinglybeing made to allow trainees to return to their national researchorganizations to undertake the research required for dissertations andtheses, which can be based on priority research topics.

54

The increase in the number of national agricu1tura1 research projectshas a110wed more comprehensive postgraduate-degree training plans tobe formu1ated. And, where a donor has been prepared to make are1ative1y long-term commitment to a specifie research project, it isthen feasib1e to introduce more stringent minimum service e1igibi1ityconditions for postgraduate training overseas. For examp1e,researchers who be10ng to the Government of Ghana - GTZ Project atNyankapa1a Research Station must have five years of experience withthe project before they are e1igib1e for Ph.D.-1eve1 training.

In-career training. Agricu1tura1 researchers must receive regu1artraining throughout their careers if they are to remain fu11y productive.This training can take a variety of forms - forma1 courses, seminars,workshops, conferences, study tours, and visits and attachments to otherresearch institutions. Equa11y important, activities of this kind enab1eagricu1tura1 researchers who genera11y work in sma11 groups and aregeographica11y iso1ated to maintain essentia1 contact with otherresearchers overseas and the international scientific community in genera1.

The opportunity to benefit from regu1ar training courses and contactvisits has varied considerab1y among agricu1tura1 researchers in WestAfrica. In genera1, more dynamic and hardworking researchers have beenable to procure the resources from local or foreign sources to fund theirin-service training. And, for those researchers who are part ofdonor-assisted projects, there have usua11y been p1enty of opportunitiesto attend short-term training activities. The international agricu1tura1research centers have p1ayed an important training ro1e for researchers.

For many researchers in West Africa, however, in-service trainingopportunities have been particu1ar1y scarce. Typica11y, they have had tore1y on training courses offered by and paid for by national andinternational organizations which frequent1y have been too genera1 anddidactic to be able to satisfy their specifie training requirements. Thishas tended to encourage the view that such courses and meetings mere1yprovide the opportunity for "scientific tourism".

Experience profiles and attrition.typica1 work experience profiles ofemp10yed in government institutionsrough1y as fo11ows:

From the 1imited avai1ab1e data, thenational agricu1tura1 researchersin the ear1y 1980s in West Africa were

Years ofWork Exprience

0-56 - 1010+

Anglophone W.A.%

40 - 5025 - 3510 - 20

Francophone W.A.%

50 - 7020 - 3010 - 15

55

It can be observed that even in the anglophone West African countries,where the first nationals were recruited 25-20 years ago, it still has notbeen possible to maintain a cadre of experienced agriculturalresearchers. The weakness of these experience profiles has had aprofoundly negative impact on the institutional development and generalproductivity of NARS in West Africa. Most significantly, it has not beenpossible to develop experienced and stable "critical masses" ofresearchers in the key disciplines and commodities. Equally important,graduate recruits have frequently not received the kind of expertsupervision and mentorship which is normally expected from experiencedcolleagues in scientific communities. Faced with shortages of experiencednational agricultural researchers, there has often been litt le choice butto rely on expatriate personnel to fill key positions.

There are numerous reasons for the inability of NARS in West Africa todevelop experienced research cadres. The first reason is high attritionlevels, especially among the brightest researchers who have receivedpostgraduate training overseas. During the 1960s and 1970s, local andregional labor markets for agricultural researchers in West Africaexpanded rapidly, so that the few more-experienced government researcherswere in high demande Many were attracted to the university sector (as inNigeria and Ghana), while others left agricultural research altogether inorder to take up senior management positions in the public and privatesectors. In more recent years, the marked decline in real incomes ofgovernrnent researchers in most West African countries has become acritical factor in maintaining high attrition levels among moreexperienced personnel. A second reason is the rapid expansion in graduaterecruitment during the 1970s and early 1980s which dramatically weakenedthe overall experience profiles of national agricultural research cadresat a time when it would have often been more appropriate to consolidatethe existing staff.

Managers and administrators. While the success of agricultural researchin West Africa depends on the calibre of research managers andadministrators, there is virtually no detailed information about thesecritical groups of personnel. Steps should be taken to rectify thissituation as soon as possible. Despite this paucity of information, thefollowing observations can be made about agricultural research managers inWest Africa.

First, it is important to distinguish clearly between the different typesand levels of agricultural research managers. A rough breakdown of thenumbers in each of the main management categories in West Africa is asfollows:

National and Assistant DirectorsHeads of large research facilities (31+ researchers)Heads of medium-sized research facilities (11-30 researchers)Heads of small research facilities (1-10 researchers)

5035

100120

In addition, heads of departments and commodity programs should also beincluded, but the necessary data are not available. In total, however,probably 10-15% of agricultural researchers in West Africa havesignificant management responsibilities. This is a sizeable group whichreflects the management intensiveness of agricultural research.

56

Second, research managers in West Africa are re1ative1y young, with1imited research experience. Qften the most ta1ented researchers arepromoted upwards into management positions, without having received anymanagement training. The qua1ity of general management training coursesavai1ab1e in West Africa has been genera11y 10w. Specia1ized managementtraining for agricu1tura1 research managers has been virtua11ynon-existent. Many research managers are, therefore, ambivalent andunsure about their ro1es as managers.

Fina11y, research managers in West Africa have been recruited exc1usive1yfrom the ranks of agricu1tura1 researchers, with no sustained attempts touti1ize other types of professiona1s, in partiuc1ar those who havereceived specia1ized management and administrative training. Typica11y,the key administrative ro1es in agricu1tura1 research organizations areperformed by main1y clerical staff, especia11y in anglophone West Africa.

