Number by qualification (FTEs) PhD 0.0 MSc 0.0 BSc 9.0 FINANCIAL RESOURCES, 2011 Spending Allocation Salaries 88% Operating and program costs 12% Capital investments 0% Funding Sources Government 88% Donors and development banks 0% Sales of goods/services 12% Note: Acronyms, definitions, and an overview of agricultural R&D agencies are available on page 4. Total Public Agricultural Research Spending 2009 2011 CFA francs (million constant 2005 prices) 68.7 34.7 PPP dollars (million constant 2005 prices) 0.32 0.16 Overall growth | –50% | Total Number of Public Agricultural Researchers Full-time equivalents (FTEs) 11.0 9.0 Overall Growth | –18% | Research Intensity Spending as a share of agricultural GDP 0.04% 0.02% FTE researchers per 100,000 farmers 25.00 19.78 KEY INDICATORS, 2009–2011 Share by age group (years) > 60 11% 51-60 56% 41-50 33% < 41 0% Agricultural R&D Indicators Factsheet | May 2014 INPA is the nation’s only agricultural R&D agency. Funding for its R&D programs is entirely dependent upon donors and is extremely limited, volatile, and in some years nonexistent. As a result, many of INPA’s research programs are unfunded. RESEARCHER PROFILE, 2011 RESEARCH FOCUS, 2011 Rice 69% Sweet potatoes 6% Cassava 6% Yams 6% Fruits 6% CROPS 80% LIVESTOCK 15% Notes: Major crops include those that are the focus of at least 5 percent of all crop researchers; 6 percent of total crop researchers focused on a variety of other crops. MAJOR CROPS 100% MALE 0% FEMALE INPA 100% INSTITUTIONAL PROFILE, 2011 The country falls well short of having a critical mass of qualified agricultural researchers. In 2011, INPA employed just nine researchers with degree qualifications and, of those, none held PhD or MSc degrees, and none were female. Gert-Jan Stads, Léa Vicky Magne Domgho, and Simão Gomes GUINEA-BISSAU OTHER 5% In 2011, Guinea-Bissau spent just 0.02 percent of its agricultural GDP on agricultural research—by far the lowest level in Africa (and the rest of the developing world). INPA Instituto Nacional da Pesquisa Agrária Number of agricultural researchers by degree and age bracket, 2009–2011 2009 MSc BSc Ag ric ult ura l re se arc he rs (FT Es ) 10.0 1.0 2010 2011 10.0 1.0 9.0 Total number of researchers, 2011 (FTEs) Growth in number of researchers, 2008–2011 Share of PhD researchers, 2011 (FTEs) Guinea-Bissau 9.0 –18%a 0% Guinea 265.0 15% 16% Senegal 112.2 –16% 70% The Gambia 65.9 31% 9% CROSS-COUNTRY COMPARISONS OF KEY INDICATORS CHALLENGE POLICY OPTIONS The 1998–1999 civil war had a devastating impact on INPA’s facilities and human resource capacity, and was the starting point of a period of long-term neglect of agricultural R&D. Large-scale staff departures over the past decade have left INPA with a critical shortage of qualified scientists, severely constraining its ability to conduct effective research programs or release new varieties and technologies. The total number of degree-qualified agricultural researchers at INPA fell from 11 in 2009 to 9 in 2011. The last researcher with an MSc degree departed the institute in 2010. In 2011, INPA employed just 9 BSc-qualified researchers, six of whom were over 50 years old and who will retire over the next ten years. None of the institute’s degree- qualified researchers are in their twenties or thirties. In order to maintain a critical mass of agricultural researchers at the national level, the government needs not only to recruit and train researchers without further delay, but also to ensure that more competitive salary levels and attractive working conditions are offered to prevent future capacity erosion.  INPA LACKS A CRITICAL MASS OF WELL-QUALIFIED RESEARCHERS Extremely low salary levels, poor service conditions, and political instability are the main reasons why many of INPA’s MSc-qualified researchers departed over the past 15 years in preference for more attractive opportunities abroad. INPA’s current pool of BSc-qualified researchers is simply too small to ensure day-to-day and longer term programmatic continuity. In addition, widespread capacity constraints in other government departments mean that experienced researchers from INPA are often temporarily seconded by other departments, diverting them from their core agricultural research work. This has obvious negative impacts on research outputs. A minimum number of PhD-qualified scientists is generally considered necessary for the conception, execution, and management of a viable research program; for effectively communicating with policymakers, donors, and other stakeholders, both locally and through regional and international forums; and for increasing an institute’s chances in securing (regional) competitive funding. Despite the severe lack of highly qualified research personnel in Guinea-Bissau, INPA does employ a large number of technicians, many of whom have more than 20 years of experience. In fact, INPA’s research centers in Contuboel, Caboxanque, and Quebo are headed by technicians without formal university degrees. a. For Guinea-Bissau, this growth is based on the 2009–2011 period. Age bracket, 2011 (years) Degree-qualified researchers > 60 1 51–60 5 41–50 3 < 41 0 Total 9 Congruence between agricultural R&D focus and production value, 2011 Cashews and groundnuts Livestock Fruit Other Production Value Research Focus Rice Roots and tubers Cereals 17 18 9 4 2 9 42 0 58 16 16 5 5 0 Share (%) In 2011, cashews and groundnuts represented more than 40 percent of Guinea-Bissau’s total value of crop and livestock production, yet these crops were totally overlooked in INPA’s research agenda. In contrast, rice was the focus of close to 60 percent of INPA’s research that year, even though it represented less than 20 percent of the country’s total production value. Given INPA’s extreme dependence on short-term and ad hoc donor funding, its commodity focus can vary widely from year to year. Total spending, 2011 (million 2005 PPP dollars) Overall spending growth, 2008–2011 Spending as a share of AgGDP, 2011 Guinea-Bissau 0.2 –50%b 0.02% Guinea 4.4 34% 0.22% Senegal 24.8 4% 0.83% The Gambia 5.5 25% 1.03%  INPA’S RESEARCH AGENDA IS ENTIRELY DONOR-DRIVEN In the 1990s, INPA benefited from substantial long-term funding from Sweden. However, the civil war and the period of sustained