Recent shifts in public sector control and the trend towards decentralised services point to the error in the assumption that technology generation and transfer are the sole responsibility of government agencies. Furthermore, technology generation was viewed as the sole domain of researchers, extension is seen as having primarily a messenger's function, farmers and other technology users are relegated as passive recipients of knowledge and technology, and the considerable concentration of universities expertise is often untapped or under utilised for technology generation and transfer. This traditional model for agricultural technology continuum has been criticised as basically exclusive, unidirectional, cost-ineffective and rigid approach with little or no interaction among its components.

     Hence, FAO is actively engaged in activities to assist NARS of developing countries in mobilising their resources in a coherent and co-ordinated manner and develop sustainable linkages among relevant stakeholders of agricultural research and technology development at national, regional and global levels. The aim is to facilitate partnerships between public funded and private research organizations, enhance the contribution of specialised and pioneer extension workers in adaptive research at the farm level, and encourage universities to play a more proactive role in knowledge development, exchange and transmission in addition to their traditional role in manpower development.

     FAO’s capacity-building interventions in the broadening and mobilizing NARS resources are delivered through technical advice, case studies, pilot projects, technical consultations and training programmes. Some examples include (1) integrating the role of universities into NARS programmes through involvement in jointly planned research and training activities and; (2) strengthening research-extension linkages by facilitating the information pathways between research, extension and the farmer through VERCON (Virtual Extension and Research Communication Network).

     At the regional level, FAO continues to provide technical and programmatic support to regional research organizations and networks through strategic consultancies and training workshops to assist the restructuring, strategic planning, impact assessment and strengthening the organization’s management and development capabilities. For many years, FAO provided the regional representatives of the developing countries to the CGIAR with briefing material and advised them on the issues being discussed and their technical and political implications on agricultural research and development to their respective regions their represent. The aim was to enable them understand the pertinent issues and facilitate their contribution to their discussions.