Technica1 support personnel. Three main groups of technica1 supportpersonnel can be identified in agricu1tura1 research organizations: fieldtechnicians, 1aboratory technicians, and station/farm managers. Betweenthem they are responsib1e for carrying out the bu1k of experimenta1activities undertaken by agricu1tura1 research organizations. It isparticu1ar1y surprising, therefore, that so 1itt1e attention has beendevoted to ana1yzing the performance of these groups of technica1personnel in agricu1tura1 research in West Africa. As with researchmanagers, a concerted effort shou1d be made to rectify this situation assoon as possible.

The avai1ab1e data aggregate a11 technica1 support staff into a single"technician" group. This is unsatisfactory, because as noted above, itdoes not a110w us to ana1yze the specific human resource situation foreach of the separate types of technica1 support personnel. Most attentionhas been focused on the adequacy of the overa11 ratio of technicians toresearchers. In Table 4.12 it can be observed that this ratio is higherthan one for a11 but two countries in West Africa but still 10wer than twoin the majority of countries. From the 1imited amount of time series dataavai1ab1e it wou1d appear that this ratio has improved in sorne countries(Burkina Faso, Chad, Senega1, Congo, Togo, and Zaïre) but deteriorated inothers (Mali, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria) during the 1ast decade.

Job eva1uation exercises need to be undertaken in order to assess thetasks that shou1d be undertaken by different types of technica1 supportpersonnel, and the numbers that are optima11y required. This will thenprovide the basis for detai1ed eva1uations of the training, careerstructure, and on-the-job performance of technica1 support personnel whoare current1y emp10yed. Evidence indicates that there is an urgent needfor a new group of more high1y qua1ified technica1 support personnel inthe most agricu1tura1 research organizations in West Africa.

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Table 4.12: Ratio of technicians to research workers in countries of WestAfrica

Sub-region & country

FRANCOPHONE - SAHEL

Researchers Technicians Techn. /Res •ratio

"

Burkina FasoCape VerdeChadThe GambiaMaliMauritaniaNigerSenega1

SUBTOTAL

FRANCOPHONE - SAVANNAH/HUMID TROP ICS

BeninCameroonCARCongoGuineaGabonIvory CoastTogo

SUBTOTAL

ANGLOPHONE (exc1. Nigeria)

110 173 1.614 22 1.628 41 1.523 81 3.5

185 442 2.415 N.A. N.A.77 97 1.3

233 296 1.3

685 1152* 1.68

56 124 2.2176 217 1.2N.A. 30 1.15

50 112 5.635 7 0.224 3 0.1

202 61 0.358 132 2.3

649* 1.3

GhanaLiberiaSierra Leone

SUBTOTAL

Zaïre

Nigeria

1683854

268

111

739

408 2.356 1.5

118 2.2

582 2.2

240 2.2

1371 1.8

Note: *

Sources:

Tota1s exc1ude countries without corresponding researcher ortechnician figures.

Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1turalresearch indicators. (June 1986).Data from P. Oram, Report on National Agricu1tura1 Researchin West Africa, IFPRI, 1986.

58

In-service training opportunities for technical support personnel havegenerally been limited. The major exceptions have been the productioncourses organized by the international agricultural research centers.

Attrition among technical support personnel has also been particularlyhigh as a result of the high demand for individuals with practical fieldand laboratory skills. Clearly. the departure of an experienced stationmanager or field technician can have a major impact on the performance ofresearch activities. Again. there is an urgent need for more detailedanalysis of the recruitment. utilization. and attrition among thesecategories of personnel.

HUMAN RESOURCES PLANNING AND UTILIZATION

Having described the key characteristics of agricultural researchers.managers. and technical support personnel in West Africa. the followingdiscussion will focus on how these human resources have been planned andutilized. Ideally. one would like to be able to draw upon comprehensivesurveys and analyses of the determinants of the performance andproductivity of agricultural research personnel in West Africa. butunfortunately. these have never been undertaken. There is no alternative.therefore. but to rely on the limited data that are available in order toreach general conclusions. Although there is a wide range of factorswhich have affected the utilization of agricultural research personnel inWest Africa. three can be singled out as being of particular importance:deployment patterns; operating resources and support personnel; andgrading. promotion. and pay schemes.

In general terms. human resource planning is concerned with the assessmentand provision of the types and amounts of skills required for theattainment of predetermined tasks over a specifie time period in the mostcost-effective manner. However. there is little evidence to suggest thatagricultural research organizations in West Africa have ever undertakencomprehensive planning activities of this kind. While occasionalstatements and submissions have been made which include recommendationsfor future staffing levels. these have rarely been based on any detailedplanning exercise.

The absence of human resources planning for agricultural researchactivities in West Africa is symptomatic of the overall weakness of theplanning and programming functions at both the system and institutionallevels. Aiso. agricultural research organizations. in their eagerness tobuild up their cadres of professional researchers and support personnel.have generally paid insufficient attention to specifie recruitment targetsand priorities and to the capacity of their organizations to productivelyutilize these additional personnel in the future. However. there havebeen other key factors. The chronic instability of the planningenvironment has effectively prevented research management from makingdetailed estimates of human resource requirements and projects; it isnoticeable that the only major exceptions have been where donor-supportednational agricultural research projects have been implemented which haveprovided sufficient financial stability and certainty of future resourceprovision to enable meaningful staff projections to be made. Lack ofcontrol over recruitment and excessive fragmentation caused by donor

59

projects have a1so comp1icated human resources planning. Withinorganizations, occupationa1 categories based on rigid1y enforced forma1qualification requirements have 1imited the scope to dep10y personnel in amore flexible manner; and 1imited in-house expertise and Inadequate humanresources information systems have hampered good planning.