political instability that followed led to the large- scale neglect of agricultural research. Government funding to INPA only covers the institute’s salary bill (representing 88 percent of total expenditures in 2011), so research programs are entirely dependent on limited, volatile, and ad hoc support from donors and development banks. In recent years, only small projects (valued at under US$10,000 each) were funded by FAO, African Development Bank, World Bank, CORAF/ WECARD, and AfricaRice. Before the civil war, INPA managed eight research programs that were adequately staffed and funded. As of 2013, research was conducted at highly irregular intervals depending on the availability of funding. Many priority areas remain unfunded. Research on cashews, for example—the country’s most important crop both in terms of production and export value—is entirely overlooked due to lack of funding. Farmers’ needs require prioritization through a range of participatory approaches that ensure their input is incorporated into the research agenda and hence have grassroots impact. The Guinea-Bissau government needs to be a more active participant in this process, setting clear research priorities and actively seeking innovative sources of funding. CHALLENGE POLICY OPTIONS Underinvestment in agricultural R&D in Guinea- Bissau is alarming. No investments have been made in research laboratories or equipment for more than a decade, and funding for research on a large number of priority commodities is nonexistent. INPA’s (extremely limited) research activities are entirely funded by donors. The government needs to clearly identify its research priorities and allocate funding for the effective implementation of R&D programs. In addition, donor funding needs to be more closely aligned with the national priorities identified. Efforts to innovatively build and enhance subregional linkages also need to be further explored so that synergies and efficiencies can be maximized. CROSS-COUNTRY COMPARISONS OF KEY INDICATORS continued Note: Share of production values are from FAOSTAT. Research focus shares are based on crops and livestock researchers only and therefore differ from the shares presented on page 1. b. For Guinea-Bissau, this growth is based on the 2009–2011 period. OVERVIEW OF AGRICULTURAL RESEARCH IN GUINEA-BISSAU INPA is the only agricultural research agency in Guinea- Bissau. In addition to conducting (extremely limited) crop and livestock research, the institute is also involved in the production of plant and animal material, the diffusion of new technologies, the provision of agricultural training, and the dissemination of scientific and technical information. INPA has four research centers across the country, but much of its infrastructure is dilapidated. The remote centers of Contuboel, Caboxanque, and Bissorã were severely affected by the 1998–1999 civil war and subsequent (and ongoing) economic crisis. No higher education, nonprofit, or private sector agencies conducting agricultural R&D were identified in Guinea-Bissau. ACRONYMS USED IN THIS FACTSHEET AgGDP Agricultural gross domestic product CORAF/ West and Central African Council for Agricultural WECARD Research and Development FAO Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations FTE Full-time equivalent (researchers) INPA National Agricultural Research Institute PPP Purchasing power parity (exchange rates) R&D Research and development ABOUT ASTI, IFPRI, AND INPA Working through collaborative alliances with numerous national and regional R&D agencies and international institutions, Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI) is a comprehensive and trusted source of information on agricultural R&D systems across the developing world. ASTI is led by the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), which—as a CGIAR member—provides evidence-based policy solutions to sustainably end hunger and malnutrition and reduce poverty. The National Agricultural Research Institute (INPA) is Guinea-Bissau’s principal agricultural R&D agency. It is placed under the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries and conducts research on crops and livestock. ASTI thanks the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for its generous support of ASTI’s work in Africa south of the Sahara. This factsheet has been prepared as an ASTI output and has not been peer reviewed; any opinions are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the policies or opinions of IFPRI or INPA. Copyright © 2014 International Food Policy Research Institute and National Agricultural Research Institute. Sections of this document may be reproduced without the express permission of, but with acknowledgment to, IFPRI and INPA. For permission to republish, contact ifpri-copyright@cgiar.org. ASTI DATA PROCEDURES AND METHODOLOGIES The data underlying this factsheet were predominantly derived through primary surveys, although some data were drawn from secondary sources or were estimated. Public agricultural research includes research conducted by government agencies, higher education agencies, and nonprofit institutions. ASTI bases its calculations of human resource and financial data on full-time equivalent (FTE) researchers, which take into account the proportion of time staff actually spend on research compared with other activities. ASTI presents its financial data in 2005 local currencies and 2005 purchasing power parity (PPP) dollars. PPPs reflect the relative purchasing power of currencies more effectively than do standard exchange rates because they compare prices of a broader range of local—as opposed to internationally traded—goods and services. ASTI estimates the higher education sector’s research expenditures because it is not possible to isolate them from the sector’s other expenditures. Note that, due to decimal rounding, the percentages presented can sum to more than 100.  For more information on ASTI’s data procedures and methodology, visit www.asti.cgiar.org/methodology; for more information on agricultural R&D in Guinea- Bissau, visit www.asti.cgiar.org/guinea-bissau.  For a complete list of the agencies included in ASTI’s dataset for Guinea-Bissau, visit www.asti.cgiar.org/ guinea-bissau. 1 AGENCY Government 1