Towards Evidence-Informed Agriculture Policy Making: Investigating the Knowledge Translation Practices of Researchers in the National Agriculture Research Institutes in Nigeria

This study investigated the knowledge translation practices of researchers in the National Agriculture Research Institutes of Nigeria and the utilization of research knowledge by policy actors in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development in Nigeria. Data for the study was obtained from agriculture researchers and the policy actors through questionnaires and interviews. In addition, bibliometric and content analysis were carried out on documents from the research institutes and the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to gauge the transfer and use of knowledge by the researchers and policy actors respectively. Out of about six hundred questionnaires that were distributed to the researchers in fifteen agricultural research institutes, four hundred and forty-eight usable questionnaires were analysed. Twenty-two researchers were interviewed about their knowledge translation practices and fourteen senior members of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development were interviewed regarding their use of research knowledge generated at the agriculture research institutes. Majority of the agriculture researchers reported that they occasionally carried out knowledge translation activities targeted at policy actors in the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, with the most common knowledge translation method being the sending of annual reports to the ministry. However, the policy actors hardly made use of such reports in policy making either due to lack of emphasis on the part of the researchers on policy implications of their research or non-relevance of the research to policy making. Similarly, content analysis of the ministry’s documents showed that policy actors rarely made references to findings from the agriculture research institutes. Interestingly, journal articles from two of the research institutes seemed to have received a lot of citations from other authors affiliated with educational institutions in Nigeria. The most prominent barrier for knowledge translation noted by researchers was the high cost of translating research knowledge. Hence, this study recommends: provision of adequate budget, incentives and time to Nigerian agriculture researchers to enable them to do KT; and capacity building training / workshops for both researchers and policy actors to boost knowledge translation for agriculture policy making in Nigeria

For Want of Resources: Reimagining the State's Obligation to Use 'Maximum Available Resources' for the Progressive Realisation of Economic, Social and Cultural Rights

This thesis provides insights into, additional commentary on and analysis of the fundamental role of resources in advancing Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESC rights). Its objective is to expand the policy space within which States can operate to fulfil their obligations related to these rights. It addresses a number of central questions about the resource dimension of ESC rights policy, including interpretation of the concept of ‘maximum available resources’ in the context of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR). By applying a cross-disciplinary approach, the thesis investigates legal, economic and public policy dimensions of resource mobilisation, allocation and governance that are essential in advancing progressive realisation of ESC rights. This thesis proposes that the obligation to take steps to the ‘maximum available resources’ for the progressive realisation of ESC rights can be made more meaningful by adopting a broader interpretation of the concept of resources and by taking active steps to maximise the quality and quantity of resources available through public sector revenue, international assistance and co-operation and private sector investment, all of which can be enhanced through institutional mechanisms and processes of allocation and governance. This proposition is supported by an in-depth qualitative analysis of relevant ESC rights literature, interpretive works of the ESCR Committee and Special Rapporteurs, periodic reports of States, institutional documents and case studies, which provide evidence on the current understanding and application of the concept of resources in this context. Based on analysis of multiple sources of evidence on State practice, this thesis presents a cross-disciplinary model of the nature, scope and policy dimensions of resources for ESC rights and suggests how concerted State policy efforts can optimise their impact on the realisation of ESC rights