Template-type: ReDIF-Paper 1.0
Author-Name: Hall, Andy
Author-Email: hall@merit.unu.edu
Author-Workplace-Name: UNU-MERIT
Author-Name: Clark, Norman
Author-Email: n.clark@cgiar.org
Author-Workplace-Name: CGIAR, ACTS and Open University UK
Author-Name: Naik, Guru
Author-Workplace-Name: Livelihood Solutions
Title: Technology Supply Chain or Innovation Capacity?: Contrasting Experiences of 
	 Promoting Small Scale Irrigation Technology in South Asia
Abstract: The most effective approach to agricultural technology promotion and 
	 innovation is still a source of considerable debate, and nowhere more so 
	 than in the context of agricultural engineering hardware. Contemporary 
	 perspective on agricultural innovation stress the importance of 
	 institutional change and give emphasis to the need to develop innovation 
	 capacity in systems terms rather address limitations of technology 
	 transfer mechanisms. This paper illustrates using the case of manual 
	 irrigation technology - treadle pumps -- in Bangladesh and India. It 
	 identifies 5 elements of this capacity: (i) A sector coordination 
	 mechanism; (ii) a developmental rather than technical organising 
	 principle for sector development; (iii) habits and practices 
	 (institutions) of key organisations; (iv) Interaction as a learning and 
	 knowledge transmission mechanism (v) Market demand as key an incentive 
	 for innovation; and (vi) Policies and institutional innovations to 
	 ensure adequate stakeholder participation. The paper concludes by 
	 suggesting that identifying new sources of institutional innovation is 
	 the most presses task for initiatives that seek to make more effective 
	 use of knowledge and technology in development.
Classification-JEL: Q16, O31, I38, Q21, O32
Keywords: Agricultural Technology, Innovation Systems, Innovation Capacity,
	 Agricultural Research, Poverty Reduction, Small Scale Irrigation, Supply Chains
Series: UNU-MERIT Working Papers
Creation-Date: 2007
Number: 2007-014
File-URL: https://unu-merit.nl/publications/wppdf/2007/wp2007-014.pdf
File-Format: application/pdf
File-Size: 275 Kb
Handle: RePEc:unm:unumer:2007014