The dep10yment of agricu1tura1 researchers. The institutiona1 deve10pmentof agricu1tura1 research in West Africa, as e1sewhere, has hinged on theabi1ity to create appropriate-sized groupings of researchers in terms ofboth discip1inary and commodity specia1izations within specificgeographica1 domains. The desired characteristics of these groupings or"critica1 masses" of researchers and other support personnel are theproduct of a number of factors. At one 1eve1, they will vary according tothe type of national agricu1tura1 research strategy that is beingpursued. Thus, for the 1arger NARS in West Africa, where there will be acontinuing need to undertake app1ied agricu1tura1 research, it has beenvarious1y estimated that most comprehensive commodity improvement programsrequire between 20 and 40 researchers in order to be viable. In theremaining NARS where the emphasis shou1d be on adaptive research, critica1masses can be much sma11er, a1though it is estimated that most commodityimprovement programs will still require substantive invo1vements frombetween 8 and 15 researchers. It is important to recognize, however, thatthere are economies and diseconomies of sca1e (or agg10meration) which are1ike1y to app1y regard1ess of the specific research strategy adopted.Most notab1y, groupings of researchers need to be large enough to a110wadequate on-the-job training of trainee researchers by experiencedresearchers and, more genera11y, to permit effective intra- andinter-discip1inary interaction among the professiona1 research cadre.

To what extent have agricu1tura1 research organizations in West Africabeen able to dep10y critica1 masses of agricu1tura1 researchers? Theabso1ute and relative size distributions of agricu1tura1 researchfaci1ities in West African countries, measured in terms of the numbers ofresearchers emp10yed, are presented in Table 4.13. A significantproportion of these faci1ities can be seen to have ten or 1ess'researchers, particu1ar1y in the Sahel (44.41 of the total), francophonehumid-savannah (57.91), and Zaïre (60.01). This proliferation of sma11research stations in West Africa is frequent1y regarded as a direct 1egacyof the colonial period, when re1ative1y large, dispersed networks ofexperiment stations were estab1ished. Whi1e this is true to sorne extent,many NARS in West Africa have been ob1iged (both technica11y andpo1itica11y) to maintain extensive research station networks in order tocover the major agro-eco10gica1 areas in the country. Furthermore, whi1emany research faci1ities are sma11 in terms of the number of researchersworking at them, the majority of agricu1tura1 researchers are stillusua11y concentrated in a sma11 group of 1arger research faci1ities.

The dep10yment of crops researchers by main area of commodityspecia1ization in each country in West Africa is shown in Tables 4.14 and4.15. Re1ative1y sizeab1e groups (i.e., 10+) of researchers can beidentified as working on one or more of the major food crops in sixcountries - Nigeria, Ivory Coast, Senega1, Zaïre, Burkina Faso, and Mali.However, it can be observed that a number of other countries where thesecrops are of some considerable importance have fewer than five researchersper major crop. On a regiona1 basis, this situation appears to be

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Table 4.13: Percentage distribution of agricu1tura1 research faci1itiesin West Africa by number of researchers emp1oyed, 1984/85

Number of ResearchersSub-region/Country 1-5 6-10 11/15 16-20 21-25 26-30 31-50 50+

Francophone-Sahel 23.3 21.0 23.3 13.9 11.6 2.3 4.6 0.0

Francophone-Savannahl8umid Tropics 34.2 23.7 13.1 10.5 10.5 5.2 0.0 2.6

Anglophone(exc1. Nigeria) 25.0 12.5 18.75 18.75 6.25 0.0 18.75 0.0

Nigeria* 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 11.1 33.3 55.6

Zaïre 40.0 20.0 0.0 30.0 0.0 0.0 10.0 0.0

Note: *Nigeria data are incomp1ete and are 1ike1y to be biased towards1arger research faci1ities.

Source: Data from P. Oram, Report on National Agricu1tura1 Research in WestAfrica, IFPRI, 1986.

Table 4.14: Size distribution of agricu1tura1 researchers in West Africa by main area of commodity specia1ization, 1984/85

Number of Researchers

Commodity Number of 0-5 6-10 11-15 16-20 21-25 26-30 31-35 36-40 41-50 50+Countries

Wheat & Bar1ey 4 3 1Rice 15 10 1 2 1 1Maize 14 10 1 1 1 1Sorghum & Millet 11 6 1 1 1 1 1A11 Cerea1s 17 2 5 2 1 1 1 2 1 2

Potato 2 1 1Sweet Potato &Yam 3 1 1 1Cassava 6 3 1 1 1A11 Roots 12 7 1 2 1 1

Cowpea or Beans 9 8 1A11 pulses 15 13 1 1

0'

Soya and OtherAnnua1 Oilseeds 9 8 1Groundnut 10 8 1 1Coconut 6 4 2Oil Pa1m 6 2 2 1Sugar Cane 5 4 1 1Fruit (incl. Banana) 11 8 1 1 1vgefetab1e 13 12 1Cof ee and Tea 7 3 2 2Cocoa 7 3 2 1 1Rubber 7 4 1 1 1Cotton & Ot~er Fibres 13 5 6 1 1Other Crops 13 7 2 2 2

Pasture & Fodder 14 9 5Animal Husbandry 15 6 4 2 2 1Vet. Medicine 7 2 4 1 1Total Animals 17 4 4 2 2 1 2 2

Forestry 11 4 1 1 4 1Fisheries B 11 5 2 1 2 1Grand Total 18 1 1 2 3 1 10

Source: Data from P. Oram, Report on National Agricu1tura1 Research in West Africa, IFPRI, 1986.

