This book originated as a consultancy to Michael Lipton (reissued in 2010), in the context of a 1984-5 study directed by DrJock Anderson, and funded by the countries supporting the fourteen International Agricultural Research Centres (IARCs)* comprising the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR).
This ‘Impact Study’ aimed to assess how far the work of the IARCs-which concentrate almost entirely on food production -had been appropriate, technically and socioeconomically, to improving the position of farmers, workers, and consumers in less developed countries (LDCs). It soon became clear that-although the Impact Study could usefully ask how well the IARCs had stimulated national research institutions (and indeed several other consultants reported on that issue) -the joint contribution of the two groups of researchers could not be evaluated separately. Indeed, Lipton’s terms of reference asked him to assess the impact of modern varieties of cereals -whether from the IARCs or from national centres -on poverty and income.
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