Like all public organizations concerned with research for development, IITA aims to contribute to poverty reduction goals in the developing world through improved agricultural technologies. IITA’s refreshed strategy articulates a major target of lifting 11 million people out of poverty by 2020. This paper discusses the analytical strategies for tracking the number of people lifted out of poverty through the contributions of IITA’s Research-for-Development (R4D) initiatives. The paper documents the evolution and underlying impact pathways of R4D programs carried out by IITA during the past 45 years and reviews the literature on impact evaluation of agricultural research. The paper then identifies and discusses the challenges, opportunities, and strategies which translate into a set of research agendas for tracking IITA’s contributions to poverty reduction.

Livelihoods

Agricultural Research; Evaluation; Food Security; Employment

Africa; East Africa

Uganda