62

Table 4.15: Main concentrations of commodity research by country, in WestAfrica 1983/84

Commodity20+

Number of researchers11-19 6-10

Other countries wherecommodity is of majorimportance

Rice Nigeria Ivory Coast LiberiaSenegalZaïre

Ghana, The Gambia, Mali,Guinea Bissau, Guinea,Sierra Leone

Sorghum& Millet

Burkina Faso SenegalMaliNigeria

Niger Chad, The Gambia,Mauritania, Cameroon,Ghana, Togo

Maize Nigeria Ghana Ivory CoastZaïre

Burkina Faso, Cameroon,CAR, Benin, Togo

Cassava NigeriaZaïre

Congo Cameroon, CAR, Ghana,Ivory Coast

Cowpeaand Beans

Nigeria Burkina Faso, Chad,Niger, Cameroon, Zaïre,Ghana

Fruits Ivory CoastNigeria

Cameroon Senegal, Zaïre, GhanaGuinea

Groundnut Nigeria Senegal The Gambia, Chad,Burkina Faso, Guinea­Bissau, Mali, Niger,Cameroon, CAR, Zaïre,Ghana, Guinea

Congo, Benin, Ghana,Guinea, Liberia, SierraLeone, Togo

CameroonZaïre

NigeriaZaïre

Burkina Faso, Nigeria, Zaïre, Benin,Chad,Cameroon, CAR,Ivory Coast,Togo

Palm Oil Ivory CoastNigeria

Coffee CameroonIvory Coast

Cocoa Ghana CameroonNigeria Ivory Coast

Cotton Senegal Mali

Source: Data from P. Oram, Report on National Agricultural Research inWest Africa, IFPRI, 1986.

63

particu1ar1y serious with regard to the pulses, vegetab1es, fruits, andgroundnuts which are grown in most countries but which are not usua11y ofsufficient national importance to justify a major research program.

Unfortunate1y, comprehensive data on discip1inary breakdowns ofagricu1tura1 researchers at the country 1eve1 are not avai1ab1e.

Total expenditure per researcher. Expenditure data for agricu1tura1research activities are of poor qua1ity and must, therefore, be treatedwith considerable caution. Furthermore, since time series data on theavai1abi1ity of operating resources per researcher are unavai1ab1e, totalexpenditures per researcher (inc1uding recurrent costs and capitalinvestments) have had to be ca1cu1ated, which is a much less preciseindicator.

In Table 4.16 the percentage changes in total expenditure per agricu1tura1researcher between 1970-74 and 1980-84* have been ca1cu1ated in both localcurrency units (LCU) and U.S. dollars at constant 1975 prices for thecountries in West Africa where data are avai1able. In the francophonecountries, where there is reasonab1e correspondence between LCU and dollarestimates, there were sizeab1e percentage reductions in total expendituresper researcher in Mali, Niger, and Benin, but large percentage increasesin Cameroon and the Ivory Coast during this period, and virtua11y nochange in Burkina Faso and Senega1. The situation in anglophone WestAfrica is more difficu1t to interpret, since in both Ghana and Nigeria thepercentage change in expenditure per researcher is high1y negative whenmeasured in local currency units but strong1y positive when measured inconstant U.S. dollars. The most obvious cause of this disparity is theprogressive1y serious overva1uation of these two countries' currenciesduring this period. Consequent1y, the LCU currency is 1ike1y to yie1dmore re1iab1e estimates of changes in total expenditure per researcher.

Where sizeab1e percentage decreases in expenditure per researcher haveoccurred, this has inevitab1y resu1ted in increasing1y severe difficu1tiesin ensuring the effective dep10yment and uti1ization of agricu1tura1researchers. Whi1e there has been either an improvement or virtua11y nochange in total expenditure per researcher in an important group offrancophone countries, it is not possible to say with any certainty theextent to which there have been corresponding changes in actua1 operatingexpenditure per researcher. This is because it is quite like1y that theseincreases in total expenditure per researcher were 1argely accounted forby very large increases in the recruitment of support personnel and/orcapital investment.

Motivation: GradinR, promotion, and pay schemes. The genera11y poormotivation of national agricu1tural personnel in West Africa has had ahighly adverse impact on research output and productivity. Numerousfactors influence the motivationa1 needs and responses of individua1s ingenera1 and research scientists in particu1ar. In West Africa the seriousdeficiencies of the prevailing grading, promotion, and pay schemes havegiven the greatest cause for concern. This is not to deny that non­financia1 "extrinsic" rewards (such as the need for professiona1

* Five-year averages have been ca1cu1ated, given the large annua1fluctuations in funding during both these periods.

64

Table 4.16: Percentage change in total expenditures per researcher between1970-1974 and 1980-1984 measured in local currency units andU.S. dollars (constant 1975 priees)

Change % Change %Country LCU/researcher US$/researcher

Burkina Faso -12.1 -1.0Mali -45.5 -53.1Niger -81.0 -81.4Senega1 14.7 -0.3

Benin -74.3 -70.6Cameroon 100.1 150.0Ivory Coast 14.3 39.4

Ghana -54.8 177 .8

Nigeria -57.3* 24.5*

* 1965-69 to 1980-84.

Source: Pre1iminary data from the ISNAR data base on agricu1tura1research indicators. (June 1986).

65

recognition, work autonomy, and opportunities for achievement andself-actualization) are unimportant. However, the material rewards formost agricultural researchers and their support personnel have become soinadequate as to render these other types of rewards of increasinglymarginal importance.

In spite of the lack of data, a number of common problems can beidentified with the grading, promotion, and pay schemes for agriculturalresearchers in West Africa. These problems stem from the fact that mostagricultural researchers are subject to the same terms and conditions ofemployment as apply to aIl other professionals employed in the civilservice. Over the years, most agricultural research organizations havetried to convince governments that the special nature of scientificresearch requires that agricultural research personnel should be rewardeddifferently. However, faced with similar sets of demands by otherprofessional groups, coupled with increasingly serious fiscal crises, WestAfrican governments have not been prepared to accede to these requests forspecial treatment.

