Agriculture continues to play an important role in Africa’s socioeconomic development. However, its relative importance varies across the African continent. North Africa has a more diversified economic landscape, characterized by lower dependence on agriculture for income as well as employment. On the other hand, agriculture remains central to the economies of SubSaharan Africa, which accounts for approximately 80 per cent of continent’s land and 83 per cent of its population.

Abstract: This paper investigates the dynamics of public investment in agricultural R&D and scientific manpower, assesses their productivity outcomes across the BRICS countries, and explores opportunities for collaboration. There are significant inter-country disparities in R&D capacity, with China leading in both investment and manpower, followed by India. Notably, China’s research expenditure exceeds that of the US, and India is steadily narrowing the gap with the US.