There is a rich literature on partnerships in agricultural research, which has been extensively reviewed by Horton, Prain, and Thiele (2009). In the context of international agricultural research for development, Horton et al. define partnership as “a sustained multi-organizational relationship with mutually agreed objectives and an exchange or sharing of resources or knowledge for the purpose of generating research outputs (new knowledge or technology) or fostering innovation (use of new ideas or technology) for practical ends.” This definition embraces a wide diversity of partnerships that are often complex and multilateral. It is the working definition used in this review.
The basic rationale for research organizations to enter into partnership is to combine assets and skills in ways that create synergies and enhance the potential size and probability of impacts on the ground on food security, poverty reduction, and sustainability. Thiele et al. (2011) further characterize objectives of partnerships as to: learn and jointly innovate, broker innovations, improve coordination, reduce costs, and advocate policy changes. Successful partnerships build trust, enhance understanding, define roles, and engage in joint action (Thiele et al., 2011).
The need for and potential payoffs to partnerships have increased with the complexity of science, the growing multidisciplinarity of agricultural problems, the broader institutional landscape in which R&D organizations operate, the increasing number of developmental goals (enshrined in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)), and pressure from R&D funders to deliver wider impacts in more cost-effective ways (Anderson et al., 2013; Hall, 2012).
Even just considering bilateral arrangements introduces a wide range of possible partnerships. In this review, a simple typology is used, consisting of (i) partnerships among public R&D organizations, (ii) public-private partnerships, (iii) partnerships with farmers and their organizations, and (iv) partnerships with NGOs. Even within a given type of partnership there is much potential diversity. Partnerships may be for funding of R&D; accessing scientific knowledge and tools; or delivering new technologies to farmers, especially resource-poor farmers. Further, since many partnerships are multilateral and involve several types of partners, the classification of partnerships for the review is subjective, based on what seems to be the dominant partnership type.