Public-sector grading, promotion, and pay schemes are generally unable toprovide the agricultural researchers in West Africa with attractivepromotion and financial incentives throughout their careers. Thus thetypical age/income profiles of agricultural researchers in West Africa arerelatively linear and fIat, with relatively limited dispersion of incomesaround median income values. There are several underlying reasons forthese income profiles: There are relatively small income differentialsbetween commencement and highest attainable salary levels (usually lessthan 250 percent), and this differential has progressively declined duringthe last 25 years; seniority domina tes as the main advancement criterion,and the absence of regular objective assessments of on-the-job performancein determining financial rewards has been a major factor in stiflingmotivation, resulting in little correspondence between the rates of growthof personnel income and research output and productivity; there are only alimited number of major promotion opportunities during the researchcareer, and existing promotions are not generally associated withsignificant increases in income; and in some situations, researchers reachthe highest attainable grade and salary level relatively early in theircareers, with limited prospects for further advancement unless they becomemanagers.

The grading, promotion, and pay schemes for university professionals inanglophone West African countries have been generally better than thoseprevailing for equivalent professionals in the civil service. Not onlyhave salary levels been higher but career advancement has been based onmerit as opposed to seniority. The most important advancement criteriahave been postgraduate degree qualifications and publications output.However, concern has been expressed when these same criteria have beenemployed in mainstream agricultural research organizations (as, forexample, in Zaïre).

Income levels. In recent years, the serious deficiencies in the grading,promotion, and pay schemes for agricultural researchers have become ofsecondary importance when compared with the problems associated with the

66

generalized and, in many cases, dramatic decline in the level of realincomes. This decline has been due to the inability and/or unwillingnessof West African governments to give sufficiently large pay increments tocompensate for increases in the cost of living caused by inflation. Facedwith such falls in real income, the motivation of agricultural researchershas generally slumped. Many of the most able and experienced haveresigned, and those who remain have often been obliged to find additionalincome-earning opportunities so that, in effect, they have becomepart-time researchers. Another important consequence is that donors havefrequently been obliged to offer salary supplements to local researchpersonnel working on specifie research projects which, whileunderstandable, has resulted in the emergence of significant incomedifferentials.

HUMAN RESOURCES STRATEGY FOR AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH IN WEST AFRICA

Human resource development is an integral part of a long-term institution­building process. Given that most agricultural research organizations inWest Africa only seriously embarked on this process during the last 10-15years, they are still very much in the early stages of their efforts tocreate strong cadres of national research personnel. Thus, while much hasbeen achieved already, the human resources base for agricultural researchin West Africa is still generally weak.

The central objective of a human resources strategy for agriculturalresearch in West Africa is the development of personnel in the quantitiesand with the skills, attitudes, and motivations which will fulfill, aseffectively as possible, national and regional agricultural researchstrategies. Since these strategies are likely to be considerablydifferent than in the past, it is necessary to seriously consider to whatextent new types of agricultural researchers, research managers, andsupport personnel will be reguired. Probably the most serious criticismof agricultural researchers has been the inappropriateness of their skillsand attitudes to undertake adaptive research, which requires high levelsof commitment to ensuring effective communication with extensionpersonnel, farmers, and among themselves. In the future, however, it willbe precisely this type of researcher who will be needed in the greatestnumbers, in particular in the smaller countries of West Africa withpopulations of less than five million people. On the basis of fundamentalconsiderations of this kind a human resources strategy for agriculturalresearch in West Africa must be developed.

Human Resource Planning: Consolidation versus Expansion

The adverse consequences of the rapid growth of agricultural researchersin West Africa during the 1970s and early 1980s have already beendiscussed in sorne detail. For most agricultural research organizations inWest Africa, the overriding need during the next 10-15 years will be toconcentrate on consolidating and strengthening the present cadres ofresearchers and support personnel with expansion confined to limitednumbers of specifie high- priority research areas. Only in this way willit be possible to develop cores of expertise which can be effectivelyutilized. Maintaining this commitment to consolidation will be difficult,particularly as the number of university gradua tes seeking employmentcontinues to increase. In addition, the emphasis on highlylocation-specifie adaptive research could

67

a1so generate demands for 1arge-sca1e increases in graduate recruitment inorder to ensure effective coverage of a11 major farming systems andrecommendation domains. Curbing these expansionist tendencies willrequire considerable management expertise and discipline and, in manycases, po1itica1 courage.

Human resources requirements for agricu1tura1 research personnel can on1ybe derived on the basis of carefu11y formu1ated national researchstrategies and program objectives. There is therefore no human resourceplanning methodo10gy that can circumvent the necessity of undertaking thedetai1ed planning and programming of agricu1tura1 research activities.Thus, estimates of future requirements of researchers and other personnelwhich are based on statistica1 ratios and extrapolations (such as numbersof researchers per million dollars of agricu1tura1 gross domestic productor as percentages of extension personnel) are simp1y too crude andarbitrary to be of any operationa1 value in the planning and programmingprocesses. In practice, they mere1y serve to 1egitimize 1arge1yunsubstantiated demands for large increases in the numbers of agricu1tura1researchers, which in the past have had profound1y counter productiveconsequences for agricu1tura1 research in West Africa.

In the first instance, human resource planning for agricu1tura1 researchin West Africa shou1d concentrate main1y on ana1yzing how current1yemp10yed researchers and support personnel are being uti1ized and whatexact1y is being produced. Where possible, comprehensive job eva1uationexercises shou1d be carried out, in particu1ar to estab1ish supportpersonnel requirements and substitution possibi1ities for different setsof tasks. In addition, reasonab1y precise estimates of operating resourcerequirements for researchers engaged in different types of activitiesshou1d be estab1ished. With these data it will then be possible toana1yze the capacity of agricu1tura1 research systems and organizations touti1ize specific numbers of agricu1tura1 researchers and support personnelunder different resource scenarios*. Another type of constraint whichmust be carefu11y assessed is the avai1abi1ity of experienced researchersto supervise inexperienced co11eagues.

Once a11 financia1 and other constraints have been ana1yzed, it is thenpossible to derive detai1ed net addition, recruitment, and trainingschedu1es for each category of research personnel. Recruitment andtraining targets are high1y sensitive to estimates of future attrition.It is important, therefore, to ensure that these are as accurate aspossible. In the past, the 1ack of data about researcher and supportpersonnel attrition has tended to resu1t in overinf1ated estimates.However, given the growing situation of excess supp1y in most of therelevant 1abor markets in West African countries, annua1 rates ofattrition are 1ike1y to be on1y between 2 and 4% for most categories ofpersonnel.

Recruitment Po1icies and Practices

The key precondition for the success of the human resource strategy isthat agricu1tura1 research organizations in West Africa be able to controlboth the quantity and qua1ity of recruits of every category of

* This is sometimes referred to as a "constrained demand" approach.

68

personnel. Assuming this can be achieved, steps must be taken to attractthe most promising candidates in terms of both intellectual capacity andattitudes and commitment. This will generally involve sornediversification in the sources of graduate recruitment with social sciencebackgrounds (as opposed to continued reliance on agriculture graduates).

Selection procedures must be comprehensive and rigorous, and theireffectiveness should be monitored at regular intervals. Whereverpossible, student vacation placement schemes should be introduced so thatpotential recruits can be assessed and, where desirable, steps taken toattract them to a career in agricultural research.

Professional Apprenticeship: Creating the New Agricultural Researcher

Creating agricultural researchers with the skills and attitudes that willenable them to provide viable technologies for the extension services andfarmers is at the very center of a human resources strategy foragricultural research in West Africa. This would entail creating acarefully structured period of professional apprenticeship during whichthe trainee researchers not only acquire fundamental research skills andknowledge but, of greater significance still, develop an understanding ofand enduring commitment to serving farmers.

The professional apprenticeship would provide a protracted period ofintensive learning-by-doing on the job under the supervision of anexperienced researcher, after having obtained at least master's-levelpostgraduate-degree training. This apprenticeship would apply to traineeresearchers based at research stations, as weIl as trainees destined foron-farm research, and would emphasize working with and learning fromfarmers on a day-to-day basis. Doing this will require strong supportfrom the NARS and close supervision by the more experienced researchers.The shortage of appropriately skilled and experienced researchers toperform this role will likely require trainee researchers to be deployedin groups. Management must take the necessary steps to ensure thatsupervisors are themselves fully committed to their training andsupervisory roles.

Developing the commitment to work with farmers and the necessary skills todo so should be assessed before a researcher trainee completes theprobationary periode The initial period of on-the-job training wouldnormally last at least 2-3 years. As noted earlier, the tendency inrecent years has been increasingly towards shortening this period in orderto allow trainee researchers to assume line responsibilities or to beginpostgraduate degree programs. Shortening the probationary periodundermines the advantages of learning-by-doing on the job and does notprovide an adequate period in which to evaluate potential researchers.

Additional training could be provided if resources were made available forshort intensive training courses specifically designed and programmed tomeet their needs for additional knowledge and skills. These trainingcourses could be organized on a regional basis in West Africa, using anetwork of both international and national research institutions. Whilethe international research centers might play an important role, it isboth unrealistic and undesirable that they should shoulder the totalburden. Other institutions will need to be assigned major areas of

69

responsibi1ity. Fina11y, greater efforts shou1d be made to deve10pdistance 1earning training techniques using a wide range of teachingmateria1s and technologies in order to provide continuous trainingopportunities for researchers on their research stations.

Postgraduate Degree Training

Whi1e postgraduate degree training at 1east to a master's 1eve1 isessentia1 for most trainee agricu1tura1 researchers it is not a panacea.The necessary ski11s and attitudes needed to he1p farmers are acquired noton1y at university but a1so by working intensive1y with the farmersthemse1ves. Consequent1y the first priority must be to ensure the successof the on-the-job training process described ear1ier rather than theprovision of additiona1 postgraduate fe110wships at foreign universities.

Assuming that this can be achieved, NARS in West Africa need to deve10pcomprehensive po1icies and plans for postgraduate degree training.Training must be relevant, of high qua1ity and cost effective, andprovided in such a way so to minimize disruption of ongoing researchactivities. Selection for such training shou1d be strict1y according tomerit criteria.

Most postgraduate training needs to be undertaken at the master's 1eve1 inorder to provide the methodo10gies, ski11s, and know1edge which willencourage the researcher to adopt a ho1istic, cross-discip1inary approach,whi1e at the same time ensuring adequate specia1ization. Considerableemphasis shou1d be given to the comp1etion of a research project.Training wou1d be more relevant and might disrupt ongoing researchprograms 1ess if master's-leve1 degree training in the main areas ofspecia1ization were institutiona1ized at West African universities withinthe next 10-15 years. A number of universities in the anglophone WestAfrican countries a1ready have considerable potentia1 to offer thistraining. In francophone West Africa and Zaïre more fundamenta1 decisionsneed to be made concerning the specifie form of postgraduate training •.However, in 1ight of the recent introduction of M.Sc. and Ph.D. programsin French universities, the obstacles to the introduction of these typesof postgraduate training programs in francophone West Africa are 1ike1y tobe 1ess than before. An immediate start shou1d be made towardestab1ishing basic master's programs (agronomy, plant protection,economics, soi1 science) at two universities in francophone West Africa ­one covering the Sahel and Savannah regions, the other the hurnid forestzone. National surveys of present and projected future demand forpostgraduate training in key subject areas shou1d be comp1eted as soon aspossible.

Doctora1-1eve1 training shou1d be provided for the most competentresearchers. The 1argest demands for this training will come from the1arger countries in the region, where more app1ied research programs are1ike1y to be concentrated. ~erever possible this training shou1d becomp1eted within the region. The international agricu1tura1 researchcenters have a critica1 ro1e to play in this respect by cooperating withuniversities on degree research projects. The previous arrangement inwhich a trainee wou1d spend three to six years at an overseas universityshou1d on1y be re1ied upon in exceptiona1 circumstances.

