Ecuador: Agricultural R&D indicators factsheet [in Spanish]

Despite the fact that agriculture plays a key role in the country’s economy and employment, Ecuador’s agricultural research system is very small compared with other countries its size. The country’s number of agricultural researchers per capita and per farmer are among South America’s lowest. Ecuador also stands out in that a sizable portion of the time of people in official research positions is spent on nonresearch activities. Ecuador’s agricultural research expenditures nearly halved during 2015–2020 as a result of severe shock measures by the Moreno government to reduce the country’s debt and public deficit. Spending just 0.1 1 percent of its AgGDP on agricultural R&D in 2020, Ecuador’s R&D investment is far too low to effectively address the farm productivity challenges of the rural poor and the issues of soil erosion and desertification posed by climate change. Compared with most countries in South America, Ecuadorian agricultural R&D agencies employ relatively few researchers with PhD degrees. In addition, a considerable portion of the most highly qualified researchers will be retiring in the coming years. The country will need to recruit and train the next generation of agricultural researchers without delay, and provide the necessary conditions to maintain their commitment over time.

Non-PR

IFPRI2; 4 Transforming Agricultural and Rural Economies; 5 Strengthening Institutions and Governance; G Cross-cutting gender theme

EPTD