This paper aims to address the status and challenges of agriculture research and extension and their linkages in Nepal. Agriculture plays a vital role in Nepal’s economy, employment, and livelihoods, contributing nearly 33 percent to gross domestic product, 66 percent to employment, and 50 percent to exports. Despite the government of Nepal’s (GON’s) priority and policy supports for more than two decades, the growth of agriculture has been very slow (less than 3.0 percent), mainly due to inadequate access to demand-driven technologies and extension services and to inputs, credits, markets, and incentives. Dynamic agriculture research and extension systems are instrumental for bringing transformations in agriculture.

Agricultural plan, policy, and performance; institutional development of agricultural research; Allocation of financial and personnel resources for research; Research management and incentives; Agricultural research priorities and structure.

This book addresses some key strategic questions related to agriculture in the context of major contemporary developments and emerging challenges in Nepal such as the changing role of agriculture with economic growth, structural transformation in reducing poverty, improving nutritional outcomes, and addressing the challenges of climate change. The book also suggests policy measures to improve the delivery of critical inputs and services and ensure the participation of marginal and smallholders in high-value chains. Further, it discusses how the new federal system and governance structure will affect the delivery of agricultural technology and services. The book is divided into five parts. Part I discusses macro-issues in the agriculture sector, while Part II focuses on agricultural productivity growth and its main drivers. The third part explores diversification in the agricultural and non-agricultural sectors by farmers and other rural people for livelihood improvement, while the fourth part deals with agricultural trade and marketing issues, highlighting policy implications and recommendations in the areas of immediate focus and further research. Lastly, Part V addresses institutions and governance issues, which are vital for agricultural development. In the final chapter, the editors summarize and synthesize the book’s main findings and develop a policy agenda for addressing the many challenges faced by the agriculture sector in Nepal, so as to make it more productive, competitive, sustainable, and inclusive. The book offers a rich source of analytical information on various aspects of agricultural development in Nepal and will be of immense value to policymakers, development partners, civil society, students, and those interested in the economic and agricultural development of not only Nepal, but also other developing countries.

This book publishes consolidated information on the soils of Nepal from all possible sources. The Survey Department, Government of Nepal, conducted two national scale soil survey projects to classify soils of Nepal (Land Resource Mapping Project ended in 1985, and National Land Use Planning Project ended in 2021). Both projects adopted the United States Department of Agriculture system of soil classification. Besides, National Soil Science Research Center (previously known as Soil Science Division) of Nepal Agricultural Research Council and Soil Management Directorate, Department of Agriculture, also worked on soils of Nepal. To date, the information on the soils of Nepal is not published in well-documented form but has been reported widely as gray literature (project report or government report) or peer-review articles. 'The Soils of Nepal’ is a part of ‘World Soils Book Series’ which constitutes twelve chapters—covering broad aspects such as soil research history, climate, geology, soil classification and mapping, and soil fertility. Furthermore, information about soil properties and relation between soil constituents of the dominant soil types of Nepal and their scope of use in the context of land use are described. This book also tries to simplify the intricate relationship among soil, culture, and people. Each chapter contains a comprehensive, richly illustrated, and up-to-date overview of the soils of Nepal. We believe it fulfils a quest for a global audience including students, educators, extension workers, and soil scientists, who are interested to know the young soils of Nepal.

This book—prepared by Agricultural Science and Technology Indicators (ASTI), which is led by IFPRI—offers a comprehensive perspective on the evolution, current status, and future goals of agricultural research and development in Africa, including analyses of the complex underlying issues and challenges involved, as well as insights into how they might be overcome. Agriculture in Africa south of the Sahara is at a prospective tipping point. Growth has accelerated in the past decade, but is unsustainable given increasing use of finite resources. The yield gap in African agriculture is significant, and scenarios on feeding the world’s population into the future highlight the need for Africa to expand its agricultural production. Agricultural Research in Africa: Investing in Future Harvests discusses the need to shift to a growth path based on increased productivity—as in the rest of the developing world— which is essential if Africa is to increase rural incomes and compete in both domestic and international markets. Such a shift ultimately requires building on evolving improvements that collectively translate to deepening rural innovation capacity.

This book uates its readers about the methods and management of livestock during disasters. The book has covered all mad made and natural disasters and their effect on livestock and how they can be managed better for longer survival and help to the humans. Topics on how animals can sense a disaster in advance and what are the common indications given by them and how humans can benefit from it. Book elucidates the management of feeding, feed resources, production and health so as to make the livestock production economical. It is hoped that the compilation will prove useful for the researchers, planners and policy makers to understand the causes for the loss of productivity and health of livestock in drier regions and help in devising management plans towards sustenance and improvement of production.

Agricultural mechanization in Africa south of the Sahara — especially for small farms and businesses — requires a new paradigm to meet the needs of the continent’s evolving farming systems. Can Asia, with its recent success in adopting mechanization, offer a model for Africa? An Evolving Paradigm of Agricultural Mechanization Development analyzes the experiences of eight Asian and five African countries. The authors explore crucial government roles in boosting and supporting mechanization, from import policies to promotion policies to public good policies. Potential approaches presented to facilitating mechanization in Africa include prioritizing market-led hiring services, eliminating distortions, and developing appropriate technologies for the African context. The role of agricultural mechanization within overall agricultural and rural transformation strategies in Africa is also discussed. The book’s recommendations and insights should be useful to national policymakers and the development community, who can adapt this knowledge to local contexts and use it as a foundation for further research.

There are fewer grounds today than in the past to deplore a North‑South divide in research and innovation. This is one of the key findings of the UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030. A large number of countries are now incorporating science, technology and innovation in their national development agenda, in order to make their economies less reliant on raw materials and more rooted in knowledge. Most research and development (R&D) is taking place in high-income countries, but innovation of some kind is now occurring across the full spectrum of income levels according to the first survey of manufacturing companies in 65 countries conducted by the UNESCO Institute for Statistics and summarized in this report. For many lower-income countries, sustainable development has become an integral part of their national development plans for the next 10–20 years. Among higher-income countries, a firm commitment to sustainable development is often coupled with the desire to maintain competitiveness in global markets that are increasingly leaning towards ‘green’ technologies. The quest for clean energy and greater energy efficiency now figures among the research priorities of numerous countries. Written by more than 50 experts who are each covering the country or region from which they hail, the UNESCO Science Report: towards 2030 provides more country-level information than ever before. The trends and developments in science, technology and innovation policy and governance between 2009 and mid-2015 described here provide essential baseline information on the concerns and priorities of countries that could orient the implementation and drive the assessment of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in the years to come.

The Global Food Policy Report is IFPRI’s flagship publication. This year’s annual report examines major food policy issues, global and regional developments, and commitments made in 2015, and presents data on key food policy indicators. The report also proposes key policy options for 2016 and beyond to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals. In 2015, the global community made major commitments on sustainable development and climate change. The global food system lies at the heart of these commitments—and we will only be able to meet the new goals if we work to transform our food system to be more inclusive, climate-smart, sustainable, efficient, nutrition- and health-driven, and business-friendly.