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For the immediate future, there will be no option but to continue to placemajor reliance on overseas universities for postgraduate training.However, the research project undertaken should, wherever possible, bebased on problems of direct local relevance. Furthermore, at thoseuniversities in West Africa where postgraduate programs are to bedeveloped, special relationships with one or more overseas universitiescould be established, to benefit from mutual guidance and even staffexchange.

In-Career Training and Retraining

A major training effort will be needed in order to ensure that experiencedagricultural researchers and research managers also have the skills andattitudes to fulfill the objectives of national and regional agriculturalresearch strategies in West Africa during the next 20-30 years. It isimportant not to underestimate the magnitude of this retraining strategy.Generating understanding and commitment to the new research strategieswill generally require a series of carefully designed national workshopsand seminars, often involving extension personnel and policymakers.Resources will need to be available for appropriate outside personnel tomake inputs into these events. Clearly, there will also be a continuingneed for researchers to receive specialist training and to maintaineffective contacts with researchers undertaking similar research at otherinstitutions in the region and elsewhere to remain current in their fieldsof specialization. As researchers become more experienced, the mosteffective "training" input is not so much attendance at formai groupcourses but rather the opportunity to visit and learn from researchers atother institutions, as and when the need arises.

Management Training

Well-designed management training programs could help considerably increating a more competent professional cadre of agricultural researchmanagers in West Africa. Given the different types of manager involved inthe planning and implementation of agricultural research and the varietyof specialist management functions which must be performed, these trainingprograms will have to be carefully targeted. Wherever possible it will bedesirable to establish national research management training programs,although clearly this will not be feasible for most of the smaller NARS.And, training in more specialized areas of management will also have to beundertaken on a regional basis.

Conditions of Service: Improving the Reward Structure

The proposed human resources strategy for agricultural research in WestAfrica is unlikely to succeed unless there is a significant improvement inthe reward structure for researchers and key categories of supportpersonnel. A detailed survey of the grading, promotion, and rewardstructures in a sample of West African NAjS should be undertaken so thatcomprehensive but realistic proposais can be made.

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While the need for improvement is urgent, the actual room for maneuver islikely to be limited, mainly because public-sector salary policies andpractices are of such central importance, both economically andpolitically, that governments are understandably reluctant to make changes.

The most ambitious proposal is to create new agricultural researchorganizations with sufficient autonomy to devise their own personnelpolicies, including conditions of service. As a second option, a separateagricultural research service could be established within the framework ofexisting public-sector grading and salary structures. A more selectiveapproach would be to focus on making specifie changes to existing grading,promotion, and pay schemes, sorne of which could have only limited costimplications. Such a pragmatic approach may provide the best opportunityto introduce improvements in, for example, evaluation procedures,extension of salary scales in order to create dual-track career structuresfor both researchers and research managers, additional monetary andnon-monetary allowances and fringe benefits, and modification to thegrading structure. In addition, the results of salary surveys of otherprofessional and technical groups in the public sector may providevaluable arnmunition in presenting the case for across the board incomeincreases for researchers and support personnel.

Donors are understandably reluctant to meet local personnel costs.However, in many countries in West Africa this is likely to be the onlyrealistic option if there are to be any significant improvements in thereal incomes of agricultural researchers and other categories of supportpersonnel. One of the most interesting possibilities is the introductionof a system of supplements or bonuses which would be awarded annuallystrictly on the basis of performance and merit. For such a scheme to beeffective it would need to have guaranteed funding for at least a ten­year time period, be applied throughout each NARS so that all agriculturalresearchers are eligible to benefit, be competently administered by localmanagement with relatively limited assistance and supervision from donors,and provide sufficiently large financial incentives to local researchpersonnel. Donor assistance should also be used to improve housing,transport, and other facilities for research personnel.

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CHAPTER 5

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

We have attempted to provide an overview of key issues facing theagricultural research systems of West Africa. While recognizing that eachcountry must be analyzed as an individual case, and solutions prescribedaccordingly, we have attempted to group similar countries and addresstheir common issues. The starting point was the placing of the existingsystems in the broader framework of the agricultural technology managementsystem. This provided a structure for discussing the way in whichunderlying structural conditions, policies, external influences, anddomestic political structures have an impact on the structure and behaviorof the agricultural research system. The paper then went on to look atkey organizational, financial, and human resource issues which must beresolved if national systems are to be effective. It is clear that thereis no unique formula for building national systems. Differentorganizational structures can be combined with appropriate mechanisms toperform the essential planning, management, and linkage functions aresearch system must do weil.

From the review of the way in which research systems in West Africa haveevolved, it is clear that the systems are relatively young and fragile.The economic problems affecting the countries at large can and are havingdetrimental effects on NARS, as financial resources in real terms and perresearcher continue to decline in most countries. Institution-buildingefforts require stable funding and political environrnents in order tosucceed. Donor strategies aimed at strengthening national researchsystems will be successful only if the donors maintain a long-termcommitment. While there are logical arguments for developing regionalorganizations, in the past national governrnents have not maintained acommitment to them.

The nationalization of research in West Africa has taken different forms.The process was immediate in the anglophone countries and unexpectedlyrapid in Zaïre, but took longer in the rest of francophone Africa. Inspite of this, there have been some common elements in the process:

The changing objectives for research in a national context haverequired organizational changes.

There has often been a need to rationalize the system, including theretirement of excessive infrastructure or infrastructure which servedgoals no longer relevant to the current system.

There has been some interruption of linkages with the outside worldand reduction in the flow of information. This is being overcome inrecent years by the intermediation of international centers anddonor-funded networks.

There has been a continuing need for technical assistance, and donorshave increased their support through various mechanisms.

The increasing priority given to food crops and food productionsystems has favored the creation of more comprehensive nationalinstitutes, but the commodity institutes have retained an importantrole.

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This had 1ed to a situation in which there is a de facto fragmentation ofthe national agricu1tura1 research systems. This occurs within ministrieswith sole responsibi1ity for agricu1tura1 research as we11 as amongminis tries with competing or over1apping responsibi1ities. The thesis ofthis document is that it is important to have the various organizationscoordinated for strategie planning, but it is not essentia1 to have themunified within one operating command structure.

A further thesis of this paper is that at the present time it is 1essurgent to have organizationa1 change than to improve the functioning ofthe existing structures. Organizationa1 change is often used as a "newbeginning" which encourages donors and justifies special effort, but it isa1so c1ear that frequent reorganizations produce degradation of the system.

Autonomy of a research organization is often sought as an end in itse1f.F1exibi1ity in strategie planning, as we11 as in the selection and controlof scientific personnel, is essentia1. This does not necessari1y Meanthat the autonomous institute is the on1y structure which achieves this.Autonomy is not a1ways accompanied by the resources needed. Autonomy MaYa1so foster isolation from and jea10usy within the po1itica1-bureaucraticstructures needed to support research. The frequent resu1t is increaseddependence on externa1 support, which MaY be easier to obtain.

With respect to the re1ationship between research and extension, thispaper argues that combining the two functions within the same ministry isnot essentia1. What is important is to define the interface between thetwo functions.

Turning to the evo1ution of funding - both sources and uses - we note atendency towards a dec1ine in the rea1 1eve1 of support for researchbeginning in the ear1y 1980s. This fo110wed a period of rapid growth insupport over the period 1960-80. Externa1 support continues to beessentia1 to Many of the West African systems. There is 1ike1y to be somepressure on the francophone countries as France reduces its institutiona1support to African institutes and concentrates on program support.

Stable funding is important for research planning. Fluctuations indomestic funding fo110w the evo1ution of the national economy. Surges andcontractions of funding prevent rational project planning. Donors onoccasion solve the prob1em and on occasion exacerbate the prob1em.

Research in West Africa is often considered expensive relative to otherregions of the deve10ping wor1d. This MaY be due to the high cost ofexpatriates and the maintenance of excessive infrastructure inherited fromthe colonial era. It does not appear to be due to high rea1 compensationof national scientists compared to the cost of scientists e1sewhere.

Turning to human resources, the region experienced a four-fo1d increase inscientific manpower from the 1ate 1960s to 1984/85. The Sahel hasincreased its share of the total manpower significant1y in response todonor interest. In the francophone countries a significant trainingeffort begun in the 1970s and continuing to the present is swe11ing the

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supply of young scientists beyond what the systems will be able toabsorb. The need to create employment should not impinge on theproductive employment of those already on the job.

There is increasing pressure from salaries on investment budgets andoperating budgets as new scientists, trained abroad during the years ofexpansion, return to the national system. The growth in such personnelexceeds any realistic growth in expected expenditures on research bynational governments. In response to this situation, donors may berequired to protect their investment in training by supporting operatingcosts of the returned scientists.

In this softer labor market, the attrition of scientists is likely to fallas jobs outside become more scarce. Attention will have to be given toupgrading, motivating, and using productively the scientists who arealready in the system, many of whom are young and are likely to remain forsorne time. Increased attention to the management of human resources willbe required, including analysis of their deployment into groupings ofcritical masses on a regional, commodity, or disciplinary basis.

A human resources strategy is an integral part of the long-term process ofinstitution building. Given the changing needs of national systems, thispaper calls for:

consolidation rather than expansion;

rationalization of the use of scientists;

diversification in the recruitment of new scientists, drawing oncandidates from the basic and social sciences;

creation of career paths and reward structures that retain the goodscientists;

institution of professional apprenticeship programs to selectcandidates with a true vocation for research;

training within the region at the M.S. and Ph.D.-levels, recogn1z1ngthat agricultural education cannot be developed in isolation fromgeneral university education and the parallel development of researchsystems;

in-career training and retraining, with sorne attention to managementtraining.

The improvement of agricultural research in West Africa is a long-termprocess. Institution-building requires commitment of resources in astable fashion over a prolonged period of time. Research systems willhave to be developed as part of a larger agricultural technologymanagement system in which higher education of ail types, research, andtechnology transfer mechanisms are improved simultaneously. Nevertheless,while waiting for these major investments to take place, significantimprovements can be made in the organization and management of the humanand financial resources already at the disposai of the nationalagricultural research systems.

REFERENCES

Association for the Advancement of the Agricu1tura1 Sciences in Africa."Towards Trained Manpower for Agricu1tura1 Research in Africa", Mimeo,Addis Ababa. 1970.

Benne11, P. Agricu1tura1 Researchers in Sub-Saharan Africa: AQuantitative Overview. ISNAR Working Paper No. S. The Hague. 1986.

CILSS. "Recurrent Costs of Deve10pment Programs in the Countries of theSahel". 1980.

Eicher, C. and Baker, D. Research on Agricu1tura1 Deve10pment inSub-Saharan Africa: A Critica1 Survey. MSU International Deve10pmentPaper No. 1. MSU, East Lansing, Michigan. 1982.

Food and Agriculture Organization. Directory of Agricu1tura1 Educationand Training Institutions in Africa. FAO, Rome. 1984.

National Academy of Sciences. African Agricu1tura1 ResearchCapabi1ities. 1974.

Oram, P. Report on National Agriculture Research in West Africa, IFPRI.1986.

Report of Research Institutes Review Panel 1980/71, Volume 1:Papers and Evaluation of Individua1 Research Institutes.Revolution National Committee, Nigeria.

BackgroundGreen

Trigo, E. "Agricultura1 Research Organization in the Deve10ping Wor1d:Diversity and Evolution", ISNAR Working Paper 4. The Hague. 1986.

UNESCO. National Science Po1icies in Africa. 